Founded in 1983, the Association for Informal Logic and Critical Thinking (AILACT) is a non-profit scholarly association which aims to promote research into, teaching of, and testing of informal logic and critical thinking.
It sponsors programs in conjunction with the annual meetings of the Eastern, Pacific and Central divisions of the American Philosophical Association, and has in the past sponsored programs in conjunction with the annual meeting of the Canadian Philosophical Association.
The 2023 AILACT Essay Prize call for papers is now out!
Derek Allen (1947-2023)
Sometimes we hear the phrase “a gentleman and a scholar,” but rarely do we know someone who truly deserves that title. Derek Allen, who died unexpectedly at the end of April, was such a person. Quiet in his demeanour and gracious in manner, this surface hid a fierce intellect that could cut to the heart of a paper and identify exactly what was wrong (or right) with an argument. He was a frequent contributor to Informal Logic, with papers distributed over more than three decades. And he was an even more frequent referee for the journal, providing the kinds of detailed, constructive reviews that authors valued and that the editors came to rely upon. Derek gave every task his total commitment. Alas, his perceptive keynote address at the most recent Ontario Society for the Study of Argumentation (OSSA) conference in 2020 was to be his final contribution to an important body of work that will continue to repay careful study. At AILACT, he occupied a number of roles, most recently overseeing the annual essay prize. We will all miss his thoughtful counsel and selfless industry.
NEWS: Congratulations to José Alhambra Delgado, who has been awarded the 2022 AILACT Essay Prize, for his paper titled “A Particularist Theory of Arguments by Analogy”.
Honourable mentions: Alan Liao Yanlin, “The Distinctiveness Problem of Analogical Arguments” and Cassie Finley, “Virtue Argumentation, Virtue Dialogue, & Aristotle”.
AILACT is pleased to announce the publication of the Second Edition of Studies in Critical Thinking, edited by J. Anthony Blair. Click the title for more details.
AILACT 