PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE
(PHIL 430, Sec. 1001)
    Reading Assignments

    (The readings from Theory and Reality by Peter Godfrey-Smith and The Structure of Scientific Revolutions by Thomas Kuhn are listed by author and chapter number(s). Readings from The Philosophy of Science, edited by David Papineau, are listed by article author and title, followed by "PoS:" and page numbers, in parentheses. Online readings are listed by author and title and labled "online". They are either available through WebCampus-Canvas, under the side-menu Modules link, or they are linked here directly.)

  • For Jan. 23: Read Hempel, Chapter 1 (online). Then read "The Fixation of Belief" and "How to Make Our Ideas Clear" by Peirce (online).
  • For Jan. 25: Read Hempel, Chapter 2 (online). Then read Godfrey-Smith, Chapters 1 and 2 (pp. 1-40).
  • For Jan. 30: Re-read Hempel, Chapter 2, then read Chapter 3 (online). Next, read Godfrey-Smith, Chapter 2 (pp. 40-52) and Chapter 3 (pp. 53-66).
  • For Feb. 1: Read Hempel, Chapter 4 (online).
  • For Feb. 6: Read Goodman, "The New Riddle of Induction" (online) and Godfrey-Smith, Chapter 3 (pp. 67-76). Then read Popper, "Scientific Method" (Essay 9), "Falsificationism versus Conventionalism" (Essay 10), and "The Empirical Basis" (Essay 11) from Popper Selections (pp. 133-161) (online).
  • For Feb. 8: Read Popper, "The Problem of Demarcation" (Essay 8) and "The Aim of Science" (Essay 12) from Popper Selections (pp. 118-130 and 162-170) (online).
  • For Feb. 13: Re-read the Popper. Then read Godfrey-Smith, Chapter 4.1-4.4 (pp. 77-91).
  • For Feb. 15: Read Putnam, "The 'Corroboration' of Theories" (online). Then read Godfrey-Smith, Chapter 4.5-4.6 (pp. 91-100).
  • For Feb. 20: No class for Presidents Day!
  • For Feb. 22: Read Godfrey-Smith, Chapter 12. Then read Hempel, Chapter 5.
  • For Feb. 27: Re-read Godfrey-Smith, Chapter 12 and Hempel, Chapter 5. Then read Hempel, Chapter 6. Also, take a look at the topics for, and get started on, the First Paper, which will be due via Turnitin.com in the Assignments listing on the WebCampus page for the course by midnight on Saturday 3/11. Make sure you are clear on my Paper Requirements and Policies, and check out my Numbered Comments Sheet to see what sorts of writing glitches you should work to avoid as well. Do not use any outside sources in writing your paper! Do not plagiarize. Familiarize yourself with the Philosophy Department's Guidelines Regarding Plagiarism for accounts of what constitutes plagiarism.
  • For Mar. 1: Re-read Hempel, Chapters 5 and 6.
  • For Mar. 6: Read Godfrey-Smith, Chapter 11. Then read Hempel, Chapters 6 (again) and 7.
  • For Mar. 8: Read Hempel, Chapter 8. Then read pp. vii-xxv of Ian Hacking's "Introductory Essay," (through the Section on Paradigms) in Kuhn, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions.
  • For Mar. 12: Submit your First Paper via Turnitin.com in the Assignments listing on the WebCampus-Canvas page for the course before midnight.
  • For Mar. 20: Read Kuhn's Preface in The Structure of Scientific Revolutions and Chapters I-V (pp. xxxix-51).
  • For Mar. 22: Read Kuhn, Chapter VI-VII (pp. 52-76), then read Godfrey-Smith, Chapter 5.
  • For Mar. 27: Catch up on the Kuhn readings through Chapter VII (p. 76) and on Godfrey-Smith, Chapter 5.
  • For Mar. 29: Read pp. xxvi-xxxiii (through the Section on Incommensurability) of Hacking's "Introductory Essay". Then read Kuhn, Chapters VIII-X (pp. 77-134). Finally, read Godfrey-Smith, Ch. 9 (pp. 203-209).
  • For Apr. 3: Read the rest of Hacking's "Introductory Essay" and Kuhn, Chapters XI-XIII, and "Postscript-1969" (135-208).
  • For Apr. 5: Read Lakatos, from "Falsification and the Methodology of Scientific Research Programs" (online). Then read Godfrey-Smith, Chapter 6. [The longer Lakatos piece is an optional reading for anyone interested.]
  • For Apr. 10: Read van Fraassen, "Arguments Concerning Scientific Realism," pp. 6-26, 30(very bottom)-40 from The Scientific Image (online), and "To Save the Phenomena" (PoS 82-92).
  • For Apr. 12: Read Godfrey-Smith, Chapter 10. Then read Laudan, "A Confutation of Convergent Realism" (PoS 107-138).
  • For Apr. 17: Re-read the Laudan. Check out the topics for the Second Paper (due via Turnitin.com on WebCampus before midnight on Sat. 4/29). Again, make sure you are clear on my Paper Requirements and Policies. Do not use any outside sources in writing your paper! Do not plagiarize. Familiarize yourself with the Philosophy Department's Guidelines Regarding Plagiarism for accounts of what constitutes plagiarism.
  • For Apr. 19: Read Boyd, "On the Current Status of the Issue of Scientific Realism," pp. 45-72 (online).
  • For Apr. 24: Read Fine, "The Natural Ontological Attitude" (PoS 21-44) and finish Boyd, "On the Current Status of the Issue of Scientific Realism," pp. 72-90. Then read Fine, "And Not Anti-Realism Either" (online).
  • For Apr. 26: Read Musgrave, "NOA's Ark--Fine for Realism" (PoS 45-60).
  • For Apr. 30: Sunday! Submit your Second Paper to Turnitin.com via the link in the Assignment posting on WebCampus/Canvas before midnight. [Note the new, later due date!]
  • For May 1: Read Godfrey-Smith, Ch. 13. Then (re-)read Musgrave, "NOA's Ark--Fine for Realism" (PoS 45-60).
  • For May 3: Read Longino, "Introduction: Good Science, Bad Science" from Science as Social Knowledge (online). Then read Stemwedel, "The Objectivity Thing (or, Why Science is a Team Sport)" (online).
  • For May 10: Final Exam! 10:10am-12:10pm. The exam will be given online on WebCampus/Canvas during the scheduled exam time for our class. To help with your studying, check out this Topics List.
Last updated May 4, 2023

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This document was created on January 15, 2023.