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Steve Hsu is a Professor of Theoretical Physics and Professor of Computational Mathematics, Science, and Engineering at Michigan State University. He returns to the CSPI Podcast for a wide-ranging discussion of various personal, political, and technical topics, including his attempted cancelation from Michigan State, thoughts on Russia-Ukraine, affirmative action, macroeconomics, and why top physics talents prefer theoretical over practical pursuits (If you haven\u2019t seen Steve\u2019s first appearance on the podcast, click here to watch or listen).\xa0



The conversation begins with Steve explaining what it was like growing up one of the few Asian kids in a predominantly white town and reflecting on the nature of assimilation. He and Richard continue their discussion of the Russia-Ukraine war and European geopolitics before moving on to affirmative action and civil rights law. They talk about the Harvard Asian case, the highly subjective nature of legal decisions, and whether employment markets are rational enough for the college degree to lose value if universities scrap standardized tests.



Next, Steve tells Richard about his attempted cancelation from Michigan State, where he was pressured to step down from his role as Vice President of Research after a leftist student group attacked him on Twitter over his blog posts and podcasts. They talk about the intrusion of activists into academia, and how this has negatively impacted the STEM fields and social sciences. This leads to a discussion of whether economics is a more valuable and rigorous social science than the others, and whether micro and macroeconomics are comparable or reconcilable.



In the last part of the podcast, Steve and Richard talk about what traits and dispositions lead some people to go against the crowd and resist conformity, and why the path to scientific and technological innovation is laden with disbelief and ridicule from peers. Using the examples of Jeff Bezos and Richard Feynman, Steve explains how those with exceptionally high IQs are often able to effortlessly solve problems and optimize systems with little to no background or technical knowledge. They conclude by considering the possibility that policy should be oriented towards recognizing and rewarding the few geniuses and innovators whose work leads to disproportionate social and material gains.



A transcript of the full conversation is available here: \xa0https://richardhanania.substack.com/p/assimilation-football-affirmative?s=r\xa0 \xa0



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CSPI Podcast, \u201cThe Future of Humanity is IVF Babies and Chinese Domination | Steve Hsu & Richard Hanania.\u201d
Richard Hanania, \u201cLessons from Forecasting the Ukraine War.\u201d\xa0
Adam Tooze, \u201cPutin\u2019s Challenge to Western Hegemony.\u201d
Rob Lee. \u201cMoscow\u2019s Compellence Strategy.\u201d
Anatoly Karlin. \u201cRegathering of the Russian Lands.\u201d\xa0
Steve Hsu, \u201cJoe Cesario on Police Decision Making and Racial Bias in Deadly Force Decisions (Manifold Episode #11).\u201d
Steve Hsu, \u201cManifoldOne Podcast Episode#3: Richard Hanania on Wokeness, Public Choice Theory, & Geostrategy.\u201d
Steve Hsu, "Manifold Podcast #6: Richard Sander on Affirmative Action, Mismatch Theory, and Academic Freedom.\u201d\xa0
Alan Sokal, \u201cSokal Hoax.\u201d
Wikipedia, \u201cGrievance Studies Affair (Sokal Squared).\u201d
Eric Kaufmann, \u201cAcademic Freedom in Crisis: Punishment, Political Discrimination, and Self-Censorship.\u201d
Steve Hsu, \u201cBezos Quotes.\u201d\xa0

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