public philosophy

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Design and Violence

The Museum of Modern Art is hosting a series of debates on issues at the intersection of design and violence.

Too often, and naïvely, we only celebrate the positive impact that design artifacts have on the world. However, design also has a history of violence that, unless linked overtly to political and social suppression and upheaval, often goes unexplored. Humanit..

The Ethics of Driverless Cars

Would you buy a car that would drive you off a cliff, to your death, in order to save the lives of several pedestrians your car would otherwise run over? The world of driverless cars will likely soon be upon us, and with them a number of questions like that and scenarios that make something like this seem simple. Aeon Magazine has a new article from Tom Chatfield on..

Philosophy Talk’s “Community of Thinkers”

Philosophy Talk, the philosophy radio show hosted by John Perry and Ken Taylor, is seeking help. “After 10 years of getting roughly 80% of our financial support from Stanford University, Philosophy Talk can no longer count on that level of support from the University.” They have introduced a funding program called “Community of Thinkers” that gives donors special pe..

Harman & Martin on Mitochondrial DNA Transfer in the NY Times

Elizabeth Harman (Princeton) and Adrienne Martin (Penn) have a short letter to the editor in the New York Times in response to this article about mitochondrial DNA transfers.

When Others Philosophize in Public

Today’s column by economist Gregory Mankiw in the New York Times provides an occasion to reflect on a problem for public philosophy. In the column, Mankiw contrasts a rudimentary form of utilitarianism with a thoughtless version of the precautionary principle. Even if you agree with the policy prescriptions that he concocts from this mix of ingredients, no philosoph..

Canadian Radio Interviews Philosopher of Science

Kevin Elliott, a philosopher of science in the Lyman Briggs College at Michigan State University (and before that a colleague of mine at South Carolina), is interviewed on the CBC radio program “Information Morning Fredericton”. The program begins with an excerpt from an interview with a representative of the forestry industry; the segment with Elliott begins at the..