Graeme A Forbes (Head of Department)
Graeme is the Head of Philosophy and looks forward to welcoming and inspiring first-year philosophy students. He specialises in the philosophy of time (Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure is the best time-travel movie, by the way). You will get to know him in the autumn as the lecturer for the introduction to knowledge and metaphysics module. In the second and third year, you can usually take modules with Graeme on metaphysics.
David specialises in historically-informed approaches to mathematics and philosophy, as well as the philosophy of medicine, in particular the mind-body relation. In the second and third year he usually teaches modules in the philosophy of science or philosophy of history.
Alexandra is on leave for Autumn term. Normally, she convenes the first-year module on philosophy and rights. Alexandra specialises in moral and political philosophy, in particular moral responsibility and rights about the freedom of speech. In the second and third year, you can usually take modules with Alexandra on political philosophy and philosophy, politics and economics.
You will get to know Edward when taking the philosophy of rights module. He specialises in the philosophy of Immanuel Kant, Wittgenstein, Frege, and political philosophy. In the second and third year, you can usually take modules with Edward on Kant, Wittgenstein, and democracy.
Simon is the Director of the Arts and Humanities Division, which means he does not normally teach undergraduate modules. In the past, Simon has taught modules on ethics, metaethics, and aesthetics, which are also his areas of specialisation.
Lubomira specialises in ethics, philosophy of action and epistemology. In the second and third year, you can usually take modules with Lubomira on the philosophy of mind and action and political philosophy.
Sam works on Cognitive Science and the relation between scientific explanations and theories of the mind. He will be teaching second and third year courses in Logic, evaluating evidence, and Cognitive Science. He’s working on a project with Jon Williamson, so you might meet him at events related to that.
Alex specialises in moral and legal philosophy and epistemology. In the second and third year, you can usually take modules with Alexandra on ethics, cognitive science or philosophy of language.
You’ll get to know Lauren when taking Philosophical Reading and Writing in the Autumn term. She specialises in the philosophy of emotion and ancient Greek philosophy, especially Plato. In the second and third year, you can usually take modules with Lauren on political emotions, feminism, and the philosophy of love. She will have a special role this year in creating a virtual community of philosophers, while physical meetings are harder to manage.
You’ll get to know Michael when taking the introduction to logic and reasoning module in the Spring term. He specialises in epistemology and the philosophy of science (understanding knowledge and evidence in medicine, in particular). In the second and third year, you can usually take modules with Michael on philosophy of language, probability and causality, and the theory of evidence.
Jon is on leave in the autumn and Spring terms. He often teaches on topics related to logic and reasoning module. He specialises in the philosophy of causality, the foundations of probability, formal epistemology, inductive logic, and the use of causality, probability, and inference methods in science and medicine. In the second and third year, you can usually take modules with Jon on probability and causality and advanced logic.
Graduate Teaching Assistants
William Levack-Payne
You’ll probably meet Will in seminars he leads either for Philosophical Reading and Writing in the Autumn, or the introduction to Logic and Reasoning in the spring,. He is working towards a PhD on scientific explanation in Sports Science.
Elliot Porter
You’ll probably meet Elliot either in seminars for the autumn module on philosophy of rights, or in for the ethics module in spring. He is working towards a PhD on autonomy and mental disorder.
Taymaz Azimi Sadjadi
You’ll probably meet Taymaz in the autumn in seminars for the introduction to knowledge and metaphysics module, or perhaps in the spring for the introduction to logic and reasoning. He is working towards a PhD on the structure of reality.