PHL304 Philosophy of Science (8)
Abstract
This subject will examine classic philosophical debates about the nature of science. What is science and how does it differ from non-science and pseudoscience? Is there a distinctive scientific method? Does applying the scientific method let us find out about reality? What is the methodological importance of scientific experimentation? Are the social sciences a genuine part of science? Are interpretive approaches to understanding people’s behaviour, such as psychoanalysis, scientific? |
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+ Subject Availability Modes and Location
Session 1 | Distance | Wagga Wagga Campus |
Continuing students should consult the SAL for current offering details: PHL304
Where differences exist between the Handbook and the SAL, the SAL should be taken as containing the correct subject offering details.
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Subject informationDuration | Grading System | School: |
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One session | HD/FL | School of Humanities and Social Sciences |
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Learning OutcomesUpon successful completion of this subject, students should:
Know, in broad outline, the course of the Twentieth Century philosophical debates about scientific knowledge. Have a working knowledge of particular issues in the philosophy of science. Be familiar with the work of at least one major philosopher of science. |
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SyllabusThe subject will cover the following topics:
- What science is
- How is science different from non-science and pseudoscience?
- The method of inductivism, scientific observations and facts
- Popper’s method of falsificationism
- Scientific paradigms and scientific revolutions: Kuhn and his critics
- Scientific realism, anti-realism and experimentation
- Are the social science scientific?
- Is psychoanalysis scientific?
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The information contained in the 2016 CSU Handbook was accurate at the date of publication: 06 September 2016. The University reserves the right to vary the information at any time without notice.