philosophy
Reframing life in terms of death reveals some of the biggest philosophical problems with how we think about living systems.
Nietzsche both wished he was as stupid as a cow so he wouldn’t have to contemplate existence, and pitied cows for being so stupid that they couldn’t contemplate existence.
Can a shared language promote peace? Some people think so.
What we call “basic research” is actually the most cutting-edge. It underpins knowledge, and without it, technology does not come into being.
If Rome was not built in a day, why do you think you can be?
Just as there are many types of believers, there’s not only one type of atheist.
Evolutionary psychology could explain those otherworldly feelings.
There are two conceptions of free will: “straight” and “mixed.”
A second Enlightenment would have a far bigger task: Saving civilization itself.
Proponents of transhumanism make big promises, such as a future in which we upload our minds into a supercomputer. But there is a fatal flaw in this argument: reductionism.
Jean-Jacques Rousseau was a Swiss Enlightenment philosopher who praised a simple life and inspired the worst of the French Revolution.
That Nietzsche quote might not mean what you think it does.
Ideas often taken for granted in the United States and Europe about what it means to be a person are, quite simply, not shared with other cultures.
It’s not a huge leap to imagine we could target the biological processes that mediate our behaviours.
In the philosophy of Star Wars, the Sith are evil because they surrender to passion. But is a life of total rationality a “good” life?
Gradualism rejects the idea of a “bright line” in the abortion debate.
In the wake of the pandemic, the crystal industry boomed, with customers hoping the stones might relieve a little anxiety.
We often laugh at inappropriate things, but not when we are emotionally invested. Laughter cannot be serious. So, can we ever laugh at death?
It might seem like science and faith are at war, but the two have a historical synergy that extends back in time for centuries.
Science and the sacred both allow us to retain our sense of wonder, even as disaster seems to swirl around us.
It is little more than a fancy excuse for escapist fantasizing.
Since at least 600 BC, people have been mesmerized by the concept of the infinite.
People often ask “What should I do?” when faced with an ethical problem. Aristotle urges us to ask “What kind of person should I be?”
The English writer left behind a mind-expanding collection of books.
A philosopher unpacks the paradox in using the word “evil.”
Pain makes sense from an evolutionary perspective. What’s puzzling is why so many of us choose to seek out painful experiences.
Quite a lot, actually, even though it has no identifiable value as a scientific concept.
You can love a romantic partner, but also a pet, a book, God, or the sound of someone’s voice. We need many more words for love.
Humans are already so integrated with technology that the dream of transhumanism is a reality. Can we handle what comes next?