Department of Philosophy
201 West Duke Building
Box 90743
Durham, NC 27708

p: 919 660.3050
f: 919 669.3060

Karen L Neander, Professor and Director of Graduate Studies    editKaren L Neander

Office Location: 210 West Duke Building
Office Phone: (919) 660-3050
Email Address: send me a message

Specialties:
Philosophy of Mind
Philosophy of Biology
Cognitive Science

Research Interests:
Karen Neander (Ph.D. 1983, La Trobe University) joined the Duke faculty in 2006. Previously she was professor of philosophy at the University of California, Davis.

Neander is the author of:

  • “Functions as Selected Effects: The Conceptual Analysts Defence” in Philosophy of Science, Vol. 58, No. 2, June 1991, pp. 169-184. Reprinted in Nature’s Purpose: analyses of function and design in biology, ed., by Colin Allen, Marc Becoff, and George Lauder, MIT Press (1997).

  • “Misrepresenting and Malfunctioning” in Philosophical Studies, Vol. 79, No. 2, August 1995, pp. 109-141. Excerpted in Function, Selection, and Design (The State University of New York Press) ed., by David Buller (1998).

  • “Content for Cognitive Science” in Teleosemantics, edited by David Papineau and Gary McDonald (forthcoming, Oxford University Press).

  • “The Division of Phenomenal Labor: A Problem for Representational Theories of Consciousness” in Philosophical Perspectives, 12: Language, Mind and Ontology, A Supplement to NOUS, edited by James E. Tomberlin (Blackwells, 1998), pp. 411-434.

  • “Types of Traits: The Importance of Functional Homologues” in Functions: New Readings in the Philosophy of Psychology and Biology, edited by Andre Ariew, Robert Cummins and Mark Perlman (Oxford University Press, 2002).

  • “Pruning the Tree of Life” in British Journal for the Philosophy of Science, Vol. 46, pp. 59-80, March 1995.

  • “The Teleological Notion of ‘Function’” in The Australasian Journal of Philosophy, Vol. 69, No. 4, December 1991, pp. 454-468. Reprinted in Function, Selection, and Design (The State University of New York Press) ed., by David Buller (1998).

  • “Swampman Meets Swampcow” in Mind & Language, Vol. 11, No. 1, March 1996, pp. 118-129.

  • “Fitness and the Fate of Unicorns” in Biology Meets Psychology: Philosophical Essays, edited by Valerie Hardcastle (Bradford, MIT Press; Cambridge, Mass: 1999) 3-26.

  • “Pictorial Representation: A Matter of Resemblance” in the British Journal of Aesthetics, Vol. 27, No. 3, Summer 1987, pp. 213-226.

Teaching (Fall 2009):
  • PHIL 255S.01, Top philosophy of mind Synopsis
    West Duke 204, Tu 04:25 PM-06:55 PM

Teaching (Spring 2010):

  • PHIL 112.01, Philosophy of mind Synopsis
    West Duke 08A, TuTh 02:50 PM-04:05 PM
  • PHIL 197S.01, Seminar philosophy (top) Synopsis
    West Duke 204, Tu 04:25 PM-06:55 PM

Recent Publications
  • K. Neander. "“Teleological Theories of Mental Content: Can Darwin Solve the Problem of Intentionality?”." Oxford Handbook of the Philosophy of Biology. Ed. Michael Ruse. Oxford University Press, 2007.   [abs]
  • K. Neander. "“Content for Cognitive Science”." Teleosemantics. Ed. David Papineau and Gary McDonald. Oxford University Press, 2006. 140-159.  [abs]
  • K. Neander. "“Naturalistic Theories of Reference”." The Blackwell Guide to the Philosophy of Language. Ed. Michael Devitt and Richard Hanley. Basil Blackwell, 2006.   [abs]
  • K. Neander. "“Biological Approaches to Mental Representation”." Handbook of the Philosophy of Science, Volume 3: The Philosophy of Biology. Ed. Mohan Matthen and Christopher Stevens. Elsevier, 2006. 561-77.  [abs]