Content on Why Do People Do Bad (and Good) Things?
If someone develops a brain tumor that affects their decision-making, how responsible are they for their actions? Is a sense of meaning more important than a sense of right and wrong? How does religion change the way we talk about questions of good and evil?
These are a few of the questions that this Sinai and Synapses Discussion Forum explores.
Emotional Health Matters
The ability to understand how emotions affect our and others’ decisions is a big part of spirituality.
“Rationalia” Would Be 1/3 of a Great Place to Live
Science and rationality are great for knowing what is. But if we want to know what to do, we need more.
I Fail Better Than You Fail
What do we learn from failure? What happens when our dogma — whether scientific or religious — turns out to be wrong?
How Can We Do the Most Good?
If we are aiming to truly change the world, we need to think more broadly and more rationally.
Genetic Knowledge Explains. It Doesn’t Predict.
What can we really predict about human behavior in light of increasing knowledge from genetics?
Anthropology, Not Demagoguery, Is the Way to Understand ISIS
Instead of writing off the enemy as evil animals who are motivated by greed or mental illness, an anthropologist actually tries to understand where ISIS is coming from, so as to better interpret their motives.
This Week in Science and Morality – 5/4/15
The moral questions surrounding technological advances that advance life, maximizing goodness using reason and logic, and the complicated nature of goodness and power — here’s what’s new in science and morality this week.
This Week in Science and Morality – 4/27/15
Whether Dzhokar Tsarnev had free will, how “Star Wars” explores and subverts Christian themes, and the constant battle of America’s culture wars — here’s what’s new in science and morality this week.
Is Religion Evolutionarily Adaptive?
Connor Wood argues that religion’s evolutionary adaptiveness (or lack thereof) shouldn’t have the slightest bearing on the epistemic credibility of religious beliefs, or the ultimate goodness of religion.
This Week in Science and Morality – 4/20/15
The good things we can learn from psychopaths, the different ways we talk about God vs. facts, and robot ethics — here’s what’s new in science and morality this week.
The Dark Side of Sacrifice
Sacrifice necessarily implies a level of altruism towards others, a commitment to a larger organization, and devotion to a greater cause. But there can be a dark side to these values, as well.
This Week in Science and Morality – 4/13/15
Understanding the brains of killers, using “religious liberty” to encourage tolerance, and the possible historical link between affluence and moral religions – here’s what’s new in science and morality this week.