What Embryo Selection Means for Humanity - Jonathan Anomaly - #1017
Modern Wisdom
11/08/25
•122m
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Dr Jonathan Anomaly is a philosopher, professor and an author.
What if you could design your own “super baby”? Imagine erasing genetic diseases, removing inherited conditions, and even selecting traits for beauty or intelligence. How close are we to making this possible, and what unintended consequences could this unleash?
Expect to learn why embryo selection will be the next frontier of fertility planning, why screening for traits beyond disease is a slippery slope toward eugenics, what the moral, ethical and realistic arguments are for embryo selection and how big of a societal gap this will create, if you can return the super baby if it didn’t yield desired results, if there were regulations in this space, what red lines would be drawn and what would be left to the market and much more...
Timestamps:
(0:00) When Does Health Screening Turn Into Human Engineering? (7:08) Does Embyro Selection Risk Deepening Inequality? (14:30) How Can We Soften the Conversation on Genetic Selection? (21:13) Inside Herasight: The Algorithm Powering Polygenic Selection (26:56) Should Parents Drive Embryo Selection During IVF? (33:09) How Can We Tell If Genetic Screening Companies Actually Know What They’re Doing? (46:45) Does Herasight’s Algorithm Work? (51:38) Is Buyer’s Remorse a Risk of Embryo Selection? (01:01:20) Where Do We Draw the Line with Trait Selection? (01:05:15) Could Genetic Selection Lead to Wrongful Life Lawsuits? (01:13:07) How Genetic Selection Impacts Personhood and Identity (01:25:36) Are Genetics Blueprints of Our Lives? (01:36:57) Does Embryo Screening Increase Stigma? (01:45:22) Will Embryo Selection Become a Marketing Race? (01:53:15) What Does the Next Five Years Look Like? (01:58:29) Where to Find Jonathan
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Episodes You Might Enjoy:
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#700 - Dr Andrew Huberman - The Secret Tools To Hack Your Brain: lnkfi.re/SN-Huberman
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Previous Episode
Is Having a Boyfriend Cringe Now? - Rob Henderson - #1016
November 6, 2025
•87m
Rob Henderson holds a PhD in psychology from the University of Cambridge and is a Senior Fellow at the Manhattan Institute.
When did having a boyfriend become cringe? For as long as men have been men and women have been women, finding a partner to share life with has been one of humanity’s oldest goals. So what changed? Why has wanting connection become something to mock, and what can be done to reverse it?
Timestamps:
(00:00) Is Having a Boyfriend Considered Cringe? (13:15) The Vicious Rise of Female Intrasexual Competition (26:40) How is Modern Culture Affecting Fertility? (35:43) The Difference Between Male and Female Intrasexual Competition (46:09) Are Successful Women Limiting Other Women’s Reproduction? (54:04) The Reason Women are More Against Abortion Than Men (01:01:01) The Swag Gap: How Confidence and Status Shape Modern Dating (01:16:22) Is Female Solidarity an Illusion? (01:23:25) Where to Find Rob
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Extra Stuff:
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Episodes You Might Enjoy:
#577 - David Goggins - This Is How To Master Your Life: lnkfi.re/SN-Goggins
#712 - Dr Jordan Peterson - How To Destroy Your Negative Beliefs: lnkfi.re/SN-Peterson
#700 - Dr Andrew Huberman - The Secret Tools To Hack Your Brain: lnkfi.re/SN-Huberman
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Next Episode
Behind The Bravado of Modern British Football - Peter Crouch - #1018
November 10, 2025
•95m
Peter Crouch is a former professional footballer, sports pundit, and podcaster.
What was it like playing in the Premier League alongside some of football’s most intense personalities? In an era where a goal celebration, whether it was the robot or a knee slide, showed your confidence as much as your skill, what was life like for Peter Crouch back then, and what’s he up to now
Expect to learn why so many ex-footballers started doing podcasts, what the common psychological archetype of top flight football players are, what being inside Premier League dressing rooms taught Peter about masculinity, why there are still no publicly gay premier league players, how Peter dealt with anxiety and the adrenaline whilst being a footballer, what worst part of the job that the general public don’t understand and much more...
Timestamps:
(0:00) Why Do Ex-Footballers Turn to Podcasting? (8:39) What Archetype Shapes Most Footballers? (18:37) The ‘Man-Up’ Mentality of Changing Rooms (24:25) Why Don’t Players Want to Come Out? (35:40) Does Success Breed Toxicity in Elite Sport? (43:21) The Importance of Enjoying the Journey (01:00:55) How Peter Used Nerves and Anxiety as Fuel (01:09:48) Why Do Ex-Footballers Go Bankrupt? (01:13:16) The Silent Cost of Heading the Ball: What is it Doing to Players Long-Term? (01:21:19) How British Football Became a Religion (01:25:38) The Key to a Thriving Relationship in the Spotlight (01:34:06) Where to Find Peter
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Extra Stuff:
Get my free reading list of 100 books to read before you die: https://chriswillx.com/books
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Episodes You Might Enjoy:
#577 - David Goggins - This Is How To Master Your Life: lnkfi.re/SN-Goggins
#712 - Dr Jordan Peterson - How To Destroy Your Negative Beliefs: lnkfi.re/SN-Peterson
#700 - Dr Andrew Huberman - The Secret Tools To Hack Your Brain: lnkfi.re/SN-Huberman
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Get In Touch:
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