Department News and Faculty Books Archive


Eternity: A History

Eternity: A History
Eternity is a unique kind of existence that is supposed to belong to the most real being or beings. It is an existence that is not shaken by the common wear and tear of time. Over the two and half millennia history of Western philosophy we find various conceptions of eternity, yet one sharp distinction between two […]


Miller Prize open to all Philosophy PhD students

The Miller Prize is an essay prize awarded for an essay written by a student in the philosophy graduate program. Beginning in the 2016-17 academic year, the prize will be open to all PhD students in philosophy, and will be tied directly to publication in philosophy journals. Each year, any paper that has been accepted […]


Graduate Student News: May 2016

The following are forthcoming publications by graduate students in the department: Marianna Bergamaschi Ganapini, “Why we Can Still Believe the Error Theory”, forthcoming in International Journal of Philosophical Studies; and “Doubting Assertion”, forthcoming in Philosophia: Philosophical Quarterly of Israel. Alex Englert, “Life, Logic, and the Pursuit of Purity: Logically Reconstructing the Transition to Cognition”, forthcoming […]


Photos from Events this Year

The department has had several special events this year, and there are photos to prove it (just click on the appropriate link). In October 2015 we had both the Thalheimer Lectures, delivered by David Chalmers, and the JHU Philosophy Graduate Conference; in April 2016 we had a workshop on The Value of Humanity.


Conference on The Value of Humanity, Sunday, April 3

Conference on The Value of Humanity, Sunday, April 3
The department is pleased to host a one-day conference on “The Value of Humanity.” It will take place in Gilman 288 on Sunday, April 3. There will be speakers from JHU and from other universities. View a poster for the event. View the full schedule.


BA/MA Program Approved

The Department has decided to offer an accelerated BA/MA program, and this has now received approval from the Dean’s office. The requirements for the BA and for the MA remain unchanged, but in the combined BA/MA program, two 400-level courses taken as part of the BA can also be used towards the MA. This means […]


Meaning Without Representation: Expression, Truth, Normativity, and Naturalism

Meaning Without Representation: Expression, Truth, Normativity, and Naturalism
Much contemporary thinking about language is animated by the idea that the core function of language is to represent how the world is and that therefore the notion of representation should play a fundamental explanatory role in any explanation of language and language use. Leading thinkers in the field explore various ways this idea may […]


Graduate Student Conference

The department’s graduate students have organized a conference entitled Nature and Norms: Values in a Material World. It will take place on Saturday October 17 in 210 Hodson (not Gilman 50, as previously announced). The keynote speaker is Professor Sharon Street of NYU.


Thalheimer Lectures

On October 28-30 (Wednesday-Friday), the department will be hosting Prof. David Chalmers (New York University and Australian National University) as the 2015 Thalheimer Lecturer. The department sponsors the Thalheimer Lectures every few years, inviting philosophers who, besides being highly distinguished, are likely to be of interest to faculty and students in a variety of fields […]