I'm a PhD candidate in philosophy at Florida State University, where I recently finished up a dissertation on issues in free will and moral responsibility, at the intersection of ethics and metaphysics.

The question that lies at the heart of my main research project is: when, if ever, does a person genuinely deserve blame, punishment, praise, or reward just in virtue of what they’ve done or failed to do? I take the main point of a theory of free will to be developing an answer to that question, and I understand moral responsibility in terms of such desert. I’m also deeply interested in the question whether, given certain powerful skeptical challenges, anyone is ever morally responsible at all. I have additional research interests in applied ethics and the philosophy of religion.

Outside of philosophy, I enjoy skateboarding, language learning, reading fiction, and spending time with my family (spouse Hannah and children Blair and Morgan). In the past, I actively maintained a YouTube channel where I posted my own skateboarding tutorials. Some day when I have more time, I might make more tutorials. As for language learning, I took it up as a hobby in early 2021 and have focused mainly on Japanese. In December of 2024, I passed the second-highest level (N2) of the official Japanese Language Proficiency Test. I haven't decided which language to tackle next, so I'm open to suggestions.

If you'd like to get in touch, feel free to email me at zackakin1[at]gmail[dot]com.