In this episode, we discuss the philosopher of science Roy Bhaskar and his essays in Reclaiming Reality. We discuss whether it is possible for the human sciences to overcome the fact/value distinction, what role knowledge has in self-emancipation, and what to do about middle-class surburbanites who would rather watch the world burn than take a hit on their p ... Show More
Today
141 TEASER | Badiou: Political Subjects and Infinite Truths
In this episode we discuss the work of French philosopher Alain Badiou. Ever since the 1970s, Badiou’s philosophy has been characterized by an untimely systematicity and an ambitious effort to bring together politics, art, science, and love in a unique synthesis under the aegis o ... Show More
14m 55s
Aug 19
140 | What is Modernity? Part II: Decoloniality
In this episode, we continue our series on modernity with a discussion of modernity, colonialism, and the future of both. We take up the claim that modernity is a justifying myth for European colonialism and wonder why we are all so enraptured by it. Are the Europeans as modern a ... Show More
58m 40s
Mar 2017
#68 — Reality and the Imagination
Sam Harris speaks with Yuval Noah Harari about meditation, the need for stories, the power of technology to erase the boundary between fact and fiction, wealth inequality, the problem of finding meaning in a world without work, religion as a virtual reality game, the difference b ... Show More
38m 30s
Dec 2017
#107 — Is Life Actually Worth Living?
<p class="p1">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" ... Show More
48m 55s
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
Mar 2019
#151 — Will We Destroy the Future?
Sam Harris speaks with Nick Bostrom about the problem of existential risk. They discuss public goods, moral illusions, the asymmetry between happiness and suffering, utilitarianism, "the vulnerable world hypothesis," the history of nuclear deterrence, the possible need for "turnk ... Show More
33m 1s
Jul 2025
Fanon and Sartre: Rethinking Praxis, Race, and Revolution
<p>What happens when the dialectic between Sartre and Fanon is not one of influence, but of mutual transformation? Today we're live at Webster’s in State College with Tyrique Mack-Georges, who returns to the podcast to discuss his research on seriality, group infusion, and t ... Show More
39m 29s
Apr 2023
Bitesize Ep 57 - The Great Debates: How to debate philosophical topics in English | Ft. Ben Marks
📝 Get FREE Episode Worksheet 🧐 Take English Level Test 👄 Improve Your Pronunciation Charlie invites the historian that lives down under back on to discuss various philosophical topics, including freedom, rules, lockdowns, and lying. They explore the idea of dreams feeling real ... Show More
25m 22s
Dec 2019
#178 — The Reality Illusion
<p>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 funda ... Show More
1h 7m