Thomas Colclough is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Logic and Philosophy of Science at the University of California, Irvine. His research interests are generally focused on mathematical logic, the philosophy of set theory and the philosophy of mathematics in general.
What are you working on right now?
Currently, I’m interested in exploring the extent to which the notions of truth and consistency coincide, when one is talking about theories and sentences. There are cases in which consistency claims involving a theory “T”, and a sentence “s”, provably imply a truth claim about “T+s.” One can ask: when this implication is not provable, are there cases in which a consistency claim nonetheless implies the corresponding truth claim with a strong degree of plausibility? One can mathematize this problem and view it through a Bayesian perspective. There, one learns the consistency of some sentence “s” (relative to a theory “T”) and updates their belief about whether “T+s” is true. In particular, I’m interested in the question of characterizing certain classes of sentences whose consistency plausibly implies their truth, and ultimately, whether sentences asserting the existence of certain large cardinals belong to that class.
What common philosophical dilemma do you think has a clear answer?
Skepticism – of the all-encompassing, “nothing matters” kind. Having said that, I don’t know how common a problem people really feel this is! I think Pen Maddy puts this best. Can I justify all the beliefs I hold from scratch, and do away with Descartes’ Evil Demon, by producing some kind of extraordinary evidence that I’m not being deceived – evidence that doesn’t involve any of my usual ways of gathering that evidence? I don’t think so. If I can’t produce that evidence, does that invalidate the beliefs I hold, which have been gathered and shaped using my ordinary forms of evidence, which I think do quite a good job? No. But neither do I think I’m compelled to provide such extraordinary evidence to justify my everyday beliefs.
What’s your personal philosophy?
One quality I value in all walks of life is resilience. Philosophical problems are not easy ones to solve, and satisfactory answers are difficult to give. For me, one joy of philosophy is the clarity of thought that comes after having applied yourself to a problem – maybe you solve it, or maybe you just understand it clearly. This doesn’t come easily, though (at least in my experience!) and resilience is what makes the days/months spent analyzing those problems easier, with the promise of the reward at the end. I’ve found it to be a learned skill, and I’m constantly reminded to practice it – whether in my research (advisor: “Get up and do that proof!”), or in other things I do to let off steam (rugby coach: “Do better.”). As a result, resilience is also something I try and teach – usually, as is sometimes pointed out, by setting too difficult a question on a chapter test.
What would your childhood self say if someone told you that you would grow up to be a philosopher?
What do philosophers do? Hopefully “current me” is the person answering that question, so I could dispel the caricature of this idea as my older self, sitting in a dark room, thinking very hard about things from day to day. Instead, I’d point to the bewildering variety of questions, spanning every kind of discipline, that philosophers become interested in and engage with on all sorts of levels. Sure, there are thought experiments. But philosophers also employ ordinary empirical methods to try and understand the world, and peoples’ place in it. If that is science, then philosophers are scientists.
Who are your heroes?
My parents, for their unwavering support, and for teaching me that the most valuable things in life are those that one can find for free.
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Dr. Sabrina D. MisirHiralall is an editor at the Blog of the APA who currently teaches philosophy, religion, and education courses solely online for Montclair State University, Three Rivers Community College, and St. John’s University.
