epistemology

Aristotle’s Method of Scientific Investigation by Gregory Salmieri

January 26, 2024 arilive_user 1:30:11 0 Comments

This lesson explains Aristotle’s method of scientific investigation, focusing on Aristotle’s logical works—especially the Posterior Analytics. Salmieri discusses Aristotle’s view of the kinds of questions we seek to answer when we investigate; for example, the nature of definitions and their relationship to scientific demonstrations, and the formation of new concepts.

This course includes a handout: https://courses.aynrand.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Greg_Salmieri-Aristotles_Theory_of_Knowledge.pdf

Lesson 3 of 3 in “Aristotle’s Theory of Knowledge”

Aristotle’s Theory of Universals by Gregory Salmieri

January 19, 2024 arilive_user 1:31:14 0 Comments

In this lesson, Salmieri explains Aristotle’s theory of universals and how that theory makes possible scientific understanding (epistēmē) of this world based on sense-perception. The lesson explains that universal knowledge, for Aristotle, is a power to know particulars as falling under kinds. Salmieri concludes with a discussion of a famous chapter of the Posterior Analytics, in which Aristotle uses a battlefield metaphor to explain how we grasp universals.

This course includes a handout: https://courses.aynrand.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Greg_Salmieri-Aristotles_Theory_of_Knowledge.pdf

Lesson 2 of 3 in “Aristotle’s Theory of Knowledge”

Aristotle on the Different Types of Knowledge by Gregory Salmieri

January 12, 2024 arilive_user 1:29:40 0 Comments

In this lesson, Salmieri discusses Aristotle’s view of the types and degrees of knowledge. In particular, he explains what is distinctive about the type of knowledge that Aristotle calls epistēmē (scientific understanding) and relates it to Objectivism’s view of the importance of thinking in principle. He also introduces Aristotle’s concept of technē (art, craft or skill) and explains why Aristotle regards both technē and epistēmē as superior to mere experience.

This course includes a handout: https://courses.aynrand.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Greg_Salmieri-Aristotles_Theory_of_Knowledge.pdf

Lesson 1 of 3 in “Aristotle’s Theory of Knowledge”

Moral Cognition: Telling Right from Wrong by Gregory Salmieri

October 31, 2023 arilive_user 1:29:40 0 Comments

What is the relationship between abstract moral principles (such as those that make up the Objectivist ethics) and the ability of people who do not (yet) grasp these principles to tell right from wrong? To what extent (and in what ways) can someone who doesn’t understand why something is good (or bad) know that it is good (or bad)? In this talk, Dr. Salmieri will address these questions and some of their implications for moral education, intellectual activism, and assessing ideological movements.

Recorded at OCON 2023 in Miami, Florida.

Reason and Faith — Their Methods, Their Consequences, Their Relationship by Tara Smith

July 7, 2023 arilive_user 41:53 0 Comments

This lecture clarifies the basic nature of reason and of faith. It explains the superiority of reason by highlighting its role in the acquisition of knowledge and the advance of human progress. Finally, it explores the prospects for reconciling reason with faith, finding that any attempts to partner the two serve only to destroy the benefits of reason.

Recorded live at Ayn Rand Con Europe 2023

The Inductive Origins of Darwins Origin by James Lennox

February 22, 2023 arilive_user 1:30:05 0 Comments

Charles Darwin was far from the first person to defend the idea that new species originate by a natural evolutionary process. Between 1750 and 1850 the idea had many defenders, including his grandfather. Why did Charles Darwin succeed in convincing his fellow naturalists, when many before him had failed? Based on a decades-long study of his private notebooks and correspondence, this lecture by James Lennox will describe the inductive method that lies behind Darwin’s brilliant presentation of the theory of evolution by natural selection presented in On the Origin of Species.

Recorded live on July 3, 2022 as part of the Objectivist Summer Conference.

Judging Viewpoints by Their Fundamentals by Peter Schwartz

February 15, 2023 arilive_user 1:29:44 0 Comments

How do we judge viewpoints — political movements, ideologies, philosophies — that seem to contain mixtures of good and bad ideas? How do we determine whether any specific element of a broader framework is good or bad? This talk discusses a range of viewpoints, from environmentalism to religion to Black Lives Matter, and examines the means by which their concrete positions should be assessed. It explains how to identify the fundamental of any systematic viewpoint, and how that must shape our judgment of those concrete positions.

Recorded live on July 7, 2022 as part of the Objectivist Summer Conference.

Frege’s Logic: Revolution or Devolution? by Mike Mazza

January 4, 2023 arilive_user 1:00:57 0 Comments

The most significant figure in the history of logic after Aristotle is 19th-century German philosopher Gottlob Frege. Frege’s work in logic and philosophy is foundational to the “analytic” tradition in philosophy and has had a strong influence on mathematics and computer science. This lecture discusses his revolution in logic and critiques its philosophical foundations.

Recorded live on July 6, 2022 as part of the Objectivist Summer Conference.

Tertullian and Thomas Aquinas by Robert Mayhew

September 28, 2022 arilive_user 1:01:14 0 Comments

Tertullian (ca. 160–220) and Thomas Aquinas (13th century) both defended faith as a justification for their Christian beliefs, but whereas Tertullian proudly defended faith even when it clashed with reason, Aquinas argued that there was a harmony between faith and reason — that the two could never clash. In this lecture, Dr. Mayhew will examine the views of each in detail and briefly discuss the continuing influence of their conceptions of faith and reason in the 21st century.

Reason Versus Faith and Emotionalism by Aaron Smith

June 22, 2022 arilive_user 43:07 0 Comments

At the root of Ayn Rand’s philosophy is the idea that reason is man’s basic tool of survival and only means of knowledge. What is reason? And why is it incompatible with faith? What are emotions and how do they relate to reason?

Recorded at AynRandCon – Europe in London on April 3, 2022.

Free Will by Onkar Ghate (ARC EU 2022)

June 15, 2022 arilive_user 32:52 0 Comments

One core premise of Ayn Rand’s philosophy is free will—the idea that you are not the deterministic product of your race or genes or tribal collective—but have a basic form of control over your thoughts and actions. What is Ayn Rand’s theory of free will and how does it provide the foundation for her radical new moral philosophy.

Recorded at AynRandCon – Europe in London on April 3, 2022.

How Tribalism Distorts Your Thinking by Nikos Sotirakopoulos

June 1, 2022 arilive_user 43:10 0 Comments

From politics to the “culture wars,” it is evident that tribalism has added to the toxicity of the public sphere. But there is one other field where tribalism, i.e., the viewing of the world through the prism of a group, can be even more insidious: in one’s own thinking. Nikos will talk about how tribalism can poison our mind, and discuss what the remedy is.

Recorded at AynRandCon – Europe in London on April 2, 2022.

Montessori and the Independent Mind with Matt Bateman, Catherine Dickerson, Allison Kunze, and Anne Locke Bussey

March 30, 2022 arilive_user 1:05:07 0 Comments

Ayn Rand, champion of the independent mind, championed Montessori education. Drawing on their experience with hundreds of individual young minds in Toddler, Primary and Elementary Montessori classrooms as well as home environments, this panel will explore Montessori’s emphasis on children’s independence in thought and action. Parents and those who work with children will get ideas for supporting their children’s independence.

Ayn Rand’s Intransigent Atheism by Robert Mayhew

December 29, 2021 arilive_user 1:29:28 0 Comments

Ayn Rand was not a crusader against theism, but a creator and defender of a rational philosophy for living on Earth. Every fundamental of her philosophy, however, has negative implications for theism and religious belief. This lecture examines the radical nature of her atheism, with special attention given to the idea of God, the arguments for God’s existence, and what Ayn Rand means in claiming “that nobody actually believes in God.” (Companion to Mayhew’s OCON 2014 lecture “Ayn Rand’s Sacred Atheism.”) Recorded live as part of The Objectivist Conference on August 30, 2021.

Being Objective About the News by Ben Bayer

November 17, 2021 arilive_user 01:32:20 0 Comments

In the 2016 election, there was widespread concern about “fake news” and media bias. This talk explores the guidance Objectivist epistemology offers for being an objective consumer of the news. How do the requirements of integration and reduction help guide one’s acceptance of the reports of others? How do we avoid uncritical reliance on the media without becoming skeptics of journalism as such? How do we avoid bias without abandoning concern for our values?

This talk is by Ben Bayer, fellow at the Ayn Rand Institute and former teacher of philosophy at Loyola University New Orleans. His research focuses primarily on questions about the foundations of knowledge and the freedom of the will. This talk was delivered on Monday, June 12, 2017, at Objectivist Summer Conference 2017 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Q&A Panel on Objectivism by Onkar Ghate, Elan Journo, Aaron Smith

February 17, 2021 arilive_user 1:10:52 0 Comments

Recorded live at Ayn Rand Conference Europe 2020

Reason Versus Faith and Emotionalism by Aaron Smith

February 10, 2021 arilive_user 52:57 0 Comments

Recorded live at Ayn Rand Conference Europe 2020

Free Will by Onkar Ghate

February 3, 2021 arilive_user 43:37 0 Comments

Recorded live at Ayn Rand Conference Europe 2020

Q&A Panel on Reason, Purpose and Self-Esteem with Yaron Brook, Onkar Ghate, Elan Journo, Aaron Smith

January 27, 2021 arilive_user 1:12:37 0 Comments

Recorded live at Ayn Rand Conference Europe 2020

Is Artistic Preference Subjective? by Harry Binswanger

December 18, 2019 arilive_user 1:01:26 0 Comments

At the turn of the millennium, two different polls were held. The question was: What’s the best English-language novel of the twentieth century? One poll questioned literary experts—they picked Ulysses by James Joyce. The second poll questioned internet users—their choice was Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand.

Is there any objective way to settle who is right? And is art (painting, sculpture, music, architecture) objective or subjective? Is beauty in the eye of the beholder?

Join Harry Binswanger as he presents Rand’s revolutionary answer to the question: What is art and what are the standards for judging art?

Do I Need a Philosophy? by Aaron Smith

December 4, 2019 arilive_user 1:01:13 0 Comments

Many people have at least heard of a few of history’s great philosophers. Names like Socrates, Plato, Aristotle—they ring a bell and maybe some of us have even taken a philosophy course in college or perhaps encountered books or podcasts that are espousing or offering some kind of philosophy of life—a philosophy for living.

But what exactly is a philosophy? What does it mean to have a philosophy and, more importantly, do you need a philosophy?

Join Aaron Smith to explore one of life’s big questions: Do I need a philosophy?

Is There a God? by Aaron Smith

October 23, 2019 arilive_user 1:02:00 0 Comments

The question of whether there is or is not a God is certainly one of life’s big questions, and it’s one that almost all of us have had to grapple with at some point in our lives. Many of us were raised in a religious environment but have come to have doubts or questions about whether God exists. For those of us who were raised in a nonreligious atmosphere, sometimes we come to wonder whether the religious have it right about God’s existence. But how do you answer the question? How do you approach the question if what you are aiming at, what you are trying to reach, is knowledge, genuine knowledge of what’s actually true. What methods do you use to answer the question, “Is there a God?”

Join Aaron Smith as he asks one of life’s big questions: Is there a God?

Is Free Will an Illusion? by Onkar Ghate

September 25, 2019 arilive_user 1:01:07 0 Comments

Is free will an illusion? Today, most people would answer yes. It might seem like you make choices and face genuine alternatives in life, it might seem like you have the power to decide what road you will travel, but this is all an illusion, it’s claimed. Your course in life is determined by antecedent factors. Some combination of nature or nurture, it’s usually said, determines who you are and what you do in life. But against this deterministic viewpoint that has swept the 20th and 21st centuries, one of the most radical thinkers of the 20th century, philosopher Ayn Rand, takes a very different position. She argues that the fact of choice is real and it’s vital to understand the actual power and control that free will gives you over your own mind, and so your own life. Far from being an illusion, free will is a fundamental fact about you as a human being. The real illusion, she argues, is that determinism, the denial of free will, is a logical, coherent, scientific position. It isn’t.

Should I Go by Reason or by Faith? by Ben Bayer

September 4, 2019 arilive_user 59:46 0 Comments

Human beings desperately need guidance in life, but where should we seek this guidance? Should we seek it in what we can observe with our own five senses and what we can logically infer from that data? Or should we seek it from some higher authority, just because we feel what it tells us is true? This week on Philosophy for Living on Earth, ARI’s Ben Bayer explores another one of life’s big questions: Should I go by reason or by faith?

Can You Take Credit for Who You Are? by Ben Bayer

August 14, 2019 arilive_user 1:03:49 0 Comments

What makes you who you are? Is it nature or nurture—or a bit of both?

Or does that very way of framing the question leave out something very important, namely—you? Can you take credit for who you are? If so, how?

We can’t and we don’t create ourselves out of nothing. Some people are born with advantages that other people don’t have. So, how can we take credit for our achievements? How can we be blamed for our crimes?

Join Ben Bayer to explore one of life’s big questions: Can you take credit for who you are?

Recorded live as part of ARI’s Philosophy of Living on Earth webinar series on August 10, 2019
Sign up up to attend the next webinar live at http://courses.aynrand.org/webinars/register

Tribalism vs. Free Will by Harry Binswanger

July 10, 2019 arilive_user 40:37 0 Comments

One key pillar of individualism is free will—the idea that you are not the deterministic product of your race or genes or tribal collective but have a basic form of control over your thoughts and actions. What is Ayn Rand’s theory of free will and how does it support her individualist philosophy?

This video was recorded at AynRandCon in Atlanta, Georgia, on November 4, 2018.

Truth, Objectivity and Self-Interest with Harry Binswanger and Dave Rubin

March 27, 2019 arilive_user 30:31 0 Comments

This is the eighth episode in a series looking at Objectivism’s approach to Happiness. Philosopher Harry Binswanger joins Dave Rubin to discuss truth, objectivity and self-interest.

What It Means to Be Selfish in Life and in Politics: Yaron Brook at Exeter University

January 4, 2019 arilive_user 1:31:20 0 Comments

In this talk, Yaron Brook discusses what it means to be selfish, what role selfishness has in politics, and how selfishness contributes to creating a happy productive life.

This talk was streamed live from Exeter University on November 13, 2018.