Department of Mathematics and Philosophy

Christopher Pynes

Christopher Pynes
Department of Mathematics and Philosophy

Professor

Education:

Ph.D., Florida State University
M.A., San Diego State University
B.A., University of California, Santa Barbara

Contact Information:

(309) 298-1467
486 Morgan Hall
ca-pynes@wiu.edu

Fall 2019 Office Hours: 

Monday, Wednesday, Friday: 8:30 am-10:00 am

Courses Taught:

Phil 120: Contemporary Moral Problems
Phil 140: Logic and Reasoning
Phil 310: Modern Philosophy
Phil 320: Analytic Philosophy
Phil 330: Moral Philosophy
Phil 333: Environmental Ethics
Phil 340: Formal Logic
Phil 415: Philosophy of Science
Phil 425: Philosophy of Mind
Phil 440: Legal Reasoning

Personal Web Page:  http://faculty.wiu.edu/CA-Pynes/

Guest Blogger at the Leiter Reports

Curriculum Vitae

Research Interests: My philosophical interests are broad, but I am especially interested in issues related to logics, philosophy of science, and moral philosophy.

Research with undergraduates: Given my wide philosophical interests and my desire to promote good philosophical skills with students, I am generally wiling to engage in just about any research topic. Most often for non-philosophy minors who want to do honors projects, we work on logic puzzles, argumentation, and taking the LSAT. For more advanced philosophy students, topics from past projects include: Baye's Theorem, modal logic, legal resoning and SCOTUS decisions, Rawls vs. Nozick, Scalia on Reading Law, and medical ethics and organ donation.

Selected Publications:

  • Pynes, C. (2014). Seven arguments against extra credit. Teaching Philosophy 37.2, 191-214.
  • Pynes, C. (2013). If Monty Hall falls or crawls. European Journal of Analytic Philosophy 9.2, 33-47.
  • Pynes, C. (2012). Ad hominem arguments and intelligent design. Zygon: Journal of Religion and Science, 47.2,  289-297.
  • Ruse, M., & Pynes, C. (2006). The stem cell controversy. Revised/2nd ed. (Prometheus)