Two things fill the mind with ever-increasing wonder and awe, the more often and the more intensely the mind of thought is drawn to them: the starry heavens above me and the moral law within me.

—Immanuel Kant

Events

One of the missions of Logos is to provide the Cornell campus and surrounding areas with an array of opportunities to participate in events and colloquia relating to philosophy. As a result, there are plenty of opportunities for everyone to become involved. We invite you to check this page frequently for meeting times, talks, and other events which will be posted in the future.

Besides our special events, Logos regularly meets for discussion and journal-related business on Wednesdays at 5pm in Goldwin Smith Hall, Room 124. Anyone interested is welcome to stop by at any meeting. Exceptions will be announced over e-mail and on the website.

We also encourage all interested undergraduates to attend events sponsored by the Philosophy department. For more information, including dates and times of speakers, please visit the Sage School's Events Page.



Life Raft Debate

In February of last semester Logos held its first-ever Life Raft Debate. As heard on an episode of the National Public Radio program, "This American Life," the Life Raft Debate was an annual event previously held by the philosophy department at the University of Montevallo in Alabama.

The premise of the debate is that there has been an apocalyptic event, and the survivors (the members of the audience) are all on a life raft with one remaining seat. The survivors stumble upon a group of professors, all from different disciplines. As a result, the survivors decide to hold a trial in order to decide which professor will be offered the available seat. Each professor must argue why his or her respective discipline will be necessary in the new world. After the professors present their arguments, the audience votes for a winner.

The participating professors were as follows:

  • Karen Bennett (Philosophy)
  • Antonia Ruppel (Classics)
  • Melanie Dreyer-Lude (Theater, Film, and Dance)
  • Masha Raskolnikov (English)
  • André LeClair (Physics)

Please enjoy the video below!




Norman Kretzmann Undergraduate Philosophy Lecture

Each academic year Logos aids in the selection of a speaker for the Norman Kretzmann Undergraduate Philosophy Lecture. Normally the visit includes a reception and dinner, or an additional discussion session with the speaker. Past speakers have included:

  • Ned Block (New York University)
  • Mark Kingwell (University of Toronto)
  • Christine Korsgaard (Harvard)
  • Thomas Nagel (New York University)

Logos would like to thank all of the Kretzmann lecturers for their support of undergraduate philosophy.