An introduction to the study of human cognition and the interdisciplinary field of cognitive science. Questions covered include: What is artificial intelligence? Is it possible that we will someday build computers that think? Does language affect thought? Do we think in language or pictures? How is conscious experience related to the brain?Course credit exclusions: None.PRIOR […]
An introduction to the philosophy of education, focusing on both traditional and contemporary theorists. Questions explored include how philosophies of education reflect theories of human nature, what counts as knowledge and who decides, whose interests education should serve, and what is required for education to be successful.Course credit exclusions: None.
Is truth relevant to art? What connections are there between art and morality? Are aesthetic judgments purely subjective or is there an objective basis for them? What is the artist's role in society?Course credit exclusions: None.PRIOR TO FALL 2009: Course credit exclusions: AK/AS/PHIL 2130 3.00.
An introduction to some central themes of existentialism such as the individual, being, the absurd, freedom, moral choice. These themes are explored in the work of philosophers such as Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Camus, Sartre, de Beauvoir.PRIOR TO FALL 2009: Course credit exclusions: AK/PHIL 2120 3.00, AS/PHIL 2120 3.00.
There are diverse views on how to improve one's understanding of research, even in the case of established natural or social sciences. This course investigates theories of scientific methodology that illustrate the conflict between truth and superstition.Course credit exclusion: AP/PHIL 2110 3.00 (prior to Fall 2012).PRIOR TO FALL 2009: Course credit exclusions: AK/AS/PHIL 2110 3.00.
Logic, in the philosophical tradition, is the study of what makes arguments valid. That is, it aims to distinguish correct reasoning from faulty reasoning. This course presents the basic elements of modern symbolic logic for the beginning student.Course credit exclusion: GL/PHIL 2640 6.00, GL/PHIL 2690 3.00.PRIOR TO FALL 2009: Course credit exclusions: AK/PHIL 2100 3.00 […]
Does God exist? Can religious belief be explained away? What is the relationship between faith and reason? Through a selection of classic readings, this course provides a survey of some central topics in the philosophy of religion.PRIOR TO FALL 2009: Course credit exclusions: AK/AS/PHIL 2090 3.00.
An introduction to philosophical discussion about what exists, and how the most basic things interact with each other (the subject of metaphysics), and what we can truly know about such things (the subject of epistemology).Course credit exclusions: None.PRIOR TO FALL 2009: Course credit exclusions: AK/AS/PHIL 2080 3.00.
An introduction to ethics focusing on the application of ethical theories to controversial public issues such as abortion, affirmative action and euthanasia, among others.Course credit exclusion: GL/PHIL 2615 3.00.PRIOR TO FALL 2009: Course credit exclusions: AK/AS/PHIL 2075 3.00, AS/PHIL 2071 3.00 (prior to Summer 2006).
A basic introduction both to the major ethical theories in Western thought and to some basic metaethical questions concerning the possibility of moral truth.Course credit exclusion: AP/MODR 1760 6.00.Prior TO FALL 2009: Course credit exclusions: AK/AS/PHIL 2070 3.00, AK/MODR 1760 6.00, and AS/PHIL 2071 3.00 (prior to Summer 2006).A basic introduction both to the major […]