Philosophy News https://philosophynews.com/ Think About It Wed, 02 Sep 2026 02:12:50 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.1 /wp-content/uploads/2022/02/cropped-image_bg_512x512-32x32.png Philosophy News https://philosophynews.com/ 32 32 philosophybits: “There are no whole truths; all truths are half-truths. It is trying to treat them… https://philosophynews.com/philosophybitsthere-are-no-whole-truths-all-truths-are-half-truths-it-is-trying-to-treat-them/ Wed, 02 Sep 2026 02:12:50 +0000 https://philosophynews.com/philosophybitsthere-are-no-whole-truths-all-truths-are-half-truths-it-is-trying-to-treat-them/ philosophybits:

“There are no whole truths; all truths are half-truths. It is trying to treat them as whole truths that plays the devil.” — Alfred North Whitehead, Dialogues

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]]> I’ve Used AI for 7,000 Hours. Why Does It Still Feel Like I Don’t Understand It? https://philosophynews.com/ive-used-ai-for-7000-hours-why-does-it-still-feel-like-i-dont-understand-it/ Wed, 02 Sep 2026 01:31:29 +0000 https://philosophynews.com/ive-used-ai-for-7000-hours-why-does-it-still-feel-like-i-dont-understand-it/ Whether you’ve used AI for 4 years, or 4 months, there is a frustration that comes when you’re working on a task that you’ve done quite possibly 100 times. You set up a great prompt, and hit enter. What comes back is…. well less than spectacular. In fact, even though it looks impressive, it’s completely […]

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]]> Sumerian tablets, Soviet cybernetics, Google server banks — human history can be seen via our ever more elaborate data apparatuses  https://philosophynews.com/sumerian-tablets-soviet-cybernetics-google-server-banks-human-history-can-be-seen-via-our-ever-more-elaborate-data-apparatuses/ Wed, 02 Sep 2026 00:25:07 +0000 https://philosophynews.com/sumerian-tablets-soviet-cybernetics-google-server-banks-human-history-can-be-seen-via-our-ever-more-elaborate-data-apparatuses/ Sumerian tablets, Soviet cybernetics, Google server banks — human history can be seen via our ever more elaborate data apparatuses 

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]]> Broke and in search of a sinecure, Edgar Allan Poe went to Washington in 1843 to try to meet the president’s son. A fiasco ensued https://philosophynews.com/broke-and-in-search-of-a-sinecure-edgar-allan-poe-went-to-washington-in-1843-to-try-to-meet-the-presidents-son-a-fiasco-ensued/ Wed, 02 Sep 2026 00:25:06 +0000 https://philosophynews.com/broke-and-in-search-of-a-sinecure-edgar-allan-poe-went-to-washington-in-1843-to-try-to-meet-the-presidents-son-a-fiasco-ensued/ Broke and in search of a sinecure, Edgar Allan Poe went to Washington in 1843 to try to meet the president’s son. A fiasco ensued

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]]> Babitz bubbles, Renata revivals, Hardwick hurricanes: How NYRB Classics built its name by resurrecting old and overlooked novelists https://philosophynews.com/babitz-bubbles-renata-revivals-hardwick-hurricanes-how-nyrb-classics-built-its-name-by-resurrecting-old-and-overlooked-novelists/ Wed, 02 Sep 2026 00:25:06 +0000 https://philosophynews.com/babitz-bubbles-renata-revivals-hardwick-hurricanes-how-nyrb-classics-built-its-name-by-resurrecting-old-and-overlooked-novelists/ Babitz bubbles, Renata revivals, Hardwick hurricanes: How NYRB Classics built its name by resurrecting old and overlooked novelists

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]]> “But tell me, what good is there in this, here; you and I have come together … just now, and…” https://philosophynews.com/but-tell-me-what-good-is-there-in-this-here-you-and-i-have-come-together-just-now-and/ Tue, 01 Sep 2026 23:25:18 +0000 https://philosophynews.com/but-tell-me-what-good-is-there-in-this-here-you-and-i-have-come-together-just-now-and/ “But tell me, what good is there in this, here; you and I have come together … just now, and we didn’t utter a word to each other, and afterwards you started to scrutinise me like a savage and I you, also. Is that any way to love? Is that any way for a person to come together with another person? It’s an outrage, that’s what it is!” - Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Notes from Underground

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]]> As my awareness of self and world expands and deepens, I begin to better understand the sources and… https://philosophynews.com/as-my-awareness-of-self-and-world-expands-and-deepens-i-begin-to-better-understand-the-sources-and/ Tue, 01 Sep 2026 21:46:49 +0000 https://philosophynews.com/as-my-awareness-of-self-and-world-expands-and-deepens-i-begin-to-better-understand-the-sources-and/ suliqyre:As my awareness of self and world expands and deepens, I begin to better understand the sources and scope of my suffering. I gradually become more aware of the simple fact that much of my ordinary experience includes various forms of suffering.When the world seems to contradict and oppose me, I suffer from frustration or anger. When I compare my life to the lives of those who seem to be doing better than me, I suffer from envy. When memories of what I’ve lost spring to mind, I suffer from grief. When my present circumstances feel stagnant and hopeless, I suffer from despair. When I feel overwhelmed by demands and obligations, I suffer from stress. When the dangers of an uncertain future are approaching, I suffer from anxiety.As I look more carefully at the particular forms of suffering I experience, I also start to see how these forms depend on my attachments. This is frequently a distressing process, because it means coming to terms with the broad reach of suffering. Discovering that suffering arises merely from my way of life and the structure of the society in which I live can be painful.Read more…

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]]> philosophybits: “All of the core emotions that sustain a decent society have their roots in, or are… https://philosophynews.com/philosophybitsall-of-the-core-emotions-that-sustain-a-decent-society-have-their-roots-in-or-are/ Tue, 01 Sep 2026 20:36:43 +0000 https://philosophynews.com/philosophybitsall-of-the-core-emotions-that-sustain-a-decent-society-have-their-roots-in-or-are/ philosophybits:

“All of the core emotions that sustain a decent society have their roots in, or are forms of, love — by which I mean intense attachments to things outside the control of our will… Love is what gives respect for humanity its life, making it more than a shell.” — Martha Nussbaum, Political Emotions

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]]> thirdity: “Only humour – the splendid invention of those highly talented but unfortunate… https://philosophynews.com/thirdityonly-humour-the-splendid-invention-of-those-highly-talented-but-unfortunate/ Tue, 01 Sep 2026 17:48:40 +0000 https://philosophynews.com/thirdityonly-humour-the-splendid-invention-of-those-highly-talented-but-unfortunate/ thirdity:

“Only humour – the splendid invention of those highly talented but unfortunate individuals who are frustrated in the pursuit of the highest ideals, figures bordering on the tragic – only humour (possibly the most original and brilliant of humankind’s achievements) can accomplish the otherwise impossible feat of uniting all spheres of human life by bathing them in the iridescent light of its prisms. To live in the world as though it were not the world, to respect the law but to remain above it, to have possessions ‘as if not possessing’, to renounce things as though it were no renunciation: – all the things asked of us in such well-loved and frequently expressed words of wisdom can only be put into practice through humour.” — Hermann Hesse, Steppenwolf

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]]> Locke on Real Essence https://philosophynews.com/locke-on-real-essence/ Tue, 01 Sep 2026 17:14:09 +0000 https://philosophynews.com/locke-on-real-essence/ [Revised entry by Jan-Erik Jones on September 1, 2026. Changes to: Bibliography] The technical term ‘real essence’ is heavily utilized by the English philosopher John Locke (1632 – 1704) in his An Essay Concerning Human Understanding[1] (hereafter “Essay”) that was first published in London, in December of 1689. In order to understand a great many […]

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