Monday, April 6, 2015

Upcoming Fall/Summer 2015 Classes


Philosophy is Natural.  Philosophy is Good.
Not everybody studies it, but everybody should
Sign up for these great Fall 2015 courses!


Phil 313: Contemporary Philosophy
Dr. William Vaughan [TTh 12:15-1:30 pm]

Heidegger & Wittgenstein
This course will examine the two strongest movements of thought in the twentieth century, those of analytic and continental philosophy, which circle around two of the greatest philosophical geniuses of that century, Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889-1951) and Martin Heidegger (1889-1976). Analytic philosophy is primarily a British, German, and American movement in thought, focusing its attention on logical and linguistic analysis. Continental philosophy, for all of its difficulty, is perhaps best understood as a rebellion against the abstract thinking of the analytic movement. Join us for an exploration of the roots of contemporary thought.

Phil 330: Readings: War, Espionage, & Terror (Core Humanities)
Dr. Jeffrey Tiel [T 6:30-9:15 pm]

Spying did not die when the cold war ended. It metastasized. Its tentacles have reached into every area of our lives: our communications, our purchases, and our “private” medical information. But without spies, George Washington would have failed in the Revolutionary War. Nazi Germany, too, was defeated in large part due to an enormous counter-intelligence campaign waged by the Allies. So, how far can spies go? What are their prudential, ethical, and legal limits both within and without war? And in the wake of the ever-changing face of Islamic Jihadist Terror, have we come to the end of liberty? This Fall join us and take the plunge into the mysterious world of secrecy, terrorism, and warfare.


Phil/Chem 350: Science as a Cultural Force: The Tobacco Wars
Dr. William Vaughan & Dr. Jeffrey Weidenhamer [MW 3-4:30 pm]
May be taken for either a Core Humanities requirement OR a Core Natural Science requirement!

The golden age of tobacco consumption was in the 20’s and 30’s, fostered in part by World War I. It was not until the 1950’s that the growing body of medical data began to convince public health authorities that tobacco use posed one of the largest preventable health effects in human history. There thus arose an enormous cultural war regarding cigarettes and tobacco products. Does smoking in fact cause cancer, heart disease, and other health problems? Should nicotine be treated as a controlled substance? Are tobacco companies morally or financially responsible for the health effects of their products? Are the tobacco wars best understood as a multi-billion dollar industry that thrives on marketing a deadly product, or have various “politically correct” forces exaggerated the situation so as to extort tobacco companies for millions of their profits and erode people’s rights to enjoy tobacco products? The debate about tobacco provides an excellent case study for the examination of fundamental questions about the nature of science, and the role of science and ethics in public health contexts.



COMPLETE YOUR CORE with these offerings!

FALL 2015

Math/Logic:      Phil 205: Intro to Philosophy, Dr. Tiel
Humanities:      Phil 208: Thinkers in Dialogue, Dr. Mancha
          Phil 210: Phil. of Human Nature, Dr. Tiel
          Phil 215: Ethics, Dr. Hamilton or Dr. Mancha
          Phil 280D: Bioethics, Dr. Hamilton
Religion:          Phil 217: Thought & Belief, Dr. Mancha

SUMMER 2015

Humanities:    Phil 215: Ethics (Sum A), Dr. Mancha
        Phil 280H OL: Workplace Ethics (Sum B), Dr. Vaughan
        Phil 210 OL: Human Nature (Sum E), Dr. Tiel
Religion:         Phil 217 OL: Thought & Belief (Sum E), Dr. Tiel

It’s never too late to learn how to think.

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