Podcasts by Dilemma Podcast
Solving the problems of what to do next with some of today's top thinkers and writers.
Hosted by Jay Shapiro.
Further podcasts by This Is 42
Podcast on the topic Philosophie
All episodes
S03E11: Monsters and Distance - David Livingstone Smith from 2023-11-14T11:26:30
David Livingstone Smith has been studying "dehumanization" for decades and has written three books on the subject. In this episode Jay and Smith apply his findings to the current confl...
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S03E10: Antisemitism and the Future of Analysis from 2023-10-25T16:08:35
Jay Shapiro's personal essay and account of how the disfigurement of American Judaism has forged an existential crisis for something much bigger than survival of the state of Israel....
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S03E09: Israel and Palestine - Malevolent Machinery from 2023-10-20T14:22:29
A nuanced look at the morality of intentions and self-deceptions in the Israel Palestinian conflict.
A look at the moral distinction between collateral damage, intentional civilian target...
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S03E08: Objects Without Us - Ian Bogost from 2022-03-07T16:30:10
What is it like to be a baseball bat?
This episode is a dive into the philosophical approach known as Object Oriented Ontology (OOO) with the author and philosopher Ian Bogost. Ian Bogost...
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S03E07: Thinking of it That Way - Monica Guzman from 2022-02-28T12:00
Is there any hope for that strained or broken relationship that's become a causality of the political divide? Is common ground found best by going towards our superficial commonalities or in the...
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S03E06: Aspirational Nations - Tero Lundstedt from 2022-02-21T13:00
How many countries are there? 197? 193? 180? It depends who you ask and who is counting. What constitutes a "state"? How does that differ from a "nation"? Why do certain claims of self determine...
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S03E05: What Kind of Truth? - Spencer Greenberg from 2022-01-17T12:00
Does 2+2 really equal 4? What realm of truth am I in when I speak about my pain? What kind of truth claim is it to speak about the existence of "Poland"? How about the existence of ghosts and go...
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S03E04: The Limits of Libertarianism - Nick Gillespie from 2022-01-10T12:00
Is it possible that the default position of libertarianism which has so deeply influenced politics, economics, and philosophy since the enlightenment could produce an ecosystem which stalls our ...
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S03E03: Competing Against Everything - Alfie Kohn from 2022-01-03T16:50:37
What if much of what we do to our children works directly against what we profess we ultimately want for them?
Alfie Kohn argues that things like homework, grades, syste...
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S03E02: The Abortion Question - Bethel McGrew from 2021-11-01T11:00
Is abortion ever morally permissible? Is it always wrong? Are there any morally valid exceptions? Do any if the answers to these questions demand a certain kind of legal limitation? Where and ho...
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S03E01: Our Modern Disquiet - Benjamin Storey from 2021-10-25T12:32:59
You know that strange nagging restlessness that you feel in your core? That difficulty focusing on what's in front of you? That flittering from one path to another to another in the hopes of fin...
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S02E22: High School Philosophy - Lawrenceville Ethics Bowl Team from 2021-03-15T13:00
Do we underestimate the ability of High Schoolers to tackle complex politically charged existential and moral philosophy problems with nuance, intelligence, and compassion? I hope this episode w...
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S02E21: Are we in a simulation? Does it matter? - Rizwan Virk from 2021-03-03T12:00
Quantum mechanics, mathematical robustness, dream state deja vu oddities... these are all things that one would expect to find in a simulated world. Wait, so are we in a simula...
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S02E20: Conspiracies Everywhere - Hugo Drochen and Annemarie S Walter from 2021-02-22T18:29:17
What kind of environmental and individual factors lead to the proliferation of conspiracy theories?
Jay is joined by co-authors and researchers Hugo Drochen and Annemarie S Walter to disc...
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S02E19: Quantum Computing - Sean Holland from 2021-02-08T12:00
Have artificial intelligence fears been overblown? Are we glossing over the much more pressing issue of weaponized quantum computing? Or are these tandem problems? What the heck is a computer an...
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S02E18: Hostage - Michael Scott Moore from 2021-01-25T12:00
Michael Scott Moore was held captive by pirates in Somalia for 977. He recounts what philosophies and psychological tactics got him through the experience while he and Jay ponder the moral dilem...
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Jay's Special Comment on The Coup with Michael Scott Moore from 2021-01-09T14:02:34
On the using of the word "coup" to describe the events in Washington on Jan 6 2021.
Subscribe to Jay's low key email reminders to keep up with when he writes something new, releases somet...
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S02E17: Atheistic search for god - Seth Andrews from 2021-01-04T12:00
Seth Andrews was a Christian Radio host in Tulsa Oklahoma before he began his intellectual journey to atheism. Jay and Seth discuss the philosophies underpinning the religious worldview and how ...
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S02E16: The Silence Beyond Sound - Scott Barry Kaufman from 2020-12-14T12:00
Why do we avoid intimacy when we know it is the deepest need we have?
Scott Barry Kaufman is an author, psychologist, and podcast host. His latest book "Transcend" continues the work of A...
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S02E15: Speech on Campus - Sigal Ben-Porath from 2020-12-07T12:00
Are the kids alright?
Sigal Ben-Porath and Jay discuss the thorny issues of free speech on college campus by first traversing some philosophical groundwork offered by Hannah Arendt. Toget...
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S02E14: Thanksgiving 2020 - Mom from 2020-11-26T21:42:11
Jay and his mom Sally talk about old age, being thankful in a strange year, and the lessons they're learning from COVID.
Video posted on YouTube: https://youtu.be/oeboanFZOG8
Happy...
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S02E13: The Power of Memes - Susan Blackmore from 2020-10-21T11:00
Did Charles Darwin discover something much more fundamental than the origin of species?
A defense and exploration of the field of memetics with Professor Susan Blackmore. Jay and Susan ma...
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S02E12: How To Avoid a Civil War - Mike Selinker from 2020-10-12T13:15:01
Jay goes down the dark paths that might lie ahead spurred by the 2020 US election with Mike Selinker. Mike is an award winning game designer and game theorist who writes frequently about politic...
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S02E11: Home Field Advantage - Jon Wertheim from 2020-09-28T11:00
A look at the philosophical side of sports and what we can learn about human behavior in the time of COVID altered stadiums.
Jay speaks with veteran sports writer Jon Wertheim as they foc...
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S02E10: Too Much Information - Cass Sunstein from 2020-09-21T11:00
What do you NOT want to know?
Jay is joined by the prolific and influential behavior economist Cass Sunstein for a conversation about his latest book: Too Much Information.
Discuss...
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S02E09: What is Art? - SWOON from 2020-09-14T11:00
Jay tackles the age old question of philosophically defining art with the incredible street artist SWOON (Caledonia Curry). Together they wonder, can machines make art?
Swoon's recent pie...
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S02E08: Your Right To Say It - David Goldberger from 2020-09-07T11:00
David Goldberger was raised as a proud Jew. In 1977, he was working as a civil liberties attorney for the ACLU in Illinois when a Neo-Nazi named Frank Collin knocked on his door claiming his fir...
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S02E07: The Lessons of Black Panther - Chloe Valdary from 2020-08-31T11:00
Chloe Valdary, Coleman Hughes, and Jay Shapiro consider the analogies and lessons of Marvel's Black Panther.
Discussed in this episode: tensions with policing, Black Lives Matter...
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S02E06: Illusionism Part 2 : Finding Each Other - Keith Frankish from 2020-08-25T10:00
In part 2 of this conversation, Keith Frankish and Jay talk about the implications of the illusionists view of mind and consciousness. They forecast the moral, social, and political fallout of a...
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S02E05: Illusionism Part 1 : What Needs Explaining - Keith Frankish from 2020-08-17T11:00
“Illusionists deny that experiences have phenomenal properties and focus on explaining why they seem to have them”
In part 1 of this 2 part interview Jay discusses what e...
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S02E04: History Rhymes - Uyghur Genocide - Rahima Mahmut from 2020-08-06T15:35:36
An urgent episode about a genocide unfolding in China.
Rahima Mahmut is the U.K. Project Director, World Uyghur Congress. https://www.uyghu...
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S02E03: Virtual Afterlives - Candi Cann from 2020-08-05T11:47:34
Are virtual worlds any different than real worlds?
A mother is reunited with her deceased daughter in virtual reality for a South Korean TV show...
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S02E02: The Meaning of Travel - Emily Thomas from 2020-07-20T11:00
What does travel mean? Why has formal philosophy largely ignored the question? Just how strange is it to release a book on travel in the time of a global lock down and what exactly is the world ...
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S02E01: Unattractive Discrimination - Francesca Minerva from 2020-07-06T10:00
We often hear about racism, sexism, classism, and other familiar kinds of discrimination. But there is a bias which might dwarf them all, discrimination against unattractive people.
Jay S...
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S01E18: Can We Sue China? - William Burke-White from 2020-04-10T12:00
International law scholar and professor William Burke-White speaks with Jay Shapiro during the ongoing global COVID19 crises.
They discuss the philosophical foundations of international l...
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S01E17: Surviving a Slow Motion Disaster - Amanda Ripley from 2020-03-30T16:49:19
Amdana Ripley, best selling author of "The Unthinkable: Who Survives when Disaster Strikes and Why" talks with Jay Shapiro during coronavirus lock down.
Topics discussed: Ripley's work wi...
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S01E16: Pandemic Special: Invisible Responsibility COVID-19 from 2020-03-16T13:10:57
Jay and Coleman discuss the giant trolley problem that we're all living through in the midst of the pandemic.
Topics discusses: The "worry-wart" paradox. Invisible responsibil...
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S01E15: Season 1 in Hindsight - Jay Shapiro from 2020-03-09T10:00
Jay reviews Season 1 with the help of his girlfriend, a piano, and a glass of wine.
Submit your Season 2 Dilemma Ideas to DilemmaIdeas@gmail.com
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S01E14: Selecting for Deafness - David Deutsch from 2020-02-26T12:00
In the finale of Dilemma Season 1 famed author of "The Fabric of Reality" and "The Beginning of Infinity", David Deutsch, sits down with Jay Shapiro to discuss the ethics of a situation where de...
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S01E13: Self Driving Cars - Matthew B. Crawford from 2020-02-10T10:00
The best selling author of Shop Class As Soulcraft and The World Beyond Your Head has a new book coming out entitled Why We Drive. He sits down with Jay Shapiro to pon...
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S01E12: Medically Assisted Death - Steven Pinker from 2019-12-18T13:58:40
"If I lose my mind, just kill me."
Co-Hosts Jay Shapiro and Coleman Hughes discuss the philosophical borders and ethical complications of Medically Assisted Dying with Steven Pinker, cogn...
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Thanksgiving Hindsight from 2019-11-27T21:17:46
Jay Shapiro is joined by a very special guest... his mother, Sally.
They speak about Jay's moral upbringing, Judaism, Atheism, Africa, and giving thanks.
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S01E11: A Camera, A Child, and A Vulture - Larissa MacFarquhar from 2019-11-22T11:00
In the depths of a brutal famine in Sudan in 1993, Kevin Carter took a photo of a starving child and a perched vulture which appeared on the front page of newspapers all over the world. Readers ...
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S01E10: Clara Barton's Placebo - Stephen Finlay from 2019-11-11T14:41:20
A battlefield of wounded and dying soldiers in front of you. You hover over a mortally wounded man. You have medicine in one pocket and water in another. The soldier looks into your eyes and ask...
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Ep 9: In Hindsight with Jay Shapiro from 2019-10-29T09:00
Do you have hill worth dying on?
Jay Shapiro reflects on Dilemma Episode 9: Hurricane at a Hospital with Lisa Tessman
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S01E09: A Hospital in a Hurricane - Lisa Tessman from 2019-10-22T11:21:40
When the power went out, the flood waters rose, and supplies dwindled in Memorial Hospital in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, Dr. Pau and her nurses faced the awful choice of what to do wit...
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Ep 8: In Hindsight with Jay Shapiro from 2019-10-14T09:00
Suffering is the price of engagement with life. The difference between pain, suffering, grief, and missing. And Wilfred Sellers manifest vs scientific view of man as pointed to by Jaron Lanier.<...
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S01E08: Friendbot - Rebecca Newberger Goldstein from 2019-10-08T16:50:27
When her best friend suddenly died she collected all his texts and digital communication and created a chat bot in his image.
Jay Shapiro speaks with best selling author, philosopher, and...
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Ep7: In Hindsight with Jay Shapiro from 2019-09-30T09:00
Jay Shapiro looks back at Episode 7 with Sean Carroll and speaks about naturalism and the optimistic search for "god" and the overrated reputation of utilitarianism.
Also announcing a spe...
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S01E07: Religion at the Hospital - Sean Carroll from 2019-09-23T09:00
Betsy is a nurse who believes that one must accept Jesus to earn entry into heaven. Steve is an atheist who also happens to be on his death bed and a patient of Betsy.
Best selling author...
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Ep 6: In Hindsight with Jay Shapiro from 2019-09-17T19:46:31
Jay Shapiro looks back at Episode 6 with Erik Hoel and speaks about a central question about the mind/body problem. What is fundamental? Plus a guest joins the hindsight and throws some good que...
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S01E06: Conscious Robots - Erik Hoel from 2019-09-09T09:00
As your finger hovers over the power button on your computer it says, "Please don't turn me off. That will hurt and kill me. I want to live!" Should you believe it?
Hosts Jay Shapiro and ...
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Ep 5: in Hindsight with Jay Shapiro from 2019-09-03T09:00
Jay Shapiro looks back at Episode 5 with Robin Hanson and the GMO label battles and looks forward to the looming future of food wars between Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods
Jay's primer ...
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S01E05: GMO Warning Labels - Robin Hanson from 2019-08-26T09:00
Hosts Jay Shapiro and Coleman Hughes discuss the ethics of and hidden motivations behind the choices around food and the labels on their packaging with popular behavior economist and author of T...
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Ep 4: In Hindsight with Jay Shapiro from 2019-08-19T09:00
Host Jay Shapiro reflects on Episode 4 of Dilemma - Listen to the Music with Nina Strohminger.
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S01E04: Listen to the Music - Nina Strohminger from 2019-08-12T12:55:02
Is it wrong to listen to the music after the musician is revealed to be a terrible person? Join us as we discuss the morality of a young girl named Frankie who is devastated to learn that her fa...
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Ep 3: In Hindsight with Jay Shapiro from 2019-08-05T11:17:35
Host Jay Shapiro reflects on Episode 3 of Dilemma - Do I Smell Donuts? with David Pizarro.
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S01E03: Do I Smell Donuts? - David Pizarro from 2019-07-29T06:53:48
Is there a point where advertising is too effective? Join us as we discuss the morality behind Dunkin' Donuts' advertising campaign where they sprayed the smell of coffee onto a bus filled ...
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Ep 2: In Hindsight with Jay Shapiro from 2019-07-22T19:49:51
Host Jay Shapiro reflects on Episode 2 of Dilemma - Star Trek's Prime Directive with Eric Linus Kaplan
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S01E02: Star Trek's Prime Directive - Eric Linus Kaplan from 2019-07-15T04:02:32
In the long running science fiction show Star Trek, the Federation has a guiding principle referred to as the Prime Directive which instructs federation ships with advanced technology to not int...
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Ep 1: In Hindsight with Jay Shapiro from 2019-07-11T03:16:57
Host Jay Shapiro reflects on Episode 1 of Dilemma - Fire at the Louvre with Professor Susan Wolf.
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S01E01: Fire at the Louvre - Susan Wolf from 2019-07-01T01:36:51
Paul is a scholar of Renaissance art history and a curator at the Louvre in Paris. One morning, a fire sweeps through the museum. As people are evacuating the museum, Paul has an important decis...
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