David Edmonds

Dotty is endearing as she figures out how to live as a “human” and makes fun mistakes about gift-giving, truth-telling, and learns about friendship and relationships. The contest to become the world’s best robot—undetectable by humans—is a wonderful frame for thinking about what it means to be human, what the difference between moral and polite choices is, and why being unique and one-of-a-kind is so precious to people, to us. The scientists have thought of everything in Dotty’s design—even body fluids—fortunately the “gassy release function” won’t be installed until her “2.3X update, due in October.” She has special programs that are triggered by various situations, a little like most of us. (Rage program, Emergency Tact, Emergency Save Life Code). Kids will be able to relate to Dotty’s confusion about the inconsistency of adults’ rules for kids. Wouldn’t we all like to delete the “parts of the program that simulate Depression, Anxiety, Jealousy” and “turn on Bliss, and keep it running permanently.” Can she pass a lie detector test? (After installing the still-under-development “Love Patch”?) Funny and philosophical!… (lisätietoja)

This is an entertaining account of the differences between Karl Popper and Ludwig Wittgenstein, centering around a brief incident during a seminar at Cambridge in 1946, but extending beyond that into the social, political and philosophical contexts around these two men. It's a slender topic padded out with extraneous information (most absurdly, what everyone could have been doing for fun instead of philosophy on the night in question) and considerable repetition. And it lacks a thorough account of their philosophical differences in favour of a kind of reality TV detectives' investigation into who said what to whom, where they were on the night of 25 October at 8:42pm, and who was lying. I'm surprised the authors didn't provide a map of the room with which suspects were in which seats. If nothing else, it's clear by the end that Professor Plum did it with a hot poker in room H on staircase 3.… (lisätietoja)

A thorough biography of someone most of us have never heard of. I certainly didn't, but it said he was one of the most influential philosophers of the past century so it seemed to be a good look see read.

It wasn't a bad book but it will not keep you on the edge of chair with anticipation either. Philosophers are not really the most dynamic people to read about. Yet they certainly do pose the most profound questions about the whys and wherefores of life issues. No short change here on Parfit's part as he was no doubt a deep and profound thinker. You will discover his main thrust of work had to do with what is the right thing to do in this life, particularly concerning our fellow journey travelers. Along with a healthy dose of ethics issues and, voila, there you have the bio.

Much dealt with is Parfit's meandering through the various positions, particularly in the English system, of philosophy scholars. His was somewhat different in that he followed his own drumbeat and sometimes this did not square with the intellectual powers. This particularly come to focus in his limited publishing.

We also learn of the peculiarities of this genius and how he interacted with everyday life and the subject of many of his profound thoughts, people. In this regard Parfit comes across as a very singular type of character that acts very differently then most and in an almost amusing way.

A good book, not maybe on most peoples list but certainly of value to those who do some degree of thinking in their own right.… (lisätietoja)