Why We Can’t Understand Each Other

Summary

Planet: Critical’s Rachel Donald asks Damien Williams, who teaches philosophy and data science, why more information hasn’t helped us agree. Language is how we build shared realities, but Williams argues we now live in “bespoke realities”, so far apart we can’t agree even on what’s objective. He explores why other people’s realities feel threatening, and how we might bridge them.

Rationale

Three of our glossary terms draw on this conversation. It gets close to our sense that deep dispositions shape what feels real before any argument arrives.