‘Oppenheimer’ and the Siren Song of World-Ending Technology

Matter of Opinion

New York Times Opinion

Society & Culture, Ross Douthat, News, New York Times, Journalism

4.2 • 7.2K Ratings

🗓️ 26 July 2023

⏱️ 37 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster hit “Oppenheimer” tells the story of the father of the atomic bomb and the invention he hoped would end all wars. (Spoiler alert: It did not.) On “Matter of Opinion,” the hosts discuss how history should view J. Robert Oppenheimer — naïve martyr or crybaby? — and whether we have more to fear from nuclear weapons in the age of artificial intelligence.

Transcript

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0:00.0	So we drove out to the Midwest for vacation.
0:05.0	And so I was like, oh, we'll just audiobook it.
0:07.5	And between the drive back and forth,
0:10.5	I barely had covered half of the book
0:13.2	because it was like 27 hours or something ridiculous.
0:16.3	But you subjected your family to the Oppenheimer audiobook?
0:19.3	They loved it, or they lied to me.
0:22.2	Either way.
0:23.1	Well, I mean, I read it when it came out
0:24.0	it's like 17 years ago.
0:25.2	So that doesn't, I mean, I don't even know.
0:26.5	So once was, I didn't know.
0:27.7	I just remember that it was great.
0:28.8	No.
0:29.8	So I had to read it again.
0:30.6	I'm right, sure.
0:31.4	No.
0:32.3	From New York Times opinion, I'm Ross Douthet.
0:37.8	I'm Michelle Cattle.
0:39.0	I'm Carlos Lozato.
0:40.3	And I'm Lydia Pogring.
0:41.8	And this is Matter of Opinion.
	...

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