X-Phi workshop

On 8th April 2014 we will be hosting a workshop which will be aimed at
researchers interested in Experimental Philosophy, or ‘X-Phi’ as it is
sometimes known .  Experimental philosophy (X-phi) is a new and exciting
field which brings together philosophy and experimental psychology in an
attempt to address philosophical questions with empirical data.  Our aim is
to hear views about current X-phi work, and to find out more about how you
think the field could be developed.

Specific foci of interest for the workshop:

* Methodological issues - shortcomings of current methods used to gather
data in experimental philosophy, and innovative approaches (such as
adaptations of the famous ‘trolley problem’ to the real world) to such
studies
* The aims of X-Phi as they are currently construed
* The potential for use of virtual reality in X-Phi research. To this end,
we will introduce the Oculus Rift headsets (which you can try out), which
we'll be using this summer to proto-type an experiment on folk attributions
of consciousness to others.

Confirmed speakers are:

David Carmel (Psychology, University of Edinburgh)
Natalie Gold (Philosophy, Kings College, London)
Suilin Lavelle (Philosophy, University of Edinburgh)
Paulo Sousa (Institute of Cognition and Culture, Queen’s University,
Belfast)
Joshua Shepherd (Philosophy, University of Oxford)

Participation is limited to 30 people and by registration only.  We plan to
have a morning and afternoon session, with a demonstration of our immersive
reality headsets (Oculus Rift) at lunch for those who are feeling brave.

To register for the workshop please follow this link:
http://www.ppls.ed.ac.uk/philosophy/events/view/experimental-philosophy

We look forward to seeing you in Edinburgh.

Local organisers:
David Carmel – [email protected], and
Suilin Lavelle – [email protected]