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Michigan Philosophy News Michigan Philosophy News Michigan Philosophy News Page 1 Fall 2008 for friends, alumni, alumnae of the Department of Philosophy, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor INSIDE THIS ISSUE • Letter from the Chair • Eric Lormand: “Function: Under Con- struction” • Spotlight on Recent Graduates • Members of the Faculty • Contributions to the Department Dear Friends of Michigan Philosophy, Greetings from Ann Arbor! I am pleased, once again, to be able to bring you up to date on the Philosophy Department’s recent accomplishments and activities. While there have been changes in personnel, and while the Department faces major challenges, our basic mission remains the same — providing our students with the best possible overall education in philosophy — and we are carrying out this charge with great ef- fectiveness and enthusiasm. Generations of faculty, students, and staff have laid a strong foundation upon which we continue to build. Michigan remains one of the premier centers of philosophical thought in the world, with at most four or five peers, and our students continue to excel in a wide variety of intellectual and non-academic pursuits. We are also fortunate to have large base of alumni and alumnae who support the Department in many ways. This fall, for example, a generous donation from Marshall M. Weinberg funded a major conference “The Future of Cognitive Science” that brought six major figures in philosophy, psychology, biology, cognitive science and physics to campus for two days of talks. The conference was terrifically informative, and I am sure it will provide a fertile ground for interdisciplinary discussions for a long time to come. (Beginning in January, you will be able to view filmed versions of the conference pres- entations on the Departmental website: http://www.lsa.umich.edu/philosophy/.) Faculty News. Michigan’s philosophy faculty engaged in a wide variety of scholarly activities this year. As always, our members received many awards and honors. Elizabeth Anderson has been elected Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Election to the Academy, one of the Nation’s oldest and most prestigious honorary societies, is an extraordinarily high honor. Liz joins Allan Gibbard, Larry Sklar, Ed Curley, Ken Walton and Peter Railton as Academy Fellows. Ed Curley received a major fellowship from the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton for a project on religious toleration. Ed was also hon- ored as LSA’s Distinguished Senior Faculty Lecturer for 2008. Boris Kment was awarded a fellowship from the National Endowment for the Humanities (2008-09), and received the Emerging Scholars Prize from the Institute for the Humanities, University of Michigan. Larry Sklar completed his term as Presi- dent of the Philosophy of Science Association, and delivered the Presidential Address, “I’d Love to Be a Naturalist - If Only I Knew What Naturalism Was” this November. Thony Gillies received a prestigious NSF grant “Context and Accommodation in the Semantics of Modal Constructions.” Thony used some of Michigan Philosophy News Page 2 the money to run a highly successful interdisciplinary Arbor. For a tribute to Art and an account of his many speaker series last winter. contributions to the University, the Department and the discipline of philosophy see p. 16. The Department welcomes three new faculty members this year, all with interests in the philosophy of science. Undergraduate News. Our reputation for outstanding Professor Gordon Belot, who has held positions at NYU, teaching attracts students to our major, and so our under- Princeton, and Pittsburgh, works on a wide variety of top- graduate program continues to grow. The 2007-08 aca- ics in philosophy, with special focus on the metaphysical demic year showed an increased enrollment of one hun- issues that arise in space-time theory. Professor Laura dred forty-one concentrators and eighty-three minors. We Ruetsche, who has held positions at Middlebury and awarded sixty-six B.A. degrees in April 2008 and expect Pittsburgh, focuses on issues having to do with the inter- to award about the same number in April 2009. pretation of quantum mechanics. Laura is also a leading figure in the study of gender and science. Assistant Pro- This year’s William K. Frankena Prize for excellence in fessor David Baker, a Michigan B.A. who received his the undergraduate concentration (funded by a generous Ph.D. from Princeton this year, works on metaphysical contribution from Marshall M. Weinberg) was awarded to and epistemological issues that arise in quantum theory. Amanda J. Hicks. Amanda will be attending law school David also has substantial research interests in the phi- in the fall of 2009. The Haller prize, which is awarded for losophy of religion and moral philosophy. When added exceptional papers written in an upper-level philosophy our substantial existing strength in the area, these three course, was given to Chris Detjen for his essay “Rawls in make Michigan perhaps the best place in the world to the Age of Floods: Ensuring Climate Justice Through study the philosophy of science. Time and Space.” Though these additions soften the blow, we must bid bit- Last year saw the highest number of senior honor theses tersweet farewells to three valued member of the faculty. ever completed: nine! Liz Anderson supervised three: After more than twenty years of service, Steve Darwall Kayla Nile Arslanian’s, “A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing: has retired from the University, and has accepted a posi- Invoking a Principle of Sincerity to Protect the Public tion at Yale. Steve was one of our most dedicated under- Political Domain from Disguised Private Reasons;” Matt graduate teachers and most active graduate advisors. He Owens’ “The Problem of Testimony in Asylum Hear- also served with uncommon distinction in a variety of ings;” and Eric Li’s “Self and the Social Terrain: Racial important administrative roles, including Department Identity via an Asian American Perspective.” Thomas M. Chair, Director of the LSA Honors Program, and Chair of Hartsig wrote, “Unique Factorization and Dedekind’s the LSA Library Committee. We wish Steve all the best Theory of Ideals: A Mathematical Perspective…With a in his new position. Ian Proops, an Associate Professor Slight Philosophical Bent,” under the guidance of Jamie who specializes in the history of analytic philosophy, will Tappenden. Adam Siroky wrote “Piecing Together the be taking up a position at the University of Texas (Austin) Fictionality Puzzle” under Allan Gibbard. Chandra Sri- beginning in January. I am certain our students will miss pada and I advised Jonah Zaretsky in his writing of “A Ian’s well-received introductions to philosophy, and his Cognitive Theory of Schizophrenic Delusions.” Todd popular courses on Kant and on Frege, Russell and Witt- Hollon’s “One Understands [a Proposition] if one Under- genstein. Finally, Assistant Professor Andy Egan will be stands its Constituents Parts,” was supervised by Boris leaving to take up a tenured position at Rutgers beginning Kment. Christina Spallina, advised by Ed Curley, wrote in September. Andy, who works in many central areas of “Examination of Church and State Relations.” Ed also philosophy, was an especially active graduate advisor. advised Joshua Blanchard’s “Soft Rationalism in the We are unfortunate to lose him. Epistemology of Religion.” Finally, on a sad note, I must announce that Arthur The Department now sponsors three undergraduate phi- Burks, one of the giants of Michigan philosophy (and losophy discussion clubs: the Philosophy Club; the So- computer science) passed away on May 14, 2008 in Ann cratic Club, and the Student Secular Alliance. It is great to Michigan Philosophy News Page 3 see so much philosophical discussion taking place outside Our students have also been making their marks in the classroom settings. The undergraduate student journal, the arena of scholarly publication. Dustin Locke’s “A Partial Meteorite, continues to thrive and is being published both Defense of Ramseyan Humility” will appear in D. Brad- in print and online. Check the department’s web site for don-Mitchell and R. Nola (eds.) Conceptual Analysis and more information on the clubs and Meteorite: Philosophical Naturalism. Josh Brown and Tim Sundell, http://www.lsa.umich.edu/philosophy. with Peter Ludlow, wrote “Philosophy of Linguistics” for S. Sarkar and M. Fagan (eds.) Routledge Encyclopedia of Graduate News. Our graduate students continue to win the Philosophy of Science. Alexandra Plakias, with prestigious awards and develop their professional reputa- John M. Doris (Ph.D ‘96) wrote two papers — “How to tions. Vanessa Carbonell, Dustin Locke, Howard Nye Argue about Disagreement: Evaluative Diversity and and Tim Sundell all won Rackham Predoctoral Fellow- Moral Realism”and “How to Find Disagreement: Philoso- ships for 2008-09. This is a highly competitive prize and phical Diversity and Moral Realism”— that have ap- the Department has never had so many recipients in one peared in W. Sinnott-Armstrong (ed.) Moral Psychology. year! Vanessa also received a Rackham Graduate School Steve Campbell’s “Hare on Possible People” appeared in Outstanding GSI Award, a great and rare honor that goes in the Journal of Applied Philosophy, Vol. 24, 2007. only to the most effective graduate student instructors. This year’s Charles Stevenson Prize for Outstanding Can- Dustin also won a Rackham Research Grant to fund time didacy Dossier went to Amanda Roth for her excellent at the Australian National University and the University papers titled “But You Don’t Respect Me...” and “Dewey, of Sydney. David Dick was awarded the coveted Char- Feminist Epistemology, and Objectivity: An Internal Re- lotte W. Newcombe Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship for alist Interpretation.” The John Dewey Prize for out- the academic year 2008-09. David also received the standing performance as a Graduate Student Instructor Hough Fellowship in Ethics for Winter 2008. Steve went to Tim Sundell. Both prizes are funded by a gener- Campbell, Jonathan Shaheen, and Dave Wiens all re- ous gift from Marshall M.
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