Most see 9/11 conspiracies as an aberration in political life. But Andrew McKenzie-McHarg argues that there’s nothing surprising here. https://bit.ly/4hRpNaw

Through investigating the genealogy of conspiracy theories, he argues that we can come closer to understanding when to take them seriously.

The winners of wars are the quickest to innovate, the fastest to reach technological milestones. And now this dynamic is driving the race in AI. https://bit.ly/4y51KuR

Here, Andy Owen argues that we must slow down technological progress; the race is not worth the risk.

Conscious beings stand in sharp contrast to mere things. They are something over and above their body and brain. https://bit.ly/4yx4dzd

Join philosopher Martine Nida-Rümelin as she argues for her distinctive subject-body dualism, which is not obscurantist but a demand for intellectual honesty.

An MIT study found that using AI leaves us more ignorant, yet more certain of our own arguments. https://bit.ly/4y1TbRv

Here, researcher and author Minh-Hoang Nguyen argues this is a new kind of brain rot: a literal degradation of our ability to think, and a new form of intellectual cowardice.

How well can we really tell a reasonable belief from a ridiculous one? https://bit.ly/3TBmwUR

Stephen Law, Director of Philosophy at The Department for Continuing Education at the University of Oxford, argues once we're too invested to be wrong, we explain away every inconvenient fact.

Is string theory doomed? https://iai.tv/video/the-trouble-with-string-theory

Join Nobel prize-winning physicist Roger Penrose, renowned string theorist Brian Greene, groundbreaking scientist Tasneem Zehra Husain, and polymath mathematician Eric Weinstein to debate the cosmological theory.

In this article, Sam Shpall makes the case that the notion of "falling in love" isn't just an imprecise idea, but a hazardous one. https://bit.ly/47wuGB8

Buried inside it is a forgotten concept called 'limerence': an involuntary, obsessive craving for reciprocation, distinct from romantic love.

President Xi Jinping has repeatedly said China will "never seek hegemony, expansion, or a sphere of influence." Nonetheless, Western academics like John Mearsheimer continue to argue China will seek to become a regional hegemon. https://bit.ly/4zb14VB

Professor Astrid Nordin argues both are true.

Reason was supposedly an Enlightenment gift that freed us from blind adherence to tradition. But many now contend this is a comforting myth. | https://bit.ly/43haeSA

Dan Sperber, Steve Fuller, and Miriam Schoenfield debate whether we should pursue reason or abandon it.

Evolution has long been understood as random genetic changes occurring. But current research is revealing a messier reality. https://bit.ly/4xTPs8E

Denis Noble, Eva Jablonka, and Samir Okasha debate whether evolution is a blind process, or whether we should see life as actively shaping itself.

We assume theories need experimental proof to be credible. | https://bit.ly/4dzrGrv

But philosopher of science Richard Dawid argues that empirical confirmation isn't the only path to scientific credence, and that string theory has earned trust through a different route: meta-empirical assessment.

Liberal democracy once appeared to be a self-sustaining machine, but in recent years it has proved increasingly fragile. https://bit.ly/4rIzooT

Historian and politician Michael Ignatieff explores whether liberalism still has the intellectual and moral resources to sustain and defend itself.

Brutal wars, torturous executions, and violent revolutions have always been justified on moral grounds. https://bit.ly/3VXAS2q

Drawing on wisdom from Wittgenstein to Zhuangzi, philosopher Hans-Georg Moeller argues that trying to be moral often only does more harm than good.

We tend to think of Stoicism as a philosophy of passive resignation, but Massimo Pigliucci argues true agency requires recognising both the limits of our power and knowledge. https://bit.ly/4diCjhb

For Pigliucci, the Stoic dichotomy of control equips us to combat systemic issues.

I have just published this piece for the Institute of Art and Ideas. It summarizes a part of my research agenda on countering illiberalism in liberal democracies. Thanks to the IAI for hosting it.⬇️

iai.tv/articles/the...

The paradox of Schrödinger's cat still baffles physicists a century into quantum mechanics. | https://bit.ly/4eZJOvI

But Nadia Blackshaw proposes the “many worlds” interpretation is wrong, and we should instead pursue the possibility of “many minds”.

Liberal democracies around the world are under threat, and Giovanni Capoccia argues that there’s a paradox that prevents efforts to defend them. https://bit.ly/4ylseJv

Illiberal movements are easiest to stop early, but propaganda and subtle erosion prevent democratic forces from acting quickly.

We often describe distraction as a failure of focus, but what if it is also a crisis of meaning? https://bit.ly/47pk5rA

Drawing on decades of research, Gloria Mark explores how our cognitive, emotional, and social capacities are being reshaped by environments that never allow the mind to rest.

Timothy Jackson argues reality is not governed by fixed laws, but that fundamental reality is in fact a lawless flux, a chaos of unpredictable change. https://bit.ly/4d3rAZ9
The “laws” of physics are not eternal truths but descriptions of patterns that have persisted long enough to look permanent.

In this article, Michel Bitbol counters Antony Valentini’s recent argument that quantum mechanics is a straightforward description of material reality. https://bit.ly/47mUWhe

He instead proposes quantum mechanics is a tool for predicting our “creation” of our own experiences and ideas of reality.