Why Debate?
Most of the time when we engage with politics, we do so via debate. But debate is combative, discourages changing your mind, and can make two unequal positions seem equally worth discussing. Is there a better way?
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Do Great Video Games Require Suffering?
A Soulslike is a video game that shares similarities with installments from the Dark Souls series, are infamously difficult, and often highly rated by critics. Fan of the genre claim that the suffering is part of the purpose of the experience, but do we really have to suffer to experience video game greatness?
Is It Okay to Be Mean to AI?
As AI programs start to occupy more mundane areas of our lives, more and more people are starting to mess with them. While those in the tech space lament the so-called "abuse" of AI systems, maybe being mean to them isn't such a big deal.
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Do You Need Empirical Support to Be Happy?
There is no shortage of advice online about how to be happier. But recent research suggests that the most common happiness-increasing strategies may not be backed by robust empirical support. What should happiness researchers and happiness-seekers do?
Sometimes other people know your pain better than you | Ideas
We all experience physical pain. While some causes of, and remedies for, pain are obvious – eg, I wasn’t careful chopping onions and now I need a bandage, or I celebrated a bit too much last night and now I need water and a nap – the types of pain that can be experienced are diverse and, in some cases, poorly understood. Can we look to others to better understand our own experiences of pain?
The antidote to fake news is to nourish our epistemic wellbeing | Ideas
We typically think about ‘wellbeing’ in terms of physical and mental health. To improve your physical wellbeing, it might be best to exercise; to increase your mental wellbeing, consider putting your phone down once in a while. There is another, less noted way in which we should think about our wellbeing: in terms of knowledge. Knowledge is good for us not only because we generally want to know the truth, but because knowledge dramatically affects our ability to navigate the world and accomplish
Dangerous beliefs | Kenneth Boyd
Our beliefs about the world guide our actions in it. Likewise, our actions reveal our beliefs. But are there beliefs we hold in theory, but would never act on? Such a distinction can be dangerous and irresponsible, writes Kenneth Boyd.
The COVID-19 pandemic has proven to be ripe source material for those looking to spread misinformation and conspiracy theories throughout social media and elsewhere online. One does not have to look far before finding people defending beliefs that the virus was m
The COVID-19 pandemic has proven to be ripe source material for those looking to spread misinformation and conspiracy theories throughout social media and elsewhere online. One does not have to look far before finding people defending beliefs that the virus was m
Ethics of AI
AI's Videogamification of Art
AI-generated art has been criticized for a lot of reasons, and rightfully so. But AI programs continue to evolve, and can now turn classic works of art into videogames. Is this just a fun new technology, or is it a crime against art?
When Is Fair Use “Fair” for AI (and When Is It "Use")?
Does AI "learn" like people do? And what does the answer mean for fair use of copyrighted works?
Can We Trust AI Chatbots?
More and more people are using AI chatbots, but that's not to say that they trust their outputs. If chatbots are going to play a significant role in our lives then we'll have to start trusting them. But is such a thing even possible?
What’s Wrong with AI Therapy Bots?
Powered by new artificial intelligence technology, therapy bots promise to offer affordable and accessible mental health therapy to the masses. But what are the ethical implications?
Trust and Expertise
Truth, Nonsense, and Politics
One of the terms that has been most often used to describe the content coming of the White House during Trump's terms is "bullshit." Originally given a technical definition by Harry Frankfurt, "bullshit" is no longer strong enough to describe the current administration's outputs on social media.
The Missing Information Age
During his second term, Trump has decided to continue waging his war on the truth from a new flank: in addition to promoting falsehoods ranging from subtle to ridiculous, he is also beginning to expunge data at an alarming rate. While his first term arguably kicked off the misinformation age, his second term has started another: the missing information age.
Specious Content and the Need for Experts
Specious content seems plausible on first glance, but is full of flaws upon closer inspection. While it's always existed online, AI has started to produce it in mass quantities. Instead of trying to identify it ourselves, we need to rely on experts now more than ever to help us figure out which information is trustworthy.
Calibrating Trust Amidst Information Chaos
With so many changes happening on social media platforms it can be hard to keep up. But beyond the introduction of sometimes confusing news features, the rapidly changing social media landscape has the potential to make the problems of finding trustworthy information online even more difficult.
Health and Wellbeing
Why Be Productive?
Whenever I go online, I am inundated with productivity advice. It may be because it’s still the early days of a new year, and with a new year comes a fresh market for those who made resolutions to get more done. Or it may be that the algorithms serving me content have learned that I can’t help but hate-read articles with titles like “Nine CEOs reveal their favorite productivity hacks” and thus shovel more and more productivity articles onto my various feeds, greedy for my clicks and indifferent
Do You Need Empirical Support to Be Happy?
There is no shortage of advice online about how to be happier. But recent research suggests that the most common happiness-increasing strategies may not be backed by robust empirical support. What should happiness researchers and happiness-seekers do?
Sometimes other people know your pain better than you | Ideas
We all experience physical pain. While some causes of, and remedies for, pain are obvious – eg, I wasn’t careful chopping onions and now I need a bandage, or I celebrated a bit too much last night and now I need water and a nap – the types of pain that can be experienced are diverse and, in some cases, poorly understood. Can we look to others to better understand our own experiences of pain?
Workers' Well-Being and Employers' Duties of Care
If you’ve been working from home during the pandemic then there’s a good chance your employer has sent you an email expressing their concern about your well-being and general level of happiness. Perhaps they’ve suggested some activities you could perform from the comfort of your own home working space, or offered Zoom classes or workshops on things like meditation, exercise, and mindfulness. While most likely well-intentioned, these kinds of emails have become notorious for being out of touch wi
Arts and Culture
Do Great Video Games Require Suffering?
A Soulslike is a video game that shares similarities with installments from the Dark Souls series, are infamously difficult, and often highly rated by critics. Fan of the genre claim that the suffering is part of the purpose of the experience, but do we really have to suffer to experience video game greatness?
On Ye and Edgelords
Vultures 1, released by ¥$ (a collaboration between Ye – née Kanye West – and Ty Dollar $ign), has been widely criticized, with many calling Ye an "edgelord". But what is an edgelord, anyway? And is Ye something worse?
Informed Consent and the Joe Rogan Experience
The Joe Rogan Experience (JRE) podcast was again the subject of controversy when a recent episode was criticized by scientific experts for spreading misinformation about COVID-19 vaccinations. It was not the first time this has happened: Rogan has frequently been on the hot seat for espousing views on COVID-19 that contradict the advice of scientific experts, and for entertaining guests who provided similar views.
The Higher and Lower Pleasures of the French Culture Pass
French president Emmanuel Macron recently introduced a “culture pass,” what amounts to €300 for each 18-year-old in France to spend on cultural activities – like going to the movies, seeing a play, or going to a museum – or for buying items that are of cultural or artistic value – such as books, art materials, membership in classes, etc. The French youth need only download an app, and then they have 2 years to spend the funds on whichever of the above they see fit. Some have praised the initiati
Everything
Why Debate?
Most of the time when we engage with politics, we do so via debate. But debate is combative, discourages changing your mind, and can make two unequal positions seem equally worth discussing. Is there a better way?
Do Great Video Games Require Suffering?
A Soulslike is a video game that shares similarities with installments from the Dark Souls series, are infamously difficult, and often highly rated by critics. Fan of the genre claim that the suffering is part of the purpose of the experience, but do we really have to suffer to experience video game greatness?
Truth, Nonsense, and Politics
One of the terms that has been most often used to describe the content coming of the White House during Trump's terms is "bullshit." Originally given a technical definition by Harry Frankfurt, "bullshit" is no longer strong enough to describe the current administration's outputs on social media.
Is It Okay to Be Mean to AI?
As AI programs start to occupy more mundane areas of our lives, more and more people are starting to mess with them. While those in the tech space lament the so-called "abuse" of AI systems, maybe being mean to them isn't such a big deal.
AI's Videogamification of Art
AI-generated art has been criticized for a lot of reasons, and rightfully so. But AI programs continue to evolve, and can now turn classic works of art into videogames. Is this just a fun new technology, or is it a crime against art?
Must Democratic Citizens Think for Themselves?
In a recent interview, United States Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. argued that democratic citizens have the obligation to ignore experts and think for themselves. Is he right? No, of course not.
Do You Need to Morally Offset Your Guilty Pleasures?
We all have guilty pleasures, some worse than others. When guilty pleasure cause harm, do we have an obligation to try to "offset" them? What might such an offsetting look like?
Why Flourish?
Are you flourishing? According to the results of the Global Flourishing Study, if you’re a young person in a Western industrialized nation like the US then there’s a good chance you aren’t. But why should we care about flourishing, anyway?
Should AI Democratize Art?
OpenAI founder Sam Altman recently argued that AI can democratize art. But does art need to be democratized? And would doing so justify its existence?
The Missing Information Age
During his second term, Trump has decided to continue waging his war on the truth from a new flank: in addition to promoting falsehoods ranging from subtle to ridiculous, he is also beginning to expunge data at an alarming rate. While his first term arguably kicked off the misinformation age, his second term has started another: the missing information age.
Woolly Mice and the Ethics of Cutewashing - The Prindle Institute for Ethics
Bioscientists have created a new species of adorable mouse. But is its cuteness a distraction from more significant moral problems?
Is Speech Freer Without Fact-Checks? - The Prindle Institute for Ethics
Meta has recently decided to stop using third-party fact-checkers, giving moderation responsibilities to its users instead. The platform claims they're motivated by preserving free speech, but does removing fact-checkers actually make speech freer?
Should You Keep Using Twitter?
Twitter (or "X", as no one calls it) is rapidly losing users to Bluesky. Some worry that this will result in echo chambers across platforms, with Bluesky on the political left, and Twitter on the right. If you're thinking of leaving, should you? Or should you stay and try to keep the dream of the public square alive?
When Is Fair Use “Fair” for AI (and When Is It "Use")?
Does AI "learn" like people do? And what does the answer mean for fair use of copyrighted works?
Has AI Made Photos Untrustworthy?
We often treat photos as providing definitive evidence: if there's a picture of it, it happened. But new AI tools give anyone the power to manipulate photos in any way they see fit. Does this mean that we've undermined a fundamental pillar of our inquiries?
What's Wrong with Hypocrisy?
One of the biggest stories in the run-up to the U.S. election in November has been Trump’s choice of running-mate, JD Vance. While some Trump supporters have held up Vance as an exemplar of a reasonable person who can change their minds, others have called him a hypocrite. But what's so bad about being a hypocrite?
Is College Worth It?
The calculation is a simple one: a college degree is an investment, as it costs money and time, and some have argued that the return on investment (ROI) is no longer worth it, at least when it comes to certain degrees.
But we should ignore them. When thinking about whether college is "worth it", ROI is unhelpful - and, if used to inform policy, potentially harmful.
But we should ignore them. When thinking about whether college is "worth it", ROI is unhelpful - and, if used to inform policy, potentially harmful.
Can We Trust AI Chatbots?
More and more people are using AI chatbots, but that's not to say that they trust their outputs. If chatbots are going to play a significant role in our lives then we'll have to start trusting them. But is such a thing even possible?
On Ye and Edgelords
Vultures 1, released by ¥$ (a collaboration between Ye – née Kanye West – and Ty Dollar $ign), has been widely criticized, with many calling Ye an "edgelord". But what is an edgelord, anyway? And is Ye something worse?
Why Be Productive?
Whenever I go online, I am inundated with productivity advice. It may be because it’s still the early days of a new year, and with a new year comes a fresh market for those who made resolutions to get more done. Or it may be that the algorithms serving me content have learned that I can’t help but hate-read articles with titles like “Nine CEOs reveal their favorite productivity hacks” and thus shovel more and more productivity articles onto my various feeds, greedy for my clicks and indifferent
Is Shoplifting from Grocery Stores Morally Permissible?
No. Right? The increasing cost of living and bad corporate behavior might have us thinking otherwise.
Do You Need Empirical Support to Be Happy?
There is no shortage of advice online about how to be happier. But recent research suggests that the most common happiness-increasing strategies may not be backed by robust empirical support. What should happiness researchers and happiness-seekers do?
Specious Content and the Need for Experts
Specious content seems plausible on first glance, but is full of flaws upon closer inspection. While it's always existed online, AI has started to produce it in mass quantities. Instead of trying to identify it ourselves, we need to rely on experts now more than ever to help us figure out which information is trustworthy.
What’s Wrong with AI Therapy Bots?
Powered by new artificial intelligence technology, therapy bots promise to offer affordable and accessible mental health therapy to the masses. But what are the ethical implications?
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