Philosophy For Our Times

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes There is perhaps, nothing more contentious in a romantic relationship, than our partner’s attitude to pornography. Here to break through this taboo is our speaker for today’s podcast - former MP and LGBT rights activist Peter Tatchell. There are thousands of big ideas to discover at IAI.tv – videos, articles,...

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes We rely on a narrative about who we are and what we are up to in order to make the everyday and the big decisions in our lives. But who is the I that writes the story of ourselves and how do we choose the narrative of our life? Are our choices more like reflexes and decisions an illusion? Or do we create both...

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes From love at first sight to falling head over heels, it seems love isn’t something we do but something that happens to us. Yet relationship experts say successful relationships are built on hard work. Can we construct the romantic narrative? Would power over love’s story improve the experience? Or is love a w...

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes We’re happy taking drugs to fight depression. But what about a pill for engineering romance? Oxford neuroscientist and Future of Humanity Institute fellow Anders Sandberg makes the case for chemically enhancing our love lives. There are thousands of big ideas to discover at IAI.tv – videos, articles, and cour...

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes In this podcast we’re going to be uncovering the unknown by pitting science against religion in the ultimate quest for truth. Theologian Rosie Harper, chemist Peter Atkins and philosopher Steve Fuller debate whether science is the only way to truth. There are thousands of big ideas to discover at IAI.tv – vid...

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes Socrates famously claimed 'the unexamined life is not worth living'. Yet from surfing to sex, playing an instrument to riding a bike, our most joyous moments are not when we are lost in thought but when we are lost in experience. Do we reflect too much and should we explore just 'being' more? Philosopher and...

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes Is Theoretical Physics on the cusp of discovering a new theory of gravity? Theoretical physicist Erik Verlinde outlines how spacetime and gravity dissolve. There are thousands of big ideas to discover at IAI.tv – videos, articles, and courses waiting for you to explore. Find out more:  https://iai.tv/pod...

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes Can you ever really know yourself? And if you can’t know yourself, how can you ever know the people around you, even those closest to you? Professor of Contemporary Literature Robert Eaglestone, theoretical psychologist and author of 'Soul Dust' Nicholas Humphrey and Oxford philosopher Anita Avramides investi...

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes Visions of a violent and lawless future are a commonplace, yet strangely crime has fallen 66% in the UK in the last two decades. Do we want to imagine the world is dangerous because our lives have become too safe? Or is the world scarier than the figures suggest? Former Anglican Priest Chris Bryant, feminist...

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes We keep searching for life's meaning, but we still have no answer. Philosopher and author of 'Wolf' Mark Rowlands shows us where we might look. There are thousands of big ideas to discover at IAI.tv – videos, articles, and courses waiting for you to explore. Find out more:  https://iai.tv/podcast-offers?...

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes A third of all deaths are due to medical intervention and some argue that eradicating poverty, not pathogens, makes the biggest difference. Is it a fantasy to believe that medical technology can solve health? Should we spend more on social justice and less on hospital medicine? Green Party leader Natalie Benn...

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes In our topsy turvy post-modern world, we're held captive by the promise of the new. One of Britain's most influential cultural critics, Terry Eagleton, examines novelty's strange perils. Supported by Routledge - Associate Academic Partner of the IAI. To learn more, and for exclusive discounts and prizes visit...

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes The world is awash with debt. Economists argue it is essential to growth and that repayment is a legal and moral obligation. Yet from Payday lending to the debts of Greece and the Third World many see debt as unfair and unjust. Should we be less dependent on debt? Is it a trap that maintains wealth and povert...

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes With technological advancements in the world of computer science and robotics, sci-fi sex robots such as Ava from Ex Machina, and Joi from Blade Runner 2049, are coming closer and closer to becoming real. Would sex robots be a disaster for healthy sexual relationships? Or might they actually help us? In this...

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes There was a time when gold money had real value. Yet now it floats free, a fantasy made real by our belief. Are there alternative fantasies that we could create to generate different and perhaps better realities? Or is there something special about the fantasy of money that makes it irreplaceable? Guardian co...

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes Over 40 years have passed since string theory was first developed: what questions have been answered? Philosopher James Ladyman examines one of our strangest endeavours. "Challenging and provocative" TLS There are thousands of big ideas to discover at IAI.tv – videos, articles, and courses waiting for you to...

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes Weapons of mass destruction, the NSA, and Watergate: many have felt cheated by the lies of the powerful. Yet we all twist the truth to keep people happy and deceive in order to protect. Is lying oddly essential? Should we accept lying as part of personal and public life? Or is there always more beauty in trut...

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes The goal of feminism seemed simple: equal rights for both sexes. Yet tabloid controversy is raging now Beyonce, GaGa and Sandberg have claimed the label. Can female sexuality be a vehicle for female power? And is feminism recast as female power a desirable goal or a threat to the original ideals? Sociologist...

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes Being a real man used to be about courage, grit, and determination. But in an age of increased empathy and softness the story is getting blurred. Is the 'real man' a fantasy we should be pleased to see relegated to history along with Marlboro ads, or are these qualities that women still want and society needs...

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes Only 3 percent of mammals are monogamous. The faithful few include beavers, wolves, bats, and, of course, humans. Why is monogamy so rare? And how did we come to practise it? UCL anthropologist Kit Opie takes you on journey back to the beginning of human relationships. Music: Apache Force by Little Glass Men...

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes Disillusioned with the mainstream, Sophie Walker joined and now leads the Women's Equality Party. Here she asks: is radical thinking enough to change society? Music: Apache Force by Little Glass Men available under an Attribution Creative Commons License There are thousands of big ideas to discover at IAI.tv...

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes We all want a better world and most see morality as helping to choose the right actions. Yet we can't know for sure the outcome of any action. Is morality therefore curiously independent of outcomes? Does this leave it without foundation or function? Or do good and bad have no place in this world at all? Cent...

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes What is the strange allure of opiate addiction? Author and former prison psychiatrist Theodore Dalrymple argues his personal take on the problems poppies pose. "A modern master" - Guardian Music: Apache Force by Little Glass Men available under an Attribution Creative Commons License There are thousands of bi...

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes From the existence of the self to the nature of free will, many philosophers have dedicated their lives to the problems of the mind. But now some neuroscientists claim to have settled these raging debates. Is it possible we have discovered a science to replace philosophy and we can finally make real progress?...

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here:  https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes Aristotle said that we "acquire a particular quality by acting a certain way" - he believed that you could fake it 'til you make it. But is this a reductive understanding of confidence? Are we right to desire confidence, or should we reimagine our understanding of it? WIRED editor and author Rowland Manthorpe...