Results for PHIL

A survey of moral philosophy in the Western tradition. What makes right actions right and wrong actions wrong? What is it to have a virtuous rather than a vicious character? What is the basis of these distinctions? Why should we care about morality at all? Our aim is to understand how some of the most influential philosophers (including Aristotle, Kant, and Mill) have addressed these questions, and by so doing, to better formulate our own views. No prior familiarity with philosophy required.

Preference to freshmen. Historical and contemporary philosophical perspectives on the limits of human knowledge of a mind-independent world and causal laws of nature. The nature and possibility of a priori knowledge. Skepticism regarding religious beliefs..

Aristotle claims in the Physics that, "the student of Nature must contemplate of the infinite, with a view to determining whether it exists at all, and, if so, what is its nature." This course follows Aristotle's injunction historically -- beginning with the origins of the infinite in classical antiquity and ending with the fundamentals of the contemporary mathematical development at the turn of the 19th century.nnA central difficulty in this study is that of thinking consistently about infinite number and magnitude. And, more philosophically, whether we can know a priori of an ontological distinction between the finite and the infinite. In addition to Aristotle, we discuss the writings of Philoponus, Galileo, Descartes, Leibniz, Cantor, Dedekind, and Hilbert.

The course focuses on the nature of the self. Is the self an object among other objects in the world, or something real but not spatial or temporal -- an extensionless point? Themes from literature on personal identity, self-consciousness, self-reference, and self-knowledge. Readings may include selections from Kant, Schopenhauer, Wittgenstein, Strawson, Williams, Evans, Nagel, Perry, McDowell.

Survey of important formal methods used in philosophy. The course covers the basics of propositional and elementary predicate logic, probability and decision theory, game theory, and statistics, highlighting philosophical issues and applications. Specific topics include the languages of propositional and predicate logic and their interpretations, rationality arguments for the probability axioms, Nash equilibrium and dominance reasoning, and the meaning of statistical significance tests. Assessment is through a combination of problem sets and short-answer questions designed to solidify competence with the mathematical tools and to test conceptual understanding. This course replaces PHIL 50.

The nature of scientific knowledge: evidence and confirmation; scientific explanation; models and theories; objectivity; science, society, and values.

Galileo's defense of the Copernican world-system that initiated the scientific revolution of the 17th century, led to conflict between science and religion, and influenced the development of modern philosophy. Readings focus on Galileo and Descartes.

This course addresses moral issues that play a major role in contemporary public discourse. The course aims to encourage students to consider moral problems in a reflective, systematic manner, and to equip students with skills that will enable them to do so. Questions to be addressed include: Do rich countries have an obligation to accept refugees from other parts of the world? Do such obligations conflict with the right of individuals to protect their culture? Is there anything principally wrong in the use of drones for purposes of warfare? Do we have obligations to the environment, and if so why? What is racism and what makes it wrong? And what are feminist ideals?

Required gateway course for Philosophical and Literary Thought; crosslisted in departments sponsoring the Philosophy and Literature track. Majors should register in their home department; non-majors may register in any sponsoring department. Introduction to major problems at the intersection of philosophy and literature, with particular focus on the question of value: what, if anything, does engagement with literary works do for our lives? Issues include aesthetic self-fashioning, the paradox of tragedy, the paradox of caring, the truth-value of fiction, metaphor, authorship, irony, make-believe, expression, edification, clarification, and training. Readings are drawn from literature and film, philosophical theories of art, and stylistically interesting works of philosophy. Authors may include Sophocles, Chaucer, Dickinson, Proust, Woolf, Borges, Beckett, Kundera, Charlie Kaufman; Barthes, Foucault, Nussbaum, Walton, Nehamas; Plato, Montaigne, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche, and Sartre. Taught in English.

The purpose of this course is to explore questions concerning Scientific and Mathematical Realism. We ask, do entities to which scientific theories refer REALLY exist? For instance, do electrons or genes exist? How about mathematical entities? Do numbers or vectors exist? And if so, do they exist independent of our minds?

The most characteristic feature of analytic metaphysics is the prominent role that it assigns to logic, and analytic philosophy owes its existence to the revolutionary logical developments that occurred in the late 19th century. But what, exactly, is the relationship between logic and metaphysics? How did developments in the study of inference bring about radical changes in philosophers¿ approach and answers to questions about the nature of existence? Can one infer metaphysical truths directly from truths of logic, or does logic merely provide philosophers with a helpful tool for analyzing metaphysical issues? This course will begin with a brief study of Kant¿s conception of the relationship between logic and metaphysics, and then explore this relationship in the work of early analytic philosophers, particularly Gottlob Frege. In the final two weeks of the course, we will read several contemporary metaphysical papers on a subject selected by the students. Our discussion of those papers will focus on the role that logic plays and how that role may have changed since the early analytic period.

We shall cover the major developments in Greek philosophical thought, focusing on Plato, Aristotle, and the Hellenistic schools (the Epicureans, the Stoics, and the Skeptics). Topics include epistemology, metaphysics, psychology, ethics and political theory.

The Republic is one most famous and influential texts in the history of Western philosophy. We shall read in its entirety closely (along with some other related Platonic texts) focusing on its epistemology, ethics, metaphysics, philosophy of art, and political philosophy.

(Graduate students register for 225.) The founding work of Kant's critical philosophy emphasizing his contributions to metaphysics and epistemology. His attempts to limit metaphysics to the objects of experience. Prerequisite: course dealing with systematic issues in metaphysics or epistemology, or with the history of modern philosophy.

The new paradigm for understanding Heidegger makes possible a fresh look at his long-standing interest in Daoism. Part One: a radical recasting of Heidegger's thought, including his readings of the Presocratics (6th century BCE). In light of that, Part Two: a reading of Laozi's Dao De Jing / Tao Te Ching (6th century BCE). Permission of instructor required.

(Formerly 160A.) The syntax and semantics of sentential and first-order logic. Concepts of model theory. Gödel's completeness theorem and its consequences: the Löwenheim-Skolem theorem and the compactness theorem. Prerequisite: 150 or consent of instructor.

This course surveys a range of non-classical logics. Each week, we discuss the formal rules and philosophical underpinnings of a different system. Key topics include modal logic (the logic of possibility and necessity), many-valued logics (in which propositions can be both true and false, or neither), relevant logics (which aim to bring the concept of valid inference into line with everyday ideas about relevance), and logical pluralism (the view that there is more than one correct logic).

Graduate students register for 265.) Central topic alternates annually between space-time theories and philosophical issues in quantum mechanics; the latter in Winter 2013-14. Conceptual problems regarding the uncertainty principle, wave-particle duality, quantum measurement, spin, and their treatment within the 'Copenhagen interpretation' of quantum mechanics, and the related doctrine of complementarity. The issue of quantum entanglement as raised by Einstein and Schrödinger in the 1930s and the famous EPR (Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen) paper of 1935. Examination of EPR-type experimental set-ups and a result due to Bell in the 1960s, according to which no "hidden variables" theory satisfying a certain locality condition (apparently assumed by EPR) can reproduce all the predictions of quantum mechanics. Survey of several live interpretive options for standard quantum mechanics: Bohmian mechanics (a.k.a. 'pilot wave theory'), 'spontaneous collapse' theories, and Everett¿s relative-state interpretation. Critical scrutiny of the ¿decoherence¿ program that seeks to explain the classical-to-quantum transition, i.e., the emergence of the world of classical physics and macroscopic objects from quantum physics. May be repeated for credit if content is different.

Climate change is an ethical failure. When we cause greenhouse gas to be emitted for our own benefit, the gas spreads around the world and does harm everywhere. Many of those who are harmed emit very little greenhouse gas themselves. When some people harm others for their own benefit, something is morally wrong. Specifically, there is an injustice. One of the ethical problems raised by climate change is how to rectify this injustice. Climate change also raises a different range of ethical questions, which may be classified as questions of value. For example, in making decisions, how should the distant future be valued in comparison with the present and how should we take account of the great loss of human life that climate change will cause? This course investigates the issues of justice and the issues of value. It considers the moral demands that climate change puts both on private individuals and on public institutions. Because the effects of climate change are so widespread and so complex, the methods of economics can be useful in putting ethical principles into effect. The course will therefore assess some of these methods.

For students planning honors in Ethics in Society. Methods of research. Students present issues of public and personal morality; topics chosen with advice of instructor.

The study of conceptual questions about language as a focus of contemporary philosophy for its inherent interest and because philosophers see questions about language as behind perennial questions in other areas of philosophy including epistemology, philosophy of science, metaphysics, and ethics. Key concepts and debates about the notions of meaning, truth, reference, and language use, with relations to psycholinguistics and formal semantics. Readings from philosophers such as Frege, Russell, Wittgenstein, Grice, and Kripke. Prerequisites: 80 and background in logic.

We will read two recent books: Raymond Guess, World without Why; and Timothy Williamson, The Philosophy of Philosophy. This will be a seminar that will allow for extensive discussion and focussed work on a single long seminar paper. Prerequisites PHIL 80, one course from PHIL 170-176, one course from PHIL 180-189, and PHIL 102.

(Staff)

May be repeated for credit.

Weekly meeting of the editorial board of The Dualist, a national journal of undergraduate work in philosophy. Open to all undergraduates. May be taken 1-3 quarters. (AU) (Potochnik, Yap)

The Republic is one most famous and influential texts in the history of Western philosophy. We shall read in its entirety closely (along with some other related Platonic texts) focusing on its epistemology, ethics, metaphysics, philosophy of art, and political philosophy.

(Graduate students register for 225.) The founding work of Kant's critical philosophy emphasizing his contributions to metaphysics and epistemology. His attempts to limit metaphysics to the objects of experience. Prerequisite: course dealing with systematic issues in metaphysics or epistemology, or with the history of modern philosophy.

May be repeated for credit.

(Formerly 160A.) The syntax and semantics of sentential and first-order logic. Concepts of model theory. Gödel's completeness theorem and its consequences: the Löwenheim-Skolem theorem and the compactness theorem. Prerequisite: 150 or consent of instructor.

This course surveys a range of non-classical logics. Each week, we discuss the formal rules and philosophical underpinnings of a different system. Key topics include modal logic (the logic of possibility and necessity), many-valued logics (in which propositions can be both true and false, or neither), relevant logics (which aim to bring the concept of valid inference into line with everyday ideas about relevance), and logical pluralism (the view that there is more than one correct logic).

Graduate students register for 265.) Central topic alternates annually between space-time theories and philosophical issues in quantum mechanics; the latter in Winter 2013-14. Conceptual problems regarding the uncertainty principle, wave-particle duality, quantum measurement, spin, and their treatment within the 'Copenhagen interpretation' of quantum mechanics, and the related doctrine of complementarity. The issue of quantum entanglement as raised by Einstein and Schrödinger in the 1930s and the famous EPR (Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen) paper of 1935. Examination of EPR-type experimental set-ups and a result due to Bell in the 1960s, according to which no "hidden variables" theory satisfying a certain locality condition (apparently assumed by EPR) can reproduce all the predictions of quantum mechanics. Survey of several live interpretive options for standard quantum mechanics: Bohmian mechanics (a.k.a. 'pilot wave theory'), 'spontaneous collapse' theories, and Everett¿s relative-state interpretation. Critical scrutiny of the ¿decoherence¿ program that seeks to explain the classical-to-quantum transition, i.e., the emergence of the world of classical physics and macroscopic objects from quantum physics. May be repeated for credit if content is different.

This a graduate student only introduction to contemporary metaethics. Can moral and ethical values be justified or is it just a matter of opinion? Is there a difference between facts and values? Are there any moral truths? Does it matter if there are not? Focus is not on which things or actions are valuable or morally right, but what is value or rightness itself. Prerequisites: 280, 281, and an ethics course.

Climate change is an ethical failure. When we cause greenhouse gas to be emitted for our own benefit, the gas spreads around the world and does harm everywhere. Many of those who are harmed emit very little greenhouse gas themselves. When some people harm others for their own benefit, something is morally wrong. Specifically, there is an injustice. One of the ethical problems raised by climate change is how to rectify this injustice. Climate change also raises a different range of ethical questions, which may be classified as questions of value. For example, in making decisions, how should the distant future be valued in comparison with the present and how should we take account of the great loss of human life that climate change will cause? This course investigates the issues of justice and the issues of value. It considers the moral demands that climate change puts both on private individuals and on public institutions. Because the effects of climate change are so widespread and so complex, the methods of economics can be useful in putting ethical principles into effect. The course will therefore assess some of these methods.

The study of conceptual questions about language as a focus of contemporary philosophy for its inherent interest and because philosophers see questions about language as behind perennial questions in other areas of philosophy including epistemology, philosophy of science, metaphysics, and ethics. Key concepts and debates about the notions of meaning, truth, reference, and language use, with relations to psycholinguistics and formal semantics. Readings from philosophers such as Frege, Russell, Wittgenstein, Grice, and Kripke. Prerequisites: 80 and background in logic.

A required seminar for third year philosophy PhD students, designed to extend and consolidate work done in the dissertation development seminar the previous summer.

A close reading of Plato's Phaedo, with a special emphasis on its metaphysical aspects, such as its discussions of Forms, causation, and coming-to-be. Also to be investigated: the nature and immortality of the soul, the correct attitude to have toward one's death, the theory of recollection, the method of hypothesis, and the respective roles of argument and myth.

Hume's theoretical philosophy emphasizing skepticism and naturalism, the theory of ideas and belief, space and time, causation and necessity, induction and laws of nature, miracles, a priori reasoning, the external world, and the identity of the self.

graduate seminar.

The nature of and problem of inequality is central to both economics and philosophy. Economists study the causes of inequality, design tools to measure it and track it over time, and examine its consequences. Philosophers are centrally concerned with the justification of inequality and the reasons why various types of inequality are or are not objectionable.nIn this class we bring both of these approaches together. Our class explores the different meanings of and measurements for understanding inequality, our best understandings of how much inequality there is, its causes, its consequences, and whether we ought to reduce it, and if so, how. nThis is an interdisciplinary graduate seminar. We propose some familiarity with basic ideas in economics and basic ideas in contemporary political philosophy; we will explain and learn about more complex ideas as we proceed. The class will be capped at 20 students.

Much of just war theory focuses on the justifications for resorting to armed force and the conduct of hostilities. But what are the ethical and legal principles that govern ending wars and making peace? This course will explore the theory of "just peace," including such problems as when a party to war may demand the unconditional surrender of its adversary and what kinds of compromises are ethically permissible in order to end ¿ or to avoid ¿ armed conflict. We will also consider the terms and practices the winning party in war may impose on the loser, such as reparations and occupation (particularly transformative occupation). In addition, we will examine the topic of transitional justice, including issues related to amnesty, forgiveness, criminal and other forms of accountability, and reconciliation. Elements used in grading: Class Participation, Written Assignments, Final Exam.

This seminar will explore foundational issues about practical rationality as they arise in the context of agency in which planning plays a basic role. We will consider issues both about rationality at a time and about rationality over time.nOpen to graduate students in Philosophy and to others by permission.

Contemporary work. May be repeated a total of three times for credit. Math 391 students attend the logic colloquium in 380-381T.

(Staff)

Presentation of dissertation work in progress by seminar participants. May be repeated for credit.

(Staff)