Vanessa A. Seifert

Employment

 

Principal Investigator, PExAI project, Feb 2026- Jan 2028

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The Hellenic Foundation for Research and Innovation is funding my project titled 'Predicting and Explaining with AI' (PExAI) which is based at the University of Athens.

 

More information here

 

Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellow, CReaCal project, July 2023- June 2025

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I have received funding by the Marie Skłodowska- Curie Actions, which is part of the Horizon Europe programme of the European Union, to conduct research on my project titled 'Chemical Reactions as Causes and Laws' (CReaCaL). My research is based at the University of Athens where I am supervised by Prof. Stathis Psillos (Dept. of History and Philosophy of Science) and receive training at the Department of Chemistry with the guidance of Prof. Methenitis.

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For all the information on CReaCal click here 

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Post-Doctoral Research Associate with the NoMoS project, July 2022- June 2023

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The aim of the project is to formulate a unified account of laws and powers in the metaphysics of science. The project is based at the University of Athens, with P.I. Prof. Stathis Psillos and has received funding by the Hellenic Foundation for Research & Innovation.​​​

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Teaching Fellow, Dept. of History & Philosophy of Science, National & Kapodistrian University of Athens, October 2021- September 2022

 

Post-Doctoral Research Associate with the Metaphysical Unity of Science project, June 2019- September 2021

The aim of the project is to explore whether, and how, the sciences are unified. The project is based at the University of Bristol, with P.I. Prof. Tuomas Taiko and has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme.

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Education

 

PhD in Philosophy, University of Bristol, 2014- 2019

Thesis title: ‘A Philosophical Analysis of the Relation between Chemistry and Quantum Mechanics: the case of a single inert molecule’

Supervisor: James Ladyman

Examiners: Samir Okasha, Robin Hendry

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MSc Philosophy of Science, London School of Economics, 2012- 2013

Dissertation: ‘On the universality and ambiguity of the 2nd law of thermodynamics’ 

Supervisor: Miklos Redei

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MEng Chemical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 2006- 2012

GPA 2:1 (7.66/10)

Dissertation: ‘Energy-saving measures on buildings: Financial and Cost-Benefit Analysis’ 

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Teaching

 

University of Athens, 2022- present

Feminist Philosophy of Science (undergraduate)

Philosophy of Science (postgraduate- Dept. of Chemistry)

 

University of Athens, 2021-2022

Feminist Philosophy of Science;

17th and 18th century Philosophy; 

Special issues in Philosophy of Science;

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Hourly-paid Teacher, University of Bristol, 2015-2020

Introduction to Philosophy A (incl. topics on Descartes, Hume, theory of knowledge);

Introduction to Metaphysics;

Realism and Normativity (metaphysics and value theory);

Introduction to Philosophy B (moral and political philosophy);

Philosophical Issues of Physical Sciences (quantum mechanics and relativity)

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Other Professional Activities
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Reviewer for Perspectives on Science, Foundations of Chemistry, Studies in History and Philosophy of Modern Physics, Analysis, Ergo, Journal for General Philosophy of Science, Chemistry-a European Journal, European Journal for the Philosophy of Science, Journal of Chemical Education, Synthese, Philosophical Studies, Interdisciplinary Science Reviews, Philosophy of Science

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Writer of the Column Thought Experiments of the magazine Chemistry World, published by the Royal Society of Chemistry

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Organiser of the Society in the Metaphysics of Science (SMS) symposium 'Identity, Persistence and Change in Chemistry' (after invitation)

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Participation in the Researchers at School initiative of the ERC with the talk “Philosophising about Science” delivered to students of the Protupo Evaggeliki Sxoli Smyrnis

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Co-host of the international Society for the Philosophy of Chemistry Annual Conference, Bristol, 2018

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Organised with J.Ladyman the Workshop on the History and Philosophy of Chemistry, Philosophy Department, University of Bristol, 2016​

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Assistant content producer for the Centre of Science and Philosophy, University of Bristol, 2015

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Editorships

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Area Editor in Philosophy of Science, Dialectica

 

Section Editor of Philosophy of Chemistry, Comprehensive Philosophy of Science (ed. by Sven-Ove Hansson), published by Elsevier

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Co-creator, co-editor and contributor to Jargonium, a website about chemistry and everything related to it!​

 

Co-editor (w/ S. Psillos & S. Ioannidis) of Laws and powers in the Metaphysics of Science. Routledge (In Press)

 

Editor of 'Interlevel relations in Chemistry' category on PhilPapers (2026-27)

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Memberships

 

Member of the Royal Society of Chemistry (since 2025) and the Technical Chamber of Greece (2020)

 

Member of the British Society for the Philosophy of Science, the Philosophy of Science Association, and the European Philosophy of Science Association

 

Member of the program committee of the British Society for the Philosophy of Science (BSPS) 2026 conference

 

Member of the program committee of the Society for the Metaphysics of Science (SMS) 2022, 2025, 2026 conferences

 

Member of the scientific committee for the 2026 Beilstein Dialogues Symposium of the Beilstein Institute

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Member of the program committee of the 12th European Congress for Analytic Philosophy

 

Member of the programme committee of the 10th Biennial Conference of the European Philosophy of Science Association (EPSA25)

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Member of the organising committee of the 7th & 8th Panhellenic Conferences on Philosophy of Science, University of Athens

 

Grants 

 

ERC Starting Grant Awardee for the project DiscoChem, Discovery in Chemistry (awarded 2026, to commence soon)

 

Hellenic Foundation for Research and Innovation, Project PExAI: Predicting and Explaining with AI, 2025
 

Marie Skłodowska- Curie (MSCA) Postdoctoral Fellowship, 2022

 

PSA2018 Travel Grant, Philosophy of Science Association, 2018

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Jacobsen Studentship, The Royal Institute of Philosophy, 2017- 2018

 

Darwin Trust of Edinburgh Postgraduate Studentship, 2014- 2017

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Awards

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2024 BJPS Popper Prize for the paper ‘The problem of molecular structure just is the measurement problem, co-written with A. Franklin 

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Subject Development Award from the Society for the History of Alchemy and Chemistry for the further development of Jargonium, awarded together

with K. Pulkkinen and S. Hijmans ​

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Contact

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