Philosophy 128
Spring 2020
| Number | Title | Instructor | Days/time | Room |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 128 | Philosophy of Science | Dasgupta | MWF 12-1 | Wheeler 102 |
This course will investigate how our concepts of space, time, and chance have been shaped by developments in modern science. Topics may include: (1) What does physics teach us about the structure of space? (2) Is there a scientific explanation of the flow of time? (3) Are physical chances objective or just measures of subjective ignorance? (4) How do high-level sciences like biology and economics relate to physics? Along the way, we’ll use these discussions as gateways into more general issues in the philosophy of science such as realism vs anti-realism, the nature of scientific laws, and the demarcation problem. By the end, we’ll have worked our way towards a certain picture of how the different sciences hang together as a unified whole.
As taught this semester, Phil 128, can satisfy group A of the Epistemology/Metaphysics requirement.