Women have historically and systematically been excluded from the philosophical canon. Where modern survey courses exalt a handful of kingpin thinkers, academics are now faced with the task of correcting the discipline by including the influential women philosophers and emphasizing their contributions.

People sometimes think that philosophy is opposed to science. But scrutinizing scientific methodology and investigating what it takes for an idea to become scientific fact are important topics for the contemporary philosopher. And this philosophical interrogation can have an unexpected outcome—helping to advance science.

While biologists and psychologists might seek to replicate an experiment, mathematicians might seek to reproduce a proof. Alan Love contends that reproducibility failures should not be taken to undermine the reliability or trustworthiness of science: “We should be confident precisely because scientists sometimes get it wrong, since they know how to process their errors and take advantage of situations when they fail.”

Academics have said that all philosophy created in the last 200 years is a response to Immanuel Kant. The influence of his work, however, has spread much further than the realm of philosophy. Today, chemists and politicians alike grapple with the ideas of this poor Prussian boy and how his century-old writings are still shaping modern thought.

PhD student in philosophy Grace Joy Cebrero talks about her experience transitioning into the philosophy graduate program and her philosophical work on disability.

Scientific fields such as chemistry, psychology, anthropology, and biology are deeply interwoven in countless complex ways. Philosophy professor Bennett McNulty looks at these disciplines through the lens of Immanuel Kant’s writings to better understand how these “inexact sciences” relate to each other and to our investigation of the empirical world.

Philosophy Professor Jessica Gordon-Roth analyzes the work of 17th-century philosopher Anne Finch Conway, overlooked in part because of her gender. How does her perspective differ from other major thinkers of the time period, like Hobbes and Descartes?

“It’s like playing tennis without a net. You always win,” says statistics professor Charles Geyer about conducting unethical research. Discover how Geyer and other professors at the University of Minnesota mobilize the open science movement to inspire appropriate research practices.

A new philosophy class starting this spring will examine conceptual issues in medicine, delving deeper into how medical professionals know what they know. Alan Love, professor of philosophy who will be teaching the class, says the class will cover "a dimension of medicine … that is very relevant for all members of society."