How to live (like a Stoic)
People think that philosophy is about pondering, and ideally answering, questions like the following ones: Does life have meaning? What…
Get a life!
“Life,” the American journalist and author Elbert Hubbard once quipped, “is just one damned thing after another.” Like many of…
13 questions: Ricky Gervais
1. What is your demon? Laziness. And fear of failure. Luckily, they usually cancel each other out, but it’s a…
Writers Award XVII: Communication – winners
Silence. Emojis. Learning Latin. Letter writing. Arguments. Social Media. Dance your PhD. Deafness. Communication failure. The art of conversation. There…
Is less more?
Clean lines, absence of decoration, avoidance of clutter, simplicity, and above all functionality – these are the characteristics of modernist…
Things for the future
I’d been sitting in John Gulzari’s living room for more than an hour when he suddenly jumped up and rushed…
Life out now
Issue #19 ‘Life’ has arrived, you can buy a copy online or visit one of the stockists listed here. “People…
Laughing in Spanish
Growing up I had heard my father laugh, but in Chile I heard something new, something honest, guttural, joyful. At…
An antidote to prejudice
It was a time of deep divisions, much like our day. Hatred seemed intractable and the curse of bias rife,…
Thinking ahead
Søren Kierkegaard famously pointed out that the only way we can understand life is backwards – we are compelled to…
Are your best days ahead?
If philosophy is good at one thing, it’s pointing out things that seem so obvious we don’t even notice them…
Attention in a time of plenty
“But where there is danger, there grows also what saves.” Friedrich Hölderlin Attention is our most limited resource. William James proposed…
Divorced from nature: interview with Jane Goodall
Dr Jane Goodall interviewed by New Philosopher’s editor Zan Boag in the ‘Nature‘ edition. Photo by Michael Neugebauer. Zan Boag:…
The end of climate deniers
“While people are very interested in records – the warmest, the hottest, the driest, the wettest – what really matters…
Tune in tomorrow
I remember some time ago standing outside a video shop and watching a mother with her twin daughters inside. The…
Dumb luck and entitlement
There’s a certain disappointment – maybe there’s a word for it in German – that comes from realising a quote…
The autodidact
My grandfather was remarkable. A bright working-class child from the north of England, he had left school in his early…
The classroom of the future
Here’s one of my favourite neologisms: “hangry.” It’s a punning portmanteau. To be hangry is to be angry because you’re…
Why school must change
New Philosopher‘s editor Zan Boag interviews Jane Roland Martin, Professor Emerita of Philosophy at the University of Massachusetts Boston. Zan…
The three pillars of media education
“The image is the great instrument of instruction. What a child gets out of any subject presented to him is…
The Machine Stops
By E.M. Forster “Who is it?” she called. Her voice was irritable, for she had been interrupted often since the…
The art of Amistics
In his most recent novel, Seveneves, sci-fi author Neal Stephenson coins an intriguing term: “Amistics”. Amistics describes “the choices that…
Scuba diving in the infosphere
New Philosopher‘s editor Zan Boag interviews Luciano Floridi, Professor of Philosophy and Ethics of Information at the University of Oxford.…
Stockists – Canada
Looking for a copy of New Philosopher in Canada? With 670 stockists around the country, you shouldn’t have any trouble…
Stockists – NZ
NZ stockists For Australian stockists, click here For US stockists, click here For Canadian stockists, click here You can find…
Stockists – US
Looking for a copy of New Philosopher in the US? With 2,500 stockists around the country, you shouldn’t have any…
The housing game
We’ve been travelling for forty minutes on unpaved road to get here and I’m expecting splendour, a Garden of Eden.…
A property crisis: interview with Thomas Piketty
“Over a certain wealth level, particularly if you are Bill Gates, if you have several dozen billion dollars, you know…
Medicating the masses
In November of last year I took part in a public debate in London; the motion – which I proposed…
Showing off that shiny red rump
I despise gyms. I honestly couldn’t tell you if it is the nauseating funk emanating from dozens of perspiring bodies…
Living in dying
by Hannah Rachel Bell (14 May 1947-21 October 2015) Runner-up in New Philosopher Writers’ award VII: ‘health’ We will all…
Maggots; or, my father’s stories
by Peter Kerry Powers Winner of the New Philosopher Writers’ award VII: ‘health’ My father built a hospital in the…
Fixing the living to make a killing
Do you trust your doctor? Should you trust your doctor? A recent op-ed in The New York Times suggests that…
Travel: making the most difference
Zan Boag interviews Peter Singer on the ethical issues that arise from travelling. Peter Singer AC is Professor of Bioethics…
Being mortal
Editor of New Philosopher Zan Boag interviews Hilde Lindemann, Professor of Philosophy at Michigan State University and the former editor…
Learning not to die
It probably says something telling about human beings that the oldest surviving piece of literature is about our longing to…
The end of progress
David C. Wood is W. Alton Jones Professor of Philosophy and Professor of European Studies at Vanderbilt University. Interview by…
Why not change your mind?
We frequently change our minds – most often about trivial things like the evening’s dinner plans, but sometimes about ideas…
The call to your own true adventure
Think, for a moment, of who you are today, right now, reading this wherever you are – waiting in an…
Metaphors of the mind
Rhys Bevan-Jones works and researches in the field of psychiatry in Cardiff. He is interested in the relationship between psychology/…
Would you upload yourself?
If our minds are essentially what happens when our brains perform certain kinds of complex computations, then very powerful computers…
The fly that rouses
“An evil-doer and a curious person, searching into things under the earth and above the heaven; and making the worse…
Masters and servants
We are not exactly wage slaves, but most of us have to work for a living throughout the prime decades…
In pursuit of selflessness
Empathy and greed in the context of the workplace might seem too disparate to be discussed in tandem. One might…
Being a philosopher
By Penelope Rush I remember announcing to my high school careers counsellor that I wanted a job “thinking”. I resisted…
Making the hamster love its wheel
If you ever visit Copenhagen, you’ll probably find yourself trekking out to Langelinie to the statue of The Little Mermaid,…
Are we responsible for our failings?
By Jeremy Moss Acting responsibly by accepting the costs that result from our decisions has long been a mantra of…
Are you your job and nothing more?
What do you do? I’m a mechanic; I’m a horticulturalist. It’s the first question we ask others, and the way…
A life worth living
In 2006, scientists found a quahog clam living off the coast of Iceland that, on examination, turned out to be…
The Media Effect
Sociologists have long known that most of us are pretty nice. We work well in groups and take care of…
Happiness, and all that crap
The question of happiness and how to get it is endlessly entertaining. It’s one of the few topics on which…
The quest for the “I”
Living with a child who is learning to talk is always an amazing experience. A very special moment is when…
Money or happiness?
I know a rich man who buys properties. He decorates them, fills them with consumer goods and then leaves them…
I think, therefore I am
I The Meditation of yesterday has filled my mind with so many doubts, that it is no longer in my…
On the shortness of life
It is a general complaint among mankind, Paulinus, that Nature is niggardly: our allotted span is brief, and the term…
The secret of consciousness, with Daniel C. Dennett
American philosopher of mind Daniel C. Dennett’s early years read like something straight out of an adventure book. The son…
3 theories to take to a desert island
If you had to choose just three theories to explain as much of the world as possible, which would you…
The ladder of true understanding
How well do you understand the world? Do you think you’ve got a good grasp of reality or not? Greek…
How are you smart?
The original scene: Paris, 1900‚ La Belle Epoque. The city fathers approached a talented psychologist named Alfred Binet with an…
If I’m free, why can’t I do what I want?
By Katarzyna de Lazari-Radek I woke up my son Jan (9) for school, as I do every morning. He was…
Is our sense of free will just an illusion?
Pierre-Simon Laplace postulated a demon of vast intellect will full knowledge of the “forces that animate nature and the mutual…
Shorts: Why Do It In Prison?
“Why do it in prison? Well, why do it anywhere? I do it in prison because I was asked, and…
Shorts: Epictetus and External Events
Think about what usually makes you angry, frustrated, anxious; most likely it has something to do with external events that…
The news – why do we subject ourselves to it?
“The conscious and intelligent manipulation of the organised habits and opinions of the masses is an important element in democratic…
Life’s a game
We sometimes joke about the world conspiring against us. For instance, I might suggest that it will rain today because…
NP Writers’ Award XVIII shortlist
It seems that there’s no shortage of stuff to say about ‘stuff’, with a record number of entries received for…
Writers’ Award XVI: Food
It’s hard to avoid thinking about food, which has meant that this quarter’s award – now in its fourth year…
Stack Awards
The 2017 Stack Awards, which celebrate the world’s “most exciting independent magazines” received over 400 entries this year, a record…
Fake news
“The essence of bullshit,” argued philosopher Harry Frankfurt in his 2005 book On Bullshit, “is not that it is false…
Not eating things
There’s never been a better time in history to be the kind of person who enjoys not eating things. In…
A recipe for disaster
Western industrial civilisation is eating itself stupid. Cookery programs bloat the television schedules, cookbooks fill the bookshop windows, and celebrity…
Fad diets
Jean-Paul Sartre refused to eat lobsters because they resembled giant insects. Fresh fruit and vegetables, he felt, were also too…
A new human era
Earth has lost half of its wild animals in the last forty years. What does it mean to be philosophical…
Subscribe now
Click here to subscribe now and receive the New Philosopher quarterly print magazine delivered to your door. 132 ad-free pages…
I should be so lucky
Bailed after what he claimed was the accidental gunshot homicide of his common-law wife, Joan Vollmer (“Come on, Bill, let’s…
Plato for plumbers
The winner of New Philosopher Writers’ Award XI ‘technology’ is Mark Bessoudo, for his piece Plato for Plumbers. “To be…
The ethics of gambling
Nigel Warburton: What is the moral issue about gambling? Is it about individual freedom, or is there something else going…
A quick heads-up
Last year, I had a piece in The New York Times explaining my use of trigger warnings as a professor.…
Writers’ Award XI: winners
We’re pleased to announce the winner and runner-up for New Philosopher Writers’ Award XI: Technology. Winner: Mark Bessoudo, a Canadian…
The real digital revolution
The Internet has transformed our economies, our culture and politics, and our very way of life to such an extent…
Can technology save us?
Back when grunge was fast becoming a department store fashion, a bold new hope for civilisation appeared. It was lauded…
The soundtrack to technology: Our friends electric
Michael Donohue presents a selection of music based around the theme for the latest edition of New Philosopher – ‘technology’.…
Framing fame
“No one wants to pass this way unnoticed – they really don’t, even in a negative way.” Acclaimed photographer Harry…
The soundtrack to fame (no leg warmers required)
Michael Donohue presents a selection of music based around the ‘fame’ edition of New Philosopher magazine. Artwork: The Flight, by…
13 questions: Phillip Adams
What do you doubt most? Certainty. If you could change one thing about the world, what would that be? …
Who’s watching you?
“Although it may be, in a social sense, acceptable to comment online about one’s sex life and drinking habits and…
Property’s principal corruption
In the lead-up to the general election in the UK this year, everyone was talking about property. In the crowded…
Sacrificed to the god of property
By Emmeline Pankhurst It was at this time, February 1913, less than two years ago as I write these words,…
The philosopher’s dogbox
My grandmother is a homeowner. This fact seems banal in Australia, as two thirds of households have mortgages or own…
An app for an ailing planet
It is often said that the first full image of the ‘blue planet’, taken by the Apollo 17 space mission…
Are we getting smarter?
Your typical Australian adult from 1900 was pretty dumb, by today’s standards. Yank one off the street and run them…
Does the future matter?
By Tom Chatfield In Tino Sehgal’s installation of his artwork This Progress, each visitor walked into the bottom of The…
Alternative hedonism
Imagine if we all wore the same clothes, lived in the same sort of house and drove the same sort…
Human engineering
You know the situation is getting desperate when three bioethicists propose genetically modifying humans to reduce our environmental impact. In…
Rat race to the afterlife
So you’ve spent your life accumulating money – you’ve worked hard, invested wisely; every waking moment has been devoted to…
Are we the barbarians?
The ancient Greeks invented a whole bunch of important stuff: democracy, tragedy, philosophy (if you ignore India and China, which…
The fourth revolution
By Nigel Warburton We live in amazing times. Digital media and the Internet have transformed how we exchange ideas, how…
The self and other explosions
“But if that’s Olham, then I must be –” He did not complete the sentence, only the first phrase. The blast…
Who are we behind closed doors?
In the midst of a nuclear war, an evacuation plane from England crash lands on a deserted, paradisiacal island in…
Piketty: unequal selves
By Jeremy Moss, artwork by Michael Leunig Thomas Piketty’s recent work Capital in the Twenty-First Century, provides disturbing evidence about…
Getting high on search
A friend of mine recently sat in a waiting room in Singapore. The room was only large enough to hold…
The commercial self
It’s an ancient human law and it makes us do extraordinary things. Author Tom Wolfe calls it serial immortality; it’s…
Dying for your beliefs
Not all arguments are created equal. Many aren’t even arguments at all. Even utterances that appear to be advancing a…
Do you really know yourself?
“Know thyself,” said the philosophers. No problem, said the rest of us. Self-help, self-esteem, self-fulfillment, inner self, outer self –…
You are not who you think you are
You are not who you think you are. Philosophers, from the Buddha to David Hume to Derek Parfit, have been…
Losing ourselves to technology
Millie’s vision became blurred and then she lost consciousness. Stressed and overworked, she took two weeks off, booked herself into…
Which mask is yours?
I once had an introverted student who painted his fingernails black and doodled lines from Marilyn Manson songs in his…
Invest in your masterpiece – yourself
Love yourself. Believe in yourself. And your dreams will come true. A few decades ago, psychologists began documenting the appearance…
Factory Earth
The family is worried. Suggestions are passed between siblings, and aunts and uncles are eager to set things right. What…
Rush hour
Interview with Adam Magyar What prompted you to do the “stainless” series, as well as your earlier work “squares” and…
Work less, live more
Why do we work so much? Why do we even work at all? For a great chunk of human history…
Prosperity paradox
Picture for a moment a world where technological innovation and industrial automation have finally brought us an era of unprecedented…
Pleasure spots
Some months ago I cut out of a shiny magazine some paragraphs written by a female journalist and describing the…
The value of boycott
In July 1846, the American writer Henry David Thoreau went to prison for refusing to pay his poll tax. He…
The lost art of travel
We’re in perpetual motion; we can go anywhere, at any time, and the momentum builds. Before long, we’re planning another…
You are your life, and nothing else
Existentialist philosophers teach us that we alone are responsible for creating a meaningful life in an absurd and unfair world.…
The Cartoon Philosopher: 13 questions with Michael Leunig
1. What is the biggest threat to our minds? Our minds. 2. What is freedom? Non-compliance and creativity. 3. What…
The Identity Toolkit
Sum yourself up in a couple of words. Users of social media do it to introduce themselves online. “Surfer, father,…
Can We Increase Gross National Happiness?
The small Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan is known internationally for two things: high visa fees, which reduce the influx of…
Free range ‘debate’ puts the egg before the chicken
By Patrick Stokes, Deakin University The announcement that Woolworths will phase out the selling of cage eggs seems like pretty…
Why philosophy matters
By Patrick Stokes, Deakin University And so now we officially know: philosophy is a waste. How can we be sure?…
Are we free? 6 philosophers’ views
THE CONCEPT OF FREEDOM IN ITS MYRIAD FORMS – BE IT FREE WILL, FREEDOM OF THOUGHT, PHYSICAL OR PERSONAL FREEDOM…
Bringing thinkers into focus: Steve Pyke
It’s a dismal affair when the faces of people we don’t wish to remember – such as modern-day celebrities –…
It might be a more free world, but few of us would want to live there
By John Daley, Grattan Institute Many are puzzled by the political theory of carbon markets. Why does the Institute for…
Ethics is a jealous God: self-regulation vs self-sacrifice
By Patrick Stokes, Deakin University Late one night recently I got a very frustrated email from a close friend. He’d…
On Shadows and Realities in Education (Plato’s Cave)
The Republic, Plato, Book VII AND now, I said, let me show in a figure how far our nature is…
Is an ethic of biodiversity enough?
The environmental crisis has never loomed so large nor been so extensively debated as in the last few years. But…
The question is: society defended against whom? Or what?
Following my recent work on the possibilities of radical democracy, but most of all, in light of the historical demand…
When the time comes to disobey: civil disobedience and coal
Greenpeace’s attempt to stop a ship carrying Australian coal is an opening shot in what is likely to be an…
Philosophy under attack
I really shouldn’t let myself watch Q&A. Don’t get me wrong, the ABC’s flagship weekly panel show is usually compelling…