158 | David Wallace on The Arrow of Time
The arrow of time — all the ways in which the past differs from the future — is a fascinating
158 | David Wallace on The Arrow of Time Read More
Philosophy
150 | Simon DeDeo on How Explanations Work and Why They Sometimes Fail
You observe a phenomenon, and come up with an explanation for it. That’s true for scientists, but also for literally
150 | Simon DeDeo on How Explanations Work and Why They Sometimes Fail Read More
149 | Lee Smolin on Time, Philosophy, and the Nature of Reality
The challenge to a theoretical physicist pushing beyond our best current theories is that there are too many ways to
149 | Lee Smolin on Time, Philosophy, and the Nature of Reality Read More
139 | Elizabeth Anderson on Equality, Work, and Ideology
Imagine two people with exactly the same innate abilities, but one is born into a wealthy family and the other
139 | Elizabeth Anderson on Equality, Work, and Ideology Read More
137 | Justin Clarke-Doane on Mathematics, Morality, Objectivity, and Reality
On a spectrum of philosophical topics, one might be tempted to put mathematics and morality on opposite ends. Math is
137 | Justin Clarke-Doane on Mathematics, Morality, Objectivity, and Reality Read More
125 | David Haig on the Evolution of Meaning from Darwin to Derrida
Aristotle conceived of the world in terms of teleological “final causes”; Darwin, or so the story goes, erased purpose and
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121 | Cornel West on What Democracy Is and Should Be
This episode is published on November 2, 2020, the day before an historic election in the United States. An election
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113 | Cailin O’Connor on Game Theory, Evolution, and the Origins of Unfairness
You can’t always get what you want, as a wise person once said. But we do try, even when someone
113 | Cailin O’Connor on Game Theory, Evolution, and the Origins of Unfairness Read More
111 | Nick Bostrom on Anthropic Selection and Living in a Simulation
Human civilization is only a few thousand years old (depending on how we count). So if civilization will ultimately last
111 | Nick Bostrom on Anthropic Selection and Living in a Simulation Read More
107 | Russ Shafer-Landau on the Reality of Morality
Despite occasional and important disagreements, most people are in rough agreement about what it means to be moral, to do
107 | Russ Shafer-Landau on the Reality of Morality Read More