Maria Popova on the Role of Chance in Shaping Our Lives

Maria Popova on the Role of Chance in Shaping Our Lives

From Time Sensitive by The Slowdown

June 10, 2026 · 1h 2m · Season 13 · Episode 154

About this episode

Maria Popova discusses her book 'Traversal' and the implications of A.I. on age-old questions about the soul.

On Ep. 154 of our Time Sensitive podcast, the Bulgarian-born, Brooklyn-based writer, reader, and researcher Maria Popova, founder of the “free, ad-free, A.I.-free, fully human” website and newsletter The Marginalian, discusses her latest book, “Traversal”; why today’s A.I. debates are fundamentally modern versions of age-old questions about the soul; and the mystery of being alive.

People in this episode

Guest: Maria Popova

Topics covered

  • A.I. debates
  • soul
  • mystery of being alive
  • writing
  • research

Keywords

  • Maria Popova
  • A.I.
  • soul
  • Traversal
  • The Marginalian
  • writing
  • research

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: The Marginalian

Books & works: Traversal

More episodes of Time Sensitive

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Time Sensitive podcast page.