Transhumanism and cheap laughs: podcasts of the week – The Guardian

Dearest reader, this week has been much better for me, many thanks for all the condolence emails about Bosley. Not only have I managed to retain the life of my one remaining cat, HMS Tiny Pudding, but Ive also registered for postal voting, thus honouring the nameless women and men who gave their lives for our democracy. Its also been national hedgehog week so, honestly, what more could I ask for in my simple life? More podcasts of course!

Now Ill admit, I love a bit of theology, so this podcast, written by Meghan OGieblyn, leapt from my screen, through my ear tubes and sat squashily and cosily in my brain. This is theology and then some. Like all the best podcasts it mixes personal stories with learning: it begins with Meghan, a former evangelical Christian with dreams of becoming a missionary, losing her faith. She could no longer ratify a benevolent God with all the suffering in the world. But she still longed for there to be a plan, a purpose to being alive, but she also needed evidence, and for most people that evidence is the very broad term of science. Whilst latching on to this notion of science she found herself religiously following the theories of transhumanism.

Transhumanism offered a vision of redemption without the thorny problems of divine justice. It was an evolutionary approach to eschatology, one in which humanity took it upon itself to bring about the final glorification of the body and could not be blamed if the path to redemption was messy or inefficient.

Meghan submerged herself into the various subgroups of transhumanism: the idea that we are all in a computer simulation run by future beings recreating the past, of robots gaining souls, and eventually culminating in Meghan finding Christian transhumanism.

Christ had said to his disciples: Whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these. His earliest followers had taken this promise literally. Perhaps these prophecies had pointed to the future achievements of humanity all along, our ability to harness technology to become transhuman.

What a wobble of a circle that is.

Often we find ourselves listening or watching stories like this with a tone of mockery but that isnt the case here. Its easy to see how Meghan fell into transhumanism in the religious sense, it could just as easily happen to any one of us. These things make sense if you really want them to, you just have to have a little faith.

God in the Machine is a rollercoaster of a listen prepare yourself for information overload. I had to listen to it three times before it all went in, but each time was as good as the first. Though I must admit, I stopped playing the Sims when I was a little girl because of the stress that maybe, just maybe, they were real and I was God.

Another podcast that brought my week oodles of joy was Beginner. Its the story of Misha, a 24-year-old Pakistani-American immigrant, learning to do the things she didnt get to do as a child. When she came to the US she was top of her class, but quickly she began to lose her identity. The show follows her story as she learns to belong by living out a childhood she never had, and it begins with something synonymous with childhood learning to ride a bike.

Sadie Mae wrote in to tell me why she loved it so much:

Beginner shot right to the top of my favourites list, the trailer alone had me in tears, hearing the love and kindness between Misha and her brother. I could relate to almost every part of the first episode, even though I was born in the States. Im an older sister that has had to navigate new places and new things on my own, faking it while I figured out what was right. Mishas storytelling is veracious, drawing you in, and inviting you to be part of her journey. Her vulnerability and honest self-introspection is relatable and captivating, setting this millennial coming of age podcast apart from the rest as it resonates across the board.

We can all relate to that fear of not knowing something we feel we should, the fear of doing it wrong, the fear of feeling out of place, the walls that we build and the hacks we use so we can fit in. Mishas desire for authenticity drives her to confront her fears and explore breaking away from them as she tackles being a beginner. I know this is new but seldom does a budding podcast come off so well-polished and with such a captivating start.

Mishas charm from episode one has me rooting for her and I look forward to hearing more of her adventures, triumphs and potential failures. This storytelling podcast truly is one to add to your podcast subscription list. Who knows, maybe itll inspire you to be a beginner again.

When Ed Boff wrote in to tell me about his absolute favourite podcast Cheapshow, I was initially sceptical, but after a couple of listens I completely understood why. It made me howl with laughter at some points, its really fantastic.

It is an anarchic comedy podcast celebrating the best of the cheap and cheerful. Its a mix of standup, chat show and twisted games and challenges all based around the hunt for long-lost treasures or bargain basement deals. Cheapshow aims to find the humour among the bric-a-brac of charity shops, junk sales and Poundlands in the UK. And honestly, they have achieved it and then some. This is what Ed had to say:

Two guys talking about stuff found in pound stores, charity shops, and/or car boot sales, while occasionally descending into a shouting match. That may not sound like much on its own however, its a question of personality. Hosts Paul Gannon and Eli Silverman bring a lot of themselves to this, both in terms of character and experience.

Cheap discoveries often include items with a strong nostalgia factor (like their recent special on TV game show-based board games), and this is where Paul shines. Eli, with his work as a DJ, provides a love of all things music, particularly vinyl records. So theres plenty to talk about, including Elis spectacular tales from the dance floor. Not that this is purely a dry exercise in consumer analysis the comedy here runs from merciless mockery of the concepts at work, to often sheer surrealist confusion. Quite a lot of the stuff on cheap eats will make you wonder for what species this foodstuff was meant for. The hosts are never exactly above the level of what they look at, they self-deprecate (and deprecate each other) mercilessly, such as calling out Pauls own brand of spoonerisms, Gannonisms.

There is nothing amusing about austerity when times are tough, places like Poundland may be your only option so its good to know theres someone out there braving the culinary delights they have to offer, before you go in blind ... If they dont end up killing each other in one of their arguments first! Highly recommended.

Visit link:
Transhumanism and cheap laughs: podcasts of the week - The Guardian