Robert Wright's Nonzero

Unpacking the Dao De Jing's famous opening line, "The Dao that can be told is not the eternal Dao" ... "The way" as a descriptive and prescriptive moniker ... Rising above the perspective of the moment ... The relationship among Daoism, Confucianism, and Zen Buddhism ... Spirituality and transcendence in Daoism ... Robin's work as a consultant on The Karate Kid remake ... Why Robin's book uses "yinyang" instead of "yin and yang" ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe

David's new book, That All Shall Be Saved: Heaven, Hell, and Universal Salvation ... What does the New Testament actually say about Hell? ... Original sin and the crucifixion of Jesus ... David's case against eternal damnation ... Free will, sin, and freedom ... What did "the Kingdom of Heaven" mean to Jesus? ... David: Envisioning the afterlife "always results in a kind of cartoon" ... David's quick thoughts on the mind-body problem ... Mysticism in the Eastern Orthodox Church ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe

In a new TEDx talk, Alex calls for a science of UFOs ... Why Bob finds two naval sightings credible ... Alex: "There's some decent chance that these things are alien" ... Alex's proposal for a UFO monitoring system ... Might it be suicidal to let ETs know that we know about them? ... Alex: Maybe the aliens are waiting for us to figure it out ... What explains the taboo against academic study of UFOs? ... Alex's willingness to be misperceived as a crank ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe

Skye and Massimo's new co-edited book, with Daniel Kaufman, How to Live a Good Life ... Existentialism's intersections with Stoicism ... How Skye encountered Existentialism while in business school ... Sartre and de Beauvoir's famous attempt to live a life of freedom ... Are philosophers a bunch of hypocrites? ... Personal authenticity vs. social convention ... Why Stoicism doesn’t mean passive acceptance ... Skye and Massimo on the philosophies they found most interesting ... How Wittgenstein would view this book ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe

Defining "moral realism" ... Cognitivists vs. noncognitivists ... Are moral beliefs just expressions of human desires? ... Human happiness is better than human suffering...right? ... Considering whether you can be both a Darwinian and a moral realist ... Moral progress, teleology, and mysticism ... Why you "have to take something for granted" in any philosophical system ... The bedrock sources of meaning in life ... If life has meaning, does moral realism logically follow? ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe

Rhonda's path to meditation and Buddhism ... Rhonda's new book, The Inner Work of Racial Justice ... Is equanimity the enemy of activism? ... Using mindfulness to overcome biases and stereotypes ... How Rhonda deploys contemplative practices in her law school classroom ... Can one feel compassion for a cop who shot an unarmed black man? ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe

Catherine's new book, How to Be an Epicurean ... How Epicureanism is like and unlike utilitarianism ... How the ancient Epicureans viewed nature and reality ... Comparing Epicureanism with its big rival, Stoicism ... On suffering and death ... Epicurean influence on post-Enlightenment science and philosophy ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe

Jay's new book, Enlightenment by Trial and Error ... Why Jay embarked on a path of mysticism ... Ayahuasca, unitive experiences, and bad trips ... Jews who are "religious but not spiritual" ... Finding “real happiness” through meditation ... Varieties of enlightening experience ... What’s distinctive about Jewish mysticism? ... The things Jay still takes from Judaism ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe

A new study says empathy can increase political polarization ... How empathy operates in today’s political environment ... Is cognitive empathy a form of intelligence? ... The Machiavellian uses of cognitive empathy ... A counterproductive #Resistance view of Trump supporters ... Paul doesn't understand how anyone can still support Trump ... Why "dehumanization" isn't the real problem ... Paul's core message: "Don't listen to your heart" ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe

Why Pope John Paul II did not like Roger's book Jesus Symbol of God ... Roger's new book, Faith and Evolution: Grace-Filled Naturalism ... The intractability of the problem of evil ... Ways to understand God not as a big person in the sky ... Is natural selection an instrument of divine creation? ... Roger's heterodox view of Jesus of Nazareth ... Roger's problem with original sin ... What is a "grace-filled naturalism"? ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe