Congress 2018

I’m sitting here in my dorm room in the Paskwāw Tower at the University of Regina having just finished Congress 2018. This year was my first year being only a part of the Canadian Society for the History and Philosophy of Science for in previous years I was also a part of the Canadian Sociological Association. This year I organized and chaired a session on the history and philosophy of science and religion, while also presenting my own work on Cosmos and re-enchantment. And while the memory is still fresh, I just wanted to address two thoughts I had regarding the format of the academic conference that have been prevalent in my mind since I began presenting at conferences three years ago.
    The first is simply the mechanisms of discourse that the academic conference allows. If you are fortunate enough to be presenting at a conference, the ability to present ideas in a session of scholars who generally are reflective of your own interests can be a highly rewarding experience that pays dividends in terms of critical and constructive feedback. This mechanism of discourse, foundational to the instrumental rationality and objectivity of the scientific method so valued in the natural sciences, and by consequences the social sciences and humanities as well, is what ensures that our ideas are pressured against the intellects of others. It becomes like a friendly sparring match, and should you be able to hold your intellectual position in way that adheres to the principles of epistemic truth, then you can continue on your way knowing that you have made a point worth holding. So it is with the presentation. You present your ideas and want others to push you so that you yourself can critically think through your own ideas. This is so important.
    However, I want emphasize a less discussed point of the academic conference, one that seems to provide far richer discourse and more honest reflection, and that is the sociality experienced after a day of conferencing is done. Whether it is going to the local pub like I did at Oxford or the “Beer Tent” like at Congress, or even just sitting alone with someone you just met like I did with Harris and others, it is the conversations and connections — even friendships — you make with people at academic conferences that make the whole of the experience far richer and more rewarding. With this, I want to give my thanks to Jennifer, Conor, Geoff, Andrew, Eleanor, Yiftach, Sarah, Danny, and everyone else that was so kind and engaging during this years Congress. It was a wonderful year, and I am looking forward to my fourth Congress next year at the University of British Columbia.     

Thanks everyone,

Anthony