What Is It Really Like to Be a Bat? (Forum for Philosophy)

Are bats conscious, and how can we tell? What is it like to use sound to navigate? In a classic paper called “What Is It Like to Be a Bat?”, Thomas Nagel used the bat’s capacity for echolocation to introduce philosophical problems concerning conscious experience. But the example is usually discussed in ignorance of what the lives of bats are actually like. This dialogue brings together a philosopher and a bat scientist to discuss the latest research into the minds of bats.

Speakers
Alison Fairbrass, Postgraduate researcher in biodiversity and the built environment, UCL
Craig French, Assistant Professor in Philosophy, University of Nottingham

Chair
Jonathan Birch, Fellow, The Forum; Assistant Professor of Philosophy, LSE

In association with the CPNSS, LSE