Philosophy 492/Biology 492:

Philosophy of Science

Professor David A. Salomon, Spring 2004

Office: Meier 316

Office Phone: 642-6249

E-mail: davidsalomon@bhsu.edu

Office Hours: MWF 9-9:50, T 11-11:50, and by appointment

This seminar will be a look at the important issues, positions and arguments in the philosophy of science. In particular, we will concentrate on the closely-related debates about how to demarcate science from non-science and about the nature of scientific method. We will “do” a good deal of philosophy in this seminar, meaning that we must give and ask for reasons for what we believe. We will accomplish these goals by first surveying the historical issues related to the philosophy of science–beginning with the Greeks, working through the Middle Ages and into the Renaissance, and ending with the contemporary world. A vast background in science is not necessary, nor is a broad background in philosophy. However, we will be examining some pretty “heavy” scientific issues, and the ability to contemplate and then analyze these issues is a necessity. Some of the topics we may touch on include the nature of scientific explanation, the confirmation of scientific theories, theories of truth, the distinction between science and metaphysics, the structure and status of observation statements, and the changing structure, as Thomas Kuhn put it, of scientific revolutions.

Philosophers and scientists have several things in common, but the most obvious is their quest to understand the universe, our place in that universe, and how the world and that universe work.

Along the way, we will make stops in biology, physics, and psychology, examining issues and concerns of each discipline as they intersect with the study of philosophy. Because this is not explicitly a course in science, please refrain from overly-technical scientific explanations, theories, and jargon. Some of the seminar reading is quite difficult, filled as it is with either scientific or, more often, philosophical jargon. It is imperative, therefore, that you read with a good dictionary at your side. More complicated terms can be investigated in The Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy. We will avoid, as much as possible, deep discussions of logic (as we cannot assume all seminar members are familiar with the theories of logic), but much of the early philosophy of science differs very little from the modern field of logic. The result is that it is not imperative that one gain a complete understanding of the scientific principles and theories discussed; instead, the philosophy of science is more interested in how we arrive at those principles and theories. Method is what philosophers of science are most interested in.

The course is arranged with an historical/chronological overview for the first half, and close study of three important texts for the second half: Popper, Kuhn, and Feyerabend.

Seminar Requirements

                                    Seminar Participation

Two 7-9 page papers; topics to be discussed

                                    One review essay (4-6 pages), to be discussed; due March 3

One longer (15-20 page) seminar paper; topics to be discussed

Final Examination

Texts (all are available at the BHSU bookstore as well as online at a variety of sites–look for used copies)

Required:

•          John Losee, A Historical Introduction to the Philosophy of Science (Oxford UP 0198700555)

•          Paul Feyerabend, Against Method (Verso 0860916464)

•          Thomas Kuhn, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions (U Chicago P 0226458083)

•          Alex Rosenberg, Philosophy of Science: A Contemporary Introduction (Routledge 041515281X)

•          Karl Popper, Conjectures and Refutations (Routledge 0415285941)

Choose one of the following for the review essay:•for those interested in psychology: Steven Pinker, The Blank Slate: The Modern Denial of Human Nature (Penguin 0142003344)

•          for those interested in biology (especially genetics and evolutionary biology): Richard Dawkins, The Selfish Gene (Oxford UP 0192860925)

•          for those interested in philosophy: George Lakoff and Mark Johnson, Philosophy in the Flesh: The Embodied Mind and Its Challenge to Western Thought (Basic Books 0465056741)

•          for those interested in physics or chemistry: The Sokal Hoax: The Sham That Shook the Academy (U Ne P 0803279957)

Optional:

•          Anthony Graybosch, Philosophy Student Writer’s Manual (Prentice-Hall 0132373718)

•          Samir Okasha, Philosophy of Science: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford UP 0192802836)

The Longer Paper (The ‘”Tripos’” System)

Each seminar member will write one longer paper of fifteen to twenty pages. The paper topics will be discussed ahead of time, and each member’s individual topic must be preapproved. The longer papers will be handled in true seminar style. We will follow Cambridge University’s “Tripos” system. This system, developed in the earliest days of the university in the Middle Ages, is named after the three-legged stool on which students would sit when being questioned by their examiners. We will dispense with the stool but proceed with the system in theory.

On predetermined seminar meetings we will address the longer paper of one member of the seminar. That member will be responsible for distributing his or her paper to every member of the seminar (including the instructor) at least two days prior to the discussion of the paper–this can be done either on paper or via e-mail (Microsoft Word documents only, please [save in either .doc or .rtf format]; a link will be placed on the home page from which you can easily send papers to the entire seminar). Monday papers must be out by noon Friday; Wednesday papers by noon Monday; Friday papers by noon Wednesday. Seminar members will scrutinize the paper, and, at the beginning of the seminar meeting, a ‘”wrangler’” will be appointed by the instructor. It is for that student–the wrangler–to begin discussion by critiquing the paper and questioning its author (for perhaps 10 minutes). The wrangler’s “job” is to spur discussion by all seminar members, to raise interesting points, to debate spurious claims, to both praise strengths and criticize inadequacies. Both the wrangler and the wranglee, if you will, will be graded on their performance. Once the discussion is complete, the author will have three weeks to revise the paper and resubmit it along with the original to the instructor. 

Dealing With Sources and Format

If you use online images, you can use the color printer in the library (.15 per page). You can also copy color images from books at the Printing Center in the basement of Woodburn (.32 per page); however, the color copier in the Printing Center is unreliable. You can also color copy at Sand Creek Printing (128 East Illinois in Spearfish) for .75 per page.

Images from the Internet or other books should be clearly documented and included with your paper as appendices and should be referred to within your paper as “appendix one,” etc. Specific texts seminar members are not familiar with should also be included as appendices. It is vitally important that seminar members be able to see the images and read the texts you will be discussing. You will need to figure out the best way to insure that.

Since this is an upper level class, there are certain reasonable expectations about your ability to write essays and papers in a scholarly manner. Any work that is turned in should be well-researched, properly-documented using current and correct format, spell-checked, proofread, grammatically correct, and compositionally-sound. Noteworthy and irritating lapses in writing will affect grades. Issues that arise should be dealt with in one of three ways: through consultation of the MLA Handbook, or Thinking and Writing About Philosophy (on reserve in the library); through consultation with the instructor; or through consultation with the on-campus writing tutors. All work is to be typed, double-spaced, 12 point Times New Roman font, and properly formatted and documented. Papers must be handed in on time. Papers handed in late will receive a one grade deduction for each class/meeting it is late. If deadlines weren’t important, they wouldn’t begin with “dead.”

Attendance

Students are expected to attend class regularly. It is your presence that makes this course a seminar; without you the seminar will suffer. If you miss more than three class meetings, you will fail the seminar. Lateness will have a similar effect. If you are sick or have an emergency which forces you to miss more than two consecutive classes, call the Office of Student Affairs and let them know. This way, they will contact all of your instructors, and you might not be held accountable for those absences. Don’t disappear for two weeks and then reappear, expecting everything to be all right.

Academic Honesty

Plagiarism is the theft of someone else’s ideas and work. Plagiarism is the most serious crime in academia and will not be tolerated. The word “plagiarism” is derived from the Latin plagarius, which means, literally, “to kidnap”; when you plagiarize you are kidnaping someone else’s baby, stealing their offspring, i.e., their ideas. Whether a student copies verbatim or simply rephrases the ideas of another without properly acknowledging the source, the theft is the same. In the preparation of work submitted to meet seminar requirements, whether a draft or a final version of a paper, project, or computer program, students must take great care to distinguish their own ideas and language from information derived from sources. Sources include published primary and secondary materials, the Internet, and information and opinions gained directly from other people. Whenever ideas or facts are derived from a student’s reading and research, the sources must be properly cited. Once your paper is submitted in hard copy on the date due, you must, by 3pm the day a paper is due, upload an electronic copy of your paper to turnitin.com. The class ID is 1114197, and the enrollment password is jacket1. Please upload both the initial copy (submitted for the wrangle) and then the final copy of seminar papers.

It is the student’s responsibility to learn the proper forms of citation according to standards delineated by Black Hills State University. Students who have questions about the standards of scholarly writing should speak with their instructors before beginning research on assigned papers and projects. Violations include, at the discretion of the instructor, failure for the individual paper to failure for the seminar; such violations may be entered in the student’s permanent academic record, and upon multiple offenses the Dean may recommend expulsion from the University.

You must, in every instance, give credit for ideas that are not your own. If you are unclear about the meaning of plagiarism, see the instructor. Technical matters (of documentation and format) can be resolved by consultation of The MLA Handbook for Writers (5^th edition) available both in the BHSU bookstore and in the library.

Paper Format and Style

Because philosophy and science journals tend to pick and choose when it comes to style, you have two choices for this seminar: either use MLA style (and use it correctly) or use the following style (we’ll call it “SaloSci” style).

            This is a variant of the author-date system used in the Chicago Manual of Style.

In-Text Citations: Simple citations or quotation attributions should be made by citation within the text, rather than by footnote or endnote. Cite author, year, and page number(s) (Jones 1974, 25). Note comma between year and page, but not between author and year. There is no “p.” or “page” preceding the page number. If the context clearly specifies the reference, the year and page number are sufficient: Jones’ theory (1974, 23-30) contradicts his earlier account (1965, 345). At the end of a block quotation, place the citation after the period.

List of References: The bibliographical list of cited references must be headed References and placed on a new page immediately following the main text. List references alphabetically by author. More than one reference by the same author should be listed in chronological order. Use hanging indents throughout the list, and double space everything. Some examples for various items:

Burrian, Richard M., and Jean Gayon, and Doris Zallen (1988), “The Singular Fate of Genetics in the History of French Biology, 1900-1940,” Journal of the History of Biology 21: 357-402.

Craver, Carl F. (1998), Neural Mechanisms: On the Structure, Function and Development of Theories of Neurobiology. Ph.D. Dissertation. Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh.

Duhem, Pierre ([1906] 1954), The Aim and Structure of Physical Theory. Reprint. Translated by P.P. Wiener. Originally published as La theorie physique: son objet, et sa structure (Paris: Marcel Reviere & Cie). Princeton: Princeton University Press. [N.B. The 1906 date is first publication; 1954 is the reprint date]

Harding, Sandra G. (1987), Feminism and Methodology: Social Science Issues.

            Bloomington: Indiana University Press.

Oppenheim, Paul, and Hilary Putnam (1958), “Unity of Science as a Working Hypothesis,” in Herbert Feigl, Grover Maxwell, and Michael Scriven (eds.), Minnesota Studies in the Philosophy fo Science, Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 3-36.

A Note About Research and Sources

Secondary sources are not necessary for your shorter papers; however, they are not only necessary but are required for the longer paper. Do not use Internet websites as secondary sources. This does not include the use of online journal databases (such as ProQuest, SearchBank, or JSTOR), online bibliographic information and databases, nor does it include the use of primary sources and texts one may find on the Internet. You will undoubtedly need to make use of interlibrary loan. You can easily request materials on interlibrary loan from the SDLN catalogue page by clicking the “Submit ILL Request” blue button on the catalogue entry page. Of course, your seminar texts can serve as sources as well, and they probably make good starting places. Beginning this semester, you will have to use you BH e-mail address in order to login to the library databases and use interlibrary loan.

It will be imperative, as you read, to consult a dictionary (a good dictionary) for explanation of technical jargon. However, do not use general use dictionaries as sources in papers; consult a specialized science or philosophy dictionary.

These items provide excellent articles and, more importantly, excellent and current bibliographies. You should still avoid using them directly as sources for papers, but they are good starting places and excellent resources for definitions of terms or complex theories.

-Encyclopedia of Philosophy: this 8 volume encyclopedia remains one of the standard references in philosophy: Reference Collection B41 .E5

            -Dictionary of the History of Science: Reference Collection Q125 .D45

-McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms: Reference Collection Q123 .M34 1994

            -Oxford Companion to Philosophy: Reference Collection B51 .094 1995

            -Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy: Reference Collection B41 .B53 1994

Reserve Reading

I may, over the course of the semester, place items on reserve that might be particularly helpful in studying our topic. My personal library in the office is vast and broad; you are encouraged to stop by and borrow items as necessary. The following item is on reserve in the BH library:

            Hugo Bedau, Thinking and Writing About Philosophy

Special Accommodation

Reasonable accommodations, as arranged with the disabilities coordinator, will be provided for students with documented disabilities. Please contact the BHSU Disabilities Services Coordinator at 642-6099.

Getting in touch

You can always reach me by e-mail. I check it several times a day. My e-mail address is davidsalomon@bhsu.edu. Please do not abuse e-mail with excuses (“I won’t be in class today”), but do use e-mail for questions and advice.

The World Wide Web (WWW) address for this class is http://www.bhsu.edu/artssciences/asfaculty/dsalomon/phil492/spring2004/

At this site you will find some links to primary sources, some secondary sites, bibliographic information, this syllabus, a seminar e-mail directory, and other important information. It will be updated occasionally.

Grading Guidelines

If you are enrolled in this seminar to get a grade, drop now. Education is about more than grades. Unfortunately, grades are a necessary evil. Your work will be graded on a scale from A to F with pluses and minuses. Although BHSU does not use pluses and minuses in semester grades, I believe they are helpful in evaluation throughout the semester. If, at the end of the semester, your grade is teetering between two grades, attendance and class participation become important factors. You must submit all work in order to pass the course.

A range: The work is extraordinary. It has said something different or is conceived in an interesting and unusual way. Written work is virtually free of errors in writing or fact. Conventionally, an “A” means the work is perfect.

B range: The work is above average. It presents the material more than competently and is well-written and well-organized.

C range: The work is average. Written work might have some problems in construction, grammar, or conception. Organizational problems may also be present as may some misunderstandings of the texts or topics. Overall a grade of “C” indicates the work is competent but unremarkable.

D range: The work is below average. Written work probably has serious problems in grammar and organization. It might show severe misunderstandings of the texts or topics.

F: The work is failing. Written work probably has severe problems in basic grammar and shows little or no understanding of the texts or topics. Note: a grade of F is an earned grade and will not be awarded if work is not submitted or completed (that type of performance “earns” a 0).