As long ago as the early 19th century, the poet Keats bemoaned the washing away of the world’s beauty and mystery in the wake of natural philosophy’s reductionist insights—its tendency to “unweave a rainbow.” Two centuries later, the tentacles of science have reached far further, wrapping themselves around questions and disciplines once thought beyond the reach of scientific analysis. But like Keats, not everyone is happy. When it comes to the evaluation of human experience—passion to prayer, consciousness to creativity—what can science explain, and what are the limits of its explanatory powers? What is the difference between science and scientism? Are the sciences and the humanities friends or foes? Join an animated discussion on science, reductionism, the mind, the heart, freedom, religion, and the quest for the human difference.

This program is part of the Big Ideas Series, made possible with support from the John Templeton Foundation.

Original Program Date: June 2, 2016
PARTICIPANTS: Brian Greene, Joanna Kaczorowska, Pablo Lavandera, Miguel Nicolelis, Leon Wieseltier

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Brian Greene Introduction 00:00

Participant Introductions 4:15

Leon Wieseltier: A militant unconstructed humanist 6:40

Will understanding the brain make reality meaningless? 12:42

Different brains, different reality? 17:00

The Extent Which Perception is Involved In Our Understanding of Objectivity 22:30

Is there anything more beyond the physical? 27:34

Biology can not be the responsible for loving your wife 35:55

Why do we want to believe there is more that the physical? 45:05

To what extent is the history vital to the function 51:10

Does science have values? 1:03:30

The description of the human experience vs the numbers of what is happening. 1:13:53

Early religion predetermining science 1:21:10

Science and the spiritual quest 1:25:38

Experiencing awe 1:29:20