Dave Denkenberger's guest appearances

Dave Denkenberger

Future of Life Institute Podcast

BlueSciCon

Effective Altruism: Ten Global Problems – 80,000 Hours

Toby Ord

Seth Baum

Ezra Klein

Mike Johnson

Yuval Noah Harari

Fran Moore

Dario Amodei

Robin Hanson

Stuart Russell

Sean Carroll

Stephen Batchelor

Jennifer Doleac

William MacAskill

Joshua Greene

John Prendergast

OwlTail

If a nuclear winter or asteroid impact blocked the sun for years, our inability to grow food would result in billions dying of starvation, right? According to Dr Dave Denkenberger, co-author of Feeding Everyone No Matter What: no. If he’s to be believed, nobody need starve at all. Even without the sun, Dave sees the Earth as a bountiful food source. Mushrooms farmed on decaying wood. Bacteria fed with natural gas. Fish and mussels supported by sudden upwelling of ocean nutrients – and many more. Dr Denkenberger is an Assistant Professor at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, and he’s out to spread the word that while a nuclear winter might be horrible, experts have been mistaken to assume that mass starvation is an inevitability. In fact, he says, the only thing that would prevent us from feeding the world is insufficient preparation. Dave was the natural choice to introduce the problem of feeding the world through catastrophes.  Full transcript, related links, and summary of this interviewThis episode first broadcast on the regular 80,000 Hours Podcast feed on December 27, 2018. Some related episodes include: #97 – Mike Berkowitz on keeping the U.S. a liberal democratic country #96 – Nina Schick on disinformation and the rise of synthetic media #88 – Tristan Harris on the need to change the incentives of social media companies #64 – Bruce Schneier on the big risks in computer security, secrets, and surveillance without tyranny Series produced by Keiran Harris.

If a nuclear winter or asteroid impact blocked the sun for years, our inability to grow food would result in billions dying of starvation, right? According to Dr Dave Denkenberger, co-author of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feeding_Everyone_No_Matter_What" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Feeding Everyone No Matter What</a>: no. If he’s to be believed, nobody need starve at all. Even without the sun, Dave sees the Earth as a bountiful food source. Mushrooms farmed on decaying wood. Bacteria fed with natural gas. Fish and mussels supported by sudden upwelling of ocean nutrients – and many more. Dr Denkenberger is an Assistant Professor at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, and he’s out to spread the word that while a nuclear winter might be horrible, experts have been mistaken to assume that mass starvation is an inevitability. In fact, he says, the only thing that would prevent us from feeding the world is insufficient preparation. Dave was the natural choice to introduce the problem of feeding the world through catastrophes.  <a href="https://80000hours.org/podcast/episodes/david-denkenberger-allfed-and-feeding-everyone-no-matter-what/?utm_campaign=podcast__dave-denkenberger&amp;utm_source=eatgp&amp;utm_medium=podcast" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Full transcript, related links, and summary of this interview</a>This episode first broadcast on the <a href="https://80000hours.org/podcast/?utm_campaign=podcast__dave-denkenberger&amp;utm_source=eatgp&amp;utm_medium=podcast" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">regular 80,000 Hours Podcast feed</a> on December 27, 2018. Some related episodes include:<ul> <li>#97 – <a href="https://80000hours.org/podcast/episodes/mike-berkowitz-preserving-us-democracy/?utm_campaign=podcast__dave-denkenberger&amp;utm_source=eatgp&amp;utm_medium=podcast" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Mike Berkowitz</a> on keeping the U.S. a liberal democratic country</li> <li>#96 – <a href="https://80000hours.org/podcast/episodes/nina-schick-disinformation-synthetic-media/?utm_campaign=podcast__dave-denkenberger&amp;utm_source=eatgp&amp;utm_medium=podcast" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Nina Schick</a> on disinformation and the rise of synthetic media</li> <li>#88 – <a href="https://80000hours.org/podcast/episodes/tristan-harris-changing-incentives-social-media/?utm_campaign=podcast__dave-denkenberger&amp;utm_source=eatgp&amp;utm_medium=podcast" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Tristan Harris</a> on the need to change the incentives of social media companies</li> <li>#64 – <a href="https://80000hours.org/podcast/episodes/bruce-schneier-security-secrets-and-surveillance/?utm_campaign=podcast__dave-denkenberger&amp;utm_source=eatgp&amp;utm_medium=podcast" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Bruce Schneier</a> on the big risks in computer security, secrets, and surveillance without tyranny</li> </ul>Series produced by Keiran Harris.

Nine: Dave Denkenberger on feeding the world through catastrophes

Joshua Pearce

Most of us working on catastrophic and existential threats focus on trying to prevent them — not on figuring out how to survive the aftermath. But what if, despite everyone’s best efforts, humanity does undergo such a catastrophe? This month’s podcast is all about what we can do in the present to ensure humanity’s survival in a future worst-case scenario. Ariel is joined by Dave Denkenberger and Joshua Pearce, co-authors of the book Feeding Everyone No Matter What, who explain what would constitute a catastrophic event, what it would take to feed the global population, and how their research could help address world hunger today. They also discuss infrastructural preparations, appropriate technology, and why it’s worth investing in these efforts.Topics discussed include:-Causes of global catastrophe-Planning for catastrophic events-Getting governments onboard-Application to current crises-Alternative food sources-Historical precedence for societal collapse-Appropriate technology-Hardwired optimism-Surprising things that could save lives-Climate change and adaptation-Moral hazards-Why it’s in the best interest of the global wealthy to make food more available

Most of us working on catastrophic and existential threats focus on trying to prevent them — not on figuring out how to survive the aftermath. But what if, despite everyone’s best efforts, humanity does undergo such a catastrophe? This month’s podcast is all about what we can do in the present to ensure humanity’s survival in a future worst-case scenario. Ariel is joined by Dave Denkenberger and Joshua Pearce, co-authors of the book Feeding Everyone No Matter What, who explain what would constitute a catastrophic event, what it would take to feed the global population, and how their research could help address world hunger today. They also discuss infrastructural preparations, appropriate technology, and why it’s worth investing in these efforts. Topics discussed include: -Causes of global catastrophe -Planning for catastrophic events -Getting governments onboard -Application to current crises -Alternative food sources -Historical precedence for societal collapse -Appropriate technology -Hardwired optimism -Surprising things that could save lives -Climate change and adaptation -Moral hazards -Why it’s in the best interest of the global wealthy to make food more available

FLI Podcast: Feeding Everyone in a Global Catastrophe with Dave Denkenberger & Joshua Pearce

Welcome to the conversation. It is November 20th 2014, and this is our 35th podcast.  Today will be a discussion led by Dr. Dave Denkenberger on "Feeding Everyone No Matter What". The show is 35 mins long. Audio soundtrack courtesy of the Symphony of Science.

BwBMSIS # 35 - Dr. Dave Denkenberger presents "Feeding Everyone No Matter What"