Tangentially Speaking with Christopher Ryan
- Episodes
- 777
- Released
- weekly
- Latest episode
- Nov 13, 2026
About the podcast
Tangentially Speaking is dedicated to the idea that good conversation is organic, uncensored, revelatory, and free to go down unexpected paths with unconventional people.
Episodes 777
ROMA 11/13/26
The apparent American political pivot. Stanley’s badassery. Another brush with fame (but no fortune). This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus …
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The apparent American political pivot. Stanley’s badassery. Another brush with fame (but no fortune).
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribeAROMA 11.11.26
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comWe respond to listener comments concerning whether romantic love is real, intimacy with people other than "intimate" partners …
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This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comWe respond to listener comments concerning whether romantic love is real, intimacy with people other than "intimate" partners, and the challenges in developing deep, vulnerable connections in a world that pushes us toward superficiality.
AROMA 11.3.26 (More on Intimacy)
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comWe respond to listener comments/questions, Part 1. (We only got to two of the seven I printed out.) What does a new …
Show notes
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comWe respond to listener comments/questions, Part 1. (We only got to two of the seven I printed out.) What does a new relationship feel like for people who aren’t “falling in love?” Can we find intimacy if we’re coming from a scarcity mindset, or does it require some sense of not-needing-it?
David Levitt (Cognitive Scientist, Musician & AI Researcher)
How can I summarize this guy? Dr. David Levitt is a cognitive and computer scientist, experimental and theoretical physicist, software engineer, virtual and augmented reality innovator, entrepreneur, musician …
Show notes
How can I summarize this guy? Dr. David Levitt is a cognitive and computer scientist, experimental and theoretical physicist, software engineer, virtual and augmented reality innovator, entrepreneur, musician and writer. He went to Yale at 16, and MIT at 20, where he earned a PhD in AI by teaching a machine to compose jazz.
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribeRemembering Steve Herman
I got an email yesterday telling me that one of my favorite people, Dr. Steve Herman, had died of a sudden heart attack. Steve (a psychologist) worked with legal professionals to help them think more clearly …
Show notes
I got an email yesterday telling me that one of my favorite people, Dr. Steve Herman, had died of a sudden heart attack. Steve (a psychologist) worked with legal professionals to help them think more clearly about an issue that all too often blinds even the most level-headed among us with blind rage: allegations of sexual abuse of children. Precisely because these crimes are so offensive to people in our society, we tend to jump to conclusions, often hurting many innocent people in the process — including children. This isn't an easy thing to talk about, but Steve did it with intelligence, balance, and a deep sense of humanity. He will be missed. (Originally recorded 1/2/2015.)
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribeJosh Spodek
Joshua Spodek PhD MBA is the premier voice in sustainability leadership. He hosts the award-winning This Sustainable Life podcast, bestselling author of Sustainability Simplified, Initiative, and Leadership …
Show notes
Joshua Spodek PhD MBA is the premier voice in sustainability leadership. He hosts the award-winning This Sustainable Life podcast, bestselling author of Sustainability Simplified, Initiative, and Leadership Step by Step, professor at NYU, and leadership coach.
He holds a PhD in astrophysics and an MBA from Columbia, where he studied under a Nobel Laureate and helped launch a satellite.
He visited North Korea twice, swam across the Hudson River twice, has done burpees daily since 2011 (250,000 and counting), hasn’t filled a load of garbage since 2019, hasn’t flown (by choice) since March 2016, unplugged his refrigerator since September 2021, disconnected his apartment from the electric grid in May 2022, and his carbon footprint is about 1 ton per year. He blogs at joshuaspodek.com.
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribeAROMA 10.13.26 (What is Intimacy?)
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comWhat is “intimacy?” Is partial intimacy possible? Is “falling in love” really just falling into our own projections? What are …
Show notes
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comWhat is “intimacy?” Is partial intimacy possible? Is “falling in love” really just falling into our own projections? What are we projecting? What are we protecting? Can we truly love without constantly risking the loss of who/what we love? Is it worth the risk?
Marcus Daniels (Musician, Former Cave Man)
Marcus grew up in a ghetto in Ohio, moved to Appalachia as a teenager, then to a houseboat among mangroves on Key West til the hurricane hit, stopped for a while in a cave outside of Crestone, and is now …
Show notes
Marcus grew up in a ghetto in Ohio, moved to Appalachia as a teenager, then to a houseboat among mangroves on Key West til the hurricane hit, stopped for a while in a cave outside of Crestone, and is now building a house for his family here. He’s a success story, if I’ve ever heard one. Dude is full of talent and wisdom, and he makes living in Crestone a lot richer for the rest of us.
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribeAROMA 10.06.26
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comTrigger warning. This is a conversation about sexual assault.The obligatory commentary on the Cornell case. But really, we …
Show notes
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comTrigger warning. This is a conversation about sexual assault.
The obligatory commentary on the Cornell case. But really, we don’t know the details about that particular case, so it’s more about these kinds of cases. He said, she said, they said, he changed his story, she recanted, they said something else and the lawyers said to say nothing at all.
Spencer Grey (Japan/Travel)
Originally from South Africa, Spencer has lived around the world. He’s been in Japan long enough to learn the language and get real insight into the cultures. I’ve never been, but I’m fascinated by the place …
Show notes
Originally from South Africa, Spencer has lived around the world. He’s been in Japan long enough to learn the language and get real insight into the cultures. I’ve never been, but I’m fascinated by the place.
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribeShane Gardner
Shane has spent the past few years building out a schoolbus, and now he’s taking it out on the road. His first stop was Crestone.Our previous podconvo was ten years ago.Follow Shane’s travels on his Instagram …
Show notes
Shane has spent the past few years building out a schoolbus, and now he’s taking it out on the road. His first stop was Crestone.
Our previous podconvo was ten years ago.
Follow Shane’s travels on his Instagram.
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribeROMA 9.28.26
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comIs “genocide” the right word? Does it matter? Are our “leaders” psychopaths? Is it possible to do what they do and NOT be …
Show notes
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comIs “genocide” the right word? Does it matter? Are our “leaders” psychopaths? Is it possible to do what they do and NOT be psychopathic?Instructions for getting the paid RSS feed in apps is here.
ROMA 9.18.26
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comAre we ruled by the Closetocracy? Is Andrew Tate a paragon of unresolved trauma? Would Willie Nelson and Dolly Parton work as …
Show notes
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comAre we ruled by the Closetocracy? Is Andrew Tate a paragon of unresolved trauma? Would Willie Nelson and Dolly Parton work as national leaders? To what extent does cultural context define our experiences? Are certain experiences universally traumatic, or does it depend on the where, when, and why? What to do about venomous snakes in our midst?
ROMA 9.15.26
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comIs Super El Niño gonna kill us? Is AI gonna kill us? Is Donald Trump or Putin or Iran gonna kill us? Are things really as out …
Show notes
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comIs Super El Niño gonna kill us? Is AI gonna kill us? Is Donald Trump or Putin or Iran gonna kill us? Are things really as out of control as they seem, or is this just what happens when attention becomes a commodity? What’s happening inside AI? What’s happening inside ANY science? Does anyone really know WTF is going on?
James (Bison Rancher)
James grew up in suburban Chicago, studied philosophy in college, and after trips to Tanzania (living with the Hadza) and working on farms in New Zealand, he moved with his wife to Colorado’s San Luis Valley …
Show notes
James grew up in suburban Chicago, studied philosophy in college, and after trips to Tanzania (living with the Hadza) and working on farms in New Zealand, he moved with his wife to Colorado’s San Luis Valley. They now run a 66-acre property where they’re raising a young son, planning to fence the land for a small bison herd, and running a business (PurePrairieLife.com) selling freeze-dried bison organ supplements. James also runs a cannabis-focused website.
Our conversation ranges from regenerative ranching to hunter-gatherer generosity norms versus Western individualism to religious hypocrisy to “ruthless compassion” — the idea that real kindness sometimes requires harsh boundaries (illustrated through killing rattlesnakes, ending relationships, and giving honest feedback). The episode closes on parenthood, mortality, and the possibility of “joyous grief.”
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribeChris Ingram
Chris and I are old friends, from back in the 90s, when I lived in a mansion in Barcelona infested with fashion models. He and his lingerie-model girlfriend were my next-door neighbors. One night in Paris …
Show notes
Chris and I are old friends, from back in the 90s, when I lived in a mansion in Barcelona infested with fashion models. He and his lingerie-model girlfriend were my next-door neighbors. One night in Paris, Chris was drugged and raped by a man who moved in the same circles as many of the powerful, wealthy predators associated with Jeffrey Epstein.
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribeROMA 8.29.26
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comFollowing up on the previous ROMA where I explore the bird’s-eye view of AI. Is our behavior driven by a parasite? Is AI a …
Show notes
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comFollowing up on the previous ROMA where I explore the bird’s-eye view of AI. Is our behavior driven by a parasite? Is AI a self-replicating techno-virus? Is it “speciesist” to lament the demise of Homo sapiens as the next form of life rises from our ashes?
Lloyd Kahn at Home
Somehow, my mic never got turned on, so this one is all-guest. The perfect episode! Lloyd is a builder, a writer, a photographer, a publisher, an athlete and a great friend. This is a public episode. If you'd …
Show notes
Somehow, my mic never got turned on, so this one is all-guest. The perfect episode! Lloyd is a builder, a writer, a photographer, a publisher, an athlete and a great friend.
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribeAROMA 8.17.26
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comWe dig into what it feels like to come of age under a permanent sense of "the world could end any moment," comparing Cold War …
Show notes
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comWe dig into what it feels like to come of age under a permanent sense of "the world could end any moment," comparing Cold War duck-and-cover anxiety to a millennial generation shaped by 9/11, economic collapse, and climate dread. Anya shares thoughts about turning 38. We talk about our past lives, Anya’s formerly unhealthy focus on health, reckoning wit…
ROMA 8.12.26
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comAre we like beavers who drown in pools we’re busy building?
Kyle Thiermann (Surfer, Author, Young Dude)
I sat down over coffee with Kyle on my recent drive through Santa Cruz. Our spontaneous, far ranging conversation included birding in Manhattan, our differing learning styles, how we share the curse of having …
Show notes
I sat down over coffee with Kyle on my recent drive through Santa Cruz. Our spontaneous, far ranging conversation included birding in Manhattan, our differing learning styles, how we share the curse of having been raised by loving parents, One Last Question Before You Go — Kyle’s wonderful book about interviewing our parents, and how to optimize one’s life by opting out.
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribeRichard Schweid
Richard is one of my favorite writers and one of my favorite people. His books have followed his interests, from chili peppers to the Cuban revolution to eels to homelessness to life after death to cockroaches …
Show notes
Richard is one of my favorite writers and one of my favorite people. His books have followed his interests, from chili peppers to the Cuban revolution to eels to homelessness to life after death to cockroaches to the mysteries and intricacies of farming octopus. The phrase “insatiable curiosity” comes to mind. But he’s not just curious, he’s a very fine writer and a compassionate reporter. His books take you places that are fascinating, touching, and totally unexpected. I hope you’ll pick one up.
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribeROMA 114 (Viva España!)
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comThe world cup, seen through the eyes of an anthropologist. The significance of Barca. Why it’s “more than a club.” Why …
Show notes
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comThe world cup, seen through the eyes of an anthropologist. The significance of Barca. Why it’s “more than a club.” Why Argentinians can be so obnoxious. How being alone in Spain can feel less lonely than being among Americans.
Dave Booda
Dave has been around. He spent eight years in the navy, lived in Bali for a while, led hundreds of intimacy workshops, explored non-monogamous relationships and intentional communities, been to Burning Man five …
Show notes
Dave has been around. He spent eight years in the navy, lived in Bali for a while, led hundreds of intimacy workshops, explored non-monogamous relationships and intentional communities, been to Burning Man five times, studied with various gurus and legit teachers, and doesn’t take any of it (including himself) too seriously. He writes self-reflective songs and sings them from the heart. He leans into his fears and nurtures vulnerability in himself and others. He’s on a path, in other words. My kinda guy.
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribeROMA 113
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comAre the vikings cool yet? The importance of distance in historical thinking. Some really shitty, misguided dating advice. My …
Show notes
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comAre the vikings cool yet? The importance of distance in historical thinking. Some really shitty, misguided dating advice. My own insecurities around giving advice. Graham Platner and the possibly self-defeating desire to elect nice, healthy, honest people to represent us in the snake pit located in our nation’s capital.
First Convo with Rick Beato (Re-release)
With almost 800 episodes in the archives, new listeners (and old) often ask me for recommendations. In response, I’ll occasionally re-post some of my favorites. This was my first conversation with Rick Beato …
Show notes
With almost 800 episodes in the archives, new listeners (and old) often ask me for recommendations. In response, I’ll occasionally re-post some of my favorites. This was my first conversation with Rick Beato (Episode 420, 5/18/2020).
Some reasons you might want to listen to this episode.
On what Rick Beato actually does for people who love music:
Chris Ryan: “He is like the Anthony Bourdain of music. He takes you to a place you’ve never been — or you have been, but you just never noticed it the way he does. And you’ll never experience it the same way again after he’s shown you around.”
On how the Beatles wrote Help, Rubber Soul, and Revolver — all in one year:
Rick Beato: “In 1965, they released three records within twelve months. These are all 12, 14-song records. It’s not just writing all those songs — they recorded and released all of them in one calendar year. I believe it was 13 records in 8 years. It’s unfathomable. But one of the things about making records all the time is that you get good at making records. The act of always being in the studio, always writing songs, made them better songwriters because they didn’t want to repeat themselves.”
On the night John Lennon died:
Rick Beato: “I was in my freshman year of college and my roommate was watching Monday Night Football. He said, ‘Oh my god, John Lennon was just shot.’ I said, ‘What?’ And Howard Cosell was doing the play by play. Then five minutes later they announced John Lennon had died. And right then, you could hear it — across the whole campus.”
On the fear of understanding music too well:
Chris Ryan: “I remember talking with my buddy — a musical prodigy, just a total genius — about a piece of music that I found particularly moving. I said that feels so nostalgic to me, it just sounds like an old person looking back on their life, remembering the loves and the loss. And he said, ‘Well yeah, that’s because it’s in G minor. That’s just a trick.’ And it kind of broke my heart a little bit. His sense of music was becoming more and more mechanical.”
Rick Beato: “I never analyze music when I’m listening to it. I just listen. The only time I analyze it is when I need to for a video. And it’s funny — there are songs I’ve heard for 40 years where making the video is the first time I’ve ever even figured out what they’re doing. It never occurred to me. I always listened as a fan.”
Chris Ryan: “You’re like a porn star who has real orgasms, Rick.”
On where the power of music actually comes from:
Rick Beato: “When you play a string, there are natural harmonics that happen because of the atmosphere. If you divide a string in half, it produces the note an octave above. Divide it again — a fifth above. Again — a third above. And all of a sudden you have a major chord. The major triad is literally part of our atmosphere. I think that has something to do with it. Music is one of the great mysteries of human experience. I work with as much music as I’ve studied my entire life, and I still wonder: where do they come up with this stuff?”
On perfect pitch — and what it tells us about how we lose things as we grow up:
Rick Beato: “Every baby is born with the ability to hear all phonemes from all 6,500 languages spoken on earth. But beginning at around nine months, they start to lose this ability. I believe perfect pitch is exactly the same — it’s just another language that’s retained by some babies and not others. My son Dylan can hear a ten-note chord and tell you every pitch in it. But he says he never thinks about it when he’s just listening. It never occurs to him. And that’s how I am with music too.”
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribeROMA 112 Little Big Men
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comAccents. The World Cup. How soccer strategies reflect on contemporary American politics. Marvin Harris, Cannibals and Kings …
Show notes
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit chrisryan.substack.comAccents. The World Cup. How soccer strategies reflect on contemporary American politics. Marvin Harris, Cannibals and Kings, and the Big Man theory of leadership.
Jan MacKell Collins (Wild Women of the Wild West)
Jan is a historian specializing in telling the stories of the many extraordinary women of the Old West — many of them madams and prostitutes. She’s written many books, including: Brothels, Bordellos & Bad …
Show notes
Jan is a historian specializing in telling the stories of the many extraordinary women of the Old West — many of them madams and prostitutes. She’s written many books, including: Brothels, Bordellos & Bad Girls: Prostitution in Colorado, 1860-1930, Red Light Women of the Rocky Mountains, and Extraordinary Women of the Rocky Mountain West.
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribeKevin Russell (Does AI Think Before Speaking?)
I love talking with Kevin about cutting-edge technology. He’s up to his neck in the stuff. He doesn’t just dabble in it. He’s practically submerged in it. I hope you enjoy this conversation with someone who …
Show notes
I love talking with Kevin about cutting-edge technology. He’s up to his neck in the stuff. He doesn’t just dabble in it. He’s practically submerged in it. I hope you enjoy this conversation with someone who knows what’s happening, because he’s one of the people making it happen. If you appreciate commercial-free, bullshit-free conversations like this one, please consider helping to support the podcast.
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribeRobert Wright (Author: The God Test)
Robert Wright is the New York Times bestselling author of The God Test: Artificial Intelligence and Our Coming Cosmic Reckoning. His previous books include: The Evolution of God (a finalist for the Pulitzer …
Show notes
Robert Wright is the New York Times bestselling author of The God Test: Artificial Intelligence and Our Coming Cosmic Reckoning. His previous books include: The Evolution of God (a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize), Nonzero, The Moral Animal, Three Scientists and their Gods (a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award), and Why Buddhism Is True. He is the cofounder and editor-in-chief of the widely respected Bloggingheads.tv and MeaningofLife.tv. He has written for The New Yorker, The Atlantic, The New York Times, Time, Slate, and The New Republic. He has taught at the University of Pennsylvania and at Princeton University, where he also created the popular online course “Buddhism and Modern Psychology.” He is currently Visiting Professor of Science and Religion at Union Theological Seminary in New York.
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Intro music “Brightside of the Sun,” by Basin and Range. Outro: “Losing My Religion,” by REM.
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This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribe
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