Dr. Craig Condella

My primary research interests are in the fields of environmental ethics, the philosophy of science and the philosophy of technology. In environmental ethics, most of my work has focused on the writings of Aristotle and Martin Heidegger, considering in particular how nature must be re-thought and re-imagined if we are to change our relationship with it. My work in the philosophy of science has centered on evolution, exploring both the philosophical implications of human evolution as well as the scientific credibility of Darwin's theory in contrast to theories of creationism and intelligent design. Finally, my work in the philosophy of technology, though rooted in Heidegger's assessment of modern technological being, has more recently incorporated the works of Bernard Stiegler and Andrew Feenberg in considering how new technologies - such as the iPod and Facebook - are fundamentally transforming our relationships with each other and our perception of our own selves.

Philosophy embodies all that is unique and special about a liberal arts education as it avoids supplying students with ready-made answers but compels them to ask the most difficult - and yet most important - questions: What does it mean to be human? What constitutes the good life and how can I achieve it? Is knowledge really possible? What counts as beautiful? Does my immediate experience alone constitute reality or is there something more? As a teacher of philosophy, I take great pleasure in getting students to ask such questions and take even more pleasure in witnessing, firsthand, their attempts to answer them. While I take teaching philosophy to be a tremendous privilege, I believe that being a philosopher is a possibility open to all. Of course I also take David Hume's advice to heart when he says that we must, amidst all our philosophy, be human beings as well. As such, I am an overly passionate fan of the New York Yankees and New York Giants, consider myself a J.R.R. Tolkien geek, and am an avid movie-watcher, my favorite films including "The Godfather," "Rocky," the original Star Wars trilogy and "Pulp Fiction" (to name but a few). Bruce Springsteen and Led Zeppelin are the pillars of my music collection and I love cooking - and eating - anything Italian, though my musical and culinary tastes remain perpetually open.