Over the centuries philosophers have discovered apparently intractable problems with our most fundamental concepts: time, space, parthood, meaning, truth, goodness, color, etc. These problems are so fundamental as to throw the legitimacy of those concepts into doubt. Recent advances in logic and science have done little or nothing to erase the disputes. Given these centuries-old controversies, it is doubtful that many of us can have knowledge concerning these disputed concepts since even the best experts are locked in sustained disagreement.

On the other hand, there seems to be great progress in philosophy over the last century, especially with the philosophical use of logic and science. But how can there be all this progress if the intractable expert disagreement robs us of knowledge?

Our project investigates these issues regarding expert disagreement and progress. The primary goal is to understand the epistemology of expertise and controversy, in philosophy and science.