March Bonus: The Biohacking Bros
This month, fresh off discussing Dave Asprey’s The Bulletproof Diet, we're digging into the movement Asprey calls home: Biohacking. Who are these jokers?
Some sources for this episode:
The long and gruesome history of people trying to live forever
How biohackers are trying to upgrade their brains, their bodies — and human nature
Extreme biohacking: the tech guru who spent $250,000 trying to live for ever
You can play the episode directly through Patreon or use our RSS feed to add it to your podcast app. Here are the instructions from Patreon. And if you've got bonus episode requests, as ever, drop them in the comments!
See you next month!
M&A
Comments (194)
If anyone wants to go down an insane rabbit hole, go to r/immortalists. Its a horror show
The fact Brian johnson is ex mormon makes so much sense. He's very image obsessed like what's expected in the church, to look perfect to represent the perfect church. The fact he doesn't mas**rbate or watch porn is also extremely mormon as its completely taboo within the church, even going as far to say that mas**rbating is sex addiction. He likely also hasn't been un-sealed within the church to his wife as its quite the process, so he's also partly expecting that he'll end up being a god in the celestial kingdom with her- hence the obsession with living a longer life. Or opposite to that he probably is now disappointed that the church isnt true and this want to live forever in this life with his son as he knows that its not possible as the mormom afterlife isnt true. So many parts of bring raised mormon are present in the way he acts and he doesn't seem to of dealt with all of these issues after leaving the church
Bro read uglies once and just ran with it
Lmk when the bio hackers figure out how to sidestep perimenopause
Genuinely love this episode. On a relisten, wanted to share that while I LOVE Aubrey’s insight into Brian Johnson’s desire to avoid eternity with his ex wife, the actual Mormon doctrine is a little different. I grew up Mormon, and my understanding is that “eternal marriage and family” is the carrot getting people to stick to Church rules and doctrines. Though it’s true that your marriage is still eternal even if you get a divorce (you have to get a separate temple divorce that’s a whole thing), if you leave the church, you lose your eternal marriage/family. Love this ep, it’s a classic for me now.
The line about growing up neurodivergent in the Mormon church is on point though 😂😂
“I don’t think I would have the decency to have an open fist” is such a badass line
Brian Johnson is also the nerd in The Breakfast Club
Have you guys watched Mountainhead? Touches on a lot of those Brian Johnson points lol it's DARK but a really good watch.
"I don't think I would have the decency to have an open fist" is SUCH a banger line from Aubrey, holy shit hahaha
"why do i know the word ephebophilia? libertarians!"
If folks want to learn more about transhumanism, check out Timnit Gebru writing on TESCREAL. It’s really important for understanding the fascist turn we’re experiencing. Also, I feel sorry for autistic people in Denmark because listening to that temperature change experience was horrifying. I can’t imagine doing it. I think Aubrey’s onto something with the former religious beliefs being a motivation for wanting to live forever. I’m a former Catholic and was lucky to be raised in liberal Catholicism but still not welcoming to queer/trans people, and I wanted to be able to be loud about my support for abortion rights, birth control, bodily autonomy and most of all getting to decide what I believe and not have to accept all of the Catholic teachings (it’s a principle that you have to accept all of it, no picking and choosing). But the one part I still like is the explanation of the afterlife (if there is one), which is for your soul to live in the most perfect state of love which your soul is capable of experiencing based on your life and God’s grace or if you did evil to feel what you are missing out on from that perfect state of love.
Me, an asexual, listening to these men be aroace but not realising that’s what they’re doing: oh no baby what is you doing
Listened to this episode and immediately got served an ad for "Everlab" which claims to be Australia's leading longevity clinic, a thing that I didn't even know existed 🙃 now I can choose to pay $2700 a year+ for blood tests that are free if *medically indicated* thru my GP 🫠
Thanks Aubrey for bringing in some of the Mormon background as somewhat of an explanation of Brian Johnson’s behavior. I grew up Mormon and am no longer a part of the religion but often tell folks I feel culturally Mormon because it informs so much of who you are forever even after you leave and do therapy 😂 From watching the documentary myself, I think I see two things that I see with a lot of ex-Mormons in Brian Johnson - one is that growing up Mormon, you’re told exactly how you should act and what you should do at every interval of your life. A lot of folks who leave the church wild the fuck out because they’ve been so repressed and been told what to do in literally every aspect of who they are that they just kind of explode out of it. But another subsection of ex-Mormons find themselves trying to find a new authority because they literally don’t know how to do their life without it. (And honestly a good chunk of the wilding out ex-Mormons end up in this category too). I felt a lot of that energy from Brian Johnson’s interviews in that documentary. The second thing that feels so Mormon (and ex-Mormon since like I said it informs so much of who you are forever) is that Mormons make literally everything into a business 😂/religion (pretty much one and the same in Mormon world). So Brian Johnson feels like he found this thing that works for him and he can’t just do it on his own and be a loner multimillionaire living out his extreme lifestyle, he must proselytize it and monetize it. It’s really ingrained in you from an early age in Mormonism to share how to live your most perfect life with other people. It’s also really ingrained that making money and being productive are not just good things but god-like things. (Side note: I am certain that’s why there are so many Mormon influencers out there.) Anyway just wanted to add this because it was a real takeaway for me after I watched that documentary! He’s definitely a grifter but it’s got a Mormon spin haha
This is so thoughtful! Thank you for adding this perspective, it really makes Brian Johnson make sense to those of us who aren't familiar with the cultural aspects of Mormonism!
I died laughing that the 1.5 speed with dubstep was speaking at a casual speech pace and not speedier.
This was a fascinating and compelling episode. The discussion was so thought provoking. Great analysis.
great analysis and well-done episode! just wanted to chime in that i would love for u guys to cover the current obsession over inflammation in the body and the wellnesses crazes bent on reducing inflammation at any cost - and the weird scapegoating of inflammation to conceal fatphobia
I second this!!!
New bit for the show: Every second year, Brian Johnson gets the "Grieftiest Grifter" griftie, but each time it's a different Brian Johnson.
I am disappointed that this epsiode was not the launch of Aubrey becoming the Brian Johnson of Beans.
I do agree with the kinda "kind of guy" you two land on at the end. I guess as someone with dudebro experience, serge definitely comes off as a lot of very immature manchildren types who do take like cyberpunk literally. Like theres a straight line from a lot of dystopian cyberpunk fiction and these people's view of the world and how it should be
One of the best and most timely episodes yet, guys — well done!
I first learned about the term bio hacking when the Atlantic did a short doc about a man who was experimenting with a fecal transplant (doctors had failed to treat his numerous digestive issues). He's also attempted to alter his own genes. This feels like...an actual example of bio hacking, especially since he's a biochemist by training. With that in mind, I'm so surprised to learn that bio hacking mostly just refers to...monitoring your health?
It’s a lot more than monitoring one’s health. It’s a deep obsession with immortality and youth and uniquely capitalist. People without diabetes are putting glucose monitors in their arms, for example. There is also a level of self-experimentation within it, and thus, often a lean toward misinformation.
Hey don’t go throwing Donna Haraway under the bus! The cyborg manifesto was written more as a critique of anxiety over new reproductive technologies (like IVF) in the 80s in academia than anything, and mostly just points out that we already live in a transhumanist society and culture moreso than advocating for anything specifically like biohacking. There’s a reason she’s big in feminist and queer theory! That said she’s a weirdo and her writing is hard to understand. Just wanted to point out the overlap in terminology here doesn’t correspond to an overlap in ideology and ethics.
Mike is like “I’m a Cyborg AND a Goddess, thanks”
I would love an episode on Marty Makary. My friend, who is very smart (and left-leaning) just asked me to read Blind Spot with her. I am very confused, because this book is vomit. I do not know how she decided we should read this. Now, this shittidiot is going to oversee the FDA, so I would a well-researched episode on him so I can stop people I love from becoming brainwashed.
Happy 43!! I also turned 42 this year and listening to this episode with my surgically repaired foot in the air. *rolls eyes dramatically
Straight to jail, Audrey, because overlooking Mike’s APAB comment was criminal.
THANK YOU SO MUCH for finally addressing the Mormon element! Nobody else has and it makes me want to scream.
Oh my god as a an exmo myself, when they highlighted that BJ is also a former LDS member I about ripped my hair out — OF COURSE he is! Ex mormons become one of two things: vengeful against zealotry, or evangelical about their replacement for their former religion. That BJ is the latter (pun intended) surprises me 0%.
Bio hacking…I’ll do anything BUT go to therapy.
just need to rebrand therapy as mind hacking
There's speculation among the Long Covid community that Brian Johnson just has post viral chronic illness (he's been pretty open about how much covid infections messed him up), and a LOT of the stuff he takes/things he does are the same protocol that people with ME or Long Covid follow.
Man, what a missed opportunity. This guy has so much fucking influence - he could bring so much attention to these illnesses that continue to exist in the dark corners of medicine while millions of people suffer through them with few therapeutics. But no. It’s all about BJ’s personal enlightenment and to hell with everyone else.
Bryan Johnson having been raised Mormon explains a lot about him. I have seen the Real Housewives of Salt Lake City (where I learned that Mormons believe in levels of heaven) and watch ex-Mormon content on YouTube, so I know some of the wacky stuff Mormons believe.
What day was this recorded bc I’ve been wanting to know Mike’s zodiac sign for the longest 😂😂😂 is he an Aries?!?
When are you guys gonna tackle Casey and calley means?
Idk if that's a bigger phenomenon but I've seen some trans people in my area kind of ironically using the term biohacking or I guess in a kind of taking it away from all of that shit. I guess one can have mixed feelings about that but I gotta say it's a really cool word and as someone that does radically support full body autonomy and DIY hrt (which I also did myself) It kind of does feel like hacking your body. In a world where transitioning is being made more more unavailable you gotta do what you gotta do.
The sauna stuff reminds of people finding out I really like tea and people going down this weird rabbit hole of how they think tea is so much better than coffee for you, it has medicinal qualities, and all that nonsense. Just drink tea because it tastes good and you can make it into a nice little activity…
I had something similar one day when I said I didn’t drink coffee and then proceeded to have a Diet Coke. I got questioned on how I could possibly quit coffee for health reasons and still drink Diet Coke. My response … eh I just don’t like the taste of coffee. It isn’t a moral stand!
Fabulous episode. Happy birthday Mike!
Pretty sure the “I don’t lie” guy uses that as a justification for saying the absolute worst things to people and then saying “what? I’m just practicing radical honesty”
Mike can have a little violence, for his birthday
I said "totally self centered" out loud at the same time as Michael 🤣
Happy birthday, Mike! I feel like listening to this I decided that a person can't pronounce "werewolves" if their brain needs room for "ephebophilia." ~balance~
I loved this episode! The title totally made me think it would be about Bryan Johnson and living forever etc - would LOVE to hear you talk about Johnson's ideas of living forever and using his sons blood etc
Guys, the puns in this one are delightfully out of control😆😆😆
Can we have “rich fucking text” merch??
Or any variation of the sort
I never thought about the whole negative attention furthers the issue and locks them in. I mean I would love to never ever hear about these assholes again so it would a win for both sides.
“I’m not going to be part of the underclass who doesn’t upgrade themselves” is giving the plot of the movie Robots (2005)
Top tier
The puritanical moralizing of treating one's body being called bodyhacking like "all the biohacking, non of the god!"
Happy birthday, Michael! It's reading glasses soon! Which I am convinced is the whole impetus for Bryan Johnson's nonsense, so watch out in case you too start reporting your erections. Why did you stop this episode just as we were about to start a revolution though?
Happy birthday Michael!! Hearing him say "doing blunts" took me out 😭😭
Also I absolutely NEED to see the AI twink image of Michael
Happy birthday!
hearing you guys casually mention using AI images was extremely jarring. they are horrible for the environment and also steal the work of actual artists!!!
I don't defend AI images and agree with you about their impacts on artists and the environment. But I think there is a bit more nuance than what you're describing, when you call this extremely jarring. That sounds like pearl clutching. Mike and Aubrey are friends. They aren't the enemy. Give them some benefit of the doubt.
Do we get to see the twinked-out Pixar AI pic of Mike? 🙏🏻
Seconding this
My grandma lived until 105 and she was pretty miserable, you see a lot of death and out living everyone is not fun. She had a great life but it definitely did not make me want to live that long.
I want to push back a little on the characterization of transhumanism and bio-hacking. There's a big overlap between the transgender community and transhumanism. Y'all said "that's just medicine" a lot but medicine is very gatekept in the US, especially trans medicine. DIY hormones are bio-hacking. The loudest people calling themselves transhumanists or bio-hackers are shitty rech bros who drink soylent but there are people out there actually doing shit, synthesizing hormones for trans people, implementing medicial papers they've read, etc.
Do you think though that the shitty white guys always ignore any basic public health measures or accommodations and pretend that it's neuralink or nothing? That's how it feels to me, like any benefit to those who really need technology is a figleaf for their own desire for super humanity? There was a fascinating BBC documentary on eugenics in which Adam Pearson talked to a transhumanist and really came away feeling like only a problem to be fixed. That was dehumanising.
This was a great listen on my way back from a biostatistical inference class, but I was disappointed in the biohackers - there is a real subculture of diy bioengineering that actually grapples with the questions that these figures ignore. There are great examples of diy garage-lab chemical synthesis of hormone therapeutics & blood tests for off-grid gender transition, prosthetics and mobility aids that go beyond restoring normal function, and even some folks who have developed and taken therapeutics for genetically engineering lactose tolerance so they could enjoy pizza and milkshakes again. The key difference is an emphasis on quality of life, non-institutional healthcare, and actual scientific and philosophical engagement - something the rich tech elite could never do, but a bunch of punk scientists can!
Thank you for this episode I think it is very timely bc people like Elon Musk and Vance worship at the feet of people like Peter Theil and a lot of them are definitely and admittedly believers in eugenics and thinking they are better than other people even know bc they are wealthy and supposedly “smarter” than others.
ZINC MENTIONED
I will be hearing “maybe he’s born with it; maybe it’s an eating disorder!” In my head all day.
"I want to live with everything I have." Then fucking do it! Use that privilege of wealth to see the world. Read all the books, try all the food, live in the moment.
Hey Mike and Audrey, I would be super interested if you looked into a DNA health based company called Inagene. It's a Canadian company that tests your DNA for potential health issues (vit, muscle recovery, salt/fat tasting, what exercises suit you best etc) I paid about $400 for the test and got to sit down with a dietitian for 30mins and go through the data. It was interesting because certain changes I've made to my diet have been helpful (more fiber) but other things that weren't flagged that I was like, "what the hell is this? It's a generational thing I fear." For example, it stated there were no genetic traits for iron deficiency that were picked up (I have anaemia, my mom has it so bad she has to get transfusions and my maternal grandmother was the same, I'm not there yet but diet alone can't sustain my iron needs) I'd be more than happy to send you guys what it looks like if you didn't want to try it yourselves, but I'm curious as to the legitimacy of it as there are Dr.s that recommend doing it for their medication testing for those looking for medications that align with their DNA for anxiety, ADHD, depression, BPD and more. I have a friend who had found a lot of success with it and even got properly diagnosed with autism and ADHD because of this testing and the medications that worked best for her. But I've also heard some people have had no luck Love the show and the lessons I've learned and integrated into my healthcare practice. I hope you get to see this message. ❤️
I'd be suspicious of such doctors. There's a lot of claims re genetics and ADHD and Autism, whilst there are some genetic markers, it's nowhere near as clear cut as this gene means this drug works best for you.
As an ex Mormon gay person here, another big part of Mormonism is that you'll continue in the afterlife to learn everything and become this perfect god like entity. The culture is very much about striving for perfection even in looks, look at Utah rates of plastic surgery and beauty standards. So seems like this guy took that to heart but in a weird techy way
I'm surprised they didn't mention that Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk are both transhumanists...
Hey folks, the whole “pope innocent viii was transfused the blood of children in 1492 by a jewish doctor” thing comes from a 19th century fabrication that no historian takes seriously. Love the show, but please do better in the future, thanks.
Yeah that set off some dog whistles in my head
Happy Birthday, Mike! 🥳
i'm pretty sure that the out on earth podcast has an episode on queer transhumanism it's amazing :)
Happy belated birthday Mike! Thanks for all the info, humor and effort to make the world better!
Can there be an episode about Noom? My 23 year old sister just starting using it and I'm concerned
I saw that Nutrition for Mortals has an episode on Noon from a few years back, I haven't listened to it yet though!
“I did nazi that coming.” 😂 😆 ☠️
I'm convinced that none of these biohackers would be able to handle perimenopause or menopause.
Give them a SINGLE hot flash please
What is the Netflix doc they referenced please?
Here you go! Don't Die: The Man Who Wants to Live Forever https://g.co/kgs/9W1duy9
Looking at the "why" of biohackers made me think of how the Glucose Goddess became...the Glucose Goddess. The whole story sounds like orthorexia.
HBD Mike! I laughed way to hard at that “not see” joke 🤣
I would say the perspective on Brian and is wish to avoid death and former faith could also be seen as: you were raised in a belief system that would WOULDNT ever die. You don’t have to face mortality in that faith because there is a belief that you will have eternity with your loved ones. As an exmormon it is extremely common for people who leave the faith to go through a big existential crisis and possible mental health issues bc of it. Because Brian has so much access to money and privilege it seems extremely obvious to me that this is his way of coping, or not facing, this reality
Yeah I find that often even when people let go of religion the scaffolding is still there and they find something else to install in that slot
belated happy birthday michael! and oh, i feel this. i turned 44 in february and guess what? my back gave out shortly after and i had to take time off work to get shit back together.
WOW happy (I’m sure far belated) birthday Michael Hobbes!!!!
Brian Johnson makes me FURIOUS. It’s one guy saying he’s trying to help society but the way to actually help isn’t this bullshit. Actual help are things like universal healthcare and medical research.
As an Australian, one thing i found shocking when I went to Upstate NY was seeing signs about getting your toddler tested for lead poisoning. There's so much low hanging fruit in the US that if you had money and actually wanted to , you could really make a huge difference ... but it would be boring things Like, "hey this guy is getting rid of lead pipes"
Not dropping the AI Mike photo is criminal
Came to say exactly this!
That dystopian future is eerily reminiscent of Altered Carbon
Cyberpunk at its core is a warning, and these guys identify with the villains
I take my prescribed medications every day! I’m a biohacker!
hell yeah
Omg Mike is on fire. This is an APAB podcast 🤣🤣
Long-time listener of the Michael Hobbes Cinematic Universe (MHCU), happy (belated) birthday!
Man, so much of this “biohacking” is just rich guys ‘discovering’ things that already exist and re-packaging them to sell. The same way rich guys have been ‘discovering’ and re-selling/exploiting things for centuries.
Happy birthday Mike ! From another March born
As an autistic person I wish someone would explore the complicated connection or lack there of that some ND people have with their physical body. At times I’m just a brain in a jar and my body is irrelevant sometimes it feels like home. I live a very complicated internalised life. This whole movement rings so many ND alarms to me in some ways.
I would be really interested in hearing an episode on Alcoholics Anonymous. Because there's a lot of good about it but my god is there a lot of bad about it too.
Indoctrination podcast had an episode on that, they cover cultish groups. there's definitely some red flags there. tbh AA evidence-base isn't that strong it's just the most accessible and pervasive program that's very cheap to run
Aubrey just immediately blowing out the levels 🤣
Please tell me someone else heard "APAB" and initially thought "assigned pope at birth"
Basically Dalai Lama
Happy Birthday Michael!!
Biohacking seems like a hop, skip, jump from orthorexia.
When I did hair I had a client who identified as a trans humanist and I generally didn’t care except for the fact that it seemed to involve eschewing showering and basic hygiene.
Okay so is Michael truly saying he “blew out his back” or did he throw out his back? Because the two are verrrry different…😆
Happy birthday, Michael!!
Also, chiming in to say its disappointing to see y'all make light of the use of generative AI! It is so so destructive for the environment. Sure you can do funny shit with it, but is it really worth the environmental impact?
Just want to say that some non diabetics do actually need to use continuous glucose monitors, like folks with non diabetic reactive hypoglycemia. I know the point you were trying to make there though--there is definitely a trend towards ppl using CGMs to try to "optimize" themselves rather than for a medical reason (would love to hear y'all's take on Glucose Goddess for example)
So like… how do we see the evil twink Pixar picture
Would love a future diet book deep dive episode on Bethenny Frankel’s Naturally Thin! I NEED to hear m&a’s commentary on scooping the bread out of bagels and never eating more than two bites of Mac & cheese ever again
The already covered it in the Fad Diets episode: https://www.patreon.com/posts/fad-diets-54161417
I do not love the assumptions about Mormons here. First, yes, marriage is eternal, no it doesn't stay eternal if you split up. We have an eclesiastical process for ending a marriage, it's not that hard of a process, I know tons of people who have done it. No, it is not hard to stay in touch with loved ones when you leave the church: unless you or your loved ones are jerks to each other about the church. But we're not a monolith. My guess is that BJ's kids don't wanna see him because he never shuts up about his diet and asks if he can have some of their blood. Second, no it is not easy to be neurodiverse and Mormon, but it's not harder than being neurodivers and American, we are not known for being particularly discriminatory with disability. We're not better at inclusion, we're not worse. I get so tired of hearing about how Mormonism must have been a factor every time someone who grew up Mormon starts acting like a crazy person. We're not a monolith, we're not robots, we're just people, we're all different, and not everything we do is because we're Mormon. I'm sorry, I just get a lot of anti-mormon content in my algorithms as rage bate and it's taking its toll.
Thank you. I was going to come here and say this. There's social and cultural issues in our church, but no more than your average American society, but I love our doctrine. As a transgender and bisexual latter day Saint, I'm more than well aware of how hard it can be to be a marginalized person in our church, but the core doctrine is about love and community and change I've seen in culture over the course of my life gives me hope that one day I'll be able to say I love the doctrine and I love the culture.
Y'all! I just finished listening to the episode when this upcoming book came up in an email: "Heavily Meditated: The Fast Path to Remove Your Triggers, Dissolve Stress, and Activate Inner Peace" by Dave Aspery. You've got to see the cover!
Read that as heavily medicated.
These guys make me kind of sad. They are doing everything to stay alive , for what exactly? They don't want real meaningful relationships, they aren't helping others, they are focusing solely on themselves... What kind of life is that? I mean what kind of forever life is that? Plus they seem really insufferable, like who could live with that? I think above the "bio hacking" ridiculousness, these dudes need some therapy.
Hard agree, Heather
Mike is on fire with the one-liners! And Aubrey’s genuine concern for humanity is poignant. I feel so affirmed after listening. It’s a common conclusion with white bro theories in pop culture - it’s not a thing😑
As soon as I heard "Bros in different area codes" I knew we were in for a good time
But seriously, thank you for delving into this issue in a nuanced (and compassionate!!) way and putting my uneasiness about those biohacker interviews into words
Happy belated birthday! 🥂🎂☕
Lex Luthor shit 😂
Had no idea my iron infusion due to very low iron levels was actually biohacking!
Happy birthday, Mike!
I love your work but I’m really disappointed that you’re promoting genAI. This is putting so many creatives out of work, and it’s so bad for the environment.
I LOL’d so hard at Bulletproof episode with the ‘the under-researched=cutting edge’, since by that logic all my under-researched health conditions/diseases must make me a super cutting edge human!
As a neurodivergent (AuDHD) therapist whose main client base in neurodivergent, I’m so glad you talked about how neurodivergent folks - especially men - tend to gravitate toward these sorts of tech bro, biohacking spaces. I could absolutely write a whole essay about that phenomenon. I always wonder how things might be different for these people if they were given the information and resources to understand themselves and process their emotions from a young age - and if there was less social exclusion of neurodivergent folks. That’s why I hate it when people make fun of tech bros for neurodivergent-coded traits (the “weird” ways they emote or talk, their social awkwardness, etc) - it’s just reinforcing the othering of all neurodivergent people.
I’m AuDHD and this episode pinged so many of my ND radars. I wish there was more out there in terms of people understanding the complex way we view our connection to our physical body. As an example I almost just used the term “interface” to describe my concept of me and my identity (essentially my mind) and the physical body that houses it. It is so hard to describe. I remember telling my therapist I see myself as a brain in a jar and my body is at times irrelevant and the look of concern on her face. I’m lucky she took the time to understand I wasn’t describing something like body dysmorphia or an identity disorder. I also love that you are an AuDHD therapist!
If they want praise for being interested in "raising life expectancies", they should advocate for traffic calming and blood donation and stuff. It’s really sad to see guys with no understanding of quality of life (love, trust, and helping people) trying to substitute quantity for quality. They’re living instant-mashed-potatoes type lives and acting like if they eat enough of that, it makes for a gourmet meal.
If these chodes had any intellectual skills beyond navel gazing they’d have gone into public health, since that raises life expectancies far more than selling diets.
I didn't think you guys WOULDNT be anti generative AI. Ngl I'm a bit disappointed
Seriously, that sucks so much
Happy Birthday, Mike!
I laughed so much at the Bulletproof episode because just a few weeks ago my friend said “remember when some rich Americans thought Kerry Gold was a superfood and started putting it in coffee” I think we were having on toast (as god intended!) at the time. I didn’t know the full story. In Ireland all our dairy comes from predominantly grass fed cows - mostly because we have a lot of grass. I do think of it as a super food but not for health reasons. 🤣 The bulletproof story is the only time I’ve heard of having a restorative cup of tea going wrong!
I can’t imagine watching Altered Carbon and thinking: Yep. That’s the future I want for the world. Loved the episode and happy birthday!
The books are even worse 😰
I was just thinking about the not wanting kids thing the other day!!! It’s like men feel the need to justify not wanting kids in a virtuous way like “the world is just so terrible” which is a fair point of view, but sometimes you can tell it’s so insincere and they feel like it’s the socially acceptable answer. Just say you don’t want kids! It’s fine!
"It ruins my fasting state" is my new favorite Michael phrase
Celestial marriage is one of the many weird aspects of Mormonism. Not only is it eternal but they also believe that celestial marriages on the highest plane can produce children and those children descend into human bodies, who create celestial marriages, move to the highest plane, and produce children who descend into human bodies, and so on. They also believe that if a civilly married couple dies, you can raise them into the highest plane by performing a celestial marriage ceremony.
Portland is such a burner hub.
A birthday pun for Mike: In the Civilization VI (video game) community, Gilgamesh is often called "Gilgabro" because when played by the AI he's willing to declare friendship the turn you meet him
Happy Birthday to Michael! Perhaps a wrong take, but Stanley Owen Green (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanley_Green) might be the first Bio Hacker. I would love to hear a bonus episode on this OG "Protein Man" one day. Thanks for another great episode Aubrey and Mike!
It’s Michael’s birthday and we get presents! I’m only 20 minutes in and disappointed no one has talked about the series Orphan Black yet. It is all about transhumanism gone bad. Gone worse? It’s great though.
Right?! ALL I can think about EVERY time I hear the word “biohacking” is the Freaky Leekies.
The village homosexual, sponsored by Hello Immortality.
not my first thought as the episode opens being, "wait, i thought mike was a virgo...... he's an aries?! actually, no, this also tracks." 😂
March birthdays 🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻
Happy Birthday, Michael! 🥳 Also, I would love it if people started requesting AI art that included stereotypical AI flaws like 16 fingers and it just caused AI to think that that's normal and including it in everything they produce. Looking forward to seeing a constantly on fire finger disc Michael portrait this time next year.
Aubrey said the word transhumanism and I felt all my disabled listener brethren flinch in unison.
I sensed Alex Jones gearing up
Ah, what a Monday. 1 day, 2 Michaels
MICHAEL WHY ARE YOU RELEASING BOTH PODCASTS ON ONE DAY
Former Mormon here and I gotta say, even with a spouse I deeply love, the thought of existing forever caused me a shit ton of anxiety for years. Hard pass on both biohacking and eternal life for me, please and thank you. When it’s over, I just want it to be over lol.
Really love that biohacking boils down to really rich dudes going to the doctor.
As soon as he said “working with my doctor to test my…” I just yelled “you mean endocrinology?!”
Wow. Thanks for bringing up the neurodivergent angle about this doc. I definitely missed that perspective.
Happy belated birthday Michael! This was a fascinating episode. I appreciate the kindness and clarity with which it was approached.
Love the Qin Shi Huang shout out! Also worth noting about him: one major reason he didn't want to die is because he believed all the vengeful spirits of everyone he killed were waiting to tear him apart in the afterlife. So I think Aubrey might be onto something re: Brian Johnson's possible motivating beliefs about eternal marriage.
Happy birthday, Michael!!
Happy belated birthday Michael! Obligatory “you kids” moment, what I wouldn’t give to see my 40s again. I wear an Apple Watch in case I fall down and can’t get up again. It’s kind of the opposite of biohacking.
Happy Birthday, Michael!
Happy birthday Michael! So many eps between maintenance phase and books could kill lately - hope you're doing well and taking time for yourself! Looking forward to many more years of spittaking at jokes from our best short king!
Happy birthday, Michael!
One of my all-time favorite episodes - love the way y'all hold a mirror up to the worldviews of the wealthy and ask the right questions about who is served by these ideas. Happy birthday, Michael!
I’ve been on a thyroid medication since I was 19, so I’ve been apparently biohacking longer than these assholes. 😆 Happy birthday, Michael!
Felicitations and many happy returns, dear Hobbes.
My quality of life has greatly improved once again. Happy birthday Michael!!!
Does anyone know what happened to the subscription feed for podcast apps?
It's in the 'membership' tab of the Maintenance Phase page if you're on a computer. In the Patreon app (on Android) it's in the 3-dot menu in the upper right corner. "Add to podcast app" is what mine says.
RELEASE THE EVIL AI MICHAEL PICTURE!! Also happy birthday ♥️
Ah, I hadn't thought about transhumanism for awhile. At the more mild end, pace makers, joint replacements etc were examples of the start of transhumanism. It's easy to forget that the ability to safely have long term implants is relatively new. Of course, shifting from returning a body to normal function to some kind of precision tuning, is significant.
If you are interested in this tech biohacking movement, there's an ARTE doc on iirc people in Spain doing biohacking surgeries on themselves and each other, like adding earthquake sensors to their brains, etc. (could be a different country in EU, it came out a few years ago). It's wild, and reading it as extremely libertarian fits the supposedly guerilla nature of biohacking. It's really just a lot of DIY projects on your body using accessibility tech to "augment" yourself. I would argue that it's mostly strange, untested, and dangerous, but a lot of people in this biohacking movement argue that it's similar to piercings, etc, and is a matter of personal choice. When you talked about the class eugenics that this guy is advocating, though, especially with the pay to play aspect, it reminded me of this.
As a backlash to the Biohacking gravestone joke "I didn't see that coming," I have decided to bring back the OTHER old gravestone joke of "I told you I was sick." Happy 43rd birthday Michael, the year you were born, I had my tonsils removed. L'haim!
Happy birthday, Michael!
And yes, we need to take these people's money off them.
happy birthday Michael!
Oh yeah happy birthday Mike! We are closer in age than I thought
Happy birthday! 🎂
Sauna and cold plunges are the most relaxing thing, one of the few things Nordics agree on. Also Hobbes, this is your opportunity to do a Eurovision episode, have you seen Swedish entry 2025?
Happy Birthday, Michael!!!
Happy Birthday!!!
Happy birthday Michael!
Happy birthday, Michael!