136-105 Science, Philosophy and History

Credit Points

Coordinator

Semester

Contact

Subject Description

Students will deal with such vital philosophical issues as "Can Science prove a theory is true?", "What, if anything, is wrong with pseudo-science?" and historical and political issues as "Is it ever reasonable to not believe what scientists say?", "What should science's role in society be?" The readings are from the history, sociology and philosophy of science. Students completing this subject will better understand that Science is a remarkably complex and often beautiful result of a complex set of forces: conceptual and experimental but also economic, social and individual factors.

Assessment

One mini-paper per tutorial (totalling no more that 2000 words) and one major end of semester essay of about 2000 words.

Prescribed Texts

A collection of readings.

• Kuhn, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions.