Professor Daniel Dennett may teach philosophy, but his research has not been limited to the traditional boundaries of the field. The professor's research into the nature and implications of Darwinian evolution has synthesized work from biologists, psychologists, artificial intelligence researchers, and economists, and has earned him Tufts' highest academic honor: University Professor.
One of only four professors in Tufts history to be given this honor, Dennett was nominated after his interdisciplinary research attracted the notice of faculty members. The honor, which was conferred by the Board of Trustees, was publicly commemorated when Dennett gave an acceptance speech on Dec 12. The keystone of the award, which current nutrition school dean Irwin Rosenberg has also received, is research that transcends the limits of an individual field.
"We created this position to honor people of enormous intellectual reputation and* impact," Provost Sol Gittleman said. "It's an honor; it's a position of status of eminence, a position that acknowledges what you've accomplished in your academic career."
Dennett's work has not only attracted the note of Tufts faculty, but also of leading researchers in other fields. A new anthology, published by the Cambridge University Press, features essays about his impact in other fields.
"Such enormous intellectual breadth is a little bit staggering," Gittleman said. "[Dennett] is one of the renaissance people of the faculty."
Dennett became interested in examining evolutionary theory and some of its extrapolations while in graduate school. He wanted to understand how the human mind and intelligence have developed over time.
But as he progressed, he realized that a thorough understanding of how the mind works biologically would be necessary. He began an informal study of neuroscience, along with the help of leading researchers in the field. His research was then able to dissect some inherent problems in then-current theories and models. Many of those theories examined how consciousness might have evolved with no consideration of the biological realities.
Dennett has published numerous books on this and related topics, including Consciousness Explained (1991), and Darwin's Dangerous Idea (1995). The books have drawn significant praise from experts in varying fields for both his ideas and his clear writing style. But not all evolutionists agree with Dennett's theories, and many creationists have denounced them. But the professor said he welcomed the criticism his books have drawn.
"It means I'm striking nerves," he told the Daily. "And if I'm not doing that, then I'm not doing my job."
In order to improve the exposition in his books, Dennett has used his seminars, made up of both undergraduates and graduate students, as "test beds" for his books. He said that most of the arguments and analyses he has published started out as discussions in his classes.
"I use the seminar I'm teaching...as an exploration of the residual problems people see," he said. "To find out what people are confused about and what they don't get, and to figure out how to do it better."
Dennett is working on a book called The Evolution of Human Freedom, which examines the nature of human freedom through a determinist lens. He discusses the nature of self, self-control, altruism, and cooperation, and how these phenomena developed over time. He said that the evolutionary perspective helps us understand how different we are from other animals, how we got that way, and why.
"I look at cultures themselves and how they have developed, because so much of human nature is culture borne, he said. "Children raised in different cultures share many features, and many things they share are due to culture, not to their genes."
