BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Illinois Wesleyan University Associate Professor of Philosophy Carl Gillett has been awarded a John Templeton Foundation Grant to write about his new approach to debates over ‘reduction’ and ‘emergence’ within the sciences and philosophy.
The mission of the John Templeton Foundation is to serve as a philanthropic catalyst for discovery in areas engaging life’s biggest questions. These questions range from explorations into the laws of nature and the structure of the universe, to questions on the nature of love, gratitude, forgiveness and creativity.
“My work seeks to widen our understanding of these views and their implications about the world we live in and our own natures,” said Gillett.
Over the last 80 years, science has developed what Gillett calls a “reductionist” point of view, contending that all objects composed can be reduced down to their components, such as atoms. However, at the turn of the 21st century, scientists in a range of disciplines are once again embracing an “emergentist” view that opposes scientific reductionism, accepting that all things, including humans, are thoroughly composed.
“Professor Gillett’s work is unusual in the debate over reduction and emergence in that he begins by taking both “sides” seriously,” said the John Templeton Foundation Director of Life Science Programs Paul Wason. “It is also unusual in its ambition and promise–to produce a serious philosophical work that will also be valued by scientists for their own work.”