Why Pitt?

You've got to come here to believe it! History and Philosophy of Science is a wildly vibrant department. Studying here is both challenging and exciting. You're right in the middle of 4 enormous departments: Pittsburgh HPS, Pittsburgh Philosophy, CMU philosophy, and the Center for Philosophy of Science. That means if there's anyone doing HPS that you want to see, chances are they'll eventually come through Pittsburgh. There are lots of opportunities for visitors and for scholars, and as a graduate student, we enjoy a very close-knit graduate community to hang out with. If you have any questions or doubts about the program, please don't hesitate to contact me or any of the other graduates in the department.

For more on Pittsburgh HPS, try my fellow graduate Balázs Gyenis's wonderful account.

The Cathedral of Learning. Much of our life at HPS takes place in the tallest building in Oakland.

	The Cathedral of learning is the world's tallest gothic skyscraper.
	It houses many of the University departments, but also contains over twenty beautiful nationality rooms, each built by a different Pittsburgh ethnic group. The stained-glass in the Irish room is pictured here.
	The skyscraper is 535-feet tall, making it the tallest educational building in the Western hemisphere. There are 42 stories; the HPS and Philosophy departments are located on the 10th floor.

HPS At Work. It's hard to call it work when it's so darn fun.

	In HPS, every week is packed with events. There are often several talks in the same week. It's hard to find time to attend everything, but it's certainly worthwhile to try. Here, Paolo Palmieri explains Galileo's philosophy of experience over bagels at the Center for Philosophy of Science.
	Every Friday the HPS graduates hold a Work in Progress (WIP) talk, in which students present papers recently finished or currently under way. This is a fantastic opportunity to get feedback on your work, as well as to stay updated on what the other graduates are up to. This event is normally followed by a celebration afterwards at a local bar or restaurant.
	My favorite part of these sessions is the questions and answers period. Here, Sam Thomson and Justin Sytsma talk it out after Justin's presentation.
	The CMU Campus is literally across the street from the Cathedral of Learning, and CMU Philosophy has a close relationship with Pitt. This means, among other things, that we can enjoy both their classes and the colloquia there whenever we care to, which effectively doubles the available activities for us. Here I am hanging out with Nuel Belnap and Solomon Feferman at Feferman's CMU lecture. Dr. Feferman gave another lecture at the Pitt Center for the Philosophy of Science the next day.
	Everyone gets their work done in different places. I get things done in my office. We've got spatious offices on the 9th-floor views from the Cathedral of Learning. Normally 3 to 4 graduate students will share an office.

HPS At Play. It's not all work and no play!

	The HPS graduate program keeps you extremely busy. But all work and no play would make anyone go crazy. Here, the graduate volleyball team shows off their skills at the annual barbeque. They've been known to go to the University club finals on a good semester.
	Everybody in HPS brings a different hobby to the mix. There are pianists, rock singers, guitar players, a drummer, a belly dancer, various collectors, martial artists, and more. Balázs enjoys, among other things, to present us with exotic electronic toys. Here, he navigates the HPS Tank around our graduate lounge. Other recent gadgets have included the HPS Rocket Launcher, the HPS helicopter, and the infamous HPS Blimp.
	Spontaneous get-togethers are not uncommon. On election night, we spontaneously combined our powers with the Philosophy graduate students and the fellows in the Center for the Philosophy of Science one evening, for a pizza and beer session while projecting the election coverage.
	One of my favorite events of the year is the annual welcome-back party in the fall. One year, Sandy decided she'd throw a "musical" welcome-back party on her back patio. The combined musical talent of all that HPS and Philosophy talent was an awesome sight indeed.
	HPS folk love all kinds of esoteric adventures. My own esoteric hobby is skydiving. I've now convinced two philosophers of physics to go jumping with me: Mike Tamir (pictured with me here) and Balázs Gyenis (below). Want to help me grow the list? Write me.
	Balázs Gyenis, just before a skydive. He did in fact make it down safe.
	As it turns out, HPS folks are pretty good at cooking. Here, a few of us prepare Thanksgiving dinner together.

Around Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh is a beautiful little city with plenty to do, if you can find time out of your busy schedule.

	Pittsburgh is called the City of Bridges. It turns out to be chock full of parks, clubs, bike trails, and other interesting things to do. This night-time view of downtown Pittsburgh is from the top of the Duquesne Incline, an old 19th century incline that will still haul you up to the top of one of Pittsburgh's many hills. There are some fabulous restaurants up there. I highly recommend grabbing a bite, and then descending the incline for a walk along the water, that conveniently dumps you out among a nice selection of bars at Station Square. Grab a beer and go home, or if you want to burn the midnight oil, pop into the Matrix Nightclub next door, or hop a 5 minute bus down Carson Street to the Diesel Club Lounge.
	If you're up for a day trip out of Pittsburgh, you can make it to Falling Water in about an hour. Falling Water is one of Frank Lloyd Wright's most famous works, built literally right on top of a waterfall in the middle of the woods. It's not open all year, but it's well worth scheduling a trip. Information about the tours is available at their website.
	Dale Chihuly, a glass artist from my home town of Seattle, did an incredible exposition at the Phipps nature conservatory for much of 2007, and well into 2008. Visiting the Phipps is always free for Pittsburgh students, and only a few minutes walk away from the Cathedral of Learning. I often drop by for a moment of Zen.
	If you're into art, there's plenty of that in Pittsburgh. There are murals all over town (some by Shepard Fairy), museums of all kinds, as well as pottery and glass schools. Here, I'm making a glass flower at the Pittsburgh Glass Center.
	One of the big sponsors of art projects in the city is the Sprout Fund. Every year they throw an enormous benefit party, called Hot House. There's food, wine, art, and dancing all night long.
	Here's a view of the party from the upper balcony, toward the beginning of the night. Whether you want to be tucked away with your books or out on the town, I'll bet Pittsburgh's got something for you!