Brain in a Vat

Would a just God allow us to suffer? Could God rewrite history to remove the bad bits?   

Contact us: Mark.Oppenheimer[at]gmail and Jwerbe[at]gmail

Can we construct a society free of state coercion and inequality? Is there a place for Capitalism in that society?  

Contact us: Mark.Oppenheimer[at]gmail and Jwerbe[at]gmail

Are there certain questions that should never be asked? Is Philosophy useful? And have philosophers made any progress in answering the BIG questions?  Justin's Daily Nous blog: https://dailynous.com/  Contact us: Mark.Oppenheimer[at]gmail and Jwerbe[at]gmail

What can we learn about public shaming from the Black Mirror episodes Hated in the Nation and Nosedive? Are there ever cases where someone deserves to be shamed? When should someone be forgiven for doing something shameful?  

Contact us: Mark.Oppenheimer[at]gmail and Jwerbe[at]gmail

If God is dead, did morality die with him? Are artists, writers and lovers more valuable than the rest of us mere mortals? Find out what Friedrich Nietzsche thought in our new series on great philosophers.  

Brian's Book: https://www.amazon.com/Moral-Psychology-Nietzsche-Brian-Leiter-ebook-dp-B07QD6V99B/dp/B07QD6V99B/

Contact Us: Mark.Oppenheimer[at]gmail and Jwerbe[at]gmail

What is horror, and why do some of us willingly terrify ourselves by watching or reading the genre? Is horror poor quality fiction, or can it offer us a unique opportunity for empathy and moral growth?  

Jacob's book: https://www.amazon.com/Stephen-King-Philosophy-Great-Authors/dp/1442253843

Are universities a safe space for dangerous ideas? Does a right to academic freedom guarantee a culture that tolerates controversial views? Should universities limit the research fields of professors?

Micro Digressions Podcast: https://www.buzzsprout.com/956725 

Spencer's Blog: https://www.spencercasephilosophy.com/

Are all Gods created equal? Are certain divine attributes less likely to be real given that multiples faiths exist?  Are religions like different paths leading to the same destination?

Does a fetus have a right to life? Should there be any limitations on the choices that a woman makes over her own body?   

Nathan's book: https://www.abortionarguments.com/p/this-book-introduces-readers-to-many.html 

Thomson's violinist: https://spot.colorado.edu/~heathwoo/Phil160,Fall02/thomson.htm

Anarchism, or the view that we should not have a government, seems impractical. But Michael Huemer believes there is a way to understand Anarchism that not only resolves these impracticalities - it may provide a better society than the one we have now.  Michael Huemer's book, 'The Problem of Political Authority': https://www.amazon.com/Problem-Political-Authority-Examination-Coerce/dp/1137281650

What's it like to be unable to recognize faces? 2% of the population have a neurological condition called prosopagnosia, or face blindness - including this week's guest, and one of our hosts.  Listen to Jeff's Face Blind podcast here: https://faceblindpodcast.com/

Christopher Nolan's Tenet is a visual feast, but does it make any sense? Eron Fasser explains if you can you time travel to change the past and if Neil and Protagonist have free will?  Brain in a Vat Book:  www.smarturl.it/lockdownbook

A round up of our favorite episodes and some insight into how we make the show. We will be on a hiatus until January. Let us know in the YouTube comments who you want to see us interview in the coming year.

Is the Supreme Court merely a political body made up of warring liberals and conservatives? Should Judges apply laws that are unjust? Will the Supreme Court declare Trump the winner of the election?

Leiter Report: https://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/

What makes life worth living? How valuable are truth, beauty and morality? If life is ultimately meaningless from the perspective of the universe is none the less better to have been born?  Thad on the Meaning of Life :https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/life-meaning/

Is it possible for your actions to be free, even if they are determined? And would an indeterministic universe make us any freer? If we don't have free will, should we be held accountable for our actions?

If your vote has only a tiny chance of influencing the outcome of an election, is it irrational to vote? Does voting grant legitimacy to repugnant candidates? Is voting always an obligation, or are there situations that require you not to vote?

Philosopher Games on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/PhilosopherGames/

Philosopher Games on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PhilosopherGames

Is virtual sex outside of a relationship cheating? How should we determine a person's gender? Should the same rules apply to race?  Rebecca's article: In Defense of Transracialism https://cryptome.org/2017/05/in-defense-of-transracialism.pdf Hypatia transracialism controversy: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypatia_transracialism_controversy

We have a philosophical conversation with an artist about her latest exhibition. Dom's paintings explore the social and sexual mores of the last twenty years through the lens of our current values.

Are you just a physical body? If you have a brain transplant do you stay with your original body or move with your brain? Could the existence of an immaterial soul solve the mind body problem?  

Tyron's Books: The Puzzle of Existence: Why Is There Something Rather Than Nothing?  Idealism: New Essays in Metaphysics

Thumbnail Art: Lateralus Album Cover by Alex Grey

Is it wrong to destroy an AI if it can have a conversation with a human being? If a robot expresses suffering is it wrong to torture it? Should we mourn the death of a robot lover? 

Sparrow, R. 2004. The Turing triage test. Ethics and Information Technology 6(4): 203-213.

Sparrow, R. 2007. Killer robots. Journal of Applied Philosophy 24(1): 62-77, March.

Sparrow, R. 2020. Virtue and vice in our relationships with robots: Is there an asymmetry and how might it be explained? International Journal of Social Robotics

Are some animals more equal than others? Are game reserves a part of nature if they are man made?  Is global warming universally bad or does it benefit some species?

Brain in a Vat Store: smarturl.it/Lockdownbook

Thumbnail Art: Peace by Lynn Bywaters

Atom bombs, diamond billionaires, and hate mail have a special role to play in this bonus episode.   Brain in a Vat Store: smarturl.it/Lockdownbook 

Is cancel culture destroying our institutions? Should Holocaust deniers have the right to speak? What is hate speech, and should it be illegal?

Brain in a Vat Store: smarturl.it/Lockdownbook

Harpers Letter: https://harpers.org/a-letter-on-justice-and-open-debate/

Is it wrong to only have a sexual preference for certain races? Can you have sex without being objectified? Is there a moral limit on our sexual fantasies?  

Store: http://smarturl.it/LockdownBook

Thumbnail Art: The Yoshiwara Prostitute by Kikugawa Eizan 

What does it all mean? If we live on a pail blue dot in a vast and uncaring universe can our lives have cosmic meaning? Is it better never to have been born?

Could purposely infecting volunteers with the Coronavirus help us reach herd immunity or develop a vaccine more rapidly? Is it wrong to expose people to the risk of death, even if they consent?  Thumbnail Art: Hold Your Breath Paulina Siniatkina

Can you be revolted and attracted to the same person? Can concepts be beautiful? Does art need to create sensations to be enjoyed?   IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12490350/ Thumbnail Art: A Grotesque Old Woman by Quentin Matsys

Who deserves to be punished? Should the State kill killers and rape rapists?  Should we abolish the police and the prison system?  

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/braininavat IMDB: 

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12490350/

Culturals groups have different beliefs about what is morally right and wrong. Does a tolerant outlook mean that we should accept these different beliefs as correct? What if those beliefs are discriminatory?   

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/braininavat 

IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12490350/ 

Thumbnail Art: The Dinner Party by Sam Walsh

Is love everlasting? Can we love more than one person at the same time?  

Do we choose our lovers for the wrong reasons?

http://rajasmusingsconfusings.blogspot.com/ 

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/braininavat 

IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12490350/ 

Thumbnail Art: The Lovers by Rene Magritte

Is it wrong to root for the bad guy in a horror movie? Is evil a matter of who you are or what you do? What makes an action supremely evil?

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/braininavat 

IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12490350/ 

Thumbnail Art: The number of the beast is 666 by William Blake

What do Greta Thunberg, #BLM and #Metoo have in common? Are these moralising quests to end climate change, racism and sexism motivated by the will to do good, or merely the will to look good?  

Grandstanding: The Use and Abuse of Moral Talk https://www.amazon.com/Grandstanding-Use-Abuse-Moral-Talk-ebook/dp/B0851PR3DB/   

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/braininavat 

IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12490350/ 

Thumbnail Art: J. C. Leyendecker The Politician

Were you outraged when Cecil the lion was killed by a hunter? Are you against rhino poaching? Do you order extra bacon with your cheese burger? Are some animals more equal than others?

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/braininavat 

IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12490350/ 

Thumbnail Art: Jeff Lemire from Sweet Tooth

Can God exist if the world is filled with suffering? And are there compelling arguments for or against God's existence? Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/braininavat  IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12490350/ Thumbnail Art: Terry Gilliam from Monty Python's The Meaning of Life

What is art? Why is art valuable? If enough people feel hurt by a piece of art or public monument, should we hide or destroy the work?

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/braininavat 

IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12490350/  

Thumbnail Art: Octavia Roodt http://www.octaviaroodt.com/

"Defund the police. Violent protests are justified. Anyone against Black Lives Matter is a Nazi." How would you engage with these views? We ask Peter Boghossian how to have impossible conversations.  

Peter's Book: http://bit.ly/ConversationsBook 

New Discourses: https://newdiscourses.com/translations-from-the-wokish/    

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/braininavat 

IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12490350/ Animation by Laurynne Gouws: https://www.lightbulbmedia.co.za/

Thumbnail Art: Luke Batha

Do you live in a simulation? And if you do, could you live a valuable life?   We talk with Kenny Pearce this week to find out. 

Read Kenny's Berkeley book here: https://global.oup.com/academic/product/language-and-the-structure-of-berkeleys-world-9780198790334  

And his book about Idealism here: https://global.oup.com/academic/product/idealism-9780198746973  

Podcast: https://anchor.fm/braininavat 

Facebook Discussion Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/braininavat 

Animation by Laurynne Gouws: https://www.lightbulbmedia.co.za/ 

Thumbnail art: By Juane Ivy The Nature of Reality https://greaterthanmyopia.com/ 

IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12490350/

Does the colour of your skin, the texture of your hair, or the shape of your nose make you part of a racial group? Is race a social construct based on collective perception? Do the members of a race share beliefs, cultures and attitudes? 

Facebook Discussion Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/braininavat 

Thumbnail art: By Amazing Ameziane from Muhammad Ali Graphic Novel

When Tuvok and Neelix accidentally merge into a single man in a transporter accident, Captain Janeway has to make a tough decision:  Should she kill Tuvix to restore Tuvok and Neelix? We discuss the philosophy of Star Trek, transporters, and personal identity. 

Are lockdown regulations lawful? Do we have a duty to obey the law? What if the law is immoral, contradictory or unknowable?  The famous philosopher Lon Fuller wrote a thought experiment about King Rex  who failed to make law in eight different ways.  1) A failure to achieve rules at, all so that every issue must be decided on an ad hoc basis. 2)A failure to publicize, or at least make available to the affected party, the rules he is expected to observe. 3)The abuse of retrospective legislation, which not only cannot itself guide action, but undercuts the integrity of rules prospective in effect, since it puts them under the threat of retrospective change. 4)A failure to make rules understandable. 5)The enactment of contradictory rules. 6)Rules that require conduct beyond the powers of the affected party. 7) Introducing such frequent changes in the rules that the subject cannot orient his action by them. 8) A failure of congruence between the rules as announced and their actual administration.

Imagine you build a time machine. Is it possible for you to travel back in time, meet your grandfather before he produces any children, and kill him?  Time travel is a sci-fi staple. Is Back to the Future philosophically accurate? Did J.K Rowling crack the secret of time travel in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban? As a bonus we explain why Rick and Morty's The Vat of Acid Episode isn't about time travel.

Your brother has been missing for months and there is mounting evidence that he is dead. Is it rational to hope that he is alive and keep searching for him?  

Is it rational to have faith in the existence of God because, if he turns out to exist, your faith may let you into heaven while a lack of faith could condemn you to hell?  

Liz Jackson's public interviews: http://liz-jackson.com/public-philosophy/ 

Her paper on Belief, Faith and Hope: https://philpapers.org/archive/JACBFA.pdf  

Thumbnail image by Jeff Lemire from Issue #1 of Royal City

Language is ambiguous at the best of times, think about how much gets lost in translation. Imagine hearing a tribesman in a remote land utter the word "gavagai" upon seeing a rabbit. A speaker of English could do what seems natural and translate this as "Lo, a rabbit."   But other translations would be compatible with all the evidence she has: "Lo, food"; "Let's go hunting"; "There will be a storm tonight" (he may be superstitious).

What can eating Marilyn Monroe's thigh and the pain of teenage heartbreak tell us about the value of human life? We discuss what makes life worth living and ending.

John Rawls thought we needed to wear a veil of ignorance to remove our biases before deciding on the rules of a just society. Are his ideas useful in a world where the elderly and the vulnerable are exposed to higher risks? Should the healthy and the well off accept limits on their freedom?

An out-of-control trolley is rumbling toward five innocent people trapped on a track. You can divert the trolley onto another track by pulling a switch, but the other track has one person on it. Do you pull the switch?  Governments around the world have used lockdowns to save lives, but this choice has had severe economic consequences. Did they pull the right switch? Hosted by Dr Jason Werbeloff and Mark Oppenheimer.