Cecile Fabre on Remembrance
How should we remember and commemorate those who die in war? What about the enemy dead? Cecile Fabre discusses this issue with Nigel Warburton in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.
Sep 20, 2016•22 min
Philosophy Bites
David Edmonds (Uehiro Centre, Oxford University) and Nigel Warburton (freelance philosopher/writer) interview top philosophers on a wide range of topics. Two books based on the series have been published by Oxford University Press. We are currently self-funding - donations very welcome via our website http://www.philosophybites.com
Episodes
Jesse Prinz on Thinking with Pictures
Many philosophers deny the common sense view that we think with pictures. Are they right to do so? Jesse Prinz doesn't think so. In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast he explains to Nigel Warburton why we need to think again about thinking with pictures. This episode is part of the series Mind Bites , made in association with Nicholas Shea's AHRC-sponsored Meaning for the Brain and Meaning for the Person project....
Aug 01, 2016•22 min
Kieran Setiya on the Mid-Life Crisis
The mid-life crisis is a well-observed phenomenon. Is there a philosophical angle on this? MIT philosopher Kieran Setiya thinks there is. He discusses it in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.
Jul 06, 2016•13 min
Catherine Wilson on Epicureanism
Epicureanism has been caricatured as a philosophy of indulgence. But what did followers of the Ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus really believe? Catherine Wilson discusses Epicureanism with Nigel Warburton in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.
May 30, 2016•17 min
Gregg Caruso on Freewill and Punishment
If determinism is true, can there be any justification for punishment? Gregg Caruso discusses this issue on Philosophy Bites .
Apr 26, 2016•17 min
Greg Currie on the Philosophy of Film
This episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast focuses on several questions about representation and perception in the philosophy of film. Nigel Warburton talks to Greg Currie .
Mar 26, 2016•19 min
Katherine Morris on Merleau-Ponty on the Body
Maurice Merleau-Ponty was one of the most interesting of the French phenomenological thinkers, but his reputation has been eclipsed by those of Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir. Katherine Morris discusses some of Merleau-Ponty's ideas about the body in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.
Mar 02, 2016•18 min
Michael Devitt on Experimental Semantics
Does the word 'Gödel' straightforwardly refer to the person who came up with the incompleteness theory of arithmetic? Some think the best way to find out to ask people about their intuitions on the topic? This creates all kinds of problems, as Michael Devitt explains in conversation with Nigel Warburton ....
Feb 14, 2016•15 min
Steven Hyman on Categorising Mental Disorders
Steven E. Hyman discusses the philosophical issues that arise from attempting to categorise mental disorders with David Edmonds in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.
Jan 29, 2016•17 min
Leif Wenar on Trade and Tyranny
Where does our oil come from? Does it matter? Leif Wenar , author of the recent book Blood Oil , argues that Western democracies are compromising themselves by buying either directly or indirectly from vicious tyrants.
Jan 10, 2016•19 min
Katrin Flikschuh on Philosophy in Africa
In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast Katrin Flikschuh addresses the question 'What sort of philosophy is going on in Africa?'
Dec 16, 2015•17 min
Carlo Rovelli on Philosophy and Physics
Some eminent physicists, including Stephen Hawking, have been sceptical of the value of philosophy to physics. Carlo Rovell i, a theoretical physicist with a strong interest in philosophy, disagrees. Here he discusses the relationship between philosophy and physics with Nigel Warburton.
Nov 29, 2015•22 min
John Worrall on Evidence-Based Medicine
What sort of conclusions can we legitimately draw from the experiments that support evidence-based medicine? John Worrall questions some of the received opinion on this topic in this interview with David Edmonds for Philosophy Bites .
Nov 17, 2015•12 min
Joshua Greene on the Construction of Thought
We take for granted the fact that we can combine concepts to give new thoughts, and understand the thoughts too. How do we do that? Joshua D. Greene discusses this question in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.
Oct 31, 2015•12 min
Graham Priest on Buddhism and Philosophy
What is the nature of the self? What is reality? How should we live? These are fundamental philosophical questions. Graham Priest discusses how such questions have been discussed in the Buddhist tradition for this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.
Oct 13, 2015•18 min
Jesse Prinz on Is Everything Socially Constructed?
To what degree is reality something created by us? Jesse Prinz explores this fascinating question in conversation with Nigel Warburton .
Sep 27, 2015•20 min
Massimo Pigliucci on the Demarcation Problem
How can you tell science from non-science? Karl Popper argued that the falsifiability of a hypothesis is the mark of science. Massimo Pigliucci is not so sure about that.
Sep 13, 2015•24 min
David Owens on Duty
What is a duty and what sort of obligation does it put us on? David Owens explores the nature of duty in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast. If you enjoy Philosophy Bites , please consider supporting us via Patreon .
Sep 01, 2015•13 min
Kimberley Brownlee on Social Deprivation
We are a highly social species: we need human contact. But do we have a right to it? In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast Kimberley Brownlee suggests that this is an ingredient in a minimally decent human life...
Aug 19, 2015•17 min
Shelly Kagan on Speciesism
The philosopher Peter Singer is famous for his attack on speciesism, the alleged prejudice that many exhibit in favour of human interests when compared with the interests of other animals. Here Shelly Kagan outlines Singer's position and takes issue with it. In the process he makes some interesting points about prejudices in general....
Aug 01, 2015•25 min
Susan James on Foucault and Knowledge
Michel Foucault's work explores a wide range of topics; it includes histories of both punishment and sex. He also wrote more abstractly about philosophical topics. One theme to which he kept returning, whatever the topic, was the nature of our knowledge. Susan James discusses this thread in his work in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast....
Jul 22, 2015•22 min
Larry Temkin on Transitivity
How do you choose which course of action is best? It seems reasonable that if A is better than B, and B is better than C, A must be better than C. But is it? Larry Temkin challenges this idea, known as the axiom of transitivity.
Jul 06, 2015•21 min
William B. Irvine on Living Stoically
How should we live? is a basic philosophical question. The Stoics had some answers. But are they relevant today? William B. Irvine thinks so. Listen to his conversation with Nigel Warburton on this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.
Jun 21, 2015•14 min
Steven Lukes on Power
What is power? Steven Lukes argues for a three-dimensional account of this concept in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.
Jun 06, 2015•14 min
Theodore Zeldin on Philosophy and History
The historian and writer Theodore Zeldin gives his personal take on the relation betwen philosophy and history in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.
Jun 06, 2015•12 min
Jesse Prinz on Art and Emotion
What part do emotions play in our appreciation of art? Jesse Prinz explores the sense of wonder at artworks in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.
May 22, 2015•20 min
Cassim Quassam on Conspiracy Theories
What is a conspiracy? Why do conspiracies - real or imagined - matter to philsophy? Cassim Quaassam explores these questions in conversation with Nigel Warburton
May 10, 2015•21 min
Tim Williamson on the Appeal of Relativism
Are all truths relative? That's an attractive idea for many people. Tim Williamson , Wykeham Professor of Logic at Oxford University discusses why and attempts to immunise us against sloppy thinking in this area.
Apr 28, 2015•14 min
Shaun Nichols on Death and the Self
How does your view of the self affect your attitude to your own death? Shaun Nichols discusses this question in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.
Apr 14, 2015•15 min
Rebecca Roache on Swearing
Warning: this episode on the philosophy of swearing includes swearing. Rebecca Roache discusses swearing and whether there are good arguments for refraining from it.
Mar 29, 2015•18 min
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