about me
I'm Blake. I'm proudly nonbinary (pronouns they/them), bisexual, and disabled. I work in neuroethics, bioethics, applied ethics, and philosophy of religion. My work's unifying feature is the ethics of harm, a focus I developed as an undergraduate and on which I wrote my dissertation, "The Resurrection of Radical Pacifism: A Defense," at the University of Washington. Most recently, I've been writing about human neurological enhancements in military and parent-child contexts.
I am currently Postdoctoral Research Associate at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. I work with Drs. Nicholas Evans and Neil Shortland on a project funded by the Department of Defense's Minerva Research Initiative on the topic, "Warfighter Participation in the Development and Testing of Artificial Intelligence." You can read a write-up about our project over at FutureHuman, as well as details about our upcoming workshop, "The Ethics and Legal Significance of Super Soldiers," at the University of Pennsylvania's Center for Ethics & the Rule of Law.
I'm also Chair of the American Philosophical Association's Committee on LGBTQ People in the Profession. I recently published a co-authored piece in the local Lowell Sun responding to an anti-trans activist who spoke at UMass Lowell.
I'm Blake. I'm proudly nonbinary (pronouns they/them), bisexual, and disabled. I work in neuroethics, bioethics, applied ethics, and philosophy of religion. My work's unifying feature is the ethics of harm, a focus I developed as an undergraduate and on which I wrote my dissertation, "The Resurrection of Radical Pacifism: A Defense," at the University of Washington. Most recently, I've been writing about human neurological enhancements in military and parent-child contexts.
I am currently Postdoctoral Research Associate at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. I work with Drs. Nicholas Evans and Neil Shortland on a project funded by the Department of Defense's Minerva Research Initiative on the topic, "Warfighter Participation in the Development and Testing of Artificial Intelligence." You can read a write-up about our project over at FutureHuman, as well as details about our upcoming workshop, "The Ethics and Legal Significance of Super Soldiers," at the University of Pennsylvania's Center for Ethics & the Rule of Law.
I'm also Chair of the American Philosophical Association's Committee on LGBTQ People in the Profession. I recently published a co-authored piece in the local Lowell Sun responding to an anti-trans activist who spoke at UMass Lowell.
upcoming & recent talks
If you're a nice person who likes philosophy, then we're already friends. (And if you're queer, then we're already family!) Here's your invitation to some friendly philosophy chatter at some upcoming talks!
If you're a nice person who likes philosophy, then we're already friends. (And if you're queer, then we're already family!) Here's your invitation to some friendly philosophy chatter at some upcoming talks!
- New talks TBD!
- Friday, September 9th (5:00-6:30pm EST): Marist College, Department of Philosophy & Religion Colloquia Series (Poughkeepsie, NY) (Hancock 2023)
"A Simple Argument for Compulsory Parental Neuronetting" - Friday, September 23 (12pm EST): APA Webinar Panel w/Robin Dembroff, Sally Haslanger, Tamsin Kimoto, Dee Payton, Lori Gruen, and Lori Watson (via Zoom)
"The Status of 'Women' in the Committee on the Status of Women" - November 2-4 (untimed virtual session): International Neuroethics Society (Montréal, Canada, via Zoom)
"Not Left to Chance: Why Mandatory Neuroenhancements Don't Undermine Parental Autonomy" - November 10th (2:10-3:10pm Central): Of Christ and Creatures: Animals in Christian Theology, Saint Louis University (via Zoom)
"Why God Became (Only?) Human" - Wednesday, January 4th (11am EST): APA Eastern Division Meeting (Montréal, Canada)
"Marketing While Trans/Nonbinary" (co-presented with Andrea Pitts) - Saturday, January 7th (11am-12:50pm EST): APA Eastern Division Meeting (Montre2al, Canada)
"The Status of 'Women' in the Status of Women: A Discussion" (panel discussion with Lori Gruen, K. Bailey Thomas, Andrea Pitts, and Louise Antony)
