News of March 2023
News about philosophy and its history in March 2023
Opportunities in March 2023
Career and research opportunities in March 2023
Exploring the Origins of ‘Scientia media’: An Interview with João Rebalde
In this interview, we delve into the 16th century with João Rebalde, a researcher at the Institute of Philosophy, Faculty of Arts and Humanities of the University of Porto. The exploratory project he directs seeks to find clues for understanding the theoretical background that led to the development of the famous doctrine of middle knowledge (scientia media), a theory of divine knowledge of future contingents. Starting from the question of the doctrine’s authorship (was it Molina? was it Fonseca?), the project is surveying new sources from the mid-16th century in the context of the Jesuit colleges of Coimbra and Évora in Portugal. There was also time for advice and prospects for the future.
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Hacer y estudiar Historia y Filosofía: entrevista con Dra. Verónica Tozzi Thompson
Para nosotros, medievalistas, es claro que Agustín de Hipona es pionero en muchas áreas. Hemos llegado a decir que es el primer filósofo de la Historia. Ahora bien, ¿Cómo fundamentar tal afirmación? Tal argumentación supone además una definición precisa de “Filosofía de la Historia”. Pero, ¿Tenemos realmente en claro el lugar epistemológico de la Historia de la Filosofía y de la Filosofía de la Historia? Para colaborar a esbozar alguna respuesta a estos interrogantes, desde sus estudios sobre la Filosofía de la Historia y la Epistemología de las ciencias sociales, pero también para relatar la historia reciente del Departamento de Filosofía de la Universidad de Buenos Aires que la tiene como Directora, contamos con Verónica Tozzi Thompson.
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Philosophy and the Public: An Interview with Steven S. Gouveia
Is it philosophers’ moral duty to share the results of their research and their ideas with the public or to restrict their access to university seminar rooms and paywalled scientific journals? The medieval philosopher al-Fārābī (d. c. 950) once wrote that “if the philosopher who has acquired the theoretical virtues does not have the capacity to transmit them to everyone else according to their [own] possibilities, then, what he has acquired is in vain” (On the Attainment of Happiness, §56). Averroes (Ibn Rushd, d. 1198), on the other hand, was of the opinion that philosophy should not be divulged among the masses but restricted to the philosophical elite. The relevance of this question and the different approaches that have been proposed to answer it become more and more relevant in the present day as public philosophy rises and is broadcasted through an increasing variety of media, like Youtube, Spotify, online courses, and television. In this month’s interview, we explore some of the issues of public philosophy with Dr. Steven S. Gouveia, a philosopher who has put considerable effort into calling the public’s attention to contemporary philosophical and ethical issues. Not only has he directed and hosted a documentary on the topic of artificial intelligence, but also organizes online courses on various philosophical subjects, some of which involved notable philosopher-guests, such as Peter Singer and Noam Chomsky.
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Recently published books and volumes
Our selection of books for March 2023
Digital Research Objects: An Interview with Terhi Marttila
Terhi Marttila is a digital artist who programs works for the web browser. She works predominantly with voice and texts but also adds elements of play and playfulness to her works. Terhi’s work addresses topics such as migration, relationship to place, gendered beauty ideals and ageing. As I started a collaboration with her, I realized how insightful her ideas were about using digital means to express research questions. Here’s a sneak pic of a conversation we’d be delighted to continue with you!
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Matilde Berti
For March, let me introduce you to yet another promising Italian scholar working abroad! Matilde Berti is a PhD Student in Classics at Durham University (UK), with Prof. Phillip Horky and Prof. Anna Marmodoro as supervisors. She has been awarded an AHRC studentship via the Northern Bridge Consortium (NBCDTP) in October 2021. Matilde currently works on Early Greek philosophy and Plato within the framework of her doctoral project ‘The Relation of Parts and Wholes in Plato’. Her dissertation traces the roots of Plato’s account of a variety of relations between constituent parts and resulting entities, contained within previous Greek philosophy (i.e., cosmology, physics, medicine, and metaphysics). She aims to determine the Presocratic building blocks that shape the Platonic notions of ‘Part’. ‘All’, and ‘Whole’, thus enhancing the understanding of both Platonic and Presocratic Metaphysics.
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Filosofia del teatro o teatro filosofico? Intervista a Bianca Iannaccone
Filosofia e teatro sono legati nella tradizione occidentale fin dall’antica Grecia. La commedia e la tragedia, in particolare, hanno sempre occupato un posto centrale nell’indagine e nell’analisi filosofica. Non solo, ma il teatro stesso è stato utilizzato come veicolo per trasmettere un’argomentazione filosofica sulla moralità. Questo mese esploriamo le intersezioni tra queste due discipline cruciali con Bianca Iannaccone. Filosofa e attrice, mette alla prova i limiti di questo rapporto dall’interno. In questa intervista, ci parla in particolare del suo punto di vista sull’opera del grande drammaturgo francese Molière e del modo unico in cui mostra una divertente e, al tempo stesso, amara critica filosofica dei valori morali del suo tempo, costruita attraverso un elaborato gioco teatrale argomentativo. Inoltre, spiega anche l’impatto che questa analisi filosofica ha avuto sulla sua pratica performativa come attrice.
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IPM Monthly 