Steve Hsu: How We Learned, Then Forgot, About Human Intelligence

Steve Hsu is a professor of theoretical physics and professor of computational mathematics, science, and engineering at Michigan State University, as well as the former VP of Research. He was the founder of digital security companies Safeweb, acquired by Symantec, and Robot Genius, as well as genomics startups Othram and Genomic Prediction. He writes the blog Information Processing. In this podcast, we discuss the history and politics of academia, individual differences in intelligence and athleticism, our experiences with high level mathematics, statistics as an anti-meme, the tension between merit and ideology, math education, theory of mind, differences between the Midwestern and immigrant suburb schools where Steve and I grew up, respectively, and informal networks as alternative credentials. Steve Hsu on Twitter: https://twitter.com/hsu_steve Information Processing: https://infoproc.blogspot.com/On wordcels: https://infoproc.blogspot.com/2022/02/annals-of-psychometry-wordcels-and.html Bounded cognition (statistics and innumeracy): https://infoproc.blogspot.com/2007/10/bounded-cognition.html Creators and Rulers: https://infoproc.blogspot.com/2009/08/creators-and-rulers.html Quantum GDP: https://infoproc.blogspot.com/2014/12/quantum-gdp.html Terman studies: Volume 1-3: https://www.amazon.com/Genetic-Studies-Genius-Vol-III/dp/B001LD3MKA Volume 4: https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1947-15005-000 Volume 5: https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1959-07905-000 Wordcels and Shape Rotators: https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/cultures/wordcel-shape-rotator-mathcel Death’s End, by Liu Cixin: https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/0765377101?ref_=dbs_m_mng_rwt_calw_thcv_2&storeType=ebooks Timestamps: 3:24 Interview Starts 15:49 Cactus' Experience with High Math People 19:49 High School Sports 21:26 Comparison to Intelligence 26:29 Is Lack of Understanding due to Denial or Ignorance? 29:29 The Past and Present of Selection in Academia 37:02 How Universities Look from the Inside 44:19 Informal Networks Replacing Credentials 48:37 Capture of Research Positions 50:24 Progressivism as Demagoguery Against the Self-Made 55:31 Innumeracy is Common 1:06:53 Understanding Innumerate People 1:13:53 Skill Alignment at Cactus' High School 1:18:12 Free Speech in Academia 1:21:00 You Shouldn't Fire Exceptional People 1:23:03 The Anti-Excellence Progressives 1:28:42 Rawls, Nozick, and Technology 1:34:00 Freedom = Variance = Inequality 1:37:58 Dating Apps 1:41:27 Jumping Into Social Problems From a Technical Background 1:41:50 Steve's High School Pranks 1:46:43 996 and Cactus' High School 1:50:26 The Vietnam War and Social Change 1:53:07 Are Podcasts the Future? 1:59:37 The Power of New Things 2:02:56 The Birth of Twitter 2:07:27 Selection Creates Quality 2:10:21 Incentives of University Departments 2:16:29 Woke Bureaucrats 2:27:59 Building a New University 2:30:42 What needs more order? 2:31:56 What needs more chaos? This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.fromthenew.world/subscribe