The Reeds Podcast

Damon and Peter explore the natural philosophy of Margaret Cavendish, a recently rediscovered 17th century philosopher, scientist, poet, and playwright. In addition to being one of the few women publicly writing during this period, she engaged with the foremost thinkers of her time (including Descartes, Hobbes, and Boyle) and was strongly iconoclastic, criticizing many prevailing theories. In laying out her anti-dualist materialism, which holds that everything is matter and that all matter is intelligent, she anticipated more modern ideas in philosophy. We also discuss her theory of occasional causation and perception, and how it all contributes to one holistic view of nature. 

Bookshelves & Barstools is a series of unplanned conversations. The idea is to recapture the kind of talk we used to have after class or at a bar, where we follow our impulses when addressing a question, without necessarily agreeing with their content by nature of their being impulses. This allows for authentic thought, but also sometimes for radical statements with which the speaker probably wouldn't agree if pressed...we hope. 

In this episode, a former high school classmate of Damon's, Alex, joins the discussion. Alex currently works for Hainan Nanhai Cloud Co. Ltd. on research into blockchain technology. Tuning in from a quarantine hotel in Shanghai, we explore some of the ideas Alex has been thinking about lately. 

I'm joined by Cole to talk about Wilfrid Sellars' essay "Philosophy and the Scientific Image of Man". Sellars is one of the most influential philosophers of the 20th century, although he is relatively unknown outside of academia. In this essay, he outlines what he sees as the aim of philosophy, and how it seeks to reconcile two competing images we have of the world: the manifest and the scientific. The episode is a little longer than usual, but Sellars demanded it! 

Damon invites fellow Johnnie, friend, and philosophy grad student Ben Crispell on the program to talk about the horror of philosophy as explored in Eugene Thacker's In the Dust of this Planet. The conversation contains, much like the book itself, a combination of concept-exploring, cultural observations and copious references, from HP Lovecraft to Heidegger to monster movies. Through the lens of the horror genre (broadly defined), Thacker blends philosophical, theological, and pop-cultural elements to address the apocalyptic and existential threats which seem to characterize our modern world. 

"The world is increasingly unthinkable - a world of planetary disasters, emerging pandemics, tectonic shifts, strange weather, oil-drenched seascapes, and the furtive, always-looming threat of extinction. In spite of our daily concerns, wants, and desires, it is increasingly difficult to comprehend the world in which we live and of which we are a part. To confront this idea is to confront an absolute limit to our ability to adequately understand the world at all - an idea that has been a central motif of the horror genre for some time." 

Bookshelves & Barstools is a series of unplanned conversations. The idea is to recapture the kind of talk we used to have after class or at a bar, where we follow our impulses when addressing a question, without necessarily agreeing with their content by nature of their being impulses. This allows for authentic thought, but also sometimes for radical statements with which the speaker probably wouldn't agree if pressed...we hope. 

WARNING: strong opinions expressed about beloved creatures in this episode. 

Damon and Zihan explore a great short story from the master of the form, Jorge Luis Borges. The Garden of Forking Paths may just be an infinitely mysterious work... After making sense of the complex plot, the conversation drifts towards the nature of time, infinity, possibility, and what all that has to do with labyrinths. 

You can read the story here. 

On this episode of Close Reed, Damon joins Adam and Nic of An Unqualified Guide to the Good Life podcast to discuss Marcus Aurelius' Meditations, the journal of the Roman emperor consisting of his personal quest to live the good life through Stoic philosophy. The conversation includes our personal connections with the text, the relationship between nature and reason, and stoicism in general as a philosophy of life. 

Big thanks to Nic and Adam for coming on the podcast (and letting us record in Nic's studio)!  Be sure to check out Unqualified Guide to the Good Life for more content related to practical philosophy, the good life in general, and their trademark banter. The podcast is also part of their online magazine, The New Bohemian, which has even more great content including articles, music and videos. They're like a kindred spirit website to The Reeds, only one that has more of their act together...

Relevant social media:
Instagram: @goodlifecast
Facebook: The New Bohemian

In this episode, Damon and Peter sit down with special guest Tamara McCleary, who is the CEO of Thulium, futurist thinker, and host of SAP's podcast Tech Unknown: Discussions from the Edge of Next, exploring the impact of cutting-edge technology in business and society (something which we amateur podcasters neglected to plug in the episode). Tamara's wealth of experience in the tech world combined with her interest in the transhumanist movement make her an ideal conversation partner to discuss philosopher Nick Bostrom's article, "Why I Want to be a Posthuman When I Grow Up".

Bostrom advocates for the development of certain 'posthuman capacities', that is, advancements of our abilities through technology like genetic engineering or cybernetics, that could dramatically change what it means to be human. He argues that while there are certainly risks associated with these advancements, ultimately we should be focused on using these technologies to significantly improve human life. In the episode, we use the article as a springboard to talk about the moral and societal implications of posthumanism, whether we would consent to augmentation, existential risk, and more.

You can follow Tamara on Twitter

Mei and I try to untangle some mysteries in Julio Cortázar's short story Axolotl, which we both read during our time at St. John's. It's about a man whose obsession with axolotls eventually leads to his becoming one himself. We encourage listeners to read this one with us: we get into the details, and it's short enough to read over a cup of coffee. 

You can find the translation we used here: 
https://www.sas.upenn.edu/~cavitch/pdf-library/Cortazar_Axolotl.pdf 

Bookshelves & Barstools is a series of unplanned conversations. The idea is to recapture the kind of talk we used to have after class or at a bar, where we follow our impulses when addressing a question, without necessarily agreeing with their content by nature of their being impulses. This allows for authentic thought, but also sometimes for radical statements with which the speaker probably wouldn't agree if pressed...we hope.