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1500 questions
223
votes
26 answers

Was mathematics invented or discovered?

What would it mean to say that mathematics was invented and how would this be different from saying mathematics was discovered? Is this even a serious philosophical question, or just a meaningless, tautological linguistic ambiguity? In the context…
Ami
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18 answers

Is 'guns don't kill people, people kill people' a good argument?

I'm hearing the argument X doesn't do Y, people do Y in quite a few guises. For instance, in its original form: Guns don't kill people; people kill people. Presumably, therefore, guns are OK. Cars don't kill people; people kill people. Again,…
Crab Bucket
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120
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22 answers

Why don't fair coin tosses add up? Is the gambler's fallacy really valid?

I have always been perplexed by a seeming paradox in probability that I'm sure has some simple, well-known explanation We say that a "fair coin" has "no memory." At each toss, the odds are once again reset, at 50:50. Hence, the "gambler's fallacy."…
Nelson Alexander
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116
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13 answers

Am I morally obligated to pursue a career in medicine?

I am a high school student who has no formal training in philosophy, so I apologize if this question seems naïve. However, it is one that I am currently facing in a life decision, and I would like a philosopher's input on the matter. I am nearing…
David Zhang
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111
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25 answers

How does one know one is not dreaming?

How could one logically demonstrate to someone skeptical that one is "really" there, and awake, and not just dreaming about the entire world around them? Which philosophers or philosophies have addressed this problem of how one knows one is, or is…
wizlog
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98
votes
12 answers

Is Gödel's incompleteness theorem a cheap trick?

I found a throwaway critique of Kurt Gödel's incompleteness theorem in an essay about deconstruction, “How to Deconstruct Anything” by Chip Morningstar. In the context of the article, the critique of Gödel was helpful in understanding the critique…
Jon Ericson
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96
votes
31 answers

What would it take in a book to convince a rational person that it had been written by or directly inspired by a god?

Many of the world's religions are based on a book or text that adherents claim to have been written by or directly inspired by a god, perhaps omniscient, omnipotent and omnibenevolent. My question is whether there is anything, in principle, that…
JDH
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91
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22 answers

Could 'cogito ergo sum' possibly be false?

I've heard it postulated by some people that "we can't truly know anything". While that does seem to apply to the vast majority of things, I can't see how 'cogito ergo sum' can possibly be false. No matter what I am, no matter in what way I'm…
Jez
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83
votes
14 answers

Is there such a thing as absolute proof?

Can you prove, absolutely and 100%, that something is true, in the field of philosophy? It always seems you can go a layer down, and find another question, almost endlessly. Reference Development of Proof Theory
John M.
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79
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16 answers

Is it immoral to download music illegally?

I should first point out that the title is more to capture a common occurrence of the broader idea I want to address in this question. It is also somewhat incorrect in that—at least in the US—I'm not sure it's actually illegal to download music…
stoicfury
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76
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11 answers

How can an uneducated but rational person differentiate between science and religion?

I recently found myself unable to respond to the statement "But the big bang theory is just another creation myth!" during a science vs. religion argument. I found it very difficult to explain the difference between the big bang theory and creation…
Alexander S King
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70
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28 answers

Why is there something instead of nothing?

The "something" means the whole Universe (known and unknown). It would include all the multiverses and such. It could be represented as the “reality” version of the set of all sets, which is itself debated. A better version of the whole Universe…
Geoffroy CALA
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70
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7 answers

What is the fallacy “X is bad, Y is worse, therefore X is not bad” called?

I have often heard this type of argument: You are criticizing X using well-researched facts and arguments. Your interlocutor states that Y is much worse, with equally well-researched facts and arguments. Your interlocutor uses their argument…
Sardathrion - against SE abuse
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67
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11 answers

Does human life have innate value over that of other animals?

Does human life have innate value over that of other animals? If so, why? And is it wrong to murder another human, but morally permissible to hunt or fish?
user37214
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66
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26 answers

Why is faith seen as a sign of weakness, instead of an unexplored land/opportunity?

Hope this is the right place to put this question! I am a person of faith (more specific, a Christian) and most of the time people consider me somehow inferior for my belief. I am not antisocial, not sick, nor crazy, but rather rational (even if…
lukuss
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