The Rational View podcast with Dr. Al Scott

In this episode I’m going to explore modern society’s car culture. We all know that the energy use that supports cars is a huge contributor to the greenhouse effect and climate change. We know that the resources society devotes to transportation are significant, and yet they are also the lifeblood of commerce. They represent freedom. The automobile manufacturing industry directly employs and sustains hundreds of thousands of people...

In this episode I’m digging into the state of healthcare in the United States: the only country in the developed world that believes health care is best delivered as a luxury product. Everywhere else, people go to the doctor when they’re sick. In America, you go only if you’re sick and your credit score is feeling strong. They treat hospitals like casinos: you walk in, take your chances, and hope you don’t lose the house on the way...

In this episode I’m going to fact check some polarizing memes on current issues in the news. I’m going to help you to identify fake memes and to question the possibility of AI-generated videos. Did you just read something that confirms your worst fears about the opposition and gets your blood pumping? Are you angry? Stop for a moment and think before you hit like and share. I want to remind you to pause and verify any triggering st...

In this episode I’m interviewing a scientist who is trying to revolutionize computing by replacing power hungry silicon gates with highly efficient biological neurons. For a present-day silicon-based computer to approach the processing power of a human brain would take MegaWatts of power—we are seeing some of these inefficiencies looking at AI systems that require massive amounts of energy to run. A human brain can do the same thin...

Have you ever heard someone spouting off on social media that the climate is always changing?  Apparently this carries great weight amongst people who don’t want to admit that humans are involved in the accurately predicted warming trend that we are currently experiencing. I just recently encountered someone on social media claiming that the climate is self-correcting and we don’t need to worry about how much CO2 we emit, it will t...

In this episode I am taking us on a journey to seek truth amidst a sea of fake news with a person who has published a book on the topic. Hopefully we can get a lifeline to find out how to separate the wheat from the crap.

Infodemiologist, Dr. Pauline W. Hoffmann is an associate professor in the Jandoli School of Communication and a New York State senior public health fellow with the Cattaraugus County Health Department working on s...

In this episode I’m doing a fact check on the claim that CO2 is plant food. This really is a well known fact. Plants use CO2 in photosynthesis to grow. It is indisputably true. And yet on the Skeptical Science website it is listed as a Climate Myth. How can this be? Some folks think it depends on context. It’s like saying ‘all lives matter’ at a black lives matter protest.  Sure, this is obvious and true. But it is being used to un...

In this episode I'm interviewing a nuclear energy educator with a series of informative videos on LinkedIn. He works to address radiophobia and provides an evidence-based assessment of nuclear fission and the many polarized debates surrounding its safety. 

Dr. Robert Hayes is an Associate Professor of Nuclear Engineering at North Carolina State University. He holds a joint faculty appointment with Savannah River National Laboratory...

In this episode, have you ever felt that there is too much injustice in the world and you just can’t respond to it all? Have you ever found yourself making a compromise with your ethics just to make it through the day? I think we all have. My guest today has written a book looking at these tradeoffs. Hopefully it will help us all to be able to make moral choices and address the guilt we feel at not being able to help everyone.

Davi...

In this episode I’m digging into a growing industrial segment that mines waste for precious metals. Often discarded systems contain higher precious metals fractions than the original ore they are mined from. Discarded computers and electronics, and in this case, catalytic converters can be recycled and thereby mitigate new mining operations and their environmental impact.

Don Weatherbee, CEO of Regenx Tech, is a visionary in the cl...

In this episode I’m discussing energy, specifically hydrogen and nuclear with a leading environmentalist author. His recent book the Hype about Hydrogen (revised) highlights the seemingly intractable problems with a Hydrogen economy. He’s also publishing a whitepaper highlighting the high costs of SMRs and touting renewables as the cheapest solution. He suggests nuclear is uniquely dangerous in his assessment. I agree that any new ...

Welcome to my Canadian election review podcast. As of the time of this episode Canada is just a couple weeks away and the Rational View is here to provide you with a rundown on the major parties.  In Canada we have two major parties, the Liberals and the Conservatives who are the only parties who have ever won elections, plus a third party, the New Democrats (NDP) who usually manage to capture a smattering of seats. The last two te...

Life is chaotic right now, people are worried, all you hear on social media is conflict and crazy.

Time to step back, relax, and go on a journey with me into philosophy of the mind. Let’s meditate a bit and disconnect from the reset of modern civilization.

Why am I seeing the world only from within Al Scott’s head? Why am I me and not you? 

Why do you wake up in the morning as you and not as someone else? Is it because you are a so...

Miles Spencer is a father and a mentor of tech founders. He says the similarities in those jobs are remarkable. He founded, financed, built and exited three digital media companies. Prior to that, he was a Venture Principal at Capital Express, and hosted MoneyHunt on PBS. In his spare time he is a painter and an adventurer who has hiked through the Saudi desert and lived to write a book about.  A Line in the Sand ended up an Amazon...

Donald Trump has fawned over authoritarians and dictators and strives to emulate them. What do dictators do? They expoit weaker countries and expand their territory. Hitler had the Aunschlus where he annexed Austria, Putin has Ukraine, and Trump wants Canada and Greenland. The international community allowed Putin to take Crimea with little repercussions. Could Trump be interested in doing the same thing to Canada? What is the evid...

In this episode I’m following up on a tip from a listener who suggested that I should speak with David Bernstein. David was on Michael Shermer’s podcast discussing civil liberty, free speech, and constitutional law issues. In the current situation of highly polarized public debate it is critical that we listen to both sides of the argument and don’t fall victim to bias. This is a job for The Rational View!

David E. Bernstein holds ...