Individual study of special topics, under regular supervision of a faculty member. Special permission is required.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Allais, Lucy
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

Individual study of special topics, under regular supervision of a faculty member. Special permission is required.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Pickard, Hanna
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

Individual study of special topics, under regular supervision of a faculty member. Special permission is required.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Gross, Steven
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

Individual study of special topics, under regular supervision of a faculty member. Special permission is required.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Moyar, Dean
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

Individual study of special topics, under regular supervision of a faculty member. Special permission is required.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Rynasiewicz, Robert Alan
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

Individual study of special topics, under regular supervision of a faculty member. Special permission is required.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Lebron, Christopher Joseph
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

Individual study of special topics, under regular supervision of a faculty member. Special permission is required.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Bok, Hilary
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

Individual study of special topics, under regular supervision of a faculty member. Special permission is required.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Bett, Richard
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

Individual study of special topics, under regular supervision of a faculty member. Special permission is required.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Williams, Michael
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

Individual study of special topics, under regular supervision of a faculty member. Special permission is required.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Bledin, Justin
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

Individual study of special topics, under regular supervision of a faculty member. Special permission is required.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Achinstein, Peter
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

Individual study of special topics, under regular supervision of a faculty member. Special permission is required.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Melamed, Yitzhak Yohanan
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

Individual study of special topics, under regular supervision of a faculty member. Special permission is required.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Taylor, Elanor Jane
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

Individual study of special topics, under regular supervision of a faculty member. Special permission is required.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Phillips, Ian B
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

Individual study of special topics, under regular supervision of a faculty member. Special permission is required.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Holguín, Ben
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

Individual study of special topics, under regular supervision of a faculty member. Special permission is required.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Ismael, Jenann T
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

Individual study of special topics, under regular supervision of a faculty member. Special permission is required.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Carroll, Sean Michael
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

Individual study of special topics, under regular supervision of a faculty member. Special permission is required.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Velleman, James David
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

Individual study of special topics, under regular supervision of a faculty member. Special permission is required.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Connolly, Patrick
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

Individual study of special topics, under regular supervision of a faculty member. Special permission is required.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Kraus, Katharina Teresa
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

Individual study of special topics, under regular supervision of a faculty member. Special permission is required.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Goodman, Jeremy
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

Individual study of special topics, under regular supervision of a faculty member. Special permission is required.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Green, E. J.
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

Individual study of special topics, under regular supervision of a faculty member. Special permission is required.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Wonderly, Monique Lisa
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

See departmental major adviser.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Allais, Lucy
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

See departmental major adviser.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Pickard, Hanna
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

See departmental major adviser.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Gross, Steven
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

See departmental major adviser.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Moyar, Dean
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

See departmental major adviser.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Rynasiewicz, Robert Alan
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

See departmental major adviser.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Lebron, Christopher Joseph
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

See departmental major adviser.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Bok, Hilary
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

See departmental major adviser.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Bett, Richard
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

See departmental major adviser.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Williams, Michael
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

See departmental major adviser.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Bledin, Justin
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

See departmental major adviser.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Achinstein, Peter
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

See departmental major adviser.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Melamed, Yitzhak Yohanan
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

See departmental major adviser.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Taylor, Elanor Jane
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

See departmental major adviser.

• Days/Times:
• Instructor: Goodman, Jeremy
• Room:  
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 5/5
• PosTag(s): n/a

Philosophy helps us form consistent beliefs. Science helps us learn about the world and our relationship to it. Philosophy of science, then, sits at the interface—helping us form consistent beliefs about the world and our relationship to it. How do we construct a narrative of (our) reality from scientific theories (i.e., the scientific image)? How do we conceptualize the worldly backers of scientific explanations, such as natural laws and causation? Philosophy of science also treats science itself as a subject of philosophical inquiry. What counts as science, and why is it considered a privileged source of knowledge? Are there shared methods across the sciences? Does science transcend—or reflect—social, political, and economic forces? Throughout this course, we will explore these questions by engaging with contemporary works in the metaphysics of science, social epistemology, and the philosophy of specific sciences—from physics to the social sciences.

• Days/Times: MW 11:00AM - 11:50AM, F 12:00PM - 12:50PM
• Instructor: Dulani, Saakshi
• Room: Hodson 213; Maryland 104
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 9/15
• PosTag(s): PHIL-LOGSCI, COGS-PHLMND, ARCH-RELATE, CES-TI

More than 500 federally-recognized Native tribes and many more who are not federally recognized live within the borders of the United States. Each of these communities has its own history, identity, traditions, relationship to the land, and story of survivance. This First-Year Seminar examines the views of Indigenous communities on topics such as truth, knowledge, identity and the self, causation, and ethics. It also investigates contemporary American Indian thought as it relates to colonialism and anti-colonialism, land, futurity, sovereignty, and resistance. Students will hear from guest lecturers working at the forefront of the discipline and enrich their learning through a trip to the Museum of the American Indian in Washington, DC.

• Days/Times: TTh 9:00AM - 10:15AM
• Instructor: Connolly, Patrick
• Room: Gilman 134
• Status: Waitlist Only
• Seats Available: 0/12
• PosTag(s): CES-LE

A survey of the earlier phase of Greek philosophy. Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle will be discussed, as well as two groups of thinkers who preceded them, usually known as the pre-Socratics and the Sophists.

• Days/Times: MW 10:00AM - 10:50AM, F 10:00AM - 10:50AM
• Instructor: Bett, Richard
• Room: Ames 218; Maryland 114
• Status: Waitlist Only
• Seats Available: 0/20
• PosTag(s): PHIL-ANCIEN

An introduction to philosophy through several central problems. This year’s topics are free will, death, time, and race.

• Days/Times: MW 1:30PM - 2:20PM, F 1:30PM - 2:20PM
• Instructor: Taylor, Elanor Jane
• Room: Gilman 132; Gilman 313
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 2/15
• PosTag(s): n/a

An introduction to philosophy through several central problems. This year’s topics are free will, death, time, and race.

• Days/Times: MW 1:30PM - 2:20PM, F 12:00PM - 12:50PM
• Instructor: Taylor, Elanor Jane
• Room: Gilman 132; Gilman 313
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 4/15
• PosTag(s): n/a

Philosophy helps us form consistent beliefs. Science helps us learn about the world and our relationship to it. Philosophy of science, then, sits at the interface—helping us form consistent beliefs about the world and our relationship to it. How do we construct a narrative of (our) reality from scientific theories (i.e., the scientific image)? How do we conceptualize the worldly backers of scientific explanations, such as natural laws and causation? Philosophy of science also treats science itself as a subject of philosophical inquiry. What counts as science, and why is it considered a privileged source of knowledge? Are there shared methods across the sciences? Does science transcend—or reflect—social, political, and economic forces? Throughout this course, we will explore these questions by engaging with contemporary works in the metaphysics of science, social epistemology, and the philosophy of specific sciences—from physics to the social sciences.

• Days/Times: MW 11:00AM - 11:50AM, F 11:00AM - 11:50AM
• Instructor: Dulani, Saakshi
• Room: Hodson 213; Hodson 203
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 2/15
• PosTag(s): PHIL-LOGSCI, COGS-PHLMND, ARCH-RELATE, CES-TI

Philosophy helps us form consistent beliefs. Science helps us learn about the world and our relationship to it. Philosophy of science, then, sits at the interface—helping us form consistent beliefs about the world and our relationship to it. How do we construct a narrative of (our) reality from scientific theories (i.e., the scientific image)? How do we conceptualize the worldly backers of scientific explanations, such as natural laws and causation? Philosophy of science also treats science itself as a subject of philosophical inquiry. What counts as science, and why is it considered a privileged source of knowledge? Are there shared methods across the sciences? Does science transcend—or reflect—social, political, and economic forces? Throughout this course, we will explore these questions by engaging with contemporary works in the metaphysics of science, social epistemology, and the philosophy of specific sciences—from physics to the social sciences.

• Days/Times: MW 11:00AM - 11:50AM, F 12:00PM - 12:50PM
• Instructor: Dulani, Saakshi
• Room: Hodson 213; Hodson 315
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 1/15
• PosTag(s): PHIL-LOGSCI, COGS-PHLMND, ARCH-RELATE, CES-TI

A survey of the earlier phase of Greek philosophy. Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle will be discussed, as well as two groups of thinkers who preceded them, usually known as the pre-Socratics and the Sophists.

• Days/Times: MW 10:00AM - 10:50AM, F 11:00AM - 11:50AM
• Instructor: Bett, Richard
• Room: Ames 218; Krieger 180
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 11/20
• PosTag(s): PHIL-ANCIEN

While stopping just short of the broadest philosophical question, “What is the meaning of life?”, some ethical theories start with a question almost as large: “What is the best way to live?” Others ask, more narrowly, “How must we treat other people, in the world that we share?” Still others examine the nature of moral requirement: when we say that doing or failing to do something would be immoral, or that something is morally required, what exactly are we saying? What is morality, that we should care about it? This course will examine various conflicting answers to these questions before utilizing them in answering a few narrower moral questions. Throughout, we will engage in the practice of philosophy: expositing, criticizing, and constructing arguments. Students will be asked to think through these issues in written assigments and through participation in lecture, sections, and working groups.

• Days/Times: MW 4:30PM - 5:20PM, F 4:30PM - 5:20PM
• Instructor: Hieronymi, Pamela Darlene
• Room: Gilman 50; Gilman 186
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 2/20
• PosTag(s): PHIL-ETHICS, CES-ELECT, AGRI-ELECT, COGS-PHLMND

An introduction to philosophy through several central problems. This year’s topics are free will, death, time, and race.

• Days/Times: MW 1:30PM - 2:20PM, F 12:00PM - 12:50PM
• Instructor: Taylor, Elanor Jane
• Room: Gilman 132; Shriver Hall 001
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 6/15
• PosTag(s): n/a

Philosophy helps us form consistent beliefs. Science helps us learn about the world and our relationship to it. Philosophy of science, then, sits at the interface—helping us form consistent beliefs about the world and our relationship to it. How do we construct a narrative of (our) reality from scientific theories (i.e., the scientific image)? How do we conceptualize the worldly backers of scientific explanations, such as natural laws and causation? Philosophy of science also treats science itself as a subject of philosophical inquiry. What counts as science, and why is it considered a privileged source of knowledge? Are there shared methods across the sciences? Does science transcend—or reflect—social, political, and economic forces? Throughout this course, we will explore these questions by engaging with contemporary works in the metaphysics of science, social epistemology, and the philosophy of specific sciences—from physics to the social sciences.

• Days/Times: MW 11:00AM - 11:50AM, F 11:00AM - 11:50AM
• Instructor: Dulani, Saakshi
• Room: Hodson 213; Maryland 202
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 1/15
• PosTag(s): PHIL-LOGSCI, COGS-PHLMND, ARCH-RELATE, CES-TI

An introduction to philosophy through several central problems. This year’s topics are free will, death, time, and race.

• Days/Times: MW 1:30PM - 2:20PM, F 1:30PM - 2:20PM
• Instructor: Taylor, Elanor Jane
• Room: Gilman 132; Bloomberg 276
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 6/15
• PosTag(s): n/a

This course begins by reviewing canonical texts in modern political philosophy beginning with Thomas Hobbes and John Locke and ends by exploring classic questions in contemporary debates in race, gender, and identity.

• Days/Times: MW 12:00PM - 12:50PM, F 1:30PM - 2:20PM
• Instructor: Lebron, Christopher Joseph
• Room: Ames 218; Krieger 307
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 6/20
• PosTag(s): PHIL-ETHICS, CES-GI, CES-RI, CES-LSO, INST-PT

Catastrophe Ethics explores the question, “how do you live a morally decent life in an era of massive, structural catastrophes?” Most of what we do contributes to harm and injustice as a result of climate change, ecological devastation, child labor and exploitation in the global supply chain, the spread of infectious diseases like Covid-19, animal welfare issues, and much more. And yet, as individuals with incredibly little power, most of us can’t make a difference to any of these problems no matter what we choose. So our actions seem to matter morally (Recycle! Boycott bad companies! Go vegan!), and yet also to matter not at all (You don’t make a difference!). In attempting to address this problem—the puzzle of individual responsibility amidst collective threats—this course takes students on a tour of both traditional moral philosophy, and newer, disruptive moral concepts. By the end of the semester, students will be provided with tools to think more clearly about living in our chaotic world and hopefully, to do better and feel better about the mark that they’re leaving on the planet and on society.

• Days/Times: F 1:30PM - 4:00PM
• Instructor: Rieder, Travis N
• Room: Gilman 55
• Status: Waitlist Only
• Seats Available: 0/23
• PosTag(s): PHIL-BIOETH, PHIL-ETHICS, CES-LC, MSCH-HUM

In this course, we will examine philosophical debates concerning the moral permissibility of developing, distributing, and/or using certain controversial technologies. Candidate technologies for consideration include, but are not limited to, nootropics (smart drugs), moral bioenhancement, so-called “ultraviolent” video games, memory-alteration technologies, the development of drugs that aim to create, sustain, or eliminate love, and AI intended to function as therapists, romantic interests, or interactive representations of deceased loved ones

• Days/Times: TTh 9:00AM - 10:15AM
• Instructor: Wonderly, Monique Lisa
• Room: Gilman 288
• Status: Waitlist Only
• Seats Available: 0/15
• PosTag(s): PHIL-ETHICS, PHIL-BIOETH

While stopping just short of the broadest philosophical question, “What is the meaning of life?”, some ethical theories start with a question almost as large: “What is the best way to live?” Others ask, more narrowly, “How must we treat other people, in the world that we share?” Still others examine the nature of moral requirement: when we say that doing or failing to do something would be immoral, or that something is morally required, what exactly are we saying? What is morality, that we should care about it? This course will examine various conflicting answers to these questions before utilizing them in answering a few narrower moral questions. Throughout, we will engage in the practice of philosophy: expositing, criticizing, and constructing arguments. Students will be asked to think through these issues in written assigments and through participation in lecture, sections, and working groups.

• Days/Times: MW 4:30PM - 5:20PM, F 3:00PM - 3:50PM
• Instructor: Hieronymi, Pamela Darlene
• Room: Gilman 50; Gilman 186
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 5/20
• PosTag(s): PHIL-ETHICS, CES-ELECT, AGRI-ELECT, COGS-PHLMND

The seminar will focus on Spinoza's philosophy of mind and pyschology (Ethics, Parts II-III) Topics to be discussed include: the nature of the mind; mind-body parallelism; imagination and temporality; the three kinds of cognition; the conatus doctrine; emotions. No previous knowledge will be assumed.

• Days/Times: M 4:30PM - 7:00PM
• Instructor: Melamed, Yitzhak Yohanan
• Room: Gilman 288
• Status: Waitlist Only
• Seats Available: 0/16
• PosTag(s): PHIL-MODERN

This course begins by reviewing canonical texts in modern political philosophy beginning with Thomas Hobbes and John Locke and ends by exploring classic questions in contemporary debates in race, gender, and identity.

• Days/Times: MW 12:00PM - 12:50PM, F 12:00PM - 12:50PM
• Instructor: Lebron, Christopher Joseph
• Room: Ames 218; Maryland 202
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 2/20
• PosTag(s): PHIL-ETHICS, CES-GI, CES-RI, CES-LSO, INST-PT

This course explores philosophical issues raised by developments in Artificial Intelligence. For example, can a machine be conscious? (What is consciousness?) Who is responsible for a bad decision made by AI? What light, if any, do developments in AI shed on age-old debates about nature vs. nurture?

• Days/Times: Th 1:30PM - 4:00PM
• Instructor: Gross, Steven
• Room: Bloomberg 139
• Status: Waitlist Only
• Seats Available: 0/15
• PosTag(s): PHIL-MIND, CES-TI, COGS-PHLMND

While stopping just short of the broadest philosophical question, “What is the meaning of life?”, some ethical theories start with a question almost as large: “What is the best way to live?” Others ask, more narrowly, “How must we treat other people, in the world that we share?” Still others examine the nature of moral requirement: when we say that doing or failing to do something would be immoral, or that something is morally required, what exactly are we saying? What is morality, that we should care about it? This course will examine various conflicting answers to these questions before utilizing them in answering a few narrower moral questions. Throughout, we will engage in the practice of philosophy: expositing, criticizing, and constructing arguments. Students will be asked to think through these issues in written assigments and through participation in lecture, sections, and working groups.

• Days/Times: MW 4:30PM - 5:20PM, F 4:30PM - 5:20PM
• Instructor: Hieronymi, Pamela Darlene
• Room: Gilman 50; Gilman 134
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 13/16
• PosTag(s): PHIL-ETHICS, CES-ELECT, AGRI-ELECT, COGS-PHLMND

In this course we will do a close reading of Locke's Essay along with Leibniz's New Essays, which is a point-by-point critique of the former. The aim of this course is to clarify the main differences between the two philosophers and how they relate to the two philosophical systems as a whole. Since Locke and Leibniz are widely regarded as champions of empiricism and rationalism respectively, this course will give the students a deep grasp of pre-Kantian European philosophy.

• Days/Times: M 1:30PM - 4:00PM
• Instructor: Connolly, Patrick; Dong, Hao
• Room: Gilman 288
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 6/15
• PosTag(s): PHIL-MODERN

While stopping just short of the broadest philosophical question, “What is the meaning of life?”, some ethical theories start with a question almost as large: “What is the best way to live?” Others ask, more narrowly, “How must we treat other people, in the world that we share?” Still others examine the nature of moral requirement: when we say that doing or failing to do something would be immoral, or that something is morally required, what exactly are we saying? What is morality, that we should care about it? This course will examine various conflicting answers to these questions before utilizing them in answering a few narrower moral questions. Throughout, we will engage in the practice of philosophy: expositing, criticizing, and constructing arguments. Students will be asked to think through these issues in written assigments and through participation in lecture, sections, and working groups.

• Days/Times: MW 4:30PM - 5:20PM, F 3:00PM - 3:50PM
• Instructor: Hieronymi, Pamela Darlene
• Room: Gilman 50; Krieger 307
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 13/20
• PosTag(s): PHIL-ETHICS, CES-ELECT, AGRI-ELECT, COGS-PHLMND

This course will consider philosophical topics in the foundations of physics, with an emphasis on cosmological issues. Entropy and the arrow of time -- why time has a direction, whether it can be explained in terms of entropy, and what role the arrow of time plays in causation and emergence. Anthropics and indexical uncertainty -- approaches to probability, reference classes, the cosmological multiverse, Boltzmann brains, simulation and doomsday arguments. Foundations of quantum mechanics -- the measurement problem, many-worlds, probability and structure, alternative approaches.

• Days/Times: TTh 12:00PM - 1:15PM
• Instructor: Carroll, Sean Michael
• Room: Ames 234
• Status: Waitlist Only
• Seats Available: 0/51
• PosTag(s): PHIL-LOGSCI, MSCH-HUM

Prometheus is Johns Hopkins' undergraduate philosophical society. The society organizes a conference and publishes a journal each year and more generally provides a community for philosophically-minded students. The Prometheus workshop facilitates this through open philosophical discussion; interaction with faculty, graduate students, and other members of the Philosophy Department; and other activities. For more information, please visit . Prerequisite: MUST have taken one philosophy course

• Days/Times: W 7:15PM - 8:05PM
• Instructor: Taylor, Elanor Jane
• Room: Gilman 288
• Status: Waitlist Only
• Seats Available: 0/25
• PosTag(s): n/a

This introductory course will explore the intersections between literary texts, scientific discoveries, and art. We will study Geometry, Calculus, Probability Theory, Philosophy, Cognitive Science, Physics, Medicine, and Ecology in Russian Literature. We will read novels, poems, and plays by Goethe, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Chekhov, Akhmatova, and Nabokov, among others, with relevant chapters from Hegel, Literature, and the Problem of Agency by Allen Speight; The Mathematical Mind of F. M. Dostoevsky: Imaginary Numbers, Non-Euclidean Geometry, and Infinity by Michael Marsh-Soloway; Russian Literature and Cognitive Science edited by Tom Dolack, “which applies the newest insights from cognitive psychology to the study of Russian literature;” Medical Storyworlds: Health, Illness, and Bodies in Russian and European Literature at the Turn of the Twentieth Century by Elena Fratto; Jeff Love’s studies on Tolstoy’s use of calculus for the development of his philosophy of history, “Tolstoy’s Integration Metaphor from War and Peace” by Stephen T. Ahearn as well as other scientific studies that engage with literature such as Yuri Manin’s Mathematics as Metaphor, Sarah Hart’s Once Upon a Prime: The Wondrous Connections Between Mathematics and Literature, and Carlo Rovelli’s Seven Brief Lessons in Physics. In addition to the reading materials, assignments will include expository writings as well as philosophical games and illustrations of the connections between science and art, mind and matter. We will also have guest lecturers from the departments of philosophy, mathematics, and cognitive science as we consider philosophy as science and science as art and explore multidisciplinarity and the many ways in which sciences can transform our understanding of art and literature and vice versa. No prerequisites either in humanities or sciences.

• Days/Times: TTh 1:30PM - 2:45PM
• Instructor: Juharyan, Victoria
• Room: Krieger 180
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 24/48
• PosTag(s): n/a

One of the greatest works of literature of all times, the Divine Comedy leads us down into the torture-pits of Hell, up the steep mountain terrain of Purgatory, through the “virtual” space of Paradise, and then back to where we began: our own earthly lives. We accompany Dante on his journey, building along the way knowledge of medieval Italian history, literature, philosophy, politics, and religion. The course also focuses on the arts of reading deeply, asking questions of a text, and interpreting literary and scholarly works through discussion and critical writing. Conducted in English. For undergraduate students only.

• Days/Times: MW 1:30PM - 2:45PM
• Instructor: Saiber, Arielle
• Room: Gilman 119
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 7/30
• PosTag(s): MLL-PITAL

The seminar is a study of Hasdai Crescas' major work: The Light of the Lord. Topics to be discussed include: Crescas' defense of actual infinity; determinism; plurality of (possible) worlds; the nature of belief; the infinity of God's attributes; Crescas' influence on Spinoza.

• Days/Times: W 4:30PM - 7:00PM
• Instructor: Melamed, Yitzhak Yohanan
• Room: Gilman 288
• Status: Reserved Open
• Seats Available: 10/15
• PosTag(s): PHIL-MODERN

Mathematical Logic I (H,Q) is the first semester of a year long course studying the logical methods used in mathematical reasoning. The first semester explores the construction of formal languages in which to cast mathematical discourse, introduces systems of proof for deriving propositions from assumptions, and develops a formal semantics that provides a precise criterion of logical consequence. We expect a system of proof to allow the derivation only of propositions that are logical consequences of the assumptions (soundness). A principal result establishes the converse: these systems of proof are such that any logical consequence is derivable (completeness). This provides us with a purely mathematical characterization of logic within which mathematical theories can be formulated and their properties studied (decidability, axiomatizability, consistency, completeness), a pursuit commonly known as metamathematics.

• Days/Times: TTh 10:30AM - 11:45AM
• Instructor: Rynasiewicz, Robert Alan
• Room: Gilman 288
• Status: Canceled
• Seats Available: 15/15
• PosTag(s): PHIL-LOGSCI

Knowing who or what counts as a person seems straightforward, until we consider the many kinds of creatures, objects, and artificial beings that have been granted—or demanded or denied—that status. This course explores recent debates on being a person in culture, law, and philosophy. Questions examined will include: Should trees have standing? Can corporations have religious beliefs? Could a robot sign a contract? Materials examined will be wide-ranging, including essays, philosophy, novels, science fiction, television, film. No special background is required.

• Days/Times: MW 12:00PM - 1:15PM
• Instructor: Siraganian, Lisa
• Room: Gilman 208
• Status: Waitlist Only
• Seats Available: 0/19
• PosTag(s): CES-LSO, CES-ELECT, MSCH-HUM