Joshua  DiCaglio

Joshua DiCaglio is an Associate Professor in the Department of English at Texas A&M University.

As a scholar and teacher, I examine the astonishing transformations of thought and language brought by science and technology.

My first book, Scale Theory: A Nondisciplinary Inquiry examines the philosophical and rhetorical underpinnings of scale--that astonishing device whereby we conceive of reality as, simultaneously, atoms, galaxies, cells, bodies, ecologies, and quarks.

My current research applies my theory of scale to environmental problems through an examination of lithium as a scalar object.

Available Now:

Scale Theory

A Nondisciplinary Inquiry

A pioneering call for a new understanding of scale across the humanities

Joshua DiCaglio takes us on a fascinating journey through six thought experiments that provide clarifying yet provocative definitions for scale and new ways of thinking about classic concepts ranging from unity to identity. The result is a powerful account of the implications and challenges of scale, attuned to the way scale transforms both reality and ourselves.


Scale Theory is an exceptionally astute and lucid remapping of the concept of scale. Working through a lively set of thought experiments, Joshua DiCaglio invents a scalar theory to move beyond conventional—often reductive and parochial—understandings of scale. From the not-so-simple conceptual and material status of objects to questions of process, relations, and consciousness to the scalar repercussions for subjects, experience, and the very practices of interpretation, DiCaglio delineates and performs a far-reaching scale theory for the predicaments of the present. 

—Peter C. van Wyck, Concordia University, Montréal

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For more publications, please take a look at my Google Scholar or Texas A&M Faculty page. Feel free to reach out to me on X (@jdicaglio) or email if you have questions or need access to any of my publications (many of which are available in some version through Oak Trust).