8241003 Philosophy and History of Science
| Numbering Code | U-LET32 28241 SJ34 | Year/Term | 2022 ・ First semester | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of Credits | 2 | Course Type | Seminar | |
| Target Year | Target Student | |||
| Language | Japanese | Day/Period | Fri.3 | |
| Instructor name | ISEDA TETSUJI (Graduate School of Letters Professor) | |||
| Outline and Purpose of the Course | The ideal that science should be value-free is still influential nowadays; however, this ideal is at the same time controversial in that whether the ideal makes sense at all, and whether the pursuit of the ideal is desirable if it makes sense. Such an issue of the relationship between science and value is one of focal issues in 21st century philosophy of science. In this class we use Douglas's classical book to understand the issue. | |||
| Course Goals | To understand Douglas's ideas on the value-free ideal for science, and to be able to examine her position critically. | |||
| Schedule and Contents |
We read the following book (from chapter 3) by turns, and discuss the content. Douglas, Heather E. (2018) Science, Policy and the Value-free Ideal. University of Pittsburgh Press. The basic format of the class is as follows: we read approximately 10 pages of the reading in one meeting, and have some discussion. A student (or a team of students) is responsible for a presentation that introduces the reading to the meeting (the assignment is done beforehand). The class structure is: Introduction (1 meeting) Student presentations (13 meetings) wrap-up (1 meeting) |
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| Evaluation Methods and Policy | The evaluation will be based on the class presentation(s) and the final paper (50% each). The points of view of the evaluation are: correct understanding of the assigned part and its appropriate introduction for class presentation(s), and correct understanding of the chosen part and its appropriate critical examination for the final paper. | |||
| Course Requirements | No background is required, but if you are not familiar with philosophy of science in general, please read some introductory book by yourself. Okasha's introductory book (Philosophy of Science: A Very Short Introduction) is recommended. | |||
| Study outside of Class (preparation and review) | All the participants are expected to read the assigned reading before each class. The presenter prepares a several A4 pages of handout that summarizes the assigned part before the class. | |||
| Textbooks | Textbooks/References | Relevant parts of the above-mentioned book will be distributed in the class. | ||
