Philosophy in the News
- How to Build a Computer with Free Will
A physicist thinks he knows how to build a computer with free will. Build it stubborn, disobedient, eager to prove itself on a dare. ... Needless to say, we are not convinced.
- Social Ontology
The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy has a new entry on social ontology — which is the study of the various entities in the world that arise from social interaction: social groups, money, corporations, institutions, property, social classes, races, genders, artifacts, artworks, language, and law.
- Meditations on Second Philosophy
An interview with philosopher Benjamin Feintzeig.
- Bots, Banker and Big Brother
Tom Simpson was once described as Britain's brightest soldier—he was awarded a Cambridge First whilst serving with the Royal Marines Commandos. As a military man he believed in the role of keeping watch, and in national security trumping our right to privacy. But now he's not so sure. Big data behemoths and rogue states have forced him to rethink the benefits of mass surveillance. He also has views on killer robots and bankers' bonuses—views that you might not expect. (audio)
- Who Is Rachael?
The movie Blade Runner poses a difficult question in the character of Rachael: Does what you remember determine who you are now? Philosopher Helen Beebee discusses.
- War and the Ethics of Self-Defense
An interview with philosopher Helen Frowe.
- What is Family?
People can be moralistic about family and family duty: we teach siblings that they must love each other; we raise them to respect older generations; we consider crimes by one family member against another to be especially heinous. And people go to pretty extreme measures to have the right sort of family. There must be something special about familial issues. Ethicist and first-time dad Matt Beard continues his investigation into philosophy and parenting with questions about the blood ties and loyalty to kith and kin that make up our family. (audio)
- The ‘Killer Robots’ Are Us
If we fail to understand the problem correctly, and fail to set the appropriate terms and boundaries of the debate from the beginning, we risk searching in the fundamentally wrong places for killer robots and the means to mitigate their pernicious expression.
- Kids Playing with Plato
An interview with philosopher Sharon Kaye about her philosophy for children program.
- How Democracy Can Survive Big Data
Only a few years ago, the idea that for-profit companies and foreign agents could use powerful data technologies to disrupt American democracy would have seemed laughable.
- Sacred and Profane Love
A new podcast on love and happiness hosted by philosopher Jennifer Frey. (audio)
- A Better Tomorrow Through Our Moral Obligations
Individually rational actions can lead to collectively undesirable outcomes. Rethinking our individual moral obligations as forming part of a collective pattern of action can lead to positive change.
- What We Owe to Others
Simone Weil believed talk of "human rights" had proved powerless in history because rooted in the personal. What we really need to recognize is that there are "inalienable human obligations" we owe to each other that arise from needs shared by all human beings.
- Why Have Children?
When professional philosopher and ethicist Matt Beard was to be become a parent he sought advice from the people he knew best: the sages. The result was bleak. Matt was used to consulting wisdom built up over two millennia for guidance. No such luck with parenting—unless you'd like to take Plato's advice to abolish the private family; or to follow Arthur Schopenhauer's firm belief that it's an act of sheer cruelty to bring children into the world. So Matt decided to make the philosophical journey himself—surely there must be something out there? In this four-part series Matt, as a first-time dad and public philosopher, goes on his own search of prudent advice. (audio)
- Can AI Ethics Keep Pace with AI Innovation?
Programming a robot to know when to follow the rules and when to break them is no easy task.
- When It’s So Bad It’s Good
The film 'The Room' is not just bad, it is terribly bad. So bad, people like it. It has been called the "Citizen Kane of bad movies". Sometimes a bad work of art nonetheless ends up being a gorgeous freak accident of nature. What is up with that?
- Facts and Trust: Whither Now?
Beware of what people tell you—especially online. How much can you trust your networks these days, especially in the disembodied digital frontier where rumours, lies, quasi-facts and conspiracies circulate at the speed of electrons? But is it anything new? Three philosophers of knowledge tell us if there's anything to worry about in the so-called post-truth world—and ways to solve it if there is. (audio)
- Women in Philosophy
The American Philosophical Association has launched a new blog on women in philosophy which aspires "to showcase the diverse voices of women in philosophy, to address issues of specific concern to women in philosophy as a discipline, and to offer a platform for philosophers to speak to issues of concern to women in the public square."
- The Ethics Crisis of the Internet Age
The ethics crisis in computer science just hit the big time.
- Philosophers on Autonomous Accidents
This month, the first pedestrian death due to impact of an autonomous car occurred. Philosophers have been taking up questions regarding the ethics of autonomous vehicles in various contexts for some time now. Last week's crash gave the topic some added visibility, and several philosophers published work in popular venues on the subject. Daily Nous provides a useful round-up of links.