This week we cover some seriously heavy topics.  What plays a bigger role in who you are, your experiences or your genetics? Are emotions strictly a biological response to an event, easily defined by the chemical that they are related to?  Are we born as moral beings, or is even morality subject to circumstances? What flavor of ice cream is better, vanilla or chocolate? Wait, sorry – that was a separate argument that Jon and I had.  Anyway, it takes some serious smarts to even attempt to answer these questions (especially the ice cream debate), good thing this week’s guest is basically a genius.  Join us as we chat with Dr. Jesse Prinz.

Dr. Prinz is a Distinguished Professor of philosophy at the City University of New York, Graduate Center where he is also the director of the Committee for Interdisciplinary Science Studies. He works primarily in the philosophy of psychology and has authored several books and over 100 articles, addressing such topics as emotion, moral psychology, aesthetics and consciousness. Some of Dr. Prinz’s most notable books include, Beyond Human Nature, Gut Reactions, and The Emotional Construction of Morals.