Eric Hennigan - Computer Science and its Occult

Eric Hennigan - Computer Science and its Occult

Author: KGRA Digital Broadcasting July 20, 2025 Duration: 1:55:41
“Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” So states Sir Arthur C. Clarke’s famous Third Law. On Sunday, July 20, 2025, at 1 p.m. U.S. Pacific Time, the U.S. Transhumanist Party Virtual Enlightenment Salon will delve into this insight further.
In "Computer Science and its Occult," Eric Hennigan, a Software Engineer at Google, explores the intriguing parallels between concepts in computer science and themes found in occult traditions. The talk delves into ideas like "True Names," which in computer science can uniquely identify a thing and provide power over it, much like a memory address. Hennigan also discusses "Sigils," demonstrating how autonomous vehicles can be "trapped" by specific markings or by placing a traffic cone on their sensors, rendering them inoperable. The presentation further examines "Spells" in the context of sorting algorithms and code snippets. Hennigan draws a compelling connection to "The Golem of Prague," comparing the legendary animated clay figure to the modern process of baking silicon into crystal, etching patterns, animating with electricity, and commanding with scripts, ultimately teaching machines to learn, write, speak, and paint. This leads to profound questions about consciousness, ethics in creating sentient beings, and the nature of free will in machines.
Eric Hennigan is a Senior Software Engineer at Google and a Volunteer Genomics Data Scientist at the University of Southern California. He holds Bachelor of Sciences degrees in Applied Mathematics and Physics from University of California Los Angeles, and a PhD in Computer Science from University of California Irvine. He enjoys communicating what he has learned to others and even acted as Instructor of Record for UCI and Cal State Fullerton while still a graduate student. Despite his formal education he recommends self-study as a path to skills improvement.
Watch the first U.S. Transhumanist Party Virtual Enlightenment Salon with Eric Hennigan, held on October 23, 2022, on the subject of historical anti-aging approaches that failed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TMod8KtspxQ 

Hosted by KGRA Digital Broadcasting, Transhumanist Party Enlightenment Salon revives the tradition of thoughtful discourse for a new age. This podcast convenes experts and visionaries from fields that shape our tomorrow: longevity research, artificial intelligence, futurist philosophy, political theory, and cultural critique. The aim is to weave together these often-separate threads, fostering connections that can lead to genuine breakthroughs in how we see the world and our place within it. Each episode is structured as a deep, extended conversation, allowing ideas the space and time they need to fully unfold. You’ll hear discussions that grapple with the practical and ethical implications of emerging technologies, examine the philosophical underpinnings of a transhumanist future, and consider how art and politics intersect with radical scientific advancement. It’s a forum dedicated to rigorous, long-form dialogue in pursuit of a more rational and informed society. Tuning into this podcast means joining a modern salon, one where complex questions about human enhancement, societal evolution, and collective intelligence are explored with seriousness and intellectual curiosity. The conversations recorded here are not soundbites; they are immersive journeys into the minds at the forefront of redefining what it means to be human.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Transhumanist Party Enlightenment Salon
Podcast Episodes
Death is Wrong Platformer Game Level 1 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:52:42
On Sunday, May 26, 2024, at 1 p.m. U.S. Pacific Time, watch the first public demonstration of the “Death is Wrong” computer game, currently in development and intended to be a classic platformer about pursuing longevity…
Jason Hartgrave and Frazier Farrell [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:56:26
On Sunday, May 19, 2024, the U.S. Transhumanist Party invites Jason Hartgrave and Frazier Farrell of Augmentation Limitless, a biohacker collective working on a wide array of projects, including cybernetic implant coatin…
LEV The Game - Build 0.6  Life-Extension Game [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:54:42
On Sunday, May 12, 2024, the U.S. Transhumanist Party presents a live demonstration of the most recent version of LEV: The Game – a project that the USTP has undertaken to revive and redesign a computer game where the ai…
Ben Murnane [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:55:33
On Sunday, May 5, 2024, at 1 p.m. U.S. Pacific Time, the U.S. Transhumanist Party invites author Ben Murnane to discuss the key ideas explored in his books “Transhuman Citizen: Zoltan Istvan’s Hunt for Immortality”, “Ayn…
Felix Werth [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:56:01
U.S. Transhumanist Party invites Felix Werth, Chairman of the German Party for Biomedical Rejuvenation Research (Partei für schulmedizinische Verjüngungsforschung), to discuss his party’s campaign for the European Parlia…
Mike DiVerde [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:55:04
On Sunday, April 21, 2024, at 1 p.m. U.S. Pacific Time, the U.S. Transhumanist Party invites futurist and rocket engineer Mike DiVerde to discuss his outlook on some of the hazards of space travel – such as galactic cosm…
Avinash Singh [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:54:58
On Sunday, April 14, 2024, at 1 p.m. U.S. Pacific Time, watch the U.S. Transhumanist Party’s conversation with Dr. Avinash Singh on the subject of brain-computer interfaces (BCI) and both the current state and the future…
Longevity Fireside Chat [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:50:23
On Sunday, April 7, 2024, at 1 p.m. U.S. Pacific Time, watch the special Longevity Fireside Chat, where U.S. Transhumanist Party Chairman Gennady Stolyarov II interviews Mark Hamalainen of the Longevity Biotech Fellowshi…
Interview of Gennady Stalyarov II [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:53:47
On Sunday, March 31, 2024, at 1 p.m. Pacific Time, watch this stream of the interview with U.S. Transhumanist Party Chairman Gennady Stolyarov II by Daniel D. Tadesse, host of the Daniel Demissie Podcast. This interview…
Dan Elton on the A4LI D.C Fly-In Event [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:54:42
On Sunday, March 24, 2024, at 1 p.m. U.S. Pacific Time, the U.S. Transhumanist Party invites its Director of Scholarship, Dr. Dan Elton, to provide an overview of key discussions at the Alliance for Longevity Initiatives…