On Humans

Our mental lives are full of purpose and feeling. Yet the world is governed by laws of physics which seem to lack a sense of either purpose or feeling. So how do we explain consciousness in terms of matter? The problem of consciousness is at the forefront of many dialogues between philosophy and science. So how deep is it?Dr Bernardo Kastrup argues that it is very deep indeed. Or rather, it is a pseudo-problem that arises from us attacking it incorrectly. Kastrup's argument is as surprising as it is simple. He claims that we should never have tried to explain consciousness in terms of matter.  After all, the only thing we really know is that consciousness exists. "Matter" is but a concept we create to explain some aspects of our empirical experiences. So we should take consciousness as the starting point. What follows is a radical reimagining of much of common philosophical sense. It can feel challenging and mind-bending. Maybe it is the wrong path. But it is a path that for too long has been neglected as an unscientific option at the fringes of rational sanity. Kastrup is well-positioned to defend this "idealist" position with scientific rigour. Before becoming a professional philosopher he worked as a computer scientist at CERN - the world’s leading research institute in fundamental physics. Kastrup is pro-science and pro-empiricism. But he believes that to be genuinely empirical, we have to accept that all we ever know about the world is how the world looks, feels, or appears. It is here that our theory of everything should start from.Dr Kastrup and Ilari discuss topics such as: What is metaphysical materialism? Why materialism was historically useful? Why materialism is not nearly as intuitive as it sounds like? The hard problem of consciousness Is materialism compatible with quantum physics? Is materialism compatible with neuroscience of altered states (e.g. psychedelics)? Making sense of idealism  Idealism does not mean that the world is all “my” imagining (cf. Berkeley) Does the world have a Will? (cf Schopenhauer) What about neutral monism (often associated with so-called “panpsychism”)? Why the world is meaningful (according to idealism) Why rocks and lakes are not conscious (even according to idealism) Is there anything special about human consciousness?Technical terms Metaphysical materialism and physicalism (treated here as synonyms) Idealism (in metaphysics) Dualism (in metaphysics) The hard problem of consciousness Occam’s razor (“make your theory as simple as possible”) Einstein’s razor (“make your theory as simple as possible, but not simpler”) Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID, previously known as Dissociative Personality Disorder)Work mentioned You can find links to all mentioned work and more on Kastrup's columns on DID, psychedelics, and fundamental physics, published by the Scientific American.

Social science paints a bleak picture of unprivileged life. Poverty is certainly treated as a social problem - as a harsh condition to live in. But it is also painted as a condition which blunts humanity's capacity for altruism and virtue. Jacqueline Mattis is a psychologist who has studied altruism and prosociality in deeply deprived areas, such as  majority African-American inner-city housing projects. Her work demonstrates that altruism does not vanish amongst those who struggle for survival. No, living in racialised poverty is not fun. But yes, people are still doing beautiful things daily. And they might even do so more often than in more privileged areas.Dr Mattis and Ilari discuss topics, such as: Is altruism unattainable for those without food and safety? Everyday altruism in poor areas Altruism amongst the homeless The psychological impact of catastrophes Is poverty linked to anti-social behaviour? The difficult dilemma of improving policing for African-Americans Religion and spirituality: dangerous, trivial, or important? The concept of graceNames mentioned Abraham Maslow (humanistic psychologist, famous for his "hierarchy of needs") Vitkrol Frankl (holocaust survivor, author of Man's Search For Meaning) Ta-Nehisi Coates (author of Between the World and Me) Rebecca Solnit (author of A Paradise Built in Hell) Rutger Bregman (author of Humankind) Stanley Milgram & Philip Zimbardo (founding figures in social psychology)  Batja Mesquita (author of Between Us: How Culture Shapes Emotion) Christine McWayne Get in touch Email: makela.ilari@outlook.com

Why do we care about equality? Is it an invention of the European Enlightenment? Or is it something rooted in human nature? If so, why does equality require constant fighting for?Elizabeth Anderson is a philosopher at the University of Michigan. She is one of the essential egalitarian theorists of our times. Her essay What's the Point of Equality is one of the must-reads of the contemporary philosophy of political equality. And her recent essay on the history of equality and social justice is a tour-de-force on using the long view of history to shed light on our contemporary condition. In this episode, Prof Anderson talks with Ilari about topics such as: Are humans a naturally egalitarian species? Can human nature explain the logic of social justice movements? The ancient roots of democracy (beyond Athens) How Native American critique of European society shaped the French EnlightenmentThe conversation then turns to the question of modernity. The 2nd half touches upon topics from 19th Century utopian communes to 20th Century Marxism, including: Challenges with anarchism, communalism, and Marxism. Is social democracy the answer? Are social benefits about pitying the poor? Are taxes on the rich about envying the rich? Economic equality versus other forms of equalityNames and work mentioned Christopher Boehm (author of Hierarchy in the Forest) David Graeber & David Wengrow (authors of Dawn of Everything) Kent Flannery & Joyce Marcus (authors of The Creation of Inequality) David Stasavage (author of The Decline and Rise of Democracy) Adam Smith (18th Century Scottish philosopher) Nathaniel Hawthorne & Louisa May Alcott (19th Century American authors) Thomas Piketty (author of Capital & Ideology, A Brief History of Equality, and Capital in the 21st Century) Väinö Linna (author of Under The North Star) Isabel Ferrares (author of Firms as Political Entities) John Rawls (20th Century American philosopher) Jean-Jacques Rousseau (18th Century Swiss philosopher)

Vivek V. Venkataraman, a hunter-gatherer expert and author, dives into the nuances of our ancestral past. He challenges popular myths from books like Sapiens and Dawn of Everything, shedding light on the diversity of hunter-gatherer lifestyles. Sharing his experiences with the Batek community, he discusses their egalitarian structures and the impact of agriculture on health and society. Venkataraman explores the complexities of early human cooperation, conflict, and the role of archaeology in understanding social dynamics, offering a fresh perspective on human origins.

Wealth on planet Earth is not evenly distributed. Indeed, our country of birth predicts a huge amount of our access to food and technology. Although such differences have always existed, they have become dramatically accentuated in the past two centuries. During the early 1800s, the average income of a person living in the richest region of the world was 3 times higher than that of a person living in the poorest region. Today, it is 15 times, or even 100 times higher.*To understand the human condition today, we have to understand our economic geography. This is the theme of the 2nd part of Oded Galor’s remarkable book, Journey of Humanity (see also episode 12). In this 2nd episode on Journey of Humanity, Ilari and Professor Galor discuss topics such as: The deep impact of colonialism Could Europe have industrialised without oppressing the rest of the world? Why are some colonial "spinoffs" rich (e.g. the US) and others are not (e.g. Brazil)? Political institutions (e.g. capitalism, liberal democracy), especially the differences between inclusive vs extractive institutions How the Black Death transformed Europe. How cultural norms are shaped by geography (e.g. the quality of the soil) The costs and benefits of a diverse societyThe conversation also explores: How to use this historical outlook to build a better future: solutions for low- and middle-income countries. What to do about the current inequalities within nations? Will we survive the 21st century?Technical terms Malthusian trap (where increases in wealth are “eaten away” by increases in population size) Human capital (i.e. investment in the skills of the population) Extractive vs inclusive institutions (terms popularised in economics by the work of Daron Acemoglu and James Robinson in Why Nations Fail) Glorious Revolution and the Bill of Rights in England (1688) The middle-income trap (based on the observation that only 14 countries have been able to go from "middle-income" to "high-income" status since 1960. In 2019, these were dominated by the East Asian economies of Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, but joined by Chile, Cyprus, Greece, Ireland, Malaysia, Malta, Portugal, Seychelles, and Spain [e.g. Lee 2019])Names Kenneth Pomerantz (author of The Great Divergence) James II of England, Louis XIV of France, William of Orange Karl Marx Thomas PikettyGet in touch Feedback? Guest suggestions? Just want to say "hi"? It would be great to hear from you! Feel free to drop a casual line anytime to makela dot ilari at outlook dot com.* The exact number depends on how we define an "area". The estimates are from Journey of Humanity and are discussed in episode 12.

Oded Galor, an esteemed economist known for his insights into economic history, dives into humanity's journey towards wealth and inequality. He explores the puzzling stagnation before the recent wealth boom and reflects on whether agriculture was indeed humanity's worst mistake. The conversation touches on how education played a pivotal role in escaping the Malthusian trap and the transformational impact of the Industrial Revolution in shaping economic standards. Galor's perspectives challenge traditional narratives and shed light on the roots of today's economic disparities.

Ilari is taking some time off for Christmas and New Year. Instead of new episodes, this holiday season features some highlights from this fall's conversations. This highlight revisits episode 1, where Ilari and Patricia Churchland discuss free will and neurophilosophy. For links and references, see the original episode.

Ilari is taking some time off for Christmas and New Year. Instead of new episodes, this holiday season features some highlights from this fall's conversations. This highlight revisits episode 3, where Ruth Feldman explores the tricky relationship between the neurobiology of love and xenophobia. The discussion also touches upon early attachment as a source of our capacity to bond with others.  This discussion includes studies on building relationships between Israeli and Palestinian youth, as well as studies on the capacity of fathers, including gay fathers, in providing equal care as primary caregivers. For links and references, see the original episode.

Ilari is taking some time off for Christmas and New Year. Instead of new episodes, this holiday season features some highlights from this fall's conversations. This highlight revisits episode 2, where Philip Kitcher explores the relationship between secular humanism and religion. For links and references, see the original episode. 

Why do we love? And how much does our culture shape the way we do so?In this episode, Ilari talks with Helen Fisher about the powers that drive and shape our romantic relationships. Ilari and Professor Fisher discuss: Is romantic love a modern invention? Is monogamy a social invention?  Do men care more about sex? Do women care more about romance? Why agriculture, especially with the plough, caused havoc in romantic relationships. Why divorces might be on the decline. A science-based guide for maintaining romantic relations (based on couples who are still in love after 25 years) Why (certain) antidepressants can kill the sex drive and blunt romantic love (to read more, see the end of the notes) How common is polygamy or polyandry? Where in the world do we find most "free love"? Why did homosexuality evolve?Names mentioned Irenäus Eibl-Eibesfeldt (as recounted by Alison Gopnik in her The Gardener and the Carpenter) Bill Jankowiak Robert Sternberg (see episode 7) Anderson Thompson Bertrand Russell Technical terms and ethnic groups mentioned Ventral tegmental area VTA Hypothalamus Dopamine, testosterone, oxytocin, vasopressin, serotonine Monogamy (serial or lifelong; social or biological) Polygamy (several wives) and polyandry (several husbands)  Tlingit (the polyandrous Inuit society with wealthy women) Oneida community (in New York State)Dig DeeperAntidepressants: To read more about the possible effects of SSRIs on sex drive and romantic love, see Tocco and Brumbaugh (2019). Below is a list of possible alternatives or complements to SSRIs (please consult with your doctor in all matters related to pharmaceuticals): Fisher herself suggested that SNRIs could be less risky than SSRIs. Theoretically, dopamine reuptake inhibitors, such as bupropion, could also counter the risks associated with SSRIs (for a review, see Zisook et al. 2006). For alternative or complementary oral treatments of depression, see research on supplementation with a high dosage of Omega 3 (EPA and DHA, not ALA) (for a review, see Bhat & Ara 2015).Polyamory: In the episode, Professor Fisher suggests that many Amazonian tribes have informal polyandry, i.e. women have many partners, albeit only one formal husband. However, there are non-academic sources suggesting that formalised polyandry is common in the Zo’é community in Amazon. For some of these photos of Zo’é and other Amazonian tribes, many of whom exhibit remarkably liberal attitudes to sex, see the recent Amazonia exhibition in the London Science Museum.