Funding for project on philosophy of logic
The four-year project `Anti-Exceptionalism About Logic' has received a grant from the Norwegian Research Council in the category `Young Researchers'. The project leader is Ole Hjortland (Department of Philosophy), and the project will fund a postdoctoral researcher and a PhD student.
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Logic is the study of the standards of good argumentation. Ideally these are standards for reasoning in all situations, from chess to mathematical proofs, from economic models to political discourse. However, there is disagreement about precisely which standards apply.
The project will develop a new anti-exceptionalist method for how argumentative standards are identified. According to this method, logical theories cannot be established prior to other scientific theories, but must instead be developed as a response to practical challenges in the sciences. It follows that in selecting a logical theory we should use the same methods as for non-logical theories. As a result, the traditional view that that logic is an innate rational capacity is challenged.
Together with the Munich Center for Mathematical Philosophy (LMU Munich), the project will organize a series of workshops and conferences. The project is assisted by an Advisory Board consisting of Ruth Byrne (Trinity College Dublin), Hannes Leitgeb (LMU Munich), James Levine (Trinity College Dublin), Øystein Linnebo (Universitetet i Oslo), and Stewart Shapiro (Ohio State University). In addition, Gil Sagi (The Hebrew University of Jerusalem) will join the team as a visiting researcher. One of the stated aims of the project is to strengthen research on the philosophy of logic in Norway.
More information here.