In the CAVE: An Ethics Podcast

Australia prides itself on being a secular, multi-cultural state. Section 116 of the Australian Constitution declares that:  The Commonwealth shall not make any law for establishing any religion, or for imposing any religious observance, or for prohibiting the free exercise of any religion, and no religious test shall be required as a qualification for any office or public trust under the Commonwealth. In theory, the law protects all religions equally. But in a new book, Mareike Reidel argues that, despite the state’s supposed religious neutrality and the separation of state and church, the law fails to deliver equality for all religions. She traces the origins of this “Christian normativity” to the historical relationship between Christianity and Judaism, and the long-held ambivalence about the place and belonging of Jews and Judaism in Western societies. This work raises questions of identity, difference, and the law, and explores how religious difference is racialized.  Join host Distinguished Professor Wendy Rogers and guest Dr Mareike Riedel as they discuss the relationship between law, secularism, religion, and racialisation through the lens of the legal encounter with Jewish identity.    This podcast features Mareike’s forthcoming book, 'Law and Jewish Difference: Ambivalent Encounters', published with Cambridge University Press. (https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/law-and-jewish-difference/D8A29D2D741715B8EB4E5D77B77644D3)

The concept of "self-care" has become ubiquitous in recent years - we're urged to take bubble baths, book spa days, and indulge in retail therapy to cope with the stresses of modern life. But what often gets lost in this wellness rhetoric is that self-care has much deeper roots, originating in the Black feminist tradition as a form of resistance and survival in the face of systemic racism. As Audre Lorde famously wrote, "Caring for myself is not self-indulgence, it is self-preservation, and that is an act of political warfare." This is a prime example of "epistemic appropriation" - when a concept created by a marginalized group to name their oppression, such as “woke” or “self-care”, gets taken up by dominant groups in a way that obscures and undermines its original meaning and political force. Is this sort of epistemic appropriation a form of injustice? Join host Professor Paul Formosa and guest Paul-Mikhail Catapang Podosky as they discuss epistemic and cultural appropriation and the history of the concept of “woke”.  This podcast focuses on Paul’s 2023 paper, “Rethinking Epistemic Appropriation”, in Episteme, 20(1), 142–162. https://doi.org/10.1017/epi.2021.8 

Given the ubiquity of streaming services as well as the enduring popularity of cinemas, we are probably watching more films now than at any other time in human history. Films entertain, distract, fill an otherwise empty hour or two, facilitate social interactions, split audiences, provoke controversy and more. However, most of us would probably not add “doing philosophy” to that list. But this is just what film-philosophers claim, that cinema can engage in philosophy in a manner comparable to, although differing from, philosophy itself. Not only that, but films can be transformative, by reframing what we understand about the world, reconfiguring previously held beliefs or views or providing a rich understanding of different perspectives and experiences.   Join host Distinguished Professor Wendy Rogers and guest Professor Robert Sinnerbrink as they investigate the potentially transformative nature of film.  This podcast features Robert’s recently published chapter: “Cinematic ethics: On film as transformative experience”, in J. Hanich, & M. P. Rossouw (Eds.), What film is good for: on the values of spectatorship (pp. 209-220). University of California Press.

Psychopathy holds a certain fascination for crime writers and philosophers alike. Characters such as Harris’ Hannibal Lector, Highsmith’s Tom Ripley and Steinbeck’s Cathy Trask fascinate and repel readers with their indifference to the pain and distress of others. Philosophers’ interest in psychopaths revolves around the question of whether or not they are morally responsible for the harms they cause. Investigating this issue requires sophisticated accounts of the emotions and other responses that underpin moral responsibility, as well as taking account of relevant insights from neuropsychology.   Join host Distinguished Professor Wendy Rogers and Professor Heidi Maibom as they discuss whether or not we should hold psychopaths responsible for harming others.   This podcast discusses one of Heidi’s papers, “Empathy and Moral Understanding in Psychopaths” in J. Doris & M. Vargas (Eds.) Oxford Handbook of Moral Psychology. Oxford: Oxford University Press (2022, pp. 838-62).

 Imagine that you're a student struggling with writer's block on an essay assignment. What if you could turn to an AI tutor for help - one that could not only offer suggestions for improving your prose, but could even generate entire paragraphs or complete drafts based on a few simple prompts? With the rapid advancement of AI and large language models such as ChatGPT, Claude, or Perplexity AI, this scenario has already become a reality for many students. AI-powered writing tools are already being used in classrooms, and AI and LLMs have the potential to revolutionize education. But as the possibilities expand, so too do the questions and concerns. What happens to critical thinking and original expression when students can outsource more and more of the writing and thinking process to algorithms? And what role should education play in preparing students for a world increasingly shaped by AI?  Join host Professor Paul Formosa and guest Professor Virginia Dignum as they discuss Responsible AI and the future of education.  This podcast focuses on Virginia’s paper “The role and challenges of education for responsible AI”, London Review of Education, 19(1). https://doi.org/10.14324/LRE.19.1.01