recent philosophy club events
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This montage of stories, dreams, and magic tricks will be presented by memoirist, magician, and Drexel Teaching Professor, Fred Siegel.
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Discussion of Philosophy and Information
Led by Nicole I. Kline. Google defines information as “a message received and understood” and “knowledge acquired through study or experience or instruction.” Many definitions of information include words like “knowledge,” “data,” and “news.” Donald Case, in his article Looking for Information: A Survey of Research on Information Seeking, Needs, and Behavior, uses Gregory Bateson's poetic definition of information: “any difference that makes a difference to a conscious, human mind.” Join us on Thursday, October 29th, in MacAlister 5060 as we explore the various definitions and ideas about information and information theory.
Thursday, October 29, 2009, 5:00-7:00 The Drexel Writing Center, MacAlister, 0032
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Narrativity, Medicine and Ethics
Presented by Dr. Emilie Passow. Narrative medicine is an approach to health care that illuminates aspects of the delivery of care by considering them as analogous to acts like storytelling, reading, interpreting, and writing. By thinking of medical practice in this manner, new dimensions of the experience and practice of health care are opened up. Dr. Passow will introduce and discuss with us some of the ethical aspects of this approach. All are invited. This event will be dedicated to the memory of our classmate, student, and friend Babur Khalique, and will be preceded by brief dedicatory remarks. Sponsored by the Drexel Certificate Program in Medical Humanities along with the Drexel Philosophy Club.
Thursday, October 22, 5:00 to 7:00pm
Nesbitt, 125 Ruth Auditorium
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Thinking Philosophically About Religion
A Discussion of Some of the Major Issues in the Philosophy of Religion led by Professor Jacques Catudal
Thursday, October 1, 5:00 to 6:30pm Drexel Writing Center, MacAlister 0032
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At what point do performance enhancement technologies begin to subvert the purposes of sport? What unintended consequences may ensue from embracing a "transhumanist" ethic? Professor Sacks will lead discussion of a number of fascinating and far-reaching questions regarding sports, ethics, and human nature. All are invited to attend!
Thursday, August 06, 2009 5:00 PM - 6:30 PM MacAlister Hall (33rd and Chestnut Streets) Room 5060
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Organizing Knowledge: Lessons from Babel
A Lecture and Discussion Featuring Professor Jacques Catudal of the Department of English and Philosophy
In this talk, intended as an introduction to the study of knowledge organization, Professor Catudal will present instances of knowledge organization taken from Pythagoras, Plato, Aristotle and the Peripatetic philosophers who followed Aristotle. He will also discuss why the study of knowledge organization is important, and why it ought to be part of the college curriculum.
Tuesday, July 28, 2009, 5:00-7:00 The Drexel Writing Center, MacAlister, 0032
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What We See and What We Don't:
The Schematized Aspects of Meaning
A Lecture and Discussion Featuring Professor Don Riggs of the Department of English and Philosophy
The phenomenological philosopher Edmund Husserl (1859-1938) argued that we see only some aspects of things as given in experience, but other real aspects exist that transcend our limited perception. His student Roman Ingarden (1893-1970) agreed, but recognized that in literature, objects are imaginational. Hence all that exists of the things we encounter in literature are the “schematized aspects”—that is to say, there are no things in themselves that transcend what we're given in a text. Later thinkers, including Eugene Falk (1913-2000), sought to apply Ingarden’s insights to literary criticism. Dr. Riggs will explain and discuss the significance of Ingarden’s ideas with reference to some of his own poetry and other forms of discourse.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009, 5:00-7:00 The Drexel Writing Center, MacAlister, 0032
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Education and Evaluation
A Lecture and Discussion Featuring Mr. Mark Dobbins
Wednesday, May 27, 2009, 5:00-7:00 The Drexel Writing Center, MacAlister, 0032
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The Myth of Prometheus in the Thought of Thomas Hobbes
Lecture and discussion with Dr. Craig Ewasiuk of the Department of International Studies & Modern Language
Dr. Ewasiuk will talk about the political philosopher Thomas Hobbes' use of the myth of Prometheus in his writings. Hobbes envisioned a rivalry between those who benefit humankind through governance and those who do so through scientific inquiry and technological innovation. In De Cive and Leviathan Hobbes retells the archetypal myth underlying this antagonism—Zeus’s punishment of Prometheus, and his rendition of the story reveals a great deal about his understanding of the relationship between sovereignty and science.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009, 5:00-7:00 The Writing Center, MacAlister 032
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Screening and discussion of "Princess Mononoke," Part II of II
Tuesday, April 28, 2009, 4:30-6:30 Philosophy Conference Room Mac 5060
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Screening and discussion of "Princess Mononoke," Part I of II
Tuesday, April 21, 2009, 4:30-6:30 Philosophy Conference Room Mac 5060
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I Have the Time Travel If You Have the Inclination
A Lecture and Discussion of Time and Fiction with Professor Don Riggs
Monday, April 20, 2009, 5:00-6:30 The Drexel Writing Center, MacAlister, 0032
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Screening and discussion of "Cat Soup"
Tuesday, April 14, 2009, 4:30-6:30 Philosophy Conference Room Mac 5060
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Utopia and Utopian Literature
Discussion of the difficulties of writing Utopian literature, and what a true Utopia would actually look like, led by Ms. Kathy Nolan
Tuesday, March 17, 2009, 4:30-6:30 Philosophy Conference Room Mac 5060
Related websites: http://www.overcomingbias.com/2009/01/serious-stories.html; http://www.overcomingbias.com/2009/01/scary-eutopia.html; http://www.overcomingbias.com/2009/01/weirdtopia.html
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Just War Theory
Discussion led by Professor Greg Johnson
Tuesday, March 10, 2009, 4:30-6:30 Philosophy Conference Room Mac 5060
Related handout: http://www.pages.drexel.edu/~pa34/JWT.pdf
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The Watchmen, and Philosophy
Discussion of the graphic novel by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, led by Professor Craig Ewasiuk
Tuesday, March 3, 2009, 5:00-7:00 Philosophy Conference Room Mac 5060
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Three Short Pieces by Jorge Luis Borges
Discussion of "The Theme of the Traitor and the Hero," "Death and the Compass," and "Borges and I," led by Ms. Nicole Kline
Tuesday, February 24, 2009, 5:00-7:00 Philosophy Conference Room Mac 5060
To hear Borges, here are some quick mp3s: http://www.hup.harvard.edu/features/bortcd/
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On the Idea of the Social Contract
A Panel Discussion with Dr. Amy Bush, Dr. James A. Stieb, and Dr. Carol Mele
Tuesday, February 17, 2009, 5:00-7:00 The Drexel Writing Center, MacAlister, 0032
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Was Plato A Democrat?
A Panel Discussion with Dr. Marilyn Piety, Dr. Amy Bush, and Dr. Carol Mele
Thursday, November 13, 2008, 5:30-7:30 MacAlister, 2019
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Why Does Sports Matter?
A Wide-Ranging Discussion of Sports' Many Dimensions
Thursday, August 14, 2008, 5:30-7:30 The Drexel Writing Center, MacAlister, 0032
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What Good is Ethics?
A Panel Discussion Featuring Faculty from the Philosophy Program
Thursday, July 24, 2008, 5:30-7:30 The Drexel Writing Center, MacAlister, 0032
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Is Your Mind Just A Computer Program?
A Lecture and Discussion Featuring Professor Gregory Johnson from the Philosophy Program
Wednesday, February 27, 2008, 6:00-7:30 MacAlister, 4016
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