Syllabus

Fall, 2003

This course will provide a survey of philosophical issues concerning time. We will consider issues in metaphysics, the philosophy of science, ethics, aesthetics, and other areas of philosophy.

Rudy Rucker, The Fourth Dimension (Mariner, 1985)
Robin LePoidevin and Murray MacBeath, eds., The Philosophy of Time (Oxford, 1993)
Carl Levenson and Jonathan Westphal, eds., Time (Hackett, 1993)

TR 8:30-11:30

I am usually in my office during office hours, but occasionally a meeting or another commitment prevents this.  If you just drop by during office hours, you will probably find me in; if you want to see me at another time, or if you want to be certain I'll be in, we can set up an appointment.

Exams. There will be a midterm exam on Wednesday, October 22, and a final exam Thursday, December 11, at 6:30 PM.

Presentations.  Each student will be expected to do at least three in-class presentations. One of these should be a presentation of the ideas and arguments of the final project for the course. The other two will introduce and critically discuss the readings for one of our class sessions. Early in the semester, I will ask students to sign up for topics to present. 

Project. There will be one substantial paper of 10-15 pages. This could be either a conventional paper or a web site (but if you choose to do it as a web site it should still include the equivalent of a 10-15 page paper; the advantage is just the ability to include graphics, links, etc.). I will ask for a proposal for the paper around mid-semester.

I have posted a detailed schedule on the web. This is extremely tentative! There may be changes large or small.