philosophy

A reader asks whether we have an ethical responsibility to always debate bad beliefs, especially those that come from our elders.

The road from Kant to modern cognitive psychology has taught us much about our mental filtering systems.

33 years ago, the theoretical biologist Robert Rosen offered an answer to the question “Is life computable?”

If music is a window onto truth, what does screaming reveal?

How heavy is the mask that you wear?

The burial spot was found in one of the Herculaneum scrolls charred by Mt. Vesuvius.

The “Shopping Cart Litmus Test” is a popular meme about morality. What does it really reveal about one’s character?

Nobody likes the uneasy feeling of being watched — so can there be any workplace benefit to the all-seeing eye?

Voltaire’s wonderful satire, Candide, remains a useful work-life antidote to bogus platitudes and naive optimism.

At a fundamental level, only a few particles and forces govern all of reality. How do their combinations create human consciousness?

Big Think recently spoke with Nick Bostrom about how humans might find fulfillment in a post-scarcity world.

You’ve got to know when to fight and when to laugh.

Leadership evasion might seem like a plan for workplace freedom but it isn’t a good thing — it’s a denial of opportunity.

Beer before wine and you’ll feel fine? Well, it depends.

Tough and cutthroat leaders are celebrated in a results-driven culture — but there is another path to C-suite success.

Even with the best technology imaginable, you’d probably never be able to exist as a consciously aware brain in a vat.

Bob Dylan gave us the paradoxical gem “there’s no success like failure, and failure’s no success at all.” He had a point.

From Taoism to hedonism, philosophers have devised all sorts of ways to live your best life.

Nicole has been dating someone for a while but it’s not working out from her point of view. Is sudden radio silence an ethical option?

Rich is brilliant at his job. He completes work in half the time of his coworkers. Should he have to sit at his desk just as long?

When is a rabbit not a rabbit? When it’s a thought experiment designed to reveal the tricky tango of language and concepts.

Japanese thought can’t be easily characterized by just a few books — but this essential guide is a great place to start.

“Hardcore History” host Dan Carlin recently spoke with Big Think about the history of humanity’s drive to create — and whether or not we can control it.

Step back from the AI maelstrom and explore Lem’s “Summa Technologiae” for a detached look at technology’s role in human evolution.

Autocrats like Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin fear democracy, yet go to great lengths to present themselves as democratic leaders.

Joseph Campbell argued that nearly every myth can be boiled down to a hero’s journey. Was he right?

In logic, ‘reductio ad absurdum’ shows how flawed arguments fall apart. Our absurd Universe, however, often defies our intuitive reasoning.

Or are cults the religions we find distasteful?

How would you feel about working like a Lutheran or a Cistercian?

Happiness is not a five-star holiday. It’s often the result of struggle — and asking for help, as author Stephanie Harrison recently told Big Think.