Postgraduate Course: Advanced Topics in Philosophy of Science MSc (PHIL11121)

Course Outline
School	School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences	College	College of Humanities and Social Science
Credit level (Normal year taken)	SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate)	Availability	Not available to visiting students
SCQF Credits	20	ECTS Credits	10
Summary	The course, consisting of lectures and seminars, will be structured around three core topics in contemporary philosophy of science. Natural kinds, causation, and laws of nature are deeply interconnected metaphysical notions. Are there natural kinds carving nature at its joints? Is causation an objective feature of nature? And, to what extent do our laws of nature express causal dispositions, and are read off from natural kinds? In the first part of this course, we focus on natural kinds, and a series of epistemological, metaphysical and semantic issues surrounding them. In the second part, we turn to causation with an emphasis on causal republicanism, causal realism, Humeanism and causal perspectivalism. Finally, in part three, we explore laws of nature with a focus on dispositional essentialism, non-governing conception of laws, and lawlessness. Shared with undergraduate course Advanced Topics in Philosophy of Science (PHIL10050). Taught by Dr Michela Massimi Formative feedback available; - the opportunity to submit formative essay
Course description	Not entered

Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites		Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations		Other requirements	None

Course Delivery Information
Not being delivered

Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, students will have acquired good knowledge of the contemporary debate surrounding these three core areas in contemporary philosophy of science. They will also have improved their critical skills via essay writing and via informal discussions and oral presentations in the seminars.