Episodes

How has our childhood media affected our adulthoods? This week, special guest Dylan Fowler joins Aaron and Jess to talk about Sesame Street, Ren & Stimpy, Disney, Don Bluth, The Lion King, and The Muppets. They don’t talk about vulgar Snoopy. references HuffPost: 11 Moments On 'Sesame Street' That Championed Diversity And Inclusion On the famous Mister Rogers pool scene How Divine inspired Ursula The Sea Witch John Kricfalusi: An Open Secret Ren, Stimpy, & John K: The Art vs. the Artist The D...

Why it gotta be bagels vs. donuts? And how should we celebrate our birthdays? [25:17] This week, Aaron and Jess talk about Sega vs. Nintendo, the L.A. donut scene, the coastal bagel war, birthday themes, the responsibility phases, and cake-flavored foods. Thankfully, they don’t talk about birthday cake bagels. references Strangers With Candy Theme Song Cleaning pr0n Sega vs. Nintendo The sweet and savory Mecca Atari: Game Over America's obsession with sweet breakfast? The Dutch say, "Houd mij...

What do you do about the missing Lego piece? And how does this become dumpling? [25:32] This week, Aaron and Jess talk about customer service, bike sharing overages, significance imbalance, invisible wisdom, dumpling teamwork, and apprenticeship. They don’t talk about My Squishy Little Dumplings. references Vincent van Gogh's The Starry Night criticalnonsense@sylvain.co rubber baby buggy bumpers Every Grain of Rice: Simple Chinese Home Cooking by Fuchsia Dunlop Mark Rober: Pranks Destroy Sca...

How can we better leverage awards in our everyday life? This week, Joey and Jess talk about the Boston Celtics, recognition, distinguishing, benchmarks, The Infatuation, and Hitch. They don’t talk about Ali Shaheed Muhammad, my man. references Because maybe ... Michelin Guide The cure for the common man The Hitch Tomatometer® The Annual Dundies!

How can we take advantage of Assembly Theory in our lives? And where are the six elemental marshmallows best applied in life? [31:46] This week, Joey, Jess, and Aaron talk about corn dogs, Kafka, Homer, brown sugar, extrusion, and Peeps. They don’t talk about that famous DJ fella. references Lex Fridman Podcast: Alien Debate: Sara Walker and Lee Cronin Assembly Theory The best ketchup (ahem) A Critical Nonsense favorite: But What If We're Wrong?: Thinking about the Present as If It Were the ...

How does one navigate the journey from Ask Culture to Guess Culture, and vice versa? And what are your ideal working hours? [27:50] This week, Aaron, Jess, and Joey talk about privacy settings, politeness vs. safety, the Midwest, philosopher hours, exercise, and zoos. They don’t talk about Tears For Fears. references Have we told you that we believe in a thing called The Darkness? Adam Neely: The most elegant key change in all of pop music Céline Dion's Emotional Breakdown While Performing "...

Why choose casual chaos? And what is the standard way to frame a vacation photo? [31:50] This week, special guest Cara Lohman joins Jess to talk about Super Mario Bros., chickens, selfie bombs, order and structure, people vs. vistas, and chaos theory. They don’t talk about the Cocoa Brovaz. references Everything Everywhere All At Once trailer Bierki (and Bierki, and Bierki, and Bierki) Ennio Morricone Benoit Mandelbrot BBC: How Mandelbrot's fractals changed the world Fractal Foundation: What...

Is it healthier to be a little bit more ignorant online? And how do we all build a discomfort diet? [28:26] This week, special guest Nora Mestrich joins Joey to talk about TikTok, Twitter, admitting ignorance, dopamine hijacking, ice plunges, and the benefits of pain. They don’t talk about DIIV. references MMT Armchair Expert interview with Anna Lembke Dopamine Nation: Finding Balance in the Age of Indulgence by Anna Lembke Seek Discomfort on YouTube Yes Theory on YouTube

Why is failure the best way to learn a lesson? This week, Joey and Jess talk about New York laundry, errant emails, the instant amplitude of the feeling of failure, "Fail fast!," biffing and flop sweat, and overlearning. They don’t talk about Sonic Youth's Washing Machine LP. references Critical Nonsense Merch! Fortune: How an NFT creator lost $34 million due to a smart contract error The Atlantic: Pandemonium and Rage in Hawaii Rube Goldberg machine

How can we better tap into inspiration from weirder, wilder places? This week, Joey and Jess talk about The Office, diverse sourcing, walking away, "do it now," and ... thots. They don’t talk about Chicago. references HAIM "Right Now" Corrections Department: Pronunciation Guide: HAIM Teach You How to Say Their Name Just FYI: How Caribbean People Eat Mango Corrections Department: Who vs. Whom Neuroscience News: Unique Connectivity Lets Highly Creative People’s Brains Take ‘Road Less Traveled’ ...

Which CCU team should get our backing? In the latest installment of Nonsense VC!, Jess pitches Cereal Cinematic Universes to Joey. They talk about Kellogg's vs. General Mills, character strength, biome corners, villains, tummy troubles, and the rampant commingling of ice cream and cereal. They don’t talk about cereal commas. references The lineup card: Kellogg's vs. General Mills Yesterworld: The History & Downfall of McDonaldland and the Disney-McDonalds Happy Meal The Wacky Adventures Of Ro...

How far can we take malicious compliance? And what happens when a nothing turns into a need? [26:12] This week, Joey and Jess talk about Florida's "Don't Say Gay" law, rules, Originalism, lip balm, deodorant, and skin care routines. They don’t talk about Judas Priest. references A look back at Teen Beat Selena + Chef on HBO Max Selena Gomez & The Scene "Un Año Sin Lluvia" Critical Nonsense on YouTube The teacher template letter in response to Florida's "Don't Say Gay" law Baader–Meinhof phe...

How dead is Rock and Roll? And how are we tied to our genetic identity? [28:31] This week, special guest Harmand Ponder joins Joey and Jess to talk about Tame Impala, Rock subgenres, Baroque Pop, genetics vs. culture, epigenetics, and beaches. They don’t talk about Bette Midler. references Hey, Dude kumquats List of Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees Baroque pop Brian Falduto, gay life coach, and his identity struggles after School of Rock What Is Epigenetics, and Why Is [Joey] Talking abou...

How do you think different? And what office supplies do you miss? [45:20] This week, a rerun from Nonsense past! Again, Joey, Aaron, and Jess talk about aphantasia, internal monologues, learning styles, pilfering printer paper, binder clips, and ugly cups. They don’t talk about The Mind Palace. references Junkee on aphantasia and visualizing apples NPR on how Jess's favorite apple, the Honeycrisp, changed the world Jess's dreams as the Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit roller coaster Aaron's dreams ...

Is Goblin Mode a privilege? And how should we feel about pathologizing our behaviors? [27:24] This week, special guest Ilana Bondell joins Joey and Jess to talk about the versions of Goblin Mode, pandemic nihilism, identity politics, repressing trauma, the western medical industrial complex, and "The Man." They don’t talk about Jareth. references "Iris" and the City of Angels The doobily-doo ... er ... link to reach our Corrections Department Revisiting Vibe Shifts in Episode 161! The Guardi...

Why do we keep doing things that don't make any sense at all? And is youth culture always the same? [24:34] This week, Jess and Joey talk about Pi Day, songlines, dead reckoning, Billy Joel, the Flynn effect, and the global mean hat size. They don’t talk about the Tau of Pooh. references Give Me ... the Beach Boys? NPR: Ways to support humanitarian efforts in Ukraine "We'll do it live!" Vihart: Pi is (still) wrong. Smart by Design: Base 12 - Why Counting In Twelves Would Make Life Easier Song...

What do we do about disposability culture? This week, Joey and Jess talk about fast furniture, Shein, quality-assurance signaling, direct-to-consumer mattresses, darning, and nubby sherpa chairs. They don’t talk about Dres and Mista Lawnge. references Salt-N-Pepa's here, and "here" appears to be a veterinary office NPR: Ways to support humanitarian efforts in Ukraine Helen Rosner's Twitter question about fast furniture Brightly on the environmental waste of fast furniture Vox: Shein is the fu...

When did Instagram get so boring? This week, Jess, Aaron, and Joey talk about Facebook/Meta business strategy, The Viola Davis Orbit, positive affirmation, and creators vs. lurkers. They don’t talk about Smell-O-Vision. references THX NPR's Planet Money on sound branding (excerpted from Twenty Thousand Hertz's original two-part series on HBO and sound branding: Part One | Part Two) Eureeka's Castle Viola Davis on Instagram Path

If we think of fraudsters as the hackers of social psychology, what can it teach us about the weaknesses of our society so we can strengthen them and make them better? And how should we feel about being left behind by a vibe? [28:57] This week, special guest Trevor Larry joins Joey and Jess to talk about catfishing, Inventing Anna, desperation and risk analysis, vibe shifts, "youth culture" as a construct, and Williamsburg. They don’t talk about why Nobody Beats the Biz (R.I.P). references  ...

Where is the line between the honor of minding your own business and the honor of speaking up? And why do we buy things we know are trash? [28:49] This week, Joey, Aaron and Jess talk about bowling within your bumpers, preference vs. morality, misplaced concern, the persistence of old candy, utility vs. nostalgia, and fidget spinners. They don’t talk about why black licorice is actually insanely good if you don't have a ridiculous bias against it and/or are Dutch (or from a former Dutch colony)...

How do you think we as individuals can help a country like India decolonize their values and move in a direction of sexual liberation? This week, special guest Payal Pereira joins Jess and Joey to talk about British colonization, transgenerational cultural drama, kink subcultures, coded branding, sex education through dance, and the F-word. They don’t talk about the American Beekeeping Federation (or the Adult Bible Fellowship). references Wiki: Kama Sutra Kama Sutra by Vātsyāyana Vice: Ins...

When should you keep going when all you see ahead of you are troubles? And why do tennis players grunt? [23:52] This week, Jess, Aaron and Joey talk about the ever-elusive vanilla cookie, nuance and complexity, imagining beyond your means, kinetic linking, mirroring, and tennis culture. They don’t talk about Monica Seles. Or Maria Seles. Or even Martina Seles. (They don't talk about Jimmy Connors either). references Not to disparage Joey's karaoke version, but Billy is the best. Critical No...

Are we actually passive victims to social media or do you see a future where we have some modicum of control? This week, Joey and Jess talk about the metaverse, Web3, public ledgers of information, entropy, "baroque speculative fiction," and nerds. They don’t talk about NFTs, weirdly enough. references  Neal Stephenson's Fall; or, Dodge in Hell, in print or as an audiobook NYT's The Daily Podcast: Microsoft and the Metaverse Memetics New Scientist: What is Web3 and how will it change the wa...

What's to come in 2022? This week, it's Wild Prognostications time again! Joey, Jess, and Aaron chime in with their annual predictions for the new year. They talk about crypto crashing [5:59], the return of rollerskating [19:59], the low-rise revival [28:53], gap-year popularity [43:15], Home-Ec classes for adults [52:19], and psychedelics [1:01:28]. They don’t talk about Vince Chase, poor guy. references We can't make you love us. The New York Times: The Rise of the Climatarian Why Will Smit...