Author: Stephen Paff

Those Forced Out: Conservatives who Never Supported Donald Trump and the Contemporary Republican Party and its Implications for Presidential Elections – Full Interview with Kyle Morrison (Interview #1 in a New Series)

(Full Interview. Here is the first part if you’d prefer listening in sections.)

What is it like to feel kicked out of one’s party? What role does social media play in dividing people politically in the United States and Canada, and what can we do to bridge these gaps? And finally, what are the implications of all of these on presidential elections?

I interviewed Kyle Morrison to talk about these questions. He’s an anthropologist who has studied conservatives or those leaning conservative who have felt disgruntled with Donald Trump and the contemporary Republican party (sometimes also called Never Trumpers). Here, he talks about what he learned from talking with them about how they navigate the current divisive political world in the United States and what that may mean for the upcoming 2024 election.

He also describes how through his research with this group, he learned to listen to and engage with people he does not agree with politically and ways to do that in the current political landscape. He is not a conservative but wanted to use this research to seek to understand those on the “other side.” We in the United States live in one of the most politically divided eras of our history, making such initiatives all the more important to foster empathy and understanding with those one disagrees with.

This is the first interview in a new podcast interview series where I talk with others from around the world to learn how different people navigate life. This first interview focuses on a political anthropology expert in US politics, but my interviews will be of people from different cultures around the world – some experts, some not – to learn more about humanity and the different ways people navigate our complex contemporary world.

Note: We recorded the interview a few days before Joe Biden dropped out of the race and Kamala Harris became the Democratic Party candidate for the election, so you will hear us talk about Biden as the Democratic candidate.

Links for the Materials We Discuss

The Atlantic Monthly Podcast Episode I Mention:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0TJ42eHo6xE&pp=ygUkdGhlIGF0bGFudGljIGhvdyB0byBoYXZlIGFuIGFyZ3VtZW50

Those Forced Out: Conservatives who Never Supported Donald Trump and the Contemporary Republican Party and its Implications for Presidential Elections – Part 2 of an Interview with Kyle Morrison (Interview #1 in a New Series)

(You can find Part 1 here.)

What is it like to feel kicked out of one’s party? What role does social media play in dividing people politically in the United States and Canada, and what can we do to bridge these gaps? And finally, what are the implications of all of these on presidential elections?

I interviewed Kyle Morrison to talk about these questions. He’s an anthropologist who has studied conservatives or those leaning conservative who have felt disgruntled with Donald Trump and the contemporary Republican party (sometimes also called Never Trumpers). Here, he talks about what he learned from talking with them about how they navigate the current divisive political world in the United States and what that may mean for the upcoming 2024 election.

In this second part, he describes the ways the current political landscape has created divisive and the alternatives he sees to that.

He also describes how through his research with this group, he learned to listen to and engage with people he does not agree with politically and ways to do that in the current political landscape. He is not a conservative but wanted to use this research to seek to understand those on the “other side.” We in the United States live in one of the most politically divided eras of our history, making such initiatives all the more important to foster empathy and understanding with those one disagrees with.

This is the first interview in a new podcast interview series where I talk with others from around the world to learn how different people navigate life. This first interview focuses on a political anthropology expert in US politics, but my interviews will be of people from different cultures around the world – some experts, some not – to learn more about humanity and the different ways people navigate our complex contemporary world.

Note: We recorded the interview a few days before Joe Biden dropped out of the race and Kamala Harris became the Democratic Party candidate for the election, so you will hear us talk about Biden as the Democratic candidate.

Links for the Materials We Discuss

The Atlantic Monthly Podcast Episode I Mention:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0TJ42eHo6xE&pp=ygUkdGhlIGF0bGFudGljIGhvdyB0byBoYXZlIGFuIGFyZ3VtZW50

Those Forced Out: Conservatives who Never Supported Donald Trump and the Contemporary Republican Party and its Implications for Presidential Elections – Part 1 of an Interview with Kyle Morrison (Interview #1 in a New Series)

What is it like to feel kicked out of one’s party? What role does social media play in dividing people politically in the United States and Canada, and what can we do to bridge these gaps? And finally, what are the implications of all of these on presidential elections?

I interviewed Kyle Morrison to talk about these questions. He’s an anthropologist who has studied conservatives or those leaning conservative who have felt disgruntled with Donald Trump and the contemporary Republican party (sometimes also called Never Trumpers). Here, he talks about what he learned from talking with them about how they navigate the current divisive political world in the United States and what that may mean for the upcoming 2024 election.

In this first part, we discuss the experiences such conservatives have and the implications for this presidential election and the last several presidential elections.

He also describes how through his research with this group, he learned to listen to and engage with people he does not agree with politically and ways to do that in the current political landscape. He is not a conservative but wanted to use this research to seek to understand those on the “other side.” We in the United States live in one of the most politically divided eras of our history, making such initiatives all the more important to foster empathy and understanding with those one disagrees with.

This is the first interview in a new podcast interview series where I talk with others from around the world to learn how different people navigate life. This first interview focuses on a political anthropology expert in US politics, but my interviews will be of people from different cultures around the world – some experts, some not – to learn more about humanity and the different ways people navigate our complex contemporary world.

Note: We recorded the interview a few days before Joe Biden dropped out of the race and Kamala Harris became the Democratic Party candidate for the election, so you will hear us talk about Biden as the Democratic candidate.

Links for the Materials We Discuss

The Atlantic Monthly Podcast Episode I Mention:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0TJ42eHo6xE&pp=ygUkdGhlIGF0bGFudGljIGhvdyB0byBoYXZlIGFuIGFyZ3VtZW50

Conversing with AI: Interview with Chelsea Wang about Communications with Artificial Intelligence Systems (Part 3 of 3)

In the final part of our conversation, Chelsea Wang explains how her background in psychology has influenced her work in artificial intelligence. In particular, she describes how her social science background helped her develop and deploy her own version of the Mutual Theory of Mind as a psychologist within the field of artificial intelligence. When socializing, humans employ a recursive feedback loop of conceptualization of each other, and she explores the application of similar concepts to conversational AI systems.

She concludes by discussing her journey as a PhD student: what led her to seek her dissertation and her plans afterwards to use what she is learning now to conduct innovative and impactful work in the business world.

Click here to learn more about the Interview Series.

More about Chelsea:

Qiaosi Wang (Chelsea) is a fifth-year PhD candidate in Human-Centered Computing at Georgia Institute of Technology. Chelsea is a human-centered AI researcher and her PhD dissertation work focuses on building the Mutual Theory of Mind framework, inspired by the basic human capability to surmise what is happening in others’ minds (also known as “Theory of Mind”), to enhance mutual understanding between humans and AIs during human-AI communication. Her work specifically focuses on the human-AI communication process during AI-mediated social interaction in online learning, where AI agents can connect socially isolated online learners by providing personalized social recommendations to online learners based on information extracted from students’ posts on the online class discussion forums.

Chelsea received her Bachelor of Science degrees in Psychology and Informatics from the University of Washington, Seattle. In her free time, Chelsea loves hiking, playing with her cat, Gouda, and spending time at bouldering gyms. 

To learn more about Chelsea and the sources we referenced in our conversation:

Conversing with AI: Interview with Chelsea Wang about Communications with Artificial Intelligence Systems (Part 2 of 3)

Chelsea Wang has spent many years trying to improve the cognitive process of artificial intelligence systems to better interact with humans. In this second part of our conversation, she explains her theories about metacognition, intelligence, and potential anthropomorphization of AI “thought” processes. Through this, she explicates her vision and approach to the potential social life of AI.

Click here to learn more about the Interview Series.

More about Chelsea:

Qiaosi Wang (Chelsea) is a fifth-year PhD candidate in Human-Centered Computing at Georgia Institute of Technology. Chelsea is a human-centered AI researcher and her PhD dissertation work focuses on building the Mutual Theory of Mind framework, inspired by the basic human capability to surmise what is happening in others’ minds (also known as “Theory of Mind”), to enhance mutual understanding between humans and AIs during human-AI communication. Her work specifically focuses on the human-AI communication process during AI-mediated social interaction in online learning, where AI agents can connect socially isolated online learners by providing personalized social recommendations to online learners based on information extracted from students’ posts on the online class discussion forums.

Chelsea received her Bachelor of Science degrees in Psychology and Informatics from the University of Washington, Seattle. In her free time, Chelsea loves hiking, playing with her cat, Gouda, and spending time at bouldering gyms. 

To learn more about Chelsea and the sources we referenced in our conversation:

Conversing with AI: Interview with Chelsea Wang about Communications with Artificial Intelligence Systems (Part 1 of 3)

Chelsea Wang describes her work developing and refining the communication processes between artificial intelligence and humans, particularly the Mutual Theory of Mind framework she has helped build. As a doctoral student in Human-Computer Interaction, she also discusses her journey from human psychology to the social interactions of AI.

Click here to learn more about the Interview Series.

More about Chelsea:

Qiaosi Wang (Chelsea) is a fifth-year PhD candidate in Human-Centered Computing at Georgia Institute of Technology. Chelsea is a human-centered AI researcher and her PhD dissertation work focuses on building the Mutual Theory of Mind framework, inspired by the basic human capability to surmise what is happening in others’ minds (also known as “Theory of Mind”), to enhance mutual understanding between humans and AIs during human-AI communication. Her work specifically focuses on the human-AI communication process during AI-mediated social interaction in online learning, where AI agents can connect socially isolated online learners by providing personalized social recommendations to online learners based on information extracted from students’ posts on the online class discussion forums.

Chelsea received her Bachelor of Science degrees in Psychology and Informatics from the University of Washington, Seattle. In her free time, Chelsea loves hiking, playing with her cat, Gouda, and spending time at bouldering gyms. 

To learn more about Chelsea and the sources we referenced in our conversation:

Becoming a Business Anthropologist: Interview with Oscar Barrera (Part 3 of 3)

In this final part of the Interview, Oscar Barrera shows how he has used qualitative insights along with quantiative data as a business anthropologist to help organizations improve their product. Talking with customers provides an invaluable way to understand their needs, mindset, and decisions.

Oscar Barrera is a Corporate Anthropologist based in Veracruz, Eastern México.  He is the CEO of Corporate Anthropology Consulting and has been working with successful companies and organizations for 8 years helping them to innovate by finding unseen opportunities to grow their businesses and improve their organizational culture. Oscar is also a keynote speaker and is the founder and host of the Podcast Nuevas Posibilidades (New Possibilities) focused on innovation and businesses. Feel free to check out his podcast here as well: https://antropologiacorporativa.mx/podcast/.

Click here to learn more about the Interview Series.

To learn more about Oscar and the sources we referenced in our conversation:

Becoming a Business Anthropologist: Interview with Oscar Barrera (Part 2 of 3)

In Part 2 of our Interview, Oscar Barrera explains how to get yourself out there in order to find clients and how he used coaching to help improve his mindset in such a way that enabled him to pursue his goals. Working through one’s current mindset through coaching can work wonders in helping people grow occupationally or personally, as Oscar attests.

Oscar Barrera is a Corporate Anthropologist based in Veracruz, Eastern México.  He is the CEO of Corporate Anthropology Consulting and has been working with successful companies and organizations for 8 years helping them to innovate by finding unseen opportunities to grow their businesses and improve their organizational culture. Oscar is also a keynote speaker and is the founder and host of the Podcast Nuevas Posibilidades (New Possibilities) focused on innovation and businesses. Feel free to check out his podcast here as well: https://antropologiacorporativa.mx/podcast/.

Click here to learn more about the Interview Series.

To learn more about Oscar and the sources we referenced in our conversation:

Becoming a Business Anthropologist: Interview with Oscar Barrera (Part 1 of 3)

In this next interview in my Series, Oscar Barrera describes how he learned to use anthropology to help businesses improve their products. In this first part, he discusses how he became a business anthropologist and how the business world has shaped his philosophy and approach to work.

Oscar Barrera is a Corporate Anthropologist based in Veracruz, Eastern México.  He is the CEO of Corporate Anthropology Consulting. He has been working with successful companies and organizations for 8 years helping them to innovate by finding unseen opportunities to grow their businesses and improve their organizational culture. Oscar is also a keynote speaker and is the founder and host of the Podcast Nuevas Posibilidades (New Possibilities) focused on innovation and businesses.  Feel free to check out his podcast here as well: https://antropologiacorporativa.mx/podcast/.

Click here to learn more about the Interview Series.

To learn more about Oscar and the sources we referenced in our conversation:

Data Science Storytelling: Quantitative UX Research in Google Cloud with Randy Au (Part 2 of 2)

In this second part of my interview with Randy Au, he discusses the techniques he used to teach himself to code and his approach to programming and data science as a social scientist.

Here is Part 1 of our interview.

Prior to joining Google, he spent a decade as a mixture of a data analyst, data scientist, and data engineer at various startups in New York City and before that, studied Communications. In his newsletter, he discusses data science topics like data collection and data quality from a social science perspective. Outside of work he often engages in far too many hobbies, taken to absurd lengths.

Click here to learn more about the Interview Series this is a part of.

More about Randy: