Philosophy News

Professor Quassim Cassam features in The Irish Times of 5 March 2019, where he speaks to journalist Joe Humphreys in the 'Unthinkable Guest' interview series. Professor Cassam expands on recent examples of 'Intellectual Vice' from Brexit to the Birmingham Six, themes which are explored in his new book 'Vices of the Mind', published by Oxford University Press (2019).

See full interview here:https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/intellectual-vices-from-brexit-to-the-birmingham-six-1.3809754

The Department of Philosophy is excited to announce its participation in the Warwick Pre-University Summer School (Tuesday 2 July - Friday 12 July 2019). The Pre-University Summer School offers students an enriching opportunity to study at the University of Warwick for an exciting ten-night, fully inclusive, residential Summer School.

Philosophy is teaming up with the Departments of Law, Psychology, and Liberal Arts to offer A Taste of Social Sciences. This is a course aimed at motivated 16-18 year olds who are thinking about studying for a degree in Philosophy or other social sciences and wishing to enjoy a truly memorable summer experience:

Students will enjoy:

• A choice of two courses taught by top Warwick faculty: 'A Taste of Social Sciences' or 'Introduction to Economics and Finance'
• Engaging with like-minded peers from around the world
• Outstanding guest speakers
• Personal effectiveness training, including leadership and communications skills
• Preparing for University in the UK
• Living on the beautiful and self-contained Warwick campus for eight nights
• Spending two nights in London, and a visit to the London School of Economics
• An informative industry visit
• Visiting the City of Oxford and an Oxford College

Click to learn more about the Warwick Pre-University Summer School and our A Taste of Social Sciences programme.

Professor Cassam's new book, 'Vices of the Mind' published by Oxford University Press, examines human character traits, attitudes and thinking styles ('Epistemic Vices') which prevent us from gaining, keeping or sharing knowledge. Professor Cassam, who is pioneering this new area of philosophical research, draws on recent events to analyse the nature of Truth in politics; how political facts can be highly contested, and how we can try to overcome self-ignorance through a number of self-improvement strategies. 'Vices of the Mind' also elaborates on the concept of 'epistemic insouciance', a term Professor Cassam has developed to describe a new intellectual vice which he identifies as a product of today's toxic political climate.

Professor Quassim Cassam Interviewed on BBC Radio 3's Free Thinking Programme

Professor Cassam was the central guest of the BBC's flagship Radio 3 late evening cultural engagement programme, Free Thinking, broadcast on 7 February 2019 at 10pm. In a live round-table debate hosted by Matthew Sweet, Professor Cassam spoke at length about self-knowledge, intellectual vices and conspiracy theories - themes which he examines in greater detail in his new book 'Vices of the Mind'.

See link here to listen to the programme: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0002cf0

'The process of "rubbishing" tries to make people doubt their own knowledge—whether it's about smoking or the President's tweets’ argues Professor Cassam in the recent edition of Prospect Magazine: see here: https://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/politics/doubt-is-our-product-what-trumps-political-spinning-has-in-common-with-the-tobacco-industry

Professor Cassam is interviewed by Richard Marshall in 3:AM Magazine: Vices of the Mind: Fake News, Conspiracy Theories, etc…https://www.3ammagazine.com/3am/vices-of-the-mind-fake-news-conspiracy-theories-bullshit-etc/

Amedeo Policante, a political philosopher and critical theorist in the Philosophy Department, whose research focuses especially on the study of violence, has been interviewed on Italian public radio (RADIO3 MONDO) in a programme dedicated to War and the Global Economy. Dr Policante discusses the new regimes of violence emerging from contemporary processes of globalization (the subject of his two previous monographs, The New Mercenaries and The Pirate Myth) and the relationship between neo-liberalism and the war on drugs. He elaborates on how the structural causes of contemporary violence are systematically obscured by the ubiquitous appeal to the concept of 'crisis' - one of the subjects of the Philosophy in a Time of Crisis research project (in collaboration with Professor Miguel de Beistegui). See link attached to hear Dr Policante's interview in full. https://www.raiplayradio.it/audio/2019/01/RADIO3--MONDO-a9d152f7-b7a3-4b69-9d6c-7fc8b46725a8.html

The important new series of Critical Guides, published by Edinburgh University Press and co-edited by Professor Ansell-Pearson (with Daniel Conway, Professor of Philosophy at Texas A+M) has now been launched. The series aims to enrich and enhance the reading and understanding of Nietzsche's writings for the benefit of students, teachers and scholars alike. Every volume will explore each text individually, and will incorporate new research and the latest scholarship to explain the seminal importance of Nietzsche's writing and to illuminate the significance of his body of work for contemporary thought.

The first volume in the series, entitled 'Nietzsche's Unfashionable Observations' by Jeffrey Church has just been published.

https://edinburghuniversitypress.com/series-edinburgh-critical-guides-to-nietzsche.html