AAPNZ2009: 57th annual conference of the New Zealand division of the Australasian Association of Philosophy

Closing Date for Submissions/Registrations: November 1.

AAPNZ2009 will be held at Massey University in Palmerston North, New Zealand from the evening of Monday, December 7 to Thursday, December 10. The Conference will end with the Conference Dinner, to be held on the evening of Thursday December 10.

Registrations and submissions in all areas of philosophy are invited. Please visit the following website for details: http://www.aap-conferences.org.au/.

For information about accommodation in and travel to Palmerston North, please see the Conference Venue section of the website.

If you have any other enquiries, please address them to the conference organiser, Bill Fish, at w.j.fish@massey.ac.nz

The Re-Trial of Galileo

As part of the International Year of Astronomy (IYA) to mark the 400th anniversary of Galileo's use of the telescope History and Philosophy of Science at UNSW is holding "The Re-Trial of Galileo."

Cast includes:

Former Premier Bob Carr, Julian Burnside QC, Anna Katzmann SC, Professor Maurice Finocchiaro, Professor Fred Watson, Monsignor Tony Doherty, Dr. Paul Collins, Dr. Charley Lineweaver and ABC presenters including Robyn Williams, Alan Saunders and Geraldine Doogue.

http://hist-phil.arts.unsw.edu.au/galileo_trial/

This event is being filmed by the ABC Compass Program to be shown as an hour long special in early 2010.

Date: Monday 26th October 2009 6:30pm

Venue: Sir John Clancy Auditorium (Gate 9), The University of New South Wales, Kensington campus, Sydney, 2052

RSVP: www.trybooking.com/BPL by 15th October 2009.

Further information: Rebecca Straker (02) 9385 8512

http://hist-phil.arts.unsw.edu.au/galileo_trial

Update: Festival of Dangerous Ideas

The following deals are now available:

• Dambisa Moyo: $20 tickets (single purchase), or $15 if included as part of a multipack if the code ETHICS is used.
• Susan Greenfield: $20 tickets (single purchase), or $15 if included as part of a multipack if the code ETHICS is used.
• IQ2 Debate: $20 tickets (single purchase), oor $15 if included as part of a multipack if the code ETHICS is used.
• The Multipack of the three events above is being promoted as a 'Sunday Pass' at $45.

All these tickets were initially $45 so it is a saving of $25/$30.

Box Office (02 9250 7777)

Key Thinkers Lecture: Mark Colyvan on Gödel

The Director of the SCFS, Professor Mark Colyvan, will be delivering a lecture on "Kurt Gödel and the Limits of Mathematics" for the Key Thinkers Lecture series hosted by Sydney Ideas. The lecture will be given at the New Sydney Law School Building on Wednesday, September 30, 6:30 - 8:00 pm.

View an interview of Mark talking about Gödel.

"Kurt Gödel was one of the foremost mathematicians and logicians of the 20th century. He proved a number of extremely surprising results about the limitations of mathematics. Perhaps the most significant of these is his celebrated incompleteness theorem, which tells us that there are mathematical "blind spots": parts of mathematics that traditional methods of proof cannot access. These results are thought by many to have far-reaching consequences for computing and for our understanding of the nature of the human mind. Gödel's results have thus been the subject of a great deal of popular attention. Indeed, few other results in the history of mathematics have had such an impact outside of mathematics. For those of us who have never heard of Gödel, this lecture will give an accessible outline of his work and achievements."

Congratulations!

Congratulations to Honorary SCFS Associate Zach Weber, and his lovely wife, Vicki, on the birth of their son, Oskar, on September 22. Our best wishes and thoughts to Dunedin.

Charles and the Women: Darwinian psychology meets the female body

My review essay of some recent books in evolutionary psychology, titled 'Charles and the Women: Darwinian psychology meets the female body' just appeared in the Australian Review of Public Affairs.

Second Call For Papers: “Darwin and the Social Sciences”

Interdisciplinary Conference, organised by the Research School of the Social Sciences, Australian National University, November 12-14, 2009 at Sparkle Helmore Lecture Theatre, Law School

The call-for-paper deadlines have been extended until September 30

1. Keynote Speakers

Peter Godfrey-Smith (Philosophy, Harvard)

Dalton Conley (Sociology, NYU)

Paul Seabright (Economics, IDEA, France)

Brian Boyd (English, Auckland)

2. The Origin Cycle

In addition, the conference will host the Australian premier of “The Origin Cycle”: a connected series of compositions written for and to passages of the Origin, and sung by Jane Sheldon. More details on this unique event will be provided in the next CFP/conference information notice.

3. Registration.

There is no fee for conference attendance. But space at the lecture theatre is limited, so those intending to attend should e-mail Professor Kim Sterelny (kimbo@coombs.anu.edu.au) to notify him of your interest. If lack of space is a problem, he will let you know.

4. Papers.

Themes for the Conference may include (but are not restricted to): evolution and complexity; evolutionary models of cultural change; the cultural importance of Darwinian ideas; the role of primate legacies in human social worlds. Contributed papers are invited: they should be of about 40 minutes duration, allowing about 20 minutes for questions/discussion. Those offering a paper should e-mail Sterelny ((kimbo@coombs.anu.edu.au)) with a brief abstract and a brief biographical note (a link to an academic website suffices) so he can group similar-themed papers together. Offers should reach him by September 30 (for preference); he will confirm acceptance early October.

5. Accommodation.

There is a reasonable amount of accommodation available on campus at University House and Liversidge. (There may be somewhat cheaper, but less upmarket accommodation available at the various student halls of residence). But this can be booked out quite early. So those intending to come are urged to book early (http://accom.anu.edu.au/UAS/186.html; http://www.anu.edu.au/unihouse/)