Philosophy 2301

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Philosophy 2301
Introduction to Philosophy of Science
Professor Jen Schellinck
Class Number One
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Whats this class about?
Acquiring Knowledge
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What Knowledge?

• History of science
• History of philosophy, as it relates to science
• Scientific methods, concepts
• Philosophical debates about the methods and
  concepts of science

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What Skills?

• Understanding and analyzing philosophical
  arguments.
• Judging arguments
• Generating new ideas. Creating new arguments.
• Clearly communicating ideas and arguments.
• Acquiring knowledge independently.

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Expectations and Prerequisites
No prerequisites
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My two roles in this class
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Jen The Evaluator
The person who gives you a mark...

• This is the only person you would see if you
• never came to class
• never read any class notes
• still wrote the tests and the essay

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Jen the educator
The person who is trying to help you to learn
things

• The person you see in class every week
• The person who is trying to assist you in
  learning what you need to know for your
  evaluations.

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Evaluation

• (of knowledge and skills)

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How will I evaluate your knowledge of philosophy
of science?

• Using these tests I will evaluate your
• rote knowledge
• ability to apply your knowledge to new situations

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How will I evaluate your philosophical skills?

• Using the essay I will evaluate your
• Understanding of arguments
• Ability to generate new ideas
• Ability to clearly communicate your ideas

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The outcome of your evaluation
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Education
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(No Transcript)
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How will I help you to acquire knowledge?
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How will I help you to acquire skills?
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So whats the rest of todays class going to be
like?

• Lecturing
• Group Brainstorming Activities
• Inkshedding

Todays class your chance to test drive the
course and see if you like it.
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Administrivia

• Course Outline
• E-mail List
• Course Website
• Particular Requirements
• Paul Menton Center 520-6608
• Test Anxiety
• Writing Tutorial Service 520-6632

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Five Minute Break
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Pretest
Dont panic! it isnt for a mark You dont have
to pass it in.

• You benefit from this pretest by
• Seeing what my test questions are like.
• Getting a chance to take some risks- be creative.
• Setting a knowledge benchmark

Yikes!
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Brainstorming Activity

• Steps
• Form Groups (2-4 people)
• Given a question or problem
• Generate Ideas (keep a list)
• Pool ideas (3 groups join together)
• Share the final list (by writing it on the board)

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• Brainstorm 8 different ways to come up with an
  answer to this problem (any answer- not
  necessarily a correct one!).
• Two quarters sit on a table so that both
  portraits face left and the bottom of one coin
  touches the top of the other. If you were to put
  your thumb on the lower coin to hold it in place
  and allowed the other to roll counterclockwise
  around it without slipping, as if the edges of
  the coins were interlocking gears, in what
  direction would the portrait face when the upper
  quarter reached the bottom? Discover, August
  2001, p. 80

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• My ideas
• Think through the problem in your head
• Get out some coins and see what happens
• Ask the person next to you
• Look up the answer on p.86 of the August 2001
  Discovery Magazine

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Asking questions, posing problems- finding answers
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What just happened?

• I gave you a problem to solve.
• I asked you a question and wanted you to find an
  answer.
• You explored different ways to find an answer.
  There are a lot of them!
• What does this have to do with philosophy of
  science?

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Long before the first philosophers showed up (in
Greece, circa 600 BCE) people around the world
were
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The problem was
Multiple Answers!
How to decide which answer was the right answer?
How to decide which solution was a good
solution?
More formally What were some criteria that
people could use to judge the validity of their
answers and solutions?
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Some ways to evaluate an answer

• If a person with particular qualities says its
  right, its right
• If I say it, it is right.
• If I see it with my own eyes, hear it with my own
  ears, etc. It is right
• If I think for a long time/in a certain way
  before I come up with an answer, it is right.
• If I go through a series of steps to come up with
  the answer, it is right
• If a person was right before they are right, this
  time.
• If everyone I know says it, its right.

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How many of these method of evaluation are
represented in our answers to the coin problem?

• Appeal to authority
• Self is always right
• The Senses dont lie
• Reasoning is the way to go
• Using an algorithm
• Reliable Source
• Everyone Knows

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Enter the philosophers
The philosophers rejected all but two of the
methods of evaluation

• Appeal to authority
• Self is always right
• Using an algorithm
• Reliable Source
• Everyone Knows

• The Senses dont lie
• Reasoning is the way to go

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Of all the different ways to find answers to
questions or solutions to problems, two will be
of particular interest to us in this class

1. Using reasoning (thinking) to find the answer to
   the problem
2. Gathering physical evidence to find the answer

The relationship between philosophy and science
is in many respects defined by these two methods
of problem solving and how they are judged.
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Inkshedding

• Individually, write for several minutes on the
  given topic.
• Place everyones writing in a central pile.
• Grab a page and read it.
• Write your own responses below the other writing
  and responses on the page.
• Put it back in the pile and repeat with a new
  persons page.

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Writing?
Dont Panic!

• Spelling, grammar and writing style dont count.
• Your writing will not be criticized.
• This gives you a chance to write for an audience
  you know.
• This gives you a chance to get your thoughts out
  there.

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Inkshedding Topic Philosophy and Science
What are some ideas you have about science? What
are some ideas you have about philosophy Is there
a connection between science and philosophy?
You dont have to answer all (or even any) of the
questions. Use them to help you get started
writing.
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In a typical class you can expect
Some lecturing A group activity An inkshedding
activity
All of this is designed to get you thinking in
new ways- and to give you the opportunity to
acquire philosophical knowledge (about philosophy
of science) and philosophical skills.
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See you next week!

• Any questions?