Augustine Akintunde Farinola
Doctoral Student in Philosophy & Digital Humanities · AI Ethics · Corpus-Based Text Analysis
I am a Doctoral Student and Graduate Research Assistant in the Department of Philosophy at the University of Alberta. My work sits at the intersection of artificial intelligence ethics, digital humanities, and corpus-based experimental philosophy, with a particular focus on how computational tools and large language models shape our understanding of texts, agency, and social reality.
About Me
I am a philosophy and digital humanities researcher with a background in applied ethics, communication, and computational methods. I am currently a Doctoral Student and Graduate Research Assistant in the Department of Philosophy at the University of Alberta, where I work with the Voyant Consortium on advanced text analysis tools such as Voyant and Spyral Notebooks.
My research explores how artificial intelligence systems and digital research tools mediate human understanding. I draw on hermeneutics, postphenomenology, and experimental philosophy to study how large language models, corpus analysis, and data-driven methods influence concepts like intelligence, perception, embodiment, and objectivity.
Over the past several years I have combined philosophical inquiry with practical technical skills: text mining in Python and R, corpus-based analysis, survey design, and data visualisation. I have published on AI, digital humanities, and indigenous communication models in venues such as Digital Scholarship in the Humanities, the International Journal of Humanities and Arts Computing, and a Palgrave Macmillan volume on ethics and subjectivity.
Skills
Education & Work Experience
PhD in Philosophy (in progress), University of Alberta, Canada
Digital Humanities, AI Ethics, and postphenomenology of research technologies
2024 – present
MA in Philosophy (Philosophy of Science), University of Ibadan, Nigeria
Thesis: Common Good and Philip Kitcher’s Idea of a Well-Ordered Science
2011 – 2014
BA (Hons) in Philosophy, University of Ibadan, Nigeria
Thesis: Individual Freedom and the Legitimacy of the Criminal Law against the Commercialization of Sex
2003 – 2007
Graduate Research Assistant, Department of Philosophy & Voyant Consortium, University of Alberta, Canada
2024 – 2026
Qualitative and quantitative research on Canadian immigration discourse; testing and documenting Spyral and Voyant tools; maintaining the Voyant Consortium website; contributing to academic communication (newsletters and documentation).
Assistant Lecturer (Philosophy), Dominican University Ibadan, Nigeria
2018 – 2019
Taught 20th Century Philosophy, Philosophy of Religion, and Medieval and Renaissance Philosophy; developed course materials; prepared and graded assessments; supported undergraduate students’ academic progress.
Graduate Assistant (Philosophy), Seminary of Saints Peter and Paul / University of Ibadan, Nigeria
2014 – 2015
Delivered lectures in Symbolic Logic and Aristotelian Logic; assisted with curriculum development under senior faculty; marked and graded examination scripts for large undergraduate cohorts.
Academic Mentor (Mathematics), Orchard School Bristol, United Kingdom
2022
Taught Mathematics across Key Stage 3 and Key Stage 4; supported students’ numeracy, exam preparation, and confidence in problem solving.
Web & Information Manager, Catholic Charismatic Renewal of Nigeria
2008 – 2017
Managed an internet café and ICT unit; produced print and digital materials (booklets, pamphlets, posters, handbills); updated and maintained the organisation’s website and social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube).