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The Great Debate and
Newcastle
Philosophy Society present
The Nature of Being Human
Friday 18th March 2005
Public discussion held as part of
Click here for Proceedings
LG 38
Bedson Teaching Centre
Queen Victoria Road,
University of Newcastle,
Newcastle upon Tyne
Location Map
Chair: David Large
Speakers:
Colin Talbot,
author The Paradoxical Primate
Caspar Hewett, Chair, The Great Debate
Inge Rebergen, Historian and philosopher
Adam Bell, Kantian philosopher
What is that defines the nature of being human?
This question has fascinated philosophers and scientists for centuries and the
proposed answers remain highly contested.
Is it a universal nature? Is it consciousness?
Is it our capacity for rational thought? Is it our ecological ability to adapt our environment rather than adapt to it?
A number of secondary questions arise about how we can best interrogate the subject:
Can we rely on reason alone? What can the study of evolution tell us about
ourselves?
How do these considerations interrelate? Why is it so popular to apply
Neo-Darwinist principles to human behaviour and to society today?
And what do philosophers of mind make of all this? Is it a scientific question at all?
These questions and others will be examined through a discussion of what it is to be human.
Come along, hear the arguments and have your say.
Pre-booking is essential as numbers are limited.
To book e-mail:
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