logo
episode-header-image
Sep 2012
1h 1m

Episode 3: "We believe in nothing!" (Cul...

Tamler Sommers & David Pizarro
About this episode
tail spinning
Up next
May 26
Episode 333: P-hacking the Mind
David and Tamler do another tier ranking--this time on philosophical thought experiments, so as not to further alienate our chemistry-adjacent listeners. We hit most of the big ones: Pascal's wager, Pascal's mugging, Mary the color scientist, the Ring of Gyges, Jarvis Thomson's v ... Show More
54m 27s
May 12
Episode 332: Talking to Myself ("The Other" by Jorge Luis Borges)
David and Tamler talk about Jorge Luis Borges' disorienting short story "The Other." A 70-year-old Borges sits on a bench by the Charles River and who should he encounter but himself as a 19-year-old, by the Rhône River in 1918 Geneva. Is this a dream? Who is dreaming it? What do ... Show More
1h 54m
Apr 28
Episode 331: Who's Your Law Daddy? (Plato's "Crito")
In another Back 2 Basics episode, David and Tamler talk about Plato's "Crito," a dialogue that takes place two days before Socrates' death by hemlock. His friend Crito wants him to escape, but Socrates will only agree if they judge that it's the right thing to do. One imagined de ... Show More
1h 31m
Recommended Episodes
Oct 2018
Sam Harris on using reason to build our morality
Many philosophers draw a hard line between the worlds of facts and values, but not Sam Harris. In this thought-provoking conversation with Chris, he makes the case that reason can indeed answer moral questions, and then explores the many controversies that emerge from that claim. ... Show More
1h 2m
Dec 2020
Morality Before Metaphysics | Simon Blackburn, Raymond Tallis, Joanna Kavenna
tail spinning
48m 59s
Feb 2022
The dangers of morality | Rebecca Roache, Matthew Taylor and Hilary Lawson
tail spinning
37m 3s
Mar 2023
Is our search for an objective morality misguided? | Slavoj Žižek, Joanna Kavenna, Simon Blackburn
tail spinning
48m 54s
May 2015
Episode #058 ... Kant pt. 3 - Deontology vs Consequentialism
On this episode of the podcast, we continue our discussion of Kant, this time focusing on ethics. We begin with a thought experiment that calls into question whether or not lying is morally justifiable if it results in preserving human life. Next, we discuss the nature of moralit ... Show More
26m 59s
Apr 2023
#107 — Is Life Actually Worth Living?
Sam Harris speaks with David Benatar about his philosophy of “anti-natalism.” They discuss the asymmetry between the good and bad things in life, the ethics of existential risk, the moral landscape, the limits and paradoxes of introspection, the “experience machine” thought exper ... Show More
49m 15s
May 2023
#48 — What Is Moral Progress?
Sam Harris speaks with Peter Singer about the concept of universal moral truths, the ethics of violence, free speech, euthanasia, animal welfare, and other topics. Peter Singer is the Professor of Bioethics at the University Center for Human Values at Princeton University.  He is ... Show More
38m 53s
Aug 2021
Necessary lies | Michael Shermer, Hilary Lawson & Jennifer Ratner-Rosenhagen
tail spinning
47m 5s