Episode 123, ‘The Building Blocks of Reality’ with Donnchadh O'Conaill (Part I - Substance)

The Panpsycast Philosophy Podcast

Jack Symes | Andrew Horton, Oliver Marley, and Rose de Castellane

Euthanasia, Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Existentialism, Marxism, Kant, Ethics, Davidpapineau, Dennett, Marx, Evilgodchallenge, Cosmological, Mind, Consciousness, Courses, Nagasawa, Education, Johnstuartmill, Jeremybentham, Aristotle, Ocr, Camus, Josephfletcher, Conscience, Society & Culture, Kantianethics, Philosophy

4.8 • 604 Ratings

🗓️ 22 October 2023

⏱️ 42 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

What is the underlying nature of reality? For Thales, the essence of the world was water; for the Stoics, it was Logos; for Heraclitus, the universe consisted, fundamentally, of fire, life-energy, or the ‘thinking faculty’. The search for the building blocks of our world has a rich philosophical history and, today is intertwined with cutting-edge research in the physical sciences. In this episode, we’ll be focusing on those who defend the idea of substances. According to this view, at the heart of our cosmos exist simple, independent, ungrounded entities (called ‘substances’) from which everything else in the world is made and sustained. Perhaps these are particles, strings, or space–time; maybe they’re consciousness, selves, or gods.

Our guide to substances and the nature of reality is Dr Donnchadh O’Conaill, post-doctoral researcher at the University of Fribourg, Switzerland. Dr O’Conaill – currently working on the Swiss National Science Foundation project, The Subject of Experiences – has made several important contributions to the literature, including through his recent book, Substance, published by Cambridge University Press.

As we shall see, Dr O’Conaill is a leading scholar on the role and nature of substances, as well as the contentious question of their existence. Ultimately, that’s our focus: whether the world depends on independent, ungrounded entities and what these hidden entities might look like.

Contents

Part I. Substance

Part II. Further Analysis and Discussion

Links

Donnchadh O'Conaill, Website

Donnchadh O'Conaill, Substance (2022)

Transcript

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0:00.0	What is the underlying nature of reality?
0:11.0	For Thales, the essence of the world was water. For the Stoics, it was Logos.
0:16.0	For Heraclitus, the universe consisted fundamentally of fire, life energy or the thinking faculty.
0:22.6	The search for the building blocks of our world has a rich philosophical history and today is intertwined with cutting-edge research in the physical sciences.
0:31.6	In this episode, we'll be focusing on those who defend the idea of substances.
0:35.6	According to this view, at the heart of our cosmos exists simple, independent, ungrounded entities called substances, from which everything else in the world is made and sustained.
0:47.3	Perhaps these are particles, strings, or space-time, maybe their consciousness, selves or gods.
0:54.4	Our guide to substances and the nature of reality is Dr. Dunnaker O'Connell, postdoctoral researcher
0:59.7	at the University of Freiburg, Switzerland.
1:03.3	Dr. O'Connell currently working on the Swiss National Science Foundation Project, the Subject
1:07.7	of Experiences, has made several important contributions to the literature, including
1:12.3	through his recent book Substance, published by Cambridge University Press.
1:16.4	As we shall see, Dr. O'Connor is a leading scholar on the role and nature of substances,
1:20.9	as well as the contentious question of their existence.
1:24.0	Ultimately, that's our focus, whether the world depends on independent, ungrounded entities,
1:29.7	and what these hidden entities might look like.
1:51.3	Hello and welcome to episode 123 of the PansaiCast.
1:59.6	I'm the bundle of particles, that is Jack Symes, and I'm delighted to be joined once again by the man who has been shared by multiple entities, it's Mr. Oli-Mali.
2:01.4	Hello.
2:02.0	And the ontologically independent Dr. Dunnaker O'Connell.
2:06.0	How do?
2:06.5	Thank you for joining us on the show, Dunnika. It's great to have you with us.
	...

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