Reading Platos republic right now (my first philosophy book) and I use Chat GPT to help me understand what I don’t. I also use it to ask me questions on what I think. Is this a good idea?

What will happen if humans stop reproducing, will the earth collapse in few centuries?

If one wanted to read through Philosophy Chronologically. What would be a reading list for that?

From earliest history til modern day?

Obviously, I know the task is immense and massive. But just considering the major works of philosophy, what would be the chronological order?

Hi there! I’ve been thinking about building an app to help with something I’ve been struggling with: keeping my ideas organized and seeing how they shape my personal philosophy. I get overwhelmed by all the thoughts and beliefs bouncing around in my head, and it’s hard to see how they connect or change over time. Imagine a tool that helps you organize your ideas, summarize your core beliefs, and update your philosophy as you grow.

I’d love to hear your thoughts:

• Do you ever feel this way too? Would you find an app like this helpful? Why or why not?
• What features would you want? For example:
  • A way to summarize your core beliefs into something simple and clear (like a philosophy elevator pitch)?
  • Tools to track how your philosophy changes over time (kinda like a personal dialectic)?
  • Prompts to help you question your own thinking (like Socratic dialogue or Hegelian synthesis)?
• Do you already use any tools for philosophical stuff or self-reflection?
• Would you pay for this? If so, how much?

I’m just tossing this idea around and want to make sure it’s something people would actually use before I start building it. Your feedback would be awesome, thanks in advance!

has anyone read Irrational Man by William Barret? if so, what did you think of it?

Hello, in May I will be getting my admission exams for master in philosophy. The examination contains interview about at least 10 philosophy books. There are many amazing books and I can’t decide which 10 choose. My interest is mainly in Ethic, Psychology. I am considering Aristotle’s Metaphysic, Sartre’s Existencionalism is humanism and Nietzsche’s Geneaology of morals. in fut I would like to pursue my interests in people’s values which I think it is becoming more and more important in the context of AI. But also I am really interested in people’s thinking, cordial values and perspectives. Furthermore I would love to spread knowledge about critical thinking and importance of dialogue.
I am sorry for my poor English, it’s my second language.

With the advent of far better AI technology than we've seen until now, I'm becoming increasingly interested in thinking about art and what AI art means; what we value in art, whether art can be defined in varied ways depending on the creator, interpretation, etc etc.

Basically anything that discusses art and aesthetics/interpretation.

What’s the best order to read Hegel in? Im new to Hegel.

Hey! So I recently read The Outsider by Albert Camus because I kept seeing great reviews on it, but I feel like it was totally lost on me.

I mainly read Japanese literature that kind of just spoon feeds the meaning to you, so I’ve not read many books that encourage critical thinking. I’m thinking this is probably where it got lost on me, but I’d really love to get into reading more philosophy books and actually be able to take something away from it.

Would really appreciate recommendations on what’s best to start with!

That concept is explored here -  The Jacksons’ Debate, a speculative fiction novella published under THRIVE Publishing’s initiative, Can Fiction Help Us Thrive?

It explores interspecies ethics and the arbitrary lines we draw between species through speculative fiction. The book is part of THRIVE Publishing's initiative, "Can Fiction Help Us Thrive?" - an effort to use fiction as a way to inspire thought and change around sustainability, ethics, and coexistence. - THRIVE Publishing – Can Fiction Help us Thrive? - THRIVE Project.

Here is the description -

"The Jacksons' Debate" challenges speciesism and anthropocentrism through the lens of an advanced alien civilization. This alien race grapples with whether to consume humans as part of their diet, mirroring humanity's treatment of non-human animals. By drawing parallels between the way we exploit animals and the aliens' consideration of humans, the book forces readers to confront the ethical inconsistencies in our treatment of other species. With satire and philosophical depth, the novella invites critical reflection on the moral boundaries we construct and the arbitrary lines we draw between species.

Ultimately, the story asks: Are the ways we justify our actions as predators so different from the rationalizations these aliens are making?

🌱 If you’d like to read it, you can do so here: THRIVE Publishing – Can Fiction Help us Thrive? - THRIVE Project.

If you enjoyed it and want to leave a comment, you can do so here: The Jacksons' Debate.

And if you want to hold a copy for yourself, you can order it here:https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0646707043 - https://www.amazon.com/dp/0646707043

Greetings from The Socratic Circle.

www.Patreon.com/TheSocraticCircle

(Please join us! It's free to join. We now have 193 members from around the world.)

Here it is: all the information for Book Program #8. And guess what? It's being offered in THREE sections! You crazy kids and all your different times of availability! :P

Section A: Mondays 6-7pm ET (Begins January 6th, ends January 27th)

Section B: Mondays 730-830pm ET (Begins January 6th, ends January 27th)

Section C: Saturdays 930-1030am ET (Begins January 11th, ends February 1st)

Believe it or not, this accommodates everyone who indicated a time slot availability in the recent poll.

Feel free to mix and match your attendance, or even to attend every section!

----------------------

Here's the reading schedule and link to a digital copy of the book:

Session 1: Chapters 1-14  (Monday, January 6th/Saturday, January 11th)

Session 2: Chapters 15-20 (Monday, January 13th/Saturday, January 18th)

Session 3: Chapters 21-29 (Monday, January 20th/Saturday, January 25th)

Session 4: Chapters 30-38 (Monday, January 27th/Saturday, February 1st)

*Free digital rendering of the book at the Project Gutenberg Australia website:

https://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks03/0301001h.html

Looking for new reads! thank you all❤️🍄

Hi,

is anyone aware of a philosophy books reading group in Montreal? If not would you be interested in joining one?

I am looking for a reading group mostly focused on continental philosophy (Nietzsche, Adorno, Deleuze etc). Something relatively slow paced and meeting in person once every 2 weeks or so.
Thx for any info.

Girls, Can you please recommend philosophical books about raw human emotions (mostly negative emotions) and how it effects the world, humans, nature and animals. 'Also how would the world works without human made money. "Also anything which talks about unexplainable emotions, weird opinions about why we were born, all that and something which screams pure absurdity and incomprehensibility.(Less romantic ones would be appreciated).Thank you.

Im looking for 10 beta users to use my app that allows people to optimize their reading at the max while retaining as much info as possible.

Features:

• Vocal notes taking
• Speech-to-Text
• Embedded Dictionary + Translation
• Habit Tracking of Reading
• (Coming Soon) Archivist/Librarian Chat with personal knowledge context

I myself always struggled with simply remembering what I read: Id read a paragraph, understand a very important piece of knowledge and then completely forget what I just read.

I got pissed off of forgetting.

If anyone wants to use the app and give feedback let me know and ill dm you.

(Other than Animal Liberation.) As well as specisism, zoology, and it’d be great if it was a mix of reflections of an specialist on animal behavior, a philosopher on morality, and a historian of how societies are built on morals. That´d be *💋 🤌 * chefs kiss

Or, you know, anything you might found interesting

The Socratic Circle on Patreon is happy to announce that our seventh book club program will feature David Hume's Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion and that its first session will be held on Monday, December 2nd, from 7:30-8:30pm ET, with three additional meetings on the three successive Mondays (the 9th, 16th, and 23rd). The sessions will be held over Zoom (the Zoom information will be provided on Patreon). Book club programs are open to all members of the Patreon, including free members. If you are not yet a member of The Socratic Circle on Patreon, please join us--we just passed the 150-member mark!

www.Patreon.com/TheSocraticCircle

Here's the link to the book program schedule: https://www.patreon.com/posts/book-program-7-116423132

See you 'round The Circle!

--Matt :)

I got this book around the early half of the year, was interested to know about the thinking behind math equations. What I did not realise when I got the book, it was very technical for a casual reader like me. Just wanted to know what I should know about before reading the book.

https://youtu.be/C4kZXKI7bck?si=2Qy46RhiD3dWfBGW

We’ve been conditioned to think that everything must have meaning. It's common, almost ingrained, in our society. Look around—everything seems to serve a purpose. From a young age, we’re surrounded by things designed to fulfill specific roles, and this environment subtly conditions us. Over time, we start believing that life itself must also have a defined purpose.

But if you spend your life searching for an exact purpose, you may never find it. It’s possible that searching for the purpose of life becomes your purpose. Yet, at the end of this search, you may be left only with regret and little time to live without it.

Purpose applies to things pre-designed, like gadgets, which are created to fulfill specific functions. Life, however, unfolds moment by moment, each instant a new and unplanned experience. Perhaps we think of ourselves too highly, imagining that, since each of us was born against trillions of odds, there must be a purpose behind it all.

But life is more like a series of coincidences; we are fragments of those coincidences. Imagine holding a handful of grains and dropping them on the ground. Each grain falls in a random position—you didn’t choose those spots, yet each grain ends up in a specific place nonetheless.

There’s no destiny, no pre-written plan. Right now, in this moment, you can choose any purpose for your life. Why waste time searching? Just enjoy your life without overthinking. Don’t stress about defining your life’s purpose. Do what makes you feel alive. If you’re in the middle of an exam and feel like writing an essay on “the purpose of life,” then write it if that’s what brings you joy.

It may sound counterintuitive, but if you occasionally let go of thoughts about the future or the past, you’ll find you can actually savor each moment. Who knows if this "silly boy" will still be around by the time exam results are out? So don’t worry about what’s happening around you. Keep your mind light; sing, dance, and enjoy every bit of life as it comes.

so i hope this is not a repetitive question. anyway as the title suggests i am looking for absolute beginner books in philosophy. i am completely new to it and would like to start from the foundation. also i would like to read something that's an easy read without too much jargon or hard to understand words. would love your suggestions!

THE SOCRATIC CIRCLE on PATREON Announcement: www.Patreon.com/TheSocraticCircle

The Philosophy of Science Discussion Group will hold its first meeting on Wednesday, October 23rd, from 7:30-8:30pm ET. (Reminder: Discussion Groups are open to all tier-level members; membership begins at $3/month.)

We will discuss chapters 1-3 of Carl Hempel's classic Philosophy of Natural Science. Here's a link to a free PDF of the book:

http://www.thatmarcusfamily.org/philosophy/Course_Websites/Readings/Hempel%20-%20Philosophy%20of%20Natural%20Science.pdf

After we read Hempel's book (probably three to four meetings) to get a sense of what the philosophy of science was like circa 1966, we will read Thomas Kuhn's famous The Structure of Scientific Revolutions. Below, you will find the link to a PDF of a philosophy of science anthology of readings. I'm sure we will dip into it at some point, as well.

https://ebookppsunp.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/46121900-the-philosophy-of-science-1.pdf

--Matt :)

Hi Reddit, my name is A A Aydin, and I’ve been exploring a new way of thinking about time, space, and the origins of the universe. I’d love to share this theory with you and see how scientists and thinkers in this community view it.

Alternate Realities and the Sphere Paradox

Imagine a scenario where we live inside a reflective sphere, filled with water. In this environment, we could move in every direction, and due to the mirrors, we’d see infinite versions of ourselves. This setting mimics the idea of parallel universes, where every movement we make could be mirrored by countless versions of ourselves.

Now, think of this on a cosmic scale: what if our world moves forward in time while a parallel version of our world moves backward? Could this explain the nature of parallel universes, where every forward movement in time creates an opposite version moving in reverse?

Your Anti-Self and Time Symmetry

In this theory, I propose that if we move forward in time, our anti-selves move backward. If we were to meet at a crossing point—let’s call it the X point—this meeting of two contradictory timelines could be the cause of an explosion. Could this paradoxical meeting be similar to the Big Bang? Could this meeting of forward and backward time be the origin of the universe, where all energy was concentrated before exploding outward?

Dimensional Movement in Time

I suggest that time, like space, might have multiple directions. While we experience time as a one-way street (moving forward), there could be alternate directions in time that we simply don’t perceive. For every direction in space—up, down, forward, backward, diagonal—there could be corresponding directions in time.

In this case, if we move forward in time, a parallel version of us could be moving backward, upward, downward, and in every other direction possible. We only experience one version because we are limited by our perception, but there may be infinite versions of us, all moving through different axes of time.

Infinite Selves, Matter, and Antimatter Collisions

If we imagine ourselves moving infinitely around a sphere, meeting our backward-moving selves at the X point, this could result in a massive release of energy—much like the Big Bang. The energy generated by this paradoxical meeting could create mass out of nothingness, just as energy converts into mass through E=mc².

Now, consider the interaction between matter and antimatter: when these two meet, they annihilate each other, releasing massive amounts of energy. If our forward-moving selves represent matter, and our backward-moving selves represent antimatter, their collision at the X point could lead to the release of pure energy. This energy might then condense into new matter and create the building blocks of the universe.

New Universes Through Multiverse Collisions

Finally, let’s expand this to the multiverse: if there are infinite versions of the universe, what would happen if they all collided? Would this result in a massive explosion of energy that creates new realities, new mass, or even new timelines? The meeting of infinite universes could be an ongoing process of creation and destruction, where the energy released from these collisions is used to fuel new realities, much like how the Big Bang is thought to have created our universe.

• A A Aydin

This theory builds on the idea that time and space might have multiple directions and that through the paradoxical meeting of forward and backward movements, we could generate pure energy, create new mass, and even fuel the ongoing creation of the universe itself. I’m excited to see how this theory resonates with you all, and I’m eager to hear thoughts from those in the scientific community.