Bryan is an Interintellect fellow who is writing a book called Neither/Nor, which provides a methodology for recognizing and pragmatically applying other philosophical frameworks. This will allow its practitioners to understand, at a meta-level, how to think about philosophical and scientific approaches, how to apply them skillfully, how to recognize when they are failing, and how to switch strategies skillfully.
In short, it provides a methodology for healthy inquiry and intervention, which avoids the twin pitfalls of too much abstraction (leading to scientism) or too much experience (leading to woo).
In this special members-only Interintellect event, Bryan will speak publicly for the first time on the progress of this book and the underlying methodology. He will give a brief overview of the journey and its results so far, as well as answer questions about where the process will lead.
Specific meeting details will be shared with RSVPs via email and in the London channel of the Interintellect community Discord.
Background
For the past three years, Bryan has delved deeply into Eastern philosophy, especially the doctrine of dependent origination in early Buddhism — which promises to end suffering for individuals — and the anti-dogmatic Taoism of Zhuangzi. At the same time, he immersed himself in the ancient Greek philosophies: first Stoicism, then Epicureanism, with brief forays into Platonism and Aristotelianism, and most recently culminating in the practice of Pyrrho’s ancient scepticism. Finally, he became conversant in the more recent Western philosophical debates (starting in the 16th century), especially centering on questions of truth, science, and progress, taking place from the early modern period to the 20th century, including Montaigne, Pascal, Spinoza, Hume, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche, Peirce, Wittgenstein, and Kuhn.
Neither/Nor will look at three millennia of thinking across cultures to provide a practicable understanding of when to use a map, and when to explore the territory. It is grounded in experience, meditative practices, and experimentation.
