Philosophy Talk
Philosophy Talk
"The program that questions everything—except your intelligence." Philosophy Talk began as a weekly one-hour radio series and has been on the air for more than two decades. The host-professors bring clarity, depth, and humor to everyday topics that are lofty (Truth, Beauty, Justice), arresting (Terrorism, Intelligent Design, Suicide), and engaging (Baseball, Love, Happiness). This is not a lecture or a college course; it's philosophy in action! From timeless philosophical questions about the ultimate nature of things to contemporary social and political issues, as well as our most fundamental beliefs about science, morality, and the human condition, Philosophy Talk invites you to challenge your assumptions and think about things in new ways.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Jul 1, 2007 • 50min
Where Does Morality Come From?
Time is the most familiar thing in the world, and yet philosophically one of the most puzzling. Is the present what’s left when you subtract what has already happened, and what is yet to happen? Then it seems to vanish into a mere instant. Are future events completely unreal? Or are they just the things we can’t know yet? Is time unreal, as many philosophers have thought? Columbia’s Dave Albert joins John and Ken for a fascinating hour.
Jun 10, 2007 • 50min
Summer Reading List 2007
Are there philosophers, philosophies, or philosophical issues you want to read up on over the summer? Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason probably isn’t the obvious choice to take to the beach (though it does make great radio), but there are a lot of readable, beach-friendly classics and non-classics to add philosophical depth to your Summer Reading. Plus, new and classic fiction books with a philosophical bent. Join John and Ken and John to share some of the philosophically-minded reading on your list for this summer.
May 27, 2007 • 50min
Aging and the Well-Lived Life
Aging is a physical process that will always be with us. But conceptions of aging, views about the contributions older people can make to society, and what society owes them change from era to era and differ from culture to culture. In conjunction with the Stanford Humanities Center, John and Ken explore the issues involved in growing older with their guest, Stanford University psychologist Laura Carstensen and a live audience at the Hyatt Residence in Palo Alto.
May 20, 2007 • 49min
Artificial Intelligence
At least some versions of artificial intelligence are attempts not merely to model human intelligence, but to make computers and robots that exhibit it: that have thoughts, use language, and even have free will. Does this make sense? What would it show us about human thinking and consciousness? John and Ken uncover the philosophical issues raised by artificial intelligence with Marvin Minksy from MIT, a pioneer in the field.
May 13, 2007 • 50min
Science, Ethics, and Censorship
Science is, on the one hand, a huge enterprise funded to a great extent by the government and by industry. On the other hand, science is supposed to be the dispassionate, objective search for truth. What happens when the search for truth conflicts with the needs and desires of the funders? Should those funders be allowed to censor the science they pay for? Should scientists be free to publish the truth whatever its effect? John and Ken welcome Ronald Atlas, Past President of the American Society for Microbiology and Graduate Dean at the University of Louisville.
May 6, 2007 • 49min
Autonomy
Philosophers call a person autonomous if she is responsible not just for what she does but also for the principles and rules that guide her. But does this really make sense? Aren’t we all just products of culture, education and genes? Join John and Ken as they investigate the nature of autonomy with John Christman from Penn State University., author The Politics of Persons: Individual Autonomy and Socio-historical Selves.
Apr 29, 2007 • 51min
Ethics in Journalism
Freedom of speech tells us the government shouldn’t restrict the journalist. But should anything restrict the journalist? Should the duty to inform be limited by the duty not to betray national security, not to injure the innocent, not to corrupt the jury pool, and similar considerations? How do we draw the line? John and Ken welcome Dale Jacquette from Pennsylvania State University to delve into the ethics of journalistic practice.
Apr 15, 2007 • 49min
Can Science Explain Consciousness?
Humans are conscious, billiard balls are not, and computers aren’t either. But all three are just collections of molecules, aren’t they? What is consciousness, and does it go beyond what science can explain? John and Ken probe the limits of scientific accounts of consciousness with Joseph Levine UMass Amherst, author of Purple Haze: The Puzzle of Consciousness.
Apr 1, 2007 • 47min
A Philosophical Shout-Out
On this special pledge-week episode, John and Ken open the phones and the inbox to their listeners, answering questions about art, politics, proof, and philosophy itself.
Mar 25, 2007 • 49min
Skepticism
Various forms of skepticism play important roles in the history of philosophy. Do we really know there are external objects? That there are other minds? That there is a distant (or even a not-so-distant) past? All the evidence we have for these things seems consistent with our being in a world in which they don’t exist. What does this tell us about life? About philosophy? Our hosts discuss one of the deepest and most fertile philosophical traditions with John Greco from St. Louis University, editor of The Oxford Handbook of Skepticism.
