Evolution, Philosophy and Well-being: A Beginners' Guide

More than 150 years since the publication of On the Origin of Species, the implications of Darwinism for society and humanity at large have never been so fiercely debated, by philosophers and social scientists alike. Join philosopher, author, publisher and campaigner Dr Ben Irvine for a whistle-stop tour of some of the major objections to, and misreadings of, the theory of natural selection – and discover how understanding Darwinism better can help us all to achieve well-being.

Since gaining his PhD in the History and Philosophy of Science at Cambridge, Ben Irvine has written on subjects as diverse as Darwinism, capitalism, Einstein and cycling, and founded a new philosophy journal, the Journal of Modern Wisdom. Ben is currently an Associate of the Philosophy Department at Durham University and runs a seminar series and discussion group on behalf of the Cambridge Well-being Institute.

This talk was given at the first Butler Day, on Saturday 17th March 2012, as part of the Cambridge Science Festival.