Crack open for a hard boiled think
In the last few years we’ve become accustomed to lies, distortion, pick n’ mix ‘facts’ and ‘fake news’ splashing around like an angry Falls of Clyde. Lies, falsity, religion and superstition have existed for as long as conscious minds, of course. The new twist is the ubiquity of instant means of digital communication. The trap is […]
Believing Bullshit Read More »
Waking up on New Year 2018 may have brought some random thoughts like ‘Oh! God’, ‘Why me?’ ‘Why here?’, accompanied by a general sense of apprehension. Pressing the doubt and unease further may lead to a question which has troubled many for centuries, namely ‘Why is there Anything rather than just Nothing?’ The question was
Why there is Something rather than Nothing by Bede Rundle Read More »
Those who give thought to ethics and moral psychology will welcome this book. Here is a ‘mise en bouche’ of the argument before you rush out to acquire the volume. Some goods that we generate for others, as when we give them attention, help or encouragement, require us to provide that benefit under the actual
The Robust Demands of the Good Read More »
In this book Richard Prum (http://prumlab.yale.edu/) argues that natural selection is not the only evolutionary mechanism at work in animal life. Beauty and desire in nature are also dynamic forces, and those features in males that females prefer in choosing mates evolve rapidly. In a nutshell, each species evolves its own standard of beauty by
The Evolution of Beauty Read More »
Marcus du Sautoy (https://www.simonyi.ox.ac.uk/) shows us the successes and limitations of maths and science in this book. The reader is taken to seven different ‘edges’ of knowledge and is shown why even Newton, Leibniz, and Galileo didn’t have a comprehensive grip on knowledge in their own day. From chaos theory, which ‘placed huge limits on what
In order for you to be reading this sentence you must be conscious. You have a private, direct and intimate possession of consciousness. Awkwardly though, science and philosophy are having a devil of a problem defining what consciousness actually is. There has been a whole crop of theories, some competing, some overlapping and some mutually
Consciousness by Keith Frankish Read More »
In this book a leading psychologist reveals how the emotion of pride has shaped our minds and our culture, and shows how we can harness its power. Long understood to be a powerful drive in the self-conscious human animal, it has been classed as first in the list of seven deadly sins by religion. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_deadly_sins) Why
Take Pride by Jessica Tracy Read More »
Nicholas Carr’s Utopia is Creepy: and Other Provocations is significant for the questions it raises about our relationship with technology. Such as, how is the Internet affecting our powers of concentration? Can personal technology seduce us away from things we find pleasurable or fulfilling? Can we have the peace and prosperity technological enthusiasts promise without an accompanying
Utopia is Creepy by Nicholas Carr Read More »
Polly Toynbee (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polly_Toynbee) turned 70 a few weeks ago. The celebrated Guardian columnist has got more sensible things to say than dozens of hair brained media pundits put together. To enjoy a book length exposition of her thoughts I’d start with Unjust Rewards, co-authored with David Walker. It concerns the obscene level of riches that
Unjust Rewards by Polly Toynbee Read More »
