Philosophy in the News
- Is Philosophy Dead (Again)?
At a recent debate held at the British Academy of Sciences, leading philosophers took up the challenge of Stephen Hawking's infamous claim that "philosophy is dead."
- The Turing Triage Test
Philosopher Robert Sparrow proposes a test for the moral status of robots.
- Outing Your A.I.
The idea that an advanced artificial intelligence should be able to "pass" as humanlike is self-defeating, unethical and perhaps even dangerous.
- The Philosophy of Digital Art
The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy has a new entry on the philosophy of digital art — the study of the nature and appreciative grounds of all those kinds of art whose production and presentation crucially involves computer processing.
- The Metaphysics of Love?
An interview with philosopher Carrie Ichikawa Jenkins about her work on the metaphysics of love.
- On Implicit Bias
The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy has a new entry on implicit bias — the relatively unconscious and relatively automatic features of prejudiced judgment and social behavior.
- How Liberalism Downplays Racism
Philosopher Falungi Sheth argues that a functioning political liberalism, which promises equality and universal protection for 'all,' depends on people to fundamentally believe in a basic framework of these goods, with the predictable result that racial discrimination, brutality, violence, dehumanization, will be written off as accidental.
- On the Shoulders of Giants
The controversial role of Chartres in the philosophical Renaissance of the twelfth century.
- “Why, You Lying Miscreant!”
It is generally accepted that lying is morally prohibited. But theorists divide over the nature of lying's wrongness, and thus there is disagreement over when the prohibition might be outweighed by competing moral norms. There is also widespread agreement over the idea that promises made under conditions of coercion or duress lack the moral force to create obligations. Finally, although free speech is widely seen as a primary value and right, there is an ongoing debate over the kind of good that free speech is. Philosopher Seana Shiffrin discusses themes from her recent book, Speech Matters: On Lying, Morality, and the Law.
- In a Word, Deception
Lying is one way of deceiving with words, but it's not the only way. Philosopher Jonathan Webber explores the morality of deception with words.
- The Self in Question
An interview with philosopher Andy Hamilton.
- Formal Epistemology
The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy has a new entry on formal epistemology. Formal epistemology explores knowledge and reasoning using “formal” tools, tools from math and logic. For example, a formal epistemologist might use probability theory to explain how scientific reasoning works. Or she might use modal logic to defend a particular theory of knowledge.
- Living With Depression
One philosopher who shared his very personal struggle with the academic community.
- My Father, the Philosopher
Emily Adler, daughter of the late Jonathan Adler, has written a fond, anecdote-rich remembrance of her father. "If your father is a philosopher, then you should expect to lose many arguments. You will never lose “because life isn't fair,” or because your dad “says so.” You will always lose on strict logical grounds.… If your father is a philosopher, your premises must support your conclusion. Then, maybe once or twice in a childhood filled with lost arguments, you will win. When you win, you win big."
- Frontiers of Ancient Science
An interview with philosopher Brooke Holmes.
- I’m Right, You’re Wrong
Philosopher Catarina Dutilh Novaes reviews Timothy Williamson's recent book, Tetralogue: I'm Right, You're Wrong, an investigation of the merits and limits of rational debate.
- Alone Together
"Alone Together: Why "Incentivization" Fails as an Account of Institutional Facts." Bill Butchard(UF alumus) and Robert D'Amico (UF). Philosophy of Social Science (2015): 1-16.
- Philosophy of Street Art
Hyperallergic talks to the organizers of a conference on the philosophy of graffiti being held — where else? — New York City.
- And What I Really Want Is Some Justice
The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy has a new entry on global justice. With the exception of some special topics, such as matters of just conduct in war, political philosophy has typically focused when theorizing about justice almost exclusively with matters of justice within the state, but the last twenty years or so has seen a marked extension to the global sphere, with a huge expansion in the array of topics covered.
- 1,000 Years of Exposure
An interview with conceptual artist (and self-described experimental philosopher) Jonathon Keats at the site of his millennium camera installation which hopes to document 1,000 years of change.