Down a rabbit hole with predators and a philosopher

This paper seems meant to raise questions. Likely it does: “Painlessly Killing Predators,” Ben Bramble [pictured here], Journal of Applied Philosophy, epub 2020. (Thanks to Achim Reisdorf for bringing this to our attention.) The author explains: “Animals suffer harms not only in human captivity but in the wild as well. Some of these latter harms are […]

Drunk philosophers, studied in a bar in France

Ig Nobel Prize winner Laurent Bègue and colleague Aaron Duke have a new study about the effect of drunkenness on philosophy. The study is: “The drunk utilitarian: Blood alcohol concentration predicts utilitarian responses in moral dilemmas,” Aaron A. Duke and Laurent Bègue, Cognition, 134 (2015): 121-127. The 2013 Ig Nobel Prize for psychology was awarded to Laurent […]

Holes in donuts – the philosophical implications (part 2)

In 2001, professor Achille C. Varzi, of Columbia University, New York, very probably became the first philosopher to author a paper focusing specifically on the ramifications of holes in donuts (that’s ‘doughnuts’ in the UK), as we reported. But the paper wasn’t, in the literal sense, the last word on donut holes. In 2012 the subject […]

Holes in doughnuts – the philosophical implications (part 1)

Achille C. Varzi, who is Professor of Philosophy at Columbia University, New York, is interested in the philosophical implications of holes and voids, prompting a unique investigation into a special subset of hole-bearing entities – namely doughnuts (that’s ‘donuts’ US). “A doughnut always comes with a hole. If you think you can come up with […]

Two John Perrys, different initials

One letter, especially if it’s a middle initial of a person’s name, can make a difference. Consider the case of two John Perrys. John R. Perry is a professor of philosophy, who among many other things devised the Theory of Structured Procrastination, for which he was awarded the 2011 Ig Nobel Prize in literature. John […]