Upcoming Workshops
Workshop on interpretable AI and theories of content
Time and place: February 23, 2020, 9-5:30, New York University
Workshop on Critical views of infinity: Historical and mathematical perspectives
Workshop with Crispin Wright
Workshop:Conceptual Engineering: The Role and Nature of Functions
Time and Place: June 12-13, 2020, University of Oslo
Conceptual engineering is the field of philosophy concerned with assessing and improving our representational devices. Related fields such as conceptual genealogy are concerned with tracing the development of such devices through time.
An important question for this area of philosophy, accordingly, is what is it to change a representational device, such as a concept. When we conceptually engineer the concept “woman” or the concept “truth”, something changes: the concept comes to represent different things (if the engineering project is successful). But change is different from replacement or abandonment: change implies continuity, and that there is underlying something that remains constant through the process of change. What, if anything, is that underling constant thing?
An influential thesis in the conceptual engineering literature (defended in some form by Sally Haslanger, Jennifer Nado, Peter Railton, Timothy Sundell, David Plunkett, Amie Thomasson, and others) is that concepts have functions or job descriptions. If those remain constant, then perhaps they can be used to explain continuity. Concepts (and other representational devices) play certain functions in our thought and talk, and a successful conceptual engineering project ought to ensure that its function remains the same, insofar as one wants to preserve continuity.
That is to say, much work defends something like this claim:
(*) Concepts perform functions (or have jobs)
The workshop is concerned with this claim. Can it be made true and philosophically significant, like the above mentioned people think? If the claim is false (as Herman Cappelen has argued), why is it false? If the claim is true, what does ‘concept’ mean, what does ‘function’ mean, and what’s the philosophical significance of the claim? How important is preserving continuity for projects in conceptual engineering?
We encourage submissions that address these claims and closely related ones, as it pertains to conceptual engineering, genealogy, and related areas. We particularly welcome submissions from underrepresented groups in the profession and junior scholars.
Confirmed Speakers
Tim Sundell (University of Kentucky)
Jennifer Nado (University of Hong Kong)
Amie Thomasson (Dartmouth College)
Mona Simion (University of Glasgow)
Chris Kelp (University of Glasgow)
Matthieu Queloz (University of Oxford)
Justin Garson (Hunter College)
David Plunkett (Dartmouth College)
Herman Cappelen (University of Oslo)
More information, including a call for papers, is here.
Previous
Workshop: Self-blame and Moral Responsibility
ConceptLab and the Center for the Study of Mind in Nature
Linguistic Meaning: Metaphysics, Epistemology, and Ethics
The workshop webpage is here.
Time and place: April 24, 2019 – April 27, 2019, University of Oxford
Workshop On Mutual Understanding
Time and place: Mar 30, 2019 – Mar 31, 2019 (Collaboration between Yale University and ConceptLab). Program here.
Conceptual Engineering in the Ethics of War
Time and place: Jan. 11, 2019 9:00 AM – Jan. 12, 2019 5:00 PM, University of Oslo, GM 652
Workshop On Metasemantics
At the University of Tokyo. A schedule is here.
The Foundations Of Conceptual Engineering
Time and place: September 14 – 15, NYU. Organized by David Chalmers and Vera Flocke (NYU) and Herman Cappelen and Andrew Peet (ConceptLab). To learn more and register visit here. A schedule is here.
Workshop on Salvatore Florio and Øystein Linnebo’s manuscript The Many and the One: A Philosophical Study
Time and place: June 15, 2018 – June 16, 2018, GM 652, University of Oslo. A pre-read workshop. See here if you want to attend.
Philosophical Applications of Modal Logic
The Foundations Of Conceptual Engineering
Afternoon Workshop on Analyticity and Easy Being
Time: June 6, 2018 12:00 PM – 3:30 PM, GM 652, University of Oslo. More information is here.
ConceptLab and Conceptual Engineering: Taking Stock
Time and place: Jun. 1, 2018 09:15 AM – 17:00 PM, GM 652, University of Oslo. More information is here.
Kant, Paradoxes and Conceptual Engineering
The 1st Social Epistemology Network Event (SENE)
With keynote talks, early career sessions and contributed talks. More information can be found here.
Conference on Conceptual Engineering (at University of Toronto)
Time and place: Dec. 2, 2017 8:30 AM – 5:40 PM, University of Toronto
Read more …
Assertion-Foundational Issues
Time and place: Sep. 6, 2017 – Sep. 7, 2017, University of Oslo, GM 652
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Workshop: Critical views of logic
Time and place: Aug. 29, 2017 – Aug. 30, 2017, University of Oslo
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ELAC Annual Conference: “Justifying Preventive Harm: Retributive and Distributive Approaches”
Time and place: Aug. 17, 2017 – Aug. 18, 2017, Oslo Militære Samfund<
The event is a collaboration between ConceptLab and The Oxford Institute for Ethics, Law and Armed Conflict (ELAC)
Read more …
Non-instance based conceptions of generality
Time and place: Aug. 10, 2017 – Aug. 11, 2017, GM 652, University of Oslo
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Conceptual Truth, Analyticity, and Conceptual Competence
Time and place: June 26, 2017 9:00 AM – June 27, 2017 4:30 PM, Univeristy of Oslo, GM 652
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The Practical and Theoretical Implications of Defective Communication
Time and place: June 15, 2017 – June 16, 2017, GM 652, University of Oslo
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Workshop with J. Conant and A. Moore: Descartes, Modality and Conceivability
Time and place: May 23, 2017 9:45 AM – 5:00 PM, George Morgenstiernes hus, room 652
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Interdisciplinary workshop on Generics
Time and place: May 20, 2017 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM, CSLI/Department of Psychology, Stanford University
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FLASH WORKSHOP at ConceptLab
Time and place: May 19, 2017 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM, Venue: to be announced 2hrs before the workshop. (Somewhere on campus or nearby—so be in the area if you want to participate/attend.)
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Workshop: Meaning Innovation and Meaning Change
Time and place: Mar. 17, 2017 9:00 AM – Mar. 18, 2017 5:00 PM, University of Oslo, GM 652
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Moralske, juridiske og militære utfordringer i krigen mot IS
Time and place: Sep. 13, 2016 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM, Litteraturhuset i Oslo, Wergelandsvn. 29, Wergelandssalen
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Conceptual Engineering Workshop
Time and place: June 16, 2016 – June 17, 2016, Georg Morgenstiernes hus, Blindern campus, University of Oslo
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Cardinality, Worlds and Paradox
Time and place: June 7, 2016 – June 8, 2016, Georg Morgenstiernes hus, room 652
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Workshop: Higher-Order Metaphysics
Time and place: June 4, 2016 – June 5, 2016, Georg Morgenstiernes hus, room 652 (CSMN)
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The Philosophical Significance of Conceptual History
Time and place: June 22, 2015 – June 23, 2015, St Andrews
More information about the topic and speakers.
Workshop on Haslanger on Ameliorative Projects
Time and place: Oct. 14, 2013 – Oct. 15, 2013, St Andrews
More information about the topic and speakers.
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