Recent questions tagged philosophy

Description : Do you agree with famous philosopher Christopher Smith, in regards to the "good old days"?

Last Answer : Real men won’t answer this question. - Ah, I read it too fast. Real men do answer this question.

Description : Would you like to answer this question about plugging into the Matrix?

Last Answer : I would opt to stay put in the Sims! I’m happy where I am at.

Description : What is the path to happiness?

Last Answer : This is a pure personal thing. What allows one person to feel a sense of deep happiness can be completely different than another person. I feel it is not about money or possessions. Finding out what ... start on a lifelong journey. Life also injects many things that can move of out of this space.

Description : What is time?

Last Answer : It is the fourth dimension. What text were you discussing for this question?

Description : What is your views after watching this video on why you will marry the wrong person?

Last Answer : Lol. Very entertaining. I didn’t learn the lesson., but then again i am human.

Description : Does the higher per capita intelligence near prestigious schools improve quality of life?

Last Answer : I'll quibble with the wording. But, having lived in and visited many places, some with very good universities, and some not, I'm going to say yes. At least, for my tastes, and the things I ... arts and studies and people doing what they're interested in, learning and all that comes with all of that.

Description : How accurate do you think this quote from a famous Indian Guru is?

Last Answer : I don’t think ‘retarded’ is the right word. I would have used ‘stupid’. Or maybe ‘simple’.

Description : How did this 2 minute clip make it past the censors?

Last Answer : Why would it be censored? It isn’t obscene. And it isn’t designed for 8 year olds. it’s audience is 44 year old men in Cnada.

Description : What happened before the Big Bang?

Last Answer : Nobody among human beings knows about it.

Description : What problems from the far past to now has philosophy solved?

Last Answer : The study of philosophy is to help us to use critical thinking to solve our own problems and reach our own goals in life. Critical thinking helps us to recognize the difference between things ... true. My personal opinion is that very few people even have the ability to understand these concepts.

Description : Regarding the "meaning of life" and humanity's self worth, what is the difference between being in a universe created by a god, and a universe created as a computer simulation by an alien race?

Last Answer : Does it matter? If there is a god creating a universe, who is to say that the god is not, in fact, the product of a computer simulation? There's no way to tell if this god has godlike characteristics ... a software glitch? I wou;dn't, but I'm not sure it matters. How would it change my life?

Description : How would you describe the difference between intelligence and wisdom?

Last Answer : Intelligence is processing information and being able to extrapolate hypothesis and conclusions from various pieces of knowledge. It's more than just memorizing information, although memory is part of it, ... really does help in many situations in a way that just knowing information can't.

Description : Moral dilemma: save the dog or the braindead child?

Last Answer : I would choose my child, always. My son/daughter might be braindead, but I’m still here to love him/her. I would give him/her every chance to survive and have a happy life. ~Besides I don’t like dogs, if it was a cat then perhaps…

Description : Do we need more sins? Is seven enough?

Last Answer : Your president has six of the seven deadly sins with the possible exception of envy. This tally doesn't do justice to the huge injury he is doing to his country and its reputation or to the psychic damage he is ... of him and his family in the White House. I'm stuck. I cannot put a name to it.

Description : Please help me understand what this guy is talking about?

Last Answer : It’s interesting to think about, which is probably why it interests some people. Have you ever watched Big Bang Theory? Sheldon talks about parallel universe’s all the time. You could watch the NEW Star Trek on Netflix, it’s about the same thing.

Description : What is the difference between mind and reason?

Last Answer : The mind is the mechanism; reason is the process.

Description : A priori or a posteriori, which one is more reliable?

Last Answer : Neither. It depends on other qualities of the situation. But if you’re taking a logic test, go with a priori. If you’re in a real situation where you have incomplete information, you may want to give a posteriori more weight.

Description : What does prime matter mean in philosophy?

Last Answer : Hylomorphism - Wikipedia In some cases, a substance's matter will itself be a substance. ... According to Aristotelians, such a substance has only prime matter as its matter. Prime matter is ... into various kinds of substances without remaining any kind of substance all the time. Hope this helps.

Description : What do you think of the hippie movement and hedonism?

Last Answer : A couple of points. The Hippie movement of the 1960s-1970s is NOT the Hippie Movement of 2019. I don't know what sort of event you are describing in your question. The Hippie movement of ... re either paranoid or overly cynical. Not everything needs a rationale. Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar.

Description : Am I doing something wrong by refusing to serve in a military where service is obligated?

Last Answer : Supposedly Donald Trump had heal spurs and dodged the Vietnam draft ,and he became president of the USA. He gets ribbed on a little bit but he is doing fine.

Description : On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being "complete BS" and 10 being "divine wisdom", how would you rate the following statement?

Last Answer : 42

Description : Is there even such a thing as "the outside"?

Last Answer : I think there is, as long as you are inside. Or, outside is the new inside.

Description : What view do you have in regard to the following statement?

Last Answer : I believe it to be true. I have built many emotional barriers over the years to keep me from being hurt but the do tend to keep me separated from others, even family members. I come off ... sadness or uncomfortable emotions . So yes, walls work both ways keeping things out;and keeping things in.

Description : What are some instances or situations that support the idea of moral relativism?

Last Answer : The modern abhorrence of slavery as fundamentally immoral, versus the biblical and divine endorsement of slavery. Any time someone brings up the “it was a different time” excuse, when past cultures’ moral failings are judged.

Description : In your opinion is Thomas Aquinas the greatest theologian of all time with his classic work Summa Theologica ?

Last Answer : That's what I've been told. But interposed between Aquinas and the trophy looms the formidable Augustine. I have soaked up just enough of the musings of both to understand that I will never be ... folks who know about such things that when it comes to theological gunslinging, Maimonedes is one BMF.

Description : What do you think about this video as an argument against determinism?

Last Answer : As I understand it, Determinism is the belief that all events are caused, or acted upon, by prior events. Nothing happens without cause. I think that the video posits an argument for Indeterminism; that is ... are not caused by prior events and that may, or may not, have effect on future events.

Description : Is it true that the more you know the less certain you are?

Last Answer : It would appear to be true for you.

Description : What's the difference between illusion, delusion, and hallucination?

Last Answer : Without looking the words up, here is my take on them. Illusions are things that appear to be different from what they are. Optical illusions are an example. A delusion is something we ... reality. A hallucination is something that we imagine perceiving with our senses that is not really there.

Description : Do the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few?

Last Answer : Only on paper and in video games. In real life we are all important.

Description : Do you think it’s unusual for someone to understand complex and abstract philosophical ideas but still have a learning disability in math?

Last Answer : Math is built on logic and on itself. Most students fail at math when they fall behind and try to do math without the more fundimental math. Then most give up. Also the Matrix was alluding to ... math, because the class was too perfect. No unknowns for fun answers are in the back of the textbook

Description : Why was Nietzsche's last book called "Ecce Homo"?

Last Answer : Ecce Homo means “behold the man” and the book is a kind of autobiography so it makes sense though it sounds a bit pretentious.

Description : Do you wish to be someone else?

Last Answer : No.

Description : What could "transcendental rationalism" be?

Last Answer : Disclaimer: The words transcendental and rationalism have been used in a variety of ways both within and without the Western philosophical tradition. I will be limiting myself to the parts of the ... words, it's a form of rationalism that builds itself on the notion of transcendental reasoning.

Description : Transported to a previously thought fictional world, with foreknowledge and superior powers, do you feel dutybound to help the protagonist fulfill their quest, or do you feel that you must stay out of the protagonist's story?

Last Answer : The only moral response is “defeat the demon king on your own immediately, saving a sizeable number of people in the process,. Anything less would be immoral. Morality is more important than somebody’s chance to be a hero. They can go be a hero somewhere else.

Description : Do you follow 'Carpe Diem' philosophy in your life?

Last Answer : No I’m scared of having more life ‘happen” to me.

Description : How do people learn how to point out fallacies in debates?

Last Answer : Where I went to school (UC Santa Barbara), Philosophy 3 was Critical Thinking. It was a course just as you describe: logical fallacies and how to spot them. Those types of courses are common at most Liberal Arts colleges. And, some of the better high schools teach it also.

Description : Is what one values dependent on personal gain?

Last Answer : ~I heard another similar catch phrase. That a man is only as loyal as his options.

Description : What is your opinion on the validity, of a polygraph(lie detector) test?

Last Answer : Not worth it’s weight in peanut butter. As reliable as a ouija board. There are too many people who can fool a polygraph. That is why it is inadmissible in court.

Description : Are prison systems a catalyst for poor race relations? (Details)

Last Answer : I think poor race relations predate any prison/criminal outcomes.

Description : Do roaches have life figured out? (Details)

Last Answer : Whatever you’ve been drinking, smoking, and/or sniffing, I want some. LOL To answer the question, roaches may have something up in their antennae, who knows?

Description : How much wood could Chuck Norris chuck, if Chuck Norris wanted to chuck wood?

Last Answer : Is he awake or asleep?

Description : What do you think of this analogy? (Details)

Last Answer : Men are like pigs.

Description : Does "Right" and "Just" (justified / Justice served) equate?

Last Answer : I suppose it’s all relative. I mean there’s jaywalking or the Wall st mortgage fraud that nearly collapsed the world economy.

Description : What exactly is nihilism?

Last Answer : answer:Nihilism itself is a type of thinking that can be applied in many different ways. It's not just one specific system of belief that is applied in specific ways or to the same degree ... developing the habit of noticing one's own value judgements and looking instead to the needs behind them.

Description : Can one list philosophical questions that have been answered?

Last Answer : answer:If what you are what you eat…am I a can of soup? My husband is impotent…since spreading one genes is why we are on this planet….would sleeping with a relative to have a baby be OK? You and your family are starving…would you risk your life to steal a salmon from a bear

Description : Shouldn't my rent be cheaper in February?

Last Answer : Beware. You might give your landlord the idea that he deserves to be paid every thirty days, or that he might demand five days extra rent at the end of the year.

Description : Is it Goethe's word on The Beautiful and Good?

Last Answer : It seems Goethe did say this as Thomas Carlyle quotes it in Selections from Carlyle. He doesn’t say where it comes from though. Maybe someone who speaks German can help?

Description : Do aliens steal? (Details )

Last Answer : answer:…yes,....no….maybe? I think that, if aliens are advanced as us, they don’t need to steal. We don’t need to steal either, after all. If they do steal, it would probably be out of necessity or kleptomania, just like us. I may be looking at the whole thing from human’s perspective.

Description : Could there be lifeforms in open space? (Details )

Last Answer : answer:Yes! In a controlled experiment a crew of ISS exposed Tardigrades to the vacuum and temperature of space - and the critters survived! Tardigrades are notable for being the most resilient animal: they can survive ... °F; −272 °C) (close to absolute zero) to about 420 K (300 °F; 150 °C)

Description : What do you think about Texas' new abortion rules? (Details )

Last Answer : “I believe it is imperative to establish higher standards that reflect our respect for the sanctity of life,” he said in the email, from the state that looks for any way it can to increase the rate of state executions.