Big Questions No Answers
by Sam Vila
A podcast by me, Sam Vila, a recent university graduate living in Canada. I am a former lifeguard, tree-planter, personal trainer, and currently trying to get my life together. Each week, I ask a different guest a "big question" in the realm of philosophy, science, art or just something that has been on my mind. Sometimes it's silly, sometimes it's sad, sometimes it's just pretty darn cool, I hope you all enjoy!
Episodes
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Do We Seek Experiences or Do Experiences Seek Us? Ft. Kyle Makaiwi
0:0:00 Introduction 0:07:00 The Big Question: Do We Seek Experiences or Do Experiences Seek Us? 0:09:00 Kyle goes for an Adventure and gets more than he bargained for 0:32:00 Do We Attract Some Experiences? 0:47:00 Traumatic Experiences 0:58:00 Dune Discussion 1:02:00 Dealing with Grief while in...
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Do You Look At Life Like You're Playing A Role? (Ft. Matt Kropschot)
0:00 How not to share your weed 1:20 Big Question- Do you look at life like you’re playing a role? 8:00 The Role of Art 18:00 How do you respond to the inevitable fact that you are going to die? 30:00 Have you had any odd or recurring dreams in the recent months? 34:00 Freudian analysis of Matt’s...
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Pooping, Crying, and Freezing (Ft. Connor Freitas)
This week I sat down with my good friend Connor Freitas, Connor is one of the funniest, most light hearted and genuine people I know. He’s done it all, from working in almond orchards to lifeguarding to selling beer across the biggest little city in the US, Reno, Nevada. We talk about all kinds…
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Solo Quarantine Podcast (Weirdness Contained within)
0:0:40 How old do you want to live to? 0:1:30 Bane impression 0:2:00 Shrek Impression 0:3:00 Apples or Oranges? 0:3:40 Deepak Chopra impression 0:5:00 Allan Watts Impression 0:6:55 What’s the job they would have to pay you the most to do? 0:9:30 What is happiness? 0:18:00 A quote from “A Man Who...
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What is Treeplanting 2.0? FAQs and A Real Rundown of A Wild and Wonderful Profession (Ft. Elliott Mcbride)
I sat down with my partner in crime, Elliott Mcbride, we decided to redux our previous podcast to give the people a real rundown of this wild profession, we aim to answer the most frequently asked questions about treeplanting. If you have no idea what this job is about, this should be a decent...
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What Are The Best and Worst Parts About Being a Parent? Ft. James Vila (My Father)
0:0:00 Intro 0:2:00 Big Question- What are the best and worst parts about being a parent? 0:4:00 Becoming a father for the first time 0:10:50 A guilty cheeseburger 0:16:00 Comparing parenting styles across generations 0:19:00 A shift in priorities or world view? 0:29:20 Did you have a newfound...
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How Much Of Your Life Has Been Determined By Luck? Ft. Alex Raymond
This week I sat down with my good friend, Alex Raymond, Alex is currently working from home for a construction permitting company out of our childhood hometown of Danville, California. Our conversation centered around the role of luck in each of our lives and how we interpret its effect on who we...
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Adulthood: Expectations vs Reality? Ft. Raju Dhaliwal
I sat down with my friend and former teammate Raju Dhaliwal to talk our new found adulthood, Raj is currently living in our childhood home town of Danville California currently working from home for a tech start-up. Our conversation centered around the lessons of young adulthood, imposing…
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If You Could Be Any Animal What Would You Be? Ft. Gaurav Singh Varma
0:00 Intro 0:1:10 If you could be any animal what would it be and why? 0:5:30 John Lilly’s Ketamine inspired Dolphin Experiments 0:10:20 Gaurav’s Master’s project: Impact of agricultural systems on animal movement 0:20:30 Why Should we Care? 0:25:00 What is a characteristic you look for in other...
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A Case For Optimism? Ft. Valentine Roland Ssebuyungo
This Week I sat down with Valentine Roland Ssebuyungo. This is Valentine's second appearance on the podcast, he is an ambidextrous, electrical engineer, currently working with a company called Form Athletica that creates goggles using augmented reality technology for swimming. Valentine is...
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What Does “America" Mean To You? Ft. Luke Goldstein (Lukewarm)
This Week I virtually meet with my good friend Luke Goldstein, currently working in a marketing position from his home in California. We discuss the crumbling empire of the USA, the American dream, moral dilemmas, Tik-Tok, and formative experiences. I hope you all enjoy as much as I did. 0:00…
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How Much of Who We Are As Adults Is Based On Our Childhood Experiences? Ft. Taby Marin
This week I sat down with my good friend, Taby Marin. Taby currently works as an educator for kids between ages 5 and 6 and is currently pursuing certificates in Childhood education and Sexual health education. We had a great conversation about childhood, family dynamics, and role of education…
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Where Does Work Ethic Come From? Ft. Aylin Daniela Benavides
This week I sat down with Aylin Daniela Benavides or Dani. Dani is studying industrial design at Emily Carr. She has had a very close relationship with hard work all of her life and we sat down to talk about it. The trials and tribulations she has gone through on her journey from Costa Rica to...
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How Much Should We Read Into Dreams?
Coming at you solo on a Wednesday morning with somethings on my mind 0:00 The Big Question 6:00 Anxiety Dreams 10:00 Hidden Life of Trees 16:00 Humanity in the long run 20:00 You ARE A GOD and Scottish Rant
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Should We Fear Technology? Ft. Ahmed Hatem
This week I sat down with my friend, Ahmed Hatem, originally from Egypt, Ahmed came to UBC to study computer science and microbiology and I regard him as one of the smartest people I know. We dig into the potential pitfalls technology has to offer us in the coming years, the lack of…
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What is Human Nature? Ft. Valentine Roland Ssebuyungo
This week I sat down with one of the most introspective humans I've had the pleasure of talking to, Valentine Roland Ssebuyungo. Originally from Uganda, He's currently working while studying engineering at UBC and has found passions in philosophy and psychology. Our conversation focused on one of...
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Rapid Fire Drunken Questions Ft. Elliott Mcbride
After a long month of sobriety, I took a Tuesday night to go deep into the abyss of drunken conversation with my friend, forestry major, and tree-planting extraordinaire, Elliott McBride 0:0:20 Intro 0:0:45 First Question, If you could turn into any animal, what would it be? 0:2:48 Second…
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How Do You Feed Your Creativity in a Time Devoid of Creative Inspiration? Ft. Matthew Kropschot
I'm joined once again by Matt Kropschot, actor, film-maker, and creator, our conversation centers around creativity, getting silly, a bit of philosophy and how to deal with existential angst. 0:00 Opening Scene to Reservoir Dogs 0:06 The Big Question 0:15 The Importance of Silliness 0:30 Is life...
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If You Could Wave A Magic Wand And Solve One Big Problem, What Would You Solve? Ft. Sophia Minter
This week, I sit down with Sophia Minter, a UBC student in her final year studying Social Work, Sophia has passions in dance, community outreach, social equality, and much more. We chat about the growing problem of isolation, the importance of structure, and the impact of an ever more digital...
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Will We Ever Feel Like Adults? Ft. Riley Struck
This week I sat down with Riley Struck, my childhood friend and current project engineer at Tectronic industries. I picked Riley's brain about being a working professional and adulting in general, we talked about the prospect of aging, how much structure we need to function, cultural nuances of…
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If The World Ended Tonight, How Would You Feel About Things? Ft. Alejandro Arboleda
I sit down with my long time friend, Alejandro Arboleda, a personal trainer, kinesiologist and a fellow pandemic grad trying to get his life together. On the eve of one of the most contentious elections in history, we chat about the possibility of the end of the world, trying to find our feet in...
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What Are The Cultural Differences Between Western Europeans and Eastern Europeans? Ft. Illia Khomenko
This week, I sit down with Illia Khomenko, a long time friend and fellow kinesiologist Illia tries to convince me that humans are innately bad, I give him a few reasons that help him climb out of the abyss, we talk losing our faith in humanity and regaining it, differences between East and…
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How Has Your Accent Shaped Your Identity? Ft. Saurav Saha
This week I sit down with my good friend and roommate, Saurav Saha, a computer scientist major currently working as a software engineer in his last year at UBC. Saurav comes from a diverse set of backgrounds, originally from India, growing up in Bangladesh, and then moving to Canada for…
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Are We More Desensitized to Violence Now More Than Ever? Ft. Caleb Weinhagen
I sit down with Caleb Weinhagen, my roommate, an environmental scientist, and favorite perv to talk about beer, our latest forays into the darker sides of the internet, and much more. 0-0:07 Beer Tasting- Persephone Brewing Company- Brew The Change Porter 0:07-0:19 Eating ass and taking names...
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When is Taking A Sh** Not Going To Be Fun Anymore? Ft. Matt Kropschot
I sit down with my long time friend Matt Kropschot, an actor, amateur film-maker, and all around cool dude. We chat about all kinds of things, tackling the questions we know you are dying to have answered. We talk about our species' diminishing attention spans, prompting the big question…
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If You Could Give Your 23 Year-old Self Some Advice, What Would You Say? Ft. Jan Bootsma
0:00 The cattle prod story, traveling Europe 0:14 If you could go back and give you 23 year old self some advice, what would you say? 0:25 Tree-Planter 0:50 Every moment can be a perfect moment 1:05 Fracking from the front lines 1:09 Truck accident and coming back from adversity 1:30 Alternative...
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What is Treeplanting? Ft. Elliott Mcbride
I sit down with Elliott a 3rd year veteran tree planter to discuss this crazy occupation. Our conversation centers around our experiences as planters but meanders into what we think of the pandemic, the CCP, slack-lining, and RGB's recent passing
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Saurav And Sam Fire
Two talented young artists inspired by quarantine boredom sit down to produce one of the most fire tracks you've ever heard
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Rambling Sam Episode 5: My future, what do I want?
A short ramble, I think out loud about my future, where I'm going and what I want from life
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Corona Diaries Pt. 1 Alien Freestyle
Passing the time with a few bars over this "Slim Shady" instrumental by Nxnja
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Movement, Maturity and What Matters with Brian Carew
This week I'm in the studio with my friend and roommate Brian Carew, a movement practitioner and teacher, respiratory therapist, and health advocate. Our talk ran the gamut. From productivity, to the importance of reflection, finite vs infinite games to the importance of chaos.
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Rambling Sam- Episode 4
Another ramble, this time I talk about lessons I learned reading The Brothers Karamazov, Full Metal Jacket, and the duality of man
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Rambling Rap TWO
Beat is from Layx Prod on youtube- Try it for yourself!
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Rambling Sam- Episode 3
Back in the studio once again, letting my creative juices flow, I open my episode with a short freestyle, I suck at rapping but I do it anyway because it's an awesome mental exercise and I think I get a little bit better each time I try. I talk about the benefits of facing adversity, our life as...
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Rambling Sam- Episode 2
This episode, I talk about the role of ego in our lives, how ego relates to confidence in my own life, and the gift and curse of having a semi-British accent.
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Can Speech be Violence?
Josh and I discussed our opinions on free expression, being an introvert vs an extrovert, Josh tells a vaguely sensual story about his experience with a wombat. We discuss meme culture, the future of humanity and much much more. I hope you enjoy
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What Makes You, You?
In this episode I sit down with Katya, a philosophy student at UBC, we discuss personal identity, the effect of comparing yourself to others, travel, and much more
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Should Everyone Know What it Feels Like to Get Punched in the Face?
Kees is a UBC student in Kinesiology who has been fighting muay thai for the last several years. We talk all things conflict, American imperialism, touch on the light and dark sides of US culture, anime, Japan, and baby porcupine hiccups.
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Why Do Bad Things Happen to Good People?
My first solo podcast talking about the randomness of life, loss, and how to deal with tragedy.
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Do We Have Free Will?
Two college students bullshitting about questions that have already been asked by smarter people than themselves.
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Faces of UBC Episode #7 Hugo Dignoes
What do the following have in common: The Spanish Civil War, videogames, Google's spying, conscious neurospheres? No it's not the contents of a fever dream, My good friend Hugo and I talk about all these things and more in this highly entertaining podcast.
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Faces of UBC Episode 6 Caleb Pleasuree
A conversation between two friends one, an acting student who also dabbles in everything from drawing to making beats. The other, a kinesiology student, who thinks out loud and pretends to be Joe Rogan.
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Faces of UBC podcast Episode #5 Giacomo
An Italian and an Englishman walk into a recording studio, the following ensues
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Faces Of UBC Podcast Episode #4 Nika
A mountain goat and a hybrid british-american man walk into a studio, the following ensues
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Faces of UBC podcast Episode 3 with Nil
Faces of UBC podcast Episode 3 with Nil by Sam Vila
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Faces Of UBC Episode 2- Gorka
Two university students question the absurdity of experience
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Episode 1
Episode 1 by Sam Vila
About this show
A podcast by me, Sam Vila, a recent university graduate living in Canada. I am a former lifeguard, tree-planter, personal trainer, and currently trying to get my life together. Each week, I ask a different guest a "big question" in the realm of philosophy, science, art or just something that has been on my mind. Sometimes it's silly, sometimes it's sad, sometimes it's just pretty darn cool, I hope you all enjoy!
Hosted by
Sam Vila