How do animals and smart machines measure up to human intelligence? Can fish feel pain and do dogs get jealous? Paul Thagard—a philosopher and cognitive scientist—explores hotly debated issues about animal and artificial intelligence to conclude that current bots and beasts fall far short of human capabilities. Thagard’s book, Bots and Beasts: What Makes Machines,…
Philosopher Helen De Cruz discusses her new book, Wonderstruck: How Wonder and Awe Shape the Way We Think. De Cruz explores the transformative role of wonder and awe in an uncertain world and reveals how they are catalysts that can help us reclaim what makes life worth living and preserve the things we find wonderful…
Theoretical physicist and astronomer Marcelo Glesier offers compelling argument for including the human perspective within science, and for how human experience makes science possible. He discusses his new book, The Blind Spot: Why Science Cannot Ignore Human Experience, which urges us to create a new scientific culture that views ourselves both as an expression of…
Innovative theologian and neuroscientist Ilia Delio discusses Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, technology and AI, the pursuit of extraterrestrial life, and the roles of evolution, quantum physics, and neuroscience in theology. Dr. Ilia Delio is a Franciscan Sister and a theologian from the Catholic tradition specializing in science and religion. She holds the Josephine Connelly Endowed…
Cosmologist Martin Rees discusses the latest advances in cosmology like the breathtaking images and data from the James Webb Space Telescope—galaxies formed soon after the Big Bang that are larger, earlier, more structured, and more numerous than expected—humanity’s existential risks, including pandemics, biotechnology, climate change, nuclear war, and AI, and “long-tail” risks such as asteroid…
Neuroanthropologist and co-chair of the N2 Conference Terrence Deacon discusses the noosphere, biological evolution, and the upcoming N2 conference hosted by scientific multimedia non-profit organization Human Energy to commemorate the 100th Anniversary of the Discovery of the Noosphere. 100 years ago, Philosopher Pierre Teilhard de Chardin introduced the concept of a planetary mind called the…
Why are we here? What’s the point of existence? Philosopher and consciousness researcher Philip Goff tackles these questions and more in this discussion of his new book, Why? The Purpose of the Universe. Goff argues that it’s time to move on from both God and atheism and instead look to cosmic purpose to understand the…
Cosmologist and physics professor Will Kinney discusses his book, An Infinity of Worlds: Cosmic Inflation and the Beginning of the Universe. Kinney considers what happened before the primordial fire of the Big Bang. What is the origin of structure in the cosmos? Can we come to terms with the possibility that our entire observable universe…
Philosopher and cognitive scientist Daniel Dennett discusses his new memoir, I’ve Been Thinking, about the dominant themes of twentieth-century philosophy and cognitive science—including language, evolution, logic, religion, free will, consciousness, and artificial intelligence. Dennett’s book, I’ve Been Thinking, is available for purchase now. Daniel C. Dennett is a philosopher, writer, and cognitive scientist. He is…
Astronomer and astrobiologist Dr. Aomawa Shields discusses her latest book, Life on Other Planets: A Memoir of Finding My Place in the Universe. The book charts her life as an astronomer, classically-trained actor, mother, and Black woman in STEM, searching for life in the universe while building a meaningful life here on Earth. Dr. Shields…
Neurologist Sara Manning Peskin discusses her book, A Molecule Away From Madness: Tales of the Hijacked Brain, about how the very molecules that allow us to exist can also sabotage our minds. Dr. Peskin recounts gripping tales of unruly molecules and the diseases that form in their wake. A college student cannot remember if she…