Philosopher's Zone

Bronwyn Finnegan, associate professor of philosophy at ANU who studies Buddhist thought on selfhood. She traces the long debate between reductionist and emergentist views. Topics include the five aggregates, Pudgalavada relational claims, Vasubandhu’s causal series, memory as causal succession, and how agency, moral responsibility and continuity fit into Buddhist frameworks.

Cliff Sosis, philosopher and editor of Too Weird to Believe, Too Plausible to Deny, explores when reason upends everyday intuition. He discusses why intuitions and biases help but mislead, Hume’s problem of induction, skepticism about the external world, moral luck and responsibility, and rethinking punishment if blame collapses.

Scottish philosopher Adam Smith (1723-1790) is often described as an arch capitalist, the "father of modern economics" - and at a glance it's easy to see why. His Inquiry Into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations provided the theoretical foundation for free market capitalism and the economic policies that prevailed throughout the Industrial Revolution. But to see Smith as an extreme free market ideologue is to get him badly wrong.

Artificial intelligence is beginning to revolutionise many aspects of human existence - but how does it rate on friendship? The question is less theoretical than it seems: media reports of people developing 'relationships' with chatbots are becoming more common, and while we may instinctively recoil from this prospect, it's not clear that AIs could never deliver at least some of the benefits of genuine friendship.

It's often claimed that the Enlightenment was a time when Europeans awoke from their superstitious slumber, discovered rationality, got started on science and threw religion in the bin. But a surprising number of Enlightenment philosophers had religious commitments — including Immanuel Kant, whose work at the time was understood as not just a religion, but a rival to Christianity.

Chris Cousins, lecturer in moral and political philosophy at the University of Glasgow, studies language, ethics and speech acts. He explains what makes promises, orders and offers morally effective. He contrasts intention-based and audience-based accounts. He applies these ideas to AI in the workplace, hybrid authorship, legal responsibility and practical steps when messages may be machine-generated.

Liesl van Seil, a philosophy lecturer in virtue ethics from the University of Waikato, explores assisted dying through the lens of flourishing and moral character. She contrasts virtue ethics with autonomy and utilitarian approaches. Short takes cover caregivers' real burdens, physicians' roles and conscience, when assisted dying might be virtuous, and slippery-slope risks in practice.

Greg Dember, independent researcher and writer on popular culture and co-author of the What is Metamodern project. He explores metamodernism’s return to feeling and interiority while keeping postmodern playfulness. Conversations range from Fleabag’s mix of distancing and vulnerability to object-oriented ontology, anthropomorphism in design, and whether metamodernism is a new cultural turn.

Davina Cooper, research professor in law and political theory at King’s College London, discusses legal gender, decertification and gender politics. She traces the Future of Legal Gender Project, surveys public polarisation, and maps where legal sex still matters. She considers arguments for abolishing legal gender status, practical risks for institutions like prisons and sport, and how reform fits into wider social justice.

Raphael Daskalou, Senior Research Fellow in medieval Jewish philosophy, explores how Jewish thought engaged with Islamic and classical traditions. He discusses the blurred sacred/secular divide in pre-modern thought. He explains translation networks like Judeo-Arabic and debates on reason versus revelation. He highlights medieval approaches to evil and practical self-cultivation for difficult times.