Episode Description:James sits down with astrophysicist Brian Keating for a candid, useful tour through three hot zones: how to think about AI (and where it actually helps), what’s broken in higher ed and admissions right now, and why outsourcing your mood to politics is a losing strategy. You’ll hear first-hand stories (from UC San Diego classrooms to New York City politics), specific ways James and Brian really use AI daily, and a simple framework for protecting your attention and happiness—even when everything feels polarized.What You’ll Learn:<ul><li>A practical AI workflow you can copy today (research prompts, personal “style” bots, and where LLMs fail at original insight). </li><li>A filter for political noise that keeps 99% of your happiness anchored in health, family, friends, and work you control. </li><li>What the UCSD admissions/placement findings really mean for preparation and standards (and why “remedial” can mask deeper gaps).</li><li>A simple admissions/common-sense principle: standards matter; “portfolio” evaluation shouldn’t ignore basic skills. </li><li>How to use AI without losing your own voice—James’ test for “write it in my style” and why generic outputs still fall short. </li></ul>Timestamped Chapters:<ul><li>[02:00] Loft event stories, comedy beats, and setting the tone for a heavy topic. </li><li>[05:00] NYC politics, leadership, and the “why would they vote for him?” question. </li><li>[07:32] Slogans vs. reality: chants, charters, and what words actually imply. </li><li>[09:30] Economics that sound nice vs. incentives that ruin cities. </li><li>[12:00] “Don’t outsource your happiness to politicians.” A sanity reset. </li><li>[20:48] Inside UCSD’s placement data: how did calculus passers miss first-grade algebra? </li><li>[30:02] Standards, SATs, and what “remedial” hides (plus grade inflation). </li><li>[77:49] How James and Brian actually use AI; “mad-bot disease” and why voice still matters.</li></ul>Additional Resources<ul><li><a href="https://big-bang.kit.com/briankeating" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Brian Keating's "Monday M.A.G.I.C." Newsletter</a></li><li><a href="https://briankeating.com/ " rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Brian Keating — personal website</a></li><li><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Losing-Nobel-Prize-Cosmology-Ambition-ebook/dp/B07889Q65W" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Losing the Nobel Prize: A Story of Cosmology, Ambition, and the Perils of Science’s Highest Honor by Brian Keating</a></li><li><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Into-Impossible-Laureates-Collaboration-Imagination/dp/1544523483/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Into the Impossible: Think Like a Nobel Prize Winner by Brian Keating</a></li><li><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Into-Impossible-Laureates-Concentrate-Creativity/dp/1544548842/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Into the Impossible Volume 2: Focus Like a Nobel Prize Winner</a></li><li><a href="https://physics.ucsd.edu/~bkeating/Brian_Keating.html physics.ucsd.edu" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">University of California, San Diego — Brian Keating faculty page</a></li></ul>Topics & Documents Mentioned<ul><li><a href="https://senate.ucsd.edu/media/740347/sawg-report-on-admissions-review-docs.pdf" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">UC San Diego Admissions/Placement Working Group report (PDF)</a>. <a href="https://senate.ucsd.edu/media/740347/sawg-report-on-admissions-review-docs.pdf?utm_source=chatgpt.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">UCSD Senate</a></li><li><a href="https://ucsdguardian.org/2025/11/17/admissions-report-finds-academic-preparedness-deficiencies-in-incoming-ucsd-students/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Coverage of UCSD preparedness findings</a></li><li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1988_Hamas_charter" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Hamas charters (1988; 2017 update) & “Intifada” context</a></li><li><a href="https://mattwolfe.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Matt Wolfe — AI tutorials (site & YouTube)</a></li><li><a href="https://book.sv/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Book.sv - AI book recommendations based on books you've read.</a></li></ul>See Privacy Policy at <a href="https://art19.com/privacy" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://art19.com/privacy</a> and California Privacy Notice at <a href="https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info</a>.

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