STS/Phil 5305, Syllabus, Spring 1999

STS 5305 Summer 2004

STS/Phil 5305: MAIN THEMES IN PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY Room • Tuesdays 6:15-9:30 PM

Valerie Gray Hardcastle Office Phone [email protected] Office Hours: Tuesdays, 5:00-6:15 PM and by appointment

COURSE OBJECTIVES

This course is the first in a two-semester sequence that introduces students to the philosophy of science and technology. It focuses on 20th century analytical philosophy of science and on recent philosophy of technology. It will explore such issues as: How does science differ from other human enterprises? Are there sharp criteria of demarcation between science and related activities? What roles do observation, experiment, technological innovation, logical argument, and theorizing play in science? How do scientific explanations work, and can we provide strong criteria for good explanations? How are scientific claims supported, and how well are they supported? Does science aim at a literally true account of our world, or does it merely provide “as if” stories that organize our knowledge, but cannot, or should not, be evaluated for literal truth?

It will also critically examine the ‘spectator’ view of science typically presumed by philosophers of science. On this view, philosophical accounts of science depend primarily on how scientists represent the world with their theories. Recent work in the philosophy of technology offers an alternative perspective on science that focuses on what scientists do. Questions to be discussed include: What distinguishes the perspectives of (traditional) philosophers of science and philosophers of technology? What can philosophers of science learn from philosophers of technology? Is the account of scientific theories offered by philosophers of technology consistent with the traditional philosophical models of explanation? Do technological arguments give us good reasons to believe the truth of scientific theories?

Upon successful completion of this course, students will be acquainted with 20th century philosophy of science and technology, able to understand and articulate competing positions on the relevant issues, and able to form and defend positions on them intelligently. Because the course is a graduate introduction to philosophy of science and technology, the aim is general understanding and appreciation of the philosophical issues involved, not technical philosophical expertise.

Readings and materials for class discussion will be drawn from: STS 5305 Syllabus, Spring, 1999

Curd, M., and Cover, J.A. 1998. Philosophy of Science: The Central Issues. WW Norton and Company. [C&C]

Mitcham, C. 1994. Thinking Through Technology: The Path Between Engineering and Philosophy. University of Chicago Press. [M]

Rosenberg, A. 2000. Philosophy of Science: A Contemporary Introduction. Routledge. [R]

Scharff, R.C., and Dusek, V. (Eds). 2003. Philosophy of Technology: The Technological Condition: An Anthology. Blackwell Publishing. [S&D]

COURSE ASSIGNMENTS AND EVALUATION

Students are expected to participate in class discussion, complete weekly on-line writing assignments, and produce a larger formal term project in written form. Reading and informal writing assignments are to be completed BEFORE our weekly class meeting.

1. Contribution to class discussions. This course will be conducted as a seminar, which means students come to class prepared to contribute to the discussion, challenge claims with which they disagree, and in general offer their own perspective on the readings and issues. 2. Weekly informal writings. Each week, before Sunday midnight prior to the week’s class, each student will complete a short (ca. 600 words) considered and analytic reaction essay to the reading assignment, to be posted on the class’s Blackboard bulletin board. Before each Monday at midnight, each student will post a brief (ca. 300 words) response to at least one other student’s reaction essay for that week, also posted to Blackboard. 3. Two presentations of the reading to the seminar. Twice during the semester students will be responsible for presenting an integrative summary of the readings for the week and for suggesting points for discussion. 4. Final essay. See below for details— due 5 pm on the day of the scheduled final exam.

FINAL PROJECT GUIDELINES

Final essays should be word-processed or typed (12 cpi and at least 1" margins), submitted either in hard copy or as an attachment via email. The student’s names and the title of the essay should appear on a separate cover sheet. Bibliographies should follow a good standard academic format; they should provide full bibliographical information for all the works utilized in the essay plus any other essential references. Items in the bibliography may be cited in the text rather than in a footnote, using ‘scientific style’ [e.g., “(Boyd, 1991a, 183)”] or a similar format. In general, one should not need footnotes — if it is worth saying, put it in the body of the text.

In general, I am looking for accurate representations of positions, a clear account of the importance of issues, and careful argumentation. The ideal paper will not only provide a strong argument in favor of resolving the problem at hand in one way rather than another, but also an appraisal of the strengths and weaknesses of the proposed solution to the problem or account of what is required to solve it. Students will choose their own topic for their final paper, but (to avoid tackling dead-end topics) students must obtain my prior approval for the topic. The papers

2 STS 5305 Syllabus, Spring, 1999 may deal with case studies, but need not do so. Case studies should bring the philosophical positions explored in class to bear on concrete issues. All written assignments must be completed and turned in to receive a passing grade for the course. The Honor System is in effect for all assignments.

READING ASSIGNMENTS

Week 1 - Philosophy of Science? Why philosophy of science? [R]. pp. 1-16 Science and Pseudoscience [C&C], pp. 1-61

Week 2 – Explanation and Laws Explanation, causation, and laws [R], pp. 19-44 Models of explanation [C&C], pp. 675-765

Week 3 – More on Laws Laws of nature [C&C], pp. 805-877

Week 4 – More on Explanation Scientific explanation and its discontents [R], pp. 46-65 Induction, prediction, and evidence [C&C] pp. 409-493

Week 5 – Scientific Theories The structure and metaphysics of scientific theories [R], pp. 68-103 Intertheoretic reduction [C&C], pp. 903-1003

Week 6 – Metaphysics and Theories Empiricism and scientific realism [C&C], pp. 1049-1225

Week 7 – Theories and Evidence The epistemology of scientific theorizing [R], pp. 106-132 The Duhem-Quine thesis and underdetermination [C&C], pp. 255-353

Week 8 – Bayes and Theories Confirmation and relevance: Bayesian approaches [C&C], pp. 549-625

Week 9 – Post-positivistic Approaches The challenge of history and post-positivism [R], pp. 135-156 The nature of science and the fundamental questions of philosophy, [R], pp. 158-173 Rationality, objectivity, and values in science [C&], pp. 83-209

Week 10 – What Is the Philosophy of Technology? Historical traditions in the philosophy of technology [M], pp. 1-134 The task of a philosophy of technology [S&D], pp. 170-205

Week 11 – What Is Technology? Analytic issues in the philosophy of technology [M], pp. 137-300

3 STS 5305 Syllabus, Spring, 1999

Defining technology [S&D], pp. 206-244 The question concerning technology [S&D], pp. 252-264

Week 12 – Technology and Nature Technology, ecology, and the conquest of nature [S&D], pp. 413-484