Events

We meet in hybrid format every two weeks to discuss a (recent) paper in the philosophy of machine learning, with a focus, but not an exclusive focus, on epistemological topics. The timeslot for the winter semester 2025/26 is Friday 4 - 5 p.m.

If you like to join us, please contact Tom Sterkenburg at tom.sterkenburg@lmu.de or Timo Freiesleben at timo.freiesleben@web.de. The schedule is also online.

This semester we will read Part V of Rudolf Carnap’s The Logical Syntax of Language (LSL), which we consider the most engaging section of the book. The group will meet weekly to discuss approximately twenty pages of the text. Our discussions will focus on several central questions: How does Carnap employ logico-linguistic methods to address philosophical issues in the debate on the foundations of mathematics? To what extent is this discussion connected to earlier parts of the book—particularly Part IV—given that Part V was written earlier than it? And how strongly does Part V reflect Carnap’s Principle of Tolerance? We may occasionally supplement our reading with passages from Carnap’s other works or relevant secondary literature, but the primary focus will remain on the original text of The Logical Syntax of Language. Prior knowledge with Carnap’s work is welcome but not required.

The group will meet online through Zoom. If you would like to join, please contact Nata at yangzhwy@outlook.com or Andreas at Andreas.Frenzel@campus.lmu.de.

The MAP reading group meets every two weeks on Friday, from 1 - 2:30 p.m. in room 028. This term, we're reading Katherine Puddifoot's book How Stereotypes Deceive Us in combination with relevant journal articles.

For further information or a Zoom link to join the discussion online, please contact Sophie Kikkert at s.kikkert@lmu.de.

This reading group meets every week on Monday, from 4:30 – 6:30 p.m. We are reading the Philosophical Investigations by Ludwig Wittgenstein translated by Anscombe, Hacker and Schulte (4th ed.). Together, we will work through central themes such as language-games, meaning as use, rule-following, forms of life, and the critique of private language, engaging closely with the text (and selected secondary literature). No prior knowledge of Wittgenstein's philosophy is required.

For further information, please contact Luisa Maxine Klahr at L.Klahr@campus.lmu.de

The MCMP strives for a welcoming and friendly atmosphere at all its events and for all participants. We ask that participants in our events be kind to others, and we do not tolerate harassment of participants in any form. Sexual language and imagery is not appropriate for any event venue, including talks.

Harassment includes offensive verbal comments related to gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, religion, sexual images in public spaces, deliberate intimidation, stalking, following, harassing photography or recording, sustained disruption of talks or other events, inappropriate physical contact, and unwelcome sexual attention. Participants asked to stop any harassing behavior are expected to comply immediately.

Exception: Discussion or images related to sex, pornography, discriminatory language, or similar is welcome if it meets all of the following criteria: (a) the organizers have specifically granted permission in writing, (b) it is necessary to the topic of discussion and no alternative exists, (c) it is presented in a respectful manner, especially towards women and LGBTQIA people, (d) attendees are warned in advance in the program and respectfully given ample warning and opportunity to leave beforehand. This exception specifically does not allow use of gratuitous sexual images as attention-getting devices or unnecessary examples.

If a participant engages in harassing behavior, the organizers may take any action they deem appropriate, including warning the offender or expulsion from the event with no refund. If you are being harassed, notice that someone else is being harassed, or have any other concerns, please contact a member of the event staff immediately. Event staff will be happy to help participants contact venue security or local law enforcement, provide escorts, or otherwise assist those experiencing harassment to feel safe for the duration of the event.

We expect participants to follow these rules at all event venues and related social events. Some events may have additions to this policy.

This code of conduct is based on the anti-harassment policy developed by the Ada Initiative and other volunteers and is licensed under the Creative Commons Zero license.

Many of the talks and conferences at the MCMP are recorded for our online video archive. In case a talk is recorded we will ask the speaker to authorize the publication of the recording. With this, the speaker declares

1. that the presentation is free from any discriminatory or otherwise racist, sexist, homophobic or inappropriate material, and
2. that all material used in the presentation has been either self-generated, or when any external content has been used (e.g. citations from books, journals, images, graphics, film clips, music, among other), the sources have been adequately cited and the copyrights of the creators have been properly acknowledged (e.g. by asking explicitly for written permission of the creators to use the content in question).

Note that only citing the source of, e.g., some image will not grant the speaker the right to use this image in the presentation. Royalty-free media for illustrative purposes can be found in stock archives; we recommend the usage of public domain material or media published under a suitable Creative Commons license (“some rights reserved”). Such media can be found through the Creative Commons search portal..