Philosophy 2330:
Science and Society
Spring, 2018

Professor Joel Velasco
Office: 265G (Eng/phil building)
Office Hours: T, W, TH 2-3:00 or by appointment

Class meets T/TH, 9:30-10:50 (in Phil 163)

All of the boilerplate information such as course policies and the grading scheme can be found on the syllabus. The readings for the course are below.

Syllabus

Required Books:

Religion and the Sciences of Origins: Historical and Contemporary Discussions by Kelly James Clark. Palgrave Macmillan, 2014.

What Makes us Moral?: Crossing the Boundaries of Biology by Neil Levy. One world publications, 2004.

Consilience: The Unity of Knowledge by Edward O. Wilson. Vintage Books, 1998.

All class assignments and any other readings will be found on this website. You should check this website reguarly for updates and bring copies of the assigned readings to class. All readings should be done before the date they are listed here. Come to class on that day prepared to discuss them.

This is a tentative schedule/reading list:

Week 1 -

Thur, 1/18
- Introduction
Extras

Week 2 -

Tue, 1/23
- Clark, Ch 1, Ch 2 pgs 9-22
- Godfrey-Smith, from Theory and Reality (Chapter 1)
Thu, 1/25
- Clark, finish Ch 2
- Russell, The Conflict of Science and Religion
- Gould, NOMA defined and defended
- Dawkins, You can't have it both ways: Irreconcilable differences?
Extras:
- Concepcion, How to read philosophy (the appendix especially)
- Atkins, The Limitlessness of Science
- Gould, Nonoverlapping Magisteria

Week 3 -

Tue, 1/30
- first short essay due (here is a sample written by me)
- Clark, Ch 3
- DeWitt, The Ptolemaic System (ch 13 from Worldviews)
Thu, 2/1
- Singham, The Copernican Myths
- DeWitt, The Copernican System (ch 14 from Worldviews)
Extras:
- Aaber, What every young person ought to know about naked-eye astronomy (ch 0 of Episodes from the Early History of Astronomy)
- Excerpts from Kuhn, The Copernican Revolution (the problem of the planets)
- Excerpts from Kuhn, The Copernican Revolution (Copernican astronomy - the sun)
- Some helpful animations of Ptolemy and Copernicus
- You tube video of retrograde motion

Week 4 -

Tue, 2/6
- Science Week - Guest speaker Barbara Hahn
- handout (including blog post linked to at the top)
Thu, 2/8
- Science Week - Joel speaking on "Science and Testability"

Peter Dear Science Week lecture - 6:00pm

Extras:
- Popper, Conjectures and Refutations (short version)
- Popper, Conjectures and Refutations (all of chapter 1)
- Kitcher, Believing where we cannot prove (ch 2 of Abusing Science)
- Ruse, Creation Science is not Science (pdf of all three)
- Laudan, Commentary: Science at the Bar: Causes for Concern
- Ruse, Response to the Commentary: Pro Judice
- Inherit the Wind movie (not all that historically accurate)
- PBS American Experience - Monkey Trial
- PBS Nova, Judgment Day: Intelligent Design on Trial
- PBS, The Revisionaries (about the Texas School board textbook fights)

Week 5 -

Tue, 2/13
- Clark Ch 4
- DeWitt, Galileo and the Evidence from the Telescope
- Lindberg, Galileo, the Church, and the Cosmos
Thu, 2/15
- Bellarmine, Letter to Foscarini
- Galileo, Letter to Grand Duchess Christina
Extras:
- PBS Nova documentary, Galileo's Battle for the Heavens
- Gingerich, Truth in Science: Proof, Persuasion, and the Galileo Affair
- Gingerich, The Galileo Affair
- McMullin, Galileo on Science and Scripture

Week 6 -

Tue, 2/20
- short essay due
- Clark Ch 5, 6
Thu, 2/22
- NO CLASS - JOEL OUT OF TOWN
Extras:
- Paley, from Natural Theology
- All of the Origin of Species
- Joel's second debate with Paul Nelson (of the Discovery Institute) about common ancestry
- Dobzhansky, Nothing in Biology makes sense except in the light of evolution
- Dilley, Nothing in Biology makes sense except in the light of Theology?

Week 7 -

Tue, 2/27
- Clark, Ch7
- Numbers, Scientific Creationism and Intelligent Design
Thu, 3/1
- Plantinga, When Faith and Reason Clash: Evolution and the Bible
Extras:
- Plantinga, Methodological Naturalism

Week 8 -

Tue, 3/6
- Worrall, Science Discredits Religion
- third short essay due
Thu, 3/8
- Mid-term in-class Exam BRING A BLUE BOOK (study guide)
Extras:

Spring Break - No Class on March 13, March 15

Week 9 -

Tue, 3/20
- Clark, Ch 9
Thu, 3/22
- Clark, Ch 10
Extras:

Week 10 -

Tue, 3/27
- Levy, The Moral Consequences of Darwinism, ch1 of What Makes us Moral?
Thu, 3/29
- Levy, The Evolution of Morality, ch2 of What Makes us Moral?
Extras:
- Shermer, Toward a Science of Morality, ch1 of The Moral Arc
- Levine and Bashford, Eugenics and the Modern World
- Rosenberg, Morality: The Bad News and The Good News: Nice Nihilism, chs 5+6 of The Atheist's Guide to Reality
- Sober, Prospects for an Evolutionary Ethics

Week 11 -

Tue, 4/3
- short essay due
- Levy, ch2 (continued)
Thu, 4/5
- Levy, ch3
Extras:

Week 12 -

Tue, 4/10
- Levy, Ch3 (continued)
- Levy, Ch4
Thu, 4/12
- Levy, Ch4 (continued)
Extras:
- Thornhill, R. and Palmer, C., Intro and Conclusion of A Natural History of Rape [the underlining is not mine]
- Bering, Jesse, Darwin's Rape Whistle
- Lloyd, E. Science Gone Astray: Evolution and Rape
- Vickers, A. L. and Kitcher, P., Pop Sociobiology Reborn: The Evolutionary Psychology of Sex and Violence
- Coyne (and Myers) response to Bering

Week 13 -

Tue, 4/17
- short essay due
- Levy, Ch5
Thu, 4/19
- Levy, Ch5 (continued)
Extras:
- Sober, Separating Nature and Nurture

Week 14 -

Tue, 4/24
- Consilience, ch 1-3
Thu, 4/26
- Consilience, ch 6 (the mind)
Extras:

Week 15 -

Tue, 5/1
- short essay due
- Consilience, ch 10
Thu, 5/3
- Consilience, ch 11
Extras:

Week 16 -

Tue, 5/8 (last day of class)
- Consilience, ch 12
Extras:

Final Exam scheduled Fri, May 11th 7:30-10:00 am
BRING A BLUE BOOK (Study Guide)