Patterson in Pursuit

View Top 200 Chart

Back to Rankings Page

Philosophy
**Patterson in Pursuit**

Philosophy in the real world. Interviewing intellectuals across the globe. Grappling with the biggest ideas.

stevepatterson.substack.com

Latest Episodes:

Experts and Incompetence Mar 24, 2017

Show notes

Don't take my word for it, but the experts might not be so expert...

Get full access to Steve Patterson's Substack at stevepatterson.substack.com/subscribe

Ep. 49 - Is Consciousness "Emergent"? | Dr. David Braddon-Mitchell Mar 18, 2017

Show notes

Does consciousness "emerge" from physical phenomena? What does "emerge" even mean? If we grant that consciousness emerges, and that it has a distinct ontological status, doesn't that imply dualism?

To help me answer these questions, I spoke with Dr. Braddon-Mitchell at the University of Sydney.

Get full access to Steve Patterson's Substack at stevepatterson.substack.com/subscribe

My Experience with Christian Evangelicalism Mar 16, 2017

Show notes

I grew up in a Christian Evangelical household. This is my experience with religious fundamentalism.

Get full access to Steve Patterson's Substack at stevepatterson.substack.com/subscribe

Ep. 48 - Skepticism of Infinity in Mathematics | Dr. Norman Wildberger Mar 12, 2017

Show notes

Are the foundations of mathematics rock-solid? Are we allowed to doubt them? How central is the concept of "infinity" to modern mathematics - and has the logic of infinity been fully worked out?

To help me answer these questions, I've traveled to Sydney, Australia to interview an unorthodox mathematician on the topic.

Dr. Norman Wildberger is also skeptical of the modern foundations of mathematics - even though he's a teaching professor at the University of New South Wales - and he has a popular youtube channel where he's laying out new foundations for the field.

You can find his youtube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/njwildberger

Get full access to Steve Patterson's Substack at stevepatterson.substack.com/subscribe

Infinite Things Do Not Exist Mar 09, 2017

Show notes

There are no infinite things - no infinite sets, magnitudes, densities, shapes, distances, or anything else.

Every thing is exactly the way it is. It has boundaries and is therefore finite.

If this is true, then we have a great amount of work ahead of us, re-founding modern mathematics on a more solid logical ground.

Get full access to Steve Patterson's Substack at stevepatterson.substack.com/subscribe

Ep. 47 - Problems with Paraconsistent Logic | Interview Breakdown Mar 05, 2017

Show notes

Breakdown of the interview I had with Dr. Patrick Girard about paraconsistent logic. Nothing is both true and false at the same time. Any logical theory that suggests otherwise is catastrophically flawed.

There are no true logical contradictions, and if we get this wrong, we eliminate any chance of internal incoherence in our theories.
Get full access to Steve Patterson's Substack at stevepatterson.substack.com/subscribe

3 Steps for Changing a Paradigm Mar 03, 2017

Show notes

How to replace one theory with another. You must accomplish three things:

1) Explain where the dominant theory is wrong.
2) Explain why your theory solves the problem in #1, while preserving its explanatory power.
3) Explain why the incorrect theory still had predictive power.

Do those three, and you've made a compelling case for a paradigm shift.

Get full access to Steve Patterson's Substack at stevepatterson.substack.com/subscribe

Ep. 46 - Buddhism and Boundaries | Interview Breakdown Feb 26, 2017

Show notes

Are all boundaries artificial? Is "the self" a real thing, or is it just an illusion? Does anything have essence? These are the questions I'm breaking down from my interview with Dr. Janet Gyatso from Harvard.

Get full access to Steve Patterson's Substack at stevepatterson.substack.com/subscribe

A Requirement for True Love Feb 24, 2017

Show notes

This is the most personal article I've written. It's about love - but it's not meant to make you feel fuzzy.

I believe love is the highest state of human existence, but getting to a loving state of mind is incredibly hard, and it comes coupled with a great deal of pain.

Get full access to Steve Patterson's Substack at stevepatterson.substack.com/subscribe

Ep. 45 - Infinite Sets: Understanding the Basics | Dr. Gareth Feb 19, 2017

Show notes

Resting at the heart of modern mathematics is the concept of infinite sets. It's a notoriously difficult concept, and in my own evaluation, it strikes me as logically contradictory.

So, I accept an invitation to talk with an ex-mathematician who specializes in set theory - perhaps he can set me straight and help me understand the basic ways of thinking about these "completed infinities."

Get full access to Steve Patterson's Substack at stevepatterson.substack.com/subscribe

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected