Johannes Persson
Lund University, Sweden
Spring 2007

Johannes is interested in explanation, metaphysics of causation, and philosophy of risk. Or, rather, maybe his main interest is in mechanisms? That concept has always an important role in his approaches to all three fields.

At the Center he will study some major contributions to theories of mechanisms and causation that people from Pittsburgh and surroundings have produced. The plan is to integrate results from this tradition with those of another interesting field of research, on the metaphysics of dispositions and powers.

Johannes is from Sweden and Lund University where he is a senior lecturer and chairman of the department of philosophy. For more information about his publications and other activities, please have a look at his homepage.

Johannes is fond of fishing and would be very happy if someone were to show him how a Northern pike or muskie is caught in Pennsylvania this spring.

June 2009

J. Persson. (in press). Semmelweis’s methodology from the modern stand-point: intervention studies and causal ontology. Studies in History and Philosophy of Biological and Biomedical Sciences.

J. Persson. (In Press). Mechanisms: Are activities up to the job? EPSA 07: Launch of the European Philosophy of Science Association. (Red.) Suárez, M., Dorato, M., and Rédei, M. Springer.

J. Persson och N.-E. Sahlin. (2009). A philosophical account of interventions and causal representation in nursing research: a discussion paper. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 46(4): 547-556. DOI: 10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2008.11.008

Blennow, K och J. Persson. (2009). Climate change: Motivation for taking measure to adapt. Global Environmental Change 19(1), 100-104. DOI: 10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2008.10.003

Sahlin, N.-E., Wallin, A. och J. Persson. (2009, online first). Decision Science: From Ramsey to Dual Process Theories. Synthese DOI: 10.1007/s11229-009-9472-5

August 2010

Part of this year Johannes has been on parental leave. When at work he has been thinking about mechanisms, the philosophy of risk, and his new interest: the philosophy of interdisciplinarity. He is arranging a workshop on the latter topic in October 11-13—Peter Machamer has promisd to come—and if you are interested in participating please feel free to email him.

Recent publications:

Persson, J. (2010). Activity-based accounts of mechanism and the threat of polygenic effects. Erkenntnis 72(1): 135-149. DOI: 10.1007/s10670-009-9195-5 open access

Sahlin, N.-E., Wallin, A. and Persson, J. (2010). Decision Science: From Ramsey to Dual Process Theories. Synthese 172(1): 129-143. DOI: 10.1007/s11229-009-9472-5

Persson, J. (2010). Mechanisms: Are activities up to the job? EPSA Epistemology and Methodology of Science: Launch of the European Philosophy of Science Association. (Red.) Suárez, M., Dorato, M., and Rédei, M. Springer: pp: 201-209. DOI: 10.1007/978-90-481-3263-8_17

Persson, J. (2010). Misconceptions of positivism and five unnecessary science theoretic mistakes they bring in their train. International Journal of Nursing Studies 47(5): 651-661.DOI: 10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2009.12.009

Vareman, N and Persson, J. (2010). Why separate risk assessors and risk managers? Further external values affecting the risk assessor qua risk assessor. Journal of Risk Research 13(5): 687-. DOI: 10.1080/13669871003660759

Sahlin, N.-E., Persson, J. and Vareman, N. (2010, in press). Unruhe und Ungewissheit – Stem Cells and Risks. Hermerén, G. and Hug, K. (Eds.). Translational Stem Cell Research: Issues Beyond the Debate on the Moral Status of the Human Embryo. Springer.

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