New subject: Correction: Save the Date: Trans*Formations Talk Luana Pesarini, 30.4.2026

25 Mar 2026

Dear All,
please save the date for the next Trans*Formations Event at the 
Philosophy Institute.
For those who do not know the series: This talk and workshop series 
organized by a bunch of people from the Philosophy Department (BA, MA 
and PhD) provides insights into recent developments in trans* 
philosophizing. Thanks to the Vienna Doctoral School of Philosophy (VDP) 
[1] and queer@hochschulen [2] for their financial support!
In the next talk, Luana Pesarini (Goethe Universität Frankfurt) will 
discuss historical and contemporary theories of the neural basis of 
transness, and the presuppositions these studies rely on, from a 
trans/feminist science studies perspective.
The next Event will be in English!
When & Where: Thursday, 30.5.2026 - 18:00-19:30 at HS 3A, NIG 
(Universitätsstraße 7)
The Trans Brain?
History and Current Hypotheses on the Neural Basis of Transness
Abstract:
Against the background of contemporary debates about the supposed 
natural basis of sex/gender and the intersection of neurodivergence and 
transness, the lecture will turn to the history and contemporary 
theories of the neural basis of transness. Contemporary trans brain 
hypotheses rest on a whole array of presuppositions: The assumption that 
brains have a sex/gender; that this brain sex/gender can stand in 
opposition to the sex assigned at birth; that brain sex/gender develops 
in response to hormonal changes; that this development has a temporal 
threshold; and that one can discern transness from a 
trans-sexed/gendered brain - all of these conveyed through imaging 
technologies.
To fan out the presuppositions that fuel contemporary theories of the 
neural basis of transness, the lecture will trace its history through 
the lens of trans/feminist science studies. Starting from theories about 
the natural bisexuality and plasticity of mammals and their eugenic 
interpretations at the beginning of the 20th century (Eugen Steinach, 
Paul Kammerer), the lecture will move through the early hypotheses about 
the neural basis of transness in the post-Second World War inception of 
trans medicine in the US (John Money, Robert Stoller, Harry Benjamin), 
to the first neuroimaging studies on transness in the 1990s and early 
2000s, to finish with the neurodevelopmental hypothesis of transness in 
contemporary neuroscience and a discussion of its impacts on the lives 
of trans people.
Neuronal explanations of transness certainly do not carry the same 
weight in the debates about the natural basis of sex/gender and 
transness as chromosomal explanations. Incidents such as the 
International Chess Federation's ban of trans women from the women's 
category, the European Society of Endocrinology's considerations about 
brain scans as "a useful tool for earlier identification of 
transgenderism in young people," and calls from neuroscientists to 
intervene in and prevent the development of transness in the brain 
nevertheless illustrate the current and potentially future power of such 
explanations over the lives of trans people.
Bio: Luana Pesarini is a philosophy-trained sociologist specializing in 
feminist science and technology studies, theories of materiality, and 
trans feminism. She is currently working as a doctoral researcher in the 
German Research Foundation-funded RTG "Fixing Futures. Technologies of 
Anticipation in Contemporary Societies" at Goethe University Frankfurt, 
Germany.
There will be a Q&A after the talk, as well as snacks and drinks!
Please also save the date for the next Trans*Formations Events: A talk 
on Law and Gender by UK barrister Jane Russell on 15.5., and a full-day 
event with a focus on Gender Euphoria on 7.6. with, among others, talks 
by Quill Kukla (Georgetown University) and Eric A. Stanley (University 
of California, Berkeley).
We are thankful to our previous Trans*Formations speakers: Luce deLire 
[3], Alyosxa Tudor [4], Eric Llaveria Caselles [5], Emelia Stanley, [6] 
Emma Heaney [7], Juliana Gleeson, [8] Gen Eickers & Sigmond Richli [9], 
Jonah I. Garde  [10] and Anna Klieber [11]!
We are looking forward to seeing you at the event, and happy if you 
forward this invitation and the attached poster to others who might be 
interested!
With all the best,
the Trans*Formations Team & UPSalon - A Salon for Underrepresented 
Philosophers

Links:
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[1] https://vd-philosophy.univie.ac.at/
[2] https://queer-at-hochschulen.org/
[3] 
https://philosophie.univie.ac.at/en/news-events/nachrichten-news-events/det…
[4] 
https://philosophie.univie.ac.at/news-events/nachrichten-news-events/detail…
[5] 
https://philosophie.univie.ac.at/news-events/nachrichten-news-events/detail…
[6] 
https://philosophie.univie.ac.at/news-events/nachrichten-news-events/detail…
[7] 
https://lists.philo.at/hyperkitty/list/news@lists.philo.at/thread/GIUSVC6TO…
[8] 
https://philosophie.univie.ac.at/news-events/nachrichten-news-events/detail…
[9] 
https://urise.univie.ac.at/mod/booking/optionview.php?cmid=293&amp;opti…
[10] 
https://lists.philo.at/hyperkitty/list/news@lists.philo.at/thread/ZUJBVRNM7…
[11] 
https://philosophie.univie.ac.at/news-events/nachrichten-news-events/detail…