I Am Not a Story!

Philosopher Galen Strawson tackles the commonplace idea that people conceive of their lives narratively and that the “self is a perpetually rewritten story.” Strawson believes this idea is both false and dangerous.

Nussbaum Awarded Kyoto Prize

Philosopher Martha Nussbaum is a receipient of the Kyoto Prize for 2016. “Dr. Martha Craven Nussbaum has led global discourse on philosophical topics that influence the human condition in profound ways, including contemporary theories of justice, law, education, feminism and international development assistance… Among her best-known achievements is the development of a political philosophy that focuses on human capabilities.”

AI Needs Philosophical Scrutiny

AI research raises profound questions and increasingly urgent concerns. So far, the questions and concerns have mostly been raised by people outside the core AI community. But most in the AI community shrug and continue with their research as usual. Why? Do AI researchers just not care about the future of humanity?

Bullshit! The Movie

Starring philosopher Harry Frankfurt. Although first conceived as an essay over 30 years ago, Frankfurt’s analysis of bullshit is more relevant than ever before. This video aims to further our understanding of what bullshit is, why there’s so much of it, and how it can be a greater enemy to the truth than lies. (video)

The Thirteenth Plato: Philosophy By the Numbers.

Why doesn’t Athens now have more than 13 Platos?

Reid, Berkeley and Italian Philosophy

An interview with philosopher Rebecca Copenhaver.

Russell Award for Philosophy Now

The winner of the 2016 Bertrand Russell Society Award is Philosophy Now, a “magazine for everyone interested in ideas” that “aims to corrupt innocent citizens by convincing them that philosophy can be exciting, worthwhile and comprehensible, and also to provide some light and enjoyable reading matter for those already ensnared by the muse, such as philosophy students and academics.”

The Pleasure-pain Paradox

Pain is a puzzle; and so is pleasure. For instance, how do you deal with the phenomenon of a pain that doesn’t hurt, or the pleasures for some of masochism? Yes, there are evolutionary and neuroscientific explanations, but somehow they don’t seem to tell the full story. (audio)

Did I Already Ask You This Question?

St Augustine described memory as a place of fields and vast palaces, where there are innumerable images stored, recorded by the senses. Sixteen hundred years later, it remains the everyday model. But a challenger is on the horizon, which extends the workings of memory well beyond the storehouse. If accurate, we might have to rethink everything from legal testimony to personal selfhood. (audio)

Wanting One Sort of Freedom and Getting Another

Conceptual distinctions are important. Case in point: it looks like confounding negative and positive freedom may have contributed to Britain’s vote to exit the EU.

On the Trail of Aristotle

Stageira is a scatter of rubble on a headland over the sea. The water is pistachio green with perfect coves of yellow sand. Nightingales sing in the trees. And here, in the ruined coastal village of Stageira, archaeologists claimed last week to have discovered the long-lost tomb of Aristotle.

The Rule of Law

The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy has a new entry on the Rule of Law — one of the ideals of our political morality that refers to the ascendancy of law as such and of the institutions of the legal system in a system of governance.

Foodie Rights

When renowned moral philosopher Susan Wolf realized she was an out-and-out foodie, she knew it was time for a robust defence. The result: The 2016 Alan Saunders Memorial Lecture in which she defends the right to indulge. (audio)

Do I Have Your Attention? How About Now?

Philosopher Alva Noë discusses new work on the neuroscience of spontaneous thought — and asks whether anyone can have accurate awareness of his or her own thoughts and experiences.

Philosopher Experiments with Science Education

Philosopher Michael Weisberg and psychologist Deena Weisberg are taking a film team to the Galapagos to shot three different versions of an educational film about evolution.

Force of Habit

William James was convinced that by the age of 30 your habits were pretty much set. Yet the self help keeps coming regardless of age—from the seven habits that make for success, to the five that condemn us to failure. It’s a never-ending repetitive project. But there may be better ways of understanding this peculiar condition. A discussion with two thinkers bringing habit into the 21st century. (audio)

Who Rules?

If your political decisions will affect (and even coerce) the prospects and choices of others, why should you get to do that even if you’re not good at it? Plato’s challenge is powerful. An interview with moral and political philosopher David Estlund.

Philosophy of Medicine

The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy has a new entry on the philosophy of medicine. Philosophy of medicine is a field that seeks to explore fundamental issues in theory, research, and practice within the health sciences, particularly metaphysical and epistemological topics.

Don’t Love Yourself (You Are Not Doing All That Well)

Philosopher Michael Puett argues that loving yourself—and all your flaws—can actually be quite harmful. Puett, who recently published a book on what Chinese philosophy can teach us about the good life, suggests that ancient Chinese philosophers would strongly disapprove of today’s penchant for self-affirmation.

Curing the Epicurean

Epicureanism is often caricatured as a philosophy of indulgence. But what did followers of Epicurus really believe and do? Philosopher Catherine Wilson discusses Epicureanism and its legacy. (audio)

Going Public with It

Some like to quote Nietzsche and have tattoos of his aphorisms. But what if you don’t understand him, or any other philosopher? Have attempts to simplify some seriously knotty ideas for broad public consumption damaged the real thing? (audio)

Are Emotions Skin Deep?

Growing research on the effects of botox treatments on emotional perception may shed light on the nature of human emotion.

Responsibility from the Margins

Philosopher David Shoemaker discusses themes from his recent book Responsibility from the Margins on the thorny issues surrounding the notion of responsibility as applied to persons whose agency is somehow compromised. (audio)

Liberalism and the End of the World

Political liberalism has been an extraordinarily successful doctrine, freeing the individual from custom, tribe, and tradition. The self-interested, self-directing individual has triumphed. But that great achievement may have come at a heavy cost. Unacceptable levels of inequality and the rise of a new global meritocratic ruling class are two symptoms of a political system being lauded as the natural end point of history. (audio)

The Age of Unbundlement

Since its publication in 2007 Charles Taylor’s magnum opus A Secular Age has gathered great intellectual momentum. His analysis has never been more apt. It was well received to start with—but as the years have rolled on, the changes it charts have only grown in impact and reach in the western world. Charles Taylor revisits the two key things that we need to understand about the unbundled age. (audio)

To Protect & Serve

What is wrong with the policing of minorities in the U.S? Ethicist John Kleinig discusses.

Democracy?—Let’s Not and Say We Did

If you believe in liberal democracy as the best way to live together, strap yourself in for a bumpy ride. You may not have thought of democracy as essentially undemocratic, but John Milbank is no fan of the least-worst system. (audio)

Lies, Passable Lies

Philosopher Rachel McKinnon argues against the prevailing idea that it is a norm of assertion that you need to know what you assert. She also argues that we can even blamelessly assert something that we know to be false. McKinnon discusses themes from her recent book The Norms of Assertion: Truth, Lies, and Warrant. (audio)

Anger, Indignation and Human Rights

Political philosophy conjures big concepts of the ideal way to organise ourselves as a group—but the discussion can turn coldly technical and miss the very basis of the original question: how can we best live together? The conversation around human rights can fall to this malady and become overly legalistic or formalised—but talk of human dignity, equality, and good old-fashioned anger and indignation may bring the project back to its roots.

Punishment and Illusion

If all our actions are determined by prior causes, that doesn’t seem to leave much scope for punishment. Philosopher Gregg Caruso discusses the ins and outs of free will and punishment.

Should Everybody Vote?

Conventional wisdom tells us yes. But maybe there is a better way. Philosopher Gary Gutting discusses the issue.

Universal Norms

Our modern world understands the subtleties of a debate that’s been running since the time of Plato and Aristotle: how the world is, and how it ought to be. The debate affects our perception of human rights—it sets ideal principle against practical politics. A discussion with philosopher and political scientist, Seyla Benhabib. (audio)