Today\, the life sciences - evolutionary biology\, genetics\, the medical sciences\, and ecology - are generally presented as being rigorously grounded both empirically and methodologically as well as being value-neutral. Yet\, their conceptual frameworks frequently rely on ambiguous epistemic claims\, idealized models\, metaphors and analogies\, pragmatic shortcuts\, unexamined assumptions and arguably even value judgments.
\nNevertheless\, in our society science has assumed an increasingly important role in supporting political and ethical decisions. The significant reliance on scientific opinion and modelling during the COVID-19 pandemic\, or the use of empirical evidence of sentience as the key driver in the articulation of animal welfare legislation\, illustrate how science increasingly influences policymakers and becomes embedded in ethical and political reasoning. \;
\nThe epistemological and metaphysical foundations of the life sciences are thus no longer confined to academic circles: beneath the surface\, they subtly shape how citizens perceive the world. Much like in &lsquo\;The Devil Wears Prada&rsquo\;\, where Andrea&rsquo\;s blue sweater\, unbeknownst to her\, originated on haute couture runways\, filtered through designer collections\, and eventually ended up in a clearance bin where she picked it up\, ingenuously believing her choice was free from the fashion industry&rsquo\;s influence\, policymakers and citizens are constantly influenced by frameworks that are neither scientifically coherent nor politically independent. \;
\nThis &lsquo\;Philosophical Colloquium&rsquo\; brings together scholars from diverse areas of philosophy to critically examine the metaphysical and epistemological foundations of the life sciences\, and to explore their growing but often-invisible impact on society.
\nIn the end\, we may still choose to wear the same sweater\, but with a clearer understanding of why we do\, and where it truly comes from.
\nSchedule
\nThursday\, March 19th
\n09:00 - 09:15- Welcome and Introduction of module I: &ldquo\;Inferring Minds: Epistemic Challenges in Sentience and Neuroscience&rdquo\;
\n09:15 - 10:15 - Lorenzo Baravalle (Universitat de Valencia): &ldquo\;Avoiding the Wrong Mistake: Type I and Type II Errors as Hidden Constraints in Sentience Research"
\n10:15 - 10:45 - Break
\n10:45 - 11:45 - Davide Vecchi (UNED\, Madrid): &ldquo\;Sentience research between naturalism\, scientism and pseudoscience"
\n11:45 - 12:45 - \;Gil Santos (Universidade de Lisbooa): &ldquo\;Brain\, Mind\, and Society: Unjustified inferences in/from neuroscience and their ethical implications."
\n12:45 \;- 14:00 &ndash\; Lunch break
\n14:00 - 14:15Introduction of Module II: &ldquo\;Classifying and Measuring the Living World "
\n14:15 - 15:15 - \;Beatriz Martí\;n \;(UNED\, Madrid): &ldquo\;Health\, Resilience\, or Services: Normativity in Ecological Evaluation"
\n15:15 - 15:45 - Break
\n15:45 16:45 - Jaime Soler Parra (Universitat de Valencia): &ldquo\;Classification is not a neutral activity"
\n16:45 - 17:45 - \;Victor Luque \;(Universitat de Valencia): &ldquo\;Prediction in evolutionary systems and the problem of quantification" \;
\nFriday\, March 20th
\n09:00 - 09:15Introduction of Module III module III: &ldquo\;Engineering Life: Biology\, Technology\, and the Future of the Human"
\n09:15 - 10:15 - Maurizio Esposito (Università\; Statale degli Studi\, Milano): &ldquo\;Biology in the Age of Engineers"
\n10:15 - 10:45 - Break
\n10:45 - 11:45 - Vanessa Triviñ\;o (Universidad Rey Juan Carlos\, Madrid): &ldquo\;Reductionism\, Emergence\, and Grounding in the Ontology of Biological Individuals"
\n11:45 - 12:45 - Spyridon A. Koutroufinis (Technical University of Berlin): &ldquo\;Seeing Watchmakers? A Skeptical Encounter with Transhumanism"
ORGANIZER;CN=Giorgio Airoldi: METHOD:PUBLISH END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR