HPSC0004 Philosophy of Science 1

Syllabus 2024/25

Course Description

This is an introductory module in the philosophy of science. The course is divided into two parts: (1) the epistemology of science and (2) the metaphysical issues in the sciences. The first part of the course will focus on several central problems regarding the nature of scientific knowledge: how do scientists know if current scientific theories are true? Is science progressive? How do scientists test their theories and how are theories confirmed? Can science and pseudoscience be distinguished? How are sciences distinguished from one another? These questions will be discussed in the light of examples from science. The second part will focus on the realism/anti-realism debate, the status of scientific theories, the laws of nature and causation. Towards the end of the course we will also consider some of the overlap between social and ethical issues and the sciences. During the course of discussing these problems, you will study some of the major positions that have been taken about scientific knowledge both in the history of philosophy and in the 20th century: Inductivism (Bacon),Logical Empiricism (Ayer and Quine), Falsificationism (Popper), Incommensurability (Kuhn) and Relativism (Feyerabend). Philosophy of Science 1 will provide you with the background knowledge that you will need for other Philosophy courses that you will take in later years. You do not need prior knowledge of philosophy or science to do this course.

Assignments

 Assignments will take the form. of an a 2000-word essay on a set question and a 2-hour in person unseen exam.

 Each assignment will constitute 50% of the credit for the module.

 Essay questions and instructions will be distributed within the first three weeks of teaching.

 Lecture time will be designated to assisting students with writing philosophical essays.

 The unseen exam will mirror the taught content, with each question based on a weekly topic.

 The unseen exam will be two hours in length, with students needing to answer three questions.

 There will be an exam preparation session in the early part of term 3 to assist students in their preparation for the exam.

Aims and Objectives

Aims

 To teach students about the foundational thinkers and topics in 20th century philosophy of science.

 To provide students with a foundation in the philosophy of science required for further study in years 2 and 3.

 To teach students about some of the more recent conceptual and disciplinary shifts within the philosophy of science that have occurred in the early part of the 21st century.

 To promote thinking through theory using concrete, real world examples. Theoretical concepts will be grounded in case studies from scientific practice and the interplay between science and wider society.

 To integrate topics covered in the module with related theoretical concepts from other courses available within the Department of Science and Technology Studies.

Objectives

By the end of this module students should be able to:

 Evaluate the key philosophical accounts of many core topics inthe philosophy of science.

 Write philosophically coherent essays, where philosophical theories areexplained and arguments for them critically evaluated.

 Ground theoretical views in real world cases drawn from the history of science and contemporary science.

 Think philosophically about the core topics, analysing arguments critically, consider opposing views fairly and philosophically justify their own.

 Integrate the philosophical concepts learnt on this course with other HPS, STS and Philosophy courses.