Language of Fiction
February 25, 2007
What are we talking about when we talk about Sherlock Holmes or Santa Claus? Something…
What Is Game Theory?
August 16, 2026
Game theory is a set of mathematical techniques for thinking about how people should choose when their choices interact. But real people aren’t exactly rational actors. Can a mathematical model explain real-world decisions? How can game theorists account for the fact that we don’t always…
Reconciliation
February 18, 2007
Justice, truth, and identity; race, society, and law—these all come into dramatic play as South…
Confucius
December 31, 2006
Confucius laid down a pattern of thinking followed by more people for more generations than…
Moral Dilemmas and Moral Ambiguity
December 24, 2006
It would be nice if we always knew the morally right thing to do, if…
Philosophy and Film
December 17, 2006
Despite the crass commercialism that drives the production of many movies, there’s no doubt that…
American Pragmatism
December 3, 2006
Pragmatism is perhaps America’s most distinctive contribution to philosophy. Developed by Pierce, Dewey, and James…
The Indispensable Emotions
November 26, 2006
Where would we be without emotions? Many philosophers throughout history have thought the emotions serve…
What is a Child?
November 19, 2006
Back in the middle ages, people thought of children simply as little adults. Modern psychology…
Dreaming
November 12, 2006
A scary dream brings all the fears that a scary real situation can, and a…
The Strange World of Quantum Reality
October 15, 2006
Quantum mechanics is an astoundly successful, mathematically elegant, explanatorily deep, even beautiful scientific theory. Yet…
Forgiveness
September 26, 2006
Justice is a virtue and so, many claim, is forgiveness. But they seem inconsistent. Is…
Schopenhauer
September 19, 2006
Arthur Schopenhauer, the great Nineteenth Century philosopher, had a pessimistic vision of the world as…
The Philosophy of Music
September 19, 2006
Most people enjoy music daily and have strong listening preferences. Music – along with love –…
Global Poverty and International Aid
September 12, 2006
Does a hungry child in a far away land have any less of a demand…
War Crimes
September 12, 2006
In war, people do awful things to other people. But the concept of ‘war crime’…
100th Episode
August 29, 2006
It’s our anniversary! Join the philosophers for a celebration of the program that questions everything…
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