Is time timeless? What is love? If every life results in death, then what is the meaning of life?
These are some of the hundreds of questions asked—and answered—at www.askphilosophers.org, a new Website that places philosophers at the service of the general public.
Established last fall by Professor of Philosophy Alexander George, AskPhilosophers allows anyone with access to the Internet to post a question to the Website, where it will be considered by some of the world’s leading academic philosophers. New questions are posted daily, and subscribers may receive the posts via RSS feeds. The site also archives old questions by topic (including Sex, Love, Language, Animals, Children, Religion and Probability) and includes links to other philosophical online resources.
George says AskPhilosophers is “designed to address a paradox surrounding philosophy. On the one hand,” he says, “everyone confronts philosophical issues throughout his or her life. But on the other, very few have the opportunity to learn about philosophy, a subject that is usually taught only at the college level. AskPhilosophers aims to bridge this gap.”
The world is apparently riddled with existential angst; in its first four months, AskPhilosophers received more than 1,000 queries from countries around the world.