A recent New York Times opinion piece, "A Crisis at the End of Science," raises the somewhat-unexpected question of whether "physicists need empirical evidence to confirm their theories." This is unexpected because empirical confirmation has been the foundation of the natural sciences since the beginnings of modern science. If someone's theories and claims can't be empirically … Continue reading Physics, Empirical Evidence, and David Hume
How We Got Duped into Believing Computers Can Think
I recently wrote a post, “Has A.I. Really Arrived?” in which I disputed claims that computers can or will think (click here to read the original post). In that essay I wasn’t articulating anything original. I was repeating the arguments of the philosopher John Searle. Searle calls the idea that programs are to computers as … Continue reading How We Got Duped into Believing Computers Can Think
Has A.I. Really Arrived?
In a recent article in Wired magazine, “The Three Breakthroughs That Have Finally Unleashed AI on the World,” the author, Kevin Kelly, claims that artificial intelligence (AI) is here and here to stay. He understands AI, apparently, as machine (specifically, computer) intelligence that will become more and more a part of our lives. He claims … Continue reading Has A.I. Really Arrived?
The Good, The Bad, and Schopenhauer
Last week I gave a paper at the Society for Phenomenology and Existential Philosophy meeting in New Orleans. It was on Nietzsche’ view of pessimism, so I thought I’d take the opportunity to talk a bit about the philosophical conceptions of optimism and pessimism. Both optimism and pessimism are generally understood as involving an evaluation … Continue reading The Good, The Bad, and Schopenhauer
Making Sense of Our Lives
In an essay in the Sunday New York Times entitled, “Does Everything Happen For a Reason?” Konika Banerjeee and Paul Bloom (a Yale graduate student and professor, both in Psychology) discuss studies showing that most people tend to find meaning and purpose in the events in their lives. One might think that this is tied … Continue reading Making Sense of Our Lives
Discussion of “When Science Gets Stupid”
A blogger by the name of Janet Kwasniak took issue with my piece on consciousness, “When Science Gets Stupid,” which was a reaction to an essay in the New York Times, “Are We Really Conscious?” by Michael Graziano. Kwasniak claims that I apparently didn’t understand Graziano’s piece, since I defined consciousness as awareness. Though she … Continue reading Discussion of “When Science Gets Stupid”
When Science Gets Stupid
In the Weekend Review section of yesterday's New York Times there appeared an essay called, "Are We Really Conscious?" with the tag line: "It sure seems like it. But brain science suggests we're not." First, what do we mean by consciousness or being conscious? A good synonym is "awareness": to be conscious is to be … Continue reading When Science Gets Stupid
Nietzsche and the Meaning and Definition of Noir
This essay originally appeared in my The Philosophy of Film Noir volume. The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946) was adapted from a novel by the hard-boiled writer, James M. Cain. The movie is interspersed with voice-over narration by the protagonist, Frank Chambers (John Garfield), indicating that he is recalling events in the past. Frank … Continue reading Nietzsche and the Meaning and Definition of Noir
Symbolism, Meaning, and Nihilism in Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction
I was just interviewed by Brian Turnof for his radio show The Mind's Eye on www.ztalkradio.com. It's the 20th anniversary of the release of Pulp Fiction (if you can believe it), and, given my work on Tarantino, Brian wanted to hear my thoughts on the film and its legacy. It was a fun interview, and I … Continue reading Symbolism, Meaning, and Nihilism in Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction
Narratives and Our Ways of Knowing Part I: Plato’s Dialogues
Narratives and Our Ways of Knowing Part I: Plato’s Dialogues The question of knowledge is a very old problem, going back to the ancients. What we can know about the world, and how we know it, is a huge puzzle. Now, we all love to tell stories, to tell people about things that have happened … Continue reading Narratives and Our Ways of Knowing Part I: Plato’s Dialogues
Mark T. Conard 