What if a passing cloud or a wrinkled shirt is the reason you’re alive today? Political scientist and author Brian Klaas explores how flukes and tiny twists of fate quietly shape our lives and the world around us. It’s a surprising, thought-provoking look at just how little control we really have.
Want to explore more of Brian Klaas? Check out these fascinating Big Think interviews where he dives into power, leadership, and inequality:
Timestamps:
00:00:00 Chance, chaos, and why everything we do matters
00:00:19 Understanding flukes
00:05:06 Contingent convergence
00:05:26 What is a concrete example of a ‘fluke?’
00:08:57 Invisible pivot points of life
00:13:05 Does everything happen for a reason?
00:14:54 The history of ideas
00:19:33 The delusion of individualism
00:23:05 How can science help us understand flukes?
00:27:40 Convergence vs contingency
00:28:48 How do ripple effects define our lives?
00:33:18 The Butterfly Effect
00:38:28 What are the ‘Basins of Attraction?’
00:47:00 How do we define the research model of social change?
01:00:14 What is the upside to uncertainty?
01:10:06 What is your position on free will?
01:17:26 What do we get wrong about ‘The Concept of Genius?’
01:23:59 Why do people believe in conspiracy theories?
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