AMES, Iowa -- William Robinson, professor of philosophy, has been named Iowa State University's 2004-05 Distinguished Arts and Humanities Scholar by the university's Center for Excellence in the Arts and Humanities.
The Distinguished Arts and Humanities Scholar receives a semester free from teaching responsibilities to work on scholarly research. Scholars then present a lecture to the university community after their return to normal duties. Robinson's lecture will be during the 2005 fall semester.
Robinson joined the faculty in 1972. He teaches logic, 20th-century Anglo-American philosophy and philosophy of artificial intelligence. He served as chair of the department of philosophy and religious studies from 1991 to 1999.
His latest book, "Understanding Phenomenal Consciousness," was published by Cambridge University Press in May. His other books include "Brains and People" and "Computers, Minds, and Robots."
"In the 32 years Robinson has been at Iowa State, he has developed an international reputation as a scholar in the area of the philosophy of the mind, one of the most competitive and prestigious areas in our discipline," said Tony Smith, professor and chair of the department of philosophy and religious studies.
The Center for Excellence in the Arts and Humanities supports humanistic scholarship and artistic creation at Iowa State.