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Martin Zach

@mzach.bsky.social
933 followers 157 following 51 posts

Philosopher of science working on conceptual immunology. Researcher / Assoc. Prof. at Institute of Philosophy, Czech Academy of Sciences (Prague) dap.flu.cas.cz/en/people/martin-zach

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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
I am happy to announce "Immunology Meets Philosophy vol. 3" on the topic of microbiome and how it succeeds or fails at explaining how microbial shifts translate into physiological change. Both online/in-person! #ImmunoSky #philbio #philsci
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LSE Philosophy @lsephilosophy.bsky.social · 25/02/2026
⚗️🔭 How do we spark new scientific discoveries? Why do some breakthroughs seem accidental? The new book 'The Engine of Scientific Discovery' by CPNSS Research Associate Alexander Krauss is for anyone who wants to understand how we make discoveries. ➡ Link to the book: doi.org/10.1093/oso/...
doi.org
The Engine of Scientific Discovery: How New Methods and Tools Spark Major Breakthroughs
Abstract. How do we spark new scientific discoveries? Why do some breakthroughs seem even accidental? And most importantly, how can we accelerate them and
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PhilInBioMed @philinbiomed.bsky.social · 18/02/2026
Bordeaux Summer School – Philosophy in Biology & Medicine (1–5 June 2026) Join us in collaboratively exploring the conceptual foundations of scientific research at the crossroads of philosophy, biology and medicine! Apply by March 15 More information: bss-philinbiomed.u-bordeaux.fr/en/
bss-philinbiomed.u-bordeaux.fr
Bordeaux Summer School - Philosophy in biology and medicine
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 28/11/2025
Jokes on us. #philosophy
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 30/10/2025
Veřejná diskuse: 🧐 Co je a není podle laiků filosofie, kdo se může označovat za filosofa a jakou roli tato disciplína hraje v očích běžné veřejnosti? Rezervovace místa: bit.ly/TAV2025
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 23/10/2025
Happy to see this one published. From interest in the topic in 2017 to first presentation in 2018, draft in 2021 and submitting in 2022. #philsci www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
sciencedirect.com
On representation and similarity: The case of mouse models of cancer
According to the similarity account, scientists use models to represent their targets by utilizing similarities in certain respects and to certain deg…
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 06/10/2025
I am glad to have hosted Shimon Sakaguchi in Prague last year. I expect he's going to be a very busy man very soon. 🙂
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Thomas Pradeu @pradeu.bsky.social · 30/06/2025
New paper out! rdcu.be/etKdN Experts in #cancer across the tree of life and philosophers of science teamed up to explore how comparative thinking can improve current approaches to cancer, including conceptually and therapeutically. #evolution #ecology #oncology #philosophy
rdcu.be
Advancing cancer research via comparative oncology
Nature Reviews Cancer - Comparative oncology combines evolutionary biology, ecology, veterinary medicine and clinical oncology to better understand cancer, for example, by identifying the molecular...
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British Journal for the Philosophy of Science @thebjps.bsky.social · 04/09/2025
A Complementary Account of Scientific Modelling – Martin Zach Abstract in alt text or read it here: www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/... #philsci #philsky
ABSTRACT. According to a widely held view, scientific modelling consists of entertaining a set of model descriptions that specify a model. Rather than studying the phenomenon of interest directly, scientists investigate the phenomenon indirectly via a model in the hope of learning about some of the phenomenon’s features. I call this view the description-driven modelling (DDM) account. I argue that although it is an accurate description of much of scientific research, the DDM account is found wanting as regards the mechanistic modelling found in many branches of biology. By analysing research practices in cancer immunology concerning the development of mechanistic models of the process of cancer metastasis, this article presents and argues for a complementary account of scientific modelling, herein called the experimentation-driven modelling (EDM) account. In EDM, scientists investigate a set of experimental systems and then integrate the results obtained from experiments into a mechanistic model. While EDM shares some key features with DDM, the two are epistemically very different approaches to research.
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 03/09/2025
Here's a guest piece (credits to @vtgvzdk.bsky.social ) which draws on a report we wrote together for the Czech media (it may yet come out) regarding the results of a national representative survey we did on the issue of how #philosophy is perceived by the public. dailynous.com/2025/09/03/h...
dailynous.com
How the Public Sees Philosophy: Insights from a National Survey in the Czech Republic (guest post) - Daily Nous
What do ordinary people think philosophy is for? That's one of the questions a pair of philosophers, Vít Gvoždiak and Martin Zach (Institute of Philosophy, Czech Academy of Sciences) aimed to answer. ...
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 03/09/2025
Soon... Registration still open! #ImmunoSky #philbio #philsci Link: pmpos.flu.cas.cz/host-microbe...
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 20/08/2025
Po dlouhé době další blogový příspěvek, tentokrát na výbušné téma ohledně počtu pohlaví. Odkaz 👉 medium.seznam.cz/clanek/marti...
medium.seznam.cz
Kolik je pohlaví a proč spousta lidí žádné nemá? - Médium.cz
Kolik je biologických pohlaví? Záleží na definici. Evoluční biologie, genetika, medicína i filosofie vědy ukazují, že pohledů je víc — a některé naznačují, že ne každý člověk pohlaví vůbec má.
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 12/08/2025
"Immunology Meets Philosophy vol. 2" focuses on host-microbe interactions while highlighting a variety of conceptual approaches and phenomena, from infectious diseases to evolutionary and metabolic perspectives. #ImmunoSky #philbio #philsci On-site / online stream registration - link in comments 👇
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 03/02/2025
Pokračování mého "blogu", tentokrát stručně představuji obor filosofie vědy a k čemu je dobrý. Odkaz 👉 medium.seznam.cz/clanek/marti...
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 28/01/2025
New book by Maël Lemoine in CUP. Very cool stuff! And surely provocative to many in philosophy of medicine. #philmed #philsci
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 15/01/2025
Jak čas dovolí, formou krátkých příspěvků zkusím širšímu publiku představit obor filosofie vědy, včetně kontroverzních témat jako třeba ideologie ve vědě aj. První příspěvek je obecnější o vztahu filosofie a vědy, k čemuž se nejspíš občas vrátím. Za sdílení budu rád. medium.seznam.cz/clanek/marti...
medium.seznam.cz
Zabili filosofii, parchanti! - Médium.cz
Filosofie je prý mrtvá, protože neudržela krok s moderní vědou. Jaký má ale filosofie vztah k vědě? Ačkoli určitá část filosofie opravdu zaspala dobu, obecně je filosofie mnohem pestřejší, než by se m...
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Rod Rahimi @rodrahimi.bsky.social · 09/01/2025
"unlike type 1 immune responses, type 2 immunity is perceived as a potential promoter of tumorigenesis. Emerging evidence challenges this perspective, painting a more nuanced picture in which type 2 immunity might protect against or even actively suppress tumour growth and progression." #ImmunoSky
nature.com
Reinventing type 2 immunity in cancer - Nature
This Review addresses the roles of type 2 immunity in cancer and the potential for cancer immunotherapies targeting this pathway.
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 09/01/2025
It's scary swimming in the great depths where darkness lurks.
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 02/01/2025
Go follow @philinbiomed.bsky.social if you are interested in keeping track of events on conceptual questions in medicine and biology. #mediky #immunosky #philsci
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 28/12/2024
My colleague, Vladimir Havlik, just published a paper in Synthese on meaning and understanding in LLMs - a controversial topic! Holiday reading for those interested. #AI #LLM #philsci link.springer.com/article/10.1...
link.springer.com
Meaning and understanding in large language models - Synthese
Can a machine understand the meanings of natural language? Recent developments in the generative large language models (LLMs) of artificial intelligence have led to the belief that traditional philoso...
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 02/12/2024
One of the coolest places to do a degree in #philsci #philbio #philmed The training takes place in an immunology lab but welcomes applications from all fields of biology and medicine, and is open to those considering a career in science and/or philosophy.
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 02/12/2024
Check out the new SPSP Newsletter #22, covering biomedical validation, philosophy of science for and with astrophysics, "evolving evolution", Uni of Valpareiso highlights, ... #philsci #philbio #philmed sway.cloud.microsoft/tvRXL53AU0du...
sway.cloud.microsoft
SPSP Newsletter # 22
November 2024
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 21/11/2024
How did we arrive at our current notion of antibodies? With colleagues we show that the concept of antibodies has been the result of numerous shifts (progressive yet discontinuous conceptual changes in 100+ years) driven also by technology. #philsci #immunosky onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
How Technical Advances Changed the Concept of Antibodies
Shaped by advances in scientific instrumentation and experimental techniques, the concept of antibody has undergone profound transformations throughout the history of immunology. Serological assays, ...
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Jakub Mihalik @jakubmihalik.bsky.social · 14/11/2024
Here's a CFP for workshop on AI & consciousness that @tmarvan.bsky.social and I are co-organizing in Prague.
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 13/11/2024
Glad to see this book in print by Alex Krauss. I read and commented on the draft. Now here's the final product in open access at OUP #philsci academic.oup.com/book/58964
academic.oup.com
Science of Science: Understanding the Foundations and Limits of Science from an Interdisciplinary Perspective
Abstract. How do we drive new knowledge and science? What are their present boundaries? And how can we improve science? We still do not understand these es
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 10/11/2024
Last week I was invited to give a public lecture on the conceptual changes regarding the understanding of immunity #immunosky, followed by an interview on the role of philosophy of science #philsci in such efforts. It's in Czech though . www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqeK...
youtube.com
IF: Nové pojetí imunity / Revoluce v poznání o fungování našeho těla
YouTube video by Mezinárodní festival dokumentárních filmů Ji.hlava
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 09/11/2024
Hello blue sky-ers! Long time no see. Looks like this platform may be coming to life after all, or is it? Feels like other social media I am on have become dull. I even set up IG: @martinzach.ig only to realize I don't know what to do there. Is there any hope for blue sky, or also a ghost platform?
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Simon Lohse @simonlohse.bsky.social · 30/10/2024
📢 2nd CFP for a Special Issue of the *Journal for General Philosophy of Science* "Towards Comparative Philosophy of Science" philevents.org/event/show/1... #philsci #philsky #HPS @jgps.bsky.social @philsci.bsky.social
philevents.org
Towards Comparative Philosophy of Science (Special Issue of the Journal for General Philosophy of Science)
CALL FOR PAPERS: Towards Comparative Philosophy of Science (Special Issue of the Journal for General Philosophy of Science) Guest editors: Simon Lohse (Nijmegen) & Karim Bschir (St....
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 30/08/2024
Sometimes I can be literally a crybaby: I see a new juicy edited volume on modeling and many other related topics on which I have published as well, I enthusiastically read through it and... and find out I am not being cited a single time. 🤷‍♂️Well, I will grow up one day (COPIUM). #philsci
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 05/08/2024
Recording of Shimon Sakaguchi's talk in Prague. #ImmunoSky The opening includes my remarks on the philosophical flavour of immunology, followed by Dominik Filipp's speech and the Garnet Immunoglobulin award ceremony. www.youtube.com/watch?v=qMRt...
youtube.com
Prof. Shimon Sakaguchi (Osaka University): Immune Tolerance and Regulatory T-cells, 20. 6. 2024
Professor Shimon Sakaguchi, a legend in contemporary immunology and the discoverer of a special type of white blood cells, was a guest at the Institute of Ph...
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 18/06/2024
Thrilled to have received the Otto Wichterle Award "to stimulate and encourage selected, exceptionally outstanding, promising young scientists at the Czech Academy of Sciences for their remarkable contributions to the advancement of scientific knowledge in a given area of science." Ok then!
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 13/05/2024
I am thrilled to be hosting one of the world's most recognized immunologists, Shimon Sakaguchi, in Prague, continuing the dialogue between immunology and philosophy, as also a part of my research project. #immunosky #philsci #philbio
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 01/02/2024
The latest issue of the PhilInBioMed newsletter includes a short piece describing my project "Immunity and biological resilience: a conceptual framework" funded by #GACR. It's a collab between myself and an immunologist Dominik Filipp. Read: www.philinbiomed.org/wp-content/u... #philsci #ImmunoSky
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 20/01/2024
A question to ponder on Saturday: Am I a bad person for continuous engagement on twitter? Any serious and less serious thoughts?
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 30/11/2023
I am very relieved to learn that my project "Immunity and biological resilience: A conceptual framework" has received funding from the Czech Science Foundation for the next three years. Time to celebrate.🥳🥳🥳 #philsky #philsci #ImmunoSky
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 28/11/2023
Got a rare award for a philosopher 🥳 from the Czech Academy of Sciences for my @thebjps.bsky.social paper, 1st to publish there with 🇨🇿 affiliation. Pulled a cheeky bastard by being a bit critical about academia at the end of my speech. #philsky #philsci www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/...
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 08/11/2023
To get a promotion, I need to be evaluated by a committee which also looks at where I have published in the past two years. I made a "graphical abstract" for the committee. Is this a good idea?😁 #philsci
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 07/11/2023
In a recent paper I discuss the many ways in which asymptomatic infections are of concern to long-term health consequences; several myths surrounding it; and implications for policy making, public health, and science communication. #philsci #ImmunoSky philmed.pitt.edu/philmed/arti...
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 03/11/2023
Rejection is second nature to academia. Still, some rejection cuts deep. I am heartbroken that I did not get the only project funding that would allow me to make a truly exciting contribution to both science and science education in Czechia and beyond.
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Tomas Marvan 🇪🇺 @tmarvan.bsky.social · 27/10/2023
Workshop with Frédérique de Vignemont, author of Mind the Body and, more recently, Affective Bodily Awareness (Cambridge elements in philosophy of mind, 2023). www.flu.cas.cz/cz/akce-filo... Online participations possible! #philsky #consci
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 24/10/2023
This #philmed paper blames patient groups, while convenietly omits the good, such as patients finding comfort (thus relieving stress). It bizarely dismisses biological evidence for post-acute events. Instead of genuine bio-psycho-social integration, we get the psychological reductionism.
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Tomas Marvan 🇪🇺 @tmarvan.bsky.social · 21/10/2023
Thrilled to announce that the seventh conference of the Philosophy of Language and Mind Network (PLM) will take place in Prague in August (26-28) 2024.
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 17/10/2023
Czech immunology has contributed to our understanding of immune tolerance, most notably through Milan Hasek, the co-discoverer of immune tolerance. Join a hybrid special event on Thursday, Oct 19, celebrating the 70-year anniversary of some his major contributions. cesnet.zoom.us/j/98139734575
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Martin Zach @mzach.bsky.social · 13/10/2023
Hello! Thank God (Alisa) I have gotten an invite code to BlueSky before afterlife. I am a philosopher of science working on immunology. I post about immunology & philosophy, about my and others work, and about events. Sometimes I post about other things: follow me to find out which. ;-)
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