HIST/ PHIL 3328
History and Philosophy of Science and Medicine
Spring 2023
Instructor: Jonathan Tsou
Course Description: This course examines some central issues in history and philosophy of science and medicine. The first part of the class focuses on Thomas Kuhn’s Structure of Scientific Revolutions and the philosophical literature that followed Kuhn’s landmark work. Specific issues addressed in the course include the nature of scientific change, values and objectivity in science, scientific realism, and relativism. In addition to reading important historians and philosophers of science (e.g., Paul Feyerabend, Larry Laudan, Helen Longino, Ian Hacking), students will become acquainted with important revolutionary episodes in the history of science (i.e., the Copernican revolution, the chemical revolution, and the transition from Newtonian mechanics to Einsteinian relativistic physics). The latter part of the course examines central issues in the philosophy of medicine. Issues addressed include the nature of health and disease, medical evidence, and the objectivity of medicine.
Course Texts:
Thomas S. Kuhn ([1962] 2012). The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, 4th edition. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. (required)
Stegenga, Jacob (2013). To Care and Cure: Introduction to Philosophy of Medicine. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. (required)
Supplementary readings: PDF packet (provided)
Course Evaluation:
1) Participation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30%
2) Assignment 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25%
3) Assignment 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25%
4) Final Exam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20%
Participation includes attendance (20%) and classroom participation (10%). For the assignments, students will be prompted to answer specific questions about the readings. The final exam will be multiple-choice and cover materials from weeks 10-16.
Course Schedule:
* SSR = Thomas S. Kuhn, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions
* C&C = Jacob Stegenga, Care and Cure
1. Introduction/ What is Science?
§ [Tues]: no readings
§ [Thurs]: SSR, ch. 1 (A Role for History)
2. Normal Science and Paradigms
§ [Tues]: SSR, ch. 2 (The Route to Normal Science)
§ [Thurs]: SSR, ch. 3 (The Nature of Normal Science) and ch. 4 (Normal Science as Puzzle Solving)
3. Anomalies and Crisis
§ [Tues]: SSR, ch. 5 (The Priority of Paradigms)
§ [Thurs]: SSR, ch. 6 (Anomaly and the Emergence of Scientific Discoveries) and ch. 7 (Crisis and the Emergence of Scientific Theories)
4. Scientific Revolutions
§ [Tues]: SSR, ch. 8 (The Response to Crisis)
§ [Thurs]: SSR, ch. 9 (The Nature and Necessity of Scientific Revolutions)
5. Incommensurability
§ [Tues]: SSR, ch. 10 (Revolutions as Changes of World View)
§ [Thurs]: SSR, ch. 11 (The Invisibility of Revolutions)
*** Assignment 1 due in class ***
6. Scientific Progress
§ [Tues]: SSR, ch. 12 (The Resolution of Revolutions) and ch. 13 (Progress through Revolutions)
§ [Thurs]: no class
7. Criticisms of Structure
§ [Tue]: Dudley Shapere, “The Structure of Scientific Revolutions” (Reading Packet)
§ [Thurs]: SSR, postscript, sections 5-6
8. Values, Objectivity, and Rationality
¨ [Tues]: Thomas S. Kuhn “Objectivity, Value Judgment, and Theory Choice” (Reading Packet)
¨ [Thurs]: Ernan McMullin, “Rationality and Paradigm Change in Science” (Reading Packet)
9. Spring Break: No Class
10. Pluralism and Scientific Objectivity
§ [Tues]: Helen Longino, “Values and Objectivity” (Reading Packet)
*** Assignment 2 due in class ***
§ [Thurs]: Paul Feyerabend, “How to be a Good Empiricist” (Reading Packet)
11. Realism and Anti-Realism
§ [Tues]: Bas van Fraassen, “Arguments Concerning Scientific Realism” (Reading Packet)
§ [Thurs]: Larry Laudan, “A Confutation of Convergent Realism” (Reading Packet)
12. Alternative Perspectives on Realism
§ [Tues]: Ian Hacking, “Experimentation and Scientific Realism” (Reading Packet)
§ [Thurs]: Arthur Fine, “The Natural Ontological Attitude” (Reading Packet)
13. Philosophy of Medicine: Health
§ [Tues]: C&C, ch. 1 (Health)
§ [Thurs]: no class
14. Philosophy of Medicine: Disease and Kinds
§ [Tues]: C&C, ch. 2 (Disease)
§ [Thurs]: C&C, ch. 4 (Causation and Kinds)
15. Philosophy of Medicine: Evidence and Objectivity
§ [Tues]: C&C, ch. 7 (Evidence in Medicine)
§ [Thurs]: C&C, ch. 8 (Objectivity and the Social Structure of Science)
16. Philosophy of Medicine: Skepticism about Medical Effectiveness
§ [Tues]: C&C, ch. 10 (Effectiveness, Skepticism, and Alternatives)
§ [Thurs]: review for final exam
Exam week (TBA) *** Final exam (covers materials from week 10-16) ***
Grading Scale
Letter Grade Range
A+ 95-100
A 90-94
A- 86-89
B+ 82-85
B 78-81
B- 74-77
C+ 70-73
C 66-69
C- 62-65
D+ 58-61
D 54-57
D- 50-53
F 0-49
Academic Integrity and Dishonesty
The value of this course depends on each student doing his or her own work. Academic dishonesty undermines individual learning and is unfair to the other students in class. Academic dishonesty in any form—including plagiarism, collusion, cheating, and misrepresentation—will not be tolerated and will lead to failure in the course and being reported to the Dead of Students. For information on academic dishonesty, see UTD’s Academic Integrity and Academic Dishonesty pages. Students are expected to abide by UTD’s Student Code of Conduct and the Comet Creed: “As a Comet, I pledge honesty, integrity, and service in all that I do.”
Class Attendance and Participation
Students are expected to attend class regularly and be prepared to discuss the course materials. Students who fail to participate in class regularly are inviting scholastic difficulty. A portion of the grade for this course is directly tied to your attendance and participation. It also includes engaging in group or other activities during class that solicit your feedback on materials covered in the lectures.
Classroom Conduct
During class, please turn off your phones, and do not send text messages, surf the internet, or check email. During classroom discussions, please be courteous and respectful towards your peers and instructor.
Disability
It is the policy and practice of UTD to make reasonable accommodations for students with properly documented disabilities. However, written notification from the Office of Student Accessibility (OSA) is required. If you are eligible to receive an accommodation and would like to request it for this course, please discuss it with me and allow one week advance notice. Students who have questions about receiving accommodations, or those who have, or think they may have, a disability (mobility, sensory, health, psychological, learning, etc.) are invited to contact OSA for a confidential discussion. OSA is located in the Student Administration Building, AD 2.224. They can be reached by phone at 972-883-2098, or by email at studentaccess@utdallas.edu.
Academic Support Resources
If you require academic support, please see the University’s Student Services and Support and Student Success Center pages.
The descriptions and timelines contained in this syllabus are subject to change at the discretion of the Professor.