Latest Past Events
Robert DiSalle: Gravity, Geometry, and Philosophy: 100 Years in Einstein’s Universe
Wolf Performance Hall - Central Library 251 Dundas St, LondonOne hundred years ago, in November 1915, Albert Einstein achieved his long-sought theory of gravitation: the General Theory of Relativity. In developing the General Theory, Einstein brought together ideas from philosophy, mathematics, and physics, to create a remarkable new conception of gravity, space, and time. His work is a model of the engagement between philosophy [...]
Sarah Hannan: Why Parental Interests Cannot Justify Unlimited Procreation
Room 1145 - Stevenson Hall Stevenson Hall, Room 1145, LondonABSTRACT Many people believe that procreation is permissible in light of the powerful interest would-be parents have in rearing children. This paper challenges that assumption, and progresses in three sections. First, I argue that childhood is bad for children in many significant ways. Second, I suggest that the badness of childhood poses a challenge for [...]
Peter Achinstein: What is a Theory of Everything and Why Should We Want One?
Room 1145 - Stevenson Hall Stevenson Hall, Room 1145, LondonABSTRACT Scientists and philosophers who seek, or advocate seeking, a “theory of everything” (e.g., string theory, Thomas Nagel’s panpsychic theory, David Chalmers’ “construction of the world”) want to produce a grand, unifying theory that can explain everything on the basis of fundamental laws and constituents of the universe. Advocates of this idea offer very general [...]