Philosophy & Psychology

Why we should trust science

Many of us accept science is a reliable guide to what we ought to believe – but not all of ...
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Salman Rushdie and freedom of speech

Salman Rushdie was assailed by 24-year-old Muslim fanatic Hadi Matar on 12 August as he was about to give a ...
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Why do we mourn people we don’t know?

The death of Queen Elizabeth II has prompted public displays of grief around the world – from public gatherings at ...
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Inflationary psychology could make things worse

With the world experiencing inflation levels not seen since the 1980s, central banks are caught between warning of the dangers ...
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Uncertainty and the pull of magical beliefs

Magic has a seemingly universal allure. It’s interwoven in some of the most popular narratives for children and adults, from ...
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Big data: Unlocking insights into psychology

People aren’t like rocks, and that has long been a problem for psychological scientists. If you are experimenting on a ...
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Why conspiracy theories are exciting – and dangerous

Conspiracy theories have been around for centuries, from witch trials and antisemitic campaigns to beliefs that Freemasons were trying to ...
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How cults corrupt our desire for love and connection

Project Mayhem is an all-male cult – but unlike the real cults that Sarah Steel writes about in Do As ...
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Karl Marx’s philosophy explained

In 1845, Karl Marx declared: “philosophers have only interpreted the world in various ways; the point is to change it”. ...
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Blaming ‘evil’: Unpacking the paradox of using the word

The word ‘evil’ circulates widely in the wake of terrible public violence. The May 24, 2022, massacre at an elementary ...
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Why are we so vulnerable to bad information?

There are two fundamental reasons why misinformation is a bigger problem than ever before. The first is tied to the ...
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Bertrand Russell’s universe

One hundred and fifty years ago on 18 May 1872 the philosopher Bertrand Russell was born. Of everything he said ...
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