This is one for the books. In episode 104 of Overthink, Ellie and David consider what makes reading so rewarding, and, for many people today, so challenging! How did society shift toward inward silent reading and away from reading aloud in the Middle Ages? How have changes in teaching phonics and factors of classism, accessibility, and educational justice made it harder for the young to read? Why is reading philosophy so hard, and how can we increase our reading stamina?

In episode 89 of Overthink, Ellie and David investigate the loopy world of psychedelics. Mind-opening gateways or tools of therapy and neuroscience? From their implications for phenomenology and the nature of consciousness, to the ethics of their medicinal use, in light of their risks and long-lasting effects: discover all about hallucinogens!

Minds meet machines in episode 80 of Overthink. Ellie and David talk with guest Raphaël Millière, philosopher at Columbia University, on the aesthetics of AI and computer-generated art. They discuss early photography YACHT’s pop songs, emotional expression, and more. itself? Might DALL·E be the greatest artist of us all?

Have you ever tasted music or experienced numbers as having genders? If so, you might be a synesthete!

Have you considered that you might be a brain in a vat of liquid floating in a laboratory somewhere? David and Ellie unpack this key thought experiment—and throw shade on the Italian neuroscientist who keeps trying to do head transplants.