How does electricity running through meat give rise to consciousness? Science excels at explaining the physical phenomena of our universe, but it seems to run into a philosophical boundary when it tries to explain how physical, neurological processes give rise to subjective phenomena.

In this episode, we explore the different scientific and philosophical positions on just how consciousness works. This is an extremely exciting field at the forefront of human knowledge, pulling both science and philosophy together and attracting some of the sharpest intellects around. It's very fun getting to talk about it! Enjoy :)

NB: This video was recorded about 9 months before upload

Eeeeeevery rando online has a take on this, and currently we're being bombarded by manosphere influencers all dressing up their opinions as fact. But what does the actual evidence say? There's a huge amount of evidence on what really gets us ahead in life. If you want to base your worldview on actual psychology, sociology, and anthropology, this video is made for you!

NB: This video was recorded about 9 months before upload

Welcome back! This episodes focuses on State Formation Theory, a political-sociological theory developed by Charles Tilly and expanded by Jeffrey Herbst; these are the two main experts whose work I draw on for this video. Through the lens of this theory, we set out to answer the titular question via a structural analysis of what makes a state work. Enjoy!

Neoliberalism is a word which you may not have heard of- but its power probably affects every part of your life. Neoliberalism = liberal democracy (generally seen as good) + free market economics; but what does that really mean? What are the consequences of neoliberalism? How does it affect economies, societies, politics, and people?

This is one of the single most important questions out there right now, because for voters to make a better world for themselves they need to know what ideologies they're voting for. Educating yourself on what neoliberalism is and what parties support it can make the difference between you living in a better world or a worse one.

But of course, this is all very politically hot territory. Every person, paper, and influencer has an opinion on the economy, but without any evidence behind it it's just a random person's opinion. At Polymath, we do things a little differently. This video is a summary of the academic literature about neoliberalism- I'm presenting you with the facts, so you can make your own decisions. Enjoy!

Stress! We all feel it as a normal part of life, and you may be feeling it right now. But what actually IS it? Where in the brain does it come from? How does it link to the body? What are the effects of it? And how can we get rid of it?

We'll be looking at all this stuff and more this episode, so tune in and enjoy

How many genders are there- probably one of the most hotly debated topics right now. Everywhere you look, people bombard you with their opinions and political biases- but you deserve something better. Because the question of how many genders there are is something we've actually known already for years; it's just tucked away in the academic literatures of biology and sociology where online influencers never bother to look.

And it's actually shockingly simple- once you understand the real, scientific definitions of both sex and gender, the whole debate melts away. Today, we'll be exploring that literature- and showing you how to find it so you never have take some random influencer's word for it again.

This is, of course, a very delicate topic. But in Polymath, I will never try to tell you what to think, or try to spoonfeed you- I want to just present to you the facts, and let you make that decision yourself. Enjoy!

Anarchism! It's one of the most famous and hotly debated words out there- but what actually is it?

More specifically- what do anarchists want? Is it a world with no rules? Has anarchism ever been tried? How does the economy work? Is anarchism democratic? What, essentially, does anarchism REALLY stand for?

There's so much misinformation on anarchism online, but you deserve a video that isn't just some guy ranting about his own political beliefs. My 'agenda' is always only to give you genuine information based on the academic literature- and let you form your own opinions.

I actually made a massive anarchism video a while back, and if you want to check that out it's just Episode 19 on my channel- but this is a concise, accessible version which you can comfortably listen to in the background. Enjoy!

Is suffering built in? Is the universe a purposeless void? Or is negativity a product of human actions? Most importantly- how do we make life better for ourselves?

Welcome back to Polymath! This episode explores all these deep questions; but as usual, it's not just a 'hot take' from some rando online. Rather, I want to delve into a fascinating scholarly debate on all this by two thinkers- Steven Pinker and Eckhart Tolle (yes, those are their real names!).

Along the way, we'll be critically evaluating their positions with real evidence and scholarship from psychology. We'll be going through what the literature actually says about cosmic truths, human nature, and the improvement of the human condition- so you're getting all the accurate, comprehensive info you need. Enjoy!