Unthinkable: How do we ‘know’ anything?Relativist thinkers are providing a ‘smokescreen’ for the likes of Donald Trump, warns professor of logic Timothy WilliamsonMon Mar 06 2017 - 09:28
Why not taking offence will make you – and the world – betterUnthinkable: Donald Trump may make your skin crawl but your anger ‘destroys you’ not him, argues Brant HansenTue Feb 21 2017 - 00:00
Unthinkable: Why ‘meaning’ should be part of the school vocabularyStudents should ask ‘what’s the point?’ rather than ‘how many points?’Mon Feb 20 2017 - 16:40
Enda Kenny’s ‘mea culpa’: the science of false memoryResearch shows faulty recall is more likely to happen when you are stressed or overloadedWed Feb 15 2017 - 11:08
Unthinkable: Why it makes sense to be a neo-LudditeAI is displacing jobs – we need a ‘union 2.0’ to fight back, says William MyersMon Feb 13 2017 - 14:03
Have you ever had ‘unjust sex’?Unthinkable: Examples include ‘women being pressured – not quite to the point of outright coercion – to have sex, or to have sex without contraception’, says philosopher Ann CahillSun Feb 05 2017 - 15:32
Why new technology is draining meaning from your jobJob insecurity and technology have created a crisis in today’s workplaceSat Feb 04 2017 - 06:00
Unthinkable: Should we always put human rights first?‘Empowerment is crucial for people with impaired capacity’ but it isn’t the only thing of value, says Prof Mary DonnellyMon Jan 30 2017 - 15:02
Five signs you share Donald Trump’s ‘gapped’ logicThe US president’s rhetoric has the hallmarks of a cognitive ‘stuttering’ that’s creeping into schools, argues Fiachra LongMon Jan 23 2017 - 13:37
Unthinkable: The Islamic thinker who ‘proved’ God existsMedieval philosophers don’t get much attention these days but Avicenna deserves it, says Prof Peter AdamsonMon Jan 16 2017 - 16:07
Unthinkable: We lie to ourselves more than to othersSelf-deception is rife, says Colm Fitzgerald, and our education system is to blameMon Jan 09 2017 - 10:51
Does a disability necessarily make you worse off?‘Being disabled is a way of being a minority,’ says philosopher Elizabeth BarnesTue Dec 13 2016 - 01:01
How Friedrich Nietzsche helps to explain BrexitUnthinkable: The German philosopher foresaw the rise of ‘petty politics’ in Europe, says author Hugo DrochonMon Dec 05 2016 - 20:54
Why Ireland’s citizens’ assembly is a model for EuropeUnthinkable: Deliberative democracy experiment shows Ireland ‘trusts its citizens, instead of fearing them’Sun Nov 27 2016 - 16:38
How religion can be taught in a ‘neutral’ wayIrish schools introducing the new ‘religions and ethics’ course can learn from the Berlin experienceMon Nov 21 2016 - 19:30
Teach philosophy to heal our ‘post-truth’ society, says President HigginsPresident highlights need for citizens to identify ‘illusory rhetoric’ after recent eventsSun Nov 20 2016 - 18:24
Let’s reimagine democracy: replace elections with lotteriesBrexit and the Trump presidency are making people ask whether the current form of democracy is the best we can doSat Nov 19 2016 - 06:00
Want a kinder world? Then seek help‘To be truly benevolent we should solicit the kindness of others,’ argues lecturer Seán MoranTue Nov 15 2016 - 11:06
World Philosophy Day: We need to start talking about life’s ‘meaning’If the world stops making sense, call the philosopherTue Nov 15 2016 - 01:00
Has democracy become a threat to the planet?Unthinkable: Democratic politics have not been good to the environment, but it needn’t be so, says Diarmuid TorneyMon Nov 07 2016 - 15:09
What Aristotle can teach us about friendshipSomething you won’t hear on Facebook: only the virtuous can be true friendsTue Nov 01 2016 - 01:00
Does science have all the answers?No, says Susan Haack, but scientists are generally better at producing answers than philosophersTue Oct 25 2016 - 10:14
So you think you’re bad at maths? Think againYou can change your ability by first of all changing your mindsetTue Oct 18 2016 - 08:22
Unthinkable: Are you part of the 1% but just don’t know it?Don’t underestimate your power to make a difference, says ‘effective altruism’ advocate William Mac AskillTue Oct 11 2016 - 06:00
Is humanity losing faith in reason?Philosopher Julian Baggini says rationality needs to be rethought to counter the forces of unreasonTue Oct 04 2016 - 06:00
Is there any such thing as an ethical steak?Unthinkable: The rights of animals cannot be dismissed, argues philosopher Tatjana VišakSun Sept 25 2016 - 06:00
35 years of abortion demos: from Plac and Spuc to ‘Repeal the 8th’Ahead of Saturday’s pro-choice rallies, a look at some of the most influential protests and counter-protests on abortionFri Sept 23 2016 - 18:10
Is humour an effective way of communicating wisdom?Shared, unspoken knowledge is always the active ingredient in ‘getting the joke’Tue Sept 20 2016 - 08:00
Unthinkable: Do you need faith to give your life meaning?There are ‘few indications’ that God matters to the Irish, says sociologist Tom InglisThu Sept 08 2016 - 16:35
Unthinkable: Who should you follow on social media for unbiased opinion?Philosophers should take the broadest possible measure of beliefs, argues philosopher Justin EH SmithTue Sept 06 2016 - 01:00
Sabina Higgins backs campaign for teaching philosophy in schoolsNew organisation set up to support teachers who wish to offer Junior Cycle short courseSun Aug 28 2016 - 13:18
I’m a philosopher, get me out of here!Two new books, The Philosopher: A History in Six Types and Philosophy and Practical Engagement, ask if an ancient discipline has lost its wayThu Aug 25 2016 - 15:55
Joe Humphreys: How the left can rise again - in three easy stepsValues, free enterprise and religion can all play a part in winning over the votersMon Jul 18 2016 - 01:00
Joe Humphreys: Rebranding socialism as humane and socially responsible capitalismIrish socialist thinking has moved on very little since the foundation of the StateMon Jul 11 2016 - 10:28
Euro 2016: the intellectual’s guide to football‘There are intellectual football-lovers but those who go to stadiums and bookshops are different’Wed Jul 06 2016 - 18:30
Unthinkable: Should we give up on utopian politics?Utopian visions work because they are fictional, says sociologist Deirdre Ní ChuanacháinTue May 31 2016 - 06:00
Unthinkable: Is philosophy having an existential crisis?Irish governments have been slow to draw on philosophers, argues Joseph MahonTue May 24 2016 - 01:00
Unthinkable: Why are beauty standards becoming more onerous?‘You are not going to be thin, with curves, on your deathbed,’ says philosopher Heather WiddowsTue May 17 2016 - 01:00
Unthinkable: Does reality depend on where you are standing?Art theorist Francis Halsall explains the enduring appeal of phenomenologyTue May 10 2016 - 06:00
Unthinkable: Does the universe’s fate mean life is futile?The cosmos’s ever-changing nature is cause for cheer, not despair, says author Niamh BrennanTue May 03 2016 - 05:00
Unthinkable: Are public manners in a state of decline?Greater social inequality stands as a threat to civility, argues sociologist John A HallTue Apr 26 2016 - 07:00
Mock Dáil produces a government of national unity - and it only took 90 minutesPublic voting experiment in Dublin explores feasibility of electing a powersharing governmentSun Apr 24 2016 - 17:04
Fantasy Dáil: Power-sharing to be tested in voting experimentPublic invited to take part in role play to elect ‘government of national unity’ on SaturdayThu Apr 21 2016 - 08:10
Unthinkable: Is all this remembering such a good idea?The difference between the reality of the men of 1916 and the way they are being used is ‘enormous’, says David RieffTue Apr 19 2016 - 08:53
Unthinkable: How can scientists disagree on basic ‘facts’?An astrophysicist and a philosopher have teamed up to examine how experts disagreeTue Apr 12 2016 - 09:10
Joe Humphreys: Stop kidding yourself, you have no human rightsNext time you bleat about your right to something think about what’s being done in your name in the MediterraneanFri Apr 08 2016 - 12:00
Executions globally hit 26-year high, warns AmnestySurge in death penalty in Pakistan, Iran and Saudia Arabia but China remains ‘world’s top executioner’Wed Apr 06 2016 - 10:51
Unthinkable: Does religion have a problem with women?Rigid notions of masculinity continue to cause a crisis in Islamic communities, says Dr Amanullah de SondyTue Apr 05 2016 - 06:00
Life, death and faith: approaching the unanswerableJoe Humphreys reviews books by five authors – a philosopher, a literary legend, a humanist, a former priest and a doctor – tackling that age-old question: is this it?Thu Mar 31 2016 - 10:00
Unthinkable: Could we make a computer trip on acid?Computers will never have human consciousness unless they have our foibles too, argues author Andrew SmartTue Mar 29 2016 - 10:02
