1 - Haim Gaifman: Vagueness & the Sorites Paradox

Jonathan Shedler is Clinical Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the University of California, San Francisco and a faculty member at the San Francisco Center for Psychoanalysis. He is a psychologist and psychotherapist. In this episode, Robinson and Jonathan discuss the clinical side of psychoanalytic theory. They begin by describing just how different contemporary practice is from its beginnings with Freud a hundred years ago, before detailing how psychodynamic therapy compares to other forms of treatment for mental illness. Jonathan’s Website: https://jonathanshedler.com/ Jonathan’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/jonathanshedler OUTLINE 00:00 In This Episode… 00:36 Introduction 04:11 Disambiguating Psychoanalysis 16:22 What Is The Distinction Between Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy? 32:01 Free-Association and Transference in Psychotherapy 49:05 Dream Interpretation in Psychotherapy 59:37 The Five Psychodynamic Theories 01:07:36 Is Psychodynamic Therapy Effective? Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.

25 Aug 20231h 25min

Tal Ben-Shahar did his undergraduate and graduate work at Harvard, where he later lectured on positive psychology and taught the most popular course in the university’s history. He is now a speaker and writer who focuses on happiness. In this episode, Robinson and Tal discuss the field of Happiness Studies, which Tal has been developing for half a decade. They discuss the origin of happiness studies with Aristotle before moving on to how various academic disciplines like philosophy, neuroscience, psychology, and anthropology can teach us about happiness in different ways. They finish with some practical insight on how to improve one’s quality of life. Tal’s Website: https://talbenshahar.com/ Tal’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/TalBenShahar OUTLINE 00:00 In This Episode… 00:50 Introduction 02:43 Tal and Happiness Studies 10:26 Aristotle and the Beginning of Happiness Studies 14:02 What is Happiness? 28:58 Different Approaches to Happiness 37:00 What Can Anthropology Teach Us About Happiness? 46:29 Capitalism, Communism, and Happiness 53:04 Advice for Being Happy Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.

23 Aug 20231h 6min

Donald Hoffman is Professor in the Department of Cognitive Sciences at the University of California, Irvine, where he also has joint appointments in the Department of Philosophy, the Department of Logic and Philosophy of Science, and the School of Computer Science. Don has worked on a number of problems in his career, including human facial attractiveness, the mind-body problem, the evolution of perception, and even vehicle lighting. In this episode, Robinson and Don discuss his latest book, The Case Against Reality, which argues that human perception did not evolve to see the world as it really is, but in fact what we perceive is a world of icons that, in analogy to a computer desktop, bears no resemblance to what is going on in the objective space beyond our senses. The Case Against Reality: https://a.co/d/9kxeOI8 OUTLINE 00:00 In This Episode… 00:19 Introduction 04:03 Why Don Thinks We Don’t Perceive Reality 07:55 Do We Interact with Reality Like an iPhone? 13:28 Vitalism and the Mystery of Consciousness 26:55 An Anecdote About Chomsky 30:00 Consciousness and Cutting the Brain in Half 41:20  Can Science Explain Consciousness? 49:15 How Beauty Disguises Reality 01:02:02 What is Veridical Perception? 01:10:13 The Battle Between Truth, Fitness, and Reality 01:31:16 Exploring the FBT Theorem 01:41:56 What is the Interface Theory of Perception? 01:47:10 Illusory Blue Jeans to Make Your Butt Look Good Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.

20 Aug 20231h 57min

Jeremi Suri holds the Mack Brown Distinguished Chair for Leadership in Global Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin, where he is Professor of History in the Department of History and the LBJ School of Public Affairs. Jeremi’s selection of topics in his work is sprawling, but he writes largely on modern and contemporary politics and foreign policy. In this episode, Robinson and Jeremi discuss the American presidency and how it has shifted over the past two hundred and fifty years to become an impossible position with impossible demands and expectations. Their conversation focuses on five presidents—George Washington, Andrew Jackson, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin Roosevelt, and John F. Kennedy—though they also touch on Barrack Obama, Donald Trump, and Joe Biden.  Jeremi’s Website: https://www.jeremisuri.net The Impossible Presidency: https://a.co/d/1mOgm7Q Civil War by Other Means: https://a.co/d/19i6Jq1 OUTLINE 00:00 In This Episode 01:02 Introduction 05:17 What Are the Historian’s Skills? 15:54 Jeremi’s Background 18:58 Did Washington and Trump Have the Same Job? 25:23 How to Measure the Success of a President? 35:11 What Made Washington Great? 55:40 Was Andrew Jackson Actually a Great President? 01:07:29 How Abraham Lincoln Doomed the Presidency 01:17:20 Theodore Roosevelt and Military Imperialism 01:26:38 Was Franklin Roosevelt the Last Great President? 01:37:38 Why Did JFK Fail as President?  01:42:19 What is Obama’s Legacy? 01:48:08 Was Donald Trump the End of the Presidency? 01:55:06 Jeremi’s Advice for a Future President Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.

18 Aug 20231h 58min

Clara Sousa-Silva is a professor of physics at Bard College, where she is a quantum astrochemist and molecular astrophysicist. The focus of Clara’s work is on investigating the interaction of particular molecules with light so that they can be detected on exoplanets, where, in addition to giving us atmospheric information, these chemicals may indicate the existence of life. In this episode, Robinson and Clara discuss her research on a specific molecule—phosphine—which may play a key role in identifying planets that are home to aliens, including some that may be very close to earth. Clara’s Website: https://clarasousasilva.com Clara’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/DrPhosphine OUTLINE 00:00 In This Episode… 01:15 Introduction 03:46 Clara’s Interest in Astrophysics 14:08 What Is Phosphine? 27:15 A Stinky Gas and the Search for Aliens 38:37 Have We Encountered Aliens? 45:33 Aliens and Phosphine 50:46 The Daily Work of a Quantum Astrophysicist and Astrobiologist 01:00:36 Are There Aliens on Venus? 01:19:26 Finding Life Outside the Solar System Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.

16 Aug 20231h 26min

Richard Wolff is Professor Emeritus of Economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a visiting professor at The New School, where he works on economics in the Marxist tradition. In this episode, Robinson and Richard discuss his criticisms of capitalism. They begin with why mainstream economists dismiss Marx and then move on to the basics of economics, the problems of our capitalist system, and the myriad social issues we face today. Richard’s Website: https://www.rdwolff.com Economic Update: https://www.democracyatwork.info/economicupdate The Sickness is the System: https://a.co/d/jf5w5wy OUTLINE 00:00 In This Episode… 00:26 Introduction 02:41 Why Do Economists Ignore Marx? 15:34 What is Economics? 22:50 Capitalism and What’s Wrong With It 56:12 What Are the Main Problems of Capitalism? 01:03:14  Psychoanalysis and Marxism 01:08:25 The Microproblems of Capitalism 01:18:57 The Social Consequences of Capitalism Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.

13 Aug 20231h 32min

Michael Strevens is Professor of Philosophy at New York University, where he works across the philosophy of science and the philosophical applications of cognitive science. In this episode, Robinson and Michael talk about his recent book, The Knowledge Machine, which explores how irrationality shaped the Scientific Revolution. Along the way, they discuss the great debate over the nature of the scientific method—including appearances from Karl Popper and Thomas Kuhn—how explanations function in science, and what roles religion, aesthetics, and other factors distinct from concrete evidence should play in scientific thought. Michael’s Website: http://www.strevens.org The Knowledge Machine: https://a.co/d/0hmHDCm OUTLINE 00:00 In This Episode… 00:51 Introduction 03:42 The Knowledge Machine 14:23 What is the Scientific Method? 21:28 Kuhn and the Scientific Method 30:41 Sociology and the Scientific Method 32:40 Reasoning, Evidence, and Prejudice 47:30 The Iron Rule of Explanation 57:09 The Irrationality of Scientific Thought 01:03:57 Newton, Bacon, and the Scientific Revolution 01:12:13 An Attack on Science? Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.

11 Aug 20231h 21min

Bas van Fraassen is the McCosh Professor of Philosophy Emeritus at Princeton University and a Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at San Francisco State University. In addition to being one of the most recognized philosophers of science working today—he received the Philosophy of Science Association’s inaugural Hempel Award—he has also worked in epistemology and logic. In this episode, Bas and Robinson discuss a major shift in the philosophy of science in the second half of the twentieth century from the view of the logical positivists, who had a formal, mathematical approach, to philosophers who adopted the semantic approach, which more closely aligned with how working scientists viewed and experienced the field. Some other issues touched on include scientific realism, Thomas Kuhn and The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, and interpretations of quantum mechanics. OUTLINE 00:00 In This Episode… 00:51 Introduction 03:47 An Interest in the Philosophy of Science 06:44 Logical Positivism 19:56 What is Scientific Realism? 30:56 Kuhn and The Structure of Scientific Revolutions 39:13 The Semantic Approach  54:49 The Quantum Mechanics Interpretation Wars 01:08:12 Mathematical Models 01:12:31 Epistemology Robinson’s Website: ⁠http://robinsonerhardt.com⁠ Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.

9 Aug 20231h 26min