The Evolution of Scientific Thought (Spring 2008)

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Overview of the Pilot Curriculum General Education Requirement
Current Pilot Curriculum General Requirement Course Descriptions


This course fulfills Category II of the General Education Requirement.

Faculty:

Michael Weisberg
Philosophy, Faculty
433 LOGAN/6304
http://www.phil.upenn.edu/faculty/weisberg/
weisberg@phil.upenn.edu
898-0417

Meeting Times:

LEC PHIL 025 001 T & R 10:30 - 12:00
REC PHIL 025 201 F 11:00 - 12:00
REC PHIL 025 202 F 12:00 - 1:00


Course Description:


“The Evolution of Scientific Thought” is an introductory course in the history and philosophy of science. Its central focus is the development of the modern, scientific view of the world. Upon completing this course, students will have a better sense of the origin of such central scientific concepts as force, atom, evolution, species, and law of nature. In addition, they will gain an elementary understanding of key issues in the philosophy of science including the relationship between theory and evidence, the nature of scientific explanation, and the status of unobservable entities. Readings will be drawn from Aristotle, Descartes, Newton, Darwin, and a number of secondary sources. Although primarily a reading and writing oriented course, there will be several opportunities to engage first hand in the process of scientific discovery— in astronomy, evolutionary biology, chemistry, and modern physics.

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