This course will begin with a description of the motion of particles and introduce Newton’s dynamical laws and a number of important force laws. We will apply these laws to a wide range of problems to gain a better understanding of the laws and to demonstrate the generality of the framework. The important concepts of work, mechanical energy, and linear and angular momentum will be introduced and the unifying idea of conservation laws will be discussed. Additional topics may include the study of mechanical waves, fluid mechanics and rotational dynamics.

This course will begin with a description of the motion of particles and introduce Newton’s dynamical laws and a number of important force laws. We will apply these laws to a wide range of problems to gain a better understanding of the laws and to demonstrate the generality of the framework. The important concepts of work, mechanical energy, and linear and angular momentum will be introduced and the unifying idea of conservation laws will be discussed. Additional topics may include the study of mechanical waves, fluid mechanics and rotational dynamics.

This course will begin with a description of the motion of particles and introduce Newton’s dynamical laws and a number of important force laws. We will apply these laws to a wide range of problems to gain a better understanding of the laws and to demonstrate the generality of the framework. The important concepts of work, mechanical energy, and linear and angular momentum will be introduced and the unifying idea of conservation laws will be discussed. Additional topics may include the study of mechanical waves, fluid mechanics and rotational dynamics.

We will develop the concept of energy from a Physics perspective. We will introduce the various forms that energy can take and discuss the mechanisms by which it can be generated, transmitted, and transformed. The law of conservation of energy will be introduced both as a useful tool, and as an example of a fundamental physical law. The environmental and financial costs and benefits of various methods of energy generation and consumption will be discussed. Demonstrations and hands-on laboratory experiences will be an integral part of the course.

Required of candidates for Honors in Philosophy. Directed research culminating in a substantial essay on a topic chosen by the student and approved by the Department.

Open to seniors with consent of the Department. Fall semester. The Department.

How to handle overenrollment: null

Students who enroll in this course will likely encounter and be expected to engage in the following intellectual skills, modes of learning, and assessment: Emphasis on written work, readings, independent research, oral presentations, and group work.

The Senior Seminar is the capstone course in the Philosophy major and is taken by all seniors in the fall of their senior year. It serves as the comprehensive requirement for the major. The Seminar offers seniors the opportunity to do advanced original research in philosophy. During the course of the semester, students will fine-tune and develop their initial research proposals into detailed research plans.

Immanuel Kant's Critique of Pure Reason (1781) is arguably the most challenging work of modern philosophy, but it is worth the challenge. In the Critique, Kant addresses themes that cover the full range of human experience: the capacity of the mind to know the world; the nature of space and time; whether free will is possible; the relation between appearance and reality; whether science is compatible with religion; and much more. Holding these topics

In his posthumously published masterpiece, Philosophical Investigations (1953), Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889-1951) asked himself “What is your aim in philosophy?” and he answered: “To show the fly the way out of the fly-bottle.”  But who is the fly?  What is the fly-bottle?  Why does the fly need to be shown a way out?  And what is the way out?

This is a course on epistemology, the branch of philosophy concerned with knowledge. We humans are in the business of believing, knowing, justifying, and rationalizing. Our capacities for acquiring, sharing, and participating in the production of knowledge bear significantly on our flourishing. In this course we will investigate the relationship between core epistemic concepts, including knowledge, belief, justification, and truth. Is knowledge more valuable than mere true belief? Why? What is the nature of epistemic justification? How are evidence, belief, and rationality related?

States are made up of individuals. Yet states have powers that no individuals have. They collect taxes, put us in jail, draft us into the army, and tell us what we can and cannot own. In this course, an introduction to Western political philosophy, we seek to understand what, if anything, could justify the state in wielding such extraordinary power over us. We will pursue questions like: Why should I obey the law? Should the state tax the rich and give to the poor?
Does the state promote freedom, or threaten it? Readings will include works by Hobbes, Locke,