5 HN users recommended this talk6 months2014–2025score 8.5
Years with an HN recommendation, 2007–2026
Adams fans repeatedly call it one of his best talks, a funny and moving look at extinction and the environment.
Douglas Adams gives a talk at UCSB, recorded shortly before his death, about the odd lives of animals and what they suggest about humanity's future. It draws on his Last Chance to See work and is funny and wide-ranging.
“Watch the whole thing. You will thank me later.” (HN, 2020)
Obligatory mention for every fan of Douglas Adams: "Parrots, the Universe, and everything". [0] Watch the whole thing. You will thank me later. [0]: [this video]
Douglas Adams is one of my favorite writers, and intellectuals, ever. If you are like me, you absolutely have to watch this hour-long presentation he gave at UC Santa Barbara in 2001 [0], titled "Parrots, the Universe, and Everything". Mind blowing. His last book, "Last chance to see" [1], which is about endangered species, is heavily related to that talk. I recently learned that Douglas Adams had a chance to play on stage at Pink Floyd's 28 October 1994 concert at Earls Court in London [2], playing guitar on the songs "Brain Damage" and "Eclipse". He's even responsible for the 1994 album name "Division Bell" by Pink Floyd. David Gilmour and Douglas Adams were good friends. Well, what can I say... It sucks that he went away too soon. I'd love to read more of his stuff, and I'd love to know his take on today's world. [0]: [this video] [1]: [link] [2]: [link]
Hour-long mind-blowing presentation tied to Last Chance to See.
If you love Douglas Adams, like I do, watch "Douglas Adams: Parrots, the Universe and Everything" [0], if you haven't done so. Heck, even if you did years ago. [0]: [this video]
I don't know what you categorize it as (I usually call it an "educational standup"), but his last talk before his death "Parrots, The Universe, and Everything" is one of the greatest things I've ever seen. It's very funny, with a lot of interesting anecdotes about his life, with a lot of interesting facts about animals, and he manages to tie the entire thing together with a pretty clever theme about the environment. I genuinely think it's one of the greatest public speeches ever done, at least in the English language. If you haven't seen it, it's an hour and a half long, and it's totally worth it: [this video]
Funny educational standup tying anecdotes and animal facts to environment.
In the same way, I'd also recommend Last Chance To See for a slightly different flavour of Douglas Adams. His whimsical style is remarkably well-suited to a non-fiction nature and travel book. I can't say I completely get his science fiction books, but I felt the constraints of a non-fiction book gave me a new appreciation for his sense of humour and his way of balancing that with thoughtful, meaningful exposition. It's one of my favourite books :) He gave a great talk about it, too: [this video]
My favorite book is Douglas Adams’ Last Chance to See . He talks about it here [0] and IIRC he says it was his favorite book to write. Adams took a dark subject - endangered animals and our role in their extinction - and told a story that’s equally hilarious and hopeful. [0]: [this video]
Adams discusses Last Chance to See, his favorite book to write.
Hitchhikers guide was a personality defining read for me when i was younger. I also recommend this video: Parrots, the Universe and Everything [this video] Just this week i was looking for more humour writing like Douglas Adams, PG Wodehouse. I came across this award which seems interesting. [link] I plan to read some of them this year.
[this video] (Douglas Adams talking, fairly humorously, about extinction) "ending the human race" is such an interesting thing. Put aside that bone-headed nazis will tell you that humans have more than one race: We do extinct other species in incredible amounts (ask any greenpeace flyer). If we were extinguished by our own invention seems sort of fair. But by the off-chance that an AI figures out that we are actually worth being, then there might be an realistic chance that it will actually help us survive our own mistake. A bit of a gamble but if curiosity kills the cat then we are lucky to be alive anyways :)
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