{"podcast":{"title":"Modem Futura","slug":"modem-futura-7035675","podcast_index_feed_id":7035675,"rss_url":"https://feeds.simplecast.com/3frRI0HN","website_url":"https://www.modemfutura.com","image_url":"https://image.simplecastcdn.com/images/169edcc0-5263-448a-8854-8a95ee4ac52a/73f6a163-91f1-4370-9c73-9897d267cdb8/3000x3000/modem_futura_cover_v3.jpg?aid=rss_feed","author":"Sean Leahy, PhD","episode_count":98,"summary":"Modem Futura is your weekly guide to the future of science, technology, and society—where futures and foresight meets real-world impact. Hosts Sean Leahy and Andrew Maynard—educators, futurists, and public scholars—dive into the breakthroughs and big questions shaping tomorrow: AI ethics, space exploration, climate tech, bio-engineering, digital media, STEM education, and the shifting future of work. In candid, banter-filled conversations with innovators, scholars, and storytellers, they unpack how emerging technologies influence human values, creativity, and culture—and what these trends mean for you today. Whether you’re curious about quantum computing, electric air taxis, or the sociology of robots, Modem Futura connects cutting-edge research with the narratives that drive innovation. Join us each week to explore possible, probable, and preferred futures, and discover practical insights for navigating an increasingly tech-driven world. Follow and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts and be part of the conversation exploring what it will mean to be human in the future!","last_synced_at":"2026-07-25T08:19:54.878351+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/modem-futura-7035675"},"episode":{"title":"Alien Minds, Time Travelers, and Consciousness Backups: A Futures Thought Experiment","slug":"alien-minds-time-travelers-and-consciousness-backups-a-futures-thought-experiment","published_at":"2026-06-02T08:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/modem-futura-7035675/alien-minds-time-travelers-and-consciousness-backups-a-futures-thought-experiment","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/modem-futura-7035675","url":"https://www.modemfutura.com","audio_url":"https://cdn.simplecast.com/media/audio/transcoded/fca32cee-ef4c-4b50-82e5-4c768318a8c1/018f87c3-4d42-4bc0-9d66-53873b51ec68/episodes/audio/group/b216cbaa-8de5-4d9b-bed9-f1676df7190c/group-item/1b84c9b3-7250-4e38-be21-f94dfae10af6/128_default_tc.mp3?aid=rss_feed&feed=3frRI0HN","summary":"Sean and Andrew improvise their way through three AI-generated scenarios — a hallucinating alien planet, a sad time traveler with one answer, and a nightly consciousness backup that starts dreaming on its own. A playful episode that ends up asking some seriously strange questions about mind, identity, and what we'd do if first contact didn't look like contact at all.","meta_description":"Sean and Andrew improvise their way through three AI-generated scenarios — a hallucinating alien planet, a sad time traveler with one answer, and a nightl…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":2659,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/modem-futura-7035675/episodes/alien-minds-time-travelers-and-consciousness-backups-a-futures-thought-experiment/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/modem-futura-7035675/alien-minds-time-travelers-and-consciousness-backups-a-futures-thought-experiment.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}