PODCAST · society
I Learned Nothing
by I Learned Nothing
A philosophy podcast for curious idiots, by curious idiots.
Episodes
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ILN EP 164: Twin Earth
Pat was feeling unique so Ben blasts his precious little perspective right out of the water by introducing him to the Twin Earth thought experiment. In one fell swoop, Ben destroys Pat's commitment to semantic internalism thanks to Hilary Putnam and his view that "meaning just ain't in the head."...
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ILN EP 163: G. E. M. Anscombe
Pat was feeling murderous so Ben tamps that rage with the devout moral reasoning of near-canonized Catholic saint and Wittgenstein acolyte Gertrude Elizabeth Margaret Anscombe. One of the big heavy hitters of Ordinary Language Philosophy and pioneer of Virtue Ethics, G.E.M. Anscombe started her...
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ILN 160: Islamic Philosophy, Part I
Pat was feeling haram, so Ben sat his infidel ass down and explained to him the groundbreaking philosophical developments unleashed by the Islamic world. Centuries before Christian thinkers like Thomas Aquinas and Albertus Magnus (Latin for Fat Albert) were even potty trained, Muslim philosophers...
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ILN EP 158: Qualia
Pat was feeling pretty self-conscious so Ben explains it's because of all his damn Qualia, stupid! Qualia is a concept in philosophy of mind referring to that mushy notion of what it's like to experience something, like the color red, the smell of wet ham, or feeling cool as hell. It's that…
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ILN EP 152: The Beetle In The Box
Pat was feeling trapped so Ben tuned him on to the wacky linguistic thought experiment developed by Ben's Main Man Ludwig Wittgenstein. Are humans capable of having a private language? Not just shibboleth for your crew but a private language only YOU know about? Wittgenstein says NO, you idiot.…
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ILN EP 151: Accelerationism
Pat was feeling sluggish so Ben ramps him up to accept the new outrun philosophy of Accelerationism all over his face. The WisdomBois begin with a quick recap of Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guatarri's theory of deterritorialization and cap it off with a snappy rundown of Marx's thoughts on Late...
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ILN EP 148: Utilitarianism, Part I
Pat was feeling shrewd so Ben clued him in on the HOTTEST ethical theory of the past 3 centuries: Utilitarianism! That's right folks. Ben and Pat are tackling Utilitarianism and you better believe it's a motherfucking two-parter. Conceived by the debauched mind of Jeremy Bentham and developed by...
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ILN EP 147: The Liar Paradox
Pat once trusted the bedrock reliability of logic so Ben went ahead and shattered that nonsense by teaching him about The Liar's Paradox, the oldest, most stubborn, and most infuriating logical paradox in the history of paradoxes, SON! Check THIS out: "This sentence is false." Is the preceding...
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BONUS PATREON EPISODE 4!!! ILN PAT-REON EP 83: The Saga of The Dolphin House
Folks! Put on some sunscreen and pull out your floaties because Pat & Ben are taking you on a tropical, aquatic adventure! We're releasing one of our COVETED Patreon episodes so you can get a taste of what you've been missing. In this installment, Pat teaches Ben about possibly the most ludicrous...
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ILN EP 144: Philosophy of Religion, Part I
Pat was feeling epiphanic so Ben brings him into the fold. The Religious Fold, that is! Don't worry. We haven't gone religious. But Pat couldn't help ask: What does is it all mean, Basil? And why is God involved? It seems that we as humans always need to talk about the Great Beyond, even if (or...
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ILN EP 143: The Ethics of AI, Part II
Pat was feeling empathetic so Ben continues to interrogate Pat about his thoughts on Artificial Intelligence and their capacity to feel. Do androids dream of electric sheep? Or will their thoughts be lost in time like tears in rain? Also, in a stunning twist, Ben presents Pat with a thought...
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ILN EP 141: Rudolf Steiner
Pat was feeling esoteric so Ben's coming in hot with a spiritual alternative to the dry, academic Western philosophy he's been torturing Pat with for the past 4 years. That's right. Holy shit. It's been 4 years of this. Thanks for listening? Anyway! Ben teaches Pat about Rudolf Steiner, a German...
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ILN EP 140: Panpsychism
Pat was feeling self-conscious so Ben opens his eyes to the wild and wonderful world of universal consciousness. In our latest episode, Ben teaches Pat about hottest new philosophy since Existentialism: Panpsychism. Have you ever suspected that trees feel pain? That rocks can yearn? That your...
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ILN EP 139: Jean-Paul Sartre, Part II
Pat was feeling inauthentic so he calls on Benjamin C. Cholok, sygil of authenticity himself, to summon the horny spirit of Jean Paul Sartre once again and wrest Pat's struggling spirit from the yawning jaws of bad faith once and for all. Dramatic, no? Listen in for the full picture! Dao you doin?
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ILN EP 138: Jean-Paul Sartre, Part I
Pat was feeling existential AGAIN so Ben brings out the big guns: the stinkiest, most wall-eyed Frenchman this side of the 20th Century, Jean-Paul Sartre. King of Existentialism, widely acclaimed philosopher and writer, and all-around prankster, Jean-Paul Sartre features heavily in this two-part...
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ILN EP 137: Time Travel Paradoxes
Pat was feeling asynchronous so Ben sets his ass straight with a few mINd BeNdInG TIME TRAVEL PARADOXES. Hoo boy, is this one a doozy. Thanks for listening and remember to check out our Patreon to get bonus episodes for $5/month. C'maaaaaannnnnn. Also, buy Kyrgies slippers for those filthy feet…
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ILN EP 136: Antinatalism
Pat was feeling despondent so Ben perks him up with the cheery, not-at-all-controversial philosophy of antinatalism. In a nutshell, this theory argues that with all the suffering and pain life brings, it's unethical to bring new people into the world, both because of the inevitable risks of being...
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ILN EP 135: Grue
Pat was feeling KINDA BLUE so Ben floors him with the absolutely jazzy color theory of hep cat/philosopher Nelson Goodman and his controversial theory of Grue. Grue is a new color Goodman invented but it's also an innovative new critique of the Problem of Induction. How do we confirm that…
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BONUS PATREON EPISODE 3!!! ILN PAT-REON EP 47: The Great Emu War of 1932
Folks! We're releasing YET ANOTHER free Pat-reon Bonus Episode, piping hot and fresh from the vault!! Pat was feeling a little “down under” so he flips the script and teaches Ben a thing or two about a thing or two. In this installment, we learn about Australia’s Great Emu War of 1932, easily one...
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ILN EP 132: G. E. Moore
Pat was feeling gaslit, so Ben clears the air by introducing philosophy's savior of common sense: G. E. Moore. As one third of the Triumvirate of analytic philosophy (including the pervert Bertrand Russell and closet-case Ludwig Wittgenstein), G.E. Moore spearheaded the revolt in British…
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ILN EP 130: Evil
Pat was feeling naughty so Ben tempts him with a comprehensive discussion of the ancient concept of Evil. Evil as a moral or ethical notion has plagued us and bewitched us since we as a species could first distinguish right or wrong. Evil is fundamental, primordial, and horrifying. The Eldritch...
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ILN EP 129: Roko's Basilisk
Pat was feeling pretty satisfied with himself on his precious little birthday so Ben decides to dash his spirits with the Internet 2.0's hottest new meme paradox: Roko's Basilisk. Roko's Basilisk is a thought experiment outlined in 2010 by SOME GUY on SOME BLOG that has disturbed nerds and…
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ILN EP 128: JL Austin
Pat was feeling loquacious as usual so Ben takes this opportunity to lay out the nuanced and penetrating philosophy of British nerd/superspy JL Austin. This guy is famous for being one of the most original philosophers of the 20th Century, focusing mainly on language and its role in constructing...
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ILN EP 127: The Sleeping Beauty Problem
Pat was feeling sleepy so Ben regales him with one of the most infuriating thought experiments of all time: The Sleeping Beauty Problem. Concocted by Ben's very own thesis adviser Professor Adam Elga (seriously), The Sleeping Beauty Problem was submitted to the world in 2000 and it has boggled...
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ILN EP 126: Giorgio Agamben
Pat and Ben were both feeling sad, confused, and powerless, so Ben drives that feeling home by discussing the troubling and disheartening political philosophy of contemporary Italian political theorist Giorgio Agamben. Tying together several disparate threads from both ancient and modern…
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BONUS PATREON EPISODE 2!!! ILN PAT-REON EP 30: The Air-Buddies w/ Avery Moore
We're releasing a free Pat-reon, putos!! Pat had laryngitis a while back so Ben invites friend of the show, comic extraordinaire, and host of Avery and Adam's Christmas Committee: The Podcast Avery Moore to teach him about the arcane topic of the Air Buddies Universe. Strap in bitches, because…
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ILN EP 124: Ecce Homo w/ Lando Shepard
Pat was feeling saucy so Ben tantalizes him with a stirring discussion of podcast favorite Friedrich Nietzsche's self-effacing autobiography Ecce Homo, which is Latin for "Behold the Homo." Nah, just playing. Joining in on the third mic is comedian, carpet cleaner, and Professor of Culinary Arts…
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ILN EP 123: Sex and Power
Pat was feeling socially distanced so Ben keeps him company as they take a dip in a rather steamy topic: Sex AND Power. As the world reels from the Great Cough of 2020, the WisdomBois talk all things Foucault, focusing specifically on the complex relationship between sex, power, and knowledge,...
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ILN EP 122: Albert Camus w/ Derek Kopswa
Pat was feeling nihilistic so Ben calls for back up. Who does he call? Well he's forced to call the Kopswa of course! In these absurd, trying times, Ben decides the perfect antidote is to teach Pat about French existentialist (don't call me that!) and human ashtray Albert Camus, with the help of...
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ILN EP 120: Louis Althusser
Pat was feeling interpellated so Ben briefs him on the updated Marxist philosophy of the EXTREMELY cancelled French theorist Louis Althusser. Ben spills the tea with Pat about the life and writings of the most tormented son of a bitch in 20th Century French thought. Raised as a nice Catholic boy,...
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ILN EP 119: Rights
Pat was feeling privileged so Ben dives into the nebulous concept that makes Our Country Great: our God-given Rights. Turns out this talk couldn't have come sooner, since 30 minutes in, Pat confuses the FIRST TWO AMENDMENTS in a blooper for the ages. Ben teaches Pat about who has rights, where…
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ILN EP 118: William of Ockham
Pat was feeling parsimonious so Ben clues him into the cutting edge philosophy of Medieval thinker/virgin William of Okham. Known primarily for his eponymous dictum, Okham's Razor, Willie O also made a name for himself as a nominalist, borderline heretic, and for pissing off the Pope, whom he...
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ILN EP 117: The Repugnant Conclusion
Pat was feeling forward-thinking so Ben dashes all hopes of that with a survey of one of the simplest yet confounding thought experiments in recent philosophy: The Repugnant Conclusion. Based on the writings of late British philosopher/madlad Derek Parfit, The Repugnant Conclusion is the end…
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ILN EP 115: The Anthropic Principle
Pat was feeling like the center of the Universe so Ben validates that feeling by teaching him about the controversial Anthropic Principle. As if balking at our improbable existence in this hostile Universe weren't anguishing enough, scientists have started pointing out how the very fact of us...
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ILN EP 112: Philosophy of Mathematics
Pat was feeling quantifiable so Ben comes in hot with some theories about numbers, and boy is Pat peeved. In what might be the yelliest episode of I Learned Nothing to date, Ben and Pat scream about math for about an hour and a half. Like a fool, Ben convinces himself that he can enlighten Pat on...
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ILN EP 111: Frantz Fanon
Pat was feeling chauvinistic so Ben sets him straight with the revolutionary existentialism of post-colonial philosopher Frantz Fanon. Born in the overseas French department of Martinique in the Lesser Antilles, Frantz Fanon grew up knowing first-hand the degradation of colonial oppression and...
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BONUS PATREON BITCH EPISODE!!! ILN PAT-REON EP 9: Emperor Norton I
Pat AND Ben were feeling generous so they've unleashed a Patreon episode on the world for FREE! Ep. 9 of our Pat-Treon Experiment is now free to the public. Introducing His Imperial Majesty Joshua Norton I, Emperor of the United States, Protector of Mexico, and absolute raving lunatic who…
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ILN EP 110: William James
Pat was feeling pragmatic so Ben teaches him the All-American philosophy of William James. James' prolific career and work spanned many diverse topics, such as the philosophy of religion, epistemology, and the foundations of psychology. More than Sigmund Freud, James had a lasting influence on…
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ILN EP 109: Judith Butler w/ Victoria Tyler
Pat was feeling misogynistic (again) so Ben had to even the scales by bringing in Gender Studies expert and Pat's certifiably insane roommate Victoria Tyler to help teach Pat how to not hate women. Join Vic and Ben as they clumsily explain to Pat the social & political theories of American...
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ILN EP 106: Dirty Hands
Pat was feeling conflicted so Ben sorts him out by analyzing the Problem of Dirty Hands. If you’ve ever seen an episode of 24, you’ll be more than familiar with this classic ethical dilemma/tired plot device. If not, it goes kind of like this: As leader of a country or community facing an...
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ILN EP 105: Eternal Recurrence
Pat was feeling complacent so Ben charges in with the perfect remedy: A rousing recitation of Nietzsche’s famous doctrine of the Eternal Recurrence. If you had to live your life again exactly as you’ve lived it so far over and over again for eternity, would you curse God or thank him? And what...
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ILN EP 104: Relativity
Pat was feeling absolute about space & time so Ben took him down a peg by explaining the Theory of Relativity. Developed by internationally renowned German-American physicist/sex addict Albert Einstein, the special and general theories of relativity have fundamentally altered our understanding of...
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ILN EP 103: Antonio Gramsci
Pat was feeling like half a momo, so Ben introduces him to the very Eye-talian flavor of Marxism developed by Antonio Gramsci. Gramsci started as a pizza chef, then became a master plumber with his brother, Luigi. In order to learn this trade, he became a trade unionist before converting fully to...
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ILN EP 102: Avicenna w/ Mitch Mekulsia
Pat was feeling Middle Eastern so Ben brings in a foreign correspondent to talk about the Islamic World’s Biggest Intellectual Daddy, Avicenna. Pittsburgh Professor of Near Eastern Studies/infirm veteran Mitch Mekulsia joins the WisdomBoyz in a heated discussion about the man who brought…
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ILN EP 96: René Descartes
Pat was feeling Gallic so Ben comes at him with the guy who started it all. Not just French philosophy, but the Modern Western Tradition as we know it. Rectifying an oversight that has plagued the podcast for decades, Ben & Pat finally talk about the Daddy of Modern Philosophy himself: René "Sit…
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ILN EP 95: Sextus Empiricus
Pat was feeling dubious so Ben delivers a crash course in the Pyrrhonian Skepticism of Ancient Greek philosopher/dilettante Sextus Empiricus. This is one of the few episodes where Pat picked the topic. Can you guess why? Anyway, Sextus Empiricus AKA The Sex Man lived and wrote sometime in the 2nd...
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ILN EP 94: Simone Weil
Pat was feeling rapturous so Ben unveils the mystical philosophy of manic pixie wisdom girl Simone Weil and in so doing thoroughly bums Pat out. How, you ask? By summarizing her intense life story along with the philosophical thoughts it engendered. Simone Weil was born Jewish in Paris, France in...
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ILN EP 93: Gettier Problems
Pat was feeling confident in what he thinks he knows so Ben dashes that assumption by introducing Pat to the table-flipping thought experiments known as Gettier Problems. The infamous Gettier Problems were contrived by the notorious sad boi of modern analytical philosophy, Edmund Gettier. Gettier...
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ILN EP 92: Jean Baudrillard
Pat was feeling hyperreal so Ben explains the wasted landscape described by French postmodernist/fuckboi Jean Baudrillard. This ham-faced prick identified the extent to which we live in a simulated reality constructed by the exchange of empty symbols tenuously supported by the unjustified...
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ILN EP 91: Anarchism
Pat was feeling anti-authoritarian so he and Ben dive into the history and philosophy of the funnest of all political ideologies: Anarchism. NO GODS, NO MASTERS, BABAYYY! We've killed our parents and we're having ice cream for dinner every night. The WisdomBoyz learn about an iconoclastic crew of...
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
A philosophy podcast for curious idiots, by curious idiots.
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I Learned Nothing
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I Learned Nothing currently has 138 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
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A philosophy podcast for curious idiots, by curious idiots.
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