CFP: Minds, Models and Milieux: Commemorating the Centenary of Herbert Simon’s Birth

Minds, Models and Milieux: Commemorating the Centenary of Herbert Simon’s Birth

Edited by Roger Frantz (San Diego State University) and Leslie Marsh (University of British Columbia)

Call for Papers

Herbert Simon (June 15, 1916 – February 9, 2001) was a polymath of the highest order, making significant contributions to sociology, political science, behavioral economics, epistemology, cognitive science, public administration, economics, organization theory and complexity studies. With ever narrowing specialization we may never (at least in our lifetime) see another intellect as genuinely polymathic as Simon. We take the view that Simon’s lifelong project is analogous to Adam Smith in the sense that just as Smith wrote about both Man’s inner life (Theory of Moral Sentiments) and his outer life (Wealth of Nations) so too did Simon in many of his publications. Our book will include chapters on Simon’s theory of mind, theory of rationality and his work on organizations and markets (the latter connoted by milieux of our tripartite title). We welcome proposals on all aspects of Simon’s work (but especially philosophy of mind/CogSci), be it his contribution to a single topic, a single field, or his interdisciplinary influence. Papers should include some – as long or as short as best befits your paper – historical perspective on Simon’s writings. What was the conventional wisdom on your paper’s topic when Simon undertook his research; what was Simon’s contribution to the topic and how did the change the conventional wisdom, if at all, and; how has his work influenced research in the field. Chapters dealing with some neglected aspect of Simon’s legacy would be welcome as well. The deadline for sending a proposal is July 1, 2013. We anticipate having the book published in 2016, the centenary of Simon’s birth. Contact: [email protected]