Bloomberg Distinguished Professorship in Philosophy & Psychological and Brain Sciences

Zanvyl Krieger School of Arts and Sciences

Established in 2014 by Michael R. Bloomberg

MICHAEL R. BLOOMBERG is a Johns Hopkins alumnus, founder of Bloomberg LP and Bloomberg Philanthropies, World Health Organization Global Ambassador for Noncommunicable Diseases, UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Climate Action, and former New York City mayor.

He is an entrepreneur and philanthropist who served as mayor of New York City from 2002-2013 after leading the company he started in 1981 for 20 years. Since leaving City Hall, he has resumed leadership of Bloomberg LP.

Bloomberg was elected mayor less than two months after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Under his leadership, the city rebounded faster and stronger than expected on issues ranging from education to health to economic development.

A lifelong philanthropist, Bloomberg founded Bloomberg Philanthropies, which focuses on five main areas: public health, education, the environment, the arts, and government innovation. He also leads a number of bi-partisan coalitions on urgent issues, including climate change, illegal guns, immigration reform, and infrastructure investment. In January 2013, he made the $350 million gift that established the Bloomberg Distinguished Professorships and provided undergraduate financial aid.

Bloomberg graduated from Johns Hopkins University and Harvard Business School.

Held by Ian Phillips

IAN PHILLIPS is a leading philosopher who explores the intersection of philosophy, psychology and brain science, uniquely bridging these disciplines to explore the make-up of our minds. He is especially interested in the scientific study of consciousness, the way we experience and recall time, and the nature of perception, as well as its relation to memory, imagination, and belief.

In his research, Phillips grapples with questions such as whether we perceive more than we can report or remember; if conscious experience is inextricably linked with short-term memory; and how experience must be structured for us to perceive change or motion. Phillips is currently working on a book examining the relationship between perception and consciousness. The book challenges the widespread belief in the existence of unconscious perception and tackles questions of consciousness in subjects where it can be hard to measure or quantify, including in infants, animals, and people who have experienced brain damage.

Phillips joined Johns Hopkins University as a Bloomberg Distinguished Professor in 2019 from the University of Birmingham.