Table of Contents: - President's Letter
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PSA26 Travel Grants
- PSA26 General Updates
- PSA26 Calls for Awards
AAAS/SciLine Media Training Workshop -
PSA Elections
- Philosophers of Science at Work: Exploring Non-Academic Careers
- Upcoming Events
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Most of this month’s newsletter is devoted to our biennial meeting in San Diego on November 19-22, 2026. I’m especially excited about this meeting because I’ve lived in San Diego for a quarter century, so I feel like I’m inviting many hundreds of my closest friends and colleagues to my home. San Diego is also the hometown of President-Elect Alan Love, so I’m sure he feels similarly. Unfortunately I cannot literally invite you all to my home — too few bathrooms. Instead, we’ve arranged lodging at the Westin Hotel in the Gaslamp Quarter, which is perfect. Just that quarter alone is home to over 150 restaurants, bars, and cafes, and a short stroll will take you to hundreds more, including some on the waterfront. Balboa Park and the beaches are also not far. I encourage you to stay an extra day to explore this beautiful area if your budget and schedule allow.
We have a great program awaiting you. Program Chair Matt Haber and his large Program Committee have done an excellent job of vetting paper and symposia submissions and Adina Roskies and the Poster Committee have done the same for posters. We’ll have 130+ contributed papers, 44 symposia, and well over 100 posters. With hundreds of the best philosophers of science in the world participating, there really is nothing like this biennial event.
We’ve arranged some special sessions and activities. For the President’s Plenary Symposium, I’ve invited the Editor-in-Chief of Science, Holden Thorpe, to come and talk with us. Holden, of course, is deeply acquainted with and thoughtful about recent trends and debates within science, from retractions to AI to neurodiversity to funding. He is also a strong advocate for philosophy. The Public Forum, organized by Alan Love, will focus on a topic that is on everyone’s minds here in Southern California: wildfire. This threat, which is of increasing concern worldwide due to climate change and habitat destruction, has attracted a growing amount of philosophical work, and we’re looking forward to connecting the field more widely with research on the science and governmental policy of wildfires. We’ll also have a new emphasis on non-academic jobs for early career philosophers on science, be joined by new cognate societies, and continue successful events such as the UPSS scholars session.
Thinking about my presidential address, a wonderful memory from a past PSA floated to the surface. In 1998 a few of us sat down with Richard Jeffrey before the ceremony began. With his characteristic wit, he announced that he only agreed to be PSA president because he thought he wouldn’t live long enough to have to give his talk. Fortunately, the great probabilist had defied the odds. We were then treated to an address whose title and first slide will surely never be surpassed. The title was “I Was a Teenage Logical Positivist” and he backed it up with a picture of a young Jeffrey with none other than Rudolf Carnap. Unfortunately, for my own address, I can have no such aspirations, for I have only unearthed pictures establishing that I was a teenage delinquent.
I look forward to seeing many of you in San Diego in November. Craig Callender |
Applications are now open for PSA Travel Grants for graduate students and early career scholars! Although the PSA lost funding from the National Science Foundation to supplement member travel to our biennial meeting, we have secured an alternate pot of funds for our members.
Please apply for funding by August 1, the funds will be distributed on or around August 15th and can be used for travel and registration for the PSA26 meeting in San Diego. We do ask that you exhaust all other sources of funding - including departmental/institutional funds - before applying for a PSA Travel Grant to ensure that we can allocate as much support as possible for everyone. Finally, only graduate students and early-career scholars that are current PSA members are eligible for travel support. Please reach out to office@philsci.org if there are any questions or concerns.
Apply Here
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Daycare @ PSA26 - The PSA will once again provide daycare services at our meeting. This service will be available 9am - 5pm at the Westin. If you plan to take advantage of childcare, please add your name, number of children and their ages to the PSA26 Childcare Sheet - this will ensure that there are enough caregivers present.
Hotel - The hotel room share signup sheet can be found here. If you are interested in sharing a room, please check this list occasionally and reach out to other folks who may be in a similar situation.
Registration - Meeting registration will open on June 15, 2026. Early bird pricing will run from June 15 - August 15, at which point there will be a small increase in rates. |
International Syllabus Repository & Award - The Philosophy of Science Association invites submissions of course syllabi that showcase effective and creative teaching of the philosophy of science that reaches beyond the mainstream. We are seeking to build a library of new ideas and good practices from around the world that will help those who are trying to internationalize the subject and introduce it to new audiences. All submissions that meet the eligibility criteria will be made available on the syllabus repository that can be accessed freely via the PSA website. Click to see full rules, eligibility criteria, and to apply.
PSA Philosophy of Science and Race Prize - The PSA Prize in Philosophy of Science & Race is awarded biennially by the Philosophy of Science Association for the best book, article, or chapter published in English that integrates philosophy of science with discussions of race, ethnicity, and/or racism. Eligible publications must be published within five years prior to the prize year/PSA meeting year. Recipients will receive a $500 cash prize made possible through generous donations to the UPSS initiative. This competition is limited to members of the Philosophy of Science Association. Submissions are now open. Deadline: June 15, 2026
PSA26 UPSS Session - All UPSS scholars participating in the UPSS Mentoring Program who are current graduate students or within 3 years of receiving their PhD are eligible to submit a paper to be considered for presentation in the UPSS Session at the PSA Biennial Meeting. UPSS scholars work with their mentors to refine a paper for presentation on any topic in the philosophy of science. If you do not yet have a mentor, please click here, and indicate that you would also like assistance developing a talk to present at the PSA Biennial Meeting. Please request a mentor by June 1st so mentees have time to work together with their mentors on refining their symposium submission by the due date of August 1st. Please use this link to submit a paper for consideration for the UPSS Session.
PSA26 Outreach and Engagement Award - The Philosophy of Science Association is pleased to invite submissions for the PSA Outreach and Engagement Award. The Outreach and Engagement Award is a biennial award of the Philosophy of Science Association, which recognizes a scholar or team of scholars who have led outstanding efforts to engage members of the general public in philosophy of science topics. The scope of outreach and engagement that may be recognized by this award is wide, but its purpose is to highlight, promote, and elevate professional efforts to engage members of the general public about philosophy of science. Please use this link to view details, eligibility, and to apply for the award.
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AAAS/SciLine Media Training Workshop |
On Wednesday, November 18, 2026 from 1pm - 5pm the PSA Outreach & Engagement Committee will host a pre-conference AAAS | SciLine Media Training Half-day Workshop ahead of the 30th Biennial Meeting of the Philosophy of Science Association in San Diego, CA.
Sharing Science with the Media Workshop
You know the scholarship, but conveying it effectively to the public takes skill, preparation, and practice. Many academics want to serve as a source for journalists, but at the same time, feel intimidated, lack confidence, or are concerned about facing hostile interviewers or publics. Through presentations, discussions, and hands-on activities, this workshop will guide participants through the most important things to know about the media ecosystem and how to interact with it effectively as a source. We’ll cover language choices that will make your work more accessible to lay audiences, developing messages and working them into responses to interview questions, what you need to know about the media landscape, and how to navigate and survive uncomfortable interview questions and situations.
This workshop is presented by SciLine, a program of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) with a mission of enhancing the amount and quality of scientific evidence in news stories.
Click here for more details and to apply!
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PSA Elections are now underway. Ballots have been emailed to all full members that are currently in good standing. If you have not received a ballot and believe that you should have, please send an email to director@philsci.org. The election will close on June 20, 2026 and the results will be announced in the July newsletter. |
Philosophers of Science at Work: Exploring Non-Academic Careers |
Please consider joining us on June 15, 2026 from 2p - 3p (EDT) for a webinar titled "Philosophers of Science at Work: Exploring Non-Academic Careers". Its focus will be a high-level overview and introduction to the non-academic employment landscape and how to prepare for it with time for audience Q&A. All are welcome. This will be the first in a series of webinars designed to provide both guidance and assistance to philosophers of science that are interested in pursuing employment outside of the academy.
The webinar will be hosted by Alan Love and facilitated by Aaron Kagan. Aaron is an AI strategist, researcher, and philosopher with a PhD in Philosophy and Cognitive Science from Fordham University. He has spent the past fifteen years working at the intersection of research, technology, and strategy, including roles at Google, Meta Reality Labs, X, and Native Instruments. Throughout his industry career he has remained active in philosophy through publishing, speaking, and professional service, most recently as co-author of An Introduction to Embodied Mind: Thinking Outside the Head(Routledge, 2026). He also serves on the American Philosophical Association’s Committee on Non-Academic Careers and has helped philosophers explore professional opportunities both within and beyond academia.
Register here! |
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