This course explores fundamental topics within philosophy of science. It aims at providing a critical approach to the scientific method that will be accessible to undergraduate students from both the humanities and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) disciplines. Its goal is to familiarize students with problems and controversies within the practice of science, provide a clear understanding of its limits and allow future scientists to develop a balanced understanding of their disciplines.

Normally we take scientific knowledge to amount to indubitable knowledge, but can this popular view of science withstand philosophical reflection? Specifically, does scientific knowledge amount to proven knowledge and if not how is scientific knowledge justified? Does science follow the inductive method or does it rely on what Popper called ‘falsificationism’? How can we tell scientific and pseudo-scientific theories apart? For example, what are the reasons for preferring evolutionary biology over creationism? Moreover, is scientific progress cumulative and continuous (where each new theory adds to the existing body of scientific knowledge) or is it interrupted and revolutionary? Is scientific knowledge absolute or relativistic, and can we be realists about the claims science makes? Finally, what is the relation between scientific theories and scientific models?

No prior knowledge of science is required, but readings will sometimes engage with scientific work.

• demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the main problems in the philosophy of science.

The module will be delivered through weekly lectures and discussion sessions.

The module will be taught using a set text and other readings.

Timetabled sessions will be supplemented with written material in the form of a detailed summary of the content of the sessions and questions and/or instructions for discussion.  This supplementary material will be provided in the form of printed handouts and in the form of material on Learning Central.

Students will practise and develop the following skills:

Intellectual skills:

• the ability to appraise and assess arguments
• the ability to reach conclusions about the strengths and weaknesses of arguments and to justify these conclusions with sound reasoning
• the ability to form a consistent and thoughtful position about questions raised in the module

Discipline specific skills:

• the ability to analyse and construct philosophical arguments
• the ability to deploy appropriate philosophical vocabulary
• the ability to use appropriately and independently a variety of textual sources

Employability Skills:

Although the point of the module is to do philosophy, many of the skills you’ll be developing are also highly valued by graduate employers. These include:

• Critical Thinking: e.g. the ability to understand, structure and critically evaluate the key points and arguments made in written texts and discussions––achieved through e.g. reading, small group activities in lectures and seminars, plenary discussions in seminars, reflecting on lecture materials, essay and exam preparation and writing.
• Communication: the ability to formulate and articulate your critical thinking, both orally and on paper, in ways that others can grasp and engage with––achieved through e.g. small group work in seminars, seminar discussions, essay/exam writing.
• Organisation: the ability to organise and coordinate workloads––achieved through balancing e.g. reading, seminar preparation, essay/exam preparation.
• Working with others: e.g. co-constructing ideas, responding sensitively to others––achieved through e.g. small group work in seminars, group presentations.

The module will be assessed by take-home assessment and one essay of 2,000 words.

On week 7, students are encouraged to submit an outline of their essay as formative assessment. Students will have the opportunity to discuss their essays with the course leader after making an appointment during normal office hours.

This module is assessed according to the Marking Criteria set out in the Philosophy Course Guide. There are otherwise no academic or competence standards, which limit the availability of adjustments or alternative assessments for students with disabilities.

The textbook for this course is Chalmers, A. F. (2013). What is this thing called science?. Hackett Publishfundamental ing.

1. Introduction: What is knowledge? This introductory lecture will provide all the requisite terms from epistemology (theory of knowledge) and will look into the theory-ladenness of observation. 

• Primary Readings: Chs. 1 & 2 from the textbook

• Additional Reading: Theory and Observation in Science (Stanford Encyclopaedia of Philosophy): https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/science-theory-observation/

1. The problem of induction: Next, a crucial problem in philosophy and the beginning of modern philosophy of science: Hume’s problem of the justification of inductive inferences.

• Primary Reading: Ch. 4 from textbook

• Additional Reading: Sections 1 & 2 from Greco, J. (1999). Agent reliabilism. Noûs, 33(s13), 273-296. (Available at jstor)

1. Falsificationism: This week looks at Karl Popper’s classic theory of Falsificationism as a deductive method for science—did Popper show that science can operate without induction?

• Primary Readings: Ch. 5 from textbook & Ch. 6 (‘Confirmation in the falsificationist account of science’ & ‘Boldness, novelty and background knowledge’) & Ch. 7 (‘Problems stemming from the logical situation’ & Falsificationism inadequate on historical grounds’)

• Additional reading: Karl Popper: Philosophy of Science (Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy)

1. Scientific Paradigms and Revolutions: This week explores a prominent alternative to inductivism and falsificationism, namely Thomas Kuhn’s famous ‘paradigm’ conception of scientific theory change.

• Primary Reading: Ch. 8 from textbook

• Additional Reading: (1) Kuhn, T (1962). The Structure of Scientific revolutions. Chicago University Press. Ch. X (to be made available on Learning Cebtral). & (2) Thomas S. Kuhn (Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy)

1. Methodology of Scientific Research Programmes: In this lecture we will first go through Imre Lakatos’ most serious objections to Kuhn’s conception of the scientific progress, and next, we will turn to Lakatos’ alternative proposal, namely his Methodology of Scientific Research Programmes.

• Primary Readings: Ch. 6 (‘Relative rather than absolute degrees of falsifiability’ & ‘Increasing falsifiability and ad hoc modifications’) & Ch. 9.

• Additional Reading: Lakatos, I. (1972). “Falsification and the Methodology of Scientific Research Programmes”.

1. Epistemological Anarchism: The attempt to capture rules that could always and in all situations govern the scientific process has been seriously undermined by Paul Feyerabend, in his book Against Method: Towards an Anarchistic Theory of Knowledge.

• Primary Readings: Ch. 10 from the textbook

• Additional Reading: From Feyerabend, P. (1978). Science in a Free Society. Verso: Part 1: Chs. 1, 2, 4 & (if possible) 7.

1. Scientific Realism and Anti-Realism: This lecture will focus on one of the central debates in contemporary philosophy of science, that between scientific realists and anti-realists.

• Primary Reading: Ch. 15 from the textbook

• Additional Reading: van Fraasen, B. (1980). “Arguments Concerning Scientific Realism”.

1. The Success of Science: This lecture will consider some of the arguments put forward by scientific realists, including the influential 'success of science' argument according to which scientific realism provides the best explanation for the success of science, and some anti-realist comebacks. 

• Primary Reading: Ch. 15 from the textbook

• Additional Reading: Brwon, J. R (1985). Explaining the Success of Science.

1. Scientific Models: In this lecture we will survey a central debate in contemporary philosophy of science about the role of scientific models in representing target systems. What is a scientific model? How does it represent the phenomena under study?

• Primary Reading: Morgan, M. S., & Morrison, M. (Eds.). (1999). Models as mediators: Perspectives on natural and social science (Vol. 52). Cambridge University Press: Chapters 2 and 7.

• Additional Reading: Models (Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy):

A full module reading list will be made available to students at the beginning of the semester.

A full module reading list will be made available to students at the beginning of the semester.