Imagine yourself in an open, vibrant community of people who
share your commitment to reason, achievement, individualism, and freedom. People of every
age and background, from across the country and around the world, who gather for a week to
share their ideas, their goals, their experience.
Imagine yourself in a classroom where Ayn Rand's philosophy
of Objectivism is being explained, expanded, and applied to new areas by expert teachers.
Where debate is welcomed and reason is the only authority. Where the days are filled with
discovery and discussion into the night.
Imagine all this in a setting of spectacular beauty and
cultural abundance, where you can tour the surrounding mountains, walk by a quiet stream,
relax at an outdoor cafe, attend concerts and plays.
The Institute for Objectivist Studies' Summer Seminar offers
a program for anyone interested in the philosophy of Objectivism and its practical
application to political and personal issues. In six days of lectures and workshops, you
can expand your understanding of Objectivist values and their meaning for your life;
discuss cultural and political issues; and learn about scholarly work at the frontiers of
Objectivist theory.
You can choose among lectures ranging from elementary to
advanced--from the fallacies of the welfare state, to theories in epistemology, to the
nature of tragedy. You can choose among workshops on thinking skills, political activism,
and raising children. The Advanced Seminar, which meets every afternoon, provides graduate
students and other scholars with an opportunity for intensive discussion of theoretical
issues.
After hours, there is ample time to greet old friends and
make new ones. You can gather with the exceptional faculty and other participants for
informal discussion over meals, and in the Common Room every evening. You can attend
special meetings with other participants who share your interests in careers, hobbies, and
causes.
The Boulder campus of the University of Colorado is one of
the most popular conference locations in the country. Boulder features the stunning
natural beauty of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains. Located near the stark rock
formations known as the Flatirons, Boulder is a haven for bicyclists, hikers, climbers,
and world-class runners.
Only 30 miles from Denver, Boulder complements the more
cosmopolitan atmosphere of the Colorado capital with a wide range of restaurants, arts and
crafts shops, theater and music.
Last year, over 100 people attended the sixth annual Summer
Seminar. They praised it as "exhilarating, providing fuel to encourage my life";
"an intellectual and social smorgasbord of activity"; "the highlight of my
experiences with Objectivist conferences and meetings."
This year's Seminar will be even larger and more exciting.
Join us for a week of intellectual, artistic, social, and spiritual renewal.
It's 11:00 in the evening, and the Common Room is still
humming with activity. A philosophy professor is discussing a point of ethics with an
architect from San Francisco and a student from Brown. In clusters around the room, people
are debating the merits of recent movies, making plans for a joint business venture,
playing games, sharing interests. It's a typical night at the Summer Seminar.
The Common Room is the center of evening activity at the
Seminar; the informal setting makes it easy for you to meet other participants, discuss
the day's events with them, and share the many ideas and interests they bring to the
conference.
During the day, the Seminar program is designed to serve the
varied interests and levels of knowledge of participants. Each day a choice of sessions is
offered, geared to particular interests and backgrounds. Levels of difficulty are
indicated in the program: ("G") general interest; ("I") more
difficult; ("A") advanced.
After dinner, you can attend a dramatic reading by Linda
Tania Abrams, who returns for her third year. You can attend a Participant-Sponsored
Session--or sponsor one yourself! These sessions are conducted by participants who want to
express their ideas in a lecture, workshop, or performance; last year, they ran the gamut
from dancing lessons to object-oriented programming to the ethics of taking risks.
Thursday night's "In Performance" will showcase the
talents of our participants. If you're a musician, comic, actor, dancer, stage manager, or
director, this is the night for you! Visual artists are also invited to show their works
during the week.
Every day, during free time on the schedule, you will find
participants in quiet conversation, or playing basketball, tennis, or volleyball.
Wednesday afternoon and evening are left open, giving you an opportunity to take advantage
of the many attractions in the Boulder and Denver areas--including mountain tours,
casinos, art galleries, and concerts. The Colorado Shakespeare Festival and the Colorado
Dance Festival are being held on the CU-Boulder campus and have performances scheduled
during the week of the Seminar, as does the Colorado Music Festival.
The Seminar begins with a Colorado cookout on Saturday
evening, July 6, and closes with a dinner and dance on Friday at the University Memorial
Center, an opportunity to celebrate the week and make plans to stay in touch.
For six years, the IOS Summer Seminar has provided far more
than lectures and classroom discussion. In fact, the comments heard most often from
participants have to do with the whole experience: the intellectual and emotional sum of
living through seven intense days of discovery and fellowship.
David Kelley, Ph.D.
("G") The Logical Structure of Objectivism (3 lectures)
The integrated character of Objectivism as a philosophical
system is one of its most important features. Why is integration important? What are the
real foundations of the system? What roles do deductive and inductive reasoning play?
Which principles of Objectivism are central and which are peripheral? Which are subject to
modification? In answering these questions, David Kelley will use the diagramming tools of
logical analysis to outline relationships among the central principles of Objectivism. Dr.
Kelley, the Institute's executive director, has taught philosophy at Vassar College and
Brandeis University and lectured frequently on principles of Objectivism. He is the author
of The Art of Reasoning, a widely used logic textbook.
Nathaniel Branden, Ph.D.
("G") Objectivism and the Psychology of Self-Esteem (2 lectures)
Self-esteem is one of the cardinal values of Objectivism.
Nathaniel Branden will discuss the relationship between the philosophy and the psychology
of self-esteem, emphasizing his recent work on taking responsibility and living
consciously in all areas of one's life. A practicing psychotherapist and prolific writer,
Dr. Branden is a pioneer in the study of self-esteem. He is the author of The
Psychology of Self-Esteem, The Six Pillars of Self-Esteem, and other works; and
recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Council of Self-Esteem. His
most recent book is Taking Responsibility: Self-Reliance and the Accountable Life.
David Ross, Ph.D.
("G") Knowing What We're Talking About (2 lectures)
Ayn Rand emphasized the importance of definitions for
rational thought. Yet the techniques for constructing definitions are often neglected, and
rarely done well, even by those who understand their importance. David Ross will show why
taking personal responsibility for defining our concepts allows us to make an idea
genuinely our own, providing cognitive efficacy in our own thinking and in argument with
others. He will discuss the nature and methods of definition, and standards for deciding
which concepts it is most important to define. A senior research scientist at Eastman
Kodak Research Labs, Dr. Ross has taught mathematics at New York University and the
University of Rochester. He lectured on the philosophical foundations of mathematics at
the 1992 and 1994 IOS Summer Seminars.
William Clark
("A") The Prisoner's Dilemma and the Objectivist Ethics
According to many contemporary moral philosophers, the
thought experiment known as "The Prisoner's Dilemma" shows that the pursuit of
rational self-interest is self-defeating. William Clark will carefully examine the
Prisoner's Dilemma, its role in contemporary moral theory, and the Objectivist response to
it. Mr. Clark is a Ph.D. candidate in philosophy at the University of California at Davis,
currently writing his dissertation on "Self-Interest and Morality." A graduate
of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, he lectured on musical theory at the 1995 IOS
Summer Seminar.
Kenneth J. McLaughlin, Ph.D.
("A") Comparing Social Alternatives: Social Welfare and the Tribal Premise
Does capitalism promote the common good? Kenneth McLaughlin
will explain why society as such does not have a "good," and will propose a
proper standard of evaluating social alternatives. He will show how to embrace the results
of free-market economists without adopting what Ayn Rand called the "tribal
premise." Dr. McLaughlin is a professor of economics at Hunter College and the
Graduate Center of the City University of New York. A specialist in labor economics and
applied microeconomics who has published extensively in professional journals, he has also
taught at the University of Rochester and University of Michigan.
William R. Thomas, M.A.
("A") Rights, Egoism, and the Trader Principle
Philosophers have criticized Ayn Rand's formulations of her
theory of rights on a variety of grounds. After briefly describing these criticisms,
William Thomas will reconstruct the Objectivist approach to rights. He will show how a
consistently egoist approach can solve the existing technical problems, including concerns
about presupposing property rights and relying on hasty inductive generalizations. A
doctoral student in economics, Mr. Thomas has participated in numerous advanced Institute
seminars in philosophy.
Susan Dawn Wake, M.A.
("A") Aquinas and Rand: What Do We Know and How Do We Know It?
Thomas Aquinas is credited with laying the intellectual
foundations for the Renaissance by defending a basically Aristotelian account of reality
and reason. Susan Dawn Wake will examine Aquinas's achievement, and his limitations, by
focusing on the similarities and differences between his epistemology and that of
Objectivism. Ms. Wake is a professor of philosophy at Saint Mary's University, where she
teaches logic, rhetoric, and the history of philosophy. She is completing her doctoral
dissertation for the University of Waterloo.
Kenneth Livingston, Ph.D.
("A") Concepts: Objectivist Theory and Psychological Evidence
The recent explosion of empirical work on the nature of
concepts and concept-formation has important implications for the Objectivist theory of
concepts. Kenneth Livingston will integrate the research literature with Objectivist
theory and suggest directions for future work, both empirical and theoretical. Dr.
Livingston is a professor of psychology and founding member of the Cognitive Science
Program at Vassar College. In addition to his own experimental work on concepts, he has
published papers on theoretical aspects of cognitive research.
David Kelley, Ph.D.
("A") Concepts and Propositions
A proposition is the integration of concepts into a complete
thought. David Kelley will discuss the epistemological issues involved in extending the
Objectivist theory of concepts to the nature of propositions. Dr. Kelley is the author of The
Evidence of the Senses and other works in epistemology, and has recently taught an
Institute cyberSeminar on this subject.
David N. Mayer, Ph.D.
("G") Origins of the Constitution and Bill of Rights (2 lectures)
David Mayer will discuss the origins of the Constitution and
Bill of Rights, placing the philosophical foundations of the founding documents in
historical context. He will trace the idea of a constitution to the notion of "higher
law" in English legal thought, showing how the Founders solved the problem of
institutionalizing checks on abuses of governmental power and why the Bill of Rights was
added to the Constitution. He will also include a brief summary of the original meaning of
key amendments. Dr. Mayer is a professor of law and history at Capital University in
Columbus, Ohio, where he teaches courses in American constitutional history, English and
American legal history, and intellectual property. He is the author of The
Constitutional Thought of Thomas Jefferson.
Edward L. Hudgins, Ph.D.
("G") Individualism and Civil Society
What are the requirements of a voluntary, individualist
community, as opposed to the coercive communities proposed by collectivists? Edward
Hudgins will discuss the virtues, habits, dynamics, and institutions of a truly civil
society. Dr. Hudgins is the director of regulatory studies at the Cato Institute in
Washington, DC. He earned a Ph.D. in political philosophy from the Catholic University of
America, with a dissertation on "The Political and Ethical Implications of Mises'
Praxeology." He has taught at the University of Maryland and the Catholic University
of America.
David Schmidtz, Ph.D.
("G") Welfare vs. Responsibility
The raw emotional salience of hunger and misery makes it easy
for people to lose their grip on economic and philosophical abstractions and uncritically
accept fallacies that seemingly provide the welfare state with a moral foundation. David
Schmidtz will examine some of those fallacies, and discuss voluntarist alternatives to
welfare state institutions. Dr. Schmidtz is a professor of philosophy and of economics at
the University of Arizona. He is author of The Limits of Government: An Essay on the
Public Goods Argument, Rational Choice and Moral Agency, and over two dozen articles
in professional journals. He has lectured extensively at universities in five countries,
as well as IOS Summer Seminars in 1991 and 1994.
William R. Thomas, M.A.
("G") The Thriving Mixed Economy
Statist economic policies caused the Great Depression, misery
in the Third World, and the collapse of the Soviet Empire. Yet the Western economies have
continued to boom despite high levels of taxation and regulation. William Thomas will
discuss why the "free market" can survive surprisingly strong encroachments on
freedom. Mr. Thomas is a Ph.D. candidate in economics at the University of Michigan, where
he has also been an adjunct lecturer. He has received Mellon Fellowships for research on
Chinese state enterprises under economic reform, the subject of his doctoral dissertation.
Stephen Hicks, Ph.D.
("G") Success and Philanthropy
Successful business professionals often desire to engage in
philanthropy. Stephen Hicks will discuss ways in which this can be a healthy urge and what
principles should guide one's philanthropic decisions. Dr. Hicks is a professor of
philosophy and chairman of the philosophy department at Rockford College in Illinois. He
is currently writing a book on business ethics, a subject on which he has published and
lectured frequently.
Robert L. Campbell, Ph.D.
("I") Moral Development (2 lectures)
Psychological theorists of moral development such as Lawrence
Kohlberg and Carol Gilligan have had a major impact on moral education in primary and
secondary schools. Robert Campbell will examine the philosophical assumptions of these
theories, showing that they leave out important moral values and downplay moral
personality or moral character. He will outline an alternative research program in moral
development informed by the insights of Aristotle and Ayn Rand. Dr. Campbell is a
professor of psychology at Clemson University. He is the co-author of a recent
ground-breaking critique of contemporary moral development theory in Developmental
Review.
Kirsti Minsaas, M.A.
("G") Ayn Rand and Tragedy (2 lectures)
Kirsti Minsaas will discuss Ayn Rand's view of tragedy,
relating it to traditional theories of tragedy from Plato and Aristotle to Nietzsche. In
particular, she will focus on the relationship between tragedy as a literary genre and its
philosophical premises. Ms. Minsaas graduated from the Norwegian State Theatre School in
1974. She is currently a doctoral candidate in English literature at the University of
Oslo, Norway, preparing a thesis on Aristotle and Shakespearean tragedy. She lectured at
the 1995 IOS Summer Seminar on Ayn Rand's literary methods and achievements.
Laurence I. Gould, Ph.D.
("I") Einstein: The Individual and his Achievements
Albert Einstein was, in spite of some of his political views,
a firm believer in the value of the individual. His highly creative, far-ranging and
penetrating contributions to physics have enhanced both our understanding of nature and
the wealth of technology we enjoy. Laurence Gould will discuss what the layman should know
about Einstein's major achievements. Dr. Gould is a professor of physics at the University
of Hartford. He was twice a Yale Visiting Fellow, has lectured and published on physics
and its foundations, and, most recently, on physical bases of brain theory.
R. Paul Drake, Ph.D.
("G") The Shape of Modern Science
Scientific research today bears little resemblance to the
vision of the lone scientist in his laboratory seeking to revolutionize human knowledge.
Is modern science a sham made possible by government funding? Or does science today
reflect instead the explosion of scientific knowledge? R. Paul Drake will examine the
factors that have shaped modern science. Dr. Drake left the Livermore National Laboratory
this year, where he was director of the Plasma Physics Research Institute, to join the
College of Engineering at the University of Michigan. He has authored more than 100
scientific papers in laser-plasma interactions and other fields.
David Ross, Ph.D.
("G") Workshop on Definitions (2 sessions)
In the afternoon workshops accompanying David Ross's lectures
on definitions, participants will examine good definitions and poor ones from various
fields, and practice methods for constructing definitions. The workshops will be run in an
informal seminar style, with attendance limited to 25. Participants will be encouraged to
suggest particular topics for discussion; final selection of topics will be based upon
these suggestions.
Kenneth Livingston, Ph.D.
("G") Teaching Values
This workshop is designed as a discussion of the kinds of
parenting styles and techniques that promote the development of good character traits in
children. Attendance will be limited to 25 to allow for discussion. Participants will be
encouraged to suggest particular topics for discussion; final selection of topics will be
based upon these suggestions. A professor of psychology at Vassar College, Kenneth
Livingston is a specialist in childhood development. His lecture "Raising Good
Kids" is available on audiotape from the Institute.
Marsha Familaro Enright, M.A.
("G") How Should We Impart Objectivism to Children?
How do we impart the ideas and values of Objectivism to
children at different ages without being authoritarian, condescending, or developmentally
inappropriate; and without inducing rebellion? Marsha Familaro Enright will discuss the
best means of communicating with children at different stages of development, focusing on
the explicit discussion of the philosophy with them. Ms. Enright is founder, Chairman of
the Board, and administrator of the Council Oak Montessori School in Chicago. She has
worked as a psychotherapist in private practice, and is founder and current organizer of
the New Intellectual Forum, an Objectivist discussion group in Chicago.
Edward L. Hudgins, Ph.D.
("G") Principles in Politics: How to Act While Avoiding Compromise
How is it possible for an Objectivist to work in politics,
which is often referred to as the art of compromise? Edward Hudgins will examine
priorities and essentials, instruments of action, and particular goals to show how one
avoids compromise by knowing exactly one's ends and the appropriate means. His analysis
will be applied to potentially compromising political situations. Currently director of
regulatory studies at the Cato Institute in Washington, he served previously as a senior
economist at the Joint Economic Committee of the U.S. Congress, working for now-Majority
Leader Dick Armey.
Robert Bidinotto
("G") Spreading the Word (2 sessions)
To communicate Objectivist ideas persuasively, we must
clarify our aims, our audiences, and our attitudes. Robert Bidinotto will show how such
issues affect the strategy and tactics of persuasion--and how we can "leverage"
Objectivist ideas for maximum cultural impact. A prolific writer and speaker, Mr.
Bidinotto and his work have appeared in hundreds of media outlets. His Reader's Digest
investigations on crime and environmentalism have earned him a national reputation.
Nell Robinson
("G") The Pursuit of Happiness
How do we identify the ingredients of personal happiness, the concrete values that give
our lives meaning and direction? How do we translate those values into purposeful action
and how do we keep our actions connected to our happiness rather than allowing them to be
driven by duty, guilt, fear, and the pressures of everyday life? Nell Robinson will lead
participants in exercises designed to provide the concrete experience of answering these
question for themselves in the context of their own lives and personal goals. The workshop
will be limited to 20 people in order to allow active participation in all the exercises.
Nell Robinson is a theatrical producer, director, and
teacher. During the past 15 years, she has developed a series of workshops for nonactors,
using acting techniques as a means of exploring self-awareness, motivation, purposeful
action, and spontaneity. Her workshop "The Primacy of Happiness" was given to
great acclaim at Objectivism Today 1995.
The Advanced Seminar will meet each afternoon during the
week, for over nine hours of instruction. The Seminar will provide more intensive training
for advanced students and a critical review of new work on Objectivism. Some of the
sessions will involve commentary and discussion of lectures given earlier in the day; at
other sessions scholars will present new work in progress. Discussion will focus on the
relationship between basic principles of Objectivism and technical work in philosophy and
other fields. All sessions will be conducted in a seminar format, with active
participation encouraged. To allow for productive discussion, as well as individual
attention to students, participation will be limited to qualified students, teachers, and
other professional scholars. To apply for the Advanced Seminar, please complete the
relevant section of the application form. (The form is available from the Institute, send
your name and postal address by e-mail to ios@ios.org.) Candidates will be notified of
their acceptance by May 8, 1996
Conference Fee
Early registration (postmarked by April 29, 1996): $795 per
person includes over 30 hours of scheduled presentations, Seminar materials, lunch from
Sunday through Friday, coffee breaks, "In Performance," the opening cookout, and
the closing dinner and dance. The conference fee increases to $895 on April 30, 1996. The
applicable conference fee and any charges for on-campus accommodations (see below) must be
paid by check or international money order, in U.S. funds and drawn on a U.S. bank, made
payable to: Institute for Objectivist Studies. All participants will receive an
acknowledgment and additional information about suggested readings, etc., in May.
Sustaining Members, Sponsors, and Benefactors of the
Institute are eligible for a 10% discount on the conference fee.
Students: Full-time students and recent graduates (those who
graduated from a full-time program in 1994 or later) may attend the Seminar at the reduced
fee of $195. This fee is available through May 29 only.
Scholarships: A limited number of scholarships for the 1996
Summer Seminar are available to full-time students. There will be three levels of
scholarship: fee waiver, fee waiver + room and board (double occupancy), and fee waiver +
room and board (double occupancy) + a travel allowance. To apply, complete the scholarship
application section of the conference registration form and return it before April 5.
Scholarships will be awarded by May 8. We expect to offer a total of 16 scholarships, the
majority of which will be fee waivers only. Students who apply for a scholarship before
April 5 but who are not awarded one may still attend the Seminar by paying the $195 fee
before May 29.
Accommodations and other meals
Charges for accommodations and meals as described below are
not included in the basic conference fee. Arrangements for on-campus accommodations can be
made through the Institute until June 5. Two options are available.
Dormitories: Accommodations for seven nights (Saturday
night-Friday night inclusive) are available in the Kittredge dormitories, about a 5-minute
walk from the lecture halls. The price is $355 per person for single occupancy, $225 per
person for double occupancy. The price includes breakfast each morning (Sunday through
Saturday) and dinner on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday. Payment of these charges
should be included with the conference fee. Scholarship students will have until May 29 to
pay these charges. (If you are attending alone, you may request that you be assigned a
roommate.)
College Inn: A limited number of simple, on-campus hotel
rooms are available at the College Inn Conference Center. Located on the northwest edge of
campus, about a 15-minute walk from the lecture halls and a 20-minute walk from the
Kittredge dormitories, the College Inn offers air-conditioned sleeping rooms with private
bath, color television, telephone with computer modem jack, and desk. Weekly room rates
per person are $430 for single occupancy, $238 for double occupancy. Payment of these
charges should be included with the conference fee. These prices do not include the
breakfasts and dinners included in the dormitory meal package. College Inn guests may
purchase single meals on campus in the Kittredge Commons: Breakfast: $5.50, Dinner $9.00,
plus tax.
Extended stay option: Participants interested in extending
their stay by one night to take advantage of the many recreational opportunities in the
area may do so for an additional charge. One night may be added at either end of the
Seminar. Kittredge dormitory: $40 single occupancy, $20 double occupancy. College Inn: $62
single occupancy, $34 double occupancy. No meals are provided. Extensions must be
requested and paid for with the other Seminar fees.
Off-campus housing: There are many hotels located near the
CU-Boulder campus. For a list of local hotels and their room rates, please call the
Institute. Hotel guests may purchase single meals on campus in the Kittredge Commons:
Breakfast: $5.50, Dinner $9.00, plus tax.
Other fees
Transportation to the campus is the responsibility of
participants. On-campus parking for $15 per week is available to those driving to Boulder.
Shuttles, limousines, taxis, and buses operate between Boulder and Denver's International
Airport. Details will be mailed to registered participants.
While at the Seminar, the extensive recreation facilities of
the CU-Boulder campus, including swimming, tennis, and weight rooms, are available for use
by participants who purchase daily or weekly passes.
Cancellation policy
Written cancellation requests mailed prior to April 29, 1996
will receive a full refund; those mailed between April 29 and June 3, 1996 will receive a
refund of 60% of the full amount paid. All charges are nonrefundable after June 3, 1996.
|
