Assistant Professor
Sturm Hall 264
2000 E. Asbury Ave.
Phone: 303-871-2767
Email: marco.nathan@du.edu

Current research and projects

My main area of research is the philosophy of science, with particular emphasis on the fields of biology, psychology, neuroscience, and economics.  In the philosophy of biology, I have published various articles on how empirical advances in the fields of molecular biology, molecular medicine, and evolutionary theory reshape central concepts in general philosophy of science, such as causation, explanation, counterfactuals, dispositions, and unification.  In the philosophy of psychology, I have analyzed how advancements in neuroimaging ( focusing, in particular, on reverse inference ) can support and develop our current cognitive theories.  I am currently working on applying his views to the fields of neuroeconomics and decision-making. Specifically, I am writing a book on how the process of "black-boxing” works in the natural and social sciences. This monograph bring together, develops, and extends some of my views on biology, psychology, and economics.  I have recently co-edited a collection of articles, in collaboration with Giovanni Boniolo, entitled Philosophy of Molecular Medicine: Foundational Issues in Research and Practice, published by Routledge in 2017.

Professional biography

I joined the Department of Philosophy at the University of Denver in fall 2012 after completing a PhD in philosophy at Columbia University. In addition, I've held visiting appointment in the Foundations and Ethics of the Life Sciences program at the European School of Molecular Medicine, at the University of Urbino (Italy), and at the University of Macau. During my graduate studies, I held visiting appointments at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, and at the Laboratory for Stem Cell Biology and Pharmacology of Neurodegenerative Diseases at the University of Milan. In 2011, I was awarded the Harriet Zuckerman Dissertation Fellowship in the History, Philosophy and Sociology of Science by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and in 2013, I received the Columbia University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Distinguished Dissertation Award.

Education

PhD, Columbia University
MA/BA, University of Milan

Publications

• Philosophy of Molecular Medicine: Foundational Issues in Theory and Practice, Routledge, 2016 (forthcoming) co-edited with Giovanni Boniolo. A preprint of the introduction (including a table of contents and a list of contributors) may be downloaded here.

CV

A copy of my CV (pdf) can be downloaded here.