#149 – Diana Walsh Pasulka: Aliens, Technology, Religion, and the Nature of Belief

About this episode

<p>Diana Walsh Pasulka is a professor of philosophy and religion at UNCW and author of American Cosmic: UFOs, Religion, and Technology. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors:<br /> &#8211; <b>LMNT</b>: <a href="https://drinkLMNT.com/lex">https://drinkLMNT.com/lex</a> to get free shipping<br /> &#8211; <b>Grammarly</b>: <a href="https://grammarly.com/lex">https://grammarly.com/lex</a> to get 20% off premium<br /> &#8211; <b>Business Wars</b>: <a href="https://wondery.com/business-wars/">https://wondery.com/business-wars/</a><br /> &#8211; <b>Cash App</b>: <a href="https://cash.app/">https://cash.app/</a> and use code LexPodcast to get $10</p> <p><b>EPISODE LINKS:</b><br /> Diana&#8217;s Website: <a href="https://uncw.edu/par/faculty/faculty-pasulka.html">https://uncw.edu/par/faculty/faculty-pasulka.html</a><br /> American Cosmic (book): <a href="https://amzn.to/3aK2kaj">https://amzn.to/3aK2kaj</a></p> <p><b>PODCAST INFO:</b><br /> Podcast website: <a href="https://lexfridman.com/podcast">https://lexfridman.com/podcast</a><br /> Apple Podcasts: <a href="https://apple.co/2lwqZIr">https://apple.co/2lwqZIr</a><br /> Spotify: <a href="https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8">https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8</a><br /> RSS: <a href="https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/">https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/</a><br /> YouTube Full Episodes: <a href="https://youtube.com/lexfridman">https://youtube.com/lexfridman</a><br /> YouTube Clips: <a href="https://youtube.com/lexclips">https://youtube.com/lexclips</a></p> <p><b>SUPPORT &#38; CONNECT:</b><br /> &#8211; Check out the sponsors above, it&#8217;s the best way to support this podcast<br /> &#8211; Support on Patreon: <a href="https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman">https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman</a><br /> &#8211; Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/lexfridman">https://twitter.com/lexfridman</a><br /> &#8211; Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman">https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman</a><br /> &#8211; LinkedIn: <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman">https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman</a><br /> &#8211; Facebook: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/LexFridmanPage">https://www.facebook.com/LexFridmanPage</a><br /> &#8211; Medium: <a href="https://medium.com/@lexfridman">https://medium.com/@lexfridman</a></p> <p><b>OUTLINE:</b><br /> Here&#8217;s the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time.<br /> (00:00) &#8211; Introduction<br /> (08:28) &#8211; What is real?<br /> (13:56) &#8211; Can beliefs become reality?<br /> (18:59) &#8211; Donald Hoffman<br /> (22:57) &#8211; Immanuel Kant&#8217;s Critique of Pure Reason<br /> (26:27) &#8211; Ayn Rand<br /> (33:25) &#8211; How do religions start?<br /> (48:38) &#8211; Religion is an evolutionary advantage<br /> (53:59) &#8211; Religion used in propaganda<br /> (58:32) &#8211; What did Nietzsche mean by &#8220;God is Dead&#8221;?<br /> (1:03:59) &#8211; American Cosmic<br /> (1:07:45) &#8211; What do aliens look like?<br /> (1:16:28) &#8211; History of space programs<br /> (1:19:30) &#8211; Jacques Vallee<br /> (1:28:55) &#8211; Artificial intelligence<br /> (1:34:25) &#8211; Ufology community<br /> (1:45:38) &#8211; Psychedelics<br /> (1:49:35) &#8211; Tic Tac UFO<br /> (1:58:09) &#8211; Roswell UFO incident<br /> (2:09:14) &#8211; Bob Lazar<br /> (2:12:50) &#8211; Monoliths in the desert<br /> (2:23:39) &#8211; Humans will co-evolve with AI<br /> (2:26:58) &#8211; Neuralink<br /> (2:31:48) &#8211; Singularity<br /> (2:41:39) &#8211; Books: Nietzsche<br /> (2:46:44) &#8211; Books: Hannah Arendt<br /> (2:51:43) &#8211; Fear of death<br /> (2:56:11) &#8211; Meaning of life</p>