This is Cognitive Revolution, my show about the personal side of the intellectual journey. Each week, I interview an eminent scientist, writer, or academic about the experiences that shaped their ideas. The show is available wherever you listen to podcasts.
Ben Moser is the Pulitzer Prize winning author of the recent biography of Susan Sontag, innovatively entitled "Sontag." This is one of the most fun and wide ranging conversation I'd had on the show. I stewed over whether or not to release the whole two hour conversation. But I loved how so many of the themes that we began early in the conversation—which sounded inconsequential in the moment—came full circle later on. If you want to skip straight to Ben's story, the meat of that begins the around the 30 minute mark. If, instead, you're interested in the full scope of nominal determinism, powerful women, gay men, whether Ben is good looking, whether Cody is good looking, and beginning things before you're good at them, then this conversation will definitely have something to offer. You will also enjoy this conversation if, like me, you want to be like Ben Moser when you grow up.
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#52: Benjamin Moser on the Performance of Everyday Life