Guest Author - Elizabeth Stuttard
For anyone who is interested in philosophy, Erratic Impact’s Philosophy Research Base has a wealth of information for you to learn more about philosophy. According to their About page, “Erratic Impact began in 1997 as a research tool for students enrolled in philosophy courses at Villanova University, Danne Polk, Instructor. The site was opened to the public on January 15, 1999.”
The site is organized into three categories. One of these is Topics. There are 84 different main topics listed ranging from 19th Century Philosophy to Zen. However, it is also possible to see an even longer list if you are interested in a more specific subject. A second category is Names in which it is possible to find information on a specific philosopher from the hundreds that are listed. The third category is History where a period of time can be chosen from a list of seven periods including Ancient, Modern, and Popular. Being able to choose using those different categories makes it easier for visitors to the site to find the resources in which they are interested.
When you find a topic in which you are interested and click on it, you will be given the choice to check out online links, or books that are either new or used. The links for the books are to Amazon or Powell’s, but I also came across a page with links to other bookstores. There is a list of links to websites about the various philosophers and many of these sites will give you information from a very unique perspective such as an authorship analysis of Francis Bacon as Shakespeare. I have just recently discovered this site and have already spent a few hours of my time checking out the types of information there is on various philosophers and who some of the major philosophers were in various periods. I will be returning to the site often since there is a huge amount of very interesting information.
You do need to spend some time finding your way around on the site. It is not the most user friendly site that I have visited. Also some of the online links are broken or no longer in existence. Erratic Impact is aware that some of the pages are out of date and are trying to update them but it is a slow process. However, because there is so much information in this data base, it is definitely worth your time to search it out. Once you get used to how the site works you will probably find the resources you need.
This is a great resource for anyone who is interested in philosophy – students who are researching for philosophy courses, philosophy teachers who are planning their classes or suggesting resources for their students, new authors in philosophy who need some promotion for their work, and for all the people who just have an interest in philosophy and want to read more about some aspect of it. The website is up-to-date with resources for current information in the field and will list new authors’ books or papers or websites on philosophy. If you have an interest in philosophy, visit this website to learn even more about the subject.
