Alison Fairbrass/ Craig French
Are bats conscious, and how can we tell? What is it like to use sound to navigate? In a classic paper called ‘What Is It Like to Be a Bat?’, Thomas Nagel used the bat’s capacity for echolocation to introduce philosophical problems concerning conscious experience. But the example is usually discussed in ignorance of what the lives of bats are actually like. This dialogue brings together a philosopher and a bat scientist to discuss the latest research into the minds of bats.
Speakers
Alison Fairbrass, Postgraduate researcher in biodiversity and the built environment, UCL
Craig French, Assistant Professor in Philosophy, University of Nottingham
Chair
Jonathan Birch, Fellow, The Forum; Assistant Professor of Philosophy, LSE
In association with the Centre for Philosophy of Natural and Social Science, LSE
Recorded on 14 February 2018 at the LSE
