PITT'S CENTER FOR PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE HONORS WESLEY C. SALMON WITH WORKSHOP

PITTSBURGH, Nov. 16 -- Noted philosophers of science from around the world will gather at a workshop dedicated to themes central to the work of University of Pittsburgh Emeritus University Professor Wesley C. Salmon on Saturday, Nov. 18., from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., in Room 2M56-2P56, Posvar Hall.

Sponsored by the Center for Philosophy of Science, the Harvey and Leslie Wagner Endowment, the Office of the Provost, the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, and the Departments of Philosophy and History and Philosophy of Science, the workshop, "Induction/Probability & Causation/Explanation," addresses concerns that Salmon has dedicated his career to exploring.

"When Wes and Merrilee (his wife, also a faculty member) Salmon came to the University of Pittsburgh, it helped maintain Pitt's tradition of preeminence in philosophy of science," said Center Director James Lennox. "In the face of mounting problems with traditional empiricist approaches to understanding scientific explanation and confirmation, Salmon came up with compelling solutions that significantly reoriented the philosophy of science. As one example, he not only reinstated questions about the nature of causation as central to understanding scientific explanation, but also introduced a provocative account of causal processes. The theme of this workshop is to bring together philosophers of science who are further advancing discussion of topics that have been, and continue to be, central to Wes' work."

The workshop includes sessions on:

• "Causality," by Phil Dowe of the School of Philosophy at the University of Tasmania, Australia;

• "Kinds of Probabilism," by Maria Carla Galavotti of the Department of Philosophy at the University of Bologna, Italy;

• "Of Humean Bondage," by Christopher Hitchcock, Division of Human Sciences at the California Institute of Technology; and

• "Historical Explanation and the Historiography of Science," by Philip Kitcher of the Department of Philosophy at Columbia University.

Salmon is the author of "Logic," "Foundations of Scientific Inference," "Statistical Explanation and Statistical Relevance," "Space, Time, and Motion: A Philosophical Introduction," "Scientific Explanation and the Causal Structure of the World," "Four Decades of Scientific Explanation," and "Causality and Explanation".

A fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Salmon currently serves as president of the Division of Logic, Methodology, and Philosophy of Science of the International Union.

Salmon is the former president of the Philosophy of Science Association and the American Philosophical Association (Pacific Division), and the former chairman of the U.S. National Committee of the International Union of History and Philosophy of Science.

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