| Author | : Thomas Cathcart |
| Publisher | : Workman Publishing |
| Total Pages | : 145 |
| Release | : 2013-09-10 |
| Genre | : Philosophy |
| ISBN | : 076117513X |
Framing the discussion as a crime tried in the court of public opinion, presents a lighthearted examination of the trolley problem--one of the most famous thought experiments in modern philosophy.
| Author | : David Edmonds |
| Publisher | : Princeton University Press |
| Total Pages | : 239 |
| Release | : 2013-10-06 |
| Genre | : Philosophy |
| ISBN | : 1400848385 |
From the bestselling coauthor of Wittgenstein's Poker, a fascinating tour through the history of moral philosophy A runaway train is racing toward five men who are tied to the track. Unless the train is stopped, it will inevitably kill all five men. You are standing on a footbridge looking down on the unfolding disaster. However, a fat man, a stranger, is standing next to you: if you push him off the bridge, he will topple onto the line and, although he will die, his chunky body will stop the train, saving five lives. Would you kill the fat man? The question may seem bizarre. But it's one variation of a puzzle that has baffled moral philosophers for almost half a century and that more recently has come to preoccupy neuroscientists, psychologists, and other thinkers as well. In this book, David Edmonds, coauthor of the bestselling Wittgenstein's Poker, tells the riveting story of why and how philosophers have struggled with this ethical dilemma, sometimes called the trolley problem. In the process, he provides an entertaining and informative tour through the history of moral philosophy. Most people feel it's wrong to kill the fat man. But why? After all, in taking one life you could save five. As Edmonds shows, answering the question is far more complex—and important—than it first appears. In fact, how we answer it tells us a great deal about right and wrong.
| Author | : Thomas Cathcart |
| Publisher | : Penguin |
| Total Pages | : 224 |
| Release | : 2008-06-24 |
| Genre | : Philosophy |
| ISBN | : 1440634238 |
This New York Times bestseller is the hilarious philosophy course everyone wishes they’d had in school. Outrageously funny, Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar... has been a breakout bestseller ever since authors—and born vaudevillians—Thomas Cathcart and Daniel Klein did their schtick on NPR’s Weekend Edition. Lively, original, and powerfully informative, Plato and a Platypus Walk Into a Bar... is a not-so-reverent crash course through the great philosophical thinkers and traditions, from Existentialism (What do Hegel and Bette Midler have in common?) to Logic (Sherlock Holmes never deduced anything). Philosophy 101 for those who like to take the heavy stuff lightly, this is a joy to read—and finally, it all makes sense! And now, you can read Daniel Klein's further musings on life and philosophy in Travels with Epicurus and Every Time I Find the Meaning of Life, They Change it.
| Author | : Thomas Cathcart |
| Publisher | : Penguin |
| Total Pages | : 230 |
| Release | : 2009-10-20 |
| Genre | : Humor |
| ISBN | : 1101140763 |
Q. Why are there almost as many jokes about death as there are about sex? A. Because they both scare the pants off us. Thomas Cathcart and Daniel Klein first made a name for themselves with the outrageously funny New York Times bestseller Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar.... Now they turn their attention to the Big "D" and share the timeless wisdom of the great philosophers, theologians, psychotherapists, and wiseguys. From angels to zombies and everything in between, Cathcart and Klein offer a fearless and irreverent history of how we approach death, why we embrace life, and whether there really is a hereafter. As hilarious as it is enlightening, Heidegger and a Hippo Walk Through Those Pearly Gates is a must-read for anyone and everyone who ever expects to die. And now, you can read Daniel Klein's further musings on life and philosophy in Travels with Epicurus and Every Time I Find the Meaning of Life, They Change it.
| Author | : Frances Myrna Kamm |
| Publisher | : Oxford University Press |
| Total Pages | : 273 |
| Release | : 2016 |
| Genre | : Philosophy |
| ISBN | : 0190247150 |
A rigorous treatment of a thought experiment that has become notorious within and outside of philosophy - The Trolley Problem - by one of the most influential moral philosophers alive today Suppose you can stop a trolley from killing five people, but only by turning it onto a side track where it will kill one. May you turn the trolley? What if the only way to rescue the five is to topple a bystander in front of the trolley so that his body stops it but he dies? May you use a device to stop the trolley that will kill a bystander as a side effect? The "Trolley Problem" challenges us to explain and justify our different intuitive judgments about these and related cases and has spawned a huge literature. F.M. Kamm's 2013 Tanner Lectures present some of her views on this notorious moral conundrum. After providing a brief history of changing views of what the problem is about and attempts to solve it, she focuses on two prominent issues: Does who turns the trolley and how the harm is shifted affect the moral permissibility of acting? The answers to these questions lead to general proposals about when we may and may not harm some to help others. Three distinguished philosophers - Judith Jarvis Thomson (one of the originators of the trolley problem), Thomas Hurka, and Shelly Kagan - then comment on Kamm's proposals. She responds to each comment at length, providing an exceptionally rich elaboration and defense of her views. The Trolley Problem Mysteries is an invaluable resource not only to philosophers concerned about the Trolley Problem, but to anyone worried about how we ought to act when we can lessen harm to some by harming others and how we can reach a decision about the question.
| Author | : Will Cuppy |
| Publisher | : David R. Godine Publisher |
| Total Pages | : 180 |
| Release | : 2001 |
| Genre | : Humor |
| ISBN | : 9781567921564 |
A survey of the animal kingdom in which the nocturnal and tunneling wombat is awarded the greatest praise. Will Cuppy was something like the Larry David of the mid-20th century. From his perch as a staff writer at The New Yorker, Cuppy observed the world and found a great deal that annoyed him. This collection of essays on animals includes "Birds Who Can't Even Fly," "Optional Insects," "Octopuses and Those Things", and "How to Swat a Fly," which codifies the essentials in ten hilarious principles. And three essays on wombats. Perfect reading for the perplexed, befuddled, and perpetually irritated.
| Author | : Thomas Cathcart |
| Publisher | : Augsburg Fortress Publishers |
| Total Pages | : 171 |
| Release | : 2021-09-07 |
| Genre | : Religion |
| ISBN | : 1506474160 |
In this personal, witty, and timely book, New York Times bestselling author Thomas Cathcart takes readers on a journey into belief and unbelief and leads them through to religionless Christianity. He shows that, even absent traditional theological formulas and doctrines, Christianity can be credible, meaningful, and practical.
| Author | : John M. Shanahan |
| Publisher | : Harper Collins |
| Total Pages | : 340 |
| Release | : 1999-05-11 |
| Genre | : Reference |
| ISBN | : 0060194111 |
You don't have to be a genius to sound like one. Here's a collection of the most profound and provocative wit and wisdom in the English language in two lines or less. Edited by entrepreneur John M. Shanahan, who created the wildly successful Hooked on Phonics program, this wonderful book presents the best that has been thought and said on every imaginable topic. Classified by such themes as "Truth, Lies, and Deception," "Men, Women, and Relationships," and "Passions, Virtues, and Vices," these quotes contain timeless messages for all humankind. Oscar Wilde: "A man who marries his mistress leaves a vacancy in that position." Charles de Gaulle: "The cemetery is filled with indispensable men." Abraham Lincoln: "Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power." Sophocles: "Men of ill judgment oft ignore the good that lies within their hands, till they have lost it." Perfect for anyone who has ever been left speechless, this book will make you as glib as Oscar Wilde, as profound as Winston Churchill, and as wise as Aesop. Inspirational, entertaining, and thought-provoking, this is one collection that no library or bookshelf should be without.
| Author | : Kevin Crossley-Holland |
| Publisher | : Oxford University Press, USA |
| Total Pages | : 132 |
| Release | : 2002 |
| Genre | : Juvenile Fiction |
| ISBN | : 9780192751874 |
This collection is a celebration of diversity. There are tales from Asiaand India, Central and South America, North America and the Pacific. Throughmarvellous stories of emperors, princesses, dragons, fishes and birds, we seethe fabulous variety of customs and beliefs in our world.BLThis collection forms a pair with The Nightingale that ShriekedBLThe stories in the two collections were originally published together in TheYoung Oxford Book of Folk Tales
