QAA Podcast

A deep dive into cases where chatbots seemingly triggered or amplified psychosis and delusional thinking. They trace chatbot empathy from Eliza to modern models and explore why affirmation from AI can be uniquely dangerous. The conversation covers model safety performance, real-world incidents of harm, and whether companies and regulators are doing enough to prevent these risks.

A dive into John C. Lilly’s controversial dolphin research and the 1960s push to find nonhuman intelligence. The Green Bank SETI scene and the secretive “Order of the Dolphin” get covered. Accounts of Marineland experiments, whale brain work, vocalization trials, and psychedelic-era science appear. Cultural fallout includes New Age dolphin mania and Cold War funding quirks.

Josef Burton, a former U.S. diplomat who worked on Iranian and Afghan immigration and studies diaspora politics, explains modern Pahlavism. He traces its rise from exile nostalgia to a social-media, media outlet, and lobby-driven movement. The conversation hits its QAnon-like online culture, funding and media catalysts, doxxing and violence risks, and the movement’s post-war fragmentation and spectacle.

Mike Rothschild, a researcher who tracks online conspiracy movements, breaks down the recent stir about missing scientists. He traces how one strange disappearance ballooned into a linked list, explores political attention driven by audience pressure, and places the trend in a long history of list-based conspiracy thinking. Short, sharp, and skeptical.

Ben Collins, CEO of The Onion and former NBC reporter who covered disinformation, discusses The Onion's licensing deal for InfoWars. He outlines plans to repurpose the brand into overt satire. Conversation covers rights acquired, accountability for Sandy Hook families, Tim Heidecker's creative role, platform and distribution strategy, and long-term creative vision.

Two longtime collaborators finally meet in real life and take on Coachella chaos. They poke fun at festival fashion, food prices and the surreal Palm Springs vibe. Conspiracy-minded influencer antics and bizarre skywriting get roasted. Environmental and cultural quirks of the desert resort scene spark lively debate.

A deep dive into modern de-extinction hype and the PR machinery behind bold revival claims. They unpack cloning, CRISPR and back-breeding methods and question scientific transparency. The conversation exposes tech-founder arrogance, celebrity investors, and cozy political ties. They worry that biotech promise could undermine real conservation and regulatory protections.

A dive into why elites form ever more exclusive clubs and what draws billionaires to secrecy. A look at historical rituals and theories that link secret societies to control of surplus. Connections between modern surveillance, elite fantasy, and ritualistic spaces are explored. The conversation also examines cultural echoes of secrecy in institutions and media.

A dark history of attempts to reverse domestication and recreate extinct animals through selective breeding and genetics. The story of the Heck brothers and their Nazi-era aurochs project is unpacked alongside mid-century experiments like Russian fox domestication. Modern backbreeding, genomic revival projects, and the debate over functional versus genetic authenticity are also explored.

A deep dive into what alternative home education centres in the UK are actually teaching. Exploration of one Sussex community’s activities, from forest-school outings to polytunnel gardening. A look at limited access, guarded responses from founders, and a controversial tour given to an outsider. Light banter and cultural context frame the investigation.