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PHIL 100

Thinking Things Through

SYLLABUS

Description:

Philosophy is concerned with very general questions about the structure of the world, how we can best acquire knowledge about the world, and how we should act in the world. These questions correspond, roughly, to the three traditional branches of western philosophy: metaphysics, epistemology, and ethics. No doubt these questions seem abstract and vague. They may seem superfluous as well. Arenít questions about the structure of the world part of physics? Arenít questions about how we acquire knowledge and about our minds part of psychology? Indeed they are.
What exactly, then, is philosophy? There are a lot of questions usually not addressed by physics or psychology or other scientific subjects but that still seem to have something to do with them. Consider a few examples:

What is a proof?
What does "impossible" mean?
What is required for beliefs to be rational?
How can we know there are particles too small to observe?
Does what is true depend on what is believed?

Such questions have something to do with physics or psychology or mathematics, but they arenít questions you will find addressed in textbooks on those subjects. The questions seem somehow too fundamental. This is the stuff of philosophy.
In this course, we will ponder such questions and consider historical attempts to answer them. The questions are not easy; so we will work hard. Our focus will be on methods, that is, on how we should go about answering the questions. Along the way we will see how efforts to answer them have led to exciting developments in established sciences like physics and psychology and even spawned whole new areas of intellectual inquiry, such as computer science and artificial intelligence.

Goals:

To explore general questions concerning the nature of some of our most fundamental concepts, including those of proof, knowledge, mind, justified belief, and rationality.
To gain awareness, understanding, and appreciation of the history of attempts, within philosophy, to grapple with these questions.
To develop skills for articulating, analyzing, and critiquing arguments.
To improve oneís ability to express ideas clearly and concisely in writing.

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Last Updated:08/28/03

Textbook:

Thinking Things Through by Clark Glymour. MIT Press, 1997.

Requirements:

1. Students are expected to complete all required readings and attend class regularly. The content of readings, lectures, and discussions are intended to be complementary; they will overlap substantially but not completely. Students are responsible for the content from each.

2. An email list [phil100b_au03@u.washington.edu] will be established. Students are responsible for checking their email accounts every day or two. The list will be used to distribute practical information, suggest additional readings, and supply questions to focus reading and discussion.

3. There will be a set of assignments given throughout the term. The nature of the assignments will vary and will include:

study & review questions from the textbook
short writing assignments
in class exercises examining the arguments and positions being studied
in class exams covering course material

In order to pass this class, each assignment must be completed with the following exception: students are allowed to miss turning in study questions once during the term.

Late assignment policy: We are on an extremely tight schedule during the Early Fall term. It is imperative that students stay on schedule. Accordingly, assignments will not be accepted more than 3 days after the due date and then only with the instructorís permission. Extensions will be allowed only in cases of documented emergency and/or after arrangement with the instructor, i.e. If you don't speak with me in a timely fashion, no extension will be granted.

4. If necessary, in class quizzes will be added to the required assignments. These will be used if students do not appear to be keeping up with the course material.

Grade Distribution:

      Study Questions
   40%

     Writing Exercises
      20%

     Exams
     20%

     Participation/Group Exercises
20%

     TOTAL
100%