WHY? Philosophical Discussions About Everyday Life
Join us each month as we engage in philosophical discussions about the most common-place topics with host Jack Russell Weinstein, professor in the Department of Philosophy and Religion at the University of North Dakota. He is the director of The Institute for Philosophy in Public Life.
Episodes
June 8, 2025 • 78 mins
Jack interviews Justin Garson, writer, philosopher, and professor, to explore an unsettling and illuminating idea: What if madness isn't just a disorder, but a signal, expressing something deeply out of sync in our lives or society?
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May 11, 2025 • 70 mins
Jack sits down with David Chalmers, renowned philosopher of mind, to explore the provocative question: Is virtual reality real? They explore the blurred boundaries between the virtual and the physical, consciousness, and presence. Together, they consider whether digital worlds can hold the same ontological weight as the "real" world, and what that means for the future of how we live, think, and perceive.
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Jack announces his new book, Israel, Palestine, and the Trolley Problem.
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April 13, 2025 • 70 mins
Jack sits down with Gwenda-lin Grewal, philosopher and writer, to explore the unexpected intersections between philosophy and fashion. They explore how style reflects deeper questions about identity, perception, and the human condition, and consider the ways in which clothing can serve as both personal expression and philosophical inquiry.
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March 9, 2025 • 65 mins
In this episode of the WHY Podcast, Jack sits down with Mark C. Taylor, Professor of Religion at Columbia University, to discuss how the humanities and the natural world intersect. They talk about how literature, philosophy, and art can provide new insights into our connection with nature and offer paths toward a more sustainable and harmonious relationship with the environment.
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February 9, 2025 • 67 mins
In this episode of the WHY Podcast, Jack sits down with Krista Thomason, Associate Professor of Philosophy at Swarthmore College, to explore the intriguing idea of finding value in negative emotions. Krista, author of Dancing with the Devil: Why Bad Feelings Make Life Good, delves into how emotions like shame, guilt, and anger can, paradoxically, lead to personal growth and a deeper moral life. Drawing from her expertise in philoso...
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January 12, 2025 • 77 mins
In this episode of the WHY Podcast, Jack sits down with Avram Alpert, author of The Good-Enough Life, to explore the philosophical question: "When is life good enough?" Alpert, a writer, teacher, and Co-Director of the Interdisciplinary Art and Theory Program in NYC, discusses the themes of the book, which challenges the notion of perfectionism and advocates for a more realistic, fulfilling approach to life. Drawing from experience...
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November 10, 2024 • 83 mins
In this episode of WHY: Philosophical Discussions About Everyday Life, host Jack Russell Weinstein speaks with Richard Kearney, a distinguished philosopher and author of Touch: Recovering Our Most Vital Sense.
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October 14, 2024 • 71 mins
Host Jack Russell Weinstein interviews Michael Rosen, a distinguished professor of Ethics and Politics at Harvard University and author of Dignity: Its History and Meaning. Their conversation explores the multifaceted nature of dignity, tracing its historical evolution and examining its significance in contemporary discourse. Rosen, who specializes in political theory and the history of ideas, shares his insights on how dignity sha...
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September 8, 2024 • 80 mins
Host Jack Russell Weinstein visits with Marina McCoy, professor of philosophy at Boston College. She is the author of the books Plato on the Rhetoric of Philosophers and Sophists (Cambridge University Press, 2007) , Wounded Heroes: Vulnerability as a Virtue in Ancient Greek Literature and Philosophy (Oxford U Press, 2013), and Image and Argument in Plato’s Republic (SUNY, 2020). Her interests range from ancient philosophy to ethics...
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August 11, 2024 • 72 mins
Host Jack Russell Weinstein visits with Cecile Fabre, political philosopher, and Senior Research Fellow at All Souls College, Oxford. She is also Professor of Political Philosophy at the University of Oxford, and affiliated with the Faculty of Philosophy, the Department of Politics and International Relations, and Nuffield College, Oxford. Her research interests are in theories of distributive justice; the philosophy of democracy; ...
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July 14, 2024 • 76 mins
Host Jack Russell Weinstein visits with Simon Philip Walter May, visiting professor of philosophy at King's College, London, and at Birkbeck College, University of London. May is the author of "Love: A History," published by Yale University Press, 2011.
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June 10, 2024 • 42 secs
If you haven't already listened to the June episode, you may need to refresh your download to get the long version. The shorter broadcast version was initially posted.
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June 9, 2024 • 77 mins
Jack visits with Adam Lovett, the author of "Democratic Failures and the Ethics of Democracy." (University of Pennsylvania Press) Lovett is a lecturer at Australian Catholic University in the School of Philosophy.
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May 14, 2024 • 77 mins
Emily McTernan, author of On Taking Offence, talks about the role of being offended in modern life.
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April 14, 2024 • 73 mins
Host Jack Russell Weinstein visits with Luke William Hunt. Hunt is a former FBI agent, and currently an associate professor at University of Alabama, Department of Philosophy. His most recent book is "Police Deception and Dishonesty – The Logic of Lying."
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March 10, 2024 • 66 mins
Jack visits with Mark Robert Rank, author of the forthcoming book, The Random Factor: How Chance and Luck Profoundly Shape Our Lives and the World Around Us."What shapes our economic fortunes? Perhaps what immediately comes to mind are attributes such as education, skills or labour-market experience. Demographics such as age and your parents’ socioeconomic status might also be considered."Yet surprisingly, according to a wide range...
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February 11, 2024 • 82 mins
“Should we abolish prisons?” Host Dr. Jack Russell Weinstein discusses that with Tommie Shelby, Caldwell Titcomb Professor of African and African American Studies and of Philosophy at Harvard University.
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January 14, 2024 • 92 mins
Host Jack Russell Weinstein visits with Frank Lantz, the director of the New York University Game Center. For over 12 years, Lantz taught game design at NYU's Interactive Telecommunications Program. "His writings on games, technology, and culture have appeared in a variety of publications. In 2012, The New York Times referred to Lantz as a "reigning genius of the mysteries of games" following his design of iPhone puzzle game Drop7....
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November 29, 2023 • 35 secs
We initially sent out the wrong audio! If you downloaded the mistake, please delete that, refresh your feed, and try again. That should give you the correct conversation as Jack visits with David Livingston Smith in an episode titled: "Why do we dehumanize people?" You can also find that audio HERE.
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