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What’s the problem with U.S. democracy now? How do we facilitate electoral reform to make the system better represent voters’ interests? How do we avoid gerrymandering and other harmful processes tainting democracy now?

Our latest episode features Professor Daniel Wodak, who is an Associate Professor of Philosophy at the University of Pennsylvania and is also the Associate Director of Penn’s Institute for Law and Philosophy. In this episode, Professor Wodak discusses their paper titled “The Democratic Imperative to Make Margins Matter” and how we can build a better democracy for Americans.

Why is it necessary to integrate ethical and political frameworks into social epistemology? How should non-Black people engage within the Black Radical Tradition?

Our latest episode features Dr. Bailey Thomas, who is currently a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Philosophy while on research leave from the University of Louisville, where they are an Assistant Professor of Philosophy. In this episode, Saurish and Professor Thomas explore central questions around different ethical and political frameworks, and how they relate to the daily experience within the United States and the globe.

What is fake news? How does it spread? Does the classification of fake news require intent? Does AI make misinformation worse?

Our latest episode features Professor Eliot Michaelson, who is a Reader in the Department of Philosophy at King’s College London, and an Honorary Associate Professor of Linguistics at University College London. In this episode, Saurish and Professor Michaelson explore central questions around fake news and misinformation and what we ought to do to recognize it, as well as how the digital age may shape journalism and misinformation.

Why is philosophy for the youth necessary? How can educators and students get involved with philosophy (besides listening to the podcast!)?

Our latest episode features Professor Jana Mohr Lone, who is the director and co-founder of the Philosophy Learning and Teaching Organization (PLATO) and an Affiliate Professor of Philosophy at the University of Washington. In this episode, Saurish and Professor Lone explore central questions around consciousness and how it relates to our perception of time, as well as whether it’s possible to create artificial consciousness.

What is consciousness? How can physical processes in the brain give rise to subjective experience (the so-called “hard problem” of consciousness)? Can we create artificial consciousness?

Our latest episode features Professor Geoffrey Lee, who is an Associate Professor of Philosophy at the University of California, Berkeley. In this episode, Saurish and Professor Lee explore central questions around consciousness and how it relates to our perception of time, as well as whether it’s possible to create artificial consciousness.

How does the human brain understand and process numbers, even when there are no words or symbols present? Does language play a role in our understanding of numbers?

Our latest episode features Dr. Sam Clarke, who is a MindCORE Research Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania and will be an assistant professor of philosophy at the University of Southern California in July of 2023. In this episode, Saurish and Dr. Clarke explore central questions around the non-linguistic mind and the existence of a specific concept of “number sense.”

If you’d like to learn more about Dr. Clarke's research, please visit his website: https://sampclarke.net/

Links

How does our mind/brain work? Does computational power mean we’re conscious? Do babies or animals compute?

Our latest episode features Dr. Andrew Richmond, who is currently a Postdoctoral Associate in the EMRG Lab at the Rotman Institute, University of Western Ontario. In this episode, Saurish and Dr. Richmond explore central questions around computation and how they relate to our experience and knowledge of ourselves.

What is cognition and how does it intersect with resistant beliefs? How do we get people to change their beliefs (whether indoctrinated by their culture/upbringing/experiences)?

Our latest episode features Dr. Carolina Flores, who is currently a President’s Postdoctoral Fellow in philosophy at the University of California, Irvine, and in the Fall of 2023, will join the University of California, Santa Cruz as an assistant professor of philosophy. In this episode, Saurish and Dr. Flores explore central questions around cognition and how it relates to society, including its relationship to affirmative action and social good.

Is a concept of race something we're born with? How does society treat race now? Can artificial intelligence models be racist?

The hiatus has come to an end! Our latest episode features Dr. Eric Bayruns García, a Fellow in Residence at the Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Ethics at Harvard University and a future Assistant Professor of Philosophy at McMaster University. In this episode, Saurish and Dr. García explore central questions around race and how it relates to society, including its relationship to "cancel culture" and the political atmosphere.

How do we ensure juries are aware of the consequences of the death penalty (or any other legal case)?

Our latest episode features Professor Emad Atiq, an Associate Professor of Law at Cornell Law School and an Assistant Professor of Philosophy at the Sage School of Philosophy in the College of Arts and Sciences at Cornell. In this episode, Saurish and Professor Atiq explore central questions around legal philosophy and this so-called “reasonable moral doubt.”

What does justice look like in healthcare? Have you ever wondered what a college philosophy class looks like?

Our latest episode features Professor Chad Horne, who is an Assistant Professor of Instruction at Northwestern University. In this episode, Saurish and Professor Horne explore central questions around justice in healthcare and how philosophy courses are taught at Northwestern.  

Should you be vegan? Are animals included in our moral circle, and should they be included?

Our latest episode features Professor Jeff Sebo, who is a Clinical Associate Professor of Environmental Studies and an Affiliated Professor of Bioethics, Medical Ethics, Philosophy, and Law at New York University. In this episode, Saurish and Professor Sebo explore central questions around animal ethics.

How are groups formed? How could group formation lead to different consequences?

Our latest episode features Professor Katherine Ritchie, an associate professor of philosophy at the University of California, Irvine. In this episode, Saurish and Professor Ritchie explore central questions around group formation and how they can lead to oppression or biases.

Have you ever wondered about the distinction between "human" experiences and scientific discoveries and at what point there seems to be tension? What about the intersection between idealism and ethics?

Our latest episode features Professor Robert Smithson Timmerman, an associate professor of philosophy at UNC-Wilmington. In this episode, Saurish and Professor Smithson explore questions revolving around both the philosophical notion of idealism tied to human consciousness, as well as the more traditional understanding of idealism and its relationship to ethics.

What is Virtue Ethics? How does it compare with other normative ethical theories?

Our latest episode features Professor Travis Timmerman, an associate professor of philosophy at Seton Hall University. In this episode, Saurish and Professor Timmerman explore central questions around Virtue Ethics and compare Aristotle’s ethics to other normative ethical theories.

What is bioethics? How are different ethical decisions considered in the medical community? What is autonomy, and why is it central to these considerations?

This week’s episode features Professor Samuel Reis-Dennis, an Assistant Professor in the Philosophy Department at Rice University and affiliated with Rice’s Medical Humanities Program. In this episode, Saurish and Professor Reis-Dennis explore the field of bioethics, as well as autonomy in some specific cases revolving around COVID-19 and ventilator allocation.

Is identity fundamental? What constitutes identity in the metaphysical space?

Our twentieth episode features Professor Erica Shumener, an assistant professor of philosophy at Syracuse University. In this episode, Saurish and Professor Shumener explore central questions around identity and its fundamentalness.

What is the "social?" Who is included in the social and who isn't included in the social?

Our nineteenth episode features Professor Kevin Richardson, an assistant professor of philosophy at Duke University. In this episode, Saurish and Professor Richardson explore ontological erasure in the context of transness within the social, as well as social indeterminacy as a whole.

What is Aristotelian Education, and how can it be implemented in classrooms and in CS education? How does it influence our virtues and let us explore ourselves?

Our eighteenth episode features Dr. William Cochran, who is a Postdoctoral Fellow in Embedded EthiCS at Harvard University in Cambridge. In this episode, Saurish and Dr. Cochran explore the concept of Aristotelian Education.

What is moral philosophy, and what is ethics? How is research conducted in these fields, and what do they mean for us in our everyday lives?

Our seventeenth episode features Dr. Vida Yao, who is an Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Rice University and a moral philosopher at the Doerr Institute for New Leaders at Rice University. In this episode, Saurish and Professor Yao explore moral philosophy and ethics.

What is the field of computer science? How does it interact with education at a formal level? Can we trust our tech?

Our sixteenth episode features Dr. Trystan Goetze, who is a Postdoctoral Fellow of Embedded EthiCS™ in the Philosophy Department of Harvard University. In this episode, Saurish and Dr. Goetze explore the ethics of computer science as a whole.

What is metaphysics? Does exploring the "natural" have any practical impacts? How is philosophy taught?

Our fifteenth episode features Professor Katie Elliott, who is an Associate Professor of Philosophy at the University of California, Los Angeles. In this episode, Saurish and Professor Elliott explore metaphysical questions of chances and time travel and how philosophy education occurs in postsecondary education.

What is feminist philosophy? How does the overturning Roe v. Wade impact Americans and students? How can ethics help us in our daily lives?

Our fourteenth episode features Dr. Sophia Dandelet, who is an incoming Assistant Professor of Philosophy in Ethics at Cambridge University and previously a Bersoff Faculty Fellow at New York University. In this episode, Saurish and Dr. Dandelet explore the feminist philosophy and the impact of ethics in our lives.

What is race? What are strategies to achieve racial justice?

Our thirteenth episode features Professor Joseph Frigault, who is a Visiting Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Claremont McKenna College. In this episode, Saurish and Professor Frigault explore the philosophy of race, as well as take a deep dive into the political underpinnings of reparations and a way forward for racial justice.

Are race and capitalism separate? Why was critical theory banned? How can critical theory help us?

Our twelfth episode features Dr. Yarran Hominh, who is a Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow with the Leslie Center for Humanities and Lecturer in the Department of Philosophy at Dartmouth College, and starting this fall, Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Bard College. In this episode, Saurish and Dr. Hominh explore the philosophy of Du Bois's racial capitalism and critical theory in general – with an exploration of the way that it can impact students.

What are emotions? Are they philosophically founded or neurobiologically traced? 

Our eleventh episode features Professor Charlie Kurth, who is an Associate Professor in Philosophy at Western Michigan University and the author of two books (Emotion and The Anxious Mind: An Investigation Into the Varieties and Virtues of Anxiety). In this episode, Saurish and Professor Kurth explore the philosophical questions that surround emotions and anxiety, as well as the ways emotions impact students.

What exactly is artificial intelligence? Will there ever come a time when artificial intelligence will become as competent as a human being?

Our tenth episode features Dr. Raphaël Millière, who is the Robert A. Burt Presidential Scholar in Society and Neuroscience at Columbia University. In this episode, Saurish and Dr. Millière explore the philosophical questions that surround artificial intelligence, as well as ethical considerations of the powerful field.

What are the reasons for pro-life and pro-choice? What are the ethics behind the highly controversial topic of abortions?

Our ninth episode features Dr. Dustin Crummett, who is currently a part-time lecturer at both the University of Washington Tacoma and Seattle Pacific University, and was previously a postdoctoral researcher at the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich. In this episode, Saurish and Dr. Crummett explore the philosophical questions of abortions and the nuances of the Embryo Rescue Case.

What does the supposed "golden thread" in the criminal justice system, "innocent until proven guilty," really mean? What are some epistemic questions one must consider when exploring the legal process and the role of evidence or juries? 

Legal epistemology is a field that deals with exactly these questions. Our eighth episode features Professor Georgi Gardiner, who is an assistant professor in the Department of Philosophy at the University of Tennessee and was previously the Andrew Fraser Junior Research Fellow at Oxford University. This year, she was also awarded the Chancellor's Notable Woman Award from the University of Tennessee. In this episode, Saurish and Professor Gardiner explore legal epistemology and some interesting cases/paradoxes.

What is competitive debate and how does it facilitate philosophy education? How can we increase that education? What is the difference between "thinking" of something and "being sure" of something?

Our seventh episode features Dr. Ben Holguín, who is the Louis Skolnick Postdoctoral Research Associate at Princeton University and incoming Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Johns Hopkins University. In this episode, Saurish and Dr. Holguín discuss competitive high school debate and its applications to philosophy, as well as the philosophy of thinking by exploring the difference between surety and thought.

Are animals phenomenally conscious? Are certain "trackable" features of animals a determinant for consciousness? Consciousness is a fascinating concept that seems to have an infinite number of explanations. Our sixth episode features Dr. Simon Brown, who is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Foundations of Mind at Johns Hopkins University, where he teaches and researches philosophy and collaborates with the Perception and Mind Lab. In this episode, Saurish and Dr. Brown discuss philosophy of mind, animal consciousness, and its relationship to human consciousness, as well as explore philosophy outreach in the form of Rethink, an outreach program that promotes philosophical engagement in marginalized and underprivileged groups.

Our fifth episode features Professor Liz Jackson, who is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Philosophy at Ryerson University in Toronto. In this episode, Saurish and Professor Jackson discuss epistemology, with a specific focus on the theoretical paradoxes and pragmatic considerations of Professor Jackson's dissertation on belief, credence, and evidence.

Our fourth episode features Dr. Ian Tully, who is a Postdoctoral Fellow in Philosophy and Mental Disorder at Johns Hopkins University's Berman Institute of Bioethics. In this episode, Saurish and Dr. Tully discuss the philosophy of depression, its relationship to the state, and how it impacts young students.

Our third episode features Professor Rebecca Chan from San José State University, who teaches philosophy and is the University Director of Pre-Law Advising. In this episode, Saurish and Dr. Chan discuss the philosophy of transformative experiences and how it can influence decision theory. They take a specific look at cases that impact students, as well as those going into higher education. 

Our second episode features Professor Anand Vaidya from San José State University, who teaches philosophy and is an occasional Director of the Center for Comparative Philosophy. In this episode, Saurish and Dr. Vaidya discuss philosophy of mind, consciousness, artificial consciousness, emotional artificial intelligence, and artificial general intelligence.

Our first episode features Eva Virc, a PhD student at the University Ljubljana in Slovenia. In this episode, Saurish and Eva discuss philosophy, narcissism, comedy, and psychotherapy!