Vaknin Talks

Will AI Kill Us All? Future with Artificial Intelligence

Artificial intelligence has been a concept throughout human history, with automatons and cults being examples. It is the belief that intelligence is the result of creation and behavior. However, AI displays behaviors that cannot be traced back to programming, and it makes its own decisions, leading to a lack of control. AI also generates narratives and imposes them on human beings, creating an alternative virtual reality. The lecture also discusses the transition from an attention economy to a reality manipulative economy, where reality is controlled and sold back to individuals. The democratization of power and the rise of malignant egalitarianism are also mentioned, with AI empowering narcissism and creating a world of gods.

Posted on 4/23/2024, 23 minute read

DO THIS When Narcissist Talks to You!

Professor Sam Vaknin discusses the importance of focusing on the motivation behind a person's communication rather than the explicit content. He emphasizes the hidden text method and explains that narcissists communicate with specific goals in mind, such as impressing, confabulating, supporting grandiosity, and manipulating others. He highlights that the actual words spoken by narcissists are less important than understanding why they are communicating in a particular way. Additionally, he touches on the use of language to manipulate and brainwash others, particularly in the case of narcissists and psychopaths.

Posted on 4/22/2024, 9 minute read

Happy Birthday, Mr. Vaknin: Lessons of a Life Ill-lived

In this lecture, Professor Sam Vaknin reflects on his 63rd birthday and shares an interview he had with Scott Jacobson. He discusses the irrationality of celebrating birthdays and emphasizes the transient and meaningless nature of life. Vaknin also talks about his early life, the lessons he learned in different stages of life, and the decline of his physical and mental capabilities. He advises on career, ambition, and the importance of not compromising in one's career. Ultimately, he expresses that he looks forward to death as the ultimate respite.

Posted on 4/21/2024, 5 minute read

Future is Networking, Hierarchies Dead (Seminar in Skopje, North Macedonia)

Professor Sam Vaknin's lecture covered the following key points: 1. Networks are fundamentally different from hierarchies, with their own characteristics and life cycles. 2. The study of networks has advanced significantly in the past two decades, largely due to the proliferation of computer networks. 3. Networks organize people based on time rather than space, with early participants often reaping the most benefits. 4. Information and power in networks flow horizontally, as opposed to the vertical flow in hierarchies. 5. Networks empower individuals and are constructed on equipotence, while hierarchies disempower and are built on impotence. 6. Networks are more susceptible to external shocks due to their homophilic nature, which can lead to a lack of diversity and resilience. 7. The life cycle of networks includes a mimetic phase (introduction of ideas), an externality phase (network growth and benefits), and potentially a decay phase if the network fails to innovate or maintain internal value. 8. Networks that are self-contained and provide comprehensive value to their members are more likely to succeed and grow. 9. Weak ties within networks, individuals with loose connections to many groups, are crucial for the dissemination of information and innovation. 10. The future of networks likely involves multiplex (multiple types of connections), multimodal (various roles for participants), and multilevel (hierarchical structures) characteristics.

Posted on 4/20/2024, 3 hour 17 minute read

Narcissist: My Gut Instinct Rules, My Intuition is FACT!

Professor Sam Vaknin discusses the narcissist's perception of intuition and knowledge. He explains that the narcissist perceives his intuition as objective and factual, trusting it as others trust science. The narcissist believes he is omniscient and does not need to acquire knowledge from external sources. He lacks curiosity and does not learn from others, perceiving reality as a problem if it does not conform to his conclusions. The narcissist's impaired reality testing leads to internal confirmation bias and a belief in his own comprehensive knowledge.

Posted on 4/19/2024, 10 minute read

Why Narcissist Rewrites History (Recency Bias)

Professor Sam Vaknin discusses the cognitive distortion of grandiosity in narcissists, which leads them to believe they are god-like entities. He explains how grandiosity is a way for narcissists to falsify reality and compensate for their fragile state of mind. Vaknin also delves into other cognitive biases such as recency bias, anchoring effect, recency illusion, and serial position effect, and how they manifest in narcissistic behavior. He emphasizes that narcissists' distorted perception of reality and time leads to a false self-narrative, making it impossible to expect veracity from them.

Posted on 4/18/2024, 21 minute read

Decathexis: When YOU are No Longer Useful (Psychopath’s, Narcissist's Transactional Relationships)

Professor Sam Vaknin discusses the predictability of narcissistic behavior and provides two rules to understand and predict their actions: optimized allocation of resources and resentment when forced to act. He explains that narcissists view relationships as transactions and are only interested in others if they can provide something of value. Once the utility of a person is over, the narcissist abruptly drops them. This transactional approach to relationships and the lack of emotional investment makes narcissists and psychopaths unpredictable and unreliable partners.

Posted on 4/17/2024, 17 minute read

Malignant Covert Narcissist Becomes Primary Psychopath to Compensate for Collapse

Professor Sam Vaknin discusses the concept of malignant covert narcissism, a compensatory state that arises from the collapse of overt narcissism. He explains that covert narcissists develop a second layer of compensation, which is the malignancy, to counteract their feelings of inferiority and inadequacy. This malignancy is characterized by psychopathy, sadism, and auto-erotism, and it is more pronounced in covert narcissism than in overt narcissism. Vaknin suggests that malignant covert narcissism may be more common than previously thought and poses a greater danger to society due to its covert and invasive nature.

Posted on 4/16/2024, 29 minute read

We are Rich People's Slaves, Neo-feudalism (Euro College, North Macedonia)

Professor Sam Vaknin discusses the problematic nature of capitalism, which has been recognized for over a thousand years. He argues that capitalism is inherently anti-social institutions and that it is a zero-sum game, benefiting the rich at the expense of the poor. Vaknin predicts a future of neo-feudalism, characterized by low social mobility, hereditary wealth, and the dominance of politics over economics. He also suggests that the rich, despite not coordinating their actions, will act in a concerted fashion to maintain their wealth and power.

Posted on 4/14/2024, 47 minute read

Psychopath’s “Karma” Confirmed in Study (Patrick’s Triarchic Model, Hyperarousal)

Professor Sam Vaknin discusses the link between psychopathy and anxiety, emphasizing that psychopathy is a condition of hyperarousal and overreactivity to anxiety and fear. He introduces a recent study on the personal cost of psychopathy, which examines the impacts of psychopathic traits on internalizing and life satisfaction. The study finds that disinhibition is the most impairing trait, while boldness varies in its effects and meanness is primarily related to interpersonal difficulties. Vaknin highlights the complexity and nuance of psychopathy, challenging the notion of psychopaths as purely bad and emphasizing the need for further research and understanding of the condition.

Posted on 4/13/2024, 31 minute read

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