Readings

Thursday, October 1

: (no reading, ﬁrst class). (Lecture on YouTube.)

Part I: Carnap/Goodman/Quine

Tuesday, October 6

: Carnap, Aufbau, Preface to 1st Edition (pp. xv–xviii); §§[1]The symbol § means “section.” §§ means “sections.”1–5 (pp. 5–10); §§17–25 (pp. 31–43). I’ve made this ﬁrst reading available here. (Lecture on YouTube.)

Thursday, October 8

: Carnap, Aufbau, §§26–41 (pp. 47–70); §§46–60 (pp. 78–97). (Lecture on YouTube.)

Tuesday, October 13

: Carnap, Aufbau, §67 (pp. 107–9); §§95–6 (pp. 152–4); §§98–103 (pp. 156–63); §§125–8 (pp. 194–9); §157 (p. 246); §§160–61 (pp. 254–7); §§165–9 (pp. 263–72). (Lecture on YouTube.)

Thursday, October 15

: Carnap, Aufbau, §§175–83 (pp. 281-98). (Lecture on YouTube.)

Tuesday, October 20

: Carnap, The Unity of Science, §§1–3 and 6; Neurath, “Protocol Sentences”; Carnap, “On Protocol Sentences.” (Lecture on YouTube.)

Thursday, October 22

: Carnap, “The Methodological Character of Theoretical Concepts,” §§1-6, beginning of §7 (through the paragraph that ends on top of p. 54), and §§8–10; Putnam, “What Theories Are Not.” (Lecture on YouTube.)

Tuesday, October 27

: Goodman, Fact, Fiction, and Forecast, ch. 2 (pp. 31–58). (Lecture on YouTube.)

Thursday, October 29

: Goodman, Fact, Fiction, and Forecast, ch. 3 and beginning of ch. 4 (pp. 59–99). (Lecture on YouTube.)

Tuesday, November 3

: Quine, “Epistemology Naturalized.” (Lecture on YouTube.)

Part II: Popper/Kuhn

Thursday, November 5

: Popper, LSD, ch. 1 and 2 (pp. 3–34). (Lecture on YouTube.)

Tuesday, November 10

: Popper, LSD ch. 3 (pp. 37–56). (Lecture on YouTube.)

Thursday, November 12

: Popper, LSD, ch. 4 (pp. 57–73) (and Midterm assignment — exam or paper — due). (Lecture on YouTube.)

Tuesday, November 17

: Popper, LSD, ch. 5 (pp. 74–94). (Lecture on YouTube.)

Thursday, November 19

: Popper, LSD, ch. 10 beginning and §79 (pp. 248–52); §82 (pp. 264–7); §84 through end (including Addendum), pp. 273–82. (Lecture on YouTube.)

Tuesday, November 24

: Neurath, “Pseudorationalism of Falsiﬁcation”; Putnam “The ‘Corroboration’ of Theories”; Lakatos, “Popper on Demarcation and Induction,” through end of part I (pp. 241–52). (Lecture on YouTube.)

Thursday, November 26

: No class (Thanksgiving)

Tuesday, December 1

: Kuhn, SSR, ch. 1–5, pp. 1–51. (Lecture on YouTube.)

Thursday, December 3

: Kuhn, SSR, ch. 6–8, pp. 52–91. (Lecture on YouTube.)

Tuesday, December 8

: Kuhn, SSR, ch. 9–10, pp. 92–135. (Lecture on YouTube.)

Thursday, December 10

: Kuhn, SSR, ch. 11–13, pp. 136–73. (Lecture on YouTube.)

Wednesday, December 16

: Final assignment (exam or paper) due.