Deviate with Rolf Potts · Monday, September 7, 2026
Rolf Potts described the acronym 'WEIRD' (Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, Democratic) to contrast with more ancient lifeways he encounters abroad. He believes that stepping outside of these WEIRD norms, whether in remote cultures or during disaster scenarios, leads to experiences that feel stranger than fiction.
“Do you know the acronym weird, Luke?”
“It means Western, educated, industrialized, rich and democratic. And I think, you know, in the West and the industrialized world, we have this assumption that life is like this, you know, it's more individualistic, it's more, um, arm's length, it's not really your lifeways are not tied to a specific environment.”
“I think anytime you go to a place that has non-modern lifeways, you open up to this strange then fiction type situation.”
“So I think non-modern cultures and then times when because of natural disasters or weird circumstances, life shifts a little bit, that's when things get really stranger than fiction.”