Thoughts: Philosophy Untangled

Today's episode is an edited recording a panel we hosted on the Philosophy of Science. Hosts, Tinka and Kealan, are joined by Mike Hicks, Ignazio Arrabito, and Azita Chellappoo to discuss how the questions at the heart of the Philosophy of Science effect their research and everyday lives. We hope you enjoy this episode and check out each of our panellists' ongoing work on the subject, as well as @juste2.0c for more information on Ignazio's expedition!

This week's episode is a special one! Some of our graduating members sat down with us to discuss their dissertation topics for a special dissertation mini-series! Tune in for the first of this series as Kealan and Tinka discuss moral education and the work of Lawrence Kohlberg.

Join Calum and Georgios in this week's episode on the philosophy of linguistics, with our guest Gabe Dupre.You do not want to miss out on this episode!

Many past lives of the Buddha are said to be known. From lives as a tree spirit to an elephant to humans just before achieving enlightenment, the stories of these lives can offer much in pastoral value. These are the Jataka Stories. They are a method for teaching Ethics and warning against taboos, practical handbooks through memorable folklore. As some of the oldest surviving remnants of ancient cultures they also serve as brilliant material for understanding the everyday beliefs of people in lost worlds. Here is a conversation with Naomi Appleton from Edinburgh University, an expert in Buddhist stories and early Indian religion in general.

Join us as Adam and Tinka interview our very own host Nicky Brown on his dissertation: Love enhancement. Can love be enhanced? If so, what aspects of it? And how should we value such 'enhanced' love? Tune in to discover the answer to these questions, and many more!

The Leverhulme Series is an exciting new project, where we'll interview philosophers and interdisciplinary thinkers, who are pushing the boundaries of original work through funding from the Leverhulme Trust. In the first episode, Isabel and Constantinos explore Stoicism with Dr. Christopher Gill. They unpack what Stoicism is, dispelling myths in 'self-help' circles and delving into Stoicism's interesting take on our relationship with nature. For more information on the Leverhulme Trust, visit: https://www.leverhulme.ac.uk/

Alex and Tinka are joined by Katharine Jenkins as they delve deep into the captivating world of gender, identity, and the various social constructs that shape our lives. The way society is organised means that we all get made into members of various types of people, such as judges, wives, or women. These 'human social kinds' may be brought into being by oppressive social arrangements, and people may suffer oppression in virtue of being made into a member of a certain human social kind; this much is obvious. In her new book, Ontology and Oppression, Katharine Jenkins goes further, arguing that we should pay attention to the ways in which the very fact of being made into a member of a certain human social kind can be oppressive. She supplies three conceptual tools needed to understand this phenomenon – which together form the Constraint and Enablements Framework. Katharine’s book recommendations: In the wake, by Christina Sharpe. https://www.dukeupress.edu/in-the-wake Histories of the Transgender Child, by Jules Gill-Peterson. https://www.upress.umn.edu/book-division/books/histories-of-the-transgender-child Black on Both Sides, by C. Riley Snorton. https://www.upress.umn.edu/book-division/books/black-on-both-sides

In this episode, Jonah, Tinka, and Dr. Lyons uncover the relationship between truth, belief and perception. Follow them through thought experiments and counterexamples as they attempt to construct reliable frameworks by which we can come to better understand and trust these concepts and how we arrive at them.

Jonah and Alexandros are joined once again by Martin Bunzl, emeritus profesor of philosophy at Rutgers University, to consider the significance of rights. Ranging from consciousness to politics, to elephants and lakes, the conversation considers questions like 'what are rights for?', 'what is the relationship of rights to duties?', and 'what kinds of beings get rights?' 

This week, Emilia Wilson from Univeristy of St Andrews joins us to discuss erotica, pornography and oppression. They talk about the differences between erotica and pornography, and what this means for us socially, ethically and politically. Trigger warnings: sexual violence, sexual assault, consent, rape Content warnings: discussion of sexual acts, pornography, sexual violence, ejaculation, BDSM, masturbation, consent. Papers: "Date Rape: A Feminist Analysis" Lois Pineau "A Non-Ideal Theory of Consent" Quill R Kukla "Blurred Lines: How Fictional is Pornography" Aidan McGlynn "How Not To Watch Feminist Pornography" R K Heck "Scorekeeping in a pornographic language game" Rae Langton & Caroline West A short video on consent by Planned Parenthood: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTSDIilyA2I 'A closer look at sexual coercion' https://www.thehotline.org/resources/a-closer-look-at-sexual-coercion/

This week Jonah and Amelia are joined by Dr Michelle O'Reilly, who'll be discussing her work on 'Digital Ethics of Care' - how we can improve conduct online, how adolescents think about themselves and others on social media, how philosophy might help, and much more.

Calum and Neil get the opportunity to talk to Peter Krykant, who is a political activist and Project Lead with the harm reduction charity Cranstoun, and Dr Saket Priyadarshi, who is an Associate Medical Director with Greater Glasgow and Clyde Alcohol and Drug Services. This episode discusses the distinctions between different forms of drugs, the issues surrounding drug use within society, the causes of these issues and what some possible solutions might be. It also includes a host discussion at the end where Calum, Neil and Jonah tie some of the topics covered with related philosophical concepts that a Philosophy student might encounter as part of their degree. https://twitter.com/PeteKrykant_OPC https://twitter.com/saket_sanju Links: David Nutt Drug Ranking: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-11660210 Rat Park: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rat_Park Liberty and Utilitarianism: https://www.jstor.org/stable/24354944?seq=1 Pragmatism in Ethics: https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/pragmatism/#Ethi Addiction and Responsibility: https://www.jstor.org/stable/3505095?refreqid=excelsior%3A03356468b91f598e6d3516b86857426a&seq=1 Wellbeing: https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/well-being/ Aristotle's Ethics: https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/aristotle-ethics/