Natural Philosophy Symposium 2025

David Albert is a philosopher of physics at Columbia University. He is interested in the foundations of quantum mechanics, the nature of time asymmetry, and philosophy of probability.

Nima Arkani-Hamed is a theoretical physicist at the Institute for Advanced Study. He works on quantum field theory, particle phenomenology, quantum gravity, and cosmology.

William Bialek is a biological physicist at Princeton University. He uses principles of physics and information theory to study the behavior of biological systems across multiple scales.

David Chalmers is a philosopher of mind at New York University. He has worked on issues of consciousness, metaphysics, physics, and virtual reality.

Alison Gopnik is a psychologist and philosopher at the University of California, Berkeley. She studies how humans learn and construct causal maps of the world.

Alan Guth is a theoretical cosmologist at the Massachussetts Institute of Technology. He applies ideas from particle physics to the early universe, pioneering the theory of inflationary cosmology.

James Ladyman is a philosopher of science at the University of Bristol. His research involves issues in structural realism, complex systems, and naturalized metaphysics.

Nick Lane is a biochemist at University College London. He studies energy flows in biology, the origin of life, and the evolution of complex cells.

Simon Levin is an ecologist at Princeton University. His research examines the structure and functioning of ecosystems, the dynamics of disease, and the coupling of ecological and socioeconomic systems.

Malcolm MacIver is a biological engineer at Northwestern University. He studies how animals acquire sensory information and use it for purposes of movement and planning.

Melanie Mitchell is a computer scientist at the Santa Fe Institute. She studies artificial intelligence and the nature of intelligence.

Sandra Mitchell is a philosopher of science at the University of Pittsburgh. Her research is in metaphysics and epistemology, especially scientific representations of complex behavior.

Jennifer Nagel is an epistemologist at the University of Toronto. Her work investigates knowledge, belief, and the history of epistemology.

Emily Riehl is a mathematician at Johns Hopkins University. She studies category theory, homotopy type theory, and the foundations of mathematics.

Anil Seth is a neuroscientist at the University of Sussex. His research involves cognitive science, consciousness, and emergence.

Cosma Shalizi is a statistician at Carnegie Mellon University. His research involves complex systems, predictive modeling, information processing, and self-organization.

Joshua Tenenbaum is a cognitive scientist at the Massachussetts Institute of Technology. He studies the development of human learning and reasoning.

Michael Tomasello is a comparative psychologist at Duke University. His research focuses on social cognition, learning, and cooperation, often in studies of human children and great apes.

Kevin Zollman is a philosopher at Carnegie Mellon University. He studies the origin and nature of social behavior using computer simulations and game theory.