Best Protos Learning Podcasts (2025)

1
Episode 48: Was Nietzsche a Proto-Fascist? 58:12

2M ago58:12

58:12

Was Nietzsche a fascist? Does liking Nietzsche make you a fascist? If the bully boy heralds of MAGA are present-day fascists, does that make them latter-day Nietzscheans? Join Eric and Taylor as they distinguish several varieties of chest-thumping, bluster, and skepticism about truth. And as Nietzsche himself said, “If this podcast episode does not…

1
Episode 47: Are We Always at War with Ourselves? 58:36

2M ago58:36

58:36

Did you ever want something and not want it, or love somebody and also hate them? If you did, does that mean there are two different things inside you and they are having a war? Or are there three? This week Eric and Taylor look at the idea of internal conflict, internal peace, what it all means, and what if anything can be done about it. They also…

1
Episode 46: Are We Living in a Cave? (Part 2) 44:20

2M ago44:20

44:20

Are we still living in a cave? In this sequel episode Eric and Taylor contemplate what might happen if you got out of Plato’s cave. Would the sun blind you? And if you tried to convince the other prisoners to escape, would they kill you? Also this week, replies to some letters from listeners.

1
Episode 45: Will Intelligent Machines Destroy Us? 1:05:32

3M ago1:05:32

1:05:32

Are computers becoming so supersmart that they might supersede all human intelligence and eat us for lunch? Or is the very idea of “machine intelligence” a sad blend of conceptual confusion, willful ignorance, magical thinking, and financial opportunism? If you’re not sure (and if you can’t get an LLM to give you a straight answer), have a listen a…

1
Episode 44: Are We Living in a Cave? (Part 1) 1:00:46

3M ago1:00:46

1:00:46

Are ordinary experience and everyday life hopelessly benighted and delusional, a realm of shadows, full of spectacle and drama but signifying nothing? This week Eric and Taylor descend into the most famous four pages in the history of Western philosophy: Plato’s allegory of the cave. Tune in and overcome your fear of truth, wisdom, and the beautifu…

1
The Power of Listening: An Unconventional Path to Innovation 18:39

5M ago18:39

18:39

When we think about innovation, listening isn’t usually the first skill that comes to mind—but what if it should be? In this episode of the Innovative Learning Strategies podcast, hosts Christina Eanes and Stephanie Hubka explore how active listening can be a surprising catalyst for innovation. By tuning into the needs, experiences, and untold stor…

1
Redefining Innovation: What It Means to You and Why It Matters 23:08

5M ago23:08

23:08

In today’s rapidly evolving landscape, the word innovation is thrown around a lot—but what does it truly mean? In this thought-provoking episode of the Innovative Learning Strategies podcast, hosts Stephanie Hubka and Christina Eanes dive deep into the real meaning of innovation beyond the buzzword. Join us as we explore how innovation isn’t just a…

1
Unlocking Growth: Cultivating a Learning Mindset with Alex Suchman 26:34

6M ago26:34

26:34

In this episode of the Innovative Learning Strategies Podcast, hosts Christina Eanes and Stephanie Hubka engage in an insightful conversation with Alex Suchman about cultivating a learning mindset. Together, they explore this topic from two perspectives: as individuals striving to develop their own learning mindset and as talent development practit…

1
Remote Learning Strategies with Christina Eanes and Stephanie Hubka 22:21

7M ago22:21

22:21

In this Innovative Learning Strategies Podcast episode, hosts Christina Eanes and Stephanie Hubka explore essential strategies to maximize remote learning. With online training becoming a permanent fixture in our lives, navigating the unique challenges of learning from a distance is vital to thriving in this environment. We’ll cover topics like sta…

1
Building Connection Through Learning with Stephanie Hubka and Christina Eanes 21:38

7M ago21:38

21:38

In this episode of the Innovative Learning Strategies Podcast, hosts Stephanie Hubka and Christina Eanes dive into the art of creating powerful connection moments within learning experiences. Whether in a classroom, workshop, or casual conversation, the magic happens when learning goes beyond information exchange and sparks a real connection betwee…

1
Peer Learning Networks with Christina Eanes and Stephanie Hubka 18:49

8M ago18:49

18:49

In this episode of the Innovative Learning Strategies Podcast, hosts Christina Eanes and Stephanie Hubka dive into the world of peer learning networks—collaborative communities where individuals exchange knowledge, experiences, and skills while learning from and with each other. They explore both informal, self-organized networks and more structure…

1
Learning in the Flow with Stephanie Hubka and Christina Eanes 21:19

8M ago21:19

21:19

In this episode of the Innovative Learning Strategies Podcast, hosts Stephanie Hubka and Christina Eanes explore learning in the flow—a powerful approach that seamlessly integrates learning opportunities into everyday tasks. This method empowers employees to build new skills, knowledge, and competencies without stepping away from their day-to-day r…

1
Developing at a Distance with Julie Winkle Giulioni 23:27

8M ago23:27

23:27

In this episode of the Innovative Learning Strategies Podcast, host Christina Eanes interviews Julie Winkle Giulioni. Julie is an author, researcher, speaker, and authority on leadership and career development. She co-authored Help Them Grow or Watch Them Go: Career Conversations Organizations Need and Employees Still Want and authored Promotions A…

1
Microlearning for Major Impact 24:49

9M ago24:49

24:49

In this episode of the Innovative Learning Strategies Podcast, hosts Stephanie Hubka and Christina Eanes explore the concept of microlearning—what it is and why it’s essential to understand. They discuss its potential as an effective learning strategy, highlight some important considerations, and offer practical tips for maximizing its benefits. Ch…

1
Navigating the Pros and Cons of Hybrid Learning 28:41

9M ago28:41

28:41

In this episode of the Innovative Learning Strategies Podcast, hosts Christina Eanes and Stephanie Hubka delve into the complexities of hybrid learning. They explore why traditional approaches often fall short of creating optimal learning environments and share actionable strategies to enhance the hybrid learning experience, fostering a rich and en…

1
Humanizing AI for Learning with Stephanie Hubka and Christina Eanes 25:24

10M ago25:24

25:24

In this episode of the Innovative Learning Strategies Podcast, the unique perspectives of hosts Stephanie Hubka and Christina Eanes bring a fresh understanding to AI's transformative impact on talent development. They discuss how AI revolutionizes content sourcing and explore techniques to infuse AI-generated content with compelling storytelling to…

1
Episode 43: Can You Learn Anything Important from Somebody Else? 1:01:00

1y ago1:01:00

1:01:00

Eric and his temporary co-host, Tao Ruspoli (filmmaker, co-founder of the Bombay Beach Biennale) delve deep into what it is to teach and to learn... and they ask, "Can you learn anything really important from somebody else?"

1
Episode 42: Are There Human Beings Worthy of Worship? With Geoff Dyer 1:00:36

1y ago1:00:36

1:00:36

Tao and Eric are joined by author Geoff Dyer to question whether certain individuals are worthy of worship. Dyer’s many books include But Beautiful (about jazz), the novel Jeff in Venice, Death in Varanasi and, most recently, The Last Days of Roger Federer. A member of the American Academy of Arts and Science and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Li…

1
Episode 41: Is Entertainment a Seductive Lie? 53:54

1y ago53:54

53:54

Eric Kaplan and Tao Ruspoli ask about how entertainment may or may not be "true". Tao substitutes for Taylor for the next several episodes. We've also just introduced video to the podcast! Let us know what you think.

1
Episode 40: Is Food Art? 1:11:25

1y ago1:11:25

1:11:25

This week Julia Moskin, Pulitzer Prize winning food reporter for the New York Times, joins Eric and Taylor to ask whether food is (or can be) art, and how it manages to do that while also just being yummy. Should great food taste like nothing you’ve ever tasted before or should it taste like the best ever version of its ingredients? Is culinary qua…

1
Episode 15: Is There Any Such Thing as the Self? 49:08

1y ago49:08

49:08

Another chestnut. Am I a self? Am I myself? Am I yourself? And if there is no such thing as the self, do I not exist? The Buddha and David Hume thought so – were they right? Join Taylor and Eric as they explore the conceptual labyrinth that is ourselves.

1
Episode 12: Are We Our Bodies? 48:49

1y ago48:49

48:49

A command performance of a classic. Are we our bodies? Do we have sould? Do we have minds? Do haircuts diminish our true selves? Can our selves be hit by a bus or uploaded onto The Cloud? The French phenomenologist Maurice Merleau-Ponty's body could’t be with us for this episode, but he joins us in spirit to tell us why we only meet people in the f…

1
Episode 39: Is Faith Good? 1:01:53

1+ y ago1:01:53

1:01:53

Can we build a meaningful life on the shifting sands of irrational belief? Or if we refuse to make an infinite commitment, are we wasting our life, dog-paddling in a weak tea without hope or meaning? Is faith necessary or insane – or both? This week Eric and Taylor record their first ever episode before a live studio audience, namely the annual mee…

1
Episode 8: Do We Need Other People? 53:53

1+ y ago53:53

53:53

Another command performance. (Okay, rerun.) Are we utterly dependent on others or should we look inward and try to be true to ourselves? Can we do both? Or neither? This week Eric and Taylor look to Ralph Waldo Emerson for some help with this deeply unsettling question.

1
Episode 38: Is Justice Possible? 54:13

1+ y ago54:13

54:13

Some things are obviously horribly bad and wrong. Is it possible to make them right? Do some people deserve satisfaction while others deserve punishment or mercy? When juries deliver verdicts and judges impose sentences, are they speaking the truth or just fumbling in the dark and settling on the least bad outcome? This week Taylor and Eric reflect…

1
Episode 37: Is It Okay to Be Fat? 57:07

1+ y ago57:07

57:07

Do we owe it to anyone (even ourselves) to be thin? Is being thin always healthier, sexier, better looking, or somehow more praiseworthy? Is it easier to be a great philosopher or to get into heaven if you’re thin? This week Eric and Taylor are joined by philosopher Kate Manne, whose new book examines diet culture and fatphobia. The truth, as it of…

1
Episode 36: Can You Succeed in the Music Business Without Selling Out? 1:02:23

1+ y ago1:02:23

1:02:23

Does the lure of fame and fortune necessarily get in the way of making great music? Or is it okay to make some fun ear candy as a way of putting food on the table? This week Taylor and Eric chat about artistic integrity and the temptations of popularity and money with singer, songwriter, philosopher, violinist, and attorney at law, Andrew Choi – al…

1
Episode 35: Can a Sound Look Like Something? 32:46

1+ y ago32:46

32:46

Synesthesia! A weird thing experienced only by unusual people, or by ordinary people on unusual drugs, or – is it something everybody has all the time? Are very low musical notes literally “dark”? Can food sound like something, like hot peppers going “ping” on your tongue? Why does it make sense to call a fork a “zrickrick” and a pillow a “baobwab”…

1
Episode 34: Is Revenge Inevitable? 38:13

1+ y ago38:13

38:13

Is revenge a dish best served cold, hot, or not at all? Should we all go on a revenge diet, or is it just too tasty? Could hitting back be so much fun that we can’t give it up? Or is the best revenge the serene feeling of being above revenge? Even if we know that vengeance inevitably leads to an endless cycle of vengeance, is it possible to get off…

1
Episode 33: Do Things Happen for a Reason? 54:57

1+ y ago54:57

54:57

Things happen. Sometimes you find a $10 bill. Sometimes a bird craps on your head. Are these events just the meaningless result of previous events or is there a hidden purpose behind everything? Does God’s plan underlie the chaos of experience? Is the idea that something was “meant to be” (or not meant to be) comforting or crippling? And is the ide…

1
Episode 9: Is Free Will an Illusion? 52:39

1+ y ago52:39

52:39

This week Taylor is grading mountains (mountains, I tell you) of student essays. We are proud therefore to offer you a “command performance” (rerun) of this terrifying yet edifying episode on the perennial problem of free will. Is it an illusion? Are we puppets? When we think we are thinking (or acting) freely, are we actually just cogs in a heartl…

1
Episode 32: Is Almost Everyone a Failure? 55:08

1+ y ago55:08

55:08

This week Taylor and Eric are joined by philosopher Kieran Setiya, author of Life Is Hard, which they agree it is. It’s especially hard if you think you’re doomed to failure. Are you? Not necessarily. But if you don’t worry about success and failure, are you just going to be swimming in a soup of nothing matters and who cares? Tune in and find out …

1
Episode 31: Are We Always Just Acting? 55:03

1+ y ago55:03

55:03

Is everything we do a kind of performance? Are we always reading from a script? And what makes bad acting bad? Do psychopaths make good actors? Do politicians make good psychopaths? And why do presidential candidates emphasize what they’re saying by pointing with their thumbs? Film and television actor Kevin Sussman joins Taylor and Eric to talk th…

1
Episode 30: Was the Woke Mind Virus Created by French Philosophers? 59:34

1+ y ago59:34

59:34

Were poststructuralist, postmodern, postrespectable French philosophers like Michel Foucault the real masterminds behind identity politics, critical race theory, cultural appropriation, and pumpkin spice latte? Will civilization survive the rampant, unchecked questioning of grand narratives? Join Taylor and Eric as they unravel this bundle of phone…

1
Episode 6: Is Being a Good Person Just a Matter of Luck? 48:37

1+ y ago48:37

48:37

In this – repeat command performance (okay, rerun) – episode, Eric and Taylor grapple with the problem of moral luck. Are we in control of being decent human beings and doing the right thing or are we at the mercy of circumstance and maybe even of our own character? Listen, feel unsettled, then feel okay.…

1
Using a Strengths Mindset with Mike Young 28:48

1+ y ago28:48

28:48

In this Innovative Learning Strategies Podcast episode, Stephanie Hubka and Christina Eanes interview Mike Young. Mike is a Learning and Development Specialist and Certified Strengths Coach with over 9 years of coaching and consulting experience. He also combines his experience as a coach with his musicianship in his work as a songwriting coach and…

1
Episode 29: Can People Change? 1:10:51

1+ y ago1:10:51

1:10:51

Can human beings change radically? And if they can, is that a good thing? What if we changed so much that we became strangers to each other? But if we couldn’t change at all, wouldn’t that mean we’re condemned to stagnation and despair? And hey, wouldn’t it be cool if we could sprout wings and fly? This week philosophers Melissa Shew (Marquette) an…

1
Episode 28: Is It Bad to Judge People? 1:03:36

1+ y ago1:03:36

1:03:36

Being “judgmental” sounds like something bad, yet refraining from all moral judgment seems pathetic, and also impossible. So, what should we do? Can we be truly compassionate without also being capable of anger, resentment, and maybe some occasional Schadenfreude? This week Eric and Taylor are joined by actor, writer, and television producer Andy R…

1
Episode 27: Why Do We Like to Remember Things that Hurt? 53:03

1+ y ago53:03

53:03

Is there any pain as great as recalling past happiness from present misery? If so, why do we do it? Do we get pleasure from tormenting ourselves about losing something (or someone) we loved? Was Socrates right that living well means learning how to die? Does being comforted too quickly mean we never really cared? And if so, how quick is too quick? …

1
Episode 1: Does ChapGPT Mean Humanity Is Doomed? 57:48

1+ y ago57:48

57:48

In this episode – returning here in a special command performance (rerun) – Eric and Taylor worry about whether ChatGPT might be a harbinger of total computer domination of the world and the looming obsolescence and expendability of human beings. Is that possible? Tune in and find out what it is about artificial intelligence that should really frig…

1
Episode 26: What Comes After Monotheism? 1:00:12

1+ y ago1:00:12

1:00:12

Does belief in God lead to intolerance and violence? Is monotheism about the number of gods or is it, as Egyptologist Jan Assmann suggests, about “having no other gods” and stamping out idol worship and superstition? Are secular atheists really just monotheists fighting a holy war against religion? Does monotheism contribute anything good to psycho…

1
Episode 25: What Would a New Kind of Spirituality Look Like? 49:12

1+ y ago49:12

49:12

Traditional religion has a been pretty rough ride. Some have felt saved by it. For others, it has been destructive and traumatizing. If you were going to build a new kind of spirituality from scratch, what would the ingredients be and how would you bake it? Sex worker, organizer, and memoirist Liara Roux joins us this week to talk about why Jesus w…

1
Episode 24: Is Being Deep Better than Being Shallow? 53:49

1+ y ago53:49

53:49

What does it mean to be deep? Is profundity something good or is it pretentious and boring? Are there different kinds of deepness? Is shallowness itself a kind of depth? Is it only shallow people who try to sound deep? Are profound utterances dark oceans or plastic mirrors? Join Eric and Taylor on this, their first video episode as they plum the de…

1
Episode 23: Are There Monsters Among Us? 49:58

1+ y ago49:58

49:58

What are monsters? Do they lurk among us? Are some of us monsters? How would we know? What’s really frightening about monsters – that they’re inhuman or that they’re all too human? If a shark could speak, would you climb into its tank to talk to it? And what exactly is so creepy about the dad in The Shining? Tune in and get the lowdown about monste…

1
Episode 22: Is Being Unintelligible? 52:46

1+ y ago52:46

52:46

What is it to be? We be, and we be jammin’ but what about other things? Is a hole a thing? Or just a lack of dirt? Unicorns aren’t real, but are they in some other way? Perhaps unicorns are, but don’t exist. But if so, what about non-existent unicorns? What’s their deal? What is the “metaphysics of presence,” and why did it annoy Martin Heidegger? …

1
Episode 21: Are All Human Relationships Struggles for Domination? 56:19

2y ago56:19

56:19

Was Jean-Paul Sartre right that hell is other people? Are all human relationships an attempt to beat the Other before the Other beats the Us? Is every person coming down the road a potential master of a potential slave? Is all love either masochism or sadism? Is love a war? Or is war love by other means? Will listening to this podcast mean a battle…

1
Podcast Strategy: Hosting and Guesting 101 23:20

2y ago23:20

23:20

In this episode of the Innovative Learning Strategies Podcast, hosts Stephanie Hubka and Christina Eanes share tips for both hosting a podcast and being a guest on a podcast so you can show up professionally. Check out InnovativeLearningStrategies.com for more information about this podcast. For more information about Christina, visit EanesTraining…

1
Episode 20: Would You Do Bad Things if You Knew You Could Get Away With It? 56:19

2y ago56:19

56:19

Actor, comedian, writer, producer, and musician Fred Armisen joins Eric and Taylor this week to ponder the twin mysteries of morality and moral motivation. Do we do good only out of a fear of blame and punishment? Would most people do wrong, if they knew no one was looking? Tune in and learn what Plato said Gyges did with the invisibility ring he f…

1
Episode 19: Does Desire Lead to Suffering? 58:35

2y ago58:35

58:35

This week Eric and Taylor are joined by journalist and adult industry activist Laura Desirée as they wonder whether desire inevitably leads to suffering. Or maybe desiring just is suffering. Is desire therefore bad? Maybe some kinds of suffering are good because they keep us from becoming numb to pains and pleasures of all kinds. Join us and confro…

1
Podcast Technology: Where Do I Start? 30:36

2y ago30:36

30:36

In this episode of the Innovative Learning Strategies Podcast, hosts Stephanie Hubka and Christina Eanes share suggestions for software and hardware to utilize during podcasting at different budget levels. Check out InnovativeLearningStrategies.com for more information about this podcast. For more information about Christina, visit EanesTraining.co…

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