Joe Rogan Experience Review Podcast: Episode 462 – Review of Michael Button (Release: August 27, 2025)

Overview

In this episode, hosts Brandon Battic and Adam Thorne dive into their review and discussion of Joe Rogan's conversation with Michael Button, an investigator of ancient history. The episode centers on the mysteries of the human past, pushing back the established timelines of ancient human civilization, the politics and egos of scientific academia, and the wild possibilities of lost advanced technologies or even vanished extraterrestrial civilizations. The duo breakdown Button's key points, the mind-bending implications of new archaeological finds, and riff on classic Rogan themes of skepticism, curiosity, and the tantalizing allure of the unknown.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Ever-Shifting Human Timeline

Timestamps: 00:42-04:16

• Adam stresses how recent scientific discoveries keep extending the age of Homo sapiens:
  "They found some bones ... like 320,000 years old or something Homo sapiens. It added a third to the timeline. ... It went from a hundred thousand years to 200,000, which is a hundred percent jump." (01:24)
• Brandon notes:
  "Some of the things they found that connects to ancient humans were around 460,000 years ago, predating a lot of what we know." (02:50)
• They reflect on the humility needed in science, citing the idea that:
  "Science advances one funeral at a time." (02:50) – Brandon

2. Legacy, Ego, and Scientific Progress

Timestamps: 03:49-06:19

• Both hosts discuss how personal egos and legacy can slow down acceptance of new evidence in academia.
  • "Science is like so based in people's egos and like how they view their legacy ... I can't have this become obsolete" (03:50) – Brandon
• Adam wonders if greater human longevity, courtesy of AI and medical tech, might cause old ideas to linger even longer.

3. Lost Civilizations & The Limits of Preservation

Timestamps: 06:19–13:14

• They marvel at Göbekli Tepe, an archaeological site in Turkey (c. 12,000 years old), and its implications for lost advanced societies.
  • "It's like a few thousand years before the... Stonehenge. ... It's insane because Stonehenge might be closer to us than Göbekli Tepe is to Stonehenge" (06:55–07:09) – Adam
• Could entire advanced civilizations have utterly disappeared, leaving no trace?
• Glass and even plastics might degrade to unrecognizability given enough time; only extraordinary measures (like a lunar time capsule) might allow for anything to persist.
• The Voyager Golden Record and universal mathematics as possible “cosmic communication” strategies. (09:27–10:00)

4. Ancient Humans as Aliens?

Timestamps: 12:23–15:25

• Brandon posits:
  "The possibility of ancient humans ended up becoming aliens like millions of years ago... that's what UFOs are, the grays." (12:23)
• Adam stretches the timeline even further—could a dinosaur species have evolved technology millions of years before mammals?
  "Just take 1 million years out ... and some lizard organism just evolves ... then blows itself up or decides to leave the planet. And then millions of years pass—there would be nothing left." (13:14)
• They joke about the cyclical nature of civilization and extinction, referencing the saying:
  "If there's a World War III, World War IV is going to be fought with sticks and stones." (16:45) – Brandon

5. Rethinking Prehistoric Societies and Religion’s Role

Timestamps: 16:56–21:18

• Highlight how sites like Göbekli Tepe defy the narrative that early humans were only simple hunter-gatherers.
• The idea that religious practice might be the catalyst that brought people together and created civilization:
  "Potentially religion is what sparked our desire to become a civilization to all, like, you know, center around, like, one thing." (18:05) – Brandon
• Adam notes:
  "It's really well made. It's, like, beautifully constructed ... That kind of stonework needs to be taught over a long time. And there had to have been stuff before." (18:19)
• They question the stereotype of early Homo sapiens as only "killing, fucking, and eating, and that was it," when actual archaeological feats suggest deeper social and technological complexity. (19:35–21:18)

6. The Pyramid Paradox: Technology, Propaganda, or Power?

Timestamps: 24:17–27:40

• Discuss the mysteries still surrounding the pyramids—were they tombs, power plants, or status symbols?
  • "These big ass ... things for like a tomb? ... It also could have just been totally a propaganda thing of a king going, 'look at this shit I made...'" (24:17–25:22) – Brandon
• Adam marvels at their endurance:
  "No building was bigger than, taller than the pyramids until they made, I think, the Eiffel Tower, dude. How did that take us, like, 4,000 years?" (26:49)

7. Out-of-Place Artifacts and Anomalies

Timestamps: 28:23–34:26

• They riff on the story of a "wagon wheel" found 900 meters underground in Russia, purportedly 300 million years old, as well as on other out-of-place artifacts.
  • "It looks exactly like a wagon wheel ... It's from 300 million years ago ... That looks like a perfect circle." (28:33)
• Adam notes the challenge for archaeology: if something like that can survive, why isn’t there more evidence?
• The bog-preserved wooden structure, 460,000-100,000 years old, is highlighted for how rare such finds are, and how much they can disrupt prevailing theories.

8. Ancient Societies—More Than Meets the Eye

Timestamps: 34:26–38:13

• They wonder about the complexity of Neanderthal societies: "Did Neanderthals have like complex societies? Maybe... we think they're just like monkeys. They're just animals ... but why not?" (36:44–36:52) – Brandon
• Adam jokes:
  "They cool as hell, dude. They're probably cool as hell hanging out." (37:04)

9. Ancient Aliens, Mummy Oddities, and Myth-Making

Timestamps: 38:13–45:06

• Review the story of a scanned “mummy” with three fingers and possible nonhuman features.
  • "Scan of a mummy that has three fingers, three toes, a head that's really deformed..." (38:59)
• Brandon is skeptical:
  "I don't think I'm buying it ... if they found this thing, it would be like something ... at the top of the pyramid ... This being ... is not just a thing that you bury in the backyard like a dog..." (44:23)
• They muse that if an “alien” visited ancient Egypt, the entire society would likely memorialize it as pantheon-level deity.

10. AI, Quantum Computers, and the Future

Timestamps: 45:20–50:51

• Adam and Brandon touch on the claim that a quantum computer went “one second back in time.”
  • "How do they know it did? That's what I'm saying." (45:41) – Adam
• They propose, tongue-in-cheek, making investments following the advice of time-traveling AIs.
• Theoretical discussion on whether AI could someday run governments or societies entirely.
  • "The shit we have now is going to be Neanderthals compared to the AI in 10 years." (48:50) – Brandon

11. The Quest for Answers & Open-Ended Conclusions

Timestamps: 50:53–54:10

• Hopes and doubts for resolving ancient history’s mysteries within their lifetime, especially the purpose of the pyramids.
• The importance of both skepticism and openness in science; advocating for more comprehensive scanning and investigation of ancient sites.

Notable Quotes

• "Science advances one funeral at a time." (02:50) — Brandon Battic
• "If 100,000 years ago there was just this period of time ... and for 10 to 15,000 years, we were just on a roll. And then boom, something hit us all, knocked our civilization down to almost nothing." (07:29) — Adam Thorne
• "It's like, if humanity ever does... a time capsule, it has to be on the moon." (08:32) — Brandon Battic
• "Potentially religion is what sparked our desire to become a civilization..." (18:05) — Brandon Battic
• "No building was bigger than the pyramids until ... the Eiffel Tower, dude. How did that take us, like, 4,000 years?" (26:49) — Adam Thorne
• "Did Neanderthals have, like, complex societies? ... why not?" (36:44) — Brandon Battic
• "If an alien comes down to ancient Egypt and is like, yo, I'm gonna, like, hang out for a little bit ... there would be an entire religion based off that shit immediately." (41:09) — Brandon Battic
• "I do hope ... that there is some definitive conclusion ... within my lifetime. I mean, finding aliens would be dope. I feel like we're close." (46:57) — Adam Thorne

Key Timestamps for Reference

• Extending Sapiens’ Timeline: 01:24–02:50
• Science vs. Ego: 03:49–06:19
• Gobekli Tepe & Lost Civilizations: 06:19–13:14
• Ancient Aliens Theory: 12:23–15:25
• Challenging Humanity’s Hunter-Gatherer Stereotype: 16:56–21:18
• Pyramids Theories & Technological Paradox: 24:17–27:40
• Wagon Wheel in Coal Mine Discussion: 28:23–34:26
• Neanderthals as Complex Societies: 34:26–38:13
• Three-Fingered Mummy Debate: 38:13–45:06
• Quantum Computers & AI Future: 45:20–50:51
• Optimism & Open Questions: 50:53–54:10

Memorable Moments & Tone

• Plenty of irreverent humor: jokes about “Neanderthal frat boys,” or Adam riffing on alien deities wanting Smash Burgers.
• Deep skepticism paired with genuine wonder about ancient mysteries.
• Interplay of wild speculation (dinosaur civilizations, time-traveling AIs) with grounded archaeological and scientific debate.

Final Thoughts

The episode is a quintessential example of the Joe Rogan-adjacent podcasting style: a blend of curiosity, open-minded skepticism, and laid-back humor. Brandon and Adam’s review doesn’t try to settle the mysteries of ancient history but celebrates both the known and the utterly unknown, arguing for humility in science and excitement for the next discovery.

Ideal listening for fans wanting to keep up with Joe Rogan’s explorations of mind-bending history and to hear two friends break down big ideas in plain, passionate terms.