Philosopher David Chalmers is famous for outlining the "hard problem of consciousness." In this EXTENDED INTERVIEW, he says the materialist framework of science will never be able to explain subjective experience - our thoughts and feelings, the expereince of joy or sorrow, self-awareness.
Intelligent. Optimistic. Curious.
Audio
The average American voter is NOT smarter than a 5th grader, doesn't understand basic political facts and should probably not be allowed to vote. Philosopher Jason Brennan makes the case for an epistocracy: the rule of the knowledgeable.
In 2006, Barack Obama was the new darling of the Democratic Party and was considering a Presidential run in 2008.
Ellen Prager wants you to care about the oceans. She’s a writer and former chief scientist of the Aquarius Reef Base, the world’s only undersea research station. Her latest book is called “Sex, Drugs, and Sea Slime." She says we ignore the oceans at our own peril.
Donald Waller is a deer hunter and teaches at the University of Wisconsin. He tells Steve Paulson about the role hunting has played in the conservation movement.
Borges' "The Library of Babel" has inspired generations of writers and now, many scientists. Here, we read several excerpts from the story.
With “Hallucinations,” Oliver Sacks has written one of his most personal books. In this NEW and EXTENDED interview, Sacks talks about his personal history with hallucinogens back in the 60s, as well as ecstatic experiences induced by temporal lobe epilepsy, and also how a mysterious voice in his head once saved Sacks’ life.
David Syring is descended from the German immigrants who settled the Texas Hill Country. He tells Jim Fleming about his problematical grandfather, and why he still feels rooted to his family's home place.
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