Critical Nonsense
Critical Nonsense
SYLVAIN
High-low brow conversations about culture, science, and tech. With hosts Joey Camire, Aaron Powers, and executive producer/nerd herder Jess Vander. SYLVAIN is a strategy and design company.
351! Trusting Our Instincts
How do you identify with your instincts? This week, Joey and Jess talk about storking, gut instincts, the Ship of Theseus, entity, background signal processing, and birds. They don’t talk about Uptown Girls. references The Origin Of Consciousness In The Breakdown Of The Bicameral Mind by Julian Jaynes Six Thinking Hats Ship of Theseus Haggis 
May 26
26 min
350! Summer of Sillies
What are you looking forward to during the new summer of Silliness? This week, Aaron, Joey, and Jess talk about Scary Movie 6, Street Fighter, existential dread, edge lords, Dave Chappelle, and 702. They don’t talk about NASCAR. references Hey Dude Scary Movie 6 Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood Charo Street Fighter Norm Macdonald in Back From Hell: A Tribute to Sam Kinison The Best of Sam Kinison Live Stand Up Comedy Dave Chappelle vs Josh Johnson Scary Movie 6 is making that one joke Stop! That! Train! Coyote vs. ACME Final Destination Bloodlines Can you repeat that? 
May 20
28 min
349! What's So Important?
What happens when something you liked becomes Important? This week, Joey and Jess talk about "Mr. Brightside", Nirvana, Adam Duritz, Owl City, and ennui. They don’t talk about Keisha Cole. references Glorious Indie Rock and Roll "God Only Knows" "Mr. Brightside" Grantland: "The Loneliness of the Alt-Rock Anniversary" Apple Insider: Apple's iOS 7 sounds crafted by Owl City creator Adam Young Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World "Fireflies" 
May 7
21 min
348! Zombies
What happens if the Internet dies? This week, Joey, Jess, and Aaron talk about One Internet, Poob, attribution, destinations, AI Porn, and knowlege creation. They don’t talk about Fela Kuti. references Dead Internet theory "You can watch it on Poob." The New York Times: Anthropic’s Restraint Is a Terrifying Warning Sign District 9 Great Firewall What Is a Splinternet? And Why You Should Be Paying Attention Quiet Media 
Apr 28
33 min
347! Making People Laugh
When was the last time you felt destabilized in a safe environment? This week, Joey and Jess talk about dad jokes, child entertainment strategies, comedy, silliness support, two-legged stools, and butt pats. They don’t talk about Sô Yamamura. references Sure looks strange to me. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology: How fathers and mothers make their children laugh: Associations with the security of parent-child attachment relationships by Sabrina Schmiedel, Jean-François Bureau, Jessica Turgeon, Audrey-Ann Deneault, and Ariane J. Gauthier Benign violation theory NPR: Bowen Yang invited Tina Fey onto his podcast. He's still dwelling on what she said The Giggles Are Coming by Christopher Eliopoulos Tactile Communication, Cooperation, and Performance: An Ethological Study of the NBA by Michael W. Kraus, Cassy Huang, and Dacher Keltner Steve Nash – high fives, fist bumps, and pats on the backside 
Apr 20
27 min
346! Hating the Player
When is it okay to hate the player, not the game? This week, Jess and Aaron talk about The Traitors, Chevy Chase, Kobe Bryant, villainy, Timothée Chalamet, and Omarosa vs. New York. They don’t talk about the late, the great, The Diabolical Biz Markie. references Wagon Wheel Watusi The Traitors I’m Chevy Chase and You’re Not Kobe Bryant Omarosa vs. New York The Original HBIMFC Mary Lou Retton Battlestar Galactica Board Game Flavor Flav 
Apr 13
40 min
345! How We Learn
How should we learn beyond school? This week, Joey and Jess talk about framing work as learning, human observation, vocational training, osmotic learning, pen and paper, and the wheel. They don’t talk about Simple Machines Records. references You're only 16, Joey, you don't have a rep yet. Dr. Jared Cooney Horvath on How Screen Time Hurts Kids' Cognitive Development Osmosis Jones Deutsche Welle: Back to basics: Sweden aims to de-digitalize youth Taqi ad-Din Muhammad ibn Ma'ruf Did a turkish man invent a steam engine 200 years before the industrial revolution and only made it to spin doner kebab? 
Mar 31
25 min
344! Relationshipping
What fictional characters should we be shipping today? This week, Aaron and Jess talk about soap, fan fiction, Back to the Future, ensemble shows, reading the book vs. seeing the movie, and reimagined universes. They don’t talk about Such Great Heights. references Spirk The Traitors Who Framed Roger Rabbit Kate McKinnon Gets Weird While Eating Spicy Wings | Hot Ones The New York Times: Why an A.I. Video of Tom Cruise Battling Brad Pitt Spooked Hollywood Kenny G God of War: Sons of Sparta 
Mar 23
37 min
343! I Love You
Who can I say "I love you" to? This week, Jess and Joey talk about expressions of love, social and gender dynamics, rejection, promiscuous love giving, monoliths, and Bad Bunny. They don’t talk about the Pixies or Deee-Lite. references Eight Types of Love in Greek Philosophy Taj Mahal 
Mar 9
22 min
342! Wild Prognostications 2026!
What's to come in 2026? This week, Wild Prognostications returns! Jess, Aaron, and Joey make their predictions for the new year, discussing privacy as luxury [3:28], the romance resurgence [4:28], Avengers Doomsday flopping [13:29], paper as a smart signal [16:35], bird pets [18:31], medical research breakthroughs [24:51], and an existential AI employment crisis [27:42]. They don't put respect on Birdman's name. references California Privacy Protection Agency Remarkable Tablet 
Mar 2
39 min
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