[SydPhil] work-in-progress talk by Melina Tsapos at Macquarie University

[Mark Alfano]

Dear colleagues,

I hope you're well.

I'm writing to invite you to the philosophy work-in-progress talks this
semester, which begin on February 25. As usual, talks will be from 1 PM to
2 PM, followed by informal tea with the speaker. Unlike last year, we are
mostly holding the talks in 17 Wally's Walk, room 117. A couple of talks
will be in the Moot Court, as indicated on the WIP website. One will also
be zoom-only. (Ines Hipolito is working on setting up the zoom link for
these meetings, so you can expect to hear from her in a follow-up email.)

You can keep track of speakers, titles, abstracts, and rooms at this
website: https://url.au.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/b-osC5QPXJiWE4Zo6uzf2TkaAVD?domain=raphael-milliere.github.io

I will update the TBA items as we receive more information.

Our first speaker is Melina Tsapos, who is visiting Sydney from Lund
University.

Here's a preview of her talk:

*What is Interesting about Conspiracy Theories?*
A central debate in conspiracy theory research concerns how to
conceptualize conspiracy theories in a way that advances our understanding
of the phenomena and those who believe in them. This debate remains
unresolved, with researchers adopting widely different positions: while
some argue for a purely descriptive understanding, others seem strongly
committed to the view that conspiracy theories are, or can be shown to be,
inherently irrational. This paper reconstructs the controversy, arguing
that it stems from two distinct scholarly motives: to attain objective
knowledge of the phenomena in question versus to defend beliefs and norms
that are part of the researcher’s own cultural context. By examining the
epistemological and methodological challenges in this field, I highlight
how competing frameworks—normative cultural biases versus objective
scientific inquiry—shape our understanding of rational belief. When
cultural biases influence research, they risk narrowing its scope and
undermining the development of a comprehensive understanding of conspiracy
theories. Ultimately, even proponents of normative cultural approaches can
acknowledge that such perspectives fail to capture the full complexity and
significance of these phenomena.
I hope to see you there!

Best wishes,

Mark (& Ines)


-- 
Mark Alfano
Philosophy, Macquarie University
www.alfanophilosophy.com
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://mailman.sydney.edu.au/pipermail/sydphil/attachments/20250218/3033150b/attachment-0001.htm>