Susanna Siegel (Harvard): “The phenomenal public”

26 October 2021|

 

 

Susanna Siegel (Harvard): “The phenomenal public”

What modes of mentality can be used to grasp the idea of the ‘body politic’? A standard view is that within a polity, it is not possible to perceive the public – instead one has to imagine it. I argue that this view is wrong in letter but may be correct in […]

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    Heather Browning (LSE): “Assessing Measures of Animal Welfare”

Heather Browning (LSE): “Assessing Measures of Animal Welfare”

20 October 2021|

 

Heather Browning (LSE): “Assessing Measures of Animal Welfare”

There are many decision contexts in which we require accurate information on animal welfare, but many of the methods currently used for estimating welfare are subjective and unreliable. Here, I look at how we might apply principled methods from animal welfare science to arrive at more accurate scores, which will […]

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    Sean A. Valles (Michigan State): “Housing security’s place in a ‘Culture of Health’: Lessons from the pandemic housing crises in the US and England”

Sean A. Valles (Michigan State): “Housing security’s place in a ‘Culture of Health’: Lessons from the pandemic housing crises in the US and England”

8 June 2021|

 
Sean A. Valles (Michigan State): “Housing security’s place in a ‘Culture of Health’: Lessons from the pandemic housing crises in the US and England”

When the COVID-19 pandemic arrived in the US and England, it quickly proved to be particularly deadly for people experiencing homelessness. Soon afterward, the economic impacts of the pandemic began creating new housing security […]

The Importance of Not Being Earnest (Forum)

20 May 2021|

The Importance of Not Being Earnest

We explore what’s philosophically interesting about comedy. Both have a lot in common: showing up the ordinary as odd, critiquing the status quo, hecklers… But can humour be a source of knowledge? What does it tell us about how we interact with one another? What role does it play in our social […]

Not Suitable for Work (Forum for Philosophy)

30 March 2021|

Not Suitable for Work

When it comes to work, is less more? Bertrand Russell wrote that ‘immense harm is caused by the belief that work is virtuous’. In more recent times, organisations from Microsoft to the Wellcome Trust have experimented with a four-day week, and advocates argue that shorter working weeks will solve everything from unemployment to […]

Resilience (Forum for Philosophy)

30 March 2021|

Resilience 

‘Resilience’ has become a buzzword, beloved of pop psychologists and workplace well-being programmes. But it also has an older history that includes the Stoics and Schopenhauer. So how do we foster resilience? Or should we foster it at all? Does a culture of resilience deny vulnerability and inequalities, or is it a practical way to cope […]

Zoë Johnson King (USC): “Varieties of Moral Mistake”

17 March 2021|

 
Zoë Johnson King (USC): “Varieties of Moral Mistake”

Some philosophers think that if someone acts wrongly while falsely believing that her action is permissible, this moral mistake cannot excuse her wrongdoing. And some think that this is because it is morally blameworthy to fail to appreciate the moral significance of non-moral features of an action of which one […]

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    Marc Fleurbaey (Paris School of Economics): “Measuring Well-Being and Lives Worth Living”

Marc Fleurbaey (Paris School of Economics): “Measuring Well-Being and Lives Worth Living”

3 March 2021|

 

Marc Fleurbaey (Paris School of Economics): “Measuring Well-Being and Lives Worth Living”

We study the measurement of well-being when individuals have heterogeneous preferences, including different conceptions of a life worth living. When individuals differ in the conception of a life worth living, the equivalent income can regard an individual whose life is not worth living as being better […]

Ella Whiteley (LSE): “Harmful Salience Structures”

2 March 2021|

 

Ella Whiteley (LSE): “Harmful Salience Structures”

Physical and psychological violence, to false beliefs and credibility deficits, have already been identified as potentially harming an individual or group, but facts about salience have not seemed particularly relevant to harm. In this talk, I argue that certain salience structures can indeed be harmful. One can harm an individual or group […]

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    A beginner’s guide to wild animal suffering (Co-Hosted with LSE SU Animals’ Society)

A beginner’s guide to wild animal suffering (Co-Hosted with LSE SU Animals’ Society)

18 February 2021|

 

A beginner’s guide to wild animal suffering (Co-Hosted with LSE SU Animals’ Society)

Many people have an idyllic view according to which nature is like a great paradise to nonhuman animals. However, the evidence available shows that animals face many threats to their well-being, including among others hunger and thirst, harmful weather events, disease, and injuries. In fact, […]