Seasons of Obsession: Recent Episodes
Potatowire and Erik Hess
A show about literature, design, technology and the obsession of the week. Hosted by Potatowire and Erik Hess.
Death’s Doings - Richard Dagley, 1827.
Erik and Potatowire discuss Alan Watts’s book The Wisdom of Insecurity, looking at what is real, the challenge of being present, the origins of the self, the origins of true moral action, and its consequences for society.
- Alan Watts - The Wisdom of Insecurity
- Alan Watts
- Platonic Theory of Forms
- Eames Lounge Chair
- Ouroboros
- Total Perspective Vortex
- Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
Next episode’s book for discussion:
- Viktor Frankl - Man’s Search for Meaning
Glass Goblets, American Homes and Gardens, 1905.
Using the Enchiridion as a jumping off point, Erik and Potatowire talk about what’s really under our control and how to use that knowledge to live a more balanced and constructive life.
- Epictetus - Enchiridion
- Stoicism
- Arrian of Nicomedia
- James Stockdale
- Hanoi Hilton
- James Stockdale - Thoughts of a Philosophical Fighter Pilot
- James Stockdale - Courage Under Fire
- Seneca - Letters to Lucilius
- Marcus Aurelius - Meditations
- Ryan Holiday - The Obstacle Is The Way
- Ryan Holiday - Ego is the Enemy
Next episode’s book for discussion:
- Alan Watts - The Wisdom of Insecurity
Bell Telephone Magazine, Spring 1951.
Erik and Potatowire return from summer travel to discuss The Rational Optimist by Matt Ridley. Using the book as a jumping off point, they discuss the case for optimism, the impact of our consumption, and the value of running scared.
- Nepenthe
- Big Little Lies
- Matt Ridley - The Rational Optimist
- Air Pollution and the 2008 Summer Olympics
- Invisible Hand
- Annual PV Additions: Historic Data vs. IEA WEO Predictions
- Yuval Noah Harari - Sapiens
Next episode’s book for discussion:
- Epictetus - Enchiridion
Slot Machines, 1946. SDASM Archives
Erik and Potatowire discuss risk, intuition, unpredictability, and how to use them to your advantage.
- Nassim Nicholas Taleb
- Nassim Nicholas Taleb - Black Swan
- Nassim Nicholas Taleb - Fooled by Randomness
- Nassim Nicholas Taleb - Antifragile
- Jim Paul - What I Learned Losing a Million Dollars
- Larry Niven - Ringworld
- Bullet Journal
Kingbird Family at Nest, 1919. Herbert K. Job
Erik and Potatowire discuss the new recording machine, nuclear weapons, the singularity, theory vs. reality in government, representation, and elections, and the value of an open mind.
- The most powerful version of the newest headless desktop Mac
- Nassim Nicholas Taleb
- Nassim Nicholas Taleb - Black Swan
- Nassim Nicholas Taleb - Fooled by Randomness
- Nassim Nicholas Taleb - Antifragile
- Eric Schlosser - Command and Control
- The Damascus Incident
- Richard Rhodes - The Making of the Atomic Bomb
- Richard Rhodes - Dark Sun
- Richard Rhodes - Arsenals of Folly
- Peter F. Hamilton - The Void Trilogy
- Charles Stross - Accelerando
- Ezra Klein
- Electoral College (United States)
Wave, 1891. Bibliothèque de Toulouse
Erik and Potatowire talk about trying to keep your head above water on the internet, what makes a good biography, the corrupting lens of the present moment and the written word, what happens when the incomprehensible talks back, and building a doghouse from first principles.
- Robert Caro
- Robert Caro - The Years of Lyndon Johnson
- Robert Caro - The Power Broker
- William Manchester - The Last Lion
- Hindsight Bias
- Douglas Hofstadter
- Douglas Hofstadter - Surfaces and Essences
- Douglas Hofstadter - Gödel, Escher, Bach
- Douglas Hofstadter - I Am a Strange Loop
- Douglas Hofstadter - The Mind’s I
- Jeff VanderMeer - Southern Reach Trilogy
- Neal Stephenson - Snow Crash
- Nassim Nicholas Taleb - Fooled by Randomness
- Nassim Nicholas Taleb - Antifragile
- Nassim Nicholas Taleb - Black Swan
- Stanislaw Lem - Solaris
- Arkady and Boris Strugatsky - Roadside Picnic
- Eric S. Raymond - The Cathedral & The Bazaar
Stacked Cars In City Junkyard, 1973. US National Archives
Erik and Potatowire celebrate a birthday, then talk about what they read, why they choose what they read, how they try to escape the bubble, reading faster, and keeping an open mind.
- Erik’s New Keyboard
- Timothy Ferriss - 4-Hour Workweek
- Timothy Ferriss - 4-Hour Body
- Timothy Ferriss - 4-Hour Chef
- Timothy Ferriss - Tools of Titans
- Scott Adams - How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big
- The Economist
- Seth Godin - What to Do When It’s Your Turn
- Robert Caro - The Years of Lyndon Johnson
- Robert Caro - The Power Broker
- Ryan Holiday - Trust Me, I’m Lying
- Robert Greene - 48 Laws of Power
- StartUp
- Ryan Holiday - The Obstacle Is The Way
- Ryan Holiday - Ego is the Enemy
- Epictetus - Enchiridion
- Letters to Lucilius - Seneca
- Meditations - Marcus Aurelius
| Time | Chapter | | --- | --- | | 00:00 | Happy Birthday | | 01:21 | A Complete Timothy Ferriss N00b | | 15:28 | A Towering Stack of Guilt | | 19:33 | It’s Your Turn | | 23:00 | Let’s Talk about Writing | | 32:18 | Forays into Stoicism | | 38:00 | Philosophy and Faith | | 51:59 | Active Acceptance |
The crew of Gemini 9A aboard USS Wasp, 1966. NASA
Erik and Potatowire are back, discussing anonymity and pseudonymity, themes of recurrence, book series vs. television series, audiobooks vs. ebooks vs. paper, non-fiction vs. fiction, classics vs modern fiction, and more.
- Dawn Patrol 011 - The Collector Gene
- Stephen King - On Writing
- Robert A. Caro - The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York
- Mohandas Gandhi - Satyagraha
