Mark Chambers – my friend from high school (and former Chief Sustainability Officer of DC and NYC among other things) – joins us to discuss Michael Crichton’s Jurassic Park. We talk about the collision between money and science, the illusion of control, dignity, public service, how many humans there should be, why it may or may not be ok to grill, and positive visions for the future.

Show notes:

• Jevons paradox – how technological efficiency can paradoxically increase resource consumption
• What Michael Crichton Reveals About Big Tech and A.I. - Cal Newport’s New Yorker piece about Jurassic Park
• The Weathering Podcast – exploring Earth systems, climate, and chaos. I don’t talk about it in the podcast, but I should because it’s relevant and so great. I love it.
• Colossal Biosciences Dire Wolf Project (Wikipedia article) – the real-world de-extinction effort
• The 13th Warrior – A movie Mark loves that I still need to watch
• Mark Coatney on A Wizard of Earthsea – our previous conversation about power and its pitfalls
• Nine Inch Nails wins Country Music Award for “Old Town Road”
• Internet Power
• The Ministry of the Future (Wikipedia article) by Kim Stanley Robinson

Next month (hopefully): The Black Cloud by Fred Hoyle with George Dyson.

Bonus announcements:

• CNG Conference 2026 announced for 6-9 October 2026
• New work podcast: Great Data Products