Essays are now due on Friday, December 3, as email attachments.
The format for the Final Exam (December 8, at 19:30) is here.
Richard T. W. Arthur . | . Office: UH305 . . .Hours: Mon 11:30, Thur: 14:00 email | rarthur at mcmaster dot ca
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In this course we will be taking a fresh look at some classical questions in the philosophy of science by engaging the issue of the so-called "science wars". Science, of course, has an exalted status in contemporary society, partly because of all the technological innovations it has enabled. The attack on that status by self-styled social constructivists has been met with some solid rejoinders by scientific realists like Alan Sokal, famous for "Sokal's Hoax". We will use this as a background to help us engage issues such as: Is there a unique scientific method, which would enable us to distinguish a science like astronomy from a pseudoscience like craniometry? If not, how can we be sure that the referents of our current theories, say quarks and black holes, are any more real than phlogiston? If science is not cumulative, can it be said to progress? Indeed, is science an ideally rational enterprise, or only one among many viable intellectual traditions that society might adopt? And what are the implications of these questions for the relationship between science and society? We will explore these and other questions through some fascinating case studies in various scientific disciplines. |
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Philosophy of Science, David Boeresma. Pearson/Prentice Hall, 2009. ISBN: 978-0-321-43711-2. Who Rules in Science? An Opinionated Guide ..., James Robert Brown. Harvard University Press, 2005. ISBN: 978-0-674-01364-3 The Mismeasure of Man (revised and expanded ed.), Stephen Jay Gould. W. W. Norton, 1996. ISBN: 978-0-393-31425-1. These texts will be supplemented by e-resources and photocopies made available. |
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Students must complete the following work to pass this course:
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Grading and Course Regulations Absences will be excused only for medical or similar reasons. If you miss an assignment, but produce an acceptable documented excuse (i. e. Dean's excuse ), your mark will be pro-rated based on the quizzes you did write. Missed exams must be negotiated through the Dean's office. Late assignments will be penalized at the rate of 5% for every day or part of day late. The scale used by the Registrar's Office will be used to convert number grades into letter grades. Please retain a hard copy of all your graded work!Course evaluation forms will be distributed near the end of term. Special arrangements may be made for students with disabilities. If you need assistance because of a disability, please contact the instructor as soon as possible. The above outline of activities and the Marking Scheme are for general guidance only. The instructor reserves the right to modify parts of either as circumstances may dictate. E-mail policy: all e-mails must be made from your McMaster university account. E-mails from other accounts may be ignored. Academic Dishonesty consists in misrepresentation by deception or by other fraudulent means and can result in serious consequences, e.g. the grade of zero on an assignment, loss of credit with a notation on the transcript (notation reads: "Grade of F assigned for academic dishonesty"), and/or suspension or expulsion from the university. Examples of academic dishonesty are 1. Plagiarism, e.g. the submission of work that is not one's own or for which other credit has been obtained. 2. Improper collaboration in group work. 3. Copying or using unauthorized aids in tests and examinations. It is your responsibility to understand what constitutes academic dishonesty. For information on the various kinds of academic dishonesty please refer to the Academic Integrity Policy, specifically Appendix 3, located at http://www.mcmaster.ca/policy/Students-AcademicStudies/AcademicIntegrity.pdf |
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Department talks |
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