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Response posted on May 13, 2013 by Eddy Nahmias
It is a common view among philosophers that human beings are biological entities--that, in some sense, our minds (including our conscious mental processes) are our brains (are based on neural processes). There are few substance dualists (who think the...
Mind Show

Response posted on May 2, 2013 by Eddy Nahmias
This is a very interesting question, one I have struggled with myself, because I feel the same way you do, and I suspect many people feel the exact opposite (they much prefer voluntary donations to coercive taxation). I can...
Ethics Show

Response posted on April 19, 2013 by Eddy Nahmias
I can't think of any good definition of "(un)natural" according to which it would be correct to say that homosexuality is unnatural. We should first recognize that defining "homosexuality" is itself a difficult task. I'll begin by distinguishing...
Sex Show

Response posted on January 17, 2013 by Eddy Nahmias
I don't think you are doing anything wrong. But I think that precisely because I think that animals suffering is a bad thing and should be avoided if possible. It sounds to me like you are avoiding it...
Animals, Ethics Show

Response posted on December 20, 2012 by Eddy Nahmias
I think it is unlikely you'd be able to get into a PhD program in physics (or perhaps any other science) without a major in physics (or that other science). And you are unlikely to be a research scientists...
Education Show

Response posted on November 29, 2012 by Eddy Nahmias
This is a very important and difficult question: how do we get from no consciousness to (our) consciousness? You've put the question in terms of ontogeny (or development), but the same sort of question arises in terms of...
Consciousness Show

Response posted on November 8, 2012 by Eddy Nahmias
The brief answer is yes, I think it makes a lot of sense to think of something like system 2 as the seat of free, autonomous, and responsible action. And if we do--that is, if we think that our...
Freedom Show

Response posted on October 21, 2012 by Eddy Nahmias
I don't see how. I think you have exercised your own freedom of speech. Speech acts can conflict with people's freedoms, including freedom of speech--for instance, if I threaten that I will harm you if you express certain...
Freedom Show

Response posted on October 18, 2012 by Eddy Nahmias
Yes! Especially if you are interested in the philosophy of economics, which is a small but vibrant subfield. Just make sure you've got enough philosophy classes (and letter writers) to present yourself well for grad schools....
Profession Show

Response posted on September 10, 2012 by Eddy Nahmias
One way to understand the basic argument you outline, which is advanced most famously by Thomas Nagel in "What is it like to be a bat?" and Frank Jackson in various papers about Mary the color-blind super-scientist, is like this:1....
Perception Show

Response posted on August 30, 2012 by Eddy Nahmias
Well, weakness of will is a human frailty, and philosophers are humans. But I share your intuition that someone who has accepted strong arguments for a conclusion, such as "It is wrong to eat meat," and who faces few...
Animals, Ethics Show

Response posted on August 23, 2012 by Eddy Nahmias
Great question. Here's a question for you: Suppose a friend asks you to pick her up at the airport (or water her plants while she's gone). Suppose you promise to do so. Suppose (scenario A) that...
Freedom Show

Response posted on August 20, 2012 by Eddy Nahmias
What a great title for a new book on the internalism/externalism debate in semantics:"Are Migraines Just in the Head?" Also, for a more externalist-friendly response, see this recent question: http://www.askphilosophers.org/question/4771 ...
Language Show

Response posted on August 16, 2012 by Eddy Nahmias
Good questions, ones that are receiving more philosophical treatment recently. As a parent of three I better have some good answers, eh? First off, I haven't read either the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (SEP) entry on Parenthood and...
Children Show

Response posted on August 16, 2012 by Eddy Nahmias
Given what you've described, I think your best bet would be to apply to some MA programs in philosophy (full disclosure: I think Georgia State has a good program!), looking for ones that are strong in your areas of interest,...
Profession Show

Response posted on August 10, 2012 by Eddy Nahmias
Good questions. The "fat man" and "switch" cases you described have been discussed ad nauseum in philosophy and more recently in psychology. These discussions have focused almost exclusively on the different intentions of the person deciding whether to...
Law Show

Response posted on August 2, 2012 by Eddy Nahmias
I want to add a point of emphasis to Prof. Stairs' excellent response to your interesting question. It is quite common to hear people suggest that being tolerant or respectful towards the moral views of other people or other...
Ethics Show

Response posted on July 26, 2012 by Eddy Nahmias
It sounds like you might be talking about Sam Harris' new book, Free Will. If so, you might be interested in my review of it at The Philosopher's Magazine here: http://www.thephilosophersmagazine.com/TPM/article/view/15359/12081 Much of my response focuses on Harris' confused...
Freedom Show

Response posted on July 12, 2012 by Eddy Nahmias
Assuming one doesn't take the skeptical view that no one is really responsible for anything (in the sense of justifiably deserving anger, punishment, etc.), then I think the answer to your question is that we are responsible for bad outcomes...
Ethics Show

Response posted on July 12, 2012 by Eddy Nahmias
By "modern philosophers" I am assuming you mean contemporary philosophers. (We philosophers use "modern philosophers" to refer primarily to European philosophers from roughly 1600-1900, and among that group there are a number of substance dualists, including Descartes, Malebranche, Leibniz,...
Mind Show




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