Distinguished Scholars to Visit Chico

Intolerance, Alive and Well

Martha Nussbaum, one of the foremost philosophers in the country, will be the guest of the Humanities Center on Sept. 22, 7:30 PM, in Ayres 106.

Nussbaum, a Presidential Scholar, will present “Radical Evil in the Lockean State: The Neglect of Political Emotions.” A reception will follow in the Humanities Center.

In a paper for a conference on moral psychology, Nussbaum revisits Locke’s case for “toleration,” including his ban on force and fraud, and Kant’s doctrine of radical evil, which Nussbaum defines as “the tendencies in all human beings to militate against stable toleration and respect,” an influence she believes is “alive and flourishing” in the United States, evidenced in “suspicion and mistrust of other peoples and groups.” Nussbaum proposes ways we can counteract these harmful influences and survive as a pluralistic nation.

Nussbaum is the Ernst Freund Distinguished Service Professor of Law and Ethics at the University of Chicago, where she has appointments in the Philosophy Department, the Law School, the Divinity School, and the Classics Department. She is the author of 11 books, including Hiding From Humanity: Disgust, Shame, and the Law (Princeton, 2004), in which she discusses how emotions shape our views on matters such as gay marriage, pornography, and stem cell research. She testified about homosexuality in ancient Greece before the Supreme Court when it was deliberating a Colorado law that forbade extending civil rights to gays.

Bold Prescription for Integrity

The first CAPE forum speaker of the fall semester is Don McCabe of Rutgers University Business School, Sept. 21, 7:30 PM, in PAC 134. McCabe is the author of several articles on the prevalence of cheating and plagiarism among students. He is the founding president of the Center for Academic Integrity, a clearinghouse for academic dishonesty, at Duke University.

McCabe’s lecture, “Reforming Our Integrity-Challenged Universities,” will address a survey studying attitudes about academic dishonesty given to more than 100,000 students and 10,000 faculty. More than 150 campuses have participated in this project, including CSU, Chico. According to McCabe’s latest research, levels of cheating and plagiarism remain high among students; however, honor codes have been effective in reducing academic misconduct. In June 2004, CSU, Chico, established the Council for Promoting Academic Integrity, chaired by business professor Gail Corbitt.

The Center for Academic Integrity’s Web site describes the most recent results (June 2005) of McCabe’s research as “disturbing, provocative, and challenging” (www.academicintegrity.org/cai_research.asp). McCabe’s lecture is co-sponsored by the Center for Applied and Professional Ethics and the Council for Promoting Academic Integrity. Admission is free and open to the public.