Thomas Nagel Wins Swedish Philosophy Prize

NYU philosophy professor Thomas Nagel received a 2008 Rolf Schock Prize, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced in mid-May. Nagel, whose research centers on political philosophy, ethics, and philosophy of mind, received the prize in the category of Logic and Philosophy.

      Other winners of the Schock Prize, which is awarded every three years, are: Endre Szemerédi, a professor at Rutgers University and the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (Mathematics); artist Mona Hatoum (Visual Arts); and musician Gidon Kremer (Musical Arts). Each winner receives a cash prize of 500,000 Swedish kronor (approx. $85,000). The awards ceremony will take place this October in Stockholm.

      Nagel, who also holds an appointment in NYU’s School of Law, is a University Professor at NYU. His published works include  The Possibility of Altruism (Oxford, 1970; reprinted Princeton, 1978), What Does It All Mean? (Oxford, 1987), Other Minds (Oxford, 1995), The Last Word (Oxford, 1997), and Concealment and Exposure (Oxford, 2002).

      —James Devitt