PHIL 3326 19th Century Philosophy II
Dr. Judith Norman
MWF 1:30-2:20
Chapman 045

 

Prerequisite: .

 

 

PHIL 3332 Philosophy of Science
Dr. Curtis Brown
MW 2:30-3:45
Chapman 045

This course will examine a number of philosophical issues about science. Among the issues we will discuss are these: (1) Demarcation. What distinguishes science from non-science, and real from bogus science? Is Creation Science science? Is parapsychology? Astrology? (2) Explanation. What is it to explain something? Does explanation require universal laws? Does it depend on context? (3) Validation. How are scientific theories validated or confirmed? Is validation a simple matter of gathering inductive support? Of making predictions that are born out by the evidence? Of trying but failing to falsify a theory? Or does it also depend on "pragmatic" matters such as the simplicity, elegance, or scope of the theory? (3) Values and Objectivity. Is science necessarily value-laden? To what extent does the intrusion of the values of the scientist diminish or make impossible objectivity in science? (4) Realism. Do highly theoretical entities really exist, or are they just fictions or useful tools for making predictions? Does science discover the truth about the real world, or create a world of its own? (5) Limits. Is science the only reliable method for finding out about the world? Are there any truths which are simply inaccessible to scientific method? (If so, is there any other method to which they are accessible?) (6) Philosophy and Particular Sciences. Depending on the interests and specialties of class members, we may also explore the philosophical implications of particular scientific results, e.g. the implications of sociobiology for ethics or of quantum physics for metaphysics.

Prerequisite: PHIL 130`1 or 1354; and 2340 or 9 hours in any of the natural or social sciences.

 

PHIL 3354 Philosophy of Gender
Dr. Andrew Kania
M 4:30-7:25
CGC 045

In this course we will investigate a number of topics in the philosophy of gender, from the nature of sex, gender, and sexuality, through the motivations for feminism, to questions of sexual ethics. What will make the course philosophical is a focus on arguments – we will be primarily interested in the cogency of the reasons given by various writers in support of their claims. However, in philosophy nothing is above dispute, so we may also want to think about whether there can be such an autonomous study of these issues as the above characterization implies.

Prerequisites: One of PHIL 1301, 1354, WAGS 2350, 2351, 2352

 

 

PHIL 4395 Senior Thesis
Dr. Andrew Kania
TR 12:45-2:00
Chapman 045

 

Prerequisite: .

 

 

PHIL 3351 Social and Political Philosophy
Dr. Steven Luper
TR 9:55-11:1025
Chapman 045

A critical study of philosophical views about society and politics, with particular

attention to the concepts of sovereignty, obligation, rights, justice, equality, and

liberty.

Prerequisite: PHIL 1301 or 1354.

 

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