Podcasts

Discovery Institute Podcast

Wrestling with Darwin: A Reading From Fr. Martin Hilbert’s New Book

_{Andrew McDiarmid
November 27, 2024}

When Charles Darwin formulated his theory of evolution, he offered up a new god and a new understanding of mankind. But does his creation myth satisfy the scientific evidence we have today for the design and complexity of life? I’m Andrew McDiarmid. On this ID The Future, I read an excerpt of a new book that exposes the inadequacy of Darwinism and dispels the darkness of Darwinian materialism. A Catholic Case for Intelligent Design, by Father Martin Hilbert, is now available from Discovery Institute Press. In this excerpt from the introduction to his book, Fr. Hilbert reveals that one of Darwin’s motives for conjuring his theory of natural selection was removing God from the picture. And though his proposal was light on scientific evidence and full of wild assumptions, it …

A Catholic Case for Intelligent Design

_{Fr. Martin Hilbert, C.O.
November 25, 2024}

For too long now, Catholic scholars and many of the faithful have felt compelled to align themselves with a Darwinian account of life’s origins. But as modern evolutionary theory faces a rising wave of disconfirming evidence, the evidence for both intelligent design and a first human couple, Adam and Eve, is stronger than ever. So it’s a good time for Catholics to reevaluate their relationship with Darwin. On this ID The Future, physicist Dr. Brian Miller welcomes Father Martin Hilbert to the podcast to discuss his new book A Catholic Case for Intelligent Design. If Darwin’s theory is anything, contends Fr. Hilbert, it’s a program for excising God. “Its primary purpose is to serve as a creation myth for the secular society in which we live,” he writes. …

The Multiverse—From Epicurus to Comic Books and Beyond

_{Andrew McDiarmid
November 22, 2024}

On this ID the Future, Discovery Institute senior fellow Andrew McDiarmid explores the roots of the idea that our universe is just one of many universes, an idea stretching back to the ancient atomists and given new life in the modern era, first by physicist Hugh Everett. McDiarmid then looks at how the idea percolated into comic books and from there into popular culture. He caps off the episode with a reading of a recent article about the multiverse hypothesis by Stephen Meyer, author of the recent bestseller, Return of the God Hypothesis: Three Scientific Discoveries That Reveal the Mind Behind the Universe. Meyer shows why some atheist scientists are attracted to the multiverse idea. As he explains, there is little if any good evidence for the idea, but atheists need the concept to …

Mind Matters

A Case for the Soul: An Interview with Joshua Farris

_{319
Michael Egnor and Joshua R. Farris
November 28, 2024}

Is the mind the same thing as the brain? Recently, we’ve been tackling this question known as the mind-brain problem with several of the contributing authors to our recent book Minding the Brain. In a similar fashion, we can also ask if there’s more to the human person than just our bodies. This week we have neurosurgeon Michael Egnor talking about these very questions with philosopher Joshua Farris. In his book The Creation of Self: A Case for the Soul, Farris defends a view of personhood that requires human beings to be immaterial soul substances, or “neo-Cartesian” substance dualists. Farris situates this view in the broader context of ongoing debates about consciousness, personhood, and the nature of humanity in relation to artificial intelligence …

The Significance of Mirror Neurons: More With Dr. Mihretu Guta

_{318
Robert J. Marks
November 21, 2024}

On this episode, host Dr. Robert J. Marks continues his chat with Dr. Mihretu Guta about exploring the philosophical challenges surrounding the neuroscientific research on mirror neurons. What the heck is a mirror neuron you ask? As described in Part 1, it’s a type of brain cell that fires when a person observes an action being performed, as well as when the person performs the same action themselves. They’re helping scientists understand the nature of human empathy. In the second half of the discussion, Dr. Guta explores the philosophical challenges surrounding the neuroscientific research on mirror neurons. First, they discuss the “easy problem” of correlating neural activity with cognitive functions, and the difficulties of ensuring the research is not …

Mirror Neurons, Consciousness, and the Bearer Question

_{317
Robert J. Marks
November 14, 2024}

For the last several months, we’ve been interviewing authors featured in the recent Bradley Center volume Minding the Brain: Models of the Mind, Information, and Empirical Science. The book delves into the age-old question: is the mind more than the brain? What was once solely a philosophical and metaphysical discussion has attracted the attention of science and is a much more serious area of study today. On this episode, host Dr. Robert J. Marks welcomes back to the podcast Dr. Mihretu Guta to discuss one of his chapters in Minding the Brain titled “Mirror Neurons, Consciousness, and the Bearer Question.” Dr. Guta discusses the concept of “mirror neurons” – a type of brain cell that fires when a person observes an action being …

ID the Future

John West in Turin, Italy: Intelligent Design’s Roots and Fruit

_{1987
John G. West
November 29, 2024}

Every Friday we repost a gem from our archive of hundreds of episodes. Today’s pick from the vault takes us to a conference in Turin, Italy, where scholar John West speaks about the roots of intelligent design, roots that stretch back to ancient Greek and Roman philosophers. In his talk, West also makes the case that design thinking was crucial to the rise of modern science, and he traces how Darwinism has eroded design thinking, fueled scientific racism, and undermined belief in human exceptionalism.

Wrestling with Darwin: A Reading From Fr. Martin Hilbert’s New Book

_{1986
Andrew McDiarmid
November 27, 2024}

A Catholic Case for Intelligent Design

_{1985
Fr. Martin Hilbert, C.O.
November 25, 2024}

For too long now, Catholic scholars and many of the faithful have felt compelled to align themselves with a Darwinian account of life's origins. But as modern evolutionary theory faces a rising wave of disconfirming evidence, the evidence for both intelligent design and a first human couple, Adam and Eve, is stronger than ever. So it's a good time for Catholics to reevaluate their relationship with Darwin. On this ID The Future, physicist Dr. Brian Miller welcomes Father Martin Hilbert to the podcast to discuss his new book A Catholic Case for Intelligent Design.

Humanize

Daniel Carcillo on Psychedelics as a Treatment for Depression and Traumatic Brain Injury

_{5
Daniel Carcillo
November 11, 2024}

People with serious mental health issues often face years, if not a lifetime, of debilitating symptoms. These traumas can sometimes be difficult to treat, much less cure. And that has some people looking for new avenues of care beyond standard medicines, including — controversially — psychedelic substances such as Psilocybin, LSD, and the like. Enthusiasts believe that these substances offer so much hope that they are devoting their lives and careers to this burgeoning field of care. One of these is former professional hockey star, Daniel Carcillo — a 2-time Stanley Cup winner with the Chicago Blackhawks — who was diagnosed with post-concussion syndrome and traumatic brain injury (TBI) following his 10-year career in the NHL. After years of suffering from neurological issues, …

Dr. Keri D. Ingraham on the Most Important Issues in American K-12 Education

_{4
Dr. Keri Ingraham
October 28, 2024}

It’s no secret that American education is experiencing a profound crisis. Many of our children can’t read, do mathematics, or learn basic life skills. At the same time, many accuse the education establishment of imposing radical ideological views on children such as gender ideology and anti-Americanism. The good news is that concerted efforts are underway to reform education to better equip children for adulthood and to be productive members of society. My colleague at Discovery Institute — Dr. Keri D. Ingraham, Director of the American Center for Transforming Education — has followed these developments closely and has learned opinions about what has gone wrong in education, what is working, and what should be done to improve the system. So, I asked her back to …

Timothy S. Goeglein on the Dangers of Utopianism

_{3
Tim Goeglein
October 14, 2024}

American institutions are less trusted than ever before, our society is deeply divided, and much of the world is in turmoil. The problem isn’t religion, atheism, or ideology, per se. Rather, the real culprit — and one that receives far too little attention in public discourse — is the widespread embrace by social activists of utopianism, a zealous belief in the perfectibility of society which leads to acceptance of the dangerous notion that the ends are so important they justify virtually any means. How did we get to such a sorry state? My guest has some answers. Timothy S. Goeglein — making his second appearance on Humanize — has written a timely and important new book entitled Stumbling Toward Utopia: How the 1960s Turned Into a National Nightmare and How We Can Revive …