The 2009 North American Conference on

Computing and Philosophy

June 14-16 at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana 

NA-CAP@IU 2009: Networks and Their Philosophical Implications

This website is under construction!

Preliminary CFP

Deadline: February 1st 2009 (firm)

In recent years, across several different academic disciplines, including biology, computer science, cognitive science, informatics, philosophy and psychology, a shift in the study of complex systems is readily visible. This shift away from a focus on the individual components of a system to the interrelations between them has provided the groundwork for what might broadly be called a "network" perspective, as it has become increasingly clear that simple components can produce astoundingly complex and varied behavior when they work in consort. Evidence for this observation is seen everywhere from biological neural networks, stigmergic systems, and animal behavior to networked computing, social networking, and dynamic systems. This conference will explore the philosophical implications of this network perspective as it applies to the broader scope of topics studied by our association.

To this end, we are interested in receiving submissions that explore themes in the intersection of philosophy and computing insofar as they involve, for instance:

• Academic/Scientific Citation Networks
• Artificial Neural (Connectionist) Networks
• Biological Neural Networks
• The Internet / World-Wide Web
• Multi-Agent Reasoning and Decision-Making
• Networked Computing
• Networked Robotics / Swarm Intelligence
• Semantic Networks
• Social Networking
• Stigmergic Systems
• Ubiquitous Computing

Individual submissions might address a range of subtopics, including the ethical and political implications of social networking, theoretical analyses of networked computing, the implications of artificial or biological neural networks for issues in the philosophy of mind, how community and technology enable networked thinking, reasoning and decision-making, etc. We also welcome submissions not directly on the conference theme, though first preference will go to those that fit within the broad parameters outlined here.

We welcome submissions for papers, panels and demonstrations of computing and philosophy applications. Papers and demonstrations will be allotted 40 minutes, including time for commentary and questions (25 minutes for presentation, 5 for commentary and 10 for Q&A). 120-minute slots are available for panels and can be divided as the panelists see fit.

For papers, please limit submission length to 3,000 words, keeping in mind that the IACAP discourages participants from reading their papers to the audience. (Many presenters prepare slides using PowerPoint or some other software package. However, these need not be submitted with your original paper.) Include also a 250-word abstract.

The IACAP discourages "show-and-tell" demonstrations, but welcomes submissions that show a new and interesting application of computers to philosophy. Submissions in this category should consist of a 1,500-word abstract outlining what is innovative about the application and the questions pertinent to philosophy that your demonstration will raise.

For panels, please submit a 1,000-word summary of the panel as a whole, along with 300 to 500-word abstracts for each of its various components.

The conference will be accepting electronic submissions appropriately prepared for blind review on or before February 1st, 2009. Additional details will be posted to this website sometime before early December and mailed to the IACAP-announce mailing list. (See http://ia-cap.org/mailinglist.php to join.)

Program Director: Tony Beavers (afbeavers at gmail dot com), University of Evansville

Conference Host: Colin Allen (colallen at indiana dot edu), Indiana University

NA-CAP Director: Selmer Bringsjord, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

NA-CAP Steering Committee:

Tony Beavers, University of Evansville

David Stern, University of Iowa

Mara Harrell, Carnegie Mellon University

IACAP President: Luciano Floridi, University of Hertfordshire & University of Oxford

This conference is one of several regional conferences associated with the International Association for Computing and Philosophy. To learn more about the IACAP, including its other conferences and membership details, visit the organization's website at http://ia-cap.org.