Tag Archives: Philosophy

Thinking Machines

Posted on July 31, 1988 by Steve Weiss

Can computers think? In the late 1980s, contrasting answers to that question come from John Searle and Herbert Simon. In the first segment, Searle considers the philosophy of mind and artificial intelligence. In the second segment [15:15], Simon, who coauthored  Scientific Discovery: … Continue reading →

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Bloomsbury’s Prophet

Posted on June 5, 1988 by Steve Weiss

Tom Regan discusses his study entitled Bloomsbury’s Prophet: The Moral Philosophy of G. E. Moore. Regan is editor of a volume of Moore’s early essays as well. At the time of this interview, Regan, a Fellow at the National Humanities Center … Continue reading →

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Philosophy, Ancient and Modern

Posted on November 8, 1987 by Steve Weiss

Two philosophers talk about their work in separate conversations. In the first, Montgomery Furth discusses his forthcoming study of the pre-Socratics, whose philosophies helped give rise to the thinking of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. In the second segment [14:25], Edward … Continue reading →

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Literature, Philosophy, and Feminism

Posted on April 19, 1987 by Steve Weiss

According to Alison Jagger and Martha Vicinus, in separate interviews, feminism addresses not only the methods and content of literary and philosophical inquiry, but also, in the late 1980s, seeks a restructuring of literature and philosophy as primarily influenced by masculine interests and … Continue reading →

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(1) Afro-American Literature; (2) African Philosophy

Posted on February 8, 1987 by Steve Weiss

bell hooks is the author of Ain’t I a Woman and Feminist Theory: From Margin to Center, in which she argues that the struggle to end racism and the struggle to end sexism are naturally intertwined. In both works, hooks … Continue reading →

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George Santayana’s Religious Naturalism

Posted on June 22, 1986 by Steve Weiss

Henry Levinson speaks about the Spanish-born American philosopher of religion George Santayana (1863-1952), who said, “Progress, far from consisting in change, depends on retentiveness.” Those that cannot remember the past are condemned to fulfill it. How best should we interpret Santayana’s … Continue reading →

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Martin Heidegger and Modern Philosophy

Posted on May 18, 1986 by Steve Weiss

In the course of twentieth-century philosophical inquiry and application, Martin Heidegger is important to both scholarly and popular audiences and has been called the founder of existentialism. W. R. Newell addresses these aspects of Heidegger’s legacy and his influence upon contemporary … Continue reading →

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Women, Philosophy, and Public Policy

Posted on March 9, 1986 by Steve Weiss

The United Nations Decade for Women, 1976-85, brought attention worldwide to women’s issues in politics, culture, and social development. How has the status of women in the modern world changed during the first two-thirds of the twentieth century? With regard … Continue reading →

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Philosophy and Public Policy

Posted on July 28, 1985 by Steve Weiss

Tom Regan comments on the role of philosophy in the public discussion of and policy making about animal rights in America. At [6:20], Michael Bayles and Larry Temkin exchange ideas on the philosophical basis of equality in public policy. What contribution … Continue reading →

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Nicks of Time: Emerson and Thoreau

Posted on June 2, 1985 by Steve Weiss

Everett Emerson and Olaf Hansen discuss the nineteenth-century American philosophical and literary phenomenon known as transcendentalism through the works of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, and others. What are the characteristics of American transcendentalism? How did these characteristics evolve and how do … Continue reading →

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