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The Empirical Stance
- The Terry Lectures Series
- Narrated by: Thomas M. Perkins
- Length: 9 hrs and 19 mins
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The Empirical Stance
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Publisher's summary
What is empiricism and what could it be? Bas C. van Fraassen, one of the world's foremost contributors to philosophical logic and the philosophy of science, here undertakes a fresh consideration of these questions and offers a program for renewal of the empiricist tradition. The empiricist tradition is not and could not be defined by common doctrines, but embodies a certain stance in philosophy, van Fraassen says. This stance is displayed first of all in a searing, recurrent critique of metaphysics, and second in a focus on experience that requires a voluntarist view of belief and opinion.
Van Fraassen focuses on the philosophical problems of scientific and conceptual revolutions and on the not unrelated ruptures between religious and secular ways of seeing or conceiving of ourselves. He explores what it is to be or not be secular and points the way toward a new relationship between secularism and science within philosophy.
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-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 214
This audiobook is a long-awaited major statement by a pre-eminent analytic philosopher, Alvin Plantinga, on one of our biggest debates - the compatibility of science and religion. The last twenty years has seen a cottage industry of books on this divide, but with little consensus emerging. Plantinga, as a top philosopher but also a proponent of the rationality of religious belief, has a unique contribution to make. His theme in this short book is that the conflict between science and theistic religion is actually superficial, and that at a deeper level they are in concord.
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2 out of 5 stars
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The reader makes or breaks an audiobook.
- By Alec on 02-16-15
By: Alvin Plantinga
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Finding Truth
- 5 Principles for Unmasking Atheism, Secularism, and Other God Substitutes
- By: Nancy Pearcey
- Narrated by: Pamela Klein
- Length: 8 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 146
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 123
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Story5 out of 5 stars 121
Don't think, just believe?That's the mantra in many circles today - whether the church, the classroom, the campus, or the voting booth. Nancy Pearcey, best-selling and critically acclaimed author, offers fresh tools to break free from presumed certainties and test them against reality.
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5 out of 5 stars
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A Must Read!!!
- By Amazon Customer on 06-10-16
By: Nancy Pearcey
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The Structure of Scientific Revolutions
- By: Thomas S. Kuhn
- Narrated by: Dennis Holland
- Length: 10 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 1,135
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 817
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Story4 out of 5 stars 799
A good book may have the power to change the way we see the world, but a great book actually becomes part of our daily consciousness, pervading our thinking to the point that we take it for granted, and we forget how provocative and challenging its ideas once were - and still are. The Structure of Scientific Revolutions is that kind of book.
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3 out of 5 stars
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The problem is not with the book
- By Marcus on 08-09-09
By: Thomas S. Kuhn
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The Experience of God
- Being, Consciousness, Bliss
- By: David Bentley Hart
- Narrated by: Tom Pile
- Length: 12 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 313
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 272
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 266
Despite the recent ferocious public debate about belief, the concept most central to the discussion "God" frequently remains vaguely and obscurely described. Are those engaged in these arguments even talking about the same thing? In a wide-ranging response to this confusion, esteemed scholar David Bentley Hart pursues a clarification of how the word "God” functions in the world’s great theistic faiths.
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5 out of 5 stars
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The clearest thinking I have heard in ages.
- By Carlos Miranda on 06-17-15
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In Defense of History
- By: Richard J. Evans
- Narrated by: Julian Elfer
- Length: 7 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 40
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 32
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Story5 out of 5 stars 31
Richard J. Evans shows us how historians manage to extract meaning from the recalcitrant past. To materials that are frustratingly meager, or overwhelmingly profuse, they bring an array of tools that range from agreed-upon rules of documentation to the critical application of social and economic theory, all employed with the aim of reconstructing a verifiable, usable past. Evans defends this commitment to historical knowledge from the attacks of postmodernist critics who deny the possibility of achieving any kind of certain knowledge about the past.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Enlightening
- By David A on 07-03-18
By: Richard J. Evans
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Deep Thought
- 42 Fantastic Quotes That Define Philosphy
- By: Gary Cox
- Narrated by: Richard Mitchley
- Length: 7 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 39
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 38
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 35
As Douglas Adams points out, if there is no final answer to the question "what is the meaning of life?" 42 is as good or bad an answer as any other. Indeed, 42 quotes might be even better! Gary Cox guides us through 42 of the most misunderstood, misquoted, provocative, and significant quotes in the history of philosophy, providing witty and compelling commentary along the way.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Best philosophy intro ever
- By Fabian on 04-14-18
By: Gary Cox
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The Function of Reason
- By: Alfred North Whitehead
- Narrated by: Ray Childs
- Length: 2 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 60
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 49
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 45
Whitehead presented these three lectures at Princeton University in 1929. Although 85 years have passed, his central thesis and his analysis remain remarkably current. The scientific materialism that Whitehead opposed with such vigor continues to dominate in academic circles, and even now those who question that worldview are often accused of being antiscientific. This is especially true in discussions of the nature of the human mind and its relation to the body (particularly the brain).
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5 out of 5 stars
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Good
- By Benjamin on 06-17-22
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The History of Philosophy
- By: A. C. Grayling
- Narrated by: Neil Gardner
- Length: 28 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 113
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 94
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 93
The story of philosophy is an epic tale, spanning civilizations and continents. It explores some of the most creative minds in history. But not since the long-popular classic by Bertrand Russell, A History of Western Philosophy, published in 1945, has there been a comprehensive and entertaining single-volume history of this great, intellectual, world-shaping journey.
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5 out of 5 stars
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A much needed update to Bertrand Russell's classic
- By Michael on 06-27-20
By: A. C. Grayling
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There Is a God
- How the World's Most Notorious Atheist Changed His Mind
- By: Antony Flew, Roy Abraham Varghese - contributor
- Narrated by: Jonathan Cowley
- Length: 5 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 76
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 67
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 65
In There Is a God, one of the world's preeminent atheists discloses how his commitment to "follow the argument wherever it leads" led him to a belief in God as Creator. This is a compelling and refreshingly open-minded argument that will forever change the atheism debate.
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2 out of 5 stars
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Disappointing
- By Rebekah Hull on 08-03-21
By: Antony Flew, and others
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The God Argument
- The Case Against Religion and for Humanism
- By: A. C. Grayling
- Narrated by: William Roberts
- Length: 7 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 208
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 191
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 188
What are the arguments for and against religion and religious belief - all of them - right across the range of reasons and motives that people have for being religious, and do they stand up to scrutiny? Can there be a clear, full statement of these arguments that once and for all will show what is at stake in this debate? Equally important: what is the alternative to religion as a view of the world and a foundation for morality?
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2 out of 5 stars
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Fascinating Topic Made Mind Numbingly Dull
- By m.emery on 06-17-15
By: A. C. Grayling
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The Devil's Delusion
- Atheism and its Scientific Pretensions
- By: David Berlinski
- Narrated by: Dennis Holland
- Length: 6 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 649
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 557
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 558
Militant atheism is on the rise. In recent years, Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, Daniel Dennett, and Christopher Hitchens have produced a steady stream of best-selling books denigrating religious belief. These authors are merely the leading edge of a larger movement that includes much of the scientific community. In response, mathematician David Berlinski, himself a secular Jew, delivers a biting defense of religious thought.
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2 out of 5 stars
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Riddled With Problems
- By Ben on 11-01-13
By: David Berlinski
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Being Logical
- A Guide to Good Thinking
- By: D.Q. McInerny
- Narrated by: Al Kessel
- Length: 3 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 46
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 39
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 39
Logic is synonymous with reason, judgment, sense, wisdom, and sanity. Being logical is the ability to create concise and reasoned arguments - arguments that build from given premises, using evidence, to a genuine conclusion. But mastering logical thinking also requires studying and understanding illogical thinking, both to sharpen one's own skills and to protect against incoherent or deliberately misleading reasoning. Elegant, pithy, and precise, Being Logical breaks logic down to its essentials through clear analysis, accessible examples, and focused insights.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Very Easy To Absorb
- By Patrick A. Blank on 04-02-20
By: D.Q. McInerny
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A Short History of Ethics
- By: Alasdair MacIntyre
- Narrated by: Tim Dalgleish
- Length: 12 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 52
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Performance3.5 out of 5 stars 50
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 48
A Short History of Ethics is a significant contribution written by one of the most important living philosophers. It remains an important work, ideal for all students interested in ethics and morality.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Great philosopher made ridiculous by accents
- By Olivia Walling on 10-04-17
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The Landscape of History
- How Historians Map the Past
- By: John Lewis Gaddis
- Narrated by: Jack Chekijian
- Length: 6 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 98
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 89
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 85
What is history, and why should we study it? Is there such a thing as historical truth? Is history a science? One of the most accomplished historians at work today, John Lewis Gaddis, answers these and other questions in this short, witty, and humane book. The Landscape of History provides a searching look at the historian's craft as well as a strong argument for why a historical consciousness should matter to us today.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Excellent Book!
- By Billy on 09-15-18
What listeners say about The Empirical Stance
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Berel Dov Lerner
- 04-20-17
For experts only
If you could sum up The Empirical Stance in three words, what would they be?
Wide-ranging, original, clear-headed
Any additional comments?
Although the book is clearly written, exceptionally interesting, and the reader does a good job, it would be extremely difficult for someone without a strong background in the history and philosophy of science to follow much of it just by listening.
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