Author Archives: martaszn

Probabilities a priori, a posteriori, and a book

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One of my recent academic projects has been to thoroughly read all of Janina Hosiasson’s published works. It is not a trivial task, and I believe that no one has actually done it (recently anyways). First, there are of course language barriers: she wrote and published in four languages. Second, there are issues of time and space: some of her articles happen to be in by now very obscure journals, magazines, and conference proceedings – not available digitally, and in some cases available only in a handful of hard copies. Continue reading →

An international visit

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In October 1928, Virginia Woolf delivered two lectures in Cambridge which later became “A Room of One’s Own.” In the essay, she writes about wandering into the university library and being immediately stopped by “a deprecating, silvery, kindly gentleman, who regretted in a low voice as he waved me back that ladies are only admitted to the library if accompanied by a Fellow of the College or furnished with a letter of introduction.” Continue reading →

Where philosophers lived: Koszykowa 51

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Alfred Tarski’s first address was Koszykowa 51, apartment 14 (in Warsaw, of course). He was born there and lived with his parents until his own wedding. And while apparently Mr. Teitelbaum senior struggled to meet his wife’s expectations regarding lifestyle and financial comfort, the location was definitely prime enough. Just off Marszałkowska, which was one of the best streets in the city: wide, well-lit, full of expensive shops and cafés. The building itself must have been one of those tall, ornate townhouses you see in old photographs, and down the street even today. Continue reading →

Young philosophy in 1932

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I had no idea that collecting old philosophy journals could be such a pleasure. But ever since I started spending more time in the archives, looking at letters and other pieces of paper from the past, having that tangible connection to the people who wrote them and on them became a little more special. This is why last year I started to buy any publications of Janina Hosiasson that I could get my hands on. Continue reading →