The 92nd Joint Session of the Aristotelian Society and the Mind Association was held at the University of Oxford from 6 to 8 July 2018. The Joint Session is a three-day conference in philosophy that is held annually during the summer by the Aristotelian Society and the Mind Association. It has taken place at nearly every major university across the United Kingdom and in Ireland. Since 1910, the Joint Session has grown to become the largest gathering of philosophers in the country, attracting prestigious UK and international speakers working in a broad range of philosophical areas. Inaugurated by the incoming President of the Mind Association, the Joint Session includes symposia, open and postgraduate sessions, and a range of satellite conferences.

This podcast is a recording of the inaugural address to the Joint Session - "W(h)ither Metaphysical Necessity?" - which was delivered by the incoming President of the Mind Association, John Divers (Leeds). John is a first-generation University entrant who studied, and subsequently taught, Philosophy at the University of Glasgow. He has been Professor of Philosophy at the University of Sheffield and currently holds that position at the University of Leeds. The dominant theme in his published work is modality, including the 2002 book Possible Worlds and (in progress) Necessity After Quine. John is also an Editor of Thought and Director of the Leverhulme Trust Research Project, Thinking Counterfactually - How "Would have been” reveals what is and what must be.