Students should seriously consider submitting papers to an upcoming conference at SLCC. The conference is focused on John Rawls, the most important social-political philosopher of the 20th century, but if you haven’t studied Rawls, I think any paper in the general area of personal liberty vs. social responsibility would be acceptable. Contact Huenemann for further details.
Here is a pdf of the conference flyer:
Very interesting 20-minute lecture here, presented to U. S. State Dept. Rosling has a very interesting set of moving graphs indicating how the world is changing, with respect to income and mortality. The old “developed vs. developing” dichotomy seems to have disappeared.
Gettier problem for T-Rex! (Thanks to Mike Linford for the link.)
Many of my students decide to go on to law school. Sometimes I worry that the decision is made for not the best reasons: a person is smart, wants to make money in a way that commands a certain degree of respect, and isn’t sure what else to do, so — law school. I haven’t gone to law school or been a lawyer, so I can’t really give a lot of advice about it. So I write letters of recommendation and hope everything works out.
But a couple of years ago I came across this interesting essay by Paul Gowder. It offers interesting insights about choosing a career in the law, and knowing whether it’s right for you. I highly recommend it to everyone thinking “law school.”
Also, you might want to read this further post: Why You Shouldn’t Go To Law School. (Answers: the jobs suck, lawyers are unhappy, you’ll be surrounded by jerks, have I mentioned the debt?, and the law will make you into the worst kind of person.) Just food for thought.
Check out SHAFT’s website here. (That’s “Secular Humanists, Atheists, and FreeThinkers,” a student organization at USU.)
USUPhilosophy 