Philosophy Universe

Part of the Ethics Tutorial, we explore the notion of "habit" in ethics and its importance in our lives.

Continuing with our "ethics tutorial", we look at a figure that exemplifies a variety of ethical theories. What better way to get introduced to them than by the hand of Mr. Spock?

An interview with Randy Richards, author of "The Unseen Hand of Peter Gyges" (2015), a modern retelling of Plato's classic fable.

What would you do if you could become invisible? Would you still play by the rules? Are we good only because others can see us?This is the beginning episode in the "Ethics Tutorial" miniseries. With the story of Gyges and his magical ring, Plato introduces one of the fundamental questions of ethics. 

We couldn't leave Fahrenheit without touching on some, sadly, burning topics of present times -- censorship, cancel culture and, yes, book burning. Is it true that extremes touch? And what does Bradbury have to say about this whole issue? Bear with us on this slightly longer episode, as we slog through dangerous territory trying to make some sense of it all.

Sergeant Beatty spills the beans to Montag, and we learn about the dangers of going too fast through life.

This is the first of a three-episode series on Ray Bradbury's masterpiece, Fahrenheit 451. I highly recommend that you read the book before listening to this episode, as it contains major spoilers! (Also, as it is a great book totally worth your time...)

In this episode we explore how dystopian stories share the structure of Plato's famous "allegory of the Cave," and we look into various possible meanings and warnings to be learned from that story.Original art and music.Includes snippets of "Gestation" from the game "Cave Story" ("Doukutsu Monogatari"). It has no relation to Plato's cave, but it is a beautiful game released for free by its creator. This is our little homage.. Thanks to cavestory.org. (You can download the music and the game.)

Original music and artwork. This episode contains sound effects from Star Trek, the original series.Here's the link to Descartes' "Discourse on Method" (in Project Gutenberg).