Philosophy

M.A. Students

 

Robert C. Baker rcbrhc@umsl.edu
I received my bachelor's degree in business administration in 1986 from Mercer University in Macon, Georgia. I then earned my master's degree in divinity from Concordia Seminary in 1998 and my master's in ethics from Creighton University in 2011. My current interests include ethics, healthcare ethics, and natural law. I am interested in philosophy because of the love of wisdom. Tts pursuit is what makes life meaningful.

Kyle Barrett ksbcmc@umsl.edu

Victoria White Berger vwbcp2@umsl.edu
I attended Duke University where I earned my bachelor's degree in philosophy. the University of Missouri in Columbia where I earned my bachelor's degree in philosophy. I am a professional executive in the non-profit area. I have long been reading philosophy and theology and have wanted to study formally for years.

Andy Bramman arb3z8@umsl.edu
Andrew BrammanI attended the University of Missouri in Columbia where I earned my bachelor's degree in philosophy. My primary interests are the history of philosophy, social and political philosophy, and normative ethics. I also have an affinity for Eastern philosophy, primarily the Taoist and Buddhist traditions. To my mind, philosophy presents itself as one of mankind's most promising avenues toward breaking the shackles of dogmatic thought and viewing the world from perspectives previously unimaginable. Forget solutions; pondering the deep questions of philosophical inquiry can be enlightening enough. As you may have guessed, academic research is not where I see myself taking my degree. I'd like to teach at the community college level, presenting the issues and problems of philosophy to people who have the inquisitive bent, but not the inclination to make a career (lifestyle?) out of it. The more people exposed to philosophical modes of thinking, the better. Maybe by developing the critical thinking skills of as much of the populace as possible, we can make some progress toward solving some of the major issues our society faces.

Amy Broadway albmb7@umsl.edu | Synesthesia Research
Amy BroadwayI received a bachelor's degree in English with a minor in philosophy from Southern Illinois University in Edwardsville, Illinois. After teaching English in China, I received a professional writing certificate from University of Missouri-St. Louis and worked in the communications department at The Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts. I began the master's program at UMSL in January of 2012. I'm interested in philosophy of mind, moral psychology, well-being, and the good life.
Abe Brummett abh8f@umsl.edu
Adam BrummettI have a B.S. with a double major in philosophy and sociology from Murray State University. I also hold an M.A. in history from Murray State University. My initial interest in philosophy came through doing the philosophy of religion in an undergraduate course at Murray. After grad school at Murray I traveled overseas and served in the Peace Corps where I lived on a tiny island in the Pacific (Kosrae) and taught philosophy at the College of Micronesia. I am just the kind of creature that likes doing philosophy, so practicing it makes life meaningful to me.

John Camacho jac68d@umsl.edu | Synesthesia Research
John CamachoI graduated cum laude with Advanced and Research honors from Georgia State University, earning a bachelor's degree in philosophy. My research interests are best understood as primary and secondary projects that keep me awake at night. Primarily, I constantly lose sleep over trying to explain normativity, generally. In my graduate career, I've worked on metaethics surrounding the following issues: Neo-Humean accounts of motivating reasons, normative reasons, reasons to be moral and rational. Recently, my obsession in metaethics has shifted toward the epistemology of testimony, specifically the debate between reductionist and non-reductionist theories of testimonial justification. The title of my thesis is "Knowing For: Shaping Theories of Testimonial Justification." Secondarily, I lose sleep over explaining the reliability, or unreliability, of first-person reports for synesthesia and experimental philosophy. Current interests involve interviews and other empirical work with synesthetes and explaining synesthetic experiences. I am a Ronald E. McNair scholar, which is a program designed for students from underrepresented groups and minorities to pursue a PhD.

Matt DeStefano madt42@umsl.edu | Synesthesia Research | Website
John CamachoI earned a bachelor's degree in philosophy from California State University in Sacramento. While most areas of philosophy interest me to some degree, I'm primarily interested in the philosophy of mind, philosophy of cognitive science, metaphysics, and philosophy of religion. My introduction to philosophy came through the bits and pieces I could find in various religious traditions and literature. When I found out there was an entire discipline devoted to exploring the human condition, I was hooked. When I'm not thinking about philosophy, I enjoy good stories (film, television, or literature), good company, and good craft brews.

Garrett Dimond ghdwy2@umsl.edu

Frank Faries frfp4f@umsl.edu
I received a bachelor's degree in philosophy from UMSL in 2011. My interests lie at the intersection of philosophy, psychology, neuroscience, and artificial intelligence. Specifically, I am interested in what kind of machines human beings really are, and what kind of human beings machines can be. After studying computer science and religious studies at a small liberal arts college (and growing fed up with the broke lifestyle of a college student financing his own education), I took a job selling voice/data network infrastructure with a local distributor. I had a successful five-year run with the company, but all the while the siren song of philosophy was beckoning. In 2010 I left the company to pursue my passion, my sights firmly set on a Ph.D. from the visionary institution willing to afford me the chance.
Mike Gage mg4fc@umsl.edu
Mike GageI attended Missouri State University where I earned my bachelor's of science degree and minors in philosophy and religious studies. I am primarily interested in philosophy of religion and political philosophy. I'm married with a young son, and being a father seems to have taken over my identity (and all of my free time). I think the only sort of meaning there can be to life are those imposed onto it by individuals who have formed some idea of their own meaning.

Jeffry Halbert jeffry.halbert@umsl.edu
Jeffry HalbertI graduated from Webster University with a bachelor’s degree in computer science and a minor in philosophy. I also earned a Certificate in Practical and Interdisciplinary Ethics from Webster University. While I enjoy a wide range of philosophical topics, I am currently interested in focusing on applied ethics. Of specific concern are questions pertaining to environmental, political, religious and business ethics, and the necessary interrelation of those fields. My interest in philosophy stems from my belief that we can all be “more” than what we currently are. Granted, the definition of “more” can differ drastically from one person to the next, but the important part is that no matter who we are or what we are doing, we have the potential to learn, to grow and to do “more,” both for ourselves and the world around us. I believe it is the study of philosophy that provides us with the tools necessary to reach that potential. When I’m not trying to be “more,” I enjoy singing, going to see live music, reading, ice hockey and relaxing with my family—Miro (cat) and Parker (dog).

Thomas Hobbs tjh9gc@umsl.edu
I received my bachelor's degree in philosophy from Bridgewater State University. I am interested in the relation between stoicism, existentialism and virtue ethics. I'm interested in philosophy insofar as it can help to live life well. Is there a meaning to life? Only that which we ascribe to it.

Shane Hughes shvff@umsl.edu
I hold undergraduate degrees in history and theology with minors in peace studies and gender and diversity studies from Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio. I am primarily interested in the history of philosophy, social and political philosophy, philosophical anthropology, and the intersection of eastern and western thought. What I really seek, however, is enlightenment, or perhaps just another excuse to think and read all day.

Kevin Kifer kckd3b@umsl.edu
Kevin KiferI completed my bachelor of arts degree in philosophy with a minor in history at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee. My research interests currently include philosophy of law, aesthetics, hermeneutics, and ethics. I became interested in philosophy as an undergraduate through contact with Hellenistic philosophy, and the pursuits of self-control and ataraxia are important to my conception of living well. In the future, I plan on applying to both law schools and PhD programs in philosophy.

Dongwook Kim dk5m5@umsl.edu

Kevin Lepore klvw9@umsl.edu | Synesthesia Research
Kevin LeporeI earned dual-bachelor's degrees in English and philosophy from Elmhurst College. My interests include the philosophy of mind, meta-ethics and philosophy of humor. I started reading philosophy in high school and decided to pursue an advanced degree in the subject after spending a semester reading philosophy at Oxford during the spring of 2009.

 

Bre'Anna Liddell bal7v3@umsl.edu
BreAnna LiddellI earned my bachelor's degree in philosophy from Saint Louis University. My interests include philosophy of mind, philosophy of art, philosophy of beauty, art and emotions and ethics. If my friends could describe me, they might call me the philosopher-artist. I am natural-born intuitionist-intellectual with an artistic side. I love to analyze things such as physical realities and abstract concepts as well as appreciating the natural beauties and calming pleasures of the world. As an example of a calming pleasure, I love to look at the bark of a tree and studying its intricate patterns, designs, and textures or I can look at fabric and appreciate the way shadows form in between its folds or even the ripples my cup of tea makes when I blow gently against its surface. I deeply enjoy anything antiquity and all things philosophy (with that being said, you can already expect that the art of sarcasm is a secondary language for me). I have a multiplicity of eclectic interests ranging from within from literature to astrology, from fine art to contemporary film, from history to mythology, from nature to the Universe, from Spirituality to Romantic Comedies. Pretty much, you name it, I am open to it.

Paul Maguire ptm7t3@umsl.edu | Synesthesia Research
Paul MaguireI graduated in 2011 with a bachelor's degree in philosophy from the University of Missouri in St. Louis. My interests began in philosophy of religion, but quickly evolved to include philosophy of science, philosophy of mind and cognitive science. Recently, I have been interested in political philosophy and questions concerning "personhood" and "freedom". I am currently a member of the St. Louis Synesthesia Research Team, where I am investigating aspects of person recognition.  I am also a teaching assistant in the philosophy department. Outside of UMSL, I enjoy playing music, gardening, riding bicycles and spending time with friends and family around a fire.

Kristian Marlow kristian.marlow@umsl.edu | Website | CV | Research | Blog
Kristian MarlowI graduated with a bachelor's degree in philosophy from UMSL in December, 2011 with background interests in computer science. I decided to continue on to complete my master's at UMSL before applying to Ph.D. programs. My current research interests include action theory, philosophy of mind, perception, synesthesia, and the effects of psychoactive drugs. I am President of the UMSL Philosophers' Forum, a member of the St. Louis Synesthesia Research Team, a member of the Center for Neurodynamics, and a member of Biological Bases of Behavior (BBOB). I also assist with maintaining the department website. I am currently working on several empirical research projects focused on blindsight, deaf-hearing, synesthetic pop-out, and psilocybin-induced synesthetic-like experiences. In my free time, I like to hang out with my cat, Morris. He's quite the copy editor.

David K. McGraw dkmq4f@umsl.edu
I completed my bachelors' in biochemistry, biotechnology, and philosophy at UMSL. My current interests include philosophy of science, philosophy of mind and social and political philosophy. I sincerely believe that every human thinks about philosophy, whether or not they know it as such. Having said that, I study philosophy in the hopes that I may come to some understanding about the role of philosophy in the daily life of a person living in the current age. For me, the pursuits of philosophy and the pursuits of a human being are one and the same; thus, I wish to bring this to the light of day by the light of my own reason.
Curtis Metcalf cjm2kf@umsl.edu
I earned my bachelor's degree in philosophy from the University of Colorado at Denver. My current interests include philosophy of religion, philosophy of law, social and political philosophy and ethics. I began my college career studying psychology and history, but soon discovered that what I really loved about those disciplines were the philosophy of mind and the history of philosophy, respectively. My current interests have drifted some from my original interests, but there is no doubt that what initially drove me to philosophy was my realization of how much philosophy was being done (or not done) in those history and psychology courses.

Sean-Karl Negron snq44@umsl.edu
I attended Stephen F. Austin State University where I earned my bachelor's degree in philosophy. My interests include ethical theory, primarily virtue ethics and the relationship between morality and self-interest. Given that I am something of a jack-of-all-trades, I have a strong desire to know and excel in many different areas. Philosophy provides me with an outlet for this. Also, to the chagrin of my family and friends, I have that annoying philosopher's habit of seeing a philosophical issue in everything. I hope to eventually get my doctorate and teach in order to instill in others my thirst and passion for knowledge.

Christopher Owen cjoy8b@umsl.edu
Christopher OwenI have a bachelor's of science in physics, a bachelors of art in mathematics, and a minor in philosophy. I received each from the University of Missouri-St Louis. My interests involve ethical theory and philosophy of mind. I want to pursue a Ph.D. in neuroscience or neuropsychology after I obtain my master's in philosophy. Toward that end, I work at Washington University in St Louis as a research technician.

Jordan Potter jgp359@umsl.edu
Jordan PotterI earned my bachelor's degree in philosophy from Greenville College in Illinois. My interests in philosophy are broad, but I am especially interested in ethics, the philosophy of religion, free will, and how all of these things are related. I am also very interested in political philosophy, the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche, and Modern Philosophy in general. To me, philosophy is about questioning the givens and taking nothing for granted. The type of deep, fundamental questions that philosophy asks has always intrigued me, and I think this is why I am so fond of the discipline. After completing my Master's Degree in philosophy, I am hoping to begin a PhD program or another Master's program, but I am not quite sure what I will be pursuing yet.

Philip Powe pap526@umsl.edu

Scott Prather stpxb3@umsl.edu

Kevin Rice krx84@umsl.edu | Synesthesia Research
Kevin RiceI earned by bachelor's in philosophy (with honors) and psychology at Simpson College. My interests include phenomenology, cognitive science, and aesthetics. "Oh let the sun beat down upon my face/ Stars to fill my dreams/ I am a traveler of both time and space. To be where I have been."

Nils Richards nsrmt9@umsl.edu
Nils RichardsI enjoy the engagement of many things outside philosophy. I prefer experience to academic constraints. This is what I call a ‘philosophy of life’. That said, my stake in philosophy concerns the ontology of explanation. The nature of explanation is not well understood, as evidenced by 20th-century philosophy of science, culminating in Hempel’s D-N model, which has crippled attempts to come to terms with true explanation ever since. We need to understand explanations as objective structures in the world, as Alberto Coffa argued in his 1973 doctoral defense. Related to this project is the thesis that ‘inference-to-the-best-explanation’ scientific realism entails mathematical realism insofar as the ontic structures of our best contemporary theories of physics are understood as purely mathematical and ontologically primitive. This is because mathematical structures are not representational tools for scientific theories, but account for gauge symmetries, space-time invariances, etc., in explanatorily powerful ways that are in no way products of our knowledge. I intend to drill for oil in North Dakota during the 2013-14 academic year. I have a background in classical languages and philosophy (B.A. University of St. Thomas, St. Paul, MN, Philosophy and Classical Languages).       

 

Caleb Sanders crsdtb@umsl.edu

Ayoob Shahmoradi asvf6@umsl.edu
Ayoob ShahmoradiI earned a master's of science in philosophy of science from Sharif University of Technology. My interstests include philosophy of mind and consciousness.

 

 
Mike Sigler mdsmnd@umsl.edu
Mike SiglerI have a bachelor's degree in philosophy. My interests include personal identity, free will, and social issues. If Monty Python cannot answer the question of what the meaning of life is, I don't see how I can do any better.

John Simpson asvf6@umsl.edu
John SimpsonI received my bachelor's degree in materials science and engineering at Carnegie Mellon University and my master's degree in journalism at the University of Missouri in Columbia. My current interests include philosophy of science, ethics, and ancient philosophy. I have a beautiful wife, Sara, and a wonderful six-month-old son, John Charles Simpson III. They have taught me about the meaning of relationships, patience and love. With JC III, I learn more and more about life each day. But the only thing I'm constantly aware of is that there is always more to learn.

 

Andrew Sucre asdh6@umsl.edu
I graduated from the University of Georgia with bachelor's degrees in philosophy and computer science. Afterwards, I attended Harvard Law School and practiced as an attorney before entering the philosophy master's program here at UMSL. My research interests center around ethics and the history of philosophy (particularly medieval philosophy and its antecedents), but extend to social and political philosophy, philosophy of law, and philosophy of religion.

Mike Tolliver mmtbrf@umsl.edu

Eric Wilcox etwtyf@umsl.edu
I earned my bachelor's degree in philosophy from the University of Missouri in Kansas City. My current interests include ethics, pragmatism and metaphilosophy. I am interested in what it means to live a good life. Is what is good always right, or vice versa? How does one become a good person? I am interested in using philosophy pragmatically, to help solve problems rather than (only) answer questions. I am interested in the future of philosophy and how it will evolve in the coming years. As philosophy changes, what ideas should we keep? What ideas do we need to leave behind?

Krista Wiley kjwcm3@umsl.edu | Synesthesia Research
Krista WileyI graduated with a dual bachelor's degree in english and philosophy from Elmhurst College. My intersts include philosophy of mind, metaphysics and philosophy of law. I became acquainted with philosophy through my interest in constitutional law and political theory. At Elmhurst College, I spent a lot of time thinking about theories of justice. I was specifically interested in legal exceptions for mentally ill criminal defendants. My research on mental illness sparked my interest in philosophy of mind. Recently, I have been thinking about the ontological nature of relations involved in mental processes. I'm looking forward to my second year at UMSL.

Scott Wilson smw99d@umsl.edu | Great Isaac Band
Scott WilsonI earned my associate's degree in liberal arts from St. Louis Community College and a bachelor's in philosophy from the University of Missouri in St. Louis. My research interests typically focus on environmental, animal, labor, and women's ethics. I tend to focus on the post romanticism writers and more so on practical application of these research fields. My research interests also carry me into different aspects of subculture and various fields of science and engineering. I've been born and raised in St. Louis, Missouri and currently live in South City where I am involved with a folk rock band by the name of "Great Isaac" as their banjo player. I've worked roughly ten years in a metal fabrication and machine shop as a machine operator, but have now started a part time job as an office assistant to a stock brokerage firm. Besides academics, my interests include the local community, dive bars, folk music, body mod/art, wolves, and animal/environmental activism. My interest in philosophy began when I first started researching environmental and animal ethics. I hope to some day use my skills and knowledge to either teach on those topics or to possibly work for a non-profit organization.

Tim Tung-Ying Wu twpk5@umsl.edu | Synesthesia Research
Yin ZhangI earned my bachelor's degree in law from National Taiwan University and my master's degree in law from National Taipei university before starting my master's in philosophy here at UMSL. My interests include metaphysics, philosophy of language, and philosophy of mind. I am also a member of the St. Louis Synesthesia Research Team and Treasurere of the Philosophers' Forum.

Saniye Yilmaz Topal syd49@umsl.edu

Yin Zhang yzgwc@umsl.edu | Blog
Yin ZhangI attended Peking University where I earned my bachelor's degree in philosophy. My interests include Greek and medieval philosophy. I became interested in philosophy after I looking for the meaning of life. I did not seriously love philosophy until I found the love of my life, a woman much more charming than Miss Piggy.