The African Institute for Epistemology and Philosophy of Science (ACEPS<https://www.uj.ac.za/faculties/humanities/departments-2/philosophy/philosophy-centres/african-centre-for-epistemology-and-philosophy-of-science>) at the University of Johannesburg is pleased to invite you all to two seminars as well as a special Reading Group, all happening this coming week (24 & 25 February)!
24 FEBRUARY 2026: Seminar: Fighting the flying heads of settler colonialism: disclosure, localities, transformation<http://www.uj.ac.za/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/2026-02-24-yann-allard-tremblay-fighting-the-flying-heads-of-settler-colonialism.pdf> - Yann Allard-Tremblay @12:00 - 11th Floor Boardroom, UJ on Empire (in-person only) In this talk, we focus on the problem of effective critical discursive engagements in context of epistemic and political oppression and domination. Specifically, we focus on what we refer to as Flying Heads of Settler Colonialism, that is obfuscatory, justificatory, and naturalizing ideological constructions and tropes that return under different forms across time and locations to harm Indigenous peoples and serve settler colonial logics and dynamics. We contend that to target the Flying Heads and their propensity to return, critical engagement demands a double dual-movement: a local and global critical analysis of the Flying Heads that accounts for their ideological and material aspects. We argue that challenges to the Flying Heads must be underlaid by the objective of becoming (more) responsible for the truth as part of ongoing, joint inquiry, and that this is realized in an incremental multitracked, multifaceted manner in pursuit of transformation. We present effective, transformative, discursive engagement as requiring (1) disclosure of Flying Heads precisely as Flying Heads tied to settler colonial logics and dynamics; (2) attention to the specificities of given localities to gain traction; and (3) practices that facilitate and invite transformation of structures and identities. In developing these claims, we remain attentive to potential risks that might impede joint inquiry or transformation. Finally, we reflect on the possibility that the radical refusal of dialogue and unmediated coercion might constitute a limit to recognize. Reading Group: Disjunctive Indigenous Resistance @15:00 - 4th Floor Boardroom, UJ on Empire (in-person only) For our Reading Group this week, we will be discussing the opening chapter of Yann Allard-Tremblay’s new book Disjunctures: Indigenous Redirections in Political Theory<https://academic.oup.com/book/60793>. (Contact [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]?subject=ACEPS%20Inquiry%20Feb> for inquiries). 25 FEBRUARY 2026 Seminar: Zombie hypotheses in science<https://www.uj.ac.za/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/2026-02-25-aceps-martin-justin-zombie-hypotheses-in-science.pdf> - Martin Justin @ 11:00 - 11th Floor Boardroom, UJ on Empire (in-person only) Existing models of scientific inquiry have pointed to different ways in which industry funding can disrupt scientific consensus formation. Weatherall et al. (2020) showed that the so-called tobacco strategy (Oreskes and Conway 2011), consisting of selective reporting of scientific results and the production of biased research, can cause policymakers to diverge from the scientific consensus (see also Schöppl 2025). Similarly, Holman and Bruner (2017) and Pinto and Pinto (2023) showed that selective funding of scientists who independently produce industry-favorable results can prevent the community from converging on the correct hypothesis. These studies explore situations in which scientists either follow the evidence to the wrong conclusion or converge but fail to communicate their findings properly. In this paper, we investigate another potential negative effect of industry bias: situations in which scientists fail to reach consensus due to the emergence of “zombie hypotheses.” Zombie hypotheses are theories and ideas that scientists continue to pursue despite their lack of epistemic support. We first provide a typology of different types of zombie hypotheses and present case studies from different fields of science. Then we develop a novel agent-based model to explore whether industry-sponsored research can drive the formation of zombie hypotheses, and if so, under what conditions? All are welcome to join and participate. And, as always, keep an eye on our website http://uj.ac.za/aceps to stay updated on all our upcoming events! See you there! -Dimpho Dimpho Moletsane PHD-Graduand & Research Assistant African Centre for Epistemology and Philosophy of Science (ACEPS) University of Johannesburg (South Africa) [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> --------- SydPhil mailing list To unsubscribe, change your membership options, find answers to common problems, or visit our online archives, please go to the list information page: https://mailman.sydney.edu.au/mailman/listinfo/sydphil
