Department of Philosophy
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
My life before BGU:
I was born and raised in Israel. My academic career began at Bar-Ilan University, where I completed a bachelor's degree in philosophy and criminology. I got my master's degree in Philosophy at Tel Aviv University, with Prof. Anat Biletzki. I then continued to pursue a doctorate at the University of Pittsburgh under professors Anil Gupta, Hilary Putnam, John McDowell, Edouard Machery and Mark Wilson. After concluding my PhD studies, I took a research fellowship in Philosophy at Christ's College, University of Cambridge. From there I arrived back in Israel, to Ben-Gurion University, first as a Kreitman postdoctoral fellow, and now as a faculty member.
"I couldn't be happier to join BGU's Department of Philosophy. The Department is not only known as an outstanding department at the forefront of philosophical research, but also as a supportive, friendly place, where students, teachers and staff work together with dedication and comradery"
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My research:
My research has to do with sensory perceptions – mental states such as seeing the house across the street, hearing a bus go by, or feeling the touch of one's partner. Such sensory perceptions relate us to the external items we perceive, e.g., to the house across the street, the passing bus, or our partner. More generally, sensory perceptions relate us to the external world.
Almost miraculously, sensory perceptions relate us to the external world in at least four different ways. First, they involve sensations of external items. Second, they enable us to know and justifiably believe certain things about external items. Third, they allow us to think about external items that we were unaware of before. And fourth, they occur in us thanks to causal links between external items and our psychological systems.
My research deals with the question: What must the nature of these sensory perceptions be, if they can indeed relate us to the external world in these four ways? How should we conceive of our perceptions, if we wish to understand their ability to bridge between us and the external world? And how should we approach these philosophical questions with the aid of insights and findings from the cognitive sciences?
Why BGU?
I couldn't be happier to join BGU's Department of Philosophy. The Department is not only known as an outstanding department at the forefront of philosophical research, but also as a supportive, friendly place, where students, teachers and staff work together with dedication and comradery.
An insight from my research:
The soul extends beyond the body.
A Source of Inspiration:
Professor Ruth-Anna Putnam. An ethical, brave and dedicated woman. She taught me more than I can estimate.
