Sam Arbesman — Science, Complexity and Humanistic Computation (EP.277)
Release Date: 07/31/2025
George Mack — The Game of Life (Infinite Loops CLASSICS)
Infinite Loops
Hello everyone, Jim here. We're taking a brief break from new episodes to spotlight a golden oldie from the Infinite Loops archive. This conversation from December 2023 remains one of my favorites. Fresh episodes return next week, but first, enjoy this conversation with the inimitable George Mack. _________________ Writer, marketer, entrepreneur, and master of mental models, George Mack returns to discuss the top 0.1% of ideas he’s ever come across, from treating life as a video game to spotting high-agency individuals. Important Links: (Rick and Morty) Show Notes: Treating Life...
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Kenneth Stanley — The Trap of the Objective (EP.288)
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Dan Wang — China, US and our Collective Future (EP.284)
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Sangeet Paul Choudary — AI and our System Reshuffle (EP.282)
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Michael Dean — The Architecture of Essays (EP.281)
Infinite Loops
Michael Dean — architect-turned-writer, O’Shaughnessy Fellow, and creator of Essay Architecture — joins the show to explore the hidden structures beneath nonfiction and why essays, like buildings, can be designed with patterns rather than left to inspiration. We discuss the origins of Essay Architecture, Michael’s 27-pattern framework that maps essays across Idea, Form, and Voice, and how to make craft teachable and AI feedback useful without replacing the writer. Along the way, we dive into architecture school critiques, why publishable doesn’t mean perfect, how editing rewires...
info_outlineSam Arbesman, complexity scientist, author of "The Magic of Code," and scientist in residence at Lux Capital, joins me for a wide-ranging exploration of how we navigate an increasingly complex world that often exceeds human comprehension.
We dive into the oral traditions that preserve crucial scientific knowledge, why cognitive diversity trumps demographic diversity, the forgotten innovations hiding in technological history, and Sam's vision for "Maxis 2.0".
This conversation had everything—from science fiction's cultural impact to the philosophy of intellectual humility. Sam and I discovered we're remarkably simpatico on how to think about complex systems, the importance of historical context, and why saying "I don't know" is the foundation of genuine learning.
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
Show Notes:
- Sam’s Sci-fi Origins
- The Oral Tradition in Science and Technology
- Cultivating the Unexpected
- Open-Endedness and Large Language Models
- “All Models Are Wrong, but Some Are Useful”
- Culture’s Role in Shaping Everything
- Patching Bugs in HumanOS
- Tech History and Forgotten Innovations
- A Tech Archaeology Fellowship
- Humility and Knowledge
- Learning Via Negativa
- The Complexity of Our World
- Sam’s Current Obsessions in Science and Gaming
- Sam As Emperor of the World
Books Mentioned:
- Dune; by Frank Herbert
- Foundation trilogy; by Isaac Asimov
- Overcomplicated: Technology at the Limits of Comprehension; by Sam Arbesman
- The Half-Life of Facts; by Sam Arbesman
- When We Cease to Understand the World; by Benjamín Labatut
- White Mirror; by Tinkered Thinking
- Nonzero; by Robert Wright
- The Evolution of God; by Robert Wright
- God and Golem, Inc.; by Norbert Wiener
- The Road; by Cormac McCarthy
- The Guide for the Perplexed; by Moses Maimonides
- The Story of Civilization; by Will and Ariel Durant
- Mistakes Were Made, and Yes, by Me; by Jim O'Shaughnessy