Philosophy Talk

Looking for summer movie options? Here are some from the past year (or so) that challenged our assumptions and made us think about things in new ways.

Are pets our partners, our property, or something in between?

It's about time for this summer's philosophical reading list -- and our 500th episode.

What ethical dilemmas are people facing in their daily lives related to the pandemic or social distancing?

How can insights from the arts and humanities help us cope with anxious times?

How can insights from the arts and humanities help us cope with anxious times?

Was Machiavelli an unscrupulous theorist and advisor, or one of the most widely misunderstood political philosophers ever?

In an ideal society, would we even need money?

April is National Poetry Month, so a philosopher might ask: Can we come to know things poetically that we couldn't get at through other forms of thinking, writing, and talking?

Holy metapysics, Batman!

Is the midlife crisis nostalgia for lost youth, or the fear of old age (or both)?  

Do the things we call 'trash' say more about those things or about us?

Is the self just a fiction we create to make sense of a complicated world?

Can we still lead productive, meaningful lives if the demand for human labor disappears?  

Is the internet destroying language?

Have we entered a post-truth era in which politicians and "news" outlets can lie without consequence?

Is there a place in democratic society for comedy that finds humor in people's deepest identities?

We don't have only one friend at a time, so why have only one lover at a time?

Remembering Philosophy Talk's co-creator, chief cheerleader, and guiding light, Ken Taylor.

The laws of physics determine how things in the cosmos change. But what would happen if the laws themselves changed?

Can we trust an algorithm to make morally responsible driving decisions?

Could rational communication really be the true key to real democracy?   

If humans have human rights because they’re persons, are there some nonhumans who are also persons with nonhuman rights?

What rights should undocumented immigrants have?

What do citizens owe the state? What does the state owe its citizens?

Would a race of thinking, autonomous, conscious machines be our slaves, our masters, or our partners?

Are Space and Time two separate entities, or just different dimensions of one thing? And what difference does that make?

Democracy may not be in great shape, but why would anyone prefer to be ruled by a despot?

Is the most elegant explanation always the best one?

Is knowing what you don't know the first step toward wisdom, or is a little arrogance a good thing?