Today I have had what ended up as half an article writing day, focused on a meeting with co-author Svein Tuastad on our article in process "Når gode råd er plagsomme" where we discussed a media study. So far this Autumn I have had 29 writing days including 13,5 article writing days.
Today I have given the twelth and final lecture in Ex.Phil. this Autumn, as part of the University of Stavanger´s bachelor degree in psychology. The topic was political philosophy, specifically political justice.
At the end of the lecture I was lucky enough to get flowers from the students, who thanked me for "fantastic lectures".
Today I have had a book writing day, with some 800 words added to my scientific monograph Captured: CCS and the fight for the soul of the environmental movement, in the main finishing the book´s preface. So far this Autumn I have had 28,5 writing days including 15,5 book writing days.
I have at some point this year done a peer-review for the jurnal Theoria (Wiley).
Today I have had an article writing day, with some 500 words added to the article "Friluftsliv in therapeutic residential care: Taking adolescents out to find a way in" which I co-write with Joakim Jiri Haaland.
So far this Autumn I have had 27,5 writing days including 13 article writing days.
By now, with 42.417 words written logged this year to date, I have written more in 2024 than in any of the five previous years except for 2020, when I wrote 84.739 words. So far this Autumn I have written more than 16.000 words altogether.
Today I have given the eleventh lecture in Ex.Phil. this Autumn, as part of the University of Stavanger´s bachelor degree in psychology. The topic was political philosophy, specifically political freedom. I also brought up aspects of US politics in this regard, as made pertinent by the presidential election results that are all over the news today.
Today I have had half a book writing day, with some 600 words added to my scientific monograph Captured: CCS and the fight for the soul of the environmental movement. By now I have written approximately a fourth of the book. So far this Autumn I have had 26,5 writing days including 14,5 book writing days.
Today I have given the fifth Ex.phil. seminar this Autumn as part of the bachelor in psychology at the University of Stavanger´s Department of social studies, in two rounds. Topics included source use in academic texts, and who´s exempted from moral and juridical responsibility.
Today I have had an article writing day, with some 100 words added to the article "Friluftsliv in therapeutic residential care: Taking adolescents out to find a way in" which I co-write with Joakim Jiri Haaland. I have also had a work meeting related to the article "Når gode råd er plagsomme Regjeringens holdning til ekspertråd i omstridte politiske saker" which I co-write with Svein Tuastad.
So far this Autumn I have had 26 writing days including 12 article writing days.
Altogether in October I had 11 writing days, whereof 6 book writing days and 5 article writing days, and logged 5.895 words written.
So far in 2024, I have logged 41.270 which is more than in the full year 2021 (41.178).
Today I have given the tenth lecture in Ex.Phil. this Autumn, as part of the University of Stavanger´s bachelor degree in psychology. The topic was political philosophy, specifically contractualism and related issues.
Today I have had a book writing day, with some 900 words added to my scientific monograph Captured: CCS and the fight for the soul of the environmental movement. So far this Autumn I have had 25 writing days including 14 book writing days.
So far in October, I have now logged more than 5.000 words written altogether, and I have now written more than 15.000 words this Autumn. For Captured all-time, I have now logged more than 18.000 words written, of which more than 11.000 words written this Autumn.
I currently have the following number of followers in Academic social media (I am most active on ResearchGate, where my publications are added regularly, with 94 research items currently listed, and LinkedIn):
Academia.edu: 866 followers (vs. 335 in 2015, 391 in 2016, 519 in 2018 and 657 in 2021)
ResearchGate: 472 followers (vs. 114 in 2016, 250 in 2018 and 269 in 2019)
LinkedIn: 753 connections (vs. 360 in 2016 and 429 in 2018)
All-time reads is currently 26.455 on ResearchGate (vs. 2.297 in 2017, 4.747 in 2019 and 10.590 in 2021) and 33.681 on Academia.edu (vs. 6.503 in 2015, 14.374 in 2019 and 23.300 in 2021). I have 186 recommendations on ResearchGate (vs. 9 in 2019). My current "Research interest score" on ResearchGate is 668.7, and they list 718 citations (vs. ca. 1.200 on Google Scholar, which lists 135 research items).
So, I´ve added about 200 followers on ResearchGate over the last 5 years, and about 200 followers on Academia.edu over the last 3 years, as well as 300+ on LinkedIn over the last 6 years. Meanwhile, I´ve had about 16.000 reads on ResearchGate over the last 3 years (and about 22.000 reads over the last 5 years), while on Academia.edu I´ve had about 10.000 reads over the last 3 years (and about 19.000 reads over the last 5 years).
On LinkedIn, my posts have gained 16.554 impressions over the last 365 days (+1,262.5%).
Today I have had an article writing day, with some 800 words added to the article "Når gode råd er plagsomme: Regjeringens holdning til ekspertråd i omstridte politiske saker", which I am co-writing with Svein Tuastad. So far this Autumn I have had 24 writing days including 11 article writing days.
Altogether I have now logged more than 14.000 words written this Autumn, and more than 40.000 words this year.
Today I have had a book writing day, with some 600 words added to my scientific monograph Captured: CCS and the fight for the soul of the environmental movement. So far this Autumn I have had 23 writing days including 13 book writing days.
So far in October, I have now logged more than 4.000 words written altogether. Also, for Captured all-time, I have now logged more than 17.000 words written.
Yesterday I took part in the Kåkånomics festival panel event "Har økonomer for stor makt over økonomifeltet?" (Do economists have too much power over the field of economics?) which took place at the ship M/S Sandnes at bay in Vågen, Stavanger. The panel was hosted by Karl-Fredrik Tangen and also featured Celine Brøndmo, Eirik Magnus Fuglestad and UIS colleague Torfinn Harding. The event was well attended, and I really enjoyed the discussion.
Today I have given the ninth lecture in Ex.Phil. this Autumn, as part of the University of Stavanger´s bachelor degree in psychology. The topics were views on humans, specifically consciusness, free will and issues related to determinism.
I have been scheduled to present at Dyreetikkonferansen 2024 (the Norwegian animal ethics conference 2024), which takes place at Litteraturhuset, Oslo, on Wednesday November 20th, with the theme "Er du bevisst dyrs bevissthet?" (Are you conscious of animals´ consciousness?). The title of my talk is "Hvordan er det å være et dyr?" (What is it like to be an animal?).
More info (in Norwegian) on the website of Norway´s Council for animal ethics.
The abstract for my chapter "Ecological Semiotics", which is part of the 3rd edition of Elsevier´s Encyclopedia of Ecology, was published online on October 19th.
https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-443-21964-1.00018-5
Abstract:
Ecological semiotics, or ecosemiotics, is the study of sign use by organisms in an ecological context. This chapter provides an outline of semiotic phenomena in ecology and sign processes at different levels of biological organization and explains how complexity can be understood in semiotic terms. It presents the basic theoretical outlook of ecological semiotics, with emphasis on lifeworld perspectives, particularly represented by the Umwelt theory of Jakob von Uexküll. Studies of sign use can help us to understand how sentient organisms interpret their environment and make choices that are informed by their sign use. In a more rudimentary sense, even plants, fungi and microorganisms have agency which can be framed in semiotic terms. The chapter also outlines the characteristics of sign use in different kinds of interspecies interaction. Finally, the relevance of ecological semiotics for human ecology is stressed. While ecosemiotics is amply informative applied to general ecology, it is especially pertinent in the context of understanding how human agency and sign use affects the environment at large. Ecological semiotics can help us understand how genuinely human sign use stands out from non-human sign use, and the ways in which human sign use is subject to cultural variation. Crucially, ecological semiotics can be informative with regard to understanding how human behavior and sign use affects non-human lifeworlds by triggering environmental change which is experienced in sign-mediated ways. This positions ecosemiotics to address issues of environmental sustainability.
There are now five people involved in the panel discussion I will take part in on Wednesday October 23rd as part of the economics festival Kåkånomics 2024. More info about the event here.
Today I have had an article writing day, with some 350 words added to the article "Friluftsliv in therapeutic residential care: Taking adolescents out to find a way in" which I am co-writing with Joakim Jiri Haaland. So far this Autumn I have had 22 writing days including 10 article writing days.
According to Google Scholar (cf. my profile), my research has to date attracted 1220 citations (+17 since September 26th). My h-index is now 20 (+1 since September 26th), and my i10-index is 37 (+1 since September 26th). This includes 151 citations so far in 2024 (+14 since September 26th).
With these numbers, 2024 to date is now my 3rd best year in terms of number of citations, surpassing 2021 (148) yet still behind 2022 (186) and 2023 (174).
An h-index of 20 means that 20 of my scientific texts have been cited 20 times each or more. The latest one to make it is "Introducing zoosemiotics: Philosophy and historical background" (2016), written by Timo Maran, Morten Tønnessen, Riin Magnus, Nelly Mäekivi, Silver Rattasepp and Kadri Tüür, which has been cited 6 times so far this year and 21 times altogether.
An i10-index of 37 means that 37 of my scientific texts have been cited 10 times each or more. The latest to make it is "Introducing biosemiotic ethics" (2015), written by Morten Tønnessen, Jonathan Beever and Yogi Hale Hendlin, which has been cited 3 times this year and 10 times altogether.
Today I have given the eight lecture in Ex.Phil. this Autumn, as part of the University of Stavanger´s bachelor degree in psychology. The topics were views on humans and specifically on the "I" and the human mind.
Today I have had a book writing day, with some 900 words added to my scientific monograph Captured: CCS and the fight for the soul of the environmental movement. So far this Autumn I have had 21 writing days including 12 book writing days.
So far in October, I have now logged more than 3.000 words written altogether, for the Autumn as a whole I have logged more than 12.000 words written, including more than 9.000 words on Captured.
I have just completed my review of 4 applications in phase 2 of Fondazione Cariplo´s scheme Young researchers Humanities & social sciences.
Today I have had half an article writing day and half a book writing day. Among other things, I contributed to proof-reading of the chapter "Mars as a Planet B?" for the book Mars and the Earthlings, and wrote some 400 words on my scientific monograph Captured: CCS and the fight for the soul of the environmental movement. So far this Autumn I have had 20 writing days including 11 book writing days and 9 article writing days.
Today I have had a book writing day, with some 350 words added to my scientific monograph Captured: CCS and the fight for the soul of the environmental movement. So far this Autumn I have had 19 writing days including 10,5 book writing days.
Altogether I have now logged more than 8.000 words written so far this Autumn on Captured, and more than 11.000 words altogether this Autumn.
Today I have had an article writing day, with some 700 words added to the article "Friluftsliv in therapeutic residential care: Taking adolescents out to find a way in", which I am co-writing with Joakim Jiri Haaland. So far this Autumn I have had 18 writing days including 8,5 article writing days. Altogether I have now logged more than 1.000 words written so far in October, and more than 3.000 words altogether on the mentioned article.
Today I have had half an article writing day, with some feedback given on an article draft by Ángel Sánchez Rodríguez titled "Relationship between Perceived Economic Inequality and Broad Concept of Well-being in 71 Countries", where I have been involved in data gathering in Norway as part of the "Live better" research consortium, and half a book writing day, with some 100 words added to my scientific monograph Captured: CCS and the fight for the soul of the environmental movement. So far this Autumn I have had 17 writing days including 9,5 book writing days and 7,5 article writing days.
Altogether I have now logged more than 10.000 words written so far this Autumn, and more than 15.000 words written on Captured from the outset.
Today I have had a book writing day with some 600 words added to my scientific monograph Captured: CCS and the fight for the soul of the environmental movement. So far this Autumn I have had 16 writing days including 9 book writing days.
Today I have given the seventh lecture in Ex.Phil. this Autumn, as part of the University of Stavanger´s bachelor degree in psychology. The topics were views on humans from biology and social sciences. We also had an "early dialogue" (tidligdialog) concerning evaluation of the course.
Today I have had an article writing day with work done on the second article on friluftsliv and child welfare which I co-write with Joakim Jiri Haaland. So far this Autumn I have had 15 writing days including 7 article writing days.
Altogether in September I had 6 writing days (3,5 book writing days and 2,5 article writing days) and logged 3.524 words written. So far this Autumn I have logged 9.302 words written.
I have been scheduled to take part in a panel discussion on the topic "Har økonomer for stor makt over økonomifeltet?" (Do economists have too much power in the area of economics?) during the festival Kåkånomics 2024, which is held October 23-26th 2024 in Stavanger, Norway. The panel is scheduled for Wednesday October 23rd at 9.30-10.30 p.m., and also involves Karl-Fredrik Tangen, social geographer at Høyskolen i Kristiania.
Over yesterday and today I have had half a book writing day (versus a full day planned, but the time was cut short yesterday due to annoyance with the UIS leadership), with some 350 words added to my scientific monograph Captured: CCS and the fight for the soul of the environmental movement. So far this Autumn I have had 14 writing days including 8 book writing days. By now I have written more than 7.000 words on Captured this Autumn, including 3.248 words in September over (only) 3,5 book writing days this month (vs. 4,5 planned).
According to Google Scholar (cf. my profile), my research has to date attracted 1203 citations (+7 since September 16th). My h-index remains 19, and my i10-index 36. This includes 137 citations so far in 2024 (+5 since September 16th).
It is about 5 monhts since I passed 1.100 citations, in late April, and about 10 months since I passed 1.000 citations.
See also:
Google Scholar: 1.100 citations (April 22, 2024)
Google Scholar: 1000 citations; updated Google Scholar history (December 5, 2023)
Today I have contributed to proof-reading of chapters 4 and 8 of Mars and the Earthlings, which is in production.
Today I have given the sixth lecture in Ex.phil this autumn, at Department of social studies, and my second and final lecture in the theory and methods of science course MEE125 at Department of media and social sciences. The topcs were ethics of proximity, moral development etc. in the former and phenomenology in the latter.
I have previously mentioned that I am listed as a co-author of an article that was work-titled "Expression of Positive Emotions Links to Independent Selfhoods, Globally with Minor Exceptions Only: Findings from Two Macro-Psychological Studies". The article now has a new title: "Does Expressing Positive Emotions Reflect Independent or Interdependent Models of Selfhood? Searching for Latin American ‘Expressive Interdependence’ in Two Global Studies." The article has now been submitted to Psychological Science.
See also:
Today I have given the fifth lecture in Ex.Phil. this term, as part of the University of Stavanger´s bachelor degree in psychology. The topics were utilitarianism and duty ethics.
Sometime earlier this year I have done a peer-review for Humanities & Social Sciences Communications.
Today I have attended the digital full day meeting of Norway´s Council for animal ethics, held online due to a lack of funds. Among the topics were the council´s work with a consultative statement on Norway´s Government Pension Fund Global and their investment in international food business, which I have coordinated and led.
According to google Scholar (cf. my profile) my research has to date attracted 1.196 citations (+24 since July 27th), including 132 citations so far this year (+15 since July 27th). My h-index remains 19, and my i10-index 36.
The book Semiotic agency: Science beyond mechanism, which I co-authored with Alexei Sharov, has 77 citations, 40 of which in 2024.
My journal article "Wasted GDP in the USA", published October 2023, has now reached 12.000 accesses, according to the publisher´s article website. It remains my second-most read article after "The ethics of laying hen genetics" (2019) which has had 14.000 accesses.
I am listed as a co-author of the journal article "Expression of Positive Emotions Links to Independent Selfhoods, Globally with Minor Exceptions Only: Findings from Two Macro-Psychological Studies" (Kuba Krys), which is about to be submitted to Psychological Science. I am involved due to my role concerning data gathering in Norway in the Live Better project.
Today the second seminar in Ex.Phil. this term, as part of the University of Stavanger´s bachelor degree in psychology, was given by Maria Mjaaland Sele (it was prepared by me). Among the topics were a compulsory written assignment.
Meanwhile, I was in Grimstad attending the funeral of my aunt Unni Mirjam Hellerslia.
Today I have had half an article writing day, and half a book writing day, with some 950 words added to my scientific monograph Captured: CCS and the fight for the soul of the environmental movement and 200 words to the article on Norwegian democracy I co-write with Svein Tuastad. So far this Autumn I have had 11,5 writing days including 6 book writing days and 5,5 article writing days, and written about 6.000 words on Captured and more than 8.000 words altogether.
Today I gave a first lecture in the master course "Philosophy of science and research methods" (MEE125), which is offered to students in three master programmes at the University of Stavanger´s Department of media and social sciences. The topics were human ecology and animals, specifically building on the Anthropocene concept, a chapter in our book Semiotic agency: Science beyond mechanism, and Gibson´s affordance theory.
Today I have given the fourth lecture in Ex.Phil. this term, as part of the University of Stavanger´s bachelor degree in psychology. The topics were metaethics and virtue ethics.
Today I have had a book writing day, with some 1.200 words added to my scientific monograph Captured: CCS and the fight for the soul of the environmental movement. So far this Autumn I have had 10,5 writing days including 5,5 book writing days and 5 article writing days, and written more than 5.000 words on Captured.
Yesterday, September 5th, I was interviewed live on Norwegian national radio as a guest in the program "Studio 2" which airs on NRK P2, under the headline "Hvorfor blir vi så glade i kjendisdyra?" (Why are we so fond of celebrity animals?). Program host was Einar Lie Slangsvold. The interview ran for 14-15 minutes. The specific occasion for the interview was that the white whale nick-named "Hvaldimir" was found dead on the Norwegian coast about a week ago.
Today I have had half an article writing day, devoted to proof-reading my chapter for Elsevier´s forthcoming 3rd edition of Encyclopedia of Ecology, "Ecological Semiotics". So far this Autumn I have had 9,5 writing days including 5 article writing days and 4,5 book writing days.
Today I have given a lecture on environmental ethics, particularly climate ethics, in the University of Stavanger´s bachelor course "Bærekraft og grønn omstilling" (Sustainability and green transition). Some 25 students attended.
Today I have given a lecture on environmental philosophy in the University of Stavanger´s bachelor course "Bærekraft og grønn omstilling" (Sustainability and green transition).
Lately I have taken part in the grading and assessment of 2 oral exams in the University of Stavanger´s master thesis course in social work, in the capacity as internal examiner.
Biosemiotics´ special issue "Umwelt theory and phenomenology", which is guest-edited by Carlo Brentari and me, has now been published as volume 17, issue 2 of the journal. The special issue features an editorial and 15 original research articles, and spans over pp. 265-585 of volume 17 (321 pp).
Updated, complete references:
— Brentari, Carlo & Morten Tønnessen (2024). Introduction to the Special Issue ‘Umwelt Theory and Phenomenology’. Editorial. Biosemiotics 17(2): 265–272. Published online July 19th 2024. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12304-024-09583-w
— Brentari, Carlo & Morten Tønnessen (guest editors, 2024). “Umwelt theory and phenomenology”. Special issue of Biosemiotics, vol. 17, no. 2 (August 2024). https://link.springer.com/journal/12304/volumes-and-issues/17-2
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The issue also contains 9 more articles which are not part of the special issue. This includes my correspondence text "Understanding subjecthood and experience", first published online in March. Updated and complete reference:
— Tønnessen, Morten (2024). Understanding subjecthood and experience. Correspondence. Biosemiotics 17(2): 733–735. Published online March 15th 2024. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12304-024-09557-y
Today I have given the first Ex.Phil. seminar this term, in two rounds, as part of the University of Stavanger´s bachelor degree in psychology. The topics included summary of content from the first two lectures, a question session, oral discussions, and written exercises.
Today I have had half an article writing day, devoted to an article on Norwegian democracy that I co-write with Svein Tuastad. So far this Autumn I have had 9 writing days including 4,5 article writing days and 4,5 book writing days.
Altogether in August I logged 9 writing days and 5.779 words written.
Today I have given the second lecture in Ex.Phil. this term, as part of the University of Stavanger´s bachelor degree in psychology. The topics were epistemology and critical thinking.
Today I have had a book writing day, with some 600 words added to my book manuscript Captured: CCS and the fight for the soul of the environmental movement. So far this Autumn I have had 8,5 writing days including 4,5 book writing days and 4 article writing days.
Today I have taken part (digitally) in the roundtable "The Human-Environmental Relationships in Critical Period of Crisis", convened by Matteo Sartori & Julia Prakofjewa, on the last day of the 4th World Congress in Environmental History, which has been held in Oulu, Finland and online August 19-23rd. My brief introduction was related to my article “Anticipating the societal transformation required to solve the environmental crisis in the 21st century”; I also took part in the discussion. Some 10 people attended physically and online altogether.
Today I have had half an article writing day, with some 250 words added to the article "Friluftsliv in therapeutic residential care: Taking adolescents out to find a way in" which I co-write with Joakim Jiri Haaland. So far this Autumn I have had 7,5 writing days including 4 article writing days and 3,5 book writing days.
Today I gave the first lecture this Autumn in Ex.phil. for students in the University of Stavanger´s bachelor in psychology. Besides giving an overview of the course, the topic was epistemology.
Today I have made the last few edits in my revision of the article "Applied Umwelt theory in the context of phenomenological triangulation and descriptive phenomenology", with some 100 words added to the text. I have now resubmitted the manuscript to Sign Systems Studies.
Today I have had half an article writing day, with some 450 words added during the revision of my article "Applied Umwelt theory in the context of phenomenological triangulation and descriptive phenomenology". So far this Autumn I have had 7 writing days including 3,5 article writing days and 3,5 book writing days.
Here is an overview of presentations and events incvolving scholars from The Greenhouse - Center for Environmental Humanities at the Fourth World Congress of Environmental History (WCEH4), held August 19-23rd at University of Oulu, Finland and online with the theme “Transitions, transformations and transdisciplinarity: Histories beyond history”.
Today I have presented my paper "The study of past Umwelten" at The Fourth World Congress of Environmental History (WCEH4), held August 19-23rd at University of Oulu, Finland and online with the theme “Transitions, transformations and transdisciplinarity: Histories beyond history”, specifically in session 2 of the panel “Environmental biography as a methodological challenge”. About 15 people attended altogether.
See also:
Discipline Filosophiche special issue on Uexküll now published, with "The study of past Umwelten"
Theis year I have done a peer-review for the Slovak academic journal Philozofia.
Yesterday I gave my plenary talk "The crisis of mechanistic science seen through the lens of the nature crisis" at The Fifth Conference of the International Association for Cognitive Semiotics, with the theme “Crises of meaning”, organised at Division of Cognitive Semiotics at the Centre for Language and Literature at Lund University, in Lund, Sweden (August 15-17th). Some 50-60 people attended.
Today I have had an article writing day devoted to the article "Friluftsliv in therapeutic residential care: Taking adolescents out to find a way in" which I co-write with Joakim Jiri Haaland, with some 300 words written in net terms. So far this Autumn I have had 6,5 writing days including 3 article writing days and 3,5 book writing days, with more than 4.000 words written altogether.
Today I have had a book writing day devoted to work on my scientific monograph Captured: CCS and the fight for the soul of the environmental movement, #3,5 this Autumn, with some 650 words written. So far this Autumn I have had 5,5 writing days including 2 article writing days.
The plenary addresses at The Fifth Conference of the International Association for Cognitive Semiotics (IACS-5), to be held in Lund, Sweden, August 15-17th with the conference theme "Crises of meaning", will be broadcast live over Zoom. All six are listed with their respective Zoom links in this document.
My Plenary Address “The crisis of mechanistic science seen through the lens of the nature crisis” is held Friday August 16th at 17:15-18:15, and can be followed live online by using this Zoom link.
Today I have had half a book writing day devoted to work on my scientific monograph Captured: CCS and the fight for the soul of the environmental movement, #2,5 this Autumn, with some 550 words written. So far this Autumn I have had 4,5 writing days including 2 article writing days.
Today I have had half an article writing day devoted to the revision of my article "Applied Umwelt theory in the context of phenomenological triangulation and descriptive phenomenology", with some 150 words written in net terms. So far this Autumn I have had 4 writing days including 2 article writing days and 2 book writing days.
Abstracts of the six plenary talks for the 5th conference of the International Association for Cognitive Semiotics have now been shared online.
These include:
Elena Cuffari: "Autonomy, participation, and sense-making as sites of crisis: studying the technopolitical situatedness of linguistic bodies"
Hans-Georg Moeller: "The Crisis of Authenticity: Meaning under Conditions of "Profilicity""
Cornelia Müller: "Multimodality and aesthetic experience: How feeling guides the ways we make sense"
Jamin Pelkey: "The birth of wild meaning: Facing crises of alienation and disenchantment"
Komarine Romdenh-Romluc: "Break-downs and times of crisis"
Morten Tønnessen: "The crisis of mechanistic science seen through the lens of the nature crisis"
I have been notified that my chapter "Ecological semiotics" has been accepted for publication in the 3rd edition of Elsevier´s Encyclopedia of Ecology (forthcoming in 2024/2025).
Today I have had a book writing day devoted to work on my scientific monograph Captured: CCS and the fight for the soul of the environmental movement, #2 this Autumn, with some 800 words written. So far this Autumn I have had 3,5 writing days including article writing days.
Today I have had an article writing day devoted to revising my article for a special issue of Sign Systems Studies and titled "Applied Umwelt theory in the context of phenomenological triangulation and descriptive phenomenology", with some 400 words written. So far this Autumn I have had 2,5 writing days.
Today I have had a book writing day devoted to work on my scientific monograph Captured: CCS and the fight for the soul of the environmental movement, with some 1.150 words written. So far this Autumn I have had 1,5 writing days.
Today I have had half an article writing day devoted to work on my second Henrik Steffens chapter, "Steffens´ early outlook reconsidered: Nature conceptions of the industrial-age Anthropocene", with some 200 words written. This is my first (half) writing day this Autumn, on my first day back at work.
Today I was interviewed live on regional radio, in the NRK P1 program "Lokalen" by NRK Rogaland. The interview was featured under the headline «Har ulven alltid vært skummel? Filosof Morten Tønnessen» (Has the wolf always been scary? Philosopher Morten Tønnessen). The journalists in the studio was Jostein Gjertsen and Øystein Otterdal. The context for the interview is that a wolf is currently in the south of the region and has reportedly killed three sheep.
The interview can be heard here, at 02.12.47-02.18.44.
According to Google Scholar (cf. my profile) my research has to date attracted 1.172 citations (+17 since June 29th), including 117 citations so far in 2024 (+16 since June 29th). My h-index remains 19, and my i10-index 36.
I noticed a hickup in the system: My recent article "Wasted GDP in the USA" (2023) was previously registered by Google Scholar, but had now fallen out, and I had to add it manually.
The introduction to the special issue of Biosemiotics ‘Umwelt Theory and Phenomenology’, written by Carlo Brentari and me, has just been published online.
Reference:
Carlo Brentari and Morten Tønnessen 2024. Introduction to the Special Issue ‘Umwelt Theory and Phenomenology’. Editorial. Biosemiotics. Published online July 19th 2024. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12304-024-09583-w
Abstract:
This introduction to the special issue “Umwelt Theory and Phenomenology” is composed of a brief theoretical introduction to phenomenology seen as a key attitude of philosophical research, an investigation of the possibilities offered by a combined application of phenomenology and biosemiotics, and an overview of the articles that are included in the special issue. The theoretical introduction stresses the possibility of distinguishing, within phenomenology, between approaches centred on the object (in other terms, the phenomenon), and subject-centred approaches which have emerged in the wake of Kantian transcendental idealism. The connection with biosemiotics is explored for both kinds of approaches, showing how Uexküll, and many other scholars after him, have used phenomenological tools and perspectives in the study of biological meaning and meaning-making processes. For each article in the collection, the overview of the articles indicates one or two points that we believe are of the greatest interest for the reader.
I have recently reviewed 2 research project applications for Fondazione Cariplo (Italy) in relation to their Inequalities Research 2024 call.
Today, on my last work day before summer holidays, and on my way back from the ISQOLS 2024 conference in Malaysia, I have given explanation for grading to 11 students in the bachelor course in law and ethics I have been involved in, and to 3 students in the master course in environmental psychology.
This Spring I was interviewed for a story in the magazine Ren mat, titled "Alle egg i samme kurv" (All eggs in the same basket). The theme for the feature article is the dominant breeding companies in the egg business. Journalist: Anette Schive. The story links to our article "The Ethics of Laying Hen Genetics".
According to Google Scholar (cf. my profile) my research has to date attracted 1.155 citations (+1 since June 3rd), including 101 citations so far in 2024 (+13 since June 3rd). Apparently, the numbers indicate that Google must also have removed a number of citations previously registered. My h-index remains 19, while my i10-index is back to 36 (-1 since June 3rd).
With 101 citations so far, 2024 is already my 4th best year in terms of number of citations, after 2022, 2023, and 2021.
Yesterday I presented the paper “Can welfare and environmental concerns be measured in extension of GDP?” (see abstract posted earlier) on behalf of Jan Karlstrøm and myself at the 22nd conference of the International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies (ISQOLS), which was held in Kota Kinabula, on Borneo, in Malaysia, June 26 to 28th. The paper was part of Session 23C, “Beyond GDP: New Understandings and Measures of Progress”. Some 45 people attended the session.
Photo: Sabah International Convention Centre, the ISQOLS 2024 venue.
Springer Nature has now launched a website for the forthcoming book Mars and the Earthlings: A Realistic View on Mars Exploration and Settlement, which I am one of ca. 60 authors of. The book will appear in the book series Space and Society. Planned publication date is said to be December 11th. The book will be included in Springer´s e-book package for Physics and astronomy.
Book description:
In an era of public Mars fascination, this book offers an objective presentation of the challenges of crewed Mars missions and discusses scenarios of Mars settlements under scientific, technical, social, economic , ethical and political aspects. With the aim to make the reader comprehend what is plausible and what is at stake, the book tries to clarify misconceptions and half-truths spreading rapidly in the public. The authors argue that approximations and misinformation should be countered for two main reasons. First, to avoid missing out on the benefits that Mars exploration may bring, including major scientific discoveries and an inspiring, federative human endeavor. Second, to remediate dangerous delusions – such as the idea that humanity could be transferred there should the Earth become inhabitable in the near term. In preparation for this book a group of European, world-renowned scientists from fields as diverse as astronomy, planetology, geology, biology, philosophy, or economics, as well as astronauts and science-fiction writers, was gathered to discuss Mars missions ranging from near-term robotic missions, all the way to large-scale settlements and even the feasibility of terraforming. For each, they draw arguments from their domains of expertise to discuss what is feasible and what is desirable. The result provides researchers with an objective review of the field, policy makers with a reference to make informed decisions, and the general public with a tool to form educated opinions.
Today I have had a writing day, the final one this Spring, consisting of half an article writing day, with some writing plans made for the autumn and minor work on the editorial for the upcoming special issue of Biosemiotics "Umwelt theory and phenomenology" which I co-edit with Carlo Brentari, as well as on the second article on friluftsliv and child protection that I co-write with Joakim Jiri Haaland, and half a book writing day, with some work done related to my book manuscript Captured: CCS and the fight for the sould of the environmental movement.
Altogether this Spring I have had 46,5 writing days, with 2,5 of these being logged as book article days (vs. 7,5 planned initially) and 44 as article writing days (vs. 40 planned initially). Altogether I had one less writing day than initially planned (46,5 vs. 47,5).
With 1.709 words written in June, the least any month this semester, in Spring 2024 I have altogether logged 26.073 words written. This is almost 3.000 words more than in Spring 2023, but significantly below the ca. 36.000 words I wrote in the first half year of 2020 or the ca. 45.000 words I wrote in the Spring semester that year with the first half of July included.
My plenary speech at The Fifth Conference of the International Association for Cognitive Semiotics, with the theme “Crisis of meaning”, which is to be held at Lund University in Sweden August 15-17th, has according to a preliminary programme been scheduled for presentation Friday August 16th at 17.30-18.30.
See also:
I arrived in Kota Kinabula, Malaysia, two days ago, to take part in the 22nd annual conference of the International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, which has the theme "Human Happiness and Wellbeing in an Uncertain World" and is held June 26–28th. This will be the fifth ISQOLS conference in a row I am attending (the 2020 and 2021 conferences were held digitally).
Today I have attended a pre-conference cultural excursion in Sabah, to Kiulu, organised by University Malaysia Sabah with Lingga Eco-Tourism Kiulu.
Today I held my presentation "Applied Umwelt theory in the context of descriptive phenomenology and phenomenological triangulation" digitally at the 24th Gathering in Biosemiotics, which is held at the University of the free state in Bloemfontein, South Africa, as a hybrid event. Some 17 people attended online, in addition a number of people attended physically.
The manuscript for the book Mars and the Earthlings. A realistic view on Mars exploration and settlement is approaching completion and will be submitted to Springer this week. I will be credited as a co-author of three chapters, cf. below. Altogether 61 experts have co-authored the book.
Updated preliminary reference:
— forthcoming, 2024. Mars and the Earthlings. A realistic view on Mars exploration and settlement (eds. C. Verseux, M. Gargaud, K. Lehto & M. Viso). Co-author of chapter 4 (“Mars Historical and ethical context: Past, present and imagination”), chapter 8 (“Toward permanent settlements on Mars (from 1000 to 100 000 people)”), chapter 9 (“Mars as a planet B?”). Springer. Planned publication 2024.
A second article based on Live better data will soon be submitted. Preliminary reference:
— in review, 2024, with Brian W. Haas, Xiaobin Lou et al. Aspirational life satisfaction moderates the link between actual life satisfaction and negative emotional experience: A large scale cross-cultural study. Emotion.
See also:
"Live better" project: Stavanger dataset delivered
First "Live better" article submitted; credited as co-author
I have over the last few days taken part in the grading of 35 exam papers in the University of Stavanger´s bachelor in psychology course in law and ethics, along with course coordinator Eva Næsheim, with responsibility for the ethics answer, which was one of four assignments.
I am interviewed in the Khrono news story "Antall faglige ansatte vokser raskere enn antall studenter" (The number of scientific staff grows faster than the number of students) which was published today, along with Minister of Research and Higher Education, Oddmund Hoel, and Director of the Norwegian Directorate for Higher Education and Skills (HK-dir), Sveinung Skule, by journalists Eva Tønnessen and Hege Larsen. The topic of the news story is a new release of an annual report on the state of higher education in Norway.
Today I chaired and facilitated the 90% seminar of Joakim Jiri Haaland, at the University of Stavanger´s Department of social studies. Some 5-6 people attended, including Terje Jostein Halvorsen, the external commentator, and Ulrich Dettweiler, the internal commentator.
I have been notified by Aschehoug that the anthology text book Ex.phil. for sosialfag, which I edited, will be shredded. I will take over 25 copies of the book, with the rest being shredded. The book will remain available as an e-book.
Today I have had an article writing day, #45 this Spring, with some work done on revising the article "Kan velferd og miljø måles i forlengelsen av BNP?" (Can welfare and the environment be measured in extension of GDP?) which I am co-writing with Jan Karlstrøm.
See also:
The article Hva Arne Næss kan lære oss om økonomifagets tverrfaglighet (What Arne Næss can teach us about the interdisciplinary nature of economics), which I have co-written with Jan Karlstrøm and Thomas Hylland Eriksen, was published in Norsk Filosofisk Tidsskrift today.
Reference:
Tønnessen, Morten, Jan Karlstrøm and Thomas Hylland Eriksen 2024. Hva Arne Næss kan lære oss om økonomifagets tverrfaglighet (What Arne Næss can teach us about the interdisciplinary nature of economics). Norsk Filosofisk Tidsskrift 59(1-2), 21–36.
The article is in Norwegian but has an English abstract:
Arne Næss criticized modern economics for its lack of philosophical awareness and interdisciplinarity, suggesting that economists should draw inspiration from the field’s origins in philosophy. Næss’ views on how the economy should be organized and studied are significant, particularly in light of his differentiation between a deep and shallow understanding of environmental issues. In this article, we will review Næss’ critique of economics as an academic discipline and discuss his proposals for transforming our approach to economics, considering both its historical development and the ongoing environmental crisis. Specifically, we will emphasize the importance of philosophy, ecology, and social anthropology as foundational elements for economics. Our primary reference is the Norwegian-language chapter “New tasks for political economy” from Næss’ major work in environmental philosophy, Ecology, Community and Lifestyle. In the article, we deal with Næss’ view on the use of models and the relationship between theory and reality, the fundamental connection between ecology and the economy, what role normative systems thinking can play for economics, and how economics can be informed by economic anthropology. In conclusion, we will reflect on the implications of our analysis of Arne Næss’ economic viewpoints for the future of economics.
Our article is mentioned in the editorial of the same issue, written by Cathrine Victoria Felix and Heine Alexander Holmen.
Excerpts:
Å bedrive akademisk filosofi innebærer å utforske og analysere grunnleggende spørsmål på en systematisk og metodisk måte. Dette inkluderer alt fra å undersøke ulike filosofiske tradisjoner, argumenter og perspektiver, til å utvikle egne teorier og konsepter. Med andre ord: akademisk filosofi er et mangfoldig felt med et bredt spekter av metoder. Vi håper dette nummeret av Norsk filosofisk tidsskrift presenterer dette mangfoldet på en god måte. Nummeret inneholder tre fagartikler som tar for seg så ulike temaer som examen philosophicum, prostitusjon og økonomifaget.
...
Arne Næss kan beskrives som en titan innen norsk filosofi. I artikkelen «Hva Arne Næss kan lære oss om økonomifagets tverrfaglighet» skriver Morten Tønnessen, Jan Karlstrøm og Thomas Hylland Eriksen om Næss’ kritikk av det moderne økonomifaget. I lys av Næss’ kritikk argumenterer forfatterne for viktigheten av å inkludere filosofi, økologi og sosialantropologi som grunnlag for studiet av økonomi. De diskuterer fremtidens økonomifag og reiser spørsmål om modellbruk, forholdet mellom teori og virkelighet og normativ systemtenkning.
This week I have taken part in the grading of 5 bachelor theses in social work at the University of Stavanger´s Department of social studies, along with an external examiner.
I have recently graded 8 exam papers in the University of Stavanger´s master course in environmental psychology.
Today I have had half an article writing today, with some 500 words added to the editorial "Introduction to the Special Issue ‘Umwelt Theory and Phenomenology’" which I am co-writing with Carlo Brentari in relation to the forthcoming special issue of Biosemiotics we are guest editors for. So far this Spring I have had 44 writing days.
Today I have had what ended up as half an article writing day, with some 200 words added to the editorial for the special issue of Biosemiotics I am co-editing with Carlo Brentari, "Umwelt theory and phenomenology". So far this Spring I have had 43,5 writing days.
I have been notified that my conference paper "Applied Umwelt theory in the context of descriptive phenomenology and phenomenological triangulation" has been scheduled for presentation on Friday 21st of June at 10:30, during the 24th Gathering in Biosemiotics, which is to be held June 17-21st in Bloemfontein, South Africa (University of the free state) and online. I will attend the conference digitally.
This is the conference abstract I submitted:
Applied Umwelt theory in the context of descriptive phenomenology and phenomenological triangulation
Author: Morten Tønnessen
Affiliation: Professor of philosophy, Department of social studies, University of Stavanger, Stavanger, Norway
In earlier work, I have argued that a genuine ´Uexküllian phenomenology´ can be derived from the Umwelt theory of Jakob von Uexküll and that such a phenomenology is capable of accounting for the subjective experience of both humans and animals. With its foundation in contemporary biosemiotics, such a modern, empirically informed phenomenology is particularly relevant for the study of human-animal relations and interaction in societal and ecological settings. In a recent chapter (Tønnessen 2023) I have outlined a scientific method for conducting qualitative studies of human and animal lifeworlds by introducing a semiotically informed descriptive phenomenology. While descriptive phenomenology in its current forms is typically only applicable to the study of human lifeworlds (Giorgi 2009), a reiteration of descriptive phenomenology that draws on Umwelt theory can be designed to be non-anthropocentric and pluralistic. In this paper I elaborate on a more-than-human descriptive phenomenology and explain how it can be applied within the humanities and social sciences as well as in a natural science context. Furthermore, I will discuss how Umwelt theory can be made use of as part of a methodology of phenomenological triangulation, in which 1st, 2nd and 3rd person perspectives are combined in studies of one and the same study object. This methodology draws on ideas developed in cognitive semiotics by Jordan Zlatev, Göran Sonesson, and others (e.g. Zlatev 2012). Overall, this paper aims to contribute to integrating biosemiotics and phenomenology and demonstrating the relevance of Umwelt theory for phenomenology, and vice versa.
REFERENCES
Giorgi, Amedeo (2009). The descriptive phenomenological method in psychology. Duquesne University Press.
Tønnessen, Morten (2023). Umwelt theory for practitioners: Semiotic guidelines for application in a more-than-human descriptive phenomenology. Pp. 303–314 in Open Semiotics (4 volumes, ed. Amir Biglari), volume 4: Life and its extensions. Paris: L’Harmattan.
Zlatev, Jordan (2012). Cognitive Semiotics: An emerging field for the transdisciplinary study of meaning. The Public Journal of Semiotics IV(1) (2012): 2–24.
Today I have attended a work meeting and done some work on my contributions to the forthcoming book Mars and the Earthlings, with some 300 words added to the text, mostly on the likely Martian diet and brining along of animals to Mars. So far this Spring I have had 43 writing days, including what ended up as half a writing day today.
Today I have had an article writing day with some 400 words written on the editorial "Introduction to the Special Issue ‘Umwelt Theory and Phenomenology’" which I am co-writing with Carlo Brentari in relation to the forthcoming special issue we are guest-editing. So far this Spring I have had 42,5 writing days.
According to Google scholar (cf. my profile) my research has now attracted 1.154 citations (+20 since May 13th). This includes 88 citations in 2024 (+16 since May 13th). My h-index remains 19 and my i10-index 37.
With 88 citations so far, 2024 is already now in early June my 5th best year in terms of number of citations, after 2022, 2023, 2021 and 2016. The book Semiotic agency: Science beyond mechanism (officially 2021 but in effect published in 2022), which I co-wrote with Alexei Sharov, accounts for 30 of the 2024 citations to date.
With 6 citations each so far, the commentary "The Evolutionary Origin(s) of the Umwelt" and the article "Recreation in the outdoors—Exploring the friluftsliv experience of adolescents at residential care", co-written with Joakim Jiri Haaland, are formally my most cited publications from 2022. They both currently rank along with other texts as my 49th most-cited texts.
With 33 citations in total, "Phenomenology and biosemiotics" (2018), co-written with Timo Maran and Alexei Sharov, is my most cited editorial.
I am credited as a co-author of an article that has just been submitted and is the first to draw on data gathering in more than 60 countries that I have taken part in, as part of the project "Live better: The culturally sensitive study into folk theories of societal development and into ideal types of well-being".
Preliminary reference:
— in review, 2024, with Arkadiusz Wasiel et al. Understanding the Connection of Position-Based Power to Social Status across Seventy Cultures. British Journal of Social Psychology.
Over the last two days I have taken part in three events at the philosophy and science festival "Wonderful World" 2024 which is currently being held in Stavanger, Norway:
I think it all went well, in terms of engaging content.
Today I have had half a book writing day, with some 200 words added to my book manuscript Captured: CCS and the fight for the soul of the environmental movement, which is contracted with Bloomsbury Academic.
In May as a whole, I had only 4,5 writing days, the least by far this year, with 1.808 written words logged. So far this Spring I´ve logged 24.364 words written.
Today I have had an article writing day, with work done on three writing projects, namely a journal article on democracy issues I will co-write with Svein Tuastad, my contributions to the forthcoming book Mars and the Earthlings, and the forthcoming journal article «Hva Arne Næss kan lære oss om økonomifagets tverrfaglighet» (What Arne Næss can teach us about the interdisciplinary nature of economics), which I proof-read. The article is co-written with Jan Karlstrøm and Thomas Hylland Eriksen and will soon appear in Norsk Filosofisk Tidsskrift.
Yesterday I attended the meeting of Norway´s Council for animal ethics, which was held at Thon Hotel Opera in Oslo. Among other things, I gave a status report on our consultative statement on the Norwegian pension fund global´s investments in food production and similar, and on two international declarations on animal consciousness (Cambridge and New York).
This week the philosophy and science festival "Wonderful World" 2024 is held in Stavanger, Norway. I take part in three events:
Today I have had an article writing day devoted to the article "Friluftsliv in therapeutic residential care: Taking adolescents out to find a way in", which I co-write with Joakim Jiri Haaland, with some 1.100 words added to the text.
I also signed - again, and this time it was finalized on both ends - a book contract with Bloomsbury Academic for my book project Captured: CCS and the fight for the soul of the environmental movement, which I will write over the next 12 months.
Today I have had what ended up as half a writing day, with work done on the article "Friluftsliv in therapeutic residential care: Taking adolescents out to find a way in", which I co-write with Joakim Jiri Haaland - and some 200 words added to the text. I also signed a book contract with Bloomsbury Academic, concerning my book project Captured: CCS and the fight for the soul of the environmental movement.
Yesterday, Tuesday May 14th, I gave the lecture “The Anthropocene: Alpha and omega?” in Ljubljana, at Instititum Studiorum Humanitatis, Alma Mater Europaea (AMEU–ISH). Some 10 people attended (physically and digitally in total). The lecture was facilitated and chaired by Luka Trebežnik.
Today, at my last work day during my Erasmus exchange, I have been visiting The Science and Research Centre Koper (ZRS Koper), specifically their Institute for philosophical and religious studies. Tomorrow I will be flying home. My host in Slovenia has been Lenart Škof.
Today I have had half an article day devoted to the article "Friluftsliv in therapeutic residential care: Taking adolescents out to find a way in" which i co-write with Joakim Jiri Haaland, with some 200 words added to the text, and about 100 words removed.
According to Google scholar (cf. my profile) my research has now attracted 1.134 citations (+34 since April 22nd). This includes 72 citations in 2024 (+31 since April 22nd). My h-index remains 19 and my i10-index 37.
Recent citations include the very first for my article "Wasted GDP in the USA", which is cited in the technical report "Climate Change and Productivity: Exploring the Links" released by The Productivity Institute and authored by Dirk Pilat. According to Google´s metrics, 79 of my texts have been cited, and "Wasted GDP in the USA" now ranks as #69 (i.e., my 69th most cited paper) along with ten more papers.
