Themes and summary (AI-generated based on podcaster-provided show and episode descriptions):
➤ Public philosophy conversations • ethics: suffering, charity, animal rights, violence • metaphysics/epistemology: Plato–Aristotle, Forms, idealism, postmodernism • mind: consciousness, sensation, memory, personhood • technology/AI • aesthetics: music • relationships: love, friendship • education: teaching, grades • politics/war • interpretation/understanding
This podcast, produced by two New Jersey philosophy professors as part of a public-philosophy initiative, centers on bringing core philosophical questions into everyday contexts through extended, question-driven conversations. Across the episodes, the hosts frequently take up foundational “What is X?” inquiries and use them to explore how concepts are defined, what kinds of things they are (their ontology), and how we can know or justify claims about them (epistemology). The discussions often unfold in multi-part arcs that compare competing theories, test assumptions with examples, and trace implications for lived experience.
A recurring theme is metaphysics and the nature of reality, including engagements with major figures and traditions such as Plato and Aristotle, debates over universals and particulars, form and matter, and idealism versus materialism. The podcast also revisits interpretive questions about meaning and understanding—how texts, symbols, language, and context shape what it is to “get” something—connecting these issues to broader concerns about technology and modern life.
Ethics and political philosophy appear regularly, especially around obligations to others and the scope of moral concern. Topics include global poverty and charitable duty, the moral status of nonhuman animals and the implications for eating and experimentation, and the justification and varieties of violence, including distinctions between personal violence and state violence. Related episodes probe concepts like personhood, rights, and human nature, asking what criteria ground moral and political categories.
The show also links philosophy to aesthetics and ordinary human relationships. It examines what music is—its creation, identity across performances, and the status of covers—alongside inquiries into love, friendship, and how relationships change or endure. Questions about mind and consciousness surface through attention to sensation, memory, and animal experience, using cases such as altered smell perception and the challenges of understanding nonhuman subjectivity.
Occasional updates and listener Q&A episodes frame the ongoing project and underscore its community-oriented, accessible approach to philosophical reflection.
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Episodes:
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Summer Hiatus Update
2024-Jul-20
less than a minute
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Ep. 119: How Do We Minimize Suffering? (Part II)
2024-Jul-02
58 minutes
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Ep. 118: How Do We Minimize Suffering? (Part I)
2024-Jun-20
58 minutes
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Ep. 117: Ancient Metaphysics (Part II)
2024-Jun-04
51 minutes
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Ep. 116: Ancient Metaphysics (Part I)
2024-May-22
50 minutes
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Ep. 115: Tradition vs. Novelty (Part II)
2024-May-07
64 minutes
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Ep. 114: Tradition Vs. Novelty (Part I)
2024-Apr-23
63 minutes
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Delay Update
2024-Mar-27
1 minute
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Ep. 113: What is Postmodernism? (Part II)
2024-Mar-05
59 minutes
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Ep. 112: What is Postmodernism? (Part I)
2024-Feb-20
61 minutes
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Ep. 111: What is NOT Philosophy? (Part II)
2024-Feb-06
52 minutes
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Ep. 110: What is NOT Philosophy? (Part I)
2024-Jan-23
55 minutes
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Ep. 109: What is Atheism? (Part II)
2024-Jan-09
63 minutes
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Ep. 108: What is Atheism? (Part I)
2023-Dec-12
54 minutes
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Ep. 107: What is Music? (Part II)
2023-Nov-22
89 minutes
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Ep. 106: What is Music? (Part I)
2023-Nov-07
57 minutes
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Ep. 105: What is (Metaphysical) Idealism? (Part II)
2023-Oct-26
50 minutes
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Ep. 104: What is (Metaphysical) Idealism? (Part I)
2023-Oct-10
51 minutes
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Ep. 103: What is it like to Be an Octopus? (Part II)
2023-Sep-26
57 minutes
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Ep. 102: What is it Like to Be an Octopus? (Part I)
2023-Sep-12
56 minutes
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Ep. 101: What is Love? (Part II)
2023-Aug-15
72 minutes
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Ep. 100: Audience Q & A
2023-Aug-01
89 minutes
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Ep. 99: What is Love? (Part I)
2023-Jul-18
68 minutes
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Ep. 98: What is Friendship? (Part II)
2023-Jul-06
52 minutes
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Ep. 97: What is Friendship? (Part I)
2023-Jun-20
72 minutes
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Ep. 96: How Do We Understand Things? (Part II)
2023-Jun-06
72 minutes
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Ep. 95: How Do We Understand Things? (Part I)
2023-May-23
63 minutes
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Ep. 94: What is Artificial Intelligence? feat. ChatGPT (Part II)
2023-May-09
73 minutes
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Ep. 93: What is Artificial Intelligence? feat. ChatGPT (Part I)
2023-Apr-25
51 minutes
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Ep. 92: The Ethics of Violence (Part II)
2023-Apr-11
43 minutes
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Ep. 91: The Ethics of Violence (Part I)
2023-Mar-28
46 minutes
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Ep. 90: The Theory of Forms (Part II)
2023-Mar-15
47 minutes
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Ep. 89: The Theory of Forms (Part I)
2023-Feb-28
53 minutes
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Ep. 88: What Is Human Nature? (Part II)
2023-Feb-14
59 minutes
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Ep. 87: What Is Human Nature? (Part I)
2023-Jan-31
58 minutes
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Ep. 86: What Are Grades? (Part II)
2023-Jan-19
70 minutes
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Ep. 85: What Are Grades? (Part I)
2023-Jan-03
57 minutes
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Ep. 84: Politics and War (Part II)
2022-Dec-20
69 minutes
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Ep. 83: Politics and War (Part I)
2022-Dec-08
63 minutes
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Ep. 82: What is Technology? (Part II)
2022-Nov-22
67 minutes
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Ep. 81: What is Technology? (Part I)
2022-Nov-08
60 minutes
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Ep. 80: What is Personhood? (Part II)
2022-Oct-25
66 minutes
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Ep. 79: What is Personhood? (Part I)
2022-Oct-11
61 minutes
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Ep. 78: On Learning and Teaching (Part II)
2022-Sep-27
62 minutes
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Ep. 77: On Learning and Teaching (Part I)
2022-Sep-13
58 minutes
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Ep. 76: What is Sensation? (Part II)
2022-Aug-30
65 minutes
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Ep. 75: What is Sensation? (Part I)
2022-Aug-16
60 minutes
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Ep. 74: What is Memory? (Part II)
2022-Aug-03
44 minutes
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Ep. 73: What is Memory? (Part I)
2022-Jul-19
54 minutes
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Ep. 72: Analytic vs. Continental Philosophy (Part II)
2022-Jul-05
64 minutes
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Ep. 71: Analytic vs. Continental Philosophy (Part I)
2022-Jun-21
61 minutes
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Ep. 70: What is a Paradox? (Part II)
2022-Jun-07
63 minutes
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Ep. 69: What is a Paradox? (Part I)
2022-May-24
56 minutes
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Ep. 68: What is Disagreement? (Part II)
2022-May-10
49 minutes
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Ep. 67: What is Disagreement? (Part I)
2022-Apr-26
46 minutes
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Ep. 66: Are We Born With Innate Ideas? (Part II)
2022-Apr-12
44 minutes
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Ep. 65: Are We Born With Innate Ideas? (Part I)
2022-Mar-29
47 minutes
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Ep. 64: Control, Desire, and Attachment (Part II)
2022-Mar-15
43 minutes
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Ep. 63: Control, Desire, and Attachment (Part I)
2022-Mar-01
38 minutes
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Ep. 62: What is History? ft. Gene Nassar, Ph.D. (Part II)
2022-Feb-15
58 minutes
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Ep. 61: What is History? ft. Gene Nasser, Ph.D. (Part I)
2022-Feb-02
52 minutes
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Ep. 60: What is Property? (Part II)
2022-Jan-18
67 minutes
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Ep. 59: What is Property? (Part I)
2022-Jan-04
56 minutes
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Ep. 58: Holiday Special - What is a Holiday? ft. Claire Celi and Sal Mignano
2021-Dec-21
110 minutes
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Ep. 57: What is Philosophy? (Part II)
2021-Dec-07
50 minutes
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Ep. 56: What is Philosophy? (Part I)
2021-Nov-23
57 minutes
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Ep. 55: Language, Thought, and Reality (Part II)
2021-Nov-09
55 minutes
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Ep. 54: Language, Thought, and Reality (Part I)
2021-Oct-26
48 minutes
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Ep. 53: What is Phenomenology? (Part II)
2021-Oct-12
63 minutes
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Ep. 52: What is Phenomenology? (Part I)
2021-Sep-28
54 minutes
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Ep. 51: What is Propaganda? ft. Claire Celi, M.A. (Part II)
2021-Sep-14
58 minutes
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Ep. 50: Audience Q & A
2021-Aug-31
66 minutes
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Ep. 49: What is Propaganda? ft. Claire Celi, M.A. (Part I)
2021-Aug-17
46 minutes
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Ep. 48: What is Beauty? (Part II)
2021-Aug-03
57 minutes
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Ep. 47: What is Beauty? (Part I)
2021-Jul-20
56 minutes
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Ep. 46: What is Conversation? (Part II)
2021-Jul-06
47 minutes
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Ep. 45: What is Conversation? (Part I)
2021-Jun-22
44 minutes
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Ep. 44: Objectivity and Subjectivity (Part II)
2021-Jun-08
57 minutes
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Ep. 43: Objectivity and Subjectivity (Part I)
2021-May-25
53 minutes
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Ep. 42: Presocratic Metaphysics (Part II)
2021-May-11
55 minutes
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Ep. 41: Presocratic Metaphysics (Part I)
2021-Apr-27
50 minutes
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Ep. 40: What is Critical Thinking? (Part II)
2021-Apr-13
56 minutes
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Ep. 39: What is Critical Thinking? (Part I)
2021-Mar-30
52 minutes
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Ep. 38: What is the Good Life? (Part II)
2021-Mar-16
49 minutes
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Ep. 37: What is the Good Life? (Part I)
2021-Mar-02
45 minutes
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Ep. 36: What is Intelligence? (Part II)
2021-Feb-16
46 minutes
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Ep. 35: What is Intelligence? (Part I)
2021-Feb-02
43 minutes
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Ep. 34: What is Death? ft. Sal Mignano, D.O. (Part II)
2021-Jan-19
46 minutes
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Ep. 33: What is Death? ft. Sal Mignano, D.O. (Part I)
2021-Jan-05
39 minutes
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Ep. 32: What is Science? (Part II)
2020-Dec-22
50 minutes
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Ep. 31: What is Science? (Part I)
2020-Dec-08
44 minutes
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Ep. 30: Knowledge and Truth (Part II)
2020-Nov-24
49 minutes
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Ep. 29: Knowledge and Truth (Part I)
2020-Nov-10
34 minutes
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Ep. 28: What is Democracy? (Part II)
2020-Oct-27
40 minutes
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Ep. 27: What is Democracy? (Part I)
2020-Oct-13
40 minutes
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Ep. 26: The Role of Work (Part II)
2020-Sep-29
46 minutes
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Ep. 25: The Role of Work (Part I)
2020-Sep-15
43 minutes
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Ep. 24: What is Education? (Part II)
2020-Sep-01
40 minutes
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Ep. 23: What is Education? (Part I)
2020-Aug-18
42 minutes
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Ep. 22: What is Language? ft. Claire Kelly, M.A. (Part II)
2020-Aug-04
41 minutes
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Ep. 21: What is Language? ft. Claire Kelly, M.A. (Part I)
2020-Jul-21
42 minutes
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Ep. 20: Freedom of Speech (Part II)
2020-Jul-07
42 minutes
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Ep. 19: Freedom Of Speech (Part I)
2020-Jun-23
39 minutes
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Ep. 18: What is Time?
2020-Jun-09
44 minutes
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Ep. 17: What is Justice? (Part II)
2020-May-26
46 minutes
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Ep. 16: What is Justice? (Part I)
2020-May-12
40 minutes
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Ep. 15: Aesthetics (Part II)
2020-Apr-28
40 minutes
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Ep. 14: Aesthetics (Part I)
2020-Apr-14
38 minutes
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Ep. 13: Existentialism (Part II)
2020-Mar-31
41 minutes
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Ep. 12: Existentialism (Part I)
2020-Mar-17
38 minutes
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Ep. 11: Do We Have Free Will? (Part II)
2020-Mar-03
37 minutes
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Ep. 10: Do We Have Free Will? (Part I)
2020-Feb-18
34 minutes
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Ep. 9: Ethics (Part II)
2020-Feb-04
62 minutes
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Ep. 8: Ethics (Part I)
2020-Jan-21
45 minutes
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Holiday Hiatus Update
2020-Jan-08
less than a minute
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Ep. 7: Perception and Reality (Part II)
2019-Nov-26
35 minutes
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Ep. 6: Perception and Reality (Part I)
2019-Nov-12
28 minutes
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Ep. 5: Is There a God? (Part II)
2019-Oct-29
26 minutes
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Ep. 4: Is There a God? (Part I)
2019-Oct-15
32 minutes
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Ep. 3: What is Consciousness? (Part III)
2019-Oct-01
19 minutes
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Ep. 2: What is Consciousness? (Part II)
2019-Sep-16
27 minutes
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Ep. 1: What is Consciousness? (Part I)
2019-Sep-01
33 minutes
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