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Philosophy

Essays and videos on philosophy, the history of ideas, ethics and life’s big questions
Beauty and aestheticsBioethicsComparative philosophyCosmopolitanismDeathEthicsHistory of ideasKnowledgeLogic and probabilityMeaning and the good lifeMetaphysicsPhilosophy of languagePhilosophy of mindPhilosophy of religionPhilosophy of sciencePolitical philosophyThinkers and theoriesValues and beliefsVirtues and vices
Photo of shattered glass with multiple cracks against a black background.

essay

Philosophy of mind

Rage against the machine

For all the promise and dangers of AI, computers plainly can’t think. To think is to resist – something no machine does

Alva Noë

Close-up of a dog with blue and brown eyes, grey and white fur, looking directly at the camera.

video

Neuroscience

Dog vision is a trendy topic, but what can we really know about how they see?

11 minutes

Medieval manuscript illustration of a goat and a person holding a disc, with gold circles in the background, surrounded by text in Latin script.

essay

Philosophy of mind

The problem of erring animals

Three medieval thinkers struggled to explain how animals could make mistakes – and uncovered the nature of nonhuman minds

Sam Alma

X-ray image of a single flower with visible petals, stem, and internal structures on a black background.

essay

Philosophy of mind

Do plants have minds?

In the 1840s, the iconoclastic scientist Gustav Fechner made an inspired case for taking seriously the interior lives of plants

Rachael Petersen

A mural depicting houses and a woman, with a man walking in front; snow is falling, and there’s snow on the ground.

essay

Logic and probability

What is incoherence?

We can all be inconsistent. Philosophy illuminates a bigger puzzle: how do we hold contradictory beliefs at the same time?

Alex Worsnip

People dressed in horned costumes and holding pitchforks surrounded by red smoke at night during a festival or celebration.

essay

Animals and humans

An animal myself

When we imagine ourselves as another creature, we become more attuned to the world around us – and better at being human

Erica Berry

A woman operates an antique phonograph next to a man wearing a traditional Native American headdress in a sepia-toned photograph.

essay

Language and linguistics

Our language, our world

Linguistic relativity holds that your worldview is structured by the language you speak. Is it true? History shines a light

James McElvenny

Close-up of a person’s face in low light, showing their ear with an earring and textured skin.

essay

Philosophy of mind

What colour do you see?

New research is uncovering the hidden differences in how people experience the world. The consequences are unsettling

Gary Lupyan

A crab is seen on a sandy beach. In the background and out of focus is a woman in a swimsuit

essay

Philosophy of mind

What is it like to be a crab?

Consciousness science should move past a focus on complex mammalian brains to study the behaviour of ‘simpler’ animals

Kristin Andrews

Blurry, night-time cityscape bokeh effect with colourful lights and an overlaid profile silhouette of a person.

video

Technology and the self

Why we should worry less about ‘sentient’ AIs and more about what we’re teaching them

16 minutes

Illustration showing a book with a human head and neurons, connected to icons of a heart, dove, ghost, face, and geometric shapes, all crossed out.

video

Philosophy of mind

Do we have good reasons to believe in beliefs? A radical philosophy of mind says no

5 minutes

Abstract sculpture of a human head with intricate lines extending from the top against a green background, encircled by two semi-transparent rings.

video

Philosophy of mind

We may never settle the ‘free will’ debate, but tapping into it is still worthwhile

32 minutes

Illustration of a squid-like creature on the left and close-up of an eye and nose in profile on the right, both hand-drawn in black and white.

video

Philosophy of mind

An enigmatic ‘story of consciousness’ told through 19th-century engravings

7 minutes

A group of four women and a man, all holding their fingers to their temples in concentration, with the man wearing a turban adorned with a star.

essay

Philosophy of mind

Super-cooperators

Clear and direct telepathic communication is unlikely to be developed. But brain-to-brain links still hold great promise

Gary Lupyan & Andy Clark

Children in uniforms sitting and listening attentively, with some wearing yellow and green while others are in blue blazers and ties.

essay

Philosophy of mind

Philosophy’s blindspot

Education has long been ignored by contemporary philosophers. That is a myopic view that must change

David Bakhurst

A boy sleeps sitting against a resting cow on a paved street, surrounded by pigeons.

essay

Consciousness and altered states

Seeing and somethingness

An evolutionary approach to consciousness can resolve the ‘hard problem’ – with radical implications for animal sentience

Nicholas Humphrey

Leonardo da Vinci’s sketches showing swirling water currents and writing in his characteristic mirror script on a sepia-toned paper.

essay

Neuroscience

The turbulent brain

Energy flow between brain and environment drives the non-equilibrium that sustains life. Could turbulence help us thrive?

Morten L Kringelbach & Gustavo Deco

Snowy city street with steam rising, pedestrians walking and buildings reflecting in glass, creating a mirror effect.

essay

Philosophy of mind

The philosopher’s zombie

The infamous thought experiment, flawed as it is, does demonstrate one thing: physics alone can’t explain consciousness

Dan Falk

An older man in a suit and striped tie gestures while speaking in a cosy, book-filled office with a globe and a decorated wall hanging.

video

Philosophy of mind

Embodied cognition seems intuitive, but philosophy can push it to some strange places

14 minutes

A man leans on a yellow truck, while another man speaks to him. A sign with “PROGRESO” and a first aid box are visible in the background.

essay

Knowledge

How do you know?

Correct information doesn’t always come with its own bright halo of truth. What makes something worth believing?

Nate Sheff

A girl in a red outfit playfully poses in front of 3D art as though emerging from a giant whale-like creature’s mouth.

essay

Human evolution

Homo imaginatus

Imagination isn’t just a spillover from our problem-solving prowess. It might be the core of what human brains evolved to do

Philip Ball

Illustration of a woman looking at a happy 4-month-old baby, connected by dashed arrows.

video

Philosophy of mind

Forget babbling and toddling – mindreading is babies’ most incredible skill

7 minutes

A woman sits smoking inside Caffe Fiore. She is visible through a window, and has a thoughtful expression.

essay

Cognition and intelligence

A theory of my own mind

Knowing the content of one’s own mind might seem straightforward but in fact it’s much more like mindreading other people

Stephen M Fleming

Abstract illustration of a woman holding hands with a child, walking down a path, surrounded by colourful shapes.

video

Philosophy of mind

Caring for the vulnerable opens gateways to our richest, deepest brain states

7 minutes