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Fairness and equality

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Photo of yellow taxis on Brooklyn Bridge with New York City skyline in the background on a cloudy day.

Decision-making

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The mathematical case against blaming people for their misfortune

Complexity science reveals the hard limits of our predictive abilities, and makes a mathematical case for compassion

by David Kinney

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Fairness and equality

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What is a minimally good life and are you prepared to live it?

Would you be willing to swap your life with that of the least fortunate person in your society? A philosophical test for justice

by Nicole Hassoun

Photo of a child in a pink coat holding an adult’s hand in a room with crates containing canned goods.

Socioeconomics of mental health

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Why we shouldn’t push a positive mindset on those in poverty

Living in poverty is not caused by a faulty mindset, it’s a response to scarcity and marginalisation

by Jennifer Sheehy-Skeffington

Photo of two men posing for a picture indoors, one in a red coat, the other in a colourful suit with a graphic design.

Fairness and equality

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Adam Smith warned us about sympathising with the elites

Sympathy is both key to human psychology and source of much of our misery. For Adam Smith, the philosophical life is the cure

by Blake Smith

Love

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The problem with love is deciding who’s doing the dishes

The modern rhetoric of love is all about caring and sharing, and very little about equality and justice. Can philosophy help?

by Patricia Marino

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Change and self-development

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The cult of being confident and why it doesn’t help women

By making women solely responsible for their own empowerment, the culture of confidence masks the true causes of inequality

by Rosalind Gill & Shani Orgad

A blue sports car and a grey luxury car parked on a city street with people and a Christian Dior shop in the background.

Gender

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The ‘masculinity crisis’ is actually a crisis of self-esteem

There’s a modern belief that talent or effort can carry anyone to the top. It’s a myth that’s especially harmful to men

by Leo Rogers

Photo of two elderly women walking together on a city pavement, with a red bus and two other people in the background.

Life stages

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Quit the millennial bashing – generationalism is bad science

‘Boomer’ and ‘Gen Z’ seem like handy ways of sorting people, but they are more cultural creations than natural phenomena

by Cort W Rudolph

Ancient Roman mosaic depicting a woman in ornate attire with a smaller figure holding a cornucopia beside her.

Thinkers and theories

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Musonius Rufus: Roman Stoic, and avant-garde feminist?

For Musonius Rufus, the Stoic feminist, enduring things as they are is no obstacle to striving for things as they should be

by Massimo Pigliucci

A classical painting of two women and a man in a lavishly decorated room with ornate furniture and clothing, 19th century style.

Ethics

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The curious paradox in how we address each other today

While honouring people’s preferred pronouns, we’ve begun to neglect forms of formal address. Perhaps we need a rethink

by David Benatar

Futuristic painting with diverse people on a hill overlooking a cityscape blending nature, ancient monuments and advanced tech.

Human evolution

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Let everyone sparkle: psychotechnology in the year 2067

In the year 2067, the decorations are not the only things that sparkle. We ourselves glow and fizz with psychotechnology

by Eric Schwitzgebel

Photo of a child in a blue gingham shirt with yellow badges featuring positive messages and symbols on the chest.

Fairness and equality

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Teaching self-confidence can backfire and perpetuate inequality

It’s true that self-confidence is beneficial, but the way in which it’s often taught is misguided and can be harmful

by Eddie Brummelman & Kelly Ziemer