Ted Poston

Assistant Professor of Philosophy

Department of Philosophy

University of South Alabama

 

Curriculum Vitae

 

 

Ph.D., Philosophy, University of Missouri, May 2006

·        Dissertation: Sellars & Socrates: An Investigation of the Sellars Problem for a Socratic Epistemology

·        Committee: Jonathan Kvanvig (director), Peter Markie, Matthew McGrath, Andrew Melnyk, and Paul Weirich.

 

M.A., Philosophy, University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee, May 2002

·        Thesis: Testimonial Justification

·        Committee: William Wainwright (director), John Koethe, and Mark Kaplan

 

 

ARTICLES

 

1.      “Skeptics without borders” (with Kevin Meeker) American Philosophical Quarterly (forthcoming).

2.      “Similarity & Acquaintance: A dilemma” Philosophical Studies (forthcoming).

3.      “Know-how to be Gettiered?” Philosophy and Phenomenological Research 79:3 (2009), 743-747.

4.      “Hell, Vagueness, and Justice: A Reply to Sider” (with Trent Dougherty) Faith and Philosophy 25 (2008), 322-328.

5.       “Internalism & Externalism in Epistemology” Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy

6.      “A User’s Guide to Design Arguments” (with Trent Dougherty) Religious Studies 44 (2008), 99-110.

7.       “Foundationalism Evidentialism and the Problem of Scatter” Abstracta 3: 2 (2007), 89-106

8.      “Divine Hiddenness and the Nature of Belief” (with Trent Dougherty) Religious Studies 43 (2007), 183-198.

9.      “Acquaintance and the Problem of the Speckled Hen” Philosophical Studies 132 (2007), 331-346.

 

REVIEWS

 

1.  Review of Believing by Faith by John Bishop, Mind 117 (2009), 151-155.

2.  Critical Notice of Justification without Awareness by Michael Bergmann, Philosophy and Phenomenological Research 77:2 (2008), 570-573.

3.  Review of Common-Sense: A New Look at an Old Philosophical Tradition by Nicholas Rescher, Faith and Philosophy 24:3 (2007), 361-363.

 

SELECTED PRESENTATIONS

 

1.       “Is there an “I” in epistemology?” Presidential Address.  Alabama Philosophical Society October 2-3, 2009.

2.       “Motivating Coherentism,” 1st Annual USA Philosophy Workshop Perspectives on Coherentism May 12-13, 2009.

3.       “Alethic Functionalism & the Metaphysics of Reduction” (with Michael Horton) Alabama Philosophical Society, September 26-27, 2008.

4.       “Know-how to be Gettiered” American Philosophical Association, Central Division Meeting, April 17-19, 2008.

5.       “Acquaintance & Similarity” American Philosophical Association, Pacific Division Meeting, March 18-23, 2008.

6.       “Is atheism reasonable?” Third Annual Philosophy of Religion Conference, February 6-7, 2008.

7.       “Acquaintance & Similarity” Alabama Philosophical Society, September 21-22, 2007.

8.       “Cognitive Abilities and the Conceptualist / Nonconceptualist Debate,” American Philosophical Association, Pacific Division Meeting, April 3-8, 2007.

9.       “Cognitive Abilities and the Conceptualist / Nonconceptualist Debate,” Alabama Philosophical Society, October 20-21, 2006.

10.   “Internalism and the Problem of Scatter,” American Philosophical Association, Central Division Meeting, April 26-29, 2006.  Winner, Outstanding Graduate Student Paper Award

11.   “Why Care about Justification? The Value of Internalist Justification” Central States Philosophical Association October 22-23 2004.

12.   “Acquaintance and the Problem of the Speckled Hen” Rochester Epistemology Conference September 24-25 2004.

 

SELECTED INVITED COMMENTARIES

 

1.       “On Williams on Reliability & Responsibility,” The Epistemology of Keith Lehrer, Porto Alegre, Brazil, June 27-29, 2007.

2.       “On Almeida on Moral Dilemmas and Perfect Beings,” The University of Missouri Annual Philosophy of Religion Conference, January 26-27 2006.

3.       “On Lackey on Assertion without Knowledge,” Central States Philosophical Association, October 7-8 2005.

4.       “On Aikin on Modest Evidentialism,” Southern Society of Philosophy and Psychology April 2004.

 

DISCUSSIONS OF MY WORK

 

1.       Richard Fumerton, “Poston on Acquaintance & Similarity,” Philosophical Studies (forthcoming)

2.       Jason Stanley, “Knowing (How)” Nous (forthcoming)

3.       Richard Fumerton, “Speckled Hens and Objects of Acquaintance,” Philosophical Perspectives 19 Epistemology (2005), 121-138.

4.       J.L. Schellenberg, “On not unnecessarily darkening the glass: a reply to Poston and Dougherty,” Religious Studies 43 (2007), 199-204.

5.       Benjamin S. Cordry, “Divine Hiddenness and belief de re,” Religious Studies 45 (2009), 1-19. 

 

RESEARCH & TEACHING INTERESTS

 

Epistemology (coherentism; internalism; perception)

 

Philosophy of Mind (mental content)

 

Philosophy of Science (confirmation theory & explanation)

 

Metaphysics (vagueness)

 

Logic (mathematical logic; informal reasoning)

 

Philosophy of Religion (design arguments; divine hiddenness; problem of evil)

 

 

ACADEMIC FELLOWSHIPS, AWARDS, GRANTS, AND HONORS

 

2009 Mortar Board Senior Honor Society “Top Professor” Award

 

2009 The Arts and Sciences Support and Development Award for the USA philosophy workshop on epistemic coherentism

 

2007 The Arts and Sciences Summer Professional Development Award.

 

2007 The Arts and Sciences Support and Development Award to attend the 2007 Pacific APA meeting.

 

2007 Special Faculty Development Fund travel grant to attend The Epistemology of Keith Lehrer conference in Porto Alegre, Brazil.

 

2002 to 2006 – G. Ellsworth Huggins Fellowship 5 year award.

 

2006 – APA Outstanding Graduate Student Paper Award for my paper “Internalism and the Problem of Scatter.”

 

2006 – A.C. Benjamin Essay Award for my paper “Internalism and the Problem of Scatter” – University of Missouri Department of Philosophy Essay Award

 

2005 – A.C. Benjamin Essay Award for my paper “Why Care about Justification? The Value of Internalist Justification” – University of Missouri Department of Philosophy Essay Award

 

2004 – A.C. Benjamin Essay Award for my paper “A Defense of the Bayesian Fine-tuning Argument” – University of Missouri Department of Philosophy Essay Award

 

2002 to 2006 – Teaching Assistant / Instructor at the University of Missouri

 

2000 to 2002 - Teaching Assistantship at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

 

TEACHING EXPERIENCE

 

            Introduction to Philosophy

            Introduction to Ethics

            Introduction to Logic

            Bioethics

            Asian Philosophy

Symbolic Logic

Philosophy of Mind

Philosophy of Science

            Mathematical Logic

            Epistemology

           

SERVICE

 

DEPARTMENT

            Library Liaison (2006 - present)

Member, Curriculum Committee (2006 - present)

 

UNIVERSITY

            Associate member of the graduate faculty

            Summer Research Award Committee (AY 08-09)

APPC (AY 09-10)

 

PROFESSION

President of the Alabama Philosophical Society (October 2008 – October 2009)
Vice-President of the Alabama Philosophical Society (October 2007 – September 2008)
Secretary/Treasurer of the Alabama Philosophical Society (October 2006 – September 2007)

Reviewer: American Philosophical Quarterly, Synthese, Erkenntnis, Philosophical Studies, Philosophy and Phenomenological Research, Mind, Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Abstracta, Religious Studies, Canadian Journal of Philosophy, Philosophical Psychology

 

REFERENCES

 

Jonathan Kvanvig, Baylor University.

 

Matthew McGrath, University of Missouri.

 

Ernest Sosa, Rutgers University.

 

Ram Neta, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

 

Paul Weirich, Department of Philosophy, University of Missouri.

 

Andrew Melnyk, Department of Philosophy, University of Missouri.

 

William Wainwright, Department of Philosophy, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee