Hegel isn't a philosopher who is taught much in our Department. His works are difficult and sometimes obscure, seemingly far from the model of clarity and rigor that we preach. But I think that he got at least one thing right. In his most famous work, The Phenomenology of Spirit, Hegel described what he calls the "struggle for recognition," which consists of the idea that our recognition of other beings as self-conscious is essential to the awareness of ourselves as conscious subjects… Read more
Philosophy has been called "the great conversation" for centuries and for many of our students and faculty it is hard to imagine having this "conversation" continued and taught in the online environment. However, many students do not have access to the University of Washington, because of schedule or location, and are pursuing the new Social Science Degree Completion Program online, designed to give many students who have started their college course work the opportunity to complete their… Read more
Congratulations to Professor Emeritus Arthur Fine who was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. The American Academy of Arts and Sciences includes the world's most successful scholars, scientists, writers, artists, and leaders in civic, corporate and philanthropic communities. Arthur joins the 2014 aAcademy class with fellow UW Professor Jerry Franklin of the College of the Environment.
Further congratulations to Arthur on his retirement from the University of Washington this… Read more
In April, the Philosophy Department participated in the National Bioethics Bowl Competition for the very first time. Graduate student Asia Ferrin coached four undergraduates: Haley Amemiya (sophomore, Neurobiology), Connie Chien (sophomore, Biochemistry), Binhan Pham (sophomore, Bioengineering), and Jack McClelland (senior, Philosophy). Philosophy majors Alexia Syrmos and Ron Keller also participated in early meetings and helped brainstorm cases.
The Bioethics Bowl is modeled on the Ethics Bowl… Read more
The annual Rabinowitz Lecture in Medical Ethics was held the evening of May 28, 2014 with Professor Inmaculada de Melo-Martín who presented "It's a Boy! The Ethics of Sex Selection."
Professor de Melo-Martin discussed how the use of new reproductive and genetic technologies is presenting us with many difficult ethical choices. Is it ethically permissible to select embryos of a particular sex for social reasons? Often proponents of this practice use the procreative liberty framework to defend… Read more
Graduate student Asia Ferrin headed up the Philosophy Writing Center this year. She improved its access and built its resources for undergraduate students. Asia descibes the improvements below:
It has been a great year at the Philosophy Writing Center. In addition to providing helpful tutoring sessions, we aimed this year to improve our online presence and accessibility, create the most welcoming space possible in the Center, and expand our services beyond one-on-one sessions.
To improve our… Read more
Kaiwen Sun, BA '14 in Philosophy and BS '14 in Electrical Engineering, will be spending at least the next eight months traveling solo to various countries including Russia, Kazakhstan, Nepal, Bhutan, India, Kenya, and South Africa as a Bonderman Travel Fellow. His objective is to delve into radically different cultural ideologies, learn how those ideologies influence each culture's world outlook, and how they impact its beliefs, values, and the interactions of their people.
Each year 14… Read more
The Department of Philosophy held its first Awards Reception on the evening of June 12, 2014, to celebrate and honor all the award recipients. The evening was a wonderful opportunity for faculty members to present their personal experiences in the classroom with each award winner to the many family and friends in the audience.
The first Kenneth Clatterbaugh Scholarship was awarded, as well as, many Friends of Philosophy Awards which are made possible by donations to the Friends of Philosophy… Read more
Congratulations to the Department's 72 majors who earned their BA in Philosophy and History and Philosophy of Science this year!
Additional congratulations to Michael T. Ball-Blakely, Timothy E. Brown, Kristi A. Larson, Justin C. Lawson, Meghan A. McClain, and Dustin A. Schmidt who earned their Masters in Philosophy and Mitch Kaufman and Amy Reed-Sandoval who earned their PhDs in Philosophy!
The Department celebrated its annual graduation reception at the Urban Horticulture Center on June 13… Read more
The department's Advisory Board advises the department chair, supports the department's community and public relations activities, and assists in implementing the department's fund development and outreach efforts. Advisory Board members are: Greg Albert, David Byrne, Marcia Evans, Dan Gerler, Jana Mohr Lone, Ann Owens, Jack Sabin and Jasmin Weaver. The Board meets four times a year and is involved in various fundraising and outreach initiatives. If you are interested in being considered for… Read more
The 2013-14 school year saw the Center's greatest growth in our 18 years of existence. The Philosophers in the Schools program expanded significantly, with faculty, students and volunteers working with the Center to lead philosophy sessions in over 25 different K-12 classrooms, including four elementary, two middle, and three high schools. Media pieces in the Seattle Times… Read more
Purchase your own legendary department "PHILOSOPHY I'm in it for the Money" t-shirt!
The t-shirts with the department logo and money slogan come in blue, olive or gray, and hats in white, taupe and gold cost $12. We also have t-shrts with only the department logo in citrus green, white, gold and oatmeal, plus short-sleeved t-shirts cut for women in yellow or white. The hoodies are vanilla (with logo and slogan) and heather grey (with and without slogan) which are $25.
Payment can be made in… Read more