Christopher Pynes

Christopher Pynes, Professor of Philosophy

Education

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

Contact Information

Office: Morgan Hall 486
Phone: (309) 298-1467
Email: CA-Pynes@wiu.edu
Personal Web Page: http://faculty.wiu.edu/CA-Pynes

Guest Blogger at the Leiter Reports

Curriculum Vitae (pdf)

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

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)