This course covers methods for understanding and evaluating reasoning, arguments and inferences, of the sort found in daily life, political speeches, academic writing and beyond. We address such questions as: What is the structure of an argument? What considerations are relevant for determining its strength and cogency? What sorts of appeals to quantitative and scientific data are appropriate, and what sorts aren't? How can we understand and overcome cognitive biases?

This course covers methods for understanding and evaluating reasoning, arguments and inferences, of the sort found in daily life, political speeches, academic writing and beyond. We address such questions as: What is the structure of an argument? What considerations are relevant for determining its strength and cogency? What sorts of appeals to quantitative and scientific data are appropriate, and what sorts aren't? How can we understand and overcome cognitive biases?

This course covers methods for understanding and evaluating reasoning, arguments and inferences, of the sort found in daily life, political speeches, academic writing and beyond. We address such questions as: What is the structure of an argument? What considerations are relevant for determining its strength and cogency? What sorts of appeals to quantitative and scientific data are appropriate, and what sorts aren't? How can we understand and overcome cognitive biases?

In this class, we will engage with the issues of population growth and resource use, biodiversity loss and sustainability, non-human animal welfare, environmental justice, and global climate change.

This is a seminar on the metaphysics of free will. In recent years there has been a renewed interest in the idea that agent causation plays a crucial role in solving the problem of freedom and determinism, and some writers have been exploring the possibility of combining agent causation with compatibilism. In this course we will examine some of the recent literature on these and related topics.

Not available at this time

What is rationality? We will be addressing this question by closely reading two (relatively) new books on the topic: John Broome's "Rationality Through Reasoning" and Benjamin Kiesewetter's "The Normativity of Rationality". Among the many questions we will consider and discuss are: what are normativity, rationality, and reasoning? Ought we to be rational and if so, why? Is there, and if so what is, the difference between theoretical and practical reasoning? What are reasons and what is the connection between reasons and rationality?

A survey of selected topics in contemporary analytic philosophy of language, including meaning, reference, naming, truth, speech acts, propositional attitudes, translation, vagueness and the nature of linguistic representation.

See Department Website for Description.

This class will provide an introduction of ethics, and its application to various issues in medicine, health care, and the use of pharmaceuticals. Topics may include: abortion, euthanasia, medical paternalism, medical experimentation, access to drugs, access to medical procedures, and the allocation of medical resources. (Gen. Ed. AT)