logo
episode-header-image
Sep 2022
9m 48s

Ep 152: ”Observing the facts of reality”...

Brett Hall
About this episode

Ayn Rand claims we are "observing the facts of reality" when forming concepts. Here I explain why that is wrong and how facts are things we conclude *only at the end* of a long chain of interpretation. This is an excerpt from an episode to be released after this one, also on "objectivist epistemology", and in addition to the previous episode released about "An introduction to objectivist epistemology" by Ayn Rand.

Up next
Aug 22
Ep 244: Deep learning is not "inductive".
We are told by people working in the field, researchers and those who publish academic papers on the topic that artificial intelligence or deep learning or LLMs or Machine Learning or Recurrent Neural Networks - call them what you like - employ some form of inductive reasoning. B ... Show More
22m 35s
Jul 21
Ep 243: In praise of ignorance - the podcast. With Liberty Fitz-Claridge
This episode is a reading of and reflection upon more writing by David Deutsch - an article you can find at https://takingchildrenseriously.com/in-praise-of-ignorance/ Joining me is philosopher and language educator Liberty Fitz-Claridge. Liberty holds Master Degrees in both Phil ... Show More
1h 36m
Jul 11
Ep 242: Is religion worth preserving?
Woke is a rejection of the truth, the good, the beautiful. Is the best response a return to traditional religion? Are some dogmas worth defending? 
17m 36s
Recommended Episodes
Oct 2014
Episode #039 ... The Limits of Empiricism
On this episode of the podcast, we explore the idea of reality and how our senses prevent us from perceiving its true nature. First, we launch a smear campaign against human eyes and their limitations. Next, we discuss the difference between deductive reasoning (the kind you see ... Show More
26m 57s
May 2015
Episode #057 ... Kant pt. 2 - The Actual Introduction
On this episode of the podcast we continue our discussion of Kant, this time focusing on his contributions to the debate between rationalism and empiricism . We begin by reviewing the major points of contention between the rationalists and empiricists regarding how we arrive at k ... Show More
23m 6s
Nov 2021
Ep. 282: Alain Badiou: What Is Philosophy? (Part One)
On Conditions (1992), Ch. 1 "The (Re)turn of Philosophy Itself." Against post-structuralists who deny Truth, Badiou argues that truths are generated by the truth conditions (politics, art, love, and science/math) which philosophy then thinks into a unified vision. Part two of thi ... Show More
49m 41s
Aug 2015
Episode #064 ... Interpreting Interpretations
On this episode of the podcast, we discuss Hermeneutics, or “the art of avoiding misunderstanding.” First, we meet Johnny--a disgruntled Philosophize This! listener who is bored and frustrated by episodes about philosophers who make unverifiable speculations about metaphysics. Ne ... Show More
20m 29s
Jun 2024
#482 | Ayn Rand & The Philosophy of Objectivism
  Ayn Rand is one of the most controversial thinkers of the 20th century.  In this episode, we'll explore her philosophy of Objectivism, which champions rational self-interest and free-market capitalism, and discuss why her ideas remain divisive today.  Ayn Rand's life and backgr ... Show More
20m 12s
Dec 2019
#178 — The Reality Illusion
Sam and Annaka Harris speak with Donald Hoffman about his book “The Case Against Reality.” They discuss how evolution has failed to select for true perceptions of the world, his “interface theory” of perception, the primacy of math and logic, how space and time cannot be fundamen ... Show More
1h 7m
Feb 2019
EP48: The Problem of Logic and Empiricism إشكالية المنطق و التجريبية
الوضعية المنطقية و التجريبية المنطقية شكلوا حركة الوضعية التجريبية الجديدة اللى ظهرت في منتصف القرن العشرين كتطور طبيعي للظروف التاريخية في الحضارة الغربية الاوروبية على وجهة التحديد. جوهر الحركة قائم علي نظرية التحقق ونظرية المعرفة اللى أكدت أن الجمل المعرفية ذات المعنى هى الجمل ... Show More
1h 29m
May 2023
Hasok Chang, "Realism for Realistic People: A New Pragmatist Philosophy of Science (Cambridge UP, 2022)
For a certain kind of standard realist, science aims at getting the absolute truth about the universe. For Hasok Chang, this view is unrealistic because we have no way of judging whether we are getting at that truth. In his new book, Realism for Realistic People: A New Pragmatist ... Show More
1h 4m
Apr 2015
Episode #056 ... Kant pt. 1 - An Introduction to the Introduction
On this episode of the podcast, we begin our discussion of Immanuel Kant. We first examine the historical context Kant was born into and consider the challenges philosophy was faced with, thanks to David Hume. We also discuss the change in the way humans were beginning to look at ... Show More
25m 56s
Aug 2022
Being You: A New Science of Consciousness | Anil Seth
Who are you, really? In conversation with TED science curator David Biello, neuroscientist Anil Seth lays out his fascinating new theory of consciousness and self, centered on the notion that we "predict" the world into existence. From sleep to memory and everything in between, h ... Show More
17m 41s