Author: Justin Weinberg

Issues in the Philosophy Profession

Women and the “Philosophical Personality” (guest post by Christina Easton)

October 17, 2019

“Research suggests that there is a cognitive task on which philosophers tend to perform better than non-philosophers and men tend to perform better than…
Daily Nous Features

Mini-Heap

October 17, 2019

A new Mini-Heap…
philosophy

Input Sought on New Questions for Upcoming PhilPapers Survey of Philosophers

October 16, 2019

A draft of the follow-up to the 2009 Philpapers survey of philosophical positions held by academic philosophers on various topics includes about 70 new questions.
Uncategorized

Which Video Games for Which Philosophical Lessons?

October 16, 2019

It’s not unusual to solicit books, movies, and television shows that might be particularly useful for teaching about certain philosophical problems. What about video…
Uncategorized

John Dewey Research Center To Be Established In Shanghai

October 16, 2019

East China Normal University in Shanghai will be the home of a new philosophy research center focused on John Dewey.
Conferences

Videoconferencing for Climate Practice (guest post by Colin Marshall and Sinan Dogramaci)

October 16, 2019

The following is a guest post* discussing the practice of making videoconferencing a regular component of academic conferences and the like, for the sake…
Daily Nous Features

To φ Or Not To φ

October 15, 2019
philosophy

How Do I Figure Out What To Think? (guest post by Martin Lenz)

October 15, 2019

“Picking a side helps you to play the game. But it doesn’t help you in figuring out what you should think. In other words,…
Daily Nous Features

Mini-Heap

October 15, 2019

The latest links from the Heap…
Cuts and Threats to Philosophy Programs

University to “Align” Philosophy Major with Catholic Studies

October 14, 2019

The trustees of Newman University, a Catholic university in Kansas, have approved a plan proposed by the administration that will revise its philosophy and theology programs so that…
Uncategorized

Online Philosophy Resources Weekly Update

October 14, 2019

Here’s the weekly report on new entries in online philosophical resources and new reviews of philosophy books.
philosophy

“An Optimistic Bet”

October 12, 2019

The relationship between truth and social progress is then an optimistic bet. I hope that knowing the truth is part of what sets us…
Daily Nous Features

Mini-Heap

October 11, 2019

Friday Mini-Heap…
Philosophy Majors and the GRE: Updated Data (w/updates)

October 11, 2019

When students are compared by major on how far above average they do on the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE), a standardized test used in many disciplines to…
Publishing

Refereeing Papers About Your Own Work

October 10, 2019

A graduate student in philosophy writes in with the following query:
Daily Nous Features

Mini-Heap

October 9, 2019

New Mini-Heap…
Graduate Programs

U. Chicago Reforms PhD Programs: Lifts Limits on Funded Time, Sets Limits on Number of Students

October 9, 2019

The University of Chicago has announced several reforms to its Ph.D. programs in the humanities, social sciences, and some other fields.
philosophy

Death and Progress in Philosophy

October 9, 2019

While outsiders appear reluctant to challenge leadership within a field when the star is alive, the loss of a luminary provides an opportunity for…
Daily Nous Features

Chaospet

October 8, 2019
Uncategorized

Philosophical Apps: How To Popularize Philosophy (guest post by Caleb Ontiveros)

October 8, 2019

The following is a guest post* by Caleb Ontiveros, a former philosophy Ph.D. student who now works as a software engineer.

Heap of Links

Is there anything to the concept of “intrinsic human dignity”? — yes, says Rebecca Newberger Goldstein, and "it names a burden as much as a distinction"
“Intuition is the cognitive means by which the conceptual structure of a situation is revealed to us” — whether that situation is a stylized thought experiment or a real world experience, says Marc A. Moffett
“Professors can’t fix the problem on their own” — Victor Kumar on what university administrators need to do address AI's threat to higher education
“The wall between jus ad bellum and jus in bello, which had sustained his theory for almost half a century, was no longer sturdy” — a profile of Michael Walzer, focusing on his thoughts about just war theory and the Israeli-Palestine conflict
We may think that we lose something significant when AI beats us to a discovery — if we do, Daniel Greco says, that seems to imply we gained something significant, too
“Once upon a time there were a couple of handsome naturalistic philosophers working in and around the philosophy of fiction” — thoughts on new directions in philosophy of fiction, from several philosophers
What is the debate over whether trans women are women even about? — Katie Zhou argues that it's about which facts are granted "the cross-contextual significance and stickiness characteristic of gender"
We’re putting human brain cells into mice brains — One moral risk of this, says Mackenzie Graham, is a decrease in our ability to interpret what mice behavior tells us about their experiences and welfare
The Rawls Game — with instructions, background, advice, and downloadable character cards
“The central question would shift from ‘How do we maximize shareholder value?’ to ‘How do different forms of organization distribute power, risk and reward — and which should we strengthen?'” — Chris Marquis on the case for abolishing, or at least radically changing, business schools
Asking “How did I get here?” may help us reflect on the nature of personal identity in ways that asking “Who am I?” cannot — Marya Schechtman's 2024 Central Division Meeting Presidential Address
“Collecting is a game, but what kind of game? It is an imperfect information game of acquisition” — a theory of collecting, from Steven Hales
“A general human tendency: to overestimate how far we have come in the progress of human knowledge” — a lengthy interview with Thomas Nagel
“Many couples do not survive trauma like this” — A profile of Susan Brison—who was brutally attacked in 1990, and who wrote about it in Aftermath—and her husband, Thomas Trezise, who has now written his own book stemming from those events
“Bad AI Consciousness Takes” Bingo Card — Henry Shevlin's area of specialization is becoming a popular topic in popular discourse, and he can't stand the "cavalcade of terrible takes"
Does the principle of sufficient reason imply panpsychism? If it does, do we then ponens or tollens? — Sam Kimpton-Nye on these questions and the "demand for intelligibility"
PTSD flashbacks may be harmful, but they may also be helpfully “resupplying phenomenal experience” to those who, owing to trauma, are “grasp alienated” — Michaela McSweeney on trauma and "madness-as-strategy"
A look at the very first issue of Mind — Brett Mullins surveys its articles on the occasion of the journal's 150th anniversary
The most bizarre plagiarism-related story ever — featuring: a death, an investigator, a dissertation, a mysterious red book, and more
New data on earnings by major and university — though not all universities

All Links →

Latest Comments

James Mackay on Calls for Papers / Grants / Etc.
Byung-Chul Han and Contemporary Culture. Online (hosted by European University Cyprus). 19 March 2027. Abstracts due 18 January 2027. https://byungchulhanstudies.org/call-for-papers/An online symposium putting Byung-Chul Han’s concepts – burnout,…
Student Philosopher on Where Intuitions Conflict
But the history of philosophy shows us no cases in which adept questioners left their interlocutors in aporia Mad Max – That's Bait
Vinicius Rodrigues on Where Intuitions Conflict
One of my main concerns with your answer to x-phi studies is that it makes having an intuition a difficult thing to pick out in the stream of…
philatetelist on Where Intuitions Conflict
This is a startling hypothesis, because if one and the same individual can have conflicting intuitions about cases, then a philosophically adept questioner should be able to elicit…
Patrick Lin on Death Just Got Out of This Truck (guest post)
“You can be the ripest, juiciest peach in the world, and there's still going to be somebody who hates peaches.”— Dita Von Teese, American philosopher
Non-classical? on Where Intuitions Conflict
I guess I can see that reading of the call, but then I just know even less what to do with the call. Consider that, at least as…
PhilCon Ed on Death Just Got Out of This Truck (guest post)
That which makes plainspoken language more accessible and meaningful to you is the same mechanism which makes flowery, emotive language more meaningful and accessible to others.
Jason Aleksander on Death Just Got Out of This Truck (guest post)
it is disingenuous to claim that the academic life is somehow purely a life of the mind It's not impolite, but I'm not sure if you thought I…
Kenny Easwaran on Where Intuitions Conflict
I don't think the call is for non-classical logics. I interpreted more as a call for non-classical theories of meaning, such that the words being used to express…
Paul Wilson on Putting the Pub in Public Philosophy
While theology is not (usually) philosophy, a remarkably successful pub-centric public initiative is "Theology on Tap". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theology_on_Tap RENEW International
Paul Wilson on Death Just Got Out of This Truck (guest post)
I often get in deep discussions with barflys, as did Aristotle. Their perspectives – far distanced from academic philosophy – homelessness, addiction, alienation from family, friends, romantic and…
Student Philosopher on Death Just Got Out of This Truck (guest post)
You seem like you would enjoy Hemingway
Paul Taborsky on Death Just Got Out of This Truck (guest post)
I hope it is not too impolite to point out that for anyone who is a professional philosopher, (especially the tenured kind) philosophy has quite obviously the ability…
Student Philosopher on Death Just Got Out of This Truck (guest post)
This was wonderful to read. To me, the best philosophy is literary.
Paul Wilson on Putting the Pub in Public Philosophy
While managing a used bookshop a couple of decades ago, I hosted a weekly "Socrates Cafe" with free coffee (and also wine and beer (this being New Orleans),…