Valérie Lynn Therrien

About

I am a PhD candidate at McGill University working on History and Philosophy of Mathematics with Michael Hallett and Dirk Schlimm.

I graduated from Université de Montréal on the Dean's List with a Baccalauréat in Philosophy as well as a certificate in Russian Studies, which began as an attempt to avoid learning German.

I completed an MLitt at Western University under the supervision of John L. Bell. My thesis was on the acceptance of the Axiom of Choice in classical mathematics and focused extensively on the role played by the Warsaw School of Mathematics.

My doctoral thesis is on the adjudication of a background logic for axiomatizations of mathematics and will focus on the methodological choices of early model theory.

Experience

Professional experience

• 2021-2022 - Course Instructor – Introduction to Deductive Logic @ McGill University (Montréal)

  • - Truth tables, Fitch proofs, deductive reasoning, propositional and predicate (classical) logic
  • - Survey of proving soundness and completess; topics in philosophy of logic (motivations for non-classical logics, methodological and philosophical "choices" within proof systems); logic
  • - Deliver 40 hours of lectures for 100 and 400 students
  • - Design weekly assignments and four exams on the Carnap.io platform
  • - Supervise TAs

• 2019-present - Teaching Assistant @ McGill University (Montréal)

  • - Introduction to Deductive Logic (x3) -- Truth tables, Fitch proofs, deductive reasoning, propositional and predicate (classic) logic
  • - Intermediate Logic (x2) -- Set Theory, Completeness Theorem, primitive recursive functions, arithmetization of syntax, Incompleteness Theorems, Löb's Theorem, Tarski's Theorem
  - Philosophy of Law -- Natural vs. Positive law in historical perspective (Aquinas to Hart), civil disobedience (incl. Marxist, feminist and decolonial perspectives on law)
  • - Deliver conferences twice weekly and grade exams

• 2016-2018 - Teaching Assistant @ Western University (London)

  • - Basic Logic and Introduction to Logic
  • - Truth tables, truth trees, natural deduction, propositional and predicate logic, classic, intuitionistic and modal logic, set theory
  • - Grading Exams
  • - Receiving students and tutoring
  • - Replacing Professor when away

• 2008-2013 - Unit Coordinator @ MUHC - Montréal General Hospital

  • - Opening and closing of patient files
  • - File manager
  • - Orders of laboratory tests, X-rays, CT scans and MRIs
  • - Coordination of inter- and intra-hospital movement of patients and equipment
  • - Essential communication between doctors, residenrs, nurses, patients and family members

• 2008 - Research Assistant @ FECOFUN Nepal (Kathmandu)

  • - Research on carbon credit accreditation processes for small organisations of community forest users groups
  • - Preparation and writing of World Bank grant proposal (bio-briquette project)

• 2007 - Naturalist @ Rara Avis Private Eco-reserve (Costa Rica)

  • - Interpretation and dissemination of various vulgarized ecological concepts
  • - Tropical Ecology and/or Rainforest Ecology and/or Tropical Fauna/Flora and/or Medicinal plants
  • - Participation in various alternative sustainable development projects
  • - Assistant to on-site biolgical research

Education

• 2019-present - PHD2 @ McGill University (Montréal)

  • - Supervisors: Michael Hallett and Dirk Schlimm

• 2024 - Summer School on « Current Research on the History of Mathematics in the Ancient World: New Questions and New Approaches » @ University of Edinburgh (Edinburgh)

  • - History of Global Mathematics
  • - Fully funded

• 2024 - Summer School on « Reading Pappus » @ Luigi Maierù's Internation Summer School -- Chapman University (Cetraro)

  • - Fully funded

• 2023 - SPLogiC Summer School @ School of Advanced Science on Contemporary Logic, Rationality, and Information (São Paulo)

  • - Non-Classical Logics
  • - Fully funded

• 2022 - Summer School on « Models and Methods » @ Universität Wien

• 2018-2019 - Logic Year (Mathematical Logic Stream) @ ILLC-University of Amsterdam

• 2017-2018 - PhD Philosophy (Logic and Philosophy of Mathematics) @ Western University (London)

  • - Supervisor John L. Bell

• 2017 - Summer School on Mathematical Philosophy for Female Students @ Munich Center for Mathematical Philosophy (LMU)

• 2016-2017 - MLitt (Logic and Philosophy of Mathematics) @ Western University (London)

  • - Thesis: « Do all roads lead to classical mathematics? The Axiom of Choice and the road pave by the Warsaw School of Mathematics » (95%)
  • - Supervisor John L. Bell

• 2016 - Summer School in Logic and Formal Epistemology @ Carnegie-Mellon University (Pittsburgh)

  • - Fully funded

• 2005-2015 - Baccalauréat in Philosophy @ Université de Montréal

  • - Baccalauréat ès Arts in Philosophy – graduated Dean’s List, 3.842 GPA
  • - Certificate in Russian Studies

• 2012 - Graduate Summer School on "Metaphysics and Modernity" @ Otto-Friedrich-Universität Bamberg (Bamberg)

  • - with Saul Kripke
  • - Fully funded

Publications

• « A Diagram of Choice: The Curious Case of Wallis’s Attempted Proof of the Parallel Postulate and the Axiom of Choice » in Diagrams 2020 (Eds. A.-V. Pietarinen et al.), 2020.

• « The Axiom of Choice and the Road Paved by Sierpiński » in The Journal of the International Society for the History of Philosophy of Science, Vol. 10 (2), 2020.

• « The Axiom of Choice as Paradigm Shift : The Case for the Methodological Crisis in the Foundations of Mathematics » in Proceedings of the Canadian Society for the History and Philosophy of Mathematics, 2018.

• « Inventing Logic: The Löwenheim-Skolem Theorem and First- and Second-Order Logic » dans Pensées Canadiennes : Revue de philosophie des étudiants au baccalauréat du Canada, vol. 10, Printemps 2012.

• « Wittgenstein and the Labyrinth of ‘Actual Infinity’: The Critique of Transfinite Set Theory » dans Ithaque: Revue de philosophie de l'Université de Montréal, vol. 10, Printemps 2012.

Conferences

Invited Talks

• « Towards a History of Model Theory: The Pre-History of Model Theory », at Philosophy of Science Colloquium, Universität Wien, Vienna (Austria), 22nd of February, 2024.

• « On Counting as Mathematical Progress: Kuratowski-Zorn’s Lemma and the Path Not Taken », at Perspectives on Logic and Philosophy II, Universität Wien, Vienna (Austria), 8th of February, 2024.

• « The Evolution of Cantor's Proofs of the Non-Denumerability of the Real Numbers », at Logic and Philosophy of Science Speaker Series, Eötvös University, Budapest (Hungary), 8th of December, 2023.

• « The Evolution of Cantor's Proofs of the Non-Denumerability of the Real Numbers », at Association for Symbolic Logic Annual Meeting -- Special Session, Cornell University, Ithaca (USA), 7th of April, 2022.

• « On Counting as Mathematical Progress: Kuratowski-Zorn’s Lemma and the Path Not Taken », at CSHPM Online Colloquium Series, Simon-Fraser University, Vancouver, (Canada – held online), 25th of September, 2020.

Contributed Talks

• « Towards a History of Model Theory: The Pre-History of Model Theory », at SSHAP Annual Meeting, Wesleyan University, Middletown, (USA), 27-29 June, 2024.

• « Towards a History of Model Theory: The Pre-History of Model Theory », at CSHPM Annual Meeting -- Congress 2024, McGill University, Montréal, Québec (Canada), 15-17 June, 2024.

• « The Evolution of Cantor's Proofs of the Non-Denumerability of the Real Numbers », at CSHPM Annual Meeting -- Congress 2022, University of Alberta, Edmonton, (Canada – held online), 13-15 May, 2022.

• « On Counting as Mathematical Progress: Kuratowski-Zorn’s Lemma and the Path Not Taken », at Peoples, Places, and Practices – BSHM/CSHPM, University of St-Andrews, St-Andrews, (Scotland – held online), 12-15 July, 2021.

• « On Counting as Mathematical Progress: Kuratowski-Zorn’s Lemma and the Path Not Taken » at 2020 MidWest PhilMath Workshop, University of Notre-Dame, Notre-Dame, (USA – held online), 4th of November, 2020.

• « On Counting as Mathematical Progress: Kuratowski-Zorn’s Lemma and the Path Not Taken », at 7th René Descartes Lectures 2020, Pragmatic Naturalism: Progress in Science, Mathematics, and Values, Tilberg University, Tilberg (The Netherlands – held online), 14-16 October 2020.

• « Proofs and Objections: the Axiom of Choice as Proof-Generated Axiom », at Lakatas’ Undone Work, London School of Economics, London (United Kingdom – held online), 5-6 September 2020.

• « A Diagram of Choice: The Curious Case of Wallis’s Attempted Proof of the Parallel Postulate and the Axiom of Choice » at Diagrams 2020, 11th International Conference on the Theory and Application of Diagrams, Tallin University, Tallin (Estonia – held online), 24-28 August 2020.

• All presentations for Spring and Summer 2020 cancelled due to COVID-19.

• « The Axiom of Choice and the Road Paved by Sierpiński », at International Society for the History and Philosophy of Science, University of Groningen, Groningen, (Netherlands), 9-12 July 2018.

• « The Axiom of Choice and the Road Paved by Sierpiński », at Canadian Society for the History and Philosophy of Mathematics, Université deu Québec à Montréal, Montréal (Canada), 4-8 June 2018.

• « Le débat sur l'axiome du choix: Zermelo et Sierpiński contre les semi-intuitionnistes français », at Canadian Philosophical Association, Université du Québec à Montréal, Montréal (Canada), 4-7 June 2018.

• « Le débat sur l'axiome du choix: Zermelo et Sierpiński contre les semi-intuitionnistes français », at Canadian Society for the History and Philosophy of Science, Congress 2018, University of Regina, Regina (Canada), 26-8 May 2018.

• « The Axiom of Choice and the Road Paved by Sierpiński », at Canadian Mathematical Society Annual Meeting, Waterloo University, Waterloo (Canada), 8-12 December 2017.

• « The Axiom of Choice and the Road Paved by Sierpiński », at Hilbert in CEE Workshop (Fourth International Conference on the History and Philosophy of Computing), Department of Mathematics, Masaryk University, Brno (Czech Republic), 3-7 October 2017.

• "The Axiom of Choice as Paradigm Shift: The Case for the Methodological Crisis in the Foundations of Mathematics" at FilMat 2017, Trento University (Italy), 13-4 July 2017.

• "The Axiom of Choice as Paradigm Shift: The Case for the Methodological Crisis in the Foundations of Mathematics" at Canadian Society for the History and Philosophy of Mathematics, Congress 2017, Ryerson University (Canada), 28-30 May 2017.

• "The Axiom of Choice as Paradigm Shift: The Case for the Methodological Crisis in the Foundations of Mathematics" at Society for the Study of the History of Analytic Philosophy, University of Calgary (Canada), 8-10 May 2017.

• « Wittgenstein and ἄπειρον in mathematics » at International Conference 2400 Aristotle, University of Bucharest (Romania), 25-26 November 2016.

• « Inventing Logic: The Löwenheim-Skolem Theorem and First- and Second-Order Logic » at Western Canadian Philosophical Association, University of Alberta (Canada), 28-30 October 2016.

• « Wittgenstein and the Labyrinth of ‘Actual Infinity’: The Critique of Transfinite Set Theory » at Entia et Nomina, University of Warsaw (Poland), 5-9 September 2016.

Awards

• 2023-2024 - Michael Smith Foreign Study Supplement (CGS-D)

  • Government of Canada, Ottawa, ON

• 2023-2024 - Graduate Mobility Award

  • McGill University, Montréal, QC

• 2023-2024 - Vienna Circle Institute Fellowship

  • Universität Wien, Vienna, Austria

• 2023-2024 - Wolfe Chair Fellowship in Scientific and Technological Literacy

  • McGill University, Montréal, QC

• 2022-2023 - Thanked Prof

  • McGill University, Montréal, QC

  • - Students nominate a professor that has made a difference in their life.

• 2022 - Congress Graduate Merit Award

  • Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences, Ottawa, ON

• 2022 - Roberto Gualtieri Award – Academic Achievement and Community Service

  • McGill University, Montréal, QC

  • - I conducted a survey of graduate student funding, performed statistical analysis on the data, and researched cost of living as well as the poverty line/viable income for Montréal. On this basis, I helped to organize graduate students and lobby for a stipend that would be above the poverty line for graduate students not receiving external funding. As well, I worked with various organizations to help get displaced Ukrainians (especially displaced graduate students) to Canada.

• 2021-2024 - Joseph-Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarship

  • Government of Canada, Ottawa, ON

• 2021-2024 - Bourse Doctorale FRQSC (declined)

  • Gouvernment du Québec, Québec, QC

• 2020 - Best Student Paper

  • Diagrams 2020

  • - My paper (« A Diagram of Choice ») received the best reviews of any submitted paper.

• 2019 - Entrance Bursary

  • McGill University

• 2018 - Alumni Graduate Award

  • Western University

• Congress 2018 Travel Award

  • University of Regina

• 2018 - SOGS Travel Award

  • Western University

• 2017 - Provost’s Excellence Bursary

  • Western University

• 2017 - Entrance Bursary (PhD Logic and Philosophy of Mathematics)

  • Western University

• 2017 - Graduate Thesis Research Award (visit to Poland’s State Archives)

  • Western University

• 2017 - PSAC10 Academic Achievement Scholarship

  • Western University

• 2016 - SOGS Travel Bursary

  • Western University

• 2016 - Chair’s Excellence Bursary

  • Western University

• 2016 - Entrance Bursary (MA Logic and Philosophy of Mathematics)

  • Western University

Contact

• Private e-mail
  v.lynn.therrien@gmail.com
• McGill University e-mail
  valerie.l.therrien@mcgill.ca
• UWO e-mail
  vtherri@uwo.ca