Molson Hart

I'm outside lunch, chilling, eating some lunch. When I get back to my computer, I will defend my boy Nassim.

I'm not sure if mathematicians/scientists taking someone seriously is a good proxy for whether or not someone is worth listening to, but I'll entertain the thought. First, I have a double math and economics major from a pretty good school and I take him seriously.

Second, Taleb was on Russ Roberts' and Tyler Cowen's podcasts, so I would think they take him seriously. Third, real practitioners, be it traders or entrepreneurs take him seriously. I'd toss myself in that category and Naval is a good example as well.

Fourth, Mandelbrot took him seriously enough to have him as a student. I don't think he pseudo-intellectualizes common wisdom. Maybe you had a better upbringing than I did, but I found his work to be extremely enlightening.

Amusingly, Michael Mauboussin, repackages a lot of his work in a more palatable veneer and people LOVE that guy. Taleb conducts himself in a way that's a bit different from most other people and he can be a real pain in the ass, but he's the world's greatest living philsopher.