Will Buckingham

A compendium of sketches, 1 to 6 pages each, of the work of 108 of the world's philosophers from 700 BCE to the present, plus a "directory" of one-paragraph descriptions of 59 additional philosophers. One striking thing, to my mind, is how "dark" the period from 250 CE to 1500 CE really was, with most Western philosophy being religion-drenched junk -- the Renaissance and Age of Reason arrived not a moment too soon. As far as relatively recent philosophy of science is concerned, there are no parts delving into interpretations of quantum physics or the concept of structural realism. Another shortcoming, I'd say, is the relentless referencing of centuries "ordinalistically" (e.g. "the 18th century" instead of "the 1700s") -- just because a practice is standard and commonplace doesn't mean it isn't also annoying and perverse.… (more)