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Tag: philosophy

Book Review: Jeremy Rifkin’s “The Zero Marginal Cost Society”

A hefty portion of humanity’s uniqueness can be traced back to future projection.  We constantly weave narratives that stretch moments and months and millennia ahead, even as we fumble to figure out what to do with today, each day.  Everyone needs some kind of intellectual framework to navigate this tricky tension, which is where futurists […]

Book Review: Robert Wright’s “Nonzero”

This book came to my attention by way of David Brin, who claims it as mandatory reading for anyone interested in saving the world.  I’m not sure if I’d go that far, but the assertion that positive sum games play a critical role in biological and cultural evolution is definitely significant, especially insofar as it […]

Book Review: Mark Johnson’s “Morality for Humans”

Mark Johnson was my senior thesis adviser at the University of Oregon.  More than that, he changed my life profoundly, starting with his Philosophy 101 lecture course on Philosophical Problems, which caused me to change my major after just one term at UO.  Johnson introduced me to the works of John Dewey––my intellectual hero––and also […]