This course will introduce you to some of the main areas of research in contemporary philosophy. Each module a different philosopher will talk you through some of the most important questions and issues in their area of expertise. We’ll begin by trying to understand what philosophy is – what are its characteristic aims and methods, and how does it differ from other subjects? Then we’ll spend the rest of the course gaining an introductory overview of several different areas of philosophy.
These videos are free open resources originally created for the short course, Introduction to Philosophy on Coursera. If the course is not currently running, you can still work through the media resources in your own time.
These videos are licensed under CC BY-NC-ND.
-
Dr Alasdair Richmond discusses time travel. If you download and reuse this video, please remember to attribute the University of Edinburgh and include the relevant…
Further Discussions
From Lizzy Garner-Foy
-
Dr Alasdair Richmond sketches some of the live problems in the philosophy of time travel, and outlines where this branch of philosophy is going next. If you download…
Where Next?
From Lizzy Garner-Foy
-
Dr Alasdair Richmond talks about the concept of causal loops in time. If you download and reuse this video, please remember to attribute the University of Edinburgh and…
Causal Loops
From Lizzy Garner-Foy
-
Dr Alasdair Richmond explores time travel using everyday objects as examples. If you download and reuse this video, please remember to attribute the University of…
Two Senses of Change
From Lizzy Garner-Foy
-
Dr Alasdair Richmond talks about the classic objection to backwards time travel, usually referred to as the Grandfather Paradox. If you download and reuse this video,…
Grandfather Paradoxes
From Lizzy Garner-Foy
-
Dr Alasdair Richmond discusses time travel in relation to the 1976 paper by David Lewis, 1941-2001, 'The Paradoxes of Time Travel'. If you download and reuse…
What Might Time Travel Be Anyway?
From Lizzy Garner-Foy
-
Dr. Elinor Mason summarises her exploration of free will. If you download and reuse this video, please remember to attribute the University of Edinburgh and include the…
Summary
From Lizzy Garner-Foy
-
Dr. Elinor Mason discusses the concept of hard determinism. If you download and reuse this video, please remember to attribute the University of Edinburgh and include…
Hard Determinism
From Lizzy Garner-Foy
-
Dr. Elinor Mason discusses the view that although we don't have metaphysical free will, we are determined - compatibilism. If you download and reuse this video,…
Compatibilism
From Lizzy Garner-Foy
-
Dr. Elinor Mason explores the idea that we really are free - libertarianism. If you download and reuse this video, please remember to attribute the University of…
Libertarianism
From Lizzy Garner-Foy
-
Dr. Elinor Mason discusses free will and determinism. If you download and reuse this video, please remember to attribute the University of Edinburgh and include the…
What Is Determinism?
From Lizzy Garner-Foy
-
Michela Massimi summarises the exploration of scientific theories. If you download and reuse this video, please remember to attribute the University of Edinburgh and…
Concluding Summary
From Lizzy Garner-Foy
-
Michela Massimi explores a realist outlook on constructive empiricism. If you download and reuse this video, please remember to attribute the University of Edinburgh…
Realist Rejoinders: Inference to the Best…
From Lizzy Garner-Foy
-
Should we really believe in the scientific realism as the best explanation of the success of science? Michela Massimi discusses. If you download and reuse this video,…
Scientific Anti-Realism: Constructive Empiricism
From Lizzy Garner-Foy
-
Michela Massimi discusses the proper philosophical argument for scientific realism - the No Miracles Argument. If you download and reuse this video, please remember to…
Scientific Realism and the No Miracles Argument
From Lizzy Garner-Foy
Search for ""