Edward N. Zalta

Edward N. Zalta is a Senior Research Scholar at Stanford University's Center for the Study of Language and Information (CSLI) and Director of the Metaphysics Research Lab. He served as Principal Editor of the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy from 1995 to 2022 and now serves as Co-Principal Editor. His academic career spans several decades with significant contributions to philosophical logic and metaphysics.

Dr. Zalta's educational background includes an honors B.A. from Rice University (1975) and a Ph.D. in Philosophy from the University of Massachusetts/Amherst (1981). He joined Stanford in 1984 as a Postdoctoral Fellow at CSLI, establishing his long-term affiliation with the institution.

His research focuses on metaphysics and formal ontology, philosophy of mathematics, computational metaphysics, and intensional logic. Zalta has developed influential theories in object theory and abstract objects, with applications extending to computational metaphysics. His work bridges traditional philosophical inquiry with modern computational approaches, creating new methodologies for metaphysical investigation. He has made significant contributions to understanding the logical foundations of ontology and the philosophical implications of mathematical structures.

Zalta's publication record demonstrates consistent scholarly output across five decades, with recent work showing increasing integration of computational methods in metaphysical research. His articles reveal a trajectory from foundational work in object theory toward more applied computational approaches, reflecting the growing interdisciplinary nature of his research. The recurring themes across his work include formal ontological structures, the nature of abstract objects, and the logical frameworks necessary to model complex philosophical concepts.

• K. Jon Barwise Prize (2016)
• Covey Award (2009)
• 2025 Johan von Spix Visiting Professor at the University of Bamberg

As Principal Editor of the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy for over 25 years, Zalta has shaped one of the most influential digital humanities projects in philosophy. His work with the Metaphysics Research Lab has fostered numerous collaborations between philosophers and computer scientists. He has received funding to support the development of computational tools for metaphysical reasoning and has supervised research projects at the intersection of philosophy and computer science.

The Metaphysics Research Lab at CSLI serves as the intellectual hub for Zalta's work, supporting research in computational metaphysics and formal ontology. The lab has developed several computational frameworks for representing and reasoning about metaphysical concepts, including implementations of object theory in automated reasoning systems. Zalta's research group has collaborated with computer scientists to create tools that bridge philosophical theory with practical computational applications.