Colin Allen

Colin Allen served as Distinguished Professor of History and Philosophy of Science in the Department of History and Philosophy of Science at the University of Pittsburgh from 2017 to 2023. He earned his PhD in Philosophy from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1989 and his BA in Philosophy from University College London in 1982. Before joining the University of Pittsburgh, Allen held the position of Provost Professor of Cognitive Science and History and Philosophy of Science and Medicine at Indiana University Bloomington from 2004 to 2018, where he also directed the Cognitive Science Program and served as Director of Graduate Studies in History and Philosophy of Science. Earlier in his career, he progressed from Assistant Professor to Professor in the Philosophy Department at Texas A&M University from 1989 to 2004, including roles as Assistant Department Head. At Pittsburgh, he was Senior Visiting Fellow and Resident Fellow at the Pittsburgh Center for Philosophy of Science from 2017 to 2018 and 2018 to 2023, respectively, Affiliated Faculty at the Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, Co-Director of Graduate Admissions, and Department Webmaster. He also contributed to university committees, including the Provost's Data Science Task Force and faculty promotion committees.

Allen's research focuses on the philosophical foundations of cognitive science and neuroscience, particularly the scientific study of cognition in nonhuman animals and computers. His interests include philosophy of animal minds, cognitive ethology, animal cognition and consciousness, machine ethics, robot ethics, artificial morality, philosophy of cognitive science, and philosophy of biology. He has authored and edited key works such as Species of Mind: The Philosophy and Biology of Cognitive Ethology (1997, MIT Press, with Marc Bekoff), Moral Machines: Teaching Robots Right from Wrong (2009, Oxford University Press, with Wendell Wallach), The Cognitive Animal: Empirical and Theoretical Perspectives on Animal Cognition (2002, MIT Press, edited with Marc Bekoff and Gordon M. Burghardt), and Nature's Purposes: Analyses of Function and Design in Biology (1998, MIT Press, edited with Marc Bekoff and George V. Lauder). Additional publications include Logic Primer (3rd edition, 2022, MIT Press, with Mark Hand). His contributions have earned awards including election as Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (2020), Changjiang Chair Professorship from China's Ministry of Education (2017-2020), Alexander von Humboldt Research Prize (2010), and Jon Barwise Prize (2013). Allen has served as Associate Editor of the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy since 2001, President of the Society for Philosophy and Psychology (2008-2009), and delivered public lectures on topics like AI ethics and animal cognition.

Professional Email: colin.allen@pitt.edu