It Is Written

  Every rule in aviation is written with blood. Behind every regulation, some sensical, some pesky and oftentimes frustrating to follow, a life was lost as a direct result of flight. Flight training has evolved greatly since the Wright Brothers made their first flight near the turn of the 20th century; 80 years ago, you could simply purchase an airplane from a manufacturer (provided you had the funds), and legally operate it without any formal flight training. Today, the stipulations of flying an aircraft are much steeper, requiring a certain amount of logged flight hours with a proficient and certified instructor performing different tasks for the different degrees of licensing, each license awarded with the passing of a checkride. For many, the checkride is the first time they have been evaluated one on one. Failure rates are not astronomical, about 30% for people taking their private pilot checkride (the very first license a pilot can receive), but the failure rates are consiste...

In this essay, I will argue that the Kantian time presented as an a priori form of intuition is not compromised, but rather strengthened by Einstein’s theory of relativity. First, I’ll contextualize Kant’s writing in the Critique of Pure Reason with Newtonian absolute time. Here, I’ll mainly reference Robert DiSalle’s Understanding Space-Time to explain Newtonian absolutism. Then, I’ll explicate in detail the Kantian form of time as outlined in the Transcendental Aesthetic section of the Critique . Next, I’ll describe Einsteinian relativity and its associated observer-dependance. Following this, I will meditate on the interplay between relativity and the Kantian form of time, suggesting that relativity is an empirical development that both presupposes and reinforces the Kantian transcendental temporal ideality. In this last section I will reference both Thomas Ryckman’s The Reign of Relativity: Philosophy in Physics 1915-1925 and Michael Friedman’s Kant and the Exact Sciences , in...

In this essay, I will argue that the pursuit of Solar Radiation Management (SRM), a form of geoengineering proposed to combat climate change, is unethical and should be avoided. To support my argument, I’ll reference Gardiner’s “Geoengineering and Moral Schizophrenia,” Horton & Kieth’s “Solar Geoengineering and Obligations to the Global Poor,” and Chelsea Harvey’s “Geoengineering Is Not a Quick Fix for the Climate Crisis.” First, I’ll introduce Gardiner’s piece, particularly focusing on the concepts of “moral schizophrenia” and ethical shortsightedness. Her work will be foundational for the next part of my essay where I introduce Horton and Kieth’s essay; I’ll dismantle their arguments in favor of SRM and accept their challenge to “demonstrate that SRM would violate principles of global… justice.” Having introduced the philosophical texts, I’ll use Harvey’s piece to explain the hazards of SRM to aid in my discourse. By critically analyzing the arguments in favor of SRM, I’ll sho...