Making Sense with Sam Harris
Episodes
#349 — Generosity, Cynicism, and the Future of Doing Good
16 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Chris Anderson about generosity in the age of the Internet. They talk about the new spirit of cynicism in tech and finance, the...
#348 — The Politics of Antisemitism
05 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Rabbi David Wolpe about the global response to the atrocities of October 7th, 2023. They discuss the difference between Israeli...
#347 — Finding Sanity in 2024
02 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
If the Making Sense podcast logo in your player is BLACK, you can SUBSCRIBE to gain access to all full-length episodes at samharris.org/subscribe. ...
#346 — The Best Kept Secret In History?
22 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Brian Muraresku about ancient mystery religions and the possible psychedelic roots of Christianity. They discuss the Mysteries ...
#345 — Resilience
18 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Amanda Knox about her experience of having been falsely convicted and imprisoned for murder in Italy. If the Making Sense podca...
#344 — The War in Gaza
12 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris comments on the recent testimony of university presidents before Congress, along with Elon Musk's reinstating of Alex Jones on X. He then...
#343 — What Is "Islamophobia"?
06 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris discusses the social and political consequences of a weaponized term. A transcript of this podcast is available on Sam’s blog. If the Ma...
#342 — Animal Minds & Moral Truths
27 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Peter Singer about important problems in ethics. They discuss his career as a philosopher, the moral status of non-human animal...
#341 — Gaza & Global Order
16 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Yuval Noah Harari about the events of October 7th and the resulting war in Gaza. They discuss the unraveling of global order, t...
#340 — The Bright Line Between Good and Evil
07 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks about the ongoing war in Gaza, the global rise of antisemitism, and the enduring problem of jihadism. If the Making Sense podcast lo...
#339 — The Infernal Logic of Jihad
03 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Graeme Wood about the October 7th atrocities in Israel, the unfolding war in Gaza, and the ongoing problem of global jihadism. ...
#338 — The Sin of Moral Equivalence
12 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
If the Making Sense podcast logo in your player is BLACK, you can SUBSCRIBE to gain access to all full-length episodes at samharris.org/subscribe.
#337 — The Future of Psychedelic Medicine
04 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Jeannie Fontana and Robin Carhart-Harris about the TREAT Initiative in California and the growing promise of psychedelics for m...
#336 — The Roots of Identity Politics
27 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Yascha Mounk about identity politics. They discuss Yascha’s concept of the “identity synthesis,” skepticism about “canc...
#335 — A Postmortem on My Response to Covid
22 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
If the Making Sense podcast logo in your player is BLACK, you can SUBSCRIBE to gain access to all full-length episodes at samharris.org/subscribe.
#334 — The Low-Trust Society
18 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with David Brooks about the state of American democracy and the liberal world order. They discuss the weakness of moral individualis...
#333 — Sanity Check on Climate Change
05 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Chris Field about climate change and its consequences. They discuss skepticism about climate change, the accuracy of climate mo...
#332 — Can We Contain Artificial Intelligence?
28 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Mustafa Suleyman about his new book, “The Coming Wave: Technology, Power, and the 21st Century’s Greatest Dilemma.” They ...
#331 — A Golden Age for Assholes
20 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
If the Making Sense podcast logo in your player is BLACK, you can SUBSCRIBE to gain access to all full-length episodes at samharris.org/subscribe.
#330 — The Doomsday Machine
16 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Carl Robichaud about the ongoing threat of nuclear war. They discuss the film "Oppenheimer," the ethics of dropping atomic bomb...
#329 — What Happened to the Republican Party?
12 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Bret Stephens about the current state of the Republican Party. They discuss the strange change in Republican attitudes toward P...
#328 — Health & Longevity
02 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Peter Attia about his book, “Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity.” They discuss "healthspan," centenarians, diet and ...
#327 — Transformative Experiences
21 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with L.A. Paul about the nature of transformative experiences. They discuss how certain experiences change the self, the nature of r...
#326 — AI & Information Integrity
06 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Nina Schick about generative AI and information integrity. They discuss the challenges of regulating AI, authentication vs dete...
#325 — A Few Thoughts About RFK Jr.
03 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris discusses Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s recent appearances on other podcasts. If the Making Sense podcast logo in your player is BLACK, you can S...
#324 — Debating the Future of AI
28 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Marc Andreessen about the future of artificial intelligence (AI). They discuss the primary importance of intelligence, possible...
#323 — Science & Survival
22 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Martin Rees about the importance of science and scientific institutions. They discuss the provisionality of science, the parado...
Making Sense of Meditation | Episode 10 of The Essential Sam Harris
18 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we traverse a decade of Sam’s conversations on the topic of meditation. We start with the very first recorded episode from the ar...
#322 — Predicting Reality
13 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Andy Clark about the predictive brain, embodied cognition, and the extended mind. They discuss the structure of perception, nov...
#321 — Reckoning with Parfit
05 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with David Edmonds about the life and philosophy of Derek Parfit. They discuss Parfit’s work on identity, time bias, the “non-id...
Making Sense of Death | Episode 9 of The Essential Sam Harris
26 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we explore Sam’s conversations about the phenomenon of death. We begin with an introduction from Sam as he urges us to use our awar...
#320 — Constructing Self and World
22 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Shamil Chandaria about how the brain constructs a vision of the self and the world. They discuss the brain from first principle...
#319 — The Digital Multiverse
15 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with David Auerbach about the problematic structure of online networks. They discuss the tradeoffs between liberty and cooperation, ...
Making Sense of Social Media and the Information Landscape | Episode 8 of The Essential Sam Harris
05 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we examine a series of Sam’s conversations centered around social media’s impact on the information landscape. We begin with Sam’...
#318 — Physics & Philosophy
01 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Tim Maudlin about the foundations of physics and metaphysics. They talk about the nature of scientific reductionism, emergence,...
#317 — What Do We Know About Our Minds?
20 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Paul Bloom about the state of psychological science. They discuss fiction as a window onto the mind, recent developments in AI,...
#316 — Self-Defense: Reality and Fantasy
14 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Matt Thornton about his new book, “The Gift of Violence: Practical Knowledge for Surviving and Thriving in a Dangerous World....
Making Sense of Existential Threat and Nuclear War | Episode 7 of The Essential Sam Harris
12 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we examine the topic of existential threat, focusing in particular on the subject of nuclear war. Sam opens the discussion by emphasi...
#315 — The Great Derangement
07 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Tim Urban about his new book, “What’s Our Problem: A Self-Help Book for Societies.” They discuss Tim’s unusual career, ...
#314 — The Cancellation of J.K. Rowling
31 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Megan Phelps-Roper about the new podcast series she hosts and produced, “The Witch Trials of J. K. Rowling.” The series is ...
#313 — Apocalypse
25 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Bart D. Ehrman about the prophecies contained in the book of Revelation. They discuss his latest book, "Armageddon," and widesp...
Making Sense of Belief and Unbelief | Episode 6 of The Essential Sam Harris
15 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we examine a series of Sam’s conversations centered around religion, atheism, and the power of belief. First, we hear the stories...
#312 — The Trouble with AI
07 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Stuart Russell and Gary Marcus about recent developments in artificial intelligence and the long-term risks of producing artifi...
#311 — Did SARS-CoV-2 Escape from a Lab?
20 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Matt Ridley and Alina Chan about the origins of the COVID pandemic. They discuss the evidence of a lab leak from the Wuhan Inst...
Making Sense of Free Will | Episode 5 of The Essential Sam Harris
14 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we examine the timeless question of “free will”: what constitutes it, what is meant by it, what ought to be meant by it, and, of ...
#310 — Social Media & Public Trust
01 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Bari Weiss, Michael Shellenberger, and Renee DiResta about the release of “the Twitter files” and the loss of trust in the ...
Making Sense of Encounters With Violence | Episode 4 of The Essential Sam Harris
26 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This episode centers around the specter of violence and surfaces some of Sam’s most controversial positions and difficult conversations. We begin wi...
#309 — Vulnerability, Politics, and Moral Worth
20 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Martha C. Nussbaum about her philosophical work. They discuss the relevance of philosophy to personal and political problems, t...
#308 — The Long Game
11 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Robert Waldinger about the Harvard Study of Adult Development. They discuss the limitations of relying on self-report to assess...
Making Sense of Foundations of Morality | Episode 3 of The Essential Sam Harris
05 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we try to trace morality to its elusive foundations. Throughout the compilation we take a look at Sam’s “Moral Landscape” and h...
#307 — Twitter, Elon, & Free Speech
30 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris discusses Elon Musk's behavior on Twitter and the illusion of "free-speech absolutism." If the Making Sense podcast logo in your player is ...
Making Sense of Consciousness | Episode 2 of The Essential Sam Harris
15 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Filmmaker Jay Shapiro has produced a new series of audio documentaries, exploring the major topics that Sam has focused on over the course of his care...
#306 — Psychedelics & Mortality
13 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Roland Griffiths about psychedelics and mortality. They discuss the current state of psychedelic research, the timeline for FDA...
#305 — Moral Knowledge
08 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Erik Hoel about the nature of moral truth. They discuss the connection between consequentialism and Effective Altruism, the pro...
#304 — Why I Left Twitter
28 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris explains why he deleted his Twitter account. He then speaks with Cal Newport about the fragmentation of modern life. They discuss the histo...
Making Sense of Artificial Intelligence | Episode 1 of The Essential Sam Harris
22 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Filmmaker Jay Shapiro has produced a new series of audio documentaries, exploring the major topics that Sam has focused on over the course of his care...
#303 — The Fall of Sam Bankman-Fried
15 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris discusses the recent Sam Bankman-Fried fiasco, the collapse of FTX, and the future of Effective Altruism. If the Making Sense podcast logo ...
#302 — Science & Civilization
11 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Neil deGrasse Tyson about his new book, Starry Messenger. They discuss what makes science a unique human endeavor, the tension ...
#301 — The Politics of Unreality: Ukraine and Nuclear Risk
25 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Timothy Snyder about the ongoing war in Ukraine. They discuss the effect of Russian propaganda, Putin’s motives, whether the ...
#300 — A Tale of Cancellation
12 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Meg Smaker about the controversy around her documentary, "The Unredacted (Jihad Rehab)." They discuss her background as a firef...
#299 — Steps in the Right Direction
03 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Russ Roberts about decision-making and the nature of moral progress. They discuss the shortcomings of economics as a science, t...
#298 — Leaving the Faith (Rebroadcast)
29 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Yasmine Mohammed about her book Unveiled: How Western Liberals Empower Radical Islam. They discuss her family background and...
#297 — Preparing for the End
23 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with BJ Miller and Shoshana Berger about preparing for death. They discuss the difference between palliative care and hospice, the t...
#296 — Repairing Our Country
13 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Jonah Goldberg about the state of American politics and civil society. They discuss the hyperpartisanship of the Left and Right...
#295 — Philosophy and the Good Life
09 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks to Kieran Setiya about the relevance of philosophy to living a good life. They discuss the existence of objective moral truths, bein...
#294 — Status Games
31 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Will Storr about the role that status plays in human life and culture. They talk about the taboo around caring about status, eg...
#293 — What I Really Think About Trump and Media Bias
25 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris responds to a controversy over a recent podcast appearance. If the Making Sense podcast logo in your player is BLACK, you can SUBSCRIBE to ...
#292 — How Much Does the Future Matter?
14 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with William MacAskill about his new book, What We Owe the Future. They discuss the philosophy of effective altruism (EA), longterm...
#291 — Where is Happiness?
28 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Arthur C. Brooks about what it takes to build a good life. They discuss the power of social comparison, the intelligence taboo,...
#290 — What Went Wrong?
21 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Marc Andreessen about the current state of Internet technology and culture. They discuss Marc's background in tech, the birth o...
#289 — Time Management for Mortals
18 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris presents an unconventional perspective on time management from Oliver Burkeman. Rather than focusing on rote efficiency or productivity, Bu...
#288 — The End of Global Order
14 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Peter Zeihan and Ian Bremmer about Peter's new book, The End of the World is Just the Beginning. They discuss a wide range of i...
#287 — Why Wealth Matters
05 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Morgan Housel about the psychology of money and investing. They discuss how personal history shapes one’s view of economic ri...
#286 — The Paradox of Psychedelics
28 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris shares an audio essay exploring how psychedelics are, for many, the only way to glimpse "the vast firmament beyond the prison walls” of t...
#285 — American Division
24 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with David French about forces that are pulling American society apart. They discuss David’s experience as a JAG officer in Iraq, ...
#284 — The Funny Business
07 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Judd Apatow about his career in comedy. They discuss his new documentary on George Carlin, why so much comedy ages badly, Carli...
#283 — Gun Violence in America
30 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Graeme Wood about the problem of gun violence in the aftermath of the mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas. If the Making Sense podca...
#282 — Do You Really Have a Self?
23 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Jay Garfield about the illusion of the self. They discuss the default sense of subjectivity, the difference between absolute an...
#281 — Western Culture and Its Discontents
02 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Douglas Murray about his new book, “The War on the West.” They discuss the problem of hyper partisanship on the Left and Ri...
#280 — The Future of Artificial Intelligence
22 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Eric Schmidt about the ways artificial intelligence is shifting the foundations of human knowledge and posing questions of exis...
#279 — The Rules of the Stage
18 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris and Ricky Gervais discuss the infamous Oscar slap. We’re excited to announce the launch of the Absolutely Mental app for iOS users. All t...
#278 — The Man Who Will Be King
13 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks to Graeme Wood about Muhammed bin Salman, the crown prince of Saudi Arabia. They discuss the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, the imprison...
#277 — How Does the War in Ukraine End?
03 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Ian Bremmer about the ongoing war in Ukraine. They discuss the current state of the war, the power of sanctions, Biden's "gaffe...
#276 — Defending the Global Order
22 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Yuval Noah Harari about the wider implications of Russia’s war of conquest in Ukraine. They discuss different forms of war, P...
#275 — The Russian War in Ukraine
10 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Garry Kasparov about Putin’s war of aggression in Ukraine. They discuss Putin’s larger objectives, the perception of the wa...
Absolutely Mental Season 3
02 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam shares an episode from the third season of Absolutely Mental, his audio series with Ricky Gervais. All 10 episodes have been released today (Wedne...
Special Episode: Recipes for Future Plagues
28 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of the podcast, Rob Reid and Kevin Esvelt discuss USAID’s new “Deep VZN” program, which aims to discover new pandemic-grade viru...
#274 — The Future of American Democracy
11 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Anne Applebaum, David Frum, Barton Gellman, and George Packer about the ongoing threat to American democracy posed by Republica...
#273 — Joe Rogan and the Ethics of Apology
07 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam responds to the controversy over his friend Joe Rogan's use of the N-word and his subsequent public apology. If the Making Sense podcast logo in y...
Vaccine Mandates, transgender athletes, billionaires… (AMA #19)
31 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Questions: What is your position on vaccine mandates, school closures, etc.? Do you think painful memories remain painful because there is something l...
#272 — On Disappointing My Audience
11 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sam discusses some of the topics he has and hasn't covered, to the disappointment of many Making Sense listeners. If the Making Sense podcast logo in ...
#271 — Earning to Give
24 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of the podcast, Sam Harris speaks with Sam Bankman-Fried about effective altruism. They discuss how he became the wealthiest self-made...
#270 — What Have We Learned from the Pandemic?
14 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Nicholas Christakis about the lessons of the COVID pandemic. They discuss our failures to coordinate an effective response, the...
#269 — Deep Time
03 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Oliver Burkeman about our relationship to time. They discuss the perils of efficiency, being vs becoming, the illusion of time ...
#268 — The Limits of Self-Knowledge
24 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Stephen Fleming about the neuroscience of self-awareness. They discuss the nature and limits of metacognition, the relationship...
#267 — The Kingdom of Sleep
10 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Matthew Walker about the nature and importance of sleep. They discuss sleep and consciousness, the stages of sleep, sleep regul...
#266 — The Limits of Pleasure
02 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Paul Bloom about the role that pain and suffering play in living a good life. They discuss the limitations of hedonism, the con...
#265 — The Religion of Anti-Racism
27 Oct 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with John McWhorter about his new book “Woke Racism: How a New Religion has Betrayed Black America.” They discuss how the “soc...
#264 — Consciousness and Self (Rebroadcast)
21 Oct 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris speaks with Anil Seth about the scientific study of consciousness, where consciousness emerges in nature, levels of consciousness, percepti...
#263 — The Paradox of Death
18 Oct 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Harris reflects on the subjective continuity of consciousness, the nature of identity, and the possibility that death isn’t the end of experienc...