1. Skepticism Any questions from last week’s lecture or the readings?
Plato
Descartes
Brain-in-a-vat

2. Debate or video project?
Write:
Name
University number
Choice of debate or video project
If debate: preferred subject(s)
If video: preferred topic and preferred team members

3. Debate topics
“Neo was justified in killing people in the matrix” “Cigarette smoking should be banned in public areas” “Marijuana for medical purposes should be legal” “It is wrong to eat meat” “Great apes should have human rights”

4. Questions and quotations on the Matrix
Questions on the Matrix will be handed out to those who have seen the Matrix before.
These questions will be posted on the course blog for other students.
Read the questions and think about them before next week.
Also posted will be quotations from the movie.

5. David Chalmers, The Matrix as Metaphysics
The Matrix is not truly an example of a skeptical hypothesis
The world is just constituted differently than we know.
Atoms, molecules, electrons and forces are real, but ultimately composed of computer code.

6. The horror of the Matrix is not that the world is “virtual”, but that the world is constructed by other beings, who can interfere in it, change it, restart it, etc. at will.
Human accomplishments seem meaningless, because the computers are ultimately in charge of human history.
Are human accomplishments meaningless if they are not lasting?

7. Required reading Suggested reading:
Questions on and quotations from the Matrix posted on the course blog.
Suggested reading:
Daniel Dennett, “Where am I?” at: html (new link: last week’s link is no longer valid)