If I Only Knew

If I Only Knew is back for 2023! Matt returns from overseas and shares his worries about the state of the world in 2023 with Fred. How should we best navigate conflict, economic unrest, and social discord in this coming year? What will 2023 actually bring , for people young and old? Fred offers some optimism as we frame the future in the context of the past.

Andrew Tate has been a rising internet celebrity over the last few months, renowned for controversial and demeaning comments he has made. This week Matt introduces Fred to Tate, and they explore how Tate has risen to such prominence and what this can tell us about young men particularly in modern society. If you want to keep up with the ever-changing internet landscape or have worried about the im...

Fred is back on the pod this week, joining Matt to talk about an especially topical news story in Australia - the funding of Netball Australia by Gina Rinehart. What does it say about our society where a corporate sponsor so quickly pulls funding for raising social concerns, and on what grounds can the netball Australia team be criticised or celebrated for their stance on wearing the company's log...

A real short one this week, Matt shares some of his thoughts about the central role our society seems to place on establishing causal responsibility for something before we actually go ahead and fix it. A lot of effort is spent arguing over who is responsible for climate change, and a common reason not to help fix something is 'it's not my fault'. But perhaps the world would be better if people we...

This week Matt is flying solo because Fred's vacationing on a tropical paradise somewhere for a holiday. So Matt digs into some of his favourite topics to investigate how influencers and celebrities shape the habits of people young and old. Influencers seem to be a favourite topic across generations, and celebrity culture certainly poses a mystery sometimes, but Matt spends this episode looking at...

Fred and Matt woke up today to momentous news, Queen Elizabeth II has passed away. Marking the end of an era and the longest reign of a British Monarch, her passing will spark conversation across the globe. From outpourings of grief to political questions brought into stark relief by the transfer of power, Her Majesty has been a focal point of discussion. Join us as we chat about the different rol...

This week Matt's been thinking about the impact of inflation on the way people see value over their lifetimes. Inflation has been high on the political radar recently, but how does it interact with our psychology to influence how we judge 'acceptable' prices? Matt's done some research to show that prices were 5 times lower in 1980, and 2 times lower in 1995, and he uses that baseline to offer some...

This week Fred and Matt chat a bit about what role disruptive protest might play in our society. Is it okay for people to block roads to raise the profile of their issues, and what psychology drives individuals to put their lives in danger to disrupt society for a cause? Inspired by some recent protests in Sydney, we also get to hear about Fred's sordid family history of anti-establishment crime.

Last episode we investigated how different video games cultivate different cultures based on their mechanics for social interaction. This week we're having a look at how people within these games can make better or worse cultures and how bad actors can be challenged online. Fred shares a pointed story about his efforts to resist provocative behaviour in a game he plays, and Matt describes how youn...

This week Fred wants to know why some video game cultures are far more toxic than others - what is it about some games that seems to attract or foster bad behaviour? This is an important conversation because people tend to have singular opinions about video games; either that they are good or bad influences. But in fact, the gaming experience varies wildly depending on which games you choose to pl...

This week Matt picks Fred's brains about the different kinds of medical providers on offer in Australia. Coming to the realisation in young adulthood that he has to look after his own health, Matt has noticed how different people tend to favour different health providers, and that this is often determined by the healthcare they received as kids. What consequences does this have for how people in A...

This week Fred and Matt are joined by a very special guest from Humanity Health Group, Brittnee. Brittnee has an acquired vision impairment and was kind enough to lend her experiences of navigating work, support, and the loss of her vision to our conversation about inclusivity and disability. Brittnee offers a fascinating and articulate insight into the importance of challenging the construction o...

This week Fred conducted an experiment with his social medias to investigate the phenomenon known as 'doomscrolling'. This prompts our discussion into how people's attention is consumed by social media and why we needed to create a whole new word to describe this process. Join us this week to learn about the survival mechanics that prompt people to doomscroll, the ways technology has been designed...

A few weeks after the 2022 Aus Election Fred and Matt look back at the election and consider the far-reaching consequences of a change in government. What inspired a change in government, what are the consequences of new cabinet members, and what has this election shown about the success of provocateurs in Australian politics? Join us this week to look back at the election results, we promise it's...

This week Fred and Matt are joined by a very special guest, Gabriel, to do a focused episode for Pride month. We want to investigate how attitudes towards Pride, and queer identities, have changed over time. We consider what positive progress has been made to allow people to feel more included, and look at antagonistic efforts that leave marginalised people feeling excluded. Listen in to hear abou...

This week Fred abandonded Matt before the recording session, and so we are left to hear Matt monologue about young people are responding to a new restrictionless era of COVID. What social norms have been developed, who is most likely to remain concerned about COVID, and how can we react with compassion to those concerns? Join Matt this week to chat about some social and political observations driv...

Fred and Matt wrap up their three part series on the future of technology by asking what opportunities the Metaverse might offer in the future. Education, social connection, and personal expression in a 3 dimensional internet are all considered in this podcast, so join us to finish off our deep dive into the future of technology.

This week Matt and Fred continue their discussion about the future of technology and the Metaverse. Today we think about the consequences and dangers of such a radical new way to engage with technology. Listen in to learn more about who owns the Metaverse, what are its implications for privacy and safety, and what are the dangers of distinguishing between real and virtual spaces.

What does the future of technology look like? Will we have a revolution as big as the internet again? Why did Facebook change their company name to 'Meta'? These are all questions that relate to the development of the 'Metaverse', a virtual reality space that some people are calling the future of the internet. Matt introduces Fred to the internet this episode, and kicks off a three-parter talking...

This week Fred and Matt are back to investigate the many different flavours of political advertising during Australia's election cycle. Matt learnt recently that there is no requirement that political ads be truthful at all, which allows election ads to be incredibly loose with the facts. How does this affect voting decisions, and what impact does this have on young people who are less familiar wi...

This week we're back with an episode recorded before Easter, Fred has just recovered from a bad case of COVID-19 and wants to share his words of warning for people that aren't taking it seriously enough. Having recovered barely enough to speak, Fred soldiers on to join us and talk about Will Smith slapping Chris Rock at the Oscars. The social and cultural impacts of The Slap shouldn't be underesti...

This week Fred and Matt want to know why pork barrelling, the practise of promising money to voters in the hopes that it'll win their vote, is so common. Does it really win more votes, and how do younger generations feel about pork barrelling? We think about the role of trust in pork barrelling, the fact it might be a defensive strategy rather than one to secure more votes, and we find out the pri...

This week Fred and Matt ask whether sport is still as important to young people today as it was for previous generations. Sport now has to compete with a variety of other entertainment options in people's lives, and the viewership of many sporting codes has gone down over the last few years. Yet sport has a long-held centrality in Australian culture, so what are the consequences and benefits of th...

This week Fred and Matt talk about the perils of online catfishing and scams. We link this behaviour to its psychological roots, consider the ways it's an extension of standard social practises, and look into the ways the internet facilitates it and how to avoid it. Join us this week for an action packed and entertaining episode.

This week Fred and Matt chat about a relatively new policy development in Australia, the Esafety Commission. Introduced to protect people online, we weigh up the benefits and risks that come with governmental intervention into online spaces. It's important to protect people, but what role should policy have, and how might this affect the way you scroll through the internet? Join us this week to fi...