Prosthetic Gods

Algorithms and Democracy with Jose Marichal

Episode 29 - Algorithms and Democracy with Jose Marichal

This week on Prosthetic Gods, Nir and J chat with Jose Marichal, professor of political science at California Lutheran University, and author of You Must Become an Algorithmic Problem. He is, according to a chatbot, a critical-democratic institutionalist who focuses on everyday algorithmic power and citizen agency.

 

Find out more about Dr. Marichal and his work via his website or by checking out his new book. 

 

As always, listeners can contact us at prostheticgods@gmail.com with questions, comments, and suggestions for future topics.

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Credits:

Hosted by James Hughes and Nir Eisikovits
Music & Production by Jake Burley

Yuval Levin on Conservatism and Technology

Episode 28 - Yuval Levin on Conservatism and Technology

This week on Prosthetic Gods, Nir and J. speak with Yuval Levin, one of the most insightful and influential conservative thinkers in America today. As the Director of Social, Cultural, and Constitutional Studies at the American Enterprise Institute and the Editor-in-Chief of National Affairs, Levin's work consistently anchors contemporary political debates in deep institutional history and conservative philosophy. His writing often centers on the critical importance of mediating institutions, the dangers of political hyper-polarization, and the need to restore a sense of civic obligation and prudent governance.

 

Find out more about Yuval via the American Enterprise Institute. 

 

As always, listeners can contact us at prostheticgods@gmail.com with questions, comments, and suggestions for future topics.

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Credits:

Hosted by James Hughes and Nir Eisikovits
Music & Production by Jake Burley

Mission: Mars

Episode 27 - Mars

This week on Prosthetic Gods, Nir and J. discuss the prospects for colonizing Mars and space in general. Why do people want to try? How feasible are space colonization schemes? 

Show Notes:

SpaceX Mars Colonization “Plan”

The second major European open-source LLM is OUT, and it has been announced as multilingual and fully compliant with the EU AI Act.

Meta launches AI-powered smart glasses

 

As always, listeners can contact us at prostheticgods@gmail.com with questions, comments, and suggestions for future topics.

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Credits:

Hosted by James Hughes and Nir Eisikovits
Music & Production by Jake Burley

Technology and Religion

Episode 26 - Technology & Religion

On this week’s Prosthetic Gods, Nir and J. discuss the role and history of technology in religious practice. Are emerging technologies just another means of interfacing with religion, or do they challenge the underpinnings of earnest engagement with religious belief? 

Show Notes:

Philosophy Prof. John Kaag Links AI with Famous Writers and Thinkers for 'Talking' E-Books

Pray.com's AI Bible

 

As always, listeners can contact us at prostheticgods@gmail.com with questions, comments, and suggestions for future topics.

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Credits:

Hosted by James Hughes and Nir Eisikovits
Music & Production by Jake Burley

Technoprogressivism

Episode 25 - Technoprogressivism

On this week’s Prosthetic Gods Nir and J. talk about J’s advocacy of “technoprogressivism.” What is it, and what is it supposed to accomplish? How is it different from techno-utopianism or other leftist ideologies?

Show Notes:

“Outlines of an historical view of the progress of the human mind” Marie Jean Antoine Nicolas Caritat de Condorcet, 1796

“Technoprogressivism” Wikipedia

“The Technoprogressive Agenda After Fascism” J. Hughes, 2025

“EcoSocialism and the Technoprogressive Perspective” J. Hughes, 2021

“The Technoprogressive Declaration” 2014

“Beware the AI Experimentation Trap” Harvard Business Review 

“Clanker” as an anti-robot slur

The GenAI Divide: State of AI in Business 2025

 

As always, listeners can contact us at prostheticgods@gmail.com with questions, comments, and suggestions for future topics.

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Credits:

Hosted by James Hughes and Nir Eisikovits
Music & Production by Jake Burley

Longtermism

Episode 24 - Longtermism

This week on Prosthetic Gods, Nir and J. discuss the philosophical theory of longtermism, that we should take the interests of hypothetical future people as seriously as existing people.

Plus! Listeners can contact us at prostheticgods@gmail.com! Reach out with questions, topics you want to hear more about, or just to say hi. As Nir says, "All complaints go somewhere else." 😂

Show Notes:

An Introduction to Longtermism

Are Children The Future?: Longtermism, Pronatalism, and Epistemic Discounting - J. Hughes

The toxic ideology of longtermism - Alice Crary

Longtermist Political Philosophy: An Agenda for Future Research - Jacob Barrett and Andreas T. Schmidt

 

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Credits:

Hosted by James Hughes and Nir Eisikovits
Music & Production by Jake Burley

Trump's AI Action Plan

Episode 23 - Trump's AI Action Plan

This week on Prosthetic Gods, Nir and J. discuss the recent AI Action Plan released by the Trump administration, what it proposes, and whether it will be implemented. 

Show Notes

Winning the Race: America’s AI Action Plan

The real winners from Trump’s ‘AI action plan’? Tech companies

The Trumpification of AI: What Could Go Wrong?

China calls for global AI cooperation days after Trump administration unveils low-regulation strategy

Credits:

Hosted by James Hughes and Nir Eisikovits
Produced by Jake Burley
Music by Jake Burley

AI and the Future of Higher Education

Episode 22 - AI and the Future of Higher Education

This week on Prosthetic Gods, J and Nir discuss how AI will impact the demand for higher education, the structure of higher education institutions, and the way we teach and learn.

Show Notes

J. Hughes “The Deskilling of Teaching and the Case for Intelligent Tutoring Systems” (2021)  https://jeet.ieet.org/index.php/home/article/view/90

IEET White Paper - Emerging Technologies & Higher Education 

Grok Rolls Out Pornographic Anime Companion, Lands Department of Defense Contract

Grok as ‘MechaHitler’ could be making content considered violent extremism  

AI study in Africa exploring LLMs’ potential in health diagnoses

AI to crack ‘undruggable’ proteins, opening door to new treatments 

Credits:

Hosted by James Hughes and Nir Eisikovits
Produced by Jake Burley
Music by Jake Burley