March 19 - 23, 2008
Pasadena Hilton, Pasadena

Mini-conferences

Wednesday, March 19 through Thursday, March 20
“Making Philosophy of Science More Socially Relevant”

Saturday, March 22 through Sunday, March 23
“Spinoza’s Psychology”

Mini-conference on Making Philosophy of Science More Socially Relevant
Organizing Committee: Nancy Cartwright, Sophia Efstathiou, Helen Longino, Katie Plaisance

Wednesday, March 19
9:00-9:15 a.m., Welcome

9:15-10:45 a.m., Environmental Science and Policy
Carl Cranor (University of California–Riverside)
“The Role of On-the-ground Scientific Judgments in the Philosophy of Environmental Health Protections”
Kevin Elliott (University of South Carolina)
“Philosophy of Science, Public Policy, and Pollution Research”
Nancy Tuana (Pennsylvania State University)
“Bridging Philosophy of Science and Science Policy”

11:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m., Feminist Perspectives On Science
Carla Fehr (Iowa State University)
“ISU ADVANCE: Promoting the Retention and Advancement of Women in Science and Engineering Careers”
Sarah Richardson (Stanford Unversity)
“Beyond Bias: Modeling Gender in Science”
Lynn Hankinson Nelson (University of Washington)
“Upholding Epistemic Standards and Engaging in Socially Responsible Science: There Is No Tension Here”

2:00-3:30 p.m., The Use of Racial Categories in the Natural Sciences
Sophia Efstathiou (University of California–San Diego/ London School of Economics)
“Validating Race/Ethnicity Constructs as Categories for Genetic Research”
Michael Root (University of Minnesota)
“Stratifying By Race”
Lisa Gannett (Saint Mary’s University)
“Questions Asked and Unasked: How Philosophers of Science Might Better Contribute to Current Debates about Genetics and Race”

4:00-5:30 p.m., Values in Biomedical Research
Susan Hawthorne (University of Minnesota)
“Models of Mental Illness: Analysis of Hybrid Constructs”
Julian Reiss (Erasmus University)
“Neglected Diseases and Well-Ordered Science”
Eric Martin (University of California–San Diego)
“Evidence, Objectivity, and Public Policy: Methodological Perspectives on the Vaccine Controversy”

5:30-6:30 p.m., Teaching curricula for philosophy of science that facilitate engagement with social issues (panel discussion)

Reception
6:30-8:30 p.m.

Thursday, March 20

9:00-11:00 a.m., Socially Relevant Roles for Philosophers of Science
Heather Douglas (University of Tennessee)
“Going Both Ways: Applied Philosophy of Science in Context”
Katie Plaisance (Leibniz University of Hannover)
“Philosophers of Science as Liaisons between Science and Society”
Anita Silvers (San Francisco State University)
“Sheltering the Public from Illusions of a Perfect Genomic Storm”
Janet Kourany (Notre Dame University)
“Philosophers of Science as Public Intellectuals”

1:30-3:00 p.m., Building Trust between Science and Society
Robert Crease (State University of New York–Stony Brook)
“Trust”
Naomi Scheman (University of Minnesota)
“If You Believe in Truth, Fight for Justice: Ethical Responsibilities of Scientists for the Institutions in Which They Work”
Heidi Grasswick (Middlebury College)
“Scientific Communities and the Responsibilities of Knowledge-Sharing: What We Can Learn from Whistleblowers”

3:00-5:00 p.m., Roundtable: What is the best way to make philosophy of science more socially relevant? What are the requirements for and limitations of such work?

Mini-conference on Spinoza’s Psychology
Organizing Committee: Eugene Marshall, Don Rutherford, Mike LeBuffe, Steven Nadler, Tammy Nyden-Bullock, Michael Della Rocca

Saturday, March 22

Session 1 – Spinoza’s Psychology
8:30-9:30 a.m.
Chair: Paul Hoffman (University of California–Riverside)
Speaker: Michael LeBuffe (Texas A&M University)
“Projectivism in the Ethics: 3p9s and 3p39s”
Commentator: Matt Kisner (University of South Carolina)
9:30-10:30 a.m.
Chair: John Carriero (University of California–Los Angeles)
Speaker: Michael Della Rocca (Yale University)
Commentator: Martin Lin (Rutgers University)
10:30-11:30 a.m.
Chair: Nick Jolley (University of California–Irvine)
Speaker: Don Garrett (New York University)
“Representation and Misrepresentation in Spinoza’s Psychology”
Commentator: Charlie Huenemann (Utah State University)

Session 2 – Psychology and Politics
1:00-4:00 p.m.
1:00-2:00 p.m.
Chair: Ursula Goldenbaum (Emory University/Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton)
Speaker: Tammy Nyden-Bullock (Grinnell College)
“Spinoza’s Politics of Passion”
Commentator: Donald Rutherford (University of California–San Diego)
2:00-3:00 p.m.
Chair: Edwin Curley (University of Michigan)
Speaker: Michael Rosenthal (University of Washington)
“Wonder, Miracles and Politics”
Commentator: Tom Cook (Rollins College)
3:00-4:00 p.m.
Chair: Ron Sandler (Northeastern University)
Speaker: Eugene Marshall (Dartmouth College)
“Harmony and Discord in Spinoza’s Social Model of the Mind”
Commentator: Minna Koivuniemi (Uppsala Universitet)

Sunday, March 23
8:00 a.m.-Noon
Breakfast for Mini-conference Participants
8:00-9:00 a.m.
Roundtable Discussion
9:00 a.m.-Noon
Moderators: Eugene Marshall (Dartmouth College)
Donald Rutherford (University of California–San Diego)