Explorez tous les épisodes du podcast Egg Timer Philosophy

Today's episode of the egg timer takes a look at Thomas Malthus's ideas about population and the significant influence that they had on 19th century thought.

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in 1968 Garrett Hardin published 'The Tragedy of the Commons' and since that time his ideas have proved highly influential to a wide range of thinkers including philosophers, political scientists, economists, ecologists, and biologists. Tune to learn what the tragedy of the commons is and what solutions have been offered to try to address the problem.

A link to Hardin's article can be found here: https://math.uchicago.edu/~shmuel/Modeling/Hardin,%20Tragedy%20of%20the%20Commons.pdf

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This episode of the egg timer takes a critical look at what the commons are and why they matter to the history of ideas.

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Tune into today's episode to learn more about confirmation bias. What is it? Why do we have it? What can be done about it?

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Tune in for a discussion of ethical issues related with organ donation and specifically what a system of organ donation ought to be like.

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This fourth and final installment of the Summer Series takes a look at the philosophical themes from the last quarter of 1984. Winston is being interrogated by O'Brien and what ensues in their encounter is a vivid description of totalitarianism at its worse and lots of ground for philosophical consideration.

A free copy of 1984 can be found here: http://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks01/0100021.txt

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This third installment of the Summer Series returns to 1984 where Winston and Julia are becoming increasingly entangled in a dangerous conspiracy against The Party.

A free copy of 1984 can be found here: http://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks01/0100021.txt

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This installment of the Summer Series takes a look at some of the more important philosophical and social themes from the second quarter of 1984. Winston visits the proles section of the city and beings a secret and rebellious romantic relationship with Julia. He also receives an invitation from an Inner Party member named O'Brien which he hopes will set the stage for revolution against The Party.

A free copy of 1984 can be found here: http://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks01/0100021.txt

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Image Attribution: By Photographed by Victor Grigas - From EN WP: 1, Public Domain, ttps://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1251371

This first installment of the Summer Series takes a look at philosophical themes from the first quarter of Orwell's classic, 1984. Tune in to hear ideas about totalitarian dystopia, power and control, and doublethink.

A free copy of 1984 can be found here: http://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks01/0100021.txt

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The 2023 Summer series will highlight themes from George Orwell's classic dystopian creation, 1984. The initial episode covering the first quarter of the book will be released June 28th, the second episode on July 12th, the third on July 26th, and the last on August 9th.

A free copy of 1984 can be found here: http://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks01/0100021.txt

Send over your questions, comments, and ideas for future episodes to: eggtimerphilosophy@gmail.com

Image Attribution: By Photographed by Victor Grigas - From EN WP: [1], Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1251371

What is the fundamental element of reality? In 1714 Leibniz published the Monadology and gave a very interesting answer to this question. There he argued that a non-physical part less basic substance called a Monad was indeed the fundamental element of reality. Tune in to learn more about Monads and see if you think Leibnitz was on to unlocking one of the oldest metaphysical quandaries.

You can find a free copy of the Monadology here: https://www.plato-philosophy.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/The-Monadology-1714-by-Gottfried-Wilhelm-LEIBNIZ-1646-1716.pdf

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Can we owe duties to people who do not yet exist? Tune in as this vexing philosophical and ethical question gets scrambled up.

This episode of the egg timer offers some introductory questions and themes about the relationship between ethics and the law.

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This episode of the egg timer scrambles up existential themes from the second half of Albert Camus's 'The Stranger'.

You can find the full text of 'The Stranger' here: https://archive.org/stream/CamusAlbertTheStranger/CamusAlbert-TheStranger_djvu.txt

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This episode of the egg timer scrambles up existential themes from the first half of Albert Camus's 'The Stranger'.

You can find the full text of 'The Stranger' here: https://archive.org/stream/CamusAlbertTheStranger/CamusAlbert-TheStranger_djvu.txt

Send your comments, questions, and ideas for future episodes to: eggtimerphilosophy@gmail.com

Image Attribution: By Lantz, Gunnar - Stockholms källan, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=12278356

This episode of the egg timer previews Albert Camus's 20th century classic novel 'The Stranger'.  The next two episodes of the podcast will be devoted to taking a look at the major philosophical themes within that work.

You can find the full text of 'The Stranger' here: https://archive.org/stream/CamusAlbertTheStranger/CamusAlbert-TheStranger_djvu.txt

Send your comments, questions, and ideas for future episodes to: eggtimerphilosophy@gmail.com

Image Attribution: By Lantz, Gunnar - Stockholms källan, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=12278356

This episode of the egg timer takes a look at Hannah Arendt's thoughts about the banality of evil.  Arendt's treatment of evil was one of the most important and controversial ideas within 20th century political philosophy.  

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This episode of the egg timer takes a look at Isaiah Berlin's 20th century political philosophy classic, 'Two Concepts of Liberty'.  Tune in to learn more about the distinction Berlin makes between positive and negative liberty and why he rejects the idea that political communities should strive to enhance positive liberty.

Here is a link to Berlin essay: https://cactus.utahtech.edu/green/B_Readings/I_Berlin%20Two%20Concpets%20of%20Liberty.pdf

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For today's episode a couple of thought experiments meant to provoke some critical thought surrounding utilitarian ethics.

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For most people price gouging is a very cut and dry ethical issue.  Tune in to find out how considerations of scarcity make the issue more complex than it first appears to be.

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Herbert Spencer was an extremely influential 19th century thinker but his ideas exist in relative obscurity today.  He coined the phrase 'survival of the fittest' and wrote extensively on a variety of topics within evolutionary theory, political thought, sociology, psychology, and ethics.  Tune in to learn more about Spencer's ideas and how they are still plenty relevant today.

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Tune in to learn more about Charles Darwin's idea of Natural Selection and how that idea was impactful well beyond the biological sciences.  

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In 1643 Elisabeth, Princess of Bohemia, wrote a series of letters to Descartes which posed a strong objection to his dualism.  Tune in to learn more about that objection and how Descartes responded in a lively correspondence with the Princess.

You can find the correspondences between Elisabeth and Descartes about dualism here: https://www.earlymoderntexts.com/assets/pdfs/descartes1643_1.pdf

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In 1963 Edmund Gettier's short paper offering counterexamples to the idea that knowledge amounts to justified true belief sent shock waves around the philosophical world.  Tune in to learn more about Gettier's influential ideas that still garner a great deal of attention today.

You can find a copy of Gettier's paper here: https://fitelson.org/proseminar/gettier.pdf

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Knowledge is often defined today as justified true belief.  This episode is devoted to taking a look at each part of this influential approach to understanding what knowledge amounts to.

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Do people have natural procedural rights to be judged by fair and reliable processes?  That's the topic for this episode of the egg timer.  Tune in for an application of natural rights to an age old question.  

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Why does inequality exist?  That's the question that Jean Jacques Rousseau set out to answer in the mid 18th century.  Tune in to find out the answer he gives and why his ideas about inequality still hold significant relevance today.

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Today's episode takes a look at the nuanced idea of egalitarianism.  Tune in to find out why the view is much more than simply giving everyone the same.

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If a person found a ring that gave them the ability to be invisible and face no consequences for how they acted would they have any reason to act justly?  This is the Ring of Gyges example found in the second book of Plato's Republic.   Tune in as this long standing philosophical thought experiment is cracked open.

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For this episode of the egg timer a look at the classic prisoner's dilemma.  This is the game that ushered in contemporary game theory in the 1950's and it remains highly relevant today.

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Take a look at the cover art for the episode.  What do you see?  I see a duck but many other people see a rabbit.  Listen in to find out how the rabbit duck illusion brings with it some very interesting philosophical discussion.

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This episode of the egg timer takes a look at why Aristotle thought the best type of life could only be the life of contemplation.  

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The Montey Hall Puzzle has perplexed people for over three decades.  Tune in to find out what the puzzle can teach about the idea about making decisions under conditions of variable change.

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Philosophical presentism is the view that the present or present entities are the only things that are real.  Tune in to learn more about this intriguing view.

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For today's episode a look at the topic of expected value through the lens of the lottery.  

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Today's episode concludes the Summer Series and takes a look at how Descartes makes his final push to move from global skepticism to general knowledge.

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Art Attribution: Frans Hals  - André Hatala [e.a.] (1997) De eeuw van Rembrandt, Bruxelles: Crédit communal de Belgique, ISBN 2-908388-32-4.

Where does a game of chess actually exist?  That's the question for this episode of the egg timer and its answer open a number of very interesting philosophical possibilities.

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This  episode covers major themes from Descartes's fifth meditation in his  'Meditations on First Philosophy'.  His primary focus in the fifth meditation is to address how it is that thoughts relate with the essence of abstract objects like triangles as well as material objects such as mountains.  Descartes gives special attention in this meditation to how claims about knowledge of God's essence necessarily relate with God's existence in ways that cannot be applied so directly to other things.

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Art Attribution: Frans Hals  - André Hatala [e.a.] (1997) De eeuw van Rembrandt, Bruxelles: Crédit communal de Belgique, ISBN 2-908388-32-4.

This episode covers major themes from Descartes's fourth meditation in his 'Meditations on First Philosophy'.  His central concern in the fourth meditation is to address the source of our error in a way that still leaves room for a non deceiving God.  He tries to accomplish this through a very thought provoking treatment of human will and freedom.  Tune in to see if you think Descartes manages to successfully locate the origin of human error while preserving a God who does not engage in deception.

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Art Attribution: Frans Hals  - André Hatala [e.a.] (1997) De eeuw van Rembrandt, Bruxelles: Crédit communal de Belgique, ISBN 2-908388-32-4.

This episode of the egg timer covers Descartes's Third Meditation within his Meditations on First Philosophy.  During the Second Meditation Descartes made the case for people having absolute certainty, knowledge, that the self as a thinking thing exists in some fashion.  In his third Meditation Descartes goes further and attempts to demonstrate that people can possess absolute certainty about an external world beyond the self.  

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Art Attribution: Frans Hals  - André Hatala [e.a.] (1997) De eeuw van Rembrandt, Bruxelles: Crédit communal de Belgique, ISBN 2-908388-32-4.

This episode covers Descartes's Second Meditation within his Meditations on First Philosophy.  Here Descartes introduces his infamous idea, 'I think, therefore I am'.

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Art Attribution: Frans Hals  - André Hatala [e.a.] (1997) De eeuw van Rembrandt, Bruxelles: Crédit communal de Belgique, ISBN 2-908388-32-4.

For this episode a discussion of self-defense with emphasis given to the ideas of proportionality and aggression.

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Descartes first meditation from his Meditations on First Philosophy kicks off the Summer Series.  Listen in the find out how Descartes demolishes all of his beliefs in order to begin the search for a foundation for anything that he can know with absolute undoubtable certainty.

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Art Attribution: Frans Hals  - André Hatala [e.a.] (1997) De eeuw van Rembrandt, Bruxelles: Crédit communal de Belgique, ISBN 2-908388-32-4.

Listen in to find out details about the Descartes Summer Series.

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Art Attribution: Frans Hals  - André Hatala [e.a.] (1997) De eeuw van Rembrandt, Bruxelles: Crédit communal de Belgique, ISBN 2-908388-32-4.

Join in for this part two of a discussion about Alexis de Tocqueville's Democracy in America.  Special focus will be given the the greatest threats to democracy that Tocqueville sees and how he thinks the idea of enlightened self interest can be used to confront them.

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Alexis de Tocqueville is most well known for his phrase, 'the tyranny of the majority'.  Listen in to learn more about Tocqueville's thoughts about Democracy in America that he formed after his journey to the United States in the early 1830's.  

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This episode of the egg timer takes a look at the possibility of offering a comprehensive economic view without an ethical foundation.  Those prospects are not good.

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A hundred episodes of the egg timer later, but are numbers even real?  

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Listen in the learn more about the late nineteenth century philosopher and historian Peter Kropotkin.  Kropotkin was a communist and anarchist.  He argued that mutual aid, not competition, defined the evolution of species, including that of human beings.  

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This episode of the egg timer reviews the topic of religious liberties and toleration within political communities.  Special focus is given to the tension between the state as a being understood as a supreme authority with the belief by many that actually this is false and God, not the state, is the supreme authority. 

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