“And so I said to them, why don’t we just call it education?” This statement, delivered with an exasperated laugh and the tiniest of smirks, came from a former colleague who had recently returned from an interdisciplinary conference. He was… Read More ›
Books and Book Reviews
Book Review contributions are single-authored or multiple-authored reviews of recent books in the area of social epistemology.
Round Pegs, Square Holes: A Review of Being an Interdisciplinary Academic, Joshua Penrod
Sometimes it takes more than one discipline to write a book review. Sometimes it even takes more than one book to review a book. My goal in this brief essay is to do some justice (in the form of a… Read More ›
Collaborative Review Part 2: What Makes Interdisciplinarity Unique? Samantha Jo Fried
I want to focus in on Amanda’s question: “What does interdisciplinarity look like when it is situated within a discipline, as is the case with Science and Technology Studies?” Then, I will attempt to answer her question: “What, if anything,… Read More ›
Collaborative Review, Part 1, on Being an Interdisciplinary Academic, Amanda K Phillips de Lucas
An oft repeated observation in Catherine Lyall’s recent book, Being an Interdisciplinary Academic, states that the phenomenon she describes are “not unique to interdisciplinarity.” The text, which draws from the analysis of interviews with UK based academics who received awards… Read More ›
The Philosophy of Taking Conspiracy Theories Seriously, Ori Freiman
During the last few decades, the proliferation of interest in conspiracy theories has grown tremendously. What was once a niche interest of the very few is now a widespread phenomenon in our culture—from political campaigns and mainstream news, to the… Read More ›
Native Dance as Epistemology: A Review of Shay Welch’s The Phenomenology of a Performative Knowledge System, Sebastian Purcell
Native dancing practices are not thought to be a philosophical topic, except perhaps as worthy of reflection for specific aesthetic considerations. Shay Welch’s book will convince you otherwise. Dancing does, the book argues, have epistemic properties because, in a philosophically… Read More ›
Examining Innovation Culture: Review of Does America Need More Innovators?, Lai Ma
Does America Need More Innovators? is comprised of fifteen contributions about innovation, innovators, and innovation programs in America. The contributions are organized in three sections: Champions, Critics, and Reformers. The diverse perspectives offer a balanced and rich examination and reflection… Read More ›
In Search of Terrestrials: A Review of Bruno Latour’s Down to Earth, Adam Briggle
I want you to picture Bruno Latour on a tightrope. He is way up there near the top of the big circus tent. You will need binoculars to see his face, the sweat on his straining brow. All necks are… Read More ›
Out-of-This-Book: A Review of Bruno Latour’s Down to Earth, Travis Wright
Bruno Latour’s Down to Earth is, functionally, a call to rethink and re-describe our political reality in accordance with the changing forces that shape it. Latour lays out his argument in 20 brief sections, each deceptively quick to read. Section… Read More ›
Exploring Epistemic Vices: A Review of Quassim Cassam’s Vices of the Mind, Benjamin Beatson, Valerie Joly Chock, Jamie Lang, Jonathan Matheson
In Vices of the Mind, Cassam provides an accessible, engaging, and timely introduction to the nature of epistemic vices and what we can do about them. Cassam provides an account of epistemic vices and explores three broad types of epistemic… Read More ›