This week I am a prize-winning article writer, although the how and why of that is a bit weird. Basically, I wrote up a few thousand words in response to a series of questions the editor of Craccum (the University of Auckland’s student magazine) and that act has won me a free meal in a swanky restaurant.
Truly, I live the life of Riley (and, to quote “The IT Crowd,” I know Riley and the resemblance is uncanny).
The interview is in issue number 15 and can be found on pages 16 to 17. José Barbosa supplied the picture, which I think I might use for all my media-related ballyhoos in future. Since some of you won’t have ability or the want to pick up a copy of Craccum, I’ll let you in on a little secret; if you click here you can see a PDF of the interview.
You are now in on a conspiracy. Good luck.
Comments
Indeed – “the file is corrupt and could not be repaired”.
That’s a bit weird; it works for me. Could you try downloading/opening it a second time?
That’s a good interview. I hadn’t thought there would be a Popper connection with your field but of course there is. Most good things have a Popper connection.
Isn’t Brian Boyd writing the biography?
Well, admittedly, I think Popper managed to poison the well on the philosophical consideration of conspiracy theories; Charles Pigden wrote a very good paper showing why Popper was wrong with regards to the conspiracy theory of society yet papers still get rejected because people think Popper closed the book, philosophically speaking, on the matter in 1936.
Your comment was, apparently, the 1000th comment on this blog (I’m not sure when the number of comments also includes trackbacks and pings, so I’m a bit suspicious). You probably deserve a prize, so, as a philosopher, I’m including you in a thought experiment where you get hugged for making the 1000th comment.
Can you point me to the Pigden paper? I’d like to read that but only if it is online – please don’t make me go into Hamilton to scour the university library shelves there. Like they’d have it.
There are two sources: one is the book “Conspiracy Theories: The Philosophical Debate,” edited by David Coady, which, admittedly, isn’t online but carries a great deal of the existing literature.
Otherwise, you could try finding a copy of the serial ‘Philosophy of the Social Sciences,’ volume 25, issue 1, March of 1995. Pigden’s article “Popper Revisited, or What Is Wrong With Conspiracy Theories?” is located there (pages 3-32). It should be available electronically in all good research libraries.
Thanks for the pointers to the paper. Will follow up. And also thanks for the thought-experiment, Schrodinger’s cat-type hug.
The kindness of strangers – two readers of my blog saw my anguished plea there and sent me copies of Pigden on Popper.
Re your latest post, people pushing Popper is a welcome change from people pushing Viagra.