CV

Since April of 2018 to the present, I have been a PhD candidate and research associate for the Institute of Social Ethics at the University of Lucerne. The mainstay of my research endeavors is in the field of philosophy of technology and machine ethics, with special emphasis on ethics of artificial intelligence and ethics of digitalization. The third area of research that concerns me is what implications (if any) the mainstay of my research has for the very nature of philosophy; hence, metaphilosophy. Prior to the incipiency of my current professional endeavors, I was the editor and one of the contributing authors on a book with the thematic focus of history and philosophy of chemistry and chemical technologies of antiquity (Transmissionof Alchemy, 2017).

I am originally from Silicon Valley, California (USA), and my initial interest in philosophy was inspired by the plethora of natural scenery of my home state of California: mountains, forests, deserts, lakes, rivers, and the Pacific Ocean. All of this filled me with wonder, evoking a spirit of contemplation and intense curiosity, which led me inexorably to philosophy. I completed my BA degree at University of California, Berkeley in analytic philosophy, with particular emphasis on philosophy of mind and philosophy of science. During this time, I also supplemented my education with a focus on continental philosophy (esp. phenomenology and existential-phenomenology), psychology (esp. biopsychology & neuroanatomy and existential-phenomenological psychology), and mysticism & philosophical analysis (with special emphasis on the works of William P. Alston, Steven T. Katz, J. Krishnamurti, and Ninian Smart). Subsequently, I earned my first MA degree at University of Wisconsin, Madison whereat I focused on metaphysics, epistemology, and logic within the context of a program specializing in philosophy of science. During this time, I also taught (i.e., as a teaching assistant) critical thinking, formal logic (i.e., first-order logic), and ethics at the university whence I earned my degree as well as ethics at a local community college (Madison Area Technical College) as a part-time faculty member in philosophy. Afterwards, I earned my second MA degree at Yale University focusing on philosophy of religion, both medieval and contemporary philosophical theology, and analytic theology. At Yale University, I also worked as a teaching assistant in theological ethics focusing on the theology of poverty and the “option for the poor”. Drafts of key papers therefrom or on related topics can be found on my academia.edu page.

2010-2013
Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut
M.A.R. in Philosophy of Religion and Philosophical Theology (with special
emphasis on analytic theology and medieval theology)

2005-2010
University of Wisconsin Madison, Madison, Wisconsin
M.A. in Analytic Philosophy (foci: metaphysics, epistemology, logic)

1999-2002
University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, California
B.A. in Analytic Philosophy (with supplementary course work in Continental
Philosophy [esp. Phenomenology and Existential-Phenomenology], psychology & neuroanatomy)

Research

• Ethics of technology
  • Ethics of artificial intelligence (esp: “autonomous” artificial intelligence systems)
  • Ethics of digitalization (esp: Blockchain Technology)
• Metaphilosophy

Publications