Department of
History and Philosophy of Science
Julie Zahle
My main interest is philosophy of science, philosophy of social science, and philosophy of mind. I am currently working on my dissertation, entitled “Practices of Social Interaction”. The purpose of my dissertation will be to defend and provide a detailed account of the view that competent social practice participants are able directly to perceive normative states, that is, they are able to perceive whether an action is permissible, impermissible, or required in many characteristic situations of social interaction.
Education
- BA in Anthropology, University of Copenhagen (1991-1994).
- BA in Philosophy, University of Copenhagen (1992-1995).
- MSc in Philosophy of the Social Sciences, London School of Economics (1997-1998).
- MA in History and Philosophy of Science, University of Pittsburgh (1999-2001).
- MA in Philosophy, University of Pittsburgh (2001-2003).
- MA in Anthropology, University of Copenhagen (1998 – 2006).
- PhD in History and Philosophy of Science, University of Pittsburgh (1999 – present. Prospectus defended March 2003).
Publications
- “The Individualism/Holism Debate on Intertheoretic Reduction and the Argument from Multiple Realization” in Philosophy of the Social Sciences 2003, 33(1) pp. 77-100.
- “Hvad vil det sige at vaere menneske?” in Information 23/2 2004, reprinted in Le Monde Diplomatique (Nordisk Utgave) April 2004, no. 4.
- “Holism and Supervenience” in Handbook in the Philosophy of Anthropology and Sociology, eds. Stephen Turner and Mark Risjord, Elsevier Science, (forthcoming). See http://people.uleth.ca/~woods/HPS_WP/hps.html.
Conference Presentations
- “A Discussion of the Argument from Multiple Realization as Applied to the Social Science Debate on Reduction.” The Annual Roundtable Conference of the Social Sciences in St. Louis. St. Louis, USA; March 2002.
- “Menger’s Impact on Weber’s Methodological Individualism.” European Society for the History of the Human Sciences. 22nd Annual Conference. York, UK; August/September 2003.
- “Holism and Supervenience.” The 2004 Loemker Conference, Atlanta, USA; August 2004.
Teaching Experience
Department of History and Philosophy of Science, University of Pittsburgh.
- Instructor – full responsibility for course contents, readings, and lecturing for the following courses:
- “Explanations of Humans and Society.” An undergraduate course in philosophy of psychology, covering the theories of Freud, Skinner, and Piaget. (Summer 2001; Summer 2002).
- “Magic, Medicine, and Science.” An undergraduate course in the history of science from the Pre-Socratics to the Scientific Revolution. (Fall 2001; Spring 2002; Spring 2003, Summer 2005)
- “Morality and Medicine.” An undergraduate course in medical ethics, covering such topics as abortion, euthanasia, medical experimentation, the physician-patient relationship etc. (Fall 2002; Summer 2003).
- “Philosophy of Social Science.” An undergraduate course in the development and current state of the philosophy of the social sciences, covering such topics as naturalism, interpretivism, the individualism/holism debate, values and objectivity in the social sciences, etc. (Spring 2005).
- “Principles of Scientific Reasoning.” An undergraduate course in logic, covering deductive arguments and inductive arguments. (Fall 2004).
- Teaching assistant for the following courses:
- “Concepts of Human Nature.” An undergraduate course in the history of philosophical conceptions of human nature from Plato to Sartre. (Fall 2001)
- “Explanations of Humans and Society.” An undergraduate course in philosophy of psychology, covering the theories of Freud, Skinner, and Piaget. (Spring 2000, Spring 2001).
- “Morality and Medicine.” An undergraduate course in medical ethics, covering such topics as abortion, euthanasia, medical experimentation, the physician-patient relationship etc. (Fall 1999).
Professional Service
- Member of the editorial staff of ”Tidsskriftet Antropologi”, i.e. ”Review of Anthropology”, Department of Anthropology, University of Copenhagen (1994-1997). Editor-in-chief of volume 33.
- Referee for the Fifth Annual Pittsburgh Graduate Philosophy Conference (2003).
- Referee/consultant for Hans Reitzels Publishers, Denmark (Since November 2003).
Language Proficiency
- Danish – native language
- English – fluent
- French – very good
- German – good
