Uploaded April 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Rebecca Newberger Goldstein, author of the new book The Mattering Instinct, joins Robert Wright to discuss the human need to justify one’s own existence, the different ways we do that, and how these differences can divide us.
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Exclusive Overtime discussion: nonzero.org/p/the-mattering-instinct-robert-wright
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0:00 Rebecca’s past work on mind and matter(ing)
3:24 Rebecca’s new book, The Mattering Instinct
8:00 Varieties of mattering experience
14:44 Mattering type 1: Heroic Strivers
18:05 Mattering type 2: Socializers
25:56 Mattering type 3: Transcenders
30:13 Mattering type 4: Competitors
39:44 “The” meaning of life problem
42:55 Does what drives us divide us?
49:00 Heading to Overtime
Discussed in Overtime:
How do Steven Pinker and Bob matter?
Good vs bad mattering (and thermodynamics).
Finding meaning in absurdity.
Is there a best way to matter?
The AI threat(s) to human flourishing.
Why consciousness matters—even if there’s only matter.
Robert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Rebecca Newberger Goldstein (The Mind-Body Problem, Plato at the Googleplex, Betraying Spinoza, The Mattering Instinct). Recorded April 27, 2026.
Twitter: twitter.com/NonzeroPods
Rebecca Newberger Goldstein, author of the new book The Mattering Instinct, joins Robert Wright to discuss the human need to justify one’s own existence, the different ways we do that, and how these differences can divide us.
Subscribe to The NonZero Newsletter at: nonzero.org/subscribe
Exclusive Overtime discussion: nonzero.org/p/the-mattering-instinct-robert-wright
Join NonZero's Discord server: discord.gg/Zy4jAhTQMF
0:00 Rebecca’s past work on mind and matter(ing)
3:24 Rebecca’s new book, The Mattering Instinct
8:00 Varieties of mattering experience
14:44 Mattering type 1: Heroic Strivers
18:05 Mattering type 2: Socializers
25:56 Mattering type 3: Transcenders
30:13 Mattering type 4: Competitors
39:44 “The” meaning of life problem
42:55 Does what drives us divide us?
49:00 Heading to Overtime
Discussed in Overtime:
How do Steven Pinker and Bob matter?
Good vs bad mattering (and thermodynamics).
Finding meaning in absurdity.
Is there a best way to matter?
The AI threat(s) to human flourishing.
Why consciousness matters—even if there’s only matter.
Robert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Rebecca Newberger Goldstein (The Mind-Body Problem, Plato at the Googleplex, Betraying Spinoza, The Mattering Instinct). Recorded April 27, 2026.
Twitter: twitter.com/NonzeroPods
