UPenn and PhilDept Icons Department of Philosophy
Fall 2005 Course Descriptions


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PHIL 001-301 INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY
(FRESHMEN SEMINAR)

Tuesday, Thursday -- 3:00-4:30
Daniel Corbett

An introduction to such topics as our knowledge of the material world, the relation of mind and body, the
existence of God, and the nature of morality. Readings
from both historical and contemporary sources.
ENROLLMENT RESTRICTED TO FRESHMEN
GENERAL REQUIREMENT II: HISTORY & TRADITION


PHIL 001-302 INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY
(FRESHMEN SEMINAR)

Tuesday, Thursday -- 1:30-3:00
Elisabeth Herschbach, elhersch@sas.upenn.edu

An introductory survey of some central philosophical
issues, including: Is there a God? What is the
relationship between the mind and the body? Are free
will and determinism incompatible? Are there objective
moral standards? Readings will be taken from both
contemporary and historical sources.
ENROLLMENT RESTRICTED TO FRESHMEN
GENERAL REQUIREMENT II: HISTORY &
TRADITION


PHIL 001-001 INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY
Monday, Wednesday -- 10:00-11:00
Karen Detlefsen, detlefse@nous.phil.upenn.edu
REGISTRATION REQUIRED FOR LECTURE AND RECITATION

RECITATIONS:
PHIL 001-201 Friday - 10:00-11:00
Joanna Tamburino, jotamb@sas.upenn.edu
PHIL 001-202 Friday - 11:00-12:00
Joanna Tamburino, jotamb@sas.upenn.edu
PHIL 001-203 Friday - 11:00-12:00
Douglas Paletta, paletta@sas.upenn.edu
PHIL 001-204 Friday - 10:00-11:00
Douglas Paletta, paletta@sas.upenn.edu

This course is an introduction to philosophical themes and methods through the investigation of four topics that many of us find central to our lives: God, freedom, education, and sex. We will grapple with questions such as the following. Do we have proof for God's existence? How can we believe that God exists in the face of evil and suffering? If we cannot prove conclusively that God exists, then do we in fact have a right to believe in his existence, or must we suspend our belief? Are humans free to do other than as we do, or are we determined (sometimes by forces beyond our knowledge) to act exactly as we do? If we are determined, then what is the point of punishing people for transgressions? Should education satisfy the desires of the individual, or should it produce citizens that will be useful for the state, e.g. for the growth of a nation's economy? Are parents allowed to educate their children in any way they see fit, or are there limits on parental rights with regard to their children's education? Should education change in times of war to produce, for example, an especially patriotic citizenry? How should we think of sex: as an expression of love for another? as satisfying an appetite? as a leisure activity? as a means to procreation and nothing else? Are all sexual acts between consenting adults normal, or are some irredeemably perverse? If there are perverse sexual acts between consenting adults, then what makes them so? What makes rape wrong?

We will draw on historical and contemporary philosophical works in order to grapple with these and other questions, and we will spend some time learning the methods of philosophy such as various forms of philosophical argument and what makes a philosophical argument good or bad. The course will include two lecture sessions per week, and one recitation section during which small groups, under the guidance of a recitation leader, will have the opportunity to discuss the material covered in lectures.
GENERAL REQUIREMENT II: HISTORY & TRADITION


PHIL 002-001 ETHICS
Monday, Wednesday -- 1:00-2:00
Susan Meyer, smeyer@nous.phil.upenn.edu
REGISTRATION REQUIRED FOR LECTURE AND
RECITATION

RECITATIONS:
PHIL 002-201 Friday - 1:00-2:00
Ryan Muldoon, rmuldoon@sas.upenn.edu
PHIL 002-202 Friday - 1:00-2:00
David Caswell, dcaswell@sas.upenn.edu
PHIL 002-203 Friday - 1:00-2:00
Daniel Munoz-Hutchinson, dmunoz@sas.upenn.edu
PHIL 002-204 Friday - 10:00-11:00
David Caswell, dcaswell@sas.upenn.edu
PHIL 002-205 Friday - 11:00-12:00
Danny Munoz-Hutchinson, dmunoz@sas.upenn.edu
PHIL 002-206 Friday - 12:00-1:00
Ryan Muldon, rmuldoon@sas.upenn.edu

An investigation of some of the central questions about
the nature of morality: Are moral judgments objective
and justifiable? Can moral disagreements be resolved
rationally? How are we to understand the idea of a good
life, and what is the relationship between a good life and
morality? Readings will be from both contemporary and
historical sources, and will concern both practical
problems (e.g. abortion, euthanasia, or resource
conservation) and theoretical issues.
GENERAL REQUIREMENT I: SOCIETY

PHIL 002-301 ETHICS
FRESHMEN SEMINAR
Tuesday, Thursday -- 10:30-12:00
Milton Meyer, mwmeyer@nous.phil.upenn.edu

Four sorts of questions belong to the study of ethics in the analytic tradition. Practical ethics discusses specific moral problems, often those we find most contested (e.g. abortion). Moral theory tries to develop systematic answers to moral problems, looking for general principles that explain moral judgments and rules (e.g. consequentialism, contractarianism). Meta-ethics investigates questions about the nature of moral theories and their subject matter (e.g. are they subjective or objective, relative or non-relative?). Finally, there are questions about why any of this does, or should matter to us (e.g. why be moral?). We will investigate all four of these types of questions during the course, but a disproportionate part of the course will be focussed on discussing two moral problems: abortion and terrorism. The central aim of the required readings and discussion is to develop each question s deeply and sharply enough for us to really feel its troublesome character. We will focus on how to read complex philosophical prose in order to outline and evaluate the arguments embedded within it. This will provide the basis for writing argumentative prose.
ENROLLMENT RESTRICTED TO FRESHMEN
GENERAL REQUIREMENT I: SOCIETY


PHIL 003-401 HISTORY OF ANCIENT PHILOSOPHY
Monday, Wednesday -- 11:00-12:00
Susan Meyer, smeyer@nous.phil.upenn.edu
REGISTRATION REQUIRED FOR LECTURE AND
RECITATION
CROSS LISTED WITH: CLST 103-401
WATU CREDIT OPTIONAL -- SEE INSTRUCTOR

RECITATIONS:

PHIL 003-402 Friday - 11:00-12:00
Keith Harris, kwharris@sas.upenn.edu
WATU CREDIT OPTIONAL--SEE INSTRUCTOR
Cross Listed w/CLST 103-402

PHIL 003-403 Friday - 11:00-12:00
Jason Rheins, jrheins@sas.upenn.edu
WATU CREDIT OPTIONAL--SEE INSTRUCTOR
Cross Listed w/CLST 103-403

PHIL 003-404 Friday - 1:00-2:00
Jason Rheins, jrheins@sas.upenn.edu
Cross Listed w/CLST 103-404

PHIL 003-405 Friday - 12:00-1:00
Keith Harris, kwharris@sas.upenn.edu
Cross Listed w/CLST 103-405

A survey of classical Greek approaches to questions
about knowledge, the nature of the world, the soul,
ethics and politics. Will focus on Presocratics, Plato and
Aristotle.
FULFILLS GENERAL REQUIREMENT II: HISTORY AND TRADITION


PHIL 006-401 FORMAL LOGIC II
Tuesday, Thursday -- 10:30-12:00
Scott Weinstein, weinstei@cis.upenn.edu
CROSS LISTED WITH: LGIC 310, MATH570, PHIL 506

This course will treat the fundamental results and
techniques of mathematical logic. Connections between logic and algebra, analysis, combinatorics, computer science, and the foundations of mathematics will be emphasized.


PHIL 009 WRITING ABOUT MORAL ISSUES
FRESHMEN SEMINARS

302 - Monday, Wednesday -- 3:00-4:30
Steven Jauss, sjauss@sas.upenn.edu
303 - Tuesday, Thursday -- 10:30-12:00
Susan Mills, smills@sas.upenn.edu

Discussion of several contemporary ethical topics such
as limitations on freedom of expression, civil
disobedience, affirmative action, privacy rights,
treatment of animals, euthanasia, health care
distribution, informed consent, and obligations to future
generations.
ENROLLMENT RESTRICTED TO FRESHMEN
MAY NOT BE COUNTED TOWARD A PHILOSOPHY MAJOR
FULFILLS THE COLLEGE WRITING REQUIREMENT


PHIL 010-301 TOPICS IN PHILOSOPHY I
Monday, Wednesday -- 2:00-3:30
Matt Lister, mlister@sas.upenn.edu
CROSS LISTED WITH: PPE 210-301

Selected topics in Philosophy offered jointly with the PPE program.


PHIL 026-401 PHILOSOPHY OF SPACE AND TIME
Monday, Wednesday, Friday -- 11:00-12:00
Zoltan Domotor, zdomotor@sas.upenn.edu
CROSS LISTED WITH: HSSC 026-401

This course provides an introduction to the philosophy
and intellectual history of space-time and cosmological
models from ancient to modern times with special
emphasis on paradigm shifts, leading to Einstein's
theories of special and general relativity and cosmology.
Other topics include Big Bang, black holes stellar
structure, the metaphysics of substance, particles, fields,
and superstrings, unification and grand unification of
modern physical theories. No philosophy of physics
background is presupposed.
GENERAL REQUIREMENT VII: SCIENCE STUDIES


PHIL 044-401 INTRODUCTION TO COGNITIVE SCIENCE
Tuesday, Thursday -- 1:30-3:00
Lyle Ungar
CROSS LISTED WITH: COGS 001-401, CSE 140-401, LING 105-401, PSYC 107-401

Cognitive Science is founded on the realization that many problems in the analysis of human and artificial intelligence require an interdisciplinary approach. The course is intended to introduce undergraduates from many areas to the problems and characteristic concepts of Cognitive Science, drawing on formal and empirical approaches from the parent disciplines of computer science, linguistics, neuroscience, philosophy and psychology. The topics covered include Perception, Action, Learning, Language, Knowledge Representation and Inference, and the relations and interactions between such modules. The course shows how the different views from the parent disciplines interact, and identifies some common themes among the theories that have been proposed. The course pays particular attention to the distinctive role of computation in such theories, and provides an introduction to some of the main directions of current research in the field.
It is a requirement for the BAS in Computer and Cognitive Science, the minor in Cognitive Science, and recommended for students taking the dual degree in Computer and Cognitive Science.
GENERAL REQUIREMENT IV: FORMAL REASONING & ANALYSIS


PHIL 050-401 INDIAN PHILOSOPHY
Monday, Wednesday -- 3:00-4:00
Staff
REGISTRATION REQUIRED FOR LECTURE AND
RECITATION

CROSS LISTED WITH: SAST 103-401, RELS 155-401

RECITATION:

PHIL 050-402 Friday -- 1:00-2:00 Staff
Cross Listed w/SAST 103-401, RELS 155-401

The fundaments of Hindu and Buddhist philosophy, the
main patterns of Western response to it, and some basic
questions of "comparative philosophy". Selected
readings from classical Indian texts in English
translation.
GENERAL REQUIREMENT II: HISTORY & TRADITION


PHIL 080-001 AESTHETICS
Monday, Wednesday -- 2:00-3:00
Susan Feagin
REGISTRATION REQUIRED FOR LECTURE AND RECITATION

RECITATIONS:

PHIL 067-201 Friday -- 1:00-2:00
Anna Cremaldi, cremaldi@sas.upenn.edu
PHIL 067-202 Friday -- 2:00-3:00
Anna Cremaldi, cremaldi@sas.upenn.edu

Aesthetics is concerned with the philosophical questions that arise when we reflect on the nature of art and our experience of it. What makes something a work of art? What is the relationship between artists and their artworks? Can we give reasons for our judgments about artworks, or are our claims about art mere expressions of our preferences? What role does art play in our lives? These are some of the questions that we will consider in this course.
GENERAL REQUIREMENT III: ARTS & LETTERS

PHIL 226-401 PHILOSOPHY OF BIOLOGY
Monday, Wednesday -- 3:00-4:30
Michael Weisberg, weisberg@phil.upenn.edu
CROSS LISTED WITH: HSSC 266-401

This course consists of a detailed examination of evolutionary theory and its philosophical foundations. The course begins with a consideration of Darwin's formulation of evolutionary theory and the main influences on Darwin. We will then consider two contemporary presentations of the theory--Richard Dawkins' and Richard Lewontin's. The remainder of the course will deal with a number of foundational issues and may include discussions of adaptation, what constitutes a species, whether there is evolutionary progress, and the concept of fitness. We will also discuss the units of selection, the alleged reduction of classical genetics to molecular genetics, and the possibility of grounding ethics in evolutionary theory.

PHIL 242-301 FREEDOM OF THE WILL
Tuesday, Thursday -- 3:00-4:30
Morgan Wallhagen, morganw@nous.phil.upenn.edu

A discussion of various challenges to our self-understanding that arise from thinking about persons and their actions as part of the order of nature. Questions to be considered include: what it is to be a free agent and what it means to have a free will, the degree to which our beliefs about physical causality undermine our beliefs about agency, the nature and importance of moral responsibility, and the relationship between freedom and responsibility. Readings are drawn from both historical and contemporary sources.
DISTRIBUTION I: SOCIETY

PHIL 244-001 PHILOSOPHY OF MIND
Monday, Wednesday -- 12:00-1:00
Morgan Wallhagen, morganw@nous.phil.upenn.edu
REGISTRATION REQUIRED FOR LECTURE AND RECITATION

RECITATIONS:

PHIL 244-201
Friday -- 12:00-1:00
Paul Franco, pfranco@sas.upenn.edu
PHIL 244-201 Friday -- 1:00-2:00
Paul Franco, pfranco@sas.upenn.edu

This call will survey major positions and topics in contemporary philosophy of mind. Questions to be addressed include: Is the mind identical to the brain? Can there be a science of consciousness? What is a "representation"? Are mental explanations like physical explanations? Are our minds computers? Could advances in neuroscience give us reason to think that beliefs and desires don't really exist?
DISTRIBUTION II: HISTORY & TRADITION


PHIL 272-301 ETHICS AND THE PROFESSIONS
Monday, Wednesday -- 3:00-4:30
Kok-Chor Tan, kctan@sas.upenn.edu
CROSS LISTED WITH: PPE 272-301

This course will examine the ethical issues and dilemmas that commonly arise in the professions, such as the law, medicine and healthcare, journalism, business, public and civil service, and ethnographical and archaelogical research. The aim of this course is to introduce students to the moral issues and challenges that practitioners in different professions encounter and to study how moral reasoning can help us understand and confront these challenges. Some of the central organizing philosophical issues we will examine include that of collective responsibility, and the questions of special or role obligation.
PREREQUISITE: AT LEAST ONE OF: PHIL 002, PHIL 009, PHIL 008 OR EQUIVALENT
PHILOSOPHY MAJORS ONLY



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PHIL 329-301 MEDIEVAL PHILOSOPHY
Tuesday, Thursday -- 12:00-1:30
James Ross, jross@sas.upenn.edu

Critical and historical examination of the medieval Christian philosophers: Augustine, Anselm and Aquinas, and of their intellectual environment between 350 and 1300ad. Seminar is primarily for majors in philosophy and related fields. Course involves individual assignments, regular class reports, a mid-term paper and a final paper.
PHILOSOPHY MAJORS ONLY

PHIL 331-301 EPISTMOLOGY
Tuesday, Thursday -- 10:30-12:00
Daniel Corbett

The topic of this course will be Naturalized Epistemology. While there is no single agreed upon definition of "naturalized epistemology", it is typically seen as a rejection of foundations for human knowledge (something definite and certain that we can base all of our other knowledge upon) or a rejection of a priori knowledge (knowledge that is not based in experience). We will explore the general question of whether foundations for human knowledge are possible. In particular, we will examine how this question arises for two types of knowledge: scientific knowledge and knowledge gained through perception. Also, what is a priori knowledge and do we have any of it? What role could such knowledge play in inquiry or perception?
PHILOSOPHY MAJORS ONLY

PHIL 362-301 LEIBNIZ
Monday, Wednesday -- 3:00-4:30
Karen Detlefsen, detlefse@nous.phil.upenn.edu

Leibniz was one of the most brilliant minds of the seventeenth century. Besides entering into a priority dispute with Newton over the creation of calculus, designing royal gardens, working on producing a universal language, designing (though never actually making) some shock absorbers for his carriage, and developing an "idea about fast getaways on shoes with springs"(!), Leibniz devoted a great deal of thought to metaphysical and epistemological issues central to seventeenth-century philosophy. We will study Leibniz's philosophical system by looking carefully at four of these issues: (a) causation (both among created substances, and between God and his creation); (b) individuation (including questions about individual identity through time, and questions about the differences among metaphysical, personal, and moral identity); (c) freedom (both human's and God's, with an eye to dealing with evil in light of God's supposed goodness); and (d) the status and nature of body (given Leibniz's supposed immaterialism). After setting Leibniz's ideas in the context of some key predecessors and contemporaries, we will deal with these four themes by noting the evolution of Leibniz's thought on them throughout his lifetime as he tried both to deal with problems internal to his philosophy and to incorporate ongoing developments in sciences such as physics and the life sciences. We will also pay considerable attention to the influence that Leibniz had on thinkers who came after him.
PHILOSOPHY MAJORS ONLY
DISTRIBUTION II: HISTORY & TRADITION


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PHIL 414-301 PHILOSOPHY OF MATHEMATICS
Tuesday, Thursday -- 12:00-1:30
William Ewald, wewald@law.upenn.edu

The seminar will read contributions to the philosophy of mathematics by modern authors such as Charles Parsons, Bill Tait, Solomon Feferman, and others.


PHIL 425-301 PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE
Monday -- 3:00-6:00
Zoltan Domotor, zdomotor@sas.upenn.edu
CROSS LISTED WITH: HSSC 425-401

Historically oriented survey and contemporary analysis of the basic concepts and arguments in philosophy of science. An in-depth examination of the nature of scientific theories, their confirmation and theory-world relations, laws of nature and their role in unification and explanation, causation, and teleology, reductionism and supervenience, values and objectivity. Additional topics covered include arguments concerning scientific realism, the ontological status of theoretical entities, the Quine-Duhem thesis, Kuhn's paradigm shifts, Bayesianism, and the success of science.
PREREQUISITE: BACKGROUND IN ELEMENTARY LOGIC AND SOME RUDIMENTS OF SCIENCE

PHIL 432-401 GAME THEORY
Tuesday, Thursday -- 1:30-3:00
Cristina Bicchieri, cb36@sas.upenn.edu
CROSS LISTED WITH: PPE 432-401

The course will introduce students to non-cooperative game theory and experimental games. The first part of the course will focus on the basic elements of non-cooperative game theory. The second part will cover the experimental literature on social dilemmas, trust and ultimatum games. The format will consist of lectures, student presentations, and discussions.

PHIL 475-401 SELF INTEREST & RATIONAL
Tuesday, Thursday -- 12:00-1:30
Waldemar Hanasz, whanasz@sas.upenne.du
CROSS LISTED WITH: PPE 475-401

 


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GRADUATE COURSES

 

PHIL 506-401 FORMAL LOGIC II
Tuesday, Thursday -- 10:30-12:00
Scott Weinstein, weinstei@cis.upenn.edu
CROSS LISTED WITH: PHIL 006-401, MATH 570-401

This course will treat the fundamental results and techniques of mathematical logic. Connections between logic and algebra, analysis, combinatorics, computer science, and the foundations of mathematics will be emphasized.
UNDERGRADUATES NEED PERMISSION

PHIL 525-401 TOPICS IN PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE: NATURALISM & SCIENTIFIC CHANGE
Tuesday -- 3:00-6:00
Michael Weisberg, weisberg@phil.upenn.edu
CROSS LISTED WITH: HSSC 527-401, COML 525-401

This seminar concerns scientific change and will address issues concerning rationality, progress, and confirmation. Starting with Hempel's accounts of these issues, we will consider historical, sociological, and philosophical challenges to logical empiricist doctrines. The primary readings will be drawn from Hempel, Kuhn, Lakatos, Laudan, Kitcher, and Friedman. Towards the end of the seminar, we will turn to the relationship between theories of scientific change and accounts of naturalism. We will primarily focus on the debate between Kitcher and Friedman about naturalism and the a priori, but we will also have the opportunity to discuss the Quine/Carnap debate.
UNDERGRADUATES NEED PERMISSION

PHIL 536-301 STOICISM
Wednesday -- 3:00-6:00
Susan Meyer, smeyer@nous.phil.upenn.edu

A survey of the major topics in stoicism: logic, ethics and physics.
UNDERGRADUATES NEED PERMISSION

PHIL 578-301 TOPICS IN POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY
Tuesday -- 9:00-12:00
Kok-Chor Tan, kctan@sas.upenn.edu

We will examine the question of social and economic equality and distributive justice in this course, centering our examination around these three questions: (i) "Equality of What?" or what is it the inequality of which we should want to minimize? Wealth and income? Welfare? Resources? Capability? Opportunities? (ii) "What is the point of Equality?", or what is the purpose of equality? Why is inequality an injustice? Is the aim of distributive justice to eliminate the effects of involuntary disadvantages or bad luck? Or is it to further the ends of liberal democracy/ And (iii) "What are the demands of equality?" What does equality demand of our community and of ourselves? For instance, does egalitarian justice require that we act on egalitarian principles in all of our choices and actions? We will read Rawls, Amartya Sen, G.A. Cohen, Ronald Dworkin, Elizabeth Anderson and other contemporary authors.
UNDERGRADUATES NEED PERMISSION



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PHIL 600-301 PROSEMINAR
Thursday -- 3:00-6:00
James Ross, jross@sas.upenn.edu
This seminar is restricted to first-year doctoral students only. Material is chiefly reading. Weekly writing and discussion of some classical papers in recent philosophy and some current books and papers in metaphysics/epistemology (broadly construed).

PHIL 700-301 DISSERTATION WORKSHOP
Tuesday -- 6:00-9:00
Charles Kahn, chkahn@sas.upenn.edu

Registration required for all third-year doctoral students.
Fourth year students and beyond attend and present their
work. From time to time, topics pertaining to
professional development and dissertation writing will
be discussed.
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COLLEGE OF GENERAL STUDIES

PHIL 001-601 INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY
Tuesday -- 6:30-9:30
Daniel Corbett

An introduction to such topics as our knowledge of the
material world, the relation of mind and body, the
existence of God, the nature of morality. Readings from
historical and contemporary sources.
GENERAL REQUIREMENT II: HISTORY AND
TRADITION


PHIL 004-601 HISTORY OF MODERN PHILOSOPHY
Monday -- 6:30-9:30
Staff

Theories of knowledge, mind, and reality in early
modern philosophy from Descartes through Kant or
Hegel.
FULFILLS GENERAL REQUIREMENT II: HISTORY AND TRADITION

PHIL 055-601 EXISTENTIALISM
Wednesday -- 6:30-9:30
Elisabeth Herschbach, elhersch@sas.upenn.edu

A critical examination of existentialist views of the
nature of the moral life. Readings from both classical
(Kierkegaard and Nietzsche) and modern existentialism
(Sartre). Readings also include related literary works.
Attention will be given to the conceptions of the self; the
visions of personal ideals; and the treatment of the
relation among different kinds of practical ideals.
GENERAL REQUIREMENT II: HISTORY AND
TRADITION


PHIL 225-601 PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE
Monday, Wednesday -- 5:30-7:00
Murad Akhundov, akhundov@sas.upenn.edu

A study of the historical introduction to the philosophy
of science from ancient Greek "First Scientific
Programs" to modern conceptions. We will especially
focus on Aristotle's philosophy of science and on the
development of cosmology from Aristotle-Ptolemy to
Copernicus. Then we will study the seventeen-century
attacks on Aristotelian philosophy and the development
of a new world view: J. Kepler, F. Bacon, G. Galilei. We
will discuss the Newton's mechanical picture of the world. Particular attention will be devoted to Rationalism, Empiricism and Critical Idealism (R. Descartes, J. Mill, I. Kant). Some lectures will be devoted to the Crisis of the Mechanical Worldview and the origin of the Modern Science: Philosophical problems of theory of relativity and quantum mechanics. We will investigate very interesting topics: "The Structure of Scientific Revolutions" and "Science and values" (T. Kuhn, I. Lakatos, D. Bloor).
GENERAL REQUIREMENT VII: SCIENCE STUDIES


PHIL 488-640 THE IDEA OF NATIONALISM
Monday -- 6:30-9:10
Stephen Steinberg, sps@pobox.upenn.edu

This course will explore--from a philosophical perspective--the nature of national and group identity, the alleged right of every group to national self-determination, and the contemporary moral and ethnopolitical conflicts that these ideas shape. We will examine the beliefs of a variety of nationalist movements, both contemporary and historical, such as American, German, Jewish, Palestinian, Irish, and a variety of Third World nationalisms, to get a clearer idea of what the idea of nationalism is and why it so often gives rise to seemingly irresolvable conflicts. In the process, we will explore such questions as: What is a nation or ethnic group? How are claims to national self-determination to be justified and evaluated? How do nations differ from states, peoples, groups, communities, or citizenries? Does every identifiable ethnic or national group have a valid claim to a nation-state of its own, to cultural autonomy, to territory, or to recognition by others? How does nationalism relate to notions of "chosenness" or ethnic and cultural superiority? Is national self-determination compatible with our commitments to individualism, rationality, and universalism? Does the recognition of claims to national or ethinic identity confer special rights, responsibilities or privileges? How are such claims to be viewed in the light of contemporary phenomena such as mass migration, ethnopolitical conflict, genocide, apartheid, civil war, and terrorism? Nationalism has been the most important geo-political phenomenon of the past two hundred years. Its continuing power has been amply demonstrated by recent events in the United States, the Balkans, the former Soviet Union, Africa, and on the Indian subcontinent. This course will help us gain a clearer understanding of the meaning, philosophical foundations, and moral implications of these ubiquitous claims to group and national self-determination.

PHIL 525-640 EVOLUTION, ALTRUISM & HUMAN NATURE
Tuesday -- 6:00-9:00
Michael Weisberg, weisberg@phil.upenn.edu

This course is a survey of topics in philosophy of biology, with a special emphasis on conceptual issues in evolutionary theory, the evolution of altruism, and biological accounts of human nature. The course begins with an analysis of Darwin's formulation of evolutionary theory, his main influences, and the scientific methods he employed. We will go on to consider a number of conceptual issues debated in the current literature including adaptation, fitness, the unit of selection, and the nature of species. In the second half of the course, we will look at competing evolutionary accounts of altruism, then conclude by considering what biology tells us about progress, contingency, and human nature.


LOGIC, INFORMATION AND COMPUTATION

LGIC 210-401 APPLIED MATHEMATICS OF INFORMATION AND COMPUTATION I
Tuesday, Thursday -- 10:30-12:00
Jim Haglund, jhaglund@math.upenn.edu
CROSS LISTED WITH: MATH 340-401

This course is designed to introduce students to a range of mathematical subjects useful in computer science. Topics will be chosen from probability theory, linear algebra, combinatories, graph theory, recursion theory and number theory.

LGIC 310-401 LOGIC I
Tuesday, Thursday -- 10:30-12:00
Scott Weinstein, weinstei@cis.upenn.edu
CROSS LISTED WITH: PHIL 006, MATH 570

This course will treat the fundamental results and techniques of mathematical logic. Connections between logic and algebra, analysis, combinatorics, computer science, and the foundations of mathematics will be emphasized.

 

 

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Last Modified:
Mar 19, 2004
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