Armchair Opinions

I completed a BA Philosophy (Lancaster) and MA Philosophy (Birmingham). I am due to speak on Plantinga and extended mind cognition, at the Tyndale Conference 2021. I have accepted a place on a Ph.D course starting in 2021, in the philosophy of science. My favourite philosophical idea is necessity de re (the necessity ‘about the thing’), which looks at whether things have essences (essentialism). It is surprising that in the 20th century, modal logic, which is the logic of necessity/possibility, has intellectually motivated two areas: God’s existence (with new modal ontological arguments) and human nature. Perhaps the two are connected!

Is nature inherently beautiful? Or is it beautiful only because there are humans to observe its beauty?

Thank you, Arjun Sambhi, for another great question. The natural world is undeniably beautiful. Aesthetically, we appraise majestic mountains as sublime, admire crepuscular rays from a crimson sunset, and appreciate the sound of waves crashing against the rocks. These features of nature are inherently beautiful. By ‘inherently beautiful’, I mean objectively beautiful, which is to […]

Is nature inherently beautiful? Or is it beautiful only because there are humans to observe its beauty? Read More

Is ignorance really bliss?

Thank you, Ramón Mansilla, for a great question! Let’s hope ignorance isn’t bliss, because here comes some knowledge… If someone were to call you ‘ignorant’, then you would usually take it as an insult – that is, if we regard ourselves rational agents who are epistemically responsible and see ignorance as a bad thing. By

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