April 2014
April 2014
Risk and Rationality
John Perry
23
Apr 2014
The world is a risky place where all sorts of nasty things could happen. So, how do we decide what to do when there are risks at every turn? Luckily, there’s a widely accepted theory that tells me when it’s rational to take a risk. It says that a rational person is someone who maximizes expected utility. The basic idea is that an agent does something and, depending on circumstances, it may have several outcomes we can rationally assess.
Read moreIs Being Human More Like Being a Weed than Like Being Water?
David Livingstone Smith
21
Apr 2014
You are human, and so am I. We can both agree on that. But what does it mean to say of someone that they are human?
Read moreWhat's on your summer reading list for 2014?
Laura Maguire
17
Apr 2014
Every year, we do a special program called the Summer Reading List. As we're preparing for this year's show, we want to know what YOU, our fans and listeners, are planning to read this year.
Read moreConspiracy Theories
Laura Maguire
17
Apr 2014
What’s your first association with the title of this week’s show? Do you think of conspiracy theories as the kind of theories that paranoid nutjobs relentlessly like to spout? Considering some of the wild theories out there—like a secret group of elites (which may or may not be Jews, Freemasons, and/or shape-shifting lizard aliens) control and manipulate the global economy—you’d be forgiven for that association. But before you judge all conspiracy theories in a single stroke, you should consider that there are conspiracy theories that you probably believe. And with good reason.
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