Episode 34 - Brad Alaniz of Rhode Island talks Local History, Civil Discourse & Artificial Intelligence

Brad Alaniz lives in Middletown, Rhode Island.  Since retiring from the US Navy as a Commander, he has been a Military Professor at the US Naval War College in Newport, RI, and is currently an Operations Research Analyst exploring new underwater technologies in New London, Connecticut. Brad and host Michael Whidden were shipmates on USS Bunker Hill (CG-52) from 1995 until 1997, when it was homeported in Yokosuka, Japan.

Our discussion covers, among other things:
*some history about Newport and Rhode Island
*which US metropolitan region is bigger than the entire state of Rhode Island
*his transition from military to civilian life
*insights into civil discourse within American society
*ethics and artificial intelligence, including his article “Artificial Ethics May Make Poor Choices”
*the philosophy of probability

Brad finds hope in a number of things: the calm discussions he’s able to have, including on this podcast; the many people he works with who work for a higher cause; the younger generation who vote at a higher rate than older generations; and his observation that the optimists outnumber the pessimists.