
Jennifer Nagel: Why Universal Skepticism Is Philosophy's Greatest Deception
Theories of Everything with Curt Jaimungal
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Exploring Philosophy Through Short Introductions
This chapter explores the significance of the 'A Very Short Introduction' series in making philosophical literature approachable. The speakers discuss their favorite texts, the challenges authors face, and the role of metaphors in enhancing understanding of complex ideas.
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Philosopher Jennifer Nagel argues that universal skepticism is philosophy’s greatest deception, claiming that doubt is an illusion and knowledge is a primitive instant recognition. We explore the nature of knowledge, different forms of skepticism, the Gettier problem, and how these ideas relate to consciousness and free will.
- 00:00 - Introduction
- 01:28 - The Nature of Knowledge
- 10:58 - Philosophers and the Skeptical Mindset
- 16:57 - Types of Skepticism
- 22:27 - Exploring Knowledge Attribution
- 29:51 - The Illusion of Knowledge
- 34:16 - Knowing Without Knowing
- 38:10 - Writing About Knowledge
- 46:10 - Analyzing Knowledge
- 55:08 - The Gettier Problem and Its Challenges
- 1:01:10 - The Functionality of Knowledge
- 1:11:23 - Collaborative Understanding of Knowledge
- 2:10:00 - Understanding and Consciousness
- 2:26:32 - Truth and Its Nature
- 2:32:16 - Superposition and Contradictions
- 2:32:19 - Conclusion
SPONSORS:
- The Economist: 20% off discount https://www.economist.com/toe
- Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/SpotifyTOE
- YouTube Membership: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdWIQh9DGG6uhJk8eyIFl1w/join
- Patreon: https://patreon.com/curtjaimungal
RESOURCES:
- Knowledge: A Very Short Introduction (book): https://www.amazon.com/Knowledge-Very-Short-Introduction-Introductions/dp/019966126X
- Knowledge and its Limits (book): https://www.amazon.ca/Knowledge-its-Limits-Timothy-Williamson/dp/019925656X
- Very Short Introductions (series): https://www.google.com/search?q=a+very+short+introduction+to+series&sca_esv=3da4db664be6b3a1&ei=ypX6Z6flHsDniLMP2v2QkQk&ved=0ahUKEwin8oSB9tKMAxXAM2IAHdo-JJIQ4dUDCBA&uact=5&oq=a+very+short+introduction+to+series&gs_lp=Egxnd3Mtd2l6LXNlcnAiI2EgdmVyeSBzaG9ydCBpbnRyb2R1Y3Rpb24gdG8gc2VyaWVzMgUQABiABDILEAAYgAQYhgMYigUyCxAAGIAEGIYDGIoFMgsQABiABBiGAxiKBTIIEAAYogQYiQUyCBAAGIAEGKIEMggQABiABBiiBDIFEAAY7wVIqBRQxAtYwBBwAXgAkAEAmAFZoAGtAqoBATS4AQPIAQD4AQGYAgSgAocCwgIKEAAYsAMY1gQYR8ICDRAuGIAEGLADGEMYigXCAg0QABiABBiwAxhDGIoFwgIPEAAYgAQYQxiKBRhGGPsBwgIbEAAYgAQYQxiKBRhGGPsBGJcFGIwFGN0E2AEBwgIGEAAYBxgemAMAiAYBkAYKugYGCAEQARgTkgcBNKAHph6yBwEzuAf_AQ&sclient=gws-wiz-serp#wgvs=e
- Time: A Very Short Introduction (book): https://www.amazon.ca/Time-Short-Introduction-Jenann-Ismael/dp/0198832664
- Laplace meets Godel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZB3tS7j7nNU
- Flexible Goals (paper): https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/cogs.13195
- The Legend of the Justified True Belief Analysis (paper): https://philpapers.org/archive/DUTTLO-3.pdf
- Lay Denial of Knowledge for Justified True Beliefs (paper): https://philpapers.org/archive/NAGLDO
- TOE’s Consciousness Iceberg: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GDjnEiys98o
- Matt Segal on TOE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DeTm4fSXpbM
- Curt reads Plato’s Cave: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PurNlwnxwfY
- David Bentley Hart on TOE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NEAgVvW9i10
- Donald Hoffman on TOE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmieNQH7Q4w&t=1s
- Iain McGilchrist on TOE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-SgOwc6Pe4&t=6326s&ab_channel=CurtJaimungal
- Geoffrey Hinton on TOE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_DUft-BdIE
- John Vervaeke on TOE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVj1KYGyesI&t=1s
- Wolfgang Smith on TOE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vp18_L_y_30
- Polymath’s Ai panel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abzXzPBW4_s
- Donald Hoffman and Philip Goff on TOE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MmaIBxkqcT4
- Robert Sapolsky on TOE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0IqA1hYKY8&pp=ygUUY3VydCByb2JlcnQgc2Fwb2xza3k%3D
- Curt debunks the “all possible paths” myth: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XcY3ZtgYis0&t=46s
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/TOEwithCurt
- Discord Invite: https://discord.com/invite/kBcnfNVwqs
- 00:00 - Introduction
- 01:28 - The Nature of Knowledge
- 10:58 - Philosophers and the Skeptical Mindset
- 16:57 - Types of Skepticism
- 22:27 - Exploring Knowledge Attribution
- 29:51 - The Illusion of Knowledge
- 34:16 - Knowing Without Knowing
- 38:10 - Writing About Knowledge
- 46:10 - Analyzing Knowledge
- 55:08 - The Gettier Problem and Its Challenges
- 1:01:10 - The Functionality of Knowledge
- 1:11:23 - Collaborative Understanding of Knowledge
- 2:10:00 - Understanding and Consciousness
- 2:26:32 - Truth and Its Nature
- 2:32:16 - Superposition and Contradictions
- 2:32:19 - Conclusion
SPONSORS:
- The Economist: 20% off discount https://www.economist.com/toe
- Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/SpotifyTOE
- YouTube Membership: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdWIQh9DGG6uhJk8eyIFl1w/join
- Patreon: https://patreon.com/curtjaimungal
RESOURCES:
- Knowledge: A Very Short Introduction (book): https://www.amazon.com/Knowledge-Very-Short-Introduction-Introductions/dp/019966126X
- Knowledge and its Limits (book): https://www.amazon.ca/Knowledge-its-Limits-Timothy-Williamson/dp/019925656X
- Very Short Introductions (series): https://www.google.com/search?q=a+very+short+introduction+to+series&sca_esv=3da4db664be6b3a1&ei=ypX6Z6flHsDniLMP2v2QkQk&ved=0ahUKEwin8oSB9tKMAxXAM2IAHdo-JJIQ4dUDCBA&uact=5&oq=a+very+short+introduction+to+series&gs_lp=Egxnd3Mtd2l6LXNlcnAiI2EgdmVyeSBzaG9ydCBpbnRyb2R1Y3Rpb24gdG8gc2VyaWVzMgUQABiABDILEAAYgAQYhgMYigUyCxAAGIAEGIYDGIoFMgsQABiABBiGAxiKBTIIEAAYogQYiQUyCBAAGIAEGKIEMggQABiABBiiBDIFEAAY7wVIqBRQxAtYwBBwAXgAkAEAmAFZoAGtAqoBATS4AQPIAQD4AQGYAgSgAocCwgIKEAAYsAMY1gQYR8ICDRAuGIAEGLADGEMYigXCAg0QABiABBiwAxhDGIoFwgIPEAAYgAQYQxiKBRhGGPsBwgIbEAAYgAQYQxiKBRhGGPsBGJcFGIwFGN0E2AEBwgIGEAAYBxgemAMAiAYBkAYKugYGCAEQARgTkgcBNKAHph6yBwEzuAf_AQ&sclient=gws-wiz-serp#wgvs=e
- Time: A Very Short Introduction (book): https://www.amazon.ca/Time-Short-Introduction-Jenann-Ismael/dp/0198832664
- Laplace meets Godel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZB3tS7j7nNU
- Flexible Goals (paper): https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/cogs.13195
- The Legend of the Justified True Belief Analysis (paper): https://philpapers.org/archive/DUTTLO-3.pdf
- Lay Denial of Knowledge for Justified True Beliefs (paper): https://philpapers.org/archive/NAGLDO
- TOE’s Consciousness Iceberg: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GDjnEiys98o
- Matt Segal on TOE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DeTm4fSXpbM
- Curt reads Plato’s Cave: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PurNlwnxwfY
- David Bentley Hart on TOE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NEAgVvW9i10
- Donald Hoffman on TOE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmieNQH7Q4w&t=1s
- Iain McGilchrist on TOE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-SgOwc6Pe4&t=6326s&ab_channel=CurtJaimungal
- Geoffrey Hinton on TOE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_DUft-BdIE
- John Vervaeke on TOE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVj1KYGyesI&t=1s
- Wolfgang Smith on TOE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vp18_L_y_30
- Polymath’s Ai panel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abzXzPBW4_s
- Donald Hoffman and Philip Goff on TOE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MmaIBxkqcT4
- Robert Sapolsky on TOE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0IqA1hYKY8&pp=ygUUY3VydCByb2JlcnQgc2Fwb2xza3k%3D
- Curt debunks the “all possible paths” myth: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XcY3ZtgYis0&t=46s
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/TOEwithCurt
- Discord Invite: https://discord.com/invite/kBcnfNVwqs
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