Leiter Reports: A Philosophy Blog

2020: Philosophers who passed away

MOVING TO FRONT FROM THIS MORNING, UPDATED

The passing of the following philosophers was noted on the blog during 2020: Dan W. Brock, Mario Bunge, George Dickie, David Efird, Gerald ("Jerry") Gaus, Ruth Gavison, Ronald Giere, Colin Howson, Joel Kupperman, J.R. Lucas, Jack Macintosh, David Charles McCarty, Brian McGuinness, D.H. (Hugh) Mellor, Philippe Mongin, J. Adam Morton, Jeffrie G. Murphy, Karen Neander, Terence Penelhum, Michael Redhead, Amelie Oksenberg Rorty, Roger Scruton, Emanuele Severino, Quentin Smith, Joseph D. Sneed, Mark Steiner, Nicholas L. Sturgeon, Judith Jarvis Thomson, Raimo Tuomela, William J. Wainwright, Douglas N. Walton, Keith Yandell. You can find more information, including (often) links to obituaries by scrolling through the "Philosophy Updates" category (in which this post also appears).

(Note:  I do not attempt to list the passing of every professional philosopher in a given year; I do try to record the deaths of those who are likely to be known to others in the profession.)

In Memoriam: David Charles McCarty (1953-2020)

Professor McCarty, who  taught for many years at Indiana University in Bloomington, was best-known for work in the history and philosophy of logic and mathematics.   The Indiana memorial notice is here.

(Thanks to Dirk Schlimm (McGill) for alerting me today about Professor McCarty's death in November, which I had missed.)

Philosopher Kathleen Stock (Sussex) recognized in Queen's "Honours" for 2020...

...with an OBE for "services to higher education," no doubt in recognition of her advocacy for free intellectual discussion of the idea of "gender identity" and the ramifications of replacing biological sex with "gender identity" for various legal protections afforded women.   Professor Stock uses the occasion to note some of the threats to the former here.

For a typically gracious reaction to this news, here is philosopher Liam Bright (LSE):

Professor Bright's insult was retweeted by Dominic Berry (LSE), Chris Bertram (Bristol), Rebecca Buxton (Oxford), and others well-known for their contempt for academic freedom.   The attempt by philosopher Peter Cave, in the response to Bright and Bertram, to elicit rational discussion went nowhere, unsurprisingly.  It is curious that, although Professor Stock's arguments and advocacy on these issues has been well-known since May 2018, there has been exactly one substantive response by philosophers (as distinct from sneering dismissiveness, like Liam Bright's, above), itself not successful (see Sophie Allen's comment at the preceding link) but at least (mostly) serious in its engagement.

The Dunning-Kruger effect: just statistical noise?

With a whole blog category devoted to the phenomenon ("the less they know, the less they know it"), it would be disappointing if this is true.   But I'm sure it isn't, so there!

The "most visited" categories on the blog, 2020

Of course, "Philosophy in the News" dominated, as well as, this year, "Coronavirus."  But here were the five most popular other categories (in alphabetical order) after those two big ones:  Academic Freedom, Authoritarianism and Fascism Alerts, Philosophy Updates, The New Infantilism, and "The less they know, the less they know it."  (Surprisingly, "Chris Bertram" almost made the cut.)

Yiddish is the best language

Fomites are not driving this pandemic

We've touched on this topic before, but more recent work confirms the earlier suspicion:

If a person infected with the coronavirus sneezes, coughs or talks loudly, droplets containing particles of the virus can travel through the air and eventually land on nearby surfaces. But the risk of getting infected from touching a surface contaminated by the virus is low, says Emanuel Goldman, a microbiologist at Rutgers University.

"In hospitals, surfaces have been tested near COVID-19 patients, and no infectious virus can be identified," Goldman says.

What's found is viral RNA, which is like "the corpse of the virus," he says. That's what's left over after the virus dies.

"They don't find infectious virus, and that's because the virus is very fragile in the environment — it decays very quickly," Goldman says....

Scientists now know that the early surface studies were done in pristine lab conditions using much larger amounts of virus than would be found in a real-life scenario.

2020 in review, 4th quarter: October, November, December

October

Another academic freedom case, at the University of New Hampshire

The First Amendment is apparently hard to understand

Classics professor at UT Austin defamed as a "pedophile" by deranged students has now sued them

MA programs in philosophy, with funding

Do philosophers make the world a better place?  Thoughts from the late John Gardner

Some election musings

November

A ballot initiative in a blue state and what it reveals about the electorate

When all you have is a hammer...

Speaking of "fake news" (on fact-free explanations of Biden's victory)

Some reader comments on the Presidential election

On Trump's appeal:  from the less to the more plausible

Important philosophers/scientists who are theists and were not raised in religious households

Wuhan after the lockdown

Which living philosophers has exerted the greatest positive influence on your moral/political views? The results

UChicago geology professor under attack for raising mild criticisms of "diversity" initiatives

December

On institutions that demand individual uploads of letters of recommendation

Berg on Manne and "public philosophy"

Alexa site rankings

I discuss "Moral Psychology with Nietzsche" at Trinity College Dublin

2020-21 update for U.S. schools ranked in the 2017 PGR

Best/most important philosophy books/articles since 2010

How the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines work

An illuminating (if sometimes challenging) discussion by biologist Jerry Coyne (Chicago).

2020 in review, 3rd quarter: July, August, September

July (mostly on hiatus this month)

Several dozen Princeton faculty calls for violation of their colleagues' right to academic freedom

Board of Illinois Wesleyan spares philosophy--this time

August

How will the pandemic and economic crisis affect the landscape of higher education?

2020-21 PGR postponed due to COVID-19

President of the University of Southern Maine understands neither academic freedom nor the First Amendment

What is "cancel culture"?

Randall Kennedy takes apart the ludicrous hyperbole in the "anti-racism" statement by Princeton faculty

On the aesthetic seductiveness of Nazism

September

Introducing Marxism and critiques of capitalism to high school students

David Hume has now been "cancelled" at the University of Edinburgh

Most influential books of philosophy of the last 20 years

A concern about this year's Philosopher's Annual results

Some jurisprudential articles

PGR haters are strangely self-unaware

On "cancel culture" again, and a philosophy anecdote

Class and responses to Trump's rudeness and Biden's gaffes

Several dozen Princeton faculty calls for violation of their colleagues' right to academic freedom

Board of Illinois Wesleyan spares philosophy--this time

August

How will the pandemic and economic crisis affect the landscape of higher education?

2020-21 PGR postponed due to COVID-19

President of the University of Southern Maine understands neither academic freedom nor the First Amendment

What is "cancel culture"?

Randall Kennedy takes apart the ludicrous hyperbole in the "anti-racism" statement by Princeton faculty

On the aesthetic seductiveness of Nazism

Some free philosophy from Oxford University Press

Most-read (online) journal articles and book chapters of 2020.

"In Search of Beethoven"

The greatest musical genius of them all was born 250 years (and 10 days) ago.  You will, I promise, have a very pleasant Sunday watching this well-done documentary:

 

Great moments in obscure rock 'n' roll: the five best finds of 2020...

...in my opinion, anyway. Glad to hear yours in the comments (click on the category, "Great Moments in Obscure Rock 'n' Roll" to see this year's selections from which to choose).   When the year started, I was skeptical I would find enough suitable choices, but as it turned out, there were so many good choices, it's hard to settle on just five, so I'm going to list some runners-up too.  (By the way, you can find all these and more--and the best from prior years--on Spotify under "Brian Best of Obscure Rock 60s and 70s"; you may need to search "Bleiter" and then scroll through to find mine.)

Here's my top five:

Bang, "Questions," 1971

The Factory, "Gone," 1968

Freedom, "Nobody," 1970

Josefus, "Country Boy," 1969

Kaleidoscope, "Lie to Me," 1969

And here are my runners-up, which just as easily could have been in the top five:

Blodwyn Pig, "It's Only Love," 1969

Fat, "The Shape I'm In," 1970

Frijid Pink, "Sing a Song for Freedom," 1970

Fuzzy Duck, "Just Look Around You," 1971

Tear Gas, "Big House," 1970

You may add your choices from this year's selections in the comments.

2020 in review, 2nd quarter: April, May, June

April

Best introductory texts to philosophy of law

How universities can open next fall

New German study of infection and virus transmission (this one got it right)

A nice note from a philosopher in NYC, with two interesting twists

Why Berkeley's mandatory diversity statements are unlawful

"What's the deal with birds?"

When the "war" against COVID is over, there should be a war crimes trial

Houlgate on Brandom on Hegel

A case for optimism about a vaccine (turned out to be right!)

"Statement of Academic Solidarity"

May

New Infantilism at Oxord

Hans Sluga reflects on his life and on philosophy

How to study COVID-19 and racial disparities

Anthony Fauci on colleges reopening in the fall

Coronavirus in Chicago (and New York City):  a timeline

Section 230 and Twitter

June

The sociology of police violence (the real problem is not racism)

Nietzsche's rules for warfare...and the question of race and class

In Memoriam:  Maurice Leiter (1933-2020) (

Phil Studies and the Dembroff-Byrne debate:  here, here, and here.

"Contemporary legal realism"

Best places to publish in ancient philosophy and related questions

"The Economic Origins of Mass Incarceration"

Things "we" now know that we didn't know bout COVID a few months ago

It pays not to read the mail:  a Paul Grice story

Joe Walsh meets Xmas

40 years ago, in my misspent youth, I had planned to be a rock star, as it were.  I played a passable rhythm guitar, I sang more in tune than Bob Dylan or Neil Young (not by much), and I wrote lots of songs.   I was also fortunate to know a real rock musician, Tommy Williams. Tommy took my simple songs, arranged them, and added lead guitars, bass, keyboards, drums and lead or backing vocals.   Some weren't bad, and once we get around to digitizing them, I'll put them online.   Unlike me, Tommy has made a real career as a musician, since he is a very good one.  Anyway, all this is a prelude to the main point:  each Xmas, Tommy and his wife and son, record Xmas versions of well-known rock songs, in this case, Joe Walsh's "Rocky Mountain Way."  Tommy is playing all the guitars--do check out his Xmas twist on the famous guitar "talk box" solos.

(You can find this song and more at Tommy's YouTube channel.)

A propos nothing: training humans is hard

2020 in review, 1st quarter: January, February, March

January

Best introductory texts to philosophy of language, philosophy of mind, philosophy art/aesthetics, and ancient Greek and Roman philosophy

Have you been rejected in a search requiring a mandatory "diversity statement"?

Sartwell on "guilt by association" and the Twitter Red Guard

Preposterous philosophical views:  the poll results

Peer-reviewed journal publishes a paper some people don't like, petition ensues

February

Best introductory texts to philosophy of religion, philosophy of action, philosophy of social science (or particular social sciences), and non-Western philosophical traditions or figures.

Cover art on philosophy books

Confessions of an ex-philosopher

Not a great a great piece of public philosophy:  on Strawson and the coronavirus

Jonathan Mitchell did not like Tom Stern's "New Cambridge Companion to Nietzsche"

Yale faculty vouch for Sarah Braasch, the real victim in the "napping while Black" manufactured scandal

The pernicious class politics of diversity blather

March

Intensive COVID coverage began this month (the category debuted on March 14):  you can start here and scroll down.  Blog readership soared this month as this blog, oddly enough, became a go-to place for decent information and perspective.  (Thanks to the readers who helped make that happen with their tips.)

Kramnick on Karen Kelsky, "a war profiteer of the collapsing job market"

Critical theory is dead, dead, dead, and Habermas killed it

Looking ahead for colleges and universities (given COVID) (basically my #4 came to pass) (THIS LINK NOW FIXED)

Is there any bioethical consensus on whose lives to save first in a triage situation?

Some readings about epidemics of the past

"Capitalism, Social Democracy, and Socialism:  Which is right for America?"  The debate

Best introductory text to the history of early modern philosophy (or particular figures).

In Memoriam: Leslie West (1945-2020)

Not a philosopher, but a famed guitarist from rock's Golden Age (1967-1972), born Leslie Weinstein, a nice Jewish boy from Long Island.  Most famously, he played with the band Mountain (which took its name from West's bulk), and then later with Jack Bruce and Corky Laing in a trio.  Here's a few numbers, some obscure, some not so much.

Here they are doing their most famous number, "Mississippi Queen," live at Randall's Island, in the East River just off Manhattan in 1970:

Blast from the past: Longuenesse on "analytic" and "Continental" philosophy

Back in 2007.

Two recent books skeptical of meritocracy

Philosopher Agnes Callard (Chicago) comments.

Philosopher's Xmas card

(Thanks to Tom Carson for sending this along.)

 

When your philosophy major comes home for the holiday...

...the family must prepare.

On the new variant of the coronavirus in the UK that is allegedly more transmissible

From the BBC's science correspondent:

There have been changes to the spike protein - this is the key the virus uses to unlock the doorway to our body's cells.

One mutation called N501Y alters the most important part of the spike, known as the "receptor-binding domain".

This is where the spike makes first contact with the surface of our body's cells. Any changes that make it easier for the virus to get inside are likely to give it an edge.

"It looks and smells like an important adaptation," said Prof Loman.

The other mutation - a H69/V70 deletion, in which a small part of the spike is removed - has emerged several times before, including famously in infected mink.

Work by Prof Ravi Gupta at the University of Cambridge has suggested this mutation increases infectivity two-fold in lab experiments.

Studies by the same group suggest the deletion makes antibodies from the blood of survivors less effective at attacking the virus.

Prof Gupta told me: "It is rapidly increasing, that's what's worried government, we are worried, most scientists are worried."

Blast from the past: the job market and "stale" PhDs

Back in 2012.   There may be less of an effect on PhDs in 2020 because of the world-historic catastrophe that everyone is familiar with, and the resulting collapse of the job market.

Some observations about Twitter, esp. philosophy-related Twitter

Max Noichl, a graduate student at the University of Vienna, made a map of philosophy tweeters (based on followers and retweets) which is making the rounds on Twitter.  I'm not really sure what it means, but it looks neat!  (Mr. Noichl offers some explanation here.)

Friends and colleagues like Leslie Green at Oxford and Queen's, and Eric Posner here at Chicago, used Twitter for awhile, but then gave up (Green later returned, but, wisely, doesn't engage).   I don't abandon the medium because I know some folks now follow the blog through Twitter links (my main activity on Twitter), and some of those I follow also post interesting material.   Prompted by the new Twitter map, herewith some observations about this strange medium:

1.  Putting aside those already famous, "success" on Twitter (i.e., lots of followers) seems to track three things:  actual expertise (e.g., about infectious diseases, about criminal law) which one shares on Twitter on a regular basis in long threads; championing a political or partisan cause on a regular basis, which attracts a flock of like-minded partisans; or extensive tweeting and extensive engagement with others (e.g, retweeting, responding, entering "dialogues" on Twitter).   There are outlier cases (e.g., Scott Shapiro, the funniest academic on Twitter, with his serial shticks), but most of the Twitter users with substantial followings (e.g., 30k or more followers) seem to fall into at least one of these categories, and sometimes more than one.

2.  Blocking nuisance Twitterati is, itself, a nuisance.  Twitter basically has all the worst features of an unmoderated comment thread on a blog or anywhere else in cyberspace, and so all the laws of cyber-dynamics apply.  "Condescension from below" is the primary form of expression for the average active Twitter user which, combined with the Dunning-Kruger effect, makes for a mess.

Another useful document for the "war crimes" trials for Trump and the others who led America to disaster in the "war" on COVID

A gripping narrative from USA Today.

(Thanks to Gregory Pence for the pointer.)

Pfizer and Moderna vaccines compared...

...in an article by Helen Branswell, a very good and reliable journalist at StatNews.   Some interesting details that I had not seen elsewhere (e.g., the minimum size of an order of the Pfizer vaccine is much larger than for Moderna, which will no doubt affect what entities, and where, order each).   It is unlikely any of us will have a choice as to which vaccine we get.

"Killology" and "sheepdogs"

Philosopher Susanna Siegel and a Harvard colleague comment.  If there were any doubts that large parts of America are nuts, this essay will eliminate them.

Differing perceptions of affirmative action

We noted after the election the fact that a solidly blue state like California, which voted nearly 2-1 for Biden over Trump, also rejected affirmative action by decisive margins.   Philosopher Thomas Mulligan makes an interesting point in this op-ed about attitudes towards affirmative action (supported by research like this):

Whites oppose affirmative action because they believe it violates merit-based hiring. Blacks support affirmative action because they believe it enables merit-based hiring, by nullifying racial bias and other forms of disadvantage.

Despite appearances, when it comes to affirmative action, there is no moral disagreement. Both Blacks and whites believe that the best-qualified applicant should be hired. What we disagree about is a factual question: Does real-world affirmative action enable, or detract from, our shared moral goal?

I suspect the answer to that last question varies by profession (and region of the country).  In two academic fields I know most about (law and philosophy) it has reached the point where it tends to detract from merit-based hiring, but there are other professions (e.g., law enforcement, especially in some parts of the country) where the available evidence suggests it remains important to "nullify racial bias" as Mulligan puts it.  (I take no position on whether merit-based hiring is a worthy moral goal:  sometimes it is, sometimes it isn't, but that's a different topic.)

Blast from the past: why it's wonderful to study and teach philosophy

Back in 2011, but hopefully still true!

COVID vaccine tracker: how many shots, and where (for the US)

Courtesy of Bloomberg.

Great moments in obscure rock 'n' roll: T2, "In Circles," 1970

From the debut album of British progressive rock band T2:

 

JHP Book Prize for books published during 2019

Jean-Luc Solère (Boston College), the Book Review editors of Journal of the History of Philosophy asked me to share this announcement,which I am happy to do:

The 2020 Journal of the History of Philosophy Book Prize (books published in 2019) is awarded to: Sanford Shieh (Wesleyan University) for his Necessity Lost: Modality and Logic in Early Analytic Philosophy, vol. 1 (Oxford University Press, 2019). A special Honorable Mention goes to: Ada Bronowski, The Stoics on Lekta: All There Is to Say (Oxford University Press, 2019), which came in as a very close second.

The lost language of "Rotwelsch"

This is interesting, if not our standard fare around here.

*Early* symptoms of COVID: some differences by age

This is a useful compilation and visualization of some data on symptoms in the first seven days of a COVID infection.

Ideology watch: the NYT on Milton Friedman, or how to whitewash the actual logic of capitalism

One of my sons called my attention to this New York Times essay purporting to commemorate and analyze a famous popular piece by Milton Friedman in which he suggested that businesses should have as their only objective what is, in fact, their only objective, namely, maximizing profit.  This can be their only objective on pain of extinction:  that is how capitalism actually works, as a German philosopher noticed in the 19th-century.  Friedman's error was to state openly the actual and entire raison d'etre of capitalism, something that the NYT, as the mouthpiece for the prudent wing of the ruling class, could not possibly commemorate without a full ideological whitewash.  Kurt Andersen, the author of the lead piece (linked above), is clueless (he did better work at Spy back in the 1980s!).   The NYT can't permit telling the truth about capitalism to occur without suitable moralizing illusions (including the new favorite one of the ruling class, "stakeholder capitalism"), and so it rounds up a bunch of them (and one or two outliers).

Five philosophers win NEH Fellowships for research projects

They are:  Richard Cross (Notre Dame), Katharina Kraus (Notre Dame), Samuel Newlands (Notre Dame), Christopher Pincock (Ohio State), and Susanna Schellenberg (Rutgers).

(Thanks to J.C. Beall for the pointer.)

What were the best/most important philosophy books and articles of the past decade (since 2010)?

MOVING TO FRONT FROM YESTERDAY--MORE SUGGESTIONS WELCOME (and thanks for the interesting ones so far)

A propos the post the other day, here's an opportunity to identify what you think are some of the best or most important philosophy articles or books since 2010. 

Only signed comments (full name, valid e-mail address [which will not appear]) will appear.

University of Mississippi behaving badly

An outspoken assistant professor of history is terminated, without even the pretense of a tenure review or any due process.   This certainly look like retaliation for his constitutionally protected speech.  There is an open letter to the administration protesting this here.  Together with other mischief, one wonders what the heck is going on at this university?  (As testimony to the climate of fear among academics, the professor who alerted me to this, who also teaches at a public university in Mississippi, asked not to be identified for fear of retaliation for calling attention to this.)

Comments are open for those with more information or links.

The road to "herd immunity" without, and with, a vaccine

Interesting set of calculations--note that if two-thirds of the population in the U.S. takes the vaccine, we could reach herd immunity by the summer of 2021.  Without any vaccine, and this disaster would continue into 2025!

Berggruen Prize abandons any pretense of being interested in philosophy

This year's prize makes it official, but it was clear enough from last year's.  This is what happens when intellectuals are hostage to fickle rich people with money to burn.

(Thanks to Steven Hales for the pointer.)

"How Race Politics Liberated the Elites"

Some interesting points in this essay (and some less plausible ones); an excerpt:

In The Revolt of the Elites, Christopher Lasch spelled out in greater detail the role that claims of racial and sexual oppression play in securing release from allegiance to the nation — not just for those who identify as its victims, but for those with the moral sensitivity to see victimisation where it may not be apparent, and who make this capacity a touchstone of their identity. It becomes a token of moral elevation by which we recognise one another, and distinguish ourselves from the broader run of citizens. Both Lasch and Arendt argue that black Americans serve a crucial function for the white bourgeoisie. As the emblem and proof of America’s illegitimacy, they anchor a politics of repudiation in which the idea of a common good has little purchase.

This illegitimacy transcends any particular historical facts about slavery and segregation. Indeed it transcends America, as one can surmise by the ease with which American grievance politics has been exported throughout the Western world. In this we sometimes see the use of American historical references that have been weirdly transposed, as when a house once lived in by Rosa Parks was relocated from Detroit to Berlin, the financial seat of the European Union. (Under the empire of Christendom, the market for material relics from the Passion of Christ was similarly global; they left the holy land and ended up in various seats of earthly power.) Most recently, the transatlantic festival of George Floyd attests to the fact that it isn’t simply America that stands accused.

Statins and COVID

We noted many months ago the possibility that statins (which reduce cholesterol) may help prevent severe cases of COVID.   Now research from UC San Diego confirms this and reveals a possible mechanism.  (One of the few things we know about Trump's health history is that he takes statins, by the way; whether that played a role in his fairly short bout with COVID is unknown, of course.)

Richard Marshall interviews Sophia Connell (Birkbeck/London)...

...at 3:16 AM.

Blast from the past: philosophy in 2011

2020 in review will be coming up soon, but here's 2011.  Kind of amusing.  This was before online philosophy cracked up in 2014.

False accusations of pedophilia can get someone killed, esp. in Texas!

Perhaps this will help the benighted classics professors understand why Professor Hubbard of UT Austin is suing those who falsely accuse him of pedophilia:   a philosopher driving from Austin to Houston wrote me to share a copy of a bumper sticker he observed on a pickup truck:

Moderna vaccine for COVID will also be approved...

...meaning that, with the Pfizer vaccine, the U.S. should have enough vaccine to innoculate 100 million people by the end of March 2021. 

ADDENDUM:  Some more details on the Moderna vaccine:

Moderna previously disclosed clinical trial data showing that 185 cases of Covid-19 occurred in those who received a placebo injection, which was given to half the volunteers in its 30,000-person study. Just 11 cases occurred in those volunteers who received the vaccine.

In Memoriam: Quentin Smith (1952-2020)

Professor Smith, who wrote extensively in metaphysics (especially the philosophy of time) and philosophy of religion, taught for more than two decades at Western Michigan University, which had and continues to have one of the stronger terminal MA programs in the country.  Outside his areas of specialization, he also became well-known for championing the misleading idea that the core elements of Kripke's new theory of meaning and reference were really due to Ruth Barcan Marcus; Stephen Neale (CUNY) wrote a decisive refutation of this a number of years ago.

An obituary for Professor Smith is here.

(Thanks to Glenn Branch for the pointer.)

ADDENDUM:   You can see the Neale essay here.

Signs of the COVID times in the academy at some Connecticut public universities

Fortunately, faculty at Southern, Central, Eastern and Western Connecticut State Universities are represented by a union, which they will need given the start of these negotiations:

A draft contract put forth by the university eliminates procedural protections regarding academic freedom, terminations and retrenchment; faculty ownership of original online course materials and the right to teach them; conference, travel and research funds; universitywide tenure committees; and privacy and grievance policies for personnel files.

The university system also wants to increase teaching loads from 12 credit hours per semester to 15 and pilot changing the academic calendar from two to three terms, with faculty members required to teach for two such terms annually.

If you know of similar cases of proposals for radical cuts and restructuring in the wake of the pandemic, feel free to add links in the comments.

Kingma from Southampton to King's College, London

Elselijn Kingma (philosophy of medicine, applied ethics), Associate Professor of Philosophy at the University of Southampton will take up the Chair in Philosophy and Medicine at King's College, London.  The KCL announcement is here. 

This Chair has had an unusual amount of turnover in the last five years:  past (short-term) holders have been Sherrilyn Roush (recruited from Berkeley, left KCL for UCLA) and Alexander Bird (recruited from Bristol, left KCL for Cambridge).