Certainly Dubious

Is Nolan’s Time Genius or Nonsense? Memento, Inception, Interstellar, and TenetMark and David discuss Christopher Nolan’s recurring use of time across films with guest Mark Wiberg, debating whether it’s brilliant or overly complicated. Wiberg ranks Interstellar highest for its time pressure on humanity, relativity set pieces like Miller’s planet, and the emotional video-message sequence, wchhile noting issues with early dialogue, character development, and the final reunion. They revisit Memento’s reverse structure, unreliable narrator, manipulation of Leonard’s memory, and the reveal that he chooses to continue the quest. Inception’s nested dream time is criticized for exposition and an ambiguous ending, though praised for ambition and effects. Tenet divides them: Davidt calls it a favorite for entropy reversal, determinism themes, and set pieces, while others find it cold or confusing. They end with broader thoughts on time stories, determinism vs free will, and recommendations.Check out Wiberg's DJ Butterz Youtubehttps://www.youtube.com/@DJButterz

This week Mark and David ostensibly talk about the book and movie versions of Solaris. Solaris is a story that asks some deep questions like:What are the limitations of Science?How do you determine if an entity is conscious?What are 50 ways to kill your re-animated loved one?However, Mark triggered David by asking about AI. This causes David to go on a long and tedious explanation of why LLMs are not conscious. Which is basically a recapitulation of:https://gracefulatheist.com/2026/06/07/humanism-and-ai/They discuss this aritcle in Verge: AI bots started a religion — humans immediately followedhttps://www.theverge.com/ai-artificial-intelligence/975017/ai-spiralism-chatbot-movementCounter points to my argumetns on LLMs:Are LLMs conscious?https://preposterousuniverse.com/podcast/2026/08/10/363-chandra-sripada-on-how-llms-and-humans-are-cognitive-cousins/Do LLMs plan?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=locKEKxG3osOther topics Mark and David veer into:The OdysseyMoralityRe-dos

Mark and David watched "The Legend of Boggy Creek" and discuss the Fouke Monster and the Big Foot legend.Should the creature be called:The Fouke MonsterBig FootSasquatchThe SquatchWe veer into:How truly atrocious "The Legend of Boggy Creek" movie isOur appreciation for the musical interlude in the movie The personal vendetta the Fouke Monster has for one group of peopleThe different ways Mark and David look at evidenceCryptids and stories around the camp fireWhat humans get out of monster storiesScience progresses one tomb stone at a timeScience Fiction and dreamers led us to our modern world

Earlier in June more UAP documents were declassified. A document dump, if you will. Ostensibly, that is the topic of this weeks Certainly Dubious. We also veer into topics such as these:Calling them UAPs vs UFOsScience changes its mind and has an attitudeIn which we accidentally talk about Covid 19Fighter pilots are heroes and no one should ever doubt themThe Drake equation and the Fermi paradoxBorges' Library vs Monkeys with typewritersMark and David assert their sanity and that is not a demand, that is a solid fact! What we demand is solid facts!"God is cool with aliensShould angels be considered aliens?How open minded can you be?How to avoid an anti-moral bender

Welcome to the Certainly Dubious podcast, where two longtime friends take on the intriguing and the bizarre with opposing viewpoints. We invite you to listen in and pick a side: Mark "the open-minded" and David "the skeptic."So, sit down with your coffee, tea, beer, or the ubiquitous bottle of water and listen in while two old friends talk about things that they are in no way qualified to comment on. Oh, and turn off all the lights; this podcast is better in the dark.In this episode Mark and David discuss:Introduction to the podcast and each otherHow we met each otherTeaching our children about Santa ClausSocial contagion of psychosesLove and grace: is it just biochemical?Star Trek moralityOur roles in the zombie apocalypseJoin us and pick a side!Show page https://redcircle.com/shows/dfa680d5-1ad8-45a3-9c93-07d49ae12711Mark's podcastRead Keeper’s Journey: The only way back is forwardhttps://www.reedkeeper.com/David's podcastGraceful Atheist Podcasthttps://gracefulatheist.com/podcast/