Faculty Profiles
Chair • Professors
• Associate Professors
• Assistant Professors • Instructors • Adjunct
Faculty • Emeritus Professors
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Chair
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Chair & Professor
Dr. Stephen E. Braude
braude@umbc.edu
Fine Arts 541
410-455-2005
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Stephen E. Braude is Professor of Philosophy and Chair of the Department at the University of Maryland Baltimore County. He is Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Scientific Exploration.
He studied Philosophy and English at Oberlin College and the University of London, and in 1971 he received his Ph.D. in Philosophy from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.
After publishing a number of articles in the philosophy of language, temporal logic, and the philosophy of time, he turned his attention to several related problems in the philosophy of science and the philosophy of mind — in particular, questions concerning causality, scientific explanation generally, and psychological explanation specifically. One of his overriding concerns was to demonstrate the inadequacy of mechanistic theories in psychology and cognitive science.
Prof. Braude also examined the evidence of parapsychology to see whether it would provide new insights into these and other traditional philosophical issues.
After that, he shifted his focus to problems in philosophical psychopathology, writing extensively on the connections between dissociation and classic philosophical problems as well as central issues in parapsychology—for example, the unity of consciousness, multiple personality and moral responsibility, and the nature of mental mediumship.
Prof. Braude is past President of the Parapsychological Association and is the recipient of several grants and fellowships, including Research Fellowships from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the BIAL Foundation in Portugal. He has published more than 60 philosophical essays in such journals as Noûs; The Philosophical Review; Philosophical Studies; Analysis; Inquiry; Philosophia; Transactions of the Charles S. Peirce Society; Philosophy, Psychiatry and Psychology; Social Philosophy and Policy; New Ideas in Psychology; The Journal of Scientific Exploration; and The Journal of Trauma and Dissociation.
He has written five books: ESP and Psychokinesis: A Philosophical Examination (Temple University Press, 1979; revised edition, Brown Walker Press, 2002); The Limits of Influence: Psychokinesis and the Philosophy of Science (Routledge, 1986; revised edition, University Press of America, 1997); First Person Plural: Multiple Personality and the Philosophy of Mind (Routledge, 1991; revised edition, Rowman & Littlefield, 1995); and Immortal Remains: The Evidence for Life After Death (Rowman & Littlefield, 2003); and most recently, The Gold Leaf Lady and Other Parapsychological Investigations, which describes Prof. Braude's own encounters with the paranormal.
Prof. Braude is also a professional pianist and composer and a prize-winning stereo photographer. |
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Associate Professors
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Steven Yalowitz
yalowitz@umbc.edu
Fine Arts 542
410-455-2108
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"My central philosophical interests concern understanding
the conditions that make possible our thought about and action in the
physical and social worlds around us. Much of my earlier research
focused upon linguistic aspects of this issue, in particular how
meaning and communication fit in to the natural world. I have also been
interested in the relation between commonsense psychology and other
scientific explanatory schemes. More recently I have become
increasingly interested in the nature of self-knowledge and human
freedom, as well as the relation between these two issues.
The philosophy courses I teach in which some of these
issues are addresssed are PHIL 470, Philosophy of MInd - which surveys
topics such as the mind-body problem, mental causation, personal
identity and freedom of will and action, and PHIL 445, Philosophy of
Language - which surveys topics such as the nature of linguistic
meaning and reference, the relation between language and thought, the
relation between language and the social and physical environments, the
possibility of communication, and speech acts."
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Assistant Professors
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Jessica Pfeifer
pfeifer@umbc.edu
Fine Arts 540
410-455-2014
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Dr. Pfeifer
received a B.A. in Philosophy and Government at Wesleyan University and
in 1999 completed her PhD in Philosophy/Science Studies at the
University of California, San Diego. The primary focus of her research
has been on the nature of modal notions, and in particular the natural
necessity involved in lawful relations. She has also done related work
on the nature of properties, the distinction between natural and
artificial kinds, and John Stuart Mill's views about natural laws and
experimentation. More recently she has focused on questions in the
philosophy of biology, such as the use of information theory in various
biological contexts and the use of probability in the theory of natural
selection. Dr. Pfeifer is co-editor (along with Sahotra Sarkar) of the
two volume Philosophy of Science: An Encyclopedia (forthcoming). She
has also been a Visiting Fellow and is currently an Associate Fellow at
the Pittsburgh Center for Philosophy of Science. |
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"My primary interest is in ancient philosophy, especially Plato and Aristotle. Most recently I have been working on their notion of the rule of law and how law is meant to produce virtue. Both thinkers give law central importance--but given that virtue for them involves the rule of reason in the individual, it is not clear how the coercion or habituation provided by law could play more than a limited role. I have also worked more generally on what it means to be ruled by reason as opposed to appetite or desire, both in individual and political contexts.
I first thought I might want to read, write and teach for a living
while writing an essay on Oedipus Rex as a freshman at St. John's
College in Annapolis. After St. John's I studied Greek philosophy at
Cambridge University and the University of Chicago before enrolling
in the classical philosophy program at Princeton. While at Princeton
I came to realize that some good philosophy had actually been done
since the 4th century B.C., and so I started reading and thinking
about contemporary philosophy as well, especially ethics of all
kinds, political philosophy, and the relations between philosophy and theology." Photo
by Lizzie Maughan. |
Zena Hitz
zenahitz@umbc.edu Fine Arts 523
410-455-2038
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Visiting Assistant Professors
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Ben Dixon
bdixon@umbc.edu
Fine Arts 524
410-455-3995
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I received my PhD in Philosophy from Bowling Green Sate University. My main research and teaching interests are in ethical theory and environmental ethics. These are the areas I addressed in my doctoral dissertation, and these are the areas in which I have published. With respect to my current research, I continue writing on the idea of moral progress: how the activities and characters of groups can become increasingly moral over time and whether such improvements are inevitable given the rational nature of human beings. The inevitability of moral progress was of particular importance to Enlightenment thinkers, but that idea has found few contemporary adherents, and for good reasons—the 20th Century, for example, is haunted by persons whose histories bear testament to the non-inevitability of humanity’s moral improvement. I am interested in what makes the concept of moral progress still philosophically interesting and applicable after the inevitability claim is jettisoned.
Some of the environmental ethics scholarship I am pursuing involves reinterpreting Aldo Leopold’s “Land Ethic” as foundationally dependent on a kind of moral pluralism. I am also working on a non-speciesist account of human dignity that takes seriously the variety of intrinsic value found in the nonhuman, natural world.
At UMBC I enjoy teaching a variety of classes, including lower and upper division courses in ethical theory and upper division courses in applied ethics (e.g., Environmental Ethics and Bioethics). In 2007-2008 I was the William Lyon Visiting Chair in Professional Ethics at the United States Air Force Academy.
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Instructors
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| Mr. Templeton
received his B.A. in Philosophy from Albright College in
1964, and his M.A. in Philosophy from Howard University in 1977. He
specializes in teaching critical thinking. |
Roye S. Templeton
rtemplet@umbc.edu Fine Arts 526
410-455-2155
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Lecturers
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Richard Wilson
rwilso4@umbc.edu
Fine Arts 521
410-455-3843
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I have a dual appointment in Philosophy and Computer Science/Electrical Engineering. My primary interest is in applied ethics, including Engineering Ethics and Computer Science Ethics, as well as traditional topics such as Business, Medical and Environmental Ethics. I have also worked in the area of Police Ethics. Most recently, I have developed the required ethics courses for both Engineering and Computer Science majors at UMBC, and along with a lawyer, a graduate Engineering Management Law and Ethics class. I continue to be interested in 20th century French and German Philosophy and have a strong background in the history of Philosophy in general. This was due to a strong historical emphasis in Graduate school from Duquesne and the University in Pittsburgh. I have also had a life long interest in German Idealism, specifically in the Philosophy of Immanuel Kant.
I first realized my interest in studying philosophy 5 minutes into a philosophy class in my 1st semester at Portland State University in Portland, Oregon. At that moment a voice in my head said to me, “you’re finally home”; I felt comfortable for practically the 1st time in my life. As a result, I became interested in 20th century continental thought, particularly French philosophy which in turn led to German philosophy. I next became interested in ethics, so I started reading and thinking about ethics of all kinds, although my heart has always remained focused on the ethical philosophy of Kant. Plato and Aristotle still strongly influence how I think about ethics. While my primary interest is now in applied ethics, I also maintain a strong interest in the history of philosophy. I believe that a good understanding of philosophy requires a historical grounding. According to my view, all of these concerns should move each of us to strive to change the world into a better place for all of us every day of our lives. I believe that a philosophical outlook is crucial to the success of this project.
Book Publications: Logic: Deductive, Inductive and Informal Analysis; Logic, Values and Ethical Analysis; Business Ethics and Contemporary Issues; Forthcoming: Engineering and Information Technology Ethics and Computer Science Ethics.
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Adjunct Faculty
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Mr. Ealick received his B.A. in Philosophy from UMBC. He received a Master’s from The William Rice Institute for his work on the metaphysics of formal rationality theory. He currently is completing his PhD at College Park, where his research involves implications evolutionary theory has for the philosophy of mind.
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Greg Ealick
ealick@umbc.edu
Fine Arts 525
410-455-2010
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James Thomas
jathomas@umbc.edu
Fine Arts 521
410-455-3843
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Jim Thomas has been teaching at UMBC for a number of years. His
interests include Philosophy of Humor, Philosophy of Biology, Philosophy
of Mind, and Metaphysics.
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Phil Seng
philseng@umbc.edu
Fine Arts 522
410-455-3282
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Emeritus Professors
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John M. Titchener
titchene@umbc.edu
Fine Arts 520
410-455-2015
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"I share with
G.E. Moore the belief that philosophical problems arise not so much
from the world as from what philosophers say about it. Are their
assertions true or false? How can one know? Does it make a difference?
In asking students to read philosophy we seem to presume that there is
some value in this activity which does not necessarily have to do with
its truth or falsity. In what, then, does this value lie? In differing
ways those classes that I have regularly taught such as PHIL 321,
History of Ancient Philosophy, and PHIL 346, Deductive Systems, attempt
to provide answers to these questions. How is it possible, in
philosophy, to admire a work that one believes to be wrong? One of my
favorite courses, on the book Godel, Escher, Bach, asks such questions
about the limits of logic, the perils of self-reference, and
differences between showing and telling."
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Administrative Assistant
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| The Philosophy
Department Administrative Assistant, Nafi, can answer many of the questions you may
have about the Philosophy Department or the courses being offered at
any time. She can also put you in touch with other faculty members,
with whom you may wish to speak further. |
Nafi Shahegh
shahegh@umbc.edu
Fine Arts 539
410-455-2103
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