Dear Madam or Sir, this is not a question but a request: Is there an introduction into philosophy that you would recommend? Hoping to get an answer I remain sincerely yours Matthias

There are basically two kinds of intro philosophy texts: General intros and anthologies of "classic" papers. As Andrew mentioned in his reply to your question, a search on amazon.com will turn up many good anthologies. But the two general intros that I heartily recommend are: Nagel, Thomas (1987), What Does It All Mean? A Very Short Introduction to Philosophy (Oxford: Oxford University Press) and an "oldie but goodie": Russell, Bertrand (1912), The Problems of Philosophy , various editions and publishers

What would you say is the best resource for learning philosophy at the level of an absolute beginner? I have tried MIT OCW, reading articles on the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, and taking out books from the library -- none of it makes total sense to me. Usually I get the general idea, but I feel like I'm missing something. Should I continue using the Stanford Encyclopedia/will I gain enough from it for it to be effective? Are there other, better ways? Thanks for replying ^_^

My favorite for beginners (although the author is somewhat out of favor with some professional philosophers these days) is Thomas Nagel's What Does It All Mean?: A Very Short Introduction to Philosophy . It raises all of the interesting questions in a readable fashion, but leaves the answers to the reader. (And the author of The Story of Philosophy , by the way, spelled his name "Will Durant".)

I have done B.Tech in Computer Science, and Masters in Humanities (specialization in Ontology). Can you kindly suggest me some places where I can do a Ph.D which combines both these fields?

I don't know what you mean by "ontology", which can refer to either the branch of philosophy (metaphysics) that is concerned with existence or the branch of artificial intelligence that is concerned with knowledge representation techniques for organizing information (both of those characterizations are very, very rough, of course). In the latter case, you might want to look into doctoral programs in either philosophy or computer science departments where there are researchers specializing in that, such as the (SUNY) Buffalo Center for Ontological Research (disclaimer: that's my institution!). For more information on this kind of ontology, see http://aitopics.net/Ontologies

A recent questioner asked if there are any more dialogue-based--as opposed to strict question-and-answer format--places on the internet to discuss philosophy. The replies took the questioner to be implying a kind of unregulated "philosophical chat room" where anyone can throw out their dubious reasoning and call it philosophy. That may characterize many internet forums, regardless of the subject matter, but there is, I think, a middle ground between this site's ask-the-experts format (which I greatly appreciate, don't get me wrong!) and chats/blogs by people who are totally unqualified to comment meaningfully on philosophical issues. Are there any blogs that you would *recommend* for the level of discourse that, at least sometimes, is displayed there between professional philosophers and, perhaps, thoughful "lay-people" (i.e., where philosophically disciplined and thoughtful people talk to each other)?

Here are two suggestions. The first is less of a philosophy blog and more of a metaphilosophy blog, but it often has useful links to other blogs that you might like: "Leiter Reports: A Philosophy Blog / News and views about philosophy, the academic profession, academic freedom, intellectual culture...and a bit of poetry" http://leiterreports.typepad.com/ The second is also not quite a philosophy blog itself but a philosophy metablog, with summaries and pointers to other philosophy blogs: "Philosopher's Carnival" Its location seems to move around and is always posted on the Leiter Report. The current version is at: http://ichthus77.blogspot.com/2012/02/philosophers-carnival-138.html

How can philosophy be applied and/or related to engineering? I have a passion for both philosophy and the application of the general sciences (which is done through engineering...). I was wondering how a person can use philosophy in order to enhance his productivity and skill in engineering. (I am sorry if this question is a bit vague.)

There are 2 ways to interpret your question. One way is as a request for information about the philosophy of engineering. If that's what you're asking, I can suggest two good books to start with: Florman, Samuel C. (1994), The Existential Pleasures of Engineering, 2nd edition (New York: St. Martin's Press). Davis, Michael (1998), Thinking Like an Engineer: Studies in the Ethics of a Profession (New York: Oxford University Press). The first was written by a practicing engineer, the second by a philosopher. Both deal with questions like: What is engineering? How should engineers behave? You might find some other references on the webpage "What Is Engineering?" for my Philosophy of Computer Science course . There is also a branch of philosophy called the philosophy of technology, which deals with related issues. Check the article with that title in the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. The other interpretation is as a request for information about how to apply...

Having grown tired of reading secondary material in my study of philosophy, I have decided to read primary texts in a chronological, rather than thematic, order. I have started with Plato and have read most of the works I can find online or at my library. Before I move on to Aristotle, I would like your advice. Do you think a chronological approach is a good idea for someone untrained in philosophy? Do you think I should read every work by a given philosopher, or are there 'key' works that serve as their primary contribution to the field? If the latter, are there any lists that you are aware of that state what those key works are?

I agree with Allen Stairs that reading topically is important, but I think it is equally important to remember that philosophy is a conversation that has been ongoing for something like 4500 years. To join in on the conversation, it can be very useful to see it historically , to see how it began and how it evolved, and thereby to gain an understanding of why it is where it is today. One can combine these approaches: Read chronologically within a topic. Or read contemporary philosophy alongside its history. To compare philosophy with physics, as Stairs does, misleadingly suggests that the history is irrelevant. (That's not to say that philosophy doesn't "make progress"; on that topic, see my essay: Rapaport, William J. (1982), "Unsolvable Problems and Philosophical Progress" , American Philosophical Quarterly 19: 289-298.)

I'm thinking of buying a philosophy dictionary as I'm just starting to read philosophy books and finding there are a lot of terms I don't understand. There are a lot of philosophical dictionaries out there however and I was wondering which one you'd recommend?

Robert Audi's Cambridge Dictionary of Philosophy is another excellent one. But I dislike dictionaries, especially for philosophy, where proper explication of terms requires a bit more discussion than most brief dictionary entries allow for. So after reading a definition in either the Cambridge or the Oxford dictionaries, I strongly advise you to read more about whatever term you were looking up by linking to the excellent, on-line Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy on the right-hand side of the askphilosophers.org website (or google it, or click on the title in this response).

Hi, What are the best ways to get informed about the current research areas/topics in philosophy (especially in philosophy of mind and philosophy of cognitive science)? Thank you.

If by "current", you really mean "very latest", then one way is to keepup to date with the major journals in those topics. For a (partial)list, take a look at one of the webpages for my Intro to CognitiveScience course, " Sources of Information on Cognitive Science ". Depending on what kind ofaccess you have to a university library and its electronic journalofferings, you can also often subscribe to online table-of-contentsalerts for many journals. If by "current", you meant something more like "classic problemsthat are currently being discussed", then an anthology of recent orclassic readings is another way to go. Again, for a list, see the webpage cited above.

Why is it that the subject Philosophy is irrelevant for the secondarian level? Do we really have to wait until College just for us to enjoy this "mysterious gift"?

Iagree with Peter that the older you are, and the more you have read andstudied, the more likely it is that you will get something out of astudy of philosophy. But I think that philosophy can usefully bestudied before college (at what is called in the US the "secondary"level of education, i.e., high school) and that philosophicaldiscussions can usefully be had even earlier, at the primary, orelementary, school level. The American philosopher Gareth Matthews haswritten several wonderful books detailing his work withelementary-school kids on philosophy and has a website devoted to it: " Philosophy for Kids ". And Montclair State University has a program on both elementary and secondary education level philosophy: the Institute for the Advancement of Philosophy for Children . Inaddition, the American Philosophical Association publishes a Newsletteron Teaching Philosophy , which often treats of what is sometimes called"pre-collegephilosophy" (which term you can "google" for...

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