[No Comment | 26 views]
A Defense of the Extended Mind Thesis

by KARINA VOLD
In their article “The Extended Mind” (1998), Andy Clark and David Chalmers introduce a theory of extended cognition. In this paper I explain what extended cognition theories maintain by examining one such theory in particular- namely the Extended Mind thesis (EM), which Clark and Chalmers put forth. Following this, I consider two popular objections raised against EM- one based on concerns about what exactly constitutes a “part” of a cognitive system, and the other based on the intuition that the biological body is what marks the natural boundary between humans and their environments- and provide a defense of EM from each of these objections.

Read the full story »

editors' notes »

[13 Sep 2009 | One Comment | 1,057 views]
Solution to the Hardest Logic Puzzle Ever

By Cuong Q. Nguyen
Last semester I posted a riddle regarded by a number of contemporary philosophers as the “hardest” logic puzzle in the world. Raymond Smullyan, a prominent logician and philosopher, has a number of logic puzzles available online for people to solve, and this particular puzzle received a lot of attention from our readers. After some considerable delay, here is both my solution and various other solutions to the puzzle. Enjoy!

[19 Apr 2009 | No Comment | 303 views]
Announcing Our First Print Journal

The undergraduate students of Johns Hopkins University are pleased to announce that, for spring of 2009, the first publication of Prometheus, Johns Hopkins Undergraduate Philosophy Journal has been released.  The journal may be viewed online by navigating to the archives section or clicking this link.
Prometheus is a peer-reviewed international undergraduate journal of philosophy providing a forum for scholarly discussion among undergraduates on both early and modern philosophy.  The print journal emphasizes discussions on a broad range of philosophical topics emphasizing thoughtful analysis and creative solutions to early and modern philosophical …

[31 Mar 2009 | No Comment | 92 views]
Hammond Society Essay Contest: Deadline Extended

The Hammond Society essay contest on “What is a good life?” has a new deadline of April 10, 2009. The winner will receive a $100 gift card to Barnes and Noble and 2nd place a $50 gift card.  This contest is open to Johns Hopkins undergraduates only.  For further details on the prompt and other requirements, click here to visit the original post.

[30 Mar 2009 | No Comment | 106 views]
The philosopher within: Wittgenstein’s critical reflection on the beginnings of philosophy

LOCATION CHANGE: Maryland 114, 04/01 @ 8PM
Graduate Philosophy student Alexander James will be presenting a short talk and leading a discussion on “The philosopher within: Wittgenstein’s critical
reflection on the beginnings of philosophy.”
Coffee and snacks provided.
All are encouraged to attend.
For more information, see:
http://prometheus-journal.com/events/seminar/

[25 Feb 2009 | 6 Comments | 3,036 views]
The Hardest Logic Puzzle Ever

By Cuong Q. Nguyen
Besides working on Prometheus, I like to distract myself from time to time trying to solve riddles and logic puzzles procured by philosophers. Raymond Smullyan, a prominent logician and philosopher, has a number of logic puzzles available online for people to solve. I’m proud to say that I solved a fair number of them but there’s this one particular puzzle by Smullyan that’s been coined by many philosophers to be “The hardest logic puzzle ever.” I found this early on in September 2008 and I’ve contemplated and quarreled with myself trying to solve this puzzle. Think you can solve it?