Society for Philosophy of Science in Practice (SPSP) Sixth Conference

17–19 June 2016
Rowan University, Glassboro, NJ

Call for papers


Abstract submission deadline: 11 January 2016 
Notification of acceptance: 1 March 2016

Main contact: Joe Rouse, jrouse@wesleyan.edu
The Society for Philosophy of Science in Practice (SPSP) is an interdisciplinary community of scholars who approach the philosophy of science with a focus on scientific practice and the practical uses of scientific knowledge. For further details on our objectives, see our mission statement on our website at http://www.philosophy-science-practice.org/en/mission-statement/.
The SPSP conferences provide a broad forum for scholars committed to making detailed and systematic studies of scientific practices — neither dismissing concerns about truth and rationality, nor ignoring contextual and pragmatic factors. The conferences aim at cutting through traditional disciplinary barriers and developing novel approaches. We welcome contributions from not only philosophers of science, but also philosophers working in epistemology and ethics, as well as the philosophy of engineering, technology, medicine, agriculture, and other practical fields. Additionally, we welcome contributions from historians and sociologists of science, pure and applied scientists, and any others with an interest in philosophical questions regarding scientific practice.
We welcome both proposals for individual papers, and also strongly encourage proposals for whole, thematic sessions with coordinated papers, particularly those which include multiple disciplinary perspectives and/or input from scientific practitioners. You may wish to involve other members of SPSP (a listing is available on our website) or post a notice to the SPSP mailing list describing your area of interest and seeking other possible participants for a session proposal. (To post to this list or to receive updates on the conference, please subscribe via http://www.philosophy-science-practice.org/en/mailing-list/.

Submission procedures for SPSP 2016

All proposals should be submitted online at the conference website, http://spsp.rowan.edu/openconf.
Individual paper or poster proposals must include a title and an abstract of 500 words, along with full affiliation details and contact information for the author(s)/speaker(s). Proposals for poster presentations should put “(poster)” at the end of the title.
Session proposals must be made in the following format:
  • One submission by the session organiser(s), which needs to include an overall title for the session, a session abbreviation that can be used to identify the individual papers in the session, a 250–500 words abstract of the session, and a list of titles and presenters of all talks in the session.
  • One submission for each of the papers featured in the session, including a 500 word abstract of the individual paper and the full affiliation details and contact information of the paper’s contributor(s). The title of each individual paper in the session must start with the abbreviation used in the session title. For example: for a session devoted to “Pluralism in the social sciences”, the acronym PLURALISM could be used, and thus the title of each paper submitted as part of the session would start with that acronym (e.g. “PLURALISM: The Variety of Explanatory Tools in Social Science”).

Rules governing multiple submissions

Individuals should only appear on the program once as presenters, and at most one additional time as commentator or co-author. If in doubt, please contact the organizers in advance about your anticipated submissions.

Pre- and Post-conference workshops


There will also be a graduate student workshop before the conference, and a smaller workshop on “Race and Inclusion in Science and Science Policy,” co-sponsored with The Consortium for Socially Relevant Philosophy of/in Science and Engineering (SRPoiSE) after the conference, with further details to be announced shortly.