{"podcast":{"title":"First Principles","slug":"first-principles-7708985","podcast_index_feed_id":7708985,"rss_url":"https://feeds.megaphone.fm/PODAGEN4765221373","website_url":null,"image_url":"https://megaphone.imgix.net/podcasts/06eebd2a-0779-11f1-826e-37926ac18342/image/fca7c8febd1441fc3b0d54084418b06d.png?ixlib=rails-4.3.1&max-w=3000&max-h=3000&fit=crop&auto=format,compress","author":"Adrian Wells","episode_count":426,"summary":"First Principles isn't another business podcast recycling the same startup stories. Adrian Wells takes the fundamentals that actually matter and breaks them down like you're having coffee with the smartest professor you ever had. Wells spent twelve years teaching philosophy and critical thinking before ditching the lecture hall for the microphone. Turns out, the same principles that help you think clearly about ancient Greek ethics also work pretty well for modern business decisions. Who knew? Every episode strips away the latest trends and buzzwords to focus on the core ideas that don't change. How to actually evaluate evidence when everyone's throwing around statistics. Why most \"revolutionary\" business advice is just old wine in new bottles. The thinking patterns that separate smart decisions from lucky guesses. You won't get hyped-up success stories or flavor-of-the-month strategies. Instead, you'll learn how to think through problems the way philosophers have for centuries, applied to the stuff that matters in your work and life right now. Multiple new episodes drop daily, so there's always something fresh when you need it. Follow now if you're ready to think better, not just…","last_synced_at":"2026-09-20T02:18:54.580675+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/first-principles-7708985"},"episode":{"title":"Evergreen Professor: 'We Have 18 Months Before It's Too Late'","slug":"evergreen-professor-we-have-18-months-before-it-s-too-late","published_at":"2026-09-09T08:09:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/first-principles-7708985/evergreen-professor-we-have-18-months-before-it-s-too-late","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/first-principles-7708985","url":"https://traffic.megaphone.fm/PODAGEN7616961354.mp3?updated=1776258550","audio_url":"https://traffic.megaphone.fm/PODAGEN7616961354.mp3?updated=1776258550","summary":"What happens when a biology professor says something so controversial it destroys his career and changes an entire college forever? In this episode, Adrian Wells sits down with Dr. Bret Weinstein, the professor who sparked nationwide protests at Evergreen State College and paid the ultimate price for standing his ground. 🎯 What You'll Learn: • The real story behind the 2017 Evergreen controversy that made headlines across America • Why challenging institutional orthodoxy can cost you everything (and why it might be worth it) • How campus enrollment dropped 20% overnight and what that means for academic freedom today 👤 Perfect for: lifelong learners and anyone passionate about personal growth who wants to understand how institutional pressure shapes what we can and can't discuss. Dr. Weinstein didn't just lose his job. He became the poster child for what happens when you refuse to go along with campus groupthink. Students patrolled with baseball bats. The college president got cornered. And two PhD biologists from University of Michigan found themselves at the center of a national debate about free speech. 📍 Chapters: [00:00] Adrian Wells introduces the professor who wouldn't stay quiet [02:15] What really happened during Evergreen's \"Day of Absence\" [04:30] How campus protests turned violent and why administrators backed down [07:45] The aftermath: careers destroyed, enrollment plummeting [09:30] What this means for scientific inquiry and democratic discourse [11:15] Lessons for anyone facing institutional pressure This isn't just another campus controversy story. It's about what happens when institutions capture the very people supposed to challenge them. Weinstein's warning is clear: we're running out of time to fix this. 🔔 Never miss an episode: Follow First Princip…","meta_description":"What happens when a biology professor says something so controversial it destroys his career and changes an entire college forever? In this episode, Adria…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":1863,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/first-principles-7708985/episodes/evergreen-professor-we-have-18-months-before-it-s-too-late/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/first-principles-7708985/evergreen-professor-we-have-18-months-before-it-s-too-late.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}