Philosophy News - Spring 2022
The Department of Philosophy joined the Willson Center for the Humanities and Arts in co-sponsoring David Chalmers' lecture, "Reality+: From the Matrix to the Metaverse" on March 1.
Spring 2022 Newsletter
As I told you in our last newsletter, the department received approval to hire two new tenure track faculty positions as part of the Presidential Interdisciplinary Faculty Hiring Initiative in Data Science and Artificial Intelligence. I’m excited to tell you now that we have just hired Dr. Jeremy Davis to start in the fall of 2022 in one of those positions. Dr. Davis, a specialist in normative and applied ethics, received his PhD from the University of Toronto and has taught for the United States Military Academy at West Point. Recently, he’s been working as a postdoctoral fellow on a National Science Foundation-funded project focused on the ethics of AI and predictive policing. I’m convinced he’s going to make a huge contribution to the department and university. (And I hope that I will be able to tell you about a second hire sometime soon.)
On a sad note, the department’s longtime and highly-valued business manager, Rebecca Price, has moved to a new position within the University. We will still work with Rebecca, but her presence in Peabody Hall is very much missed. On the upside, the department has a great new office manager, Sonya Tino, who also works for the departments of comparative literature and religion.
I’ve been happy to see the efforts by the Philosophy Graduate Student Association and the undergraduate-run Philosophy Club to develop community within the department over the past few months. I can’t help but thinking that the activities of these student groups are a significant part of the reason that enrollment in philosophy is continuing to climb.
Have a great summer, and please feel free to reach out to me if there’s anything more that you’d like to know about the department, you’ve got an idea for an alumni event, or you’d like to arrange a visit back to Peabody Hall.
Go Dawgs!
Aaron Meskin
Professor and Head of Department
As current president of the International Plato Society, Distinguished Research Professor and Josiah Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professor Edward Halper is welcoming dozens of esteemed international Plato scholars to the International Plato Symposium XIII on Plato’s Sophist at UGA July 18-22, 2022. This is the first time in the nearly forty-year history of this triennial event that it is being hosted on US soil.
Department Head Aaron Meskin is leading a team of interdisciplinary scholars on the grant project, “From AI Ethics to AI Aesthetics: Artificial Intelligence and Aesthetic Harm,” a UGA Presidential Interdisciplinary Seed Grant recipient. The team includes additional scholars from the Franklin College of Arts & Sciences, the Terry College of Business, and the Mary Frances Early College of Education.
This past year has been an extremely active one, as the department has hosted no fewer than fifty events over the course of the 2021-22 academic year. In addition to the fifteen Scott & Heather Kleiner Lecture Series speakers, the department has hosted many additional visiting scholars and speakers—often in partnership with other UGA units—and organized various other academic and social events. Highlights of the last few months include a co-hosted public lecture by Professor David Chalmers about his new book, Reality+: From the Matrix to the Metaverse (photos below); workshops on aesthetics and the philosophies of nature, technology and AI; and a philosophy trivia night event for students. We are very much looking forward to our spring graduation reception on Friday, May 13.
Faculty News & Accomplishments
Department of Philosophy faculty remain extremely active in publishing and lecturing, organizing and hosting workshops and conferences, and creating and teaching new courses. They continue to earn recognition both within and beyond the university. Most importantly, Sarah Wright, who has been a key member of the department since the fall of 2005, has been promoted to Professor, effective Fall 2022. Congratulations to Dr. Wright!
Graduate Student News & Accomplishments
Several Department of Philosophy graduate students have earned prestigious awards and placements in recent months, while many others remain active in publishing, presenting, and community outreach. We’re especially excited about the tenure-track position that our advanced PhD student, Michael Lindquist, just received.
Our current cohort of majors includes many enthusiastic young philosophers. The undergraduate Philosophy Club meets weekly, while the student-led social media team also maintains an active Instagram page. Follow the Instagram account at @ugaphilosophy. (They would love to hear from alumni, so go ahead and DM them!)
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