Chris Mole (University of British Columbia). 'Aristotelian Metaphysics and the Computational Mind
Seminar
Philosophers have tended to suppose that a computational theory of the mind would need to be a version of functionalism, and so that it would treat mental entities as being metaphysically on a par with the entities that are defined by their role in some functional organization. This is a mistake.…
Esther Klein (uSyd/ANU): Sincerity or Social Harmony? A Problem of Peer Disagreement in Ming Dynasty China
Seminar
Sincere individual self-expression is often in tension with social harmony. A famous Ming dynasty exchange between Li Zhi (1527-1602) and his former friend Geng Dingxiang brings this tension into sharp relief. Li Zhi’s perspective in these letters, elaborated in his deliberately provocative A Book…
Stephen Mann: 'We should get rid of the distinction between Shannon information and semantic information' (Pre-submission)
Seminar
Biologists use the word "information" a lot. In particular, they use it to describe communication, whether between animals, plants, cells or microbes. Philosophers are interested in this usage, and have traditionally distinguished two concepts called Shannon information and semantic information.…
Brian Weatherson (Michigan): Knowledge, Interests and Questions
Seminar
Knowledge is useful. If something is known, it can be used as a premise in constructing an answer to a question. But this platitude can quickly lead to scepticism, for there are few things that we know with such certainty that we can safely use them in any inquiry we happen to undertake. I think…
Brenna Barker-Lamb & Oliver Rawle (TPRs): Philsoc seminar
Seminar
Brenna Barker-Lamb (3.30-4.30pm): Corrective Justice for Climate Refugees Climate change could force over 140 million people to migrate by 2050. These ‘climate refugees’ will be people already in vulnerable positions who will suffer harm disproportionate to their contribution to climate change. My…
Zina Ward: 'Rational Analysis and Human Variation'
Seminar
Rational Analysis and Human Variation Rational analysis is a research program in psychology that tries to understand the mind by identifying the problems it is attempting to solve and deriving optimal solutions to those problems. The optimal solutions are then used to build models and make…