Public discussion with Daniel Dennett

In October 2018, the world-renowned philosopher Daniel Dennett received an honorary doctorate from the Radboud University in Nijmegen. His visit was celebrated with multiple events which I was very happy to attend.

First, he delivered the annual Nijmegen Lectures on ‘Autonomy, Language, and Consciousness’. After his lectures, there was extensive time for discussion with the audience. Second, Dennett participated in an Q&A with a group of PhD students from the university, which I organized and chaired together with Marc Slors.

Finally, Dennett gave a public lecture in ‘De Vereeniging’, the concert hall in Nijmegen, for an audience of 1000 interested people. The topic was his new book, ‘From Bacteria to Bach and Back: The Evolution of Minds’. After his presentation, I had the privilege to ask him some questions in front of the audience concerning his work, for instance, on the manifest and scientific image. You can watch his lecture here.

It was a great honour to get the opportunity to spend so much time with my favourite philosopher.

Photo credits: Radboud Reflects