civilization
21 episodes mention this concept
PredictiveHistoryJan 21, 2026The Iliad, Poetry, and the Creation of Reality: A Philosophical Exploration of Civilization's Foundations
PhilosophyArete (virtue, excellence, character)Eudaimonia (flourishing, achieving true potential)War fighting as reality impositionSpeech making as reality creation- PredictiveHistoryJan 14, 2026
Homer, Consciousness, and the Invention of the Human: An Archetypal Theory of Great Books
PsychologyConsciousnessDisassociationImaginationEmpathy - PredictiveHistoryOct 31, 2025
The Steppe Paradox: Why 'Barbarians' Conquered Civilizations and Shaped History
HistoryCivilization vs. Barbarians (traditional view)Open Cooperative CompetitionEmpire FormationBureaucracy - PredictiveHistoryAug 22, 2025
The Cycles of Societal Rise and Fall: Financialization, Elite Overproduction, and Civilizational Life Cycles
HistoryMonotheismModernitySocietal DeclineFinancialization 
psychacksJul 18, 2025The Sublimation of Male Desire: How Sex Drives Civilization and its Modern Challenges
PsychologySublimationLibido (Freudian concept)Sexual impulsePro-social ends- PredictiveHistoryJul 18, 2025
Putin's Grand Strategy: A Game Theory and Orthodox Eschatological Analysis of the Ukraine War
GeopoliticsGame theory counterfactualSelf-defeating policiesDefensive artillery warfareDrone warfare adaptation 
lexfridmanNov 9, 2023Elon Musk on War, Peace, AI, China-US Relations, and the Future of Humanity
GeopoliticsLimbic instinct for violenceConspicuous acts of kindnessCycle of reciprocal violenceMilitary industrial complex
FallofCivilizationsOct 3, 2022The Genesis and Early Grandeur of the Bagan Empire: A Journey Through Medieval Myanmar
HistoryCivilizational collapseHistorical chroniclesPropaganda in historical textsGeopolitical influence- FallofCivilizationsJul 17, 2022
The Nabataeans: Petra, Desert Trade, and the Fall of a Resilient Civilization
HistoryCivilizational collapseNomadic pastoralismDesert adaptationAncient water management - FallofCivilizationsJun 15, 2022
The Nabataeans: Petra's Rise as a Desert Trading Empire and its Final Days
HistoryJohann Ludwig BurkhardtAfrican AssociationWadi Musa (Valley of Moses)Petra (Raqam) - lexfridmanMar 23, 2022
Ariel Ekblaw on Self-Assembling Space Megastructures, Space Colonization, and Humanity's Future in Orbit
ScienceSelf-assembling space architecturesModular reconfigurable algorithmCivilization scale space explorationSwarm robotics for spacecraft - lexfridmanFeb 13, 2022
Tim Urban on Humanity's Place in the Cosmos, Collective Intelligence, and Civilizational Resilience
PhilosophyObservable UniversePlanck LengthExtraterrestrial LifeDrake Equation - lexfridmanDec 28, 2021
Elon Musk on Starship, Mars Colonization, and First Principles Engineering for Humanity's Future
TechnologyCrew Dragon Demo-2Inspiration4 MissionHuman Space ExplorationMoon Base - lexfridmanJun 25, 2021
Bret Weinstein on Science, Censorship, Human Adaptability, and Civilizational Risks in the Pandemic Era
ScienceScience as an institutionCensorship in scienceOpen data/science/communicationEvolutionary biology - lexfridmanNov 3, 2020
Dan Carlin on the Nature of Evil, Force, War, and Heroism in Human History
HistoryDefining EvilHuman Nature (Good vs. Evil)Intent vs. OutcomeViolence vs. Force - lexfridmanJun 14, 2020
The Nature of Happiness, Meaning, and God: A Philosophical Inquiry into Self-Organization and Civilization
PhilosophySuffering (as a result of caring)Happiness (as internal appraisal)Crisis of MeaningSelf-organizing systems - lexfridmanNov 13, 2019
Elon Musk, Carl Sagan, and Humanity's Cosmic Imperative: The Pale Blue Dot Revisited
PhilosophyCosmic insignificancePale Blue DotExistential riskMulti-planetary species - lexfridmanSep 16, 2019
The Specialized Nature of Intelligence, Civilization as AI, and Science as a Superhuman, Self-Improving System
Technologyspecialized intelligencehuman experienceinnate knowledgegoal-driven behavior - FallofCivilizationsMar 25, 2019
The Greenland Vikings: Centuries of Survival and Mysterious Collapse at the Edge of the World
HistoryNorse colonizationViking longshipsDrift ice navigationArctic climate adaptation - FallofCivilizationsJan 21, 2019
The Late Bronze Age Collapse: An Interconnected Mediterranean Apocalypse
HistoryLate Bronze Age CollapseSea PeoplesInterconnectedness of ancient societiesBronze Age trade routes - lexfridman
Michio Kaku on Alien Intentions: Destruction, Indifference, or Peaceful Coexistence?
ScienceAlien contactInterstellar diplomacyAnthropocentrismResource valuation