This episode is the first in a new season on the puzzle of divine foreknowledge and human free will. Our guest, Simon Kittle, introduces the problem of freedom and foreknowledge and gives an overview of the responses to this problem that we’ll cover in more detail in the remaining episodes of this season. Simon's website: https://www.simonkittle.com/ Simon's book (with Leigh Vicens), God and Human Freedom : https://www.cambridge.org/core/elements/abs/god-and-human-freedom/D0EE63BB14A6F9C4F85DB3C...
Aug 08, 2022•42 min•Season 5Ep. 1
In this bonus episode, we talk with Garrett Pendergraft about his new book, Free Will and Human Agency: 50 Puzzles, Paradoxes, and Though Experiments . We’ll be back next month with season 5, which focuses on the problem of human freedom and divine foreknowledge. Garrett's website: https://seaver.pepperdine.edu/academics/faculty/garrett-pendergraft/ Garrett's book: https://www.routledge.com/Free-Will-and-Human-Agency-50-Puzzles-Paradoxes-and-Thought-Experiments/Pendergraft/p/book/9780367641948 T...
Jul 21, 2022•28 min
In this episode, we talk with Marcela Herdova about moral luck and transformative experiences—the kind of experiences that fundamentally change who we are. Marcela's website: https://marcelaherdova.com/ Marcela's paper, "Transformative Moral Luck": https://www.pdcnet.org/msp/content/msp_2019_0043_0162_0180 Twitter: https://twitter.com/thefreewillshow Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thefreewillshow/?hl=en Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/The-Free-Will-Show-105535031200408/...
May 16, 2022•43 min•Season 4Ep. 10
In this episode, we talk with Santiago Amaya about an argument for the conclusion that "free will" is a vague term. We also talk about what Santiago thinks are some of the implications of this conclusion for the free will debate. Santiago's PhilPeople profile: https://philpeople.org/profiles/santiago-amaya Santiago's podcast, "Free Will Matters": https://freewill.uniandes.edu.co/podcast/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/thefreewillshow Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thefreewillshow/?hl=en Face...
May 02, 2022•32 min•Season 4Ep. 9
In this episode, we talk with John Stigall about omissions and Frankfurt cases. John defends the view that, while we can be morally responsible for performing positive actions even if we lack the ability to do otherwise, moral responsibility for omissions requires the ability to do otherwise. John's website: https://philpeople.org/profiles/john-stigall John's article, "Causation, Norms, and Omissions: A Study of Causal Judgments (with Randolph Clarke, Joshua Shepherd, Robyn Repko Waller, and Chr...
Apr 18, 2022•34 min•Season 4Ep. 8
In this episode, we talk with Sofia Jeppsson about why we should not take mental illness to function as an exemption from moral responsibility and why we shouldn’t take what P. F. Strawson called the “objective stance” towards those who are mentally ill. Sofia's departmental website: https://www.umu.se/en/staff/sofia-jeppsson/ Sofia's personal website: https://www.sofiajeppsson.com/ Sofia's article, "Psychosis and Intelligibility": https://muse.jhu.edu/article/806103 Twitter: https://twitter.com...
Apr 04, 2022•38 min•Season 4Ep. 7
In this episode, we talk with Gabriel De Marco about various manipulation cases and different ways philosophers have responded to them. We also talk about real-life cases of interventions that are similar to the manipulations in philosophical thought experiments. Gabriel's website: https://www.neuroethics.ox.ac.uk/people/dr-gabriel-de-marco?filter_types-688386[]=book,chapter Gabe's paper, "Nonconsensual Neurocorrectives, Bypassing, and Free Action" (open access): https://link.springer.com/articl...
Mar 21, 2022•59 min•Season 4Ep. 6
In this episode, we talk with Andrew Latham and Hannah Tierney about their recent collaborative work on manipulation arguments against compatibilism. They offer a novel response to those arguments by drawing from the work of P. F. Strawson. Andrew's website: https://andrewjlatham.wixsite.com/andrewlatham Hannah's website: https://www.hannahtierney.com/ Andrew and Hannah's paper, "Defusing Existential and Universal Threats to Compatibilism: A Strawsonian Dilemma for Manipulation Arguments": https...
Mar 07, 2022•41 min•Season 4Ep. 5
In this episode, we talk with Daniel Miller about when and why ignorance functions as an excuse from blameworthiness, and how this is related to a phenomenon called “tracing”. Dan's website: http://www.danieljamesmiller.com/ Dan's paper, "Reasonable Foreseeability and Blameless Ignorance": https://philpapers.org/archive/MILRFA-3.pdf Dan's entry on ignorance and blame at 1000-Word Philosophy : https://1000wordphilosophy.com/2019/02/14/ignorance-and-blame/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/thefreewills...
Feb 21, 2022•42 min•Season 4Ep. 4
In this episode, we talk with Robert Hartman about the problems of free will and moral luck and how they are related to each other. Bob's website: http://www.robertjhartman.com/ Bob's book, In Defense of Moral Luck : https://www.routledge.com/In-Defense-of-Moral-Luck-Why-Luck-Often-Affects-Praiseworthiness-and-Blameworthiness/Hartman/p/book/9780367372415 Bob's article, "Constitutive Moral Luck and Strawson's Argument for the Impossibility of Moral Responsibility": https://www.cambridge.org/core/...
Feb 07, 2022•43 min•Season 4Ep. 3
In this episode, we talk with Kristin Mickelson about whether philosophers are using the term “incompatibilism” in different ways and what implications this may have for the free will debate. Kristin's PhilPeople profile: https://philpeople.org/profiles/kristin-m-mickelson Twitter: https://twitter.com/thefreewillshow Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thefreewillshow/?hl=en Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/The-Free-Will-Show-105535031200408/...
Jan 24, 2022•58 min•Season 4Ep. 2
This episode kicks off our fourth season, which will feature the work of mostly earlier-career scholars on a range of topics related to free will. Here we interview Andrew Law on the problem of divine foreknowledge and human free will, focusing on the increasingly popular dependence solution to the problem. Andrew's website: https://andrewlaw91.wixsite.com/website Twitter: https://twitter.com/thefreewillshow Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thefreewillshow/?hl=en Facebook: https://www.facebo...
Jan 10, 2022•55 min•Season 4Ep. 1
In this episode, we talk with philosopher Christian List about a different way of responding to a challenge to free will from physics. Even if determinism is true at the level of physics, free will might still be possible at the higher and independent level of agency. Christian's website: https://personal.lse.ac.uk/LIST/ Christian's book, Why Free Will Is Real : https://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674979581 Twitter: https://twitter.com/thefreewillshow Instagram: https://www.instagra...
Dec 13, 2021•56 min•Season 3Ep. 10
In this episode, we talk with Jenann Ismael about how our ordinary conception of ourselves as agents who make free decisions is not in conflict with the classical deterministic model of physics. We also discuss how to think about determinism in light of recent advances in physics. Jenann's website: https://www.jenanni.com/ Jenann's book: How Physics Makes Us Free Twitter: https://twitter.com/thefreewillshow Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thefreewillshow/?hl=en Facebook: https://www.faceboo...
Nov 29, 2021•1 hr•Season 3Ep. 9
In this episode, we talk with Christian Miller about studies in psychology that seem to show that our actions are more influenced by the situations that we’re in than by our character or conscious willing. We also talk about how these studies relate to free will and moral responsibility, as well as Christian’s own view. Christian's website: https://www.christianbmiller.com/ Christian's book, The Character Gap : https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-character-gap-9780197503805?lang=en&c...
Nov 15, 2021•46 min•Season 3Ep. 8
In this episode, we talk with psychologist Tamar Kushnir about the developmental origins of our beliefs in free will and agency. We also talk about studies comparing adults and children and cross-cultural differences in beliefs about agency. Tamar's website: http://ecclabduke.com/theteam Tamar’s paper in Philosophy Compass : https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/phc3.12529 Twitter: https://twitter.com/thefreewillshow Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thefreewillshow/?hl=en Facebook:...
Nov 01, 2021•44 min•Season 3Ep. 7
In this episode, we talk with social psychologist Roy Baumeister about willpower and an effect that Roy calls “ego depletion”. We also ask Roy about his recent work developing a scientific theory of free will. Roy's website: https://roybaumeister.com/ Roy's book on Willpower (cowritten with John Tierney): https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/307740/willpower-by-roy-f-baumeister-and-john-tierney/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/thefreewillshow Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thefreewillshow...
Oct 18, 2021•51 min•Season 3Ep. 6
In this episode we talk with neuroscientist and philosopher Adina Roskies about what we can learn about free will from monkey cognition. We also ask her about her take on the Libet experiment and whether neuroscience could, in principle, disprove free will. Adina's Website: https://faculty-directory.dartmouth.edu/adina-l-roskies Adina's chapter "Monkey Decision-Making as a Model System for Human Decision-Making" can be found in the book Surrounding Free Will , edited by Al Mele: https://global.o...
Oct 04, 2021•34 min•Season 3Ep. 5
In this episode, we talk with neuroscientist Peter Ulric Tse about the neural basis of free will. We cover topics such as criterial causation, kinds of free will, and why he’s a libertarian about free will. Peter's website: https://sites.dartmouth.edu/peter/ Peter's book: https://mitpress.mit.edu/books/neural-basis-free-will Peter's MOOC: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLBZk0Jl545845TCxtkEbJQ7bTJTqi_HrF Twitter: https://twitter.com/thefreewillshow Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thef...
Sep 20, 2021•53 min•Season 3Ep. 4
In this episode, we talk with brain scientist Uri Maoz about the neurophilosophy of free will. We ask about the role of neuroscience in the free will debate, how philosophers and neuroscientists can collaborate, and more. Uri's website: https://braininstitute.us/people/uri-maoz/ Neurophilosophy of Free Will project website: https://neurophil-freewill.org/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/thefreewillshow Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thefreewillshow/?hl=en Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Th...
Sep 06, 2021•58 min•Season 3Ep. 3
In this episode, Tim Bayne explains a famous experiment by brain scientist Benjamin Libet— an experiment that Libet took to show that we have no free will. We discuss several critical responses to Libet, and Tim argues that, even if unsuccessful in his original aims, Libet has raised good questions for philosophers, physiologists, and neuroscientists to explore. Tim's website: https://www.mmcr.edu.au/our_people/tim-bayne/ Libet's 1985 Behavioral and Brain Sciences paper, including peer commentar...
Aug 23, 2021•55 min•Season 3Ep. 2
This episode is the first in a new season on free will and science. Over the course of the season, we’ll have episodes covering topics in neuroscience, psychology, and physics. To kick things off with a general introduction to free will and science, we are joined by Robyn Repko Waller. Robyn's website: https://sites.google.com/site/robynrepkowaller/home Robyn's John Templeton Foundation White Paper, "Recent Work on Agency, Freedom, and Responsibility: A Review": https://www.templeton.org/wp-cont...
Aug 09, 2021•1 hr•Season 3Ep. 1
Cohosts Taylor Cyr and Matt Flummer answer listener questions about the issues and ideas brought up in Season 2 of The Free Will Show. Asimov, Bicentennial Man https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0182789/ Star Trek: The Next Generation, The Measure of a Man https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0708807/ Kevin Timpe, Free Will: Sourcehood and its Alternatives https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/free-will-9780826496256/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/thefreewillshow Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thefreewillshow/?h...
May 17, 2021•59 min•Season 2Ep. 10
In this episode, we talk with Seth Shabo about mysterianism, the view that we have free will, but it is a mystery how it is that we have it. While not a mysterian himself, Seth explains the attractions of the view and addresses some common objections, and we end by asking Seth about his own views on free will and moral responsibility. Seth's website: https://philpapers.org/s/Seth%20Shabo Seth's paper, "Why Free Will Remains a Mystery": https://philpapers.org/rec/SHAWFW If you have a question you...
May 03, 2021•35 min•Season 2Ep. 9
In this episode, we talk with Manuel Vargas about revisionism, a family of views according to which our ordinary conception of free will needs to be revised. Manuel's website: http://vargasphilosophy.com/ Manuel's book, Building Better Beings : https://global.oup.com/academic/product/building-better-beings-9780199697540?cc=ca&lang=en& P. F. Strawson’s classic paper, “Freedom and Resentment”: https://philpapers.org/rec/STRFAR-4 If you have a question you’d like us to answer in our Q&A...
Apr 18, 2021•34 min•Season 2Ep. 8
In this episode, we talk with Michael McKenna about semicompatibilism (or, perhaps better, source compatibilism). We discuss two versions of the view: “mesh” theories (including Harry Frankfurt’s hierarchical model) and reasons-responsiveness theories. Michael's website: https://msmckenna.com/ Michael's book, Conversation and Responsibility : https://global.oup.com/academic/product/conversation-and-responsibility-9780199740031?cc=us&lang=en& Harry Frankfurt’s paper, “Freedom of the Will ...
Apr 05, 2021•52 min•Season 2Ep. 7
In this episode, we interview Kadri Vihvelin about a recent development of the classical compatibilist position—a development that has come to be known as "dispositional compatibilism." Along the way we discuss time travel, abilities, dispositions, and much more. Kadri's website: http://vihvelin.com/ Kadri's book, Causes, Laws, and Free Will: Why Determinism Doesn't Matter : https://global.oup.com/academic/product/causes-laws-and-free-will-9780199795185?cc=ca&lang=en& Kadri's recent time...
Mar 22, 2021•40 min•Season 2Ep. 6
In this episode, we ask Helen Beebee about a range of compatibilist positions, beginning with the “classical compatibilism” of Hobbes/Hume and then turning to the conditional analysis of ability, David Lewis’s “local miracle compatibilism,” and, finally, “Humean compatibilism.” Helen's website: https://www.research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/Helen.Beebee.html Helen’s book, Free Will: An Introduction : https://www.palgrave.com/gp/book/9780230232921 Helen’s paper, “Local Miracle Compatibilism”: https...
Mar 08, 2021•46 min•Season 2Ep. 5
In this episode we talk with Gregg Caruso about free will skepticism, the view that we lack the freedom (or control) required for moral responsibility in the basic desert sense. Gregg's website: http://www.greggcaruso.com/ Gregg's forthcoming book: https://www.cambridge.org/us/academic/subjects/law/criminal-law/rejecting-retributivism-free-will-punishment-and-criminal-justice?format=HB Gregg's new book co-written with Dan Dennett: https://politybooks.com/bookdetail/?isbn=9781509545759 Gregg's St...
Feb 22, 2021•56 min•Season 2Ep. 4
This is the third of a three-part series on varieties of libertarianism. In this episode, we talk with David Palmer about non-causal libertarianism. David's website: https://philosophy.utk.edu/staff/palmer.php David's forthcoming article defending noncausal free will: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs11229-020-02701-4 David's book Libertarian Free Will: Contemporary Debates https://oxford.universitypressscholarship.com/view/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199860081.001.0001/acprof-97801998600...
Feb 08, 2021•45 min•Season 2Ep. 3
