First published originally in German in 1921, "Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus" is the only book-length philosophical work by Austrian philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein published during his lifetime. Based upon notes made during his time, serving in World War I, the treatise is composed of 526 numbered declarative statements that are presented without argument and were seen by Wittgenstein as being self-evident. Wittgenstein's style is succinct and sparse...

If science is neither cookery, nor angelic virtuosity, then what is it? Modern societies have tended to take science for granted as a way of knowing, ordering, and controlling the world, where everything was subject to science, but science itself has largely escaped scrutiny. In this fascinating collection of interviews, CBC Radio's Ideas producer David Cayley talks to some of the world's most provocative thinkers about how the ideas of science have...

David Miller elegantly and provocatively reformulates critical rationalism-the revolutionary approach to epistemology advocated by Karl Popper-by answering its most important critics. He argues for an approach to rationality freed from the debilitating authoritarian dependence on reasons and justification. "Miller presents a particularly useful and stimulating account of critical rationalism. His work is both interesting and controversial... of interest...

The modern world is dominated by ideas that are threatening to kill us: that life is one long battle from conception to grave; that all creatures, including human beings, are driven by their selfish DNA; that the universe is just stuff, for us to use at will. These ideas are seen as emerging from science and hard-nosed philosophy, and become self-fulfilling. They have led us to create a world in perpetual strife, that is unjust and in many ways precarious....

Why do the heavenly bodies behave in a contrary fashion to what we are familiar with on earth? Before a wheel can turn, we must ensure rim is joined to axle; before a couple can dance in circle, their hands must be joined. In contrast, the planets circle the sun and the moons circle the planets without any securing mechanism, and so precisely that their movements can be predicted to a millisecond. Again, why is it that, released from the effects of...

Un anlisis profundo sobre la influencia que enfrentan los usuarios de los medios audiovisuales de comunicacin masiva en la era virtual de Internet y, cmo estos medios, a travs de sus imgenes, estimulan los patrones genticos que determinan las conductas de los individuos, penetrando hasta lo ms profundo de la intimidad de su ser, provocando conductas impulsivas hacia la violencia, la compra de productos innecesarios, la incorrecta alimentacin, la prdida...

L'amour peut-il rendre fou? La plupart des gens le croient, mais qu'en est-il vraiment? Dominique Nancy et Mathieu-Robert Sauvé, tous deux journalistes à l'hebdomadaire Forum, ont eu la bonne idée de poser cette question, et une soixantaine d'autres d'inspirations diverses, à des experts de l'Université de Montréal, de HEC Montréal et de Polytechnique. Comment se forment les flocons de neige? Les boissons énergisantes sont-elles bénéfiques?...

Two earnest scholars who study human consciousness spend six days in a conversation spanning their areas of knowledge in science, philosophy, and metaphysics to question whether our profound ecological crisis, unique in the life of our planet in its potential for loss of biodiversity and the possibility of actual extinction of our species, can be rectified.

Words do naught to function without meaning or expression providing a foundation, and despite the benevolence, grace, or malign intention that backs them up, often enough do we find that these variables mean nothing in a written state-too often are false affections and prejudices ascribed to our words and sewn into our lips; if it is the duty of the author-or of the speaker-to convey absolute meaning, and in that instance we may yet be absolutely...

Drawing on esoteric, spiritual and philosophical thought, this book considers the all-important question - why are we here? - and offers a counter-argument to the current nihilsm prevalent in our world.