Binchtopia

Chat, are we cooked? Julia is joined by friend and mentor Dr. Jack Keefe to explore the ongoing epidemic of AI psychosis and the dire consequences of having a sycophant in our pocket. They trace the history of how technology has repeatedly reshaped our understanding of reality, from medieval nobles who believed their bodies were made of glass, telegraph operators struck by sudden paralysis, and tech moguls convinced they're living in The Matrix. Digressions include questioning the humanity of Mr. Beast, the stay tethered to reality challenge, and The Truman Show as a psychotic touchstone.
This episode was produced by Julia Hava and Kylie Finnigan and edited by Livi Burdette. 
Check out Jack's work here: https://jack-keefe.com/
WE'RE GOING ON TOUR!!!! Find tickets for the Shake Up Your Life Tour at https://binchtopia.com/tour
To support the podcast on Patreon and access 50+ bonus episodes, mediasodes, and more, visit patreon.com/binchtopia and become a patron today.
SOURCES
"AI Psychosis" in Context: How Conversation History ShapesLLM Responses to Delusional Beliefs 
'Americanitis': The Disease of Living Too Fast 
An odd kind of melancholy: reflections on the glass delusion in Europe (1440-1680 - Gill Speak, 1990
Beyond artificial intelligence psychosis: a functional typology of large language model-associated psychotic phenomena - The Lancet Digital Health
Delusion content across the 20th century in an American psychiatric hospital
ELEPHANT: MEASURING AND UNDERSTANDING SOCIAL SYCOPHANCY IN LLMS
Emotional Manipulation by AI Companions
From Paralysis to Fatigue | Book by Edward Shorter | Official Publisher Page | Simon & Schuster
Hallucinations and electricity in the nineteenth century
Hallucinating with AI: Distributed Delusions and "AIPsychosis"
How AI and Human Behaviors Shape Psychosocial Effects of Extended Chatbot Use: A Longitudinal Randomized Controlled Study
Interpretations of Innovation: The Role of Technology in Explanation Seeking Related to Psychosis 
Investigating Affective Use and Emotional Well-beingon ChatGPT 
Nature of Persecutors and Their Behaviors in the Delusions of Schizophrenia: Changes between the 1990s and the 2000s - PMC
Neurasthenia and the Modern City: Genealogical Speculations on Capitalism-Urged Anxiety, Stress, and Suicide in North America, 1890–1920 - Phillip Gordon Mackintosh, 2025
On the Origin of the "Influencing Machine" in Schizophrenia
People Are Losing Loved Ones to AI-Fueled Spiritual Fantasies
Polarizing remedies, attractive cures: Animal magnetism, mesmerism, and mind-over-matter treatments 
Railway Neurosis and the Birth of Psychotherapy 
Technological folie à deux: feedback loops between AI chatbots and mental health 
'The algorithm is hacked': analysis of technology delusions in a modern-day cohort
The Evolution of Insanity 
The Origin of the Influencing Machine in Schizophrenia (1919)
The people who think they are made of glass - BBC News
The Psychogenic Machine: Simulating AI Psychosis,Delusion Reinforcement and Harm Enablement inLarge Language Models
They Asked an A.I. Chatbot Questions. The Answers Sent Them Spiraling. 
Victorian London - Disease - 'telegraphic paralysis'
When Old Technologies Were New : Thinking about Electric Communication in the Late Nineteenth Century
"You're Not Crazy": A Case of New-onset AI-associated Psychosis

This week, Julia is joined by artist and writer Mackenzie Thomas to discuss the beautiful and humiliating archive of the self. They revisit adolescent diary entries, being trolled by your middle school crush, the childhood-loneliness to Tumblr pipeline, and the power of turning your most embarrassing moments into art.
Digressions include The Rizzler being our generation's Shirley Temple, asking the CEO of Instagram for what you want, and dance moves that should be illegal for men to perform.
Check out Mackenzie's newest project here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fccuzvnb8JA and on Instagram @mackenzie
WE'RE GOING ON TOUR!!!! Find tickets for the Shake Up Your Life Tour at https://binchtopia.com/tour

This week, Julia is joined by Allegra to investigate the enduring, mythical appeal of the music festival. From medieval carnivals to Woodstock, and Coachella brand trips to FYRE fest, the girlies explore the human desire to build temporary utopias — and how festival outcomes range from communal transcendence and PLUR to corporate-branded slop and FEMA-level weather events. Digressions include Billie Eilish starring in The Bell Jar for some reason, the ouroborous of influencer video essays, and Allegra's parents getting matching plastic surgery on her birthday.
WE'RE GOING ON TOUR!!!! Find tickets for the Shake Up Your Life Tour at https://binchtopia.com/tour
This episode was produced by Julia Hava and Kylie Finnigan and edited by Livi Burdette. 
To support the podcast on Patreon and access 50+ bonus episodes, mediasodes, and more, visit patreon.com/binchtopia and become a patron today.
SOURCES
19 Worst Things About Woodstock '99
After the Astroworld Disaster, a Reckoning
Altamont : the Rolling Stones, the Hells Angels, and the inside story of rock's darkest day 
Bakhtinian thought : an introductory reader
Burning Man: how a festival became a culture
Castlemorton 1992, the rave that triggered the ban
Castlemorton Common: The rave that changed the law 
Criminal Justice & Public Order Act 1994, s.63 ("repetitive beats")
Crowds and Collective Behavior Get access Arrow 
Dancing in the Streets: A History of Collective Joy
From Woodstock to Coachella: The ultimate music festivals 
FYRE: The Greatest Party That Never Happened
Half a Million Strong: Crowds and Power from Woodstock to Coachella by Gina Arnold
Impact: From riots to crowd safety
'It was the peak of the flower power era': The story of the first ever Glastonbury Festival in 1970 
How Music Festivals Became a Massive Business in the 50 Years Since Woodstock 
Juggalos & the FBI "hybrid gang" label
Live Aid (1985)
Live Music in America: A History from Jenny Lind to Beyoncé
Lollapalooza's rise (Perry Farrell's acid precognition)
Monterey Pop
Murder at the Altamont Festival
Rabelais and His World
The Ritual Process: Structure and Anti-Structure
Of Other Spaces
The Oral History of Monterey Pop, Where Jimi Torched His Ax & Janis Became a Star: Art Garfunkel, Steve Miller, Lou Adler & More
Remembering Meredith Hunter
Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)
Trainwreck: Woodstock '99
The Elementary Forms of Religious Life
The Music Festival That Time Forgot: Inside Steve Wozniak's US Fest
The Night Bob Dylan Went Electric
The Sacred and the Profane
The Society of the Spectacle
"This Film Was My Chance to Correct History": Questlove on Summer of Soul and the Oscars 
The Pop Festival: History, Music, Media, Culture 
Woodstock '99 Predicted America's Future
Woodstock 1999 Ends in Violence 
Wattstax (1972), the "Black Woodstock"
Wattstax drew 100,000 people — this 1972 concert was about much more than music 
What's behind the decline of music festivals? 
Without Helicopters, There Wouldn't Have Been a Woodstock
Woodstock: 3 Days of Peace & Music

Find tickets for the Shake Up Your Life Tour at https://binchtopia.com/tour

In honor of Pride Month, Binchtopia's lesbian correspondent Aliza joins Julia to open the loveline for exclusively sapphic dilemmas. Together, the girlies address lesbian horrors including falling for your D&D teammate, having a platonically shirtless sleepover with your bestie, and finding out the girl you're in love with has has a hideous back tattoo. Digressions include surviving the Subaru allegations, a new psychological diagnosis for boring people, and considering whether straight men have the capacity to yearn. 
This episode was produced by Julia Hava and Kylie Finnigan and edited by Livi Burdette. 
To support the podcast on Patreon and access 50+ bonus episodes, mediasodes, and more, visit patreon.com/binchtopia and become a patron today.