SQRL seeks to masticate on the simplest - yet hardest - questions that we, as humans, have faced for the past 300,000 years.
Join a high-schooler as she subjects her friends (students, judges, professors, teachers and mentors included) to some questions regarding life, from music taste as an innate or learned phenomenon to whether true altruism exists.
DISCLAIMER: The views expressed are personal opinions only and do not constitute professional advice. This is a student-run project created for open discussion and reflection.
I’m back with Daniel Hulse, who reflects on life and love with the same depth he brings to guiding students. In this second part of our conversation, we zoom out: are humans truly unique, or just another animal with fancier tools?
Episode in a 🌰:We explore the biology and philosophy of what makes us human — from parental instincts and animal mourning rituals to birth control, AI, and whether dolphins might have us beat. Mr. Hulse challenges the assumption that humans are “more evolved,” and together we ask: what really separates us from the rest of the living world, if anything?
In season 2, I highlight one-to-one chats with teachers, professors, and mentors. The primary question for this entire season will remain the same: What makes a human, human?
TIMESTAMPS
[00:00:34] Family love, biology, and parental instincts
[00:06:43] Animal mourning and the raw instinct to protect
[00:09:05] Do humans love differently than animals?
[00:14:59] Love, marriage, and not having children
[00:18:41] Seahorses, survival instincts, and evolution
[00:19:46] Birth control and whether humans are becoming “obsolete”
[00:20:35] AI as a new species — creators vs. creations
[00:24:16] Animal emotions, pain, and human assumptions
🥜 🥜 Hypothetical Nuts of the Day
If humans aren’t the most evolved species, what actually makes us unique?
Could AI count as a new “species” in the story of evolution?
Hope you enjoyed the ep!
19 Sept 2025
Episode 15A: Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind
I’m joined by Daniel Hulse, who until recently was Associate Director of College Counseling at Mercersburg Academy. Beyond guiding students, Mr. Hulse has spent years reflecting on what love, compromise, and authenticity really mean — in marriage, work, and family.
Episode in a 🌰:In this first part of our conversation, we put aside the central question and instead dive into love. In all its everyday messiness, love goes from tattoos and Shakespeare to farting in front your partner. Mr. Hulse shares what it means to build a relationship that is equal parts friendship and hard work, and why knowing your “non-compromisables” is just as important as compromise itself.
In season 2, I highlight one-to-one chats with teachers, professors, and mentors. The primary question for this entire season will remain the same: What makes a human, human?
TIMESTAMPS
[00:00:16] Mr. Hulse on Shakespeare and love beyond the surface
[00:04:40] Discovering a true “connection of the mind”
[00:07:05] Comfort in silence, farting, and being real
[00:09:49] Marriage as hard work and compromise
[00:13:29] Authentic disagreement vs. constant pleasing
[00:17:09] Compromise vs. self-betrayal at work and in life
[00:20:21] Family as a non-compromisable
🥜 Hypothetical Nut of the Day:
If soulmates don’t exist, how do you know when you’ve found the right person?
Hope you enjoyed the ep!
17 Sept 2025
Episode 14B: "Choice"
In part 2 of my conversation with Paul Galey, we shift from imagination to choice. If AI can think, adapt, and maybe even imagine, what’s left that makes us human?
Episode in a 🌰:
We dive into Viktor Frankl’s idea that our will to choose defines us, and test it against the rise of artificial intelligence. Can a machine ever claim humanity? What happens if technology evolves faster than our philosophies? From Star Trek court cases to nuclear buttons, we wrestle with the ethics of invention and the urgency of asking these questions now.
In season 2, I highlight one-to-one chats with teachers, professors, and mentors. The primary question for this entire season will remain the same: What makes a human, human?
TIMESTAMPS
00:00:00 — Viktor Frankl: choice as the essence of humanity
00:01:10 — Can AI develop beyond programming?
00:05:00 — If AI mirrors humans completely, is it human?
00:08:14 — Rights and fairness for AI
00:10:41 — If AI starts asking questions
00:11:19 — Technology racing ahead of philosophy
00:14:23 — Confucianism, neutral tools, and destructive tech
00:17:00 — When technology’s impact exceeds human intention
00:18:24 — AI in warfare and dehumanization
Hope you enjoyed the ep!
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