Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
School of Humanities

Conference in Honour
of Stephen Gaukroger

Monday 19 Feb - Wednesday 21 Feb, 2024

Madsen Building Boardroom, Level 4, Eastern Avenue, University of Sydney and on Zoom

All times are AEDT (= UTC +11, NZDT = UTC +13, CET = UTC +1, UK = GMT - 11, EST= UTC - 5, PST = UTC - 8)

This conference celebrates the outstanding work of Stephen Gaukroger, one of the world’s leading historians of science, mathematics, and philosophy. In each of these fields, he was recognised as one of the most significant figures in Australasia. His work has not only deepened our understanding of the history of philosophy and science, but also revolutionized the discipline itself. By emphasizing the intricate connections between scientific, philosophical, and cultural developments, he paved the way for a more comprehensive and integrated approach. His seminal four-volume series on science and the shaping of modernity gave rise to a new perspective on how the epistemic values of "science" could come to displace Christian theology and classical Humanism as the primary form of knowing. Join us to honour, discuss, and further explore works and themes central to Stephen’s thought.

Click here to register for the conference*

*NOTE: Those delegates presenting via Zoom do not need to register via Eventbrite.
All Zoom attendees will receive the Zoom link prior to the event - not at the time of registration.

Program and Schedule

download conference poster

Monday 19 February
2:30-2:50pm | WELCOME | Dominic Murphy, Charles Wolfe, Anik Waldow

2:50-3:10pm | Where's Lucian? Failure in the History of Philosophy | Conal Condren (UNSW)

3:10-3:30pm | Of What Kind of Philosophy Can History Reveal the Failures? | Paul Redding (Sydney)

3:30-3:50pm | Naturalising Sin: Nero's Ingratitude | Moira Gatens (Sydney)

COFFEE BREAK

4:20-4:40pm | Religion and the Social Legitimation of Science | Peter Harrison (UQ)

4:40-5:00pm | Navigating Opinion, Knowledge, and Faith | Anik Waldow (Sydney)

5:00-5:20pm | In Praise of an Independent Thinker - Stephen Gaukroger's Methods, Concepts, and Command of Languages | H Floris Cohen (Utrecht)

5:20-5:40pm | The Genre of 'Natural History of Man' through Stephen Gaukroger's Lens | Spiros Tegos (Crete)

SHORT BREAK

5:50-6:10pm | Orientation in Space, Life, and Thought. Continuing Some Recent Discussions with Stephen | Stefanie Buchenau (Paris 8, Saint-Denis)

6:10-6:30pm | Sense, Sensibilism, Sensibility | Catherine Wilson (York)

6:30-6:50pm | A Naturalist Philosopher | Susan James (Birkbeck)

6:50-7:10pm | Hobbes on Time: A Failure of Philosophy | Quentin Skinner (QM London)

DINNER IN LOCAL RESTAURANT

Tuesday 20 February

9:00-9:20am | Optimism | Ada Bronowski (Rotterdam)

9:20-9:40am | On the Urge to Find the Original Sin of Modern Philosophy: Descartes and Cognitive Theory Thirty Years After Gaukroger | J. Sutton (Stirling)

9:40-10:00am | Some Reflections on Gaukroger's Descartes | Dan Garber (Princeton)

10:00-10:20am | Professor of Insects and Worms: The Life-Made World of Jean-Baptiste Lamarck | Jessica Riskin (Stanford)

MORNING TEA

11:10-11:30am | Kenguruh, Kangaroo, Känguru: Australia in German Natural History Michael Olson (Marquette)

11:30-11:50am | Romanticism and Empiricism - or Romantic Emiricism | Dalia Nassar (Sydney)

11:50-am-12:20 | Ancestors and Aliens: The Case of German Orientalism | Jennifer Mensch (Western Sydney)

LUNCH

1:20-1:40pm | Education and Its Role in the Shaping of Character | Laura Kotevska (Sydney)

1:40-2:00pm | The Philosophical Personae of Joseph Weber (1753-1831): Catholic Philosopher-Priest at the University of Dillingen | Ian Hunter (UQ)

2:00-2:20 | Gaukroger on the Autonomy of Phenomenal Explanation | Peter Anstey (Sydney)

Wednesday 21 February

3:00-3:20pm | Abiding, Fruitful (and never "Vehement"): Forty Years of Historiographical Dialogue with Steve Gaukroger | John Schuster (Campion)

3:20-3:40pm | Mandeville on Medical Men | Gabriel Watts (Sydney)

3:40-4:00pm | Respiritualizing Vitalism | Charles Wolfe (Toulouse)

4:00-4:20pm | Montesquieu, the Oyster, and the Huron. Cerebral Embodiment in Bonnet | Delphine Antoine-Mahut (ENS Lyon)

4:20-4:40pm | What I learned from Stephen | Francesco Borghesi (Modena/Reggio Emilia/Sydney)

4:40-5:00pm | On the Failures of Philosophy and the Pleasures of Music | Dennis Schmidt (Western Sydney)

*Move to Nelson Meers Auditorium, Chau Chak Wing Museum*

5:30-6:30pm | ABC "Big Ideas" Event with Natasha Mitchell: Panel discussion on "Where is the Soul in Science?" | Anik Waldow, Charles Wolfe, Peter Harrison, Natasha Mitchell

6:30-8:00pm | Reception at Sounds Café on the Chau Chak Wing Terrace.

Click here to register for the ABC Big Ideas panel