The online version of the Caltech Catalog is provided as a convenience; however, the printed version is the only authoritative source of information about course offerings, option requirements, graduation requirements, and other important topics.

PHILOSOPHY

Hum/Pl 8. Right and Wrong. 9 units (3-0-6). For course description, see Humanities.

Hum/Pl 9. Knowledge and Reality. 9 units (3-0-6). For course description, see Humanities.

Pl 90 ab. Senior Thesis. 9 units (1-0-8). Required of students taking the philosophy option. To be taken in any two consecutive terms of the senior year. Students will research and write a thesis of 10,000–12,000 words on a philosophical topic to be determined in consultation with their thesis adviser. Limited to students taking the philosophy option. Instructor: Staff.

Pl 98. Reading in Philosophy. 9 units (1-0-8). Prerequisite: instructor’s permission. An individual program of directed reading in philosophy, in areas not covered by regular courses. Instructor: Staff.

Pl/Law 99. Causation and Responsibility. 9 units (3-0-6); third term. This course will examine the interrelationships between the concepts of causation, moral responsibility, and legal liability. It will consider legal doctrines of causation and responsibility, as well as attempts within philosophy to articulate these concepts. Questions to be addressed include: Can you be morally or legally responsible for harms that you do not cause? Is it worse to cause some harm, than to unsuccessfully attempt it? Is it justified to punish those who cause harm more severely than those who attempt harm? When, if ever, can the ends justify the means? What constitutes negligence? Is it worse to cause some harm, than to allow it to happen (when you could have prevented it)? Instructor: Hitchcock.

Pl 102. Selected Topics in Philosophy. 9 units (3-0-6); offered by announcement. Prerequisite: Hum/Pl 8 or Hum/Pl 9 or instructor’s permission.

Pl 103. Medieval Philosophy. 9 units (3-0-6); third term. This course examines the philosophy of Western Europe from the decline of pagan culture to the Renaissance, roughly 400–1400 C.E. Material covered will vary, but will likely include a thorough introduction to Late Greek neo-Platonic philosophy as background to reading figures such as Augustine, Boethius, Avicenna, Abailard, Averroes, Maimonides, Anselm, Albert the Great, Aquinas, Olivi, Scotus, and Ockham. Not offered 2012–13.

HPS/Pl 120. Introduction to Philosophy of Science. 9 units (3-0-6). For course description, see History and Philosophy of Science.

HPS/Pl 121. Causation and Explanation. 9 units (3-0-6). For course description, see History and Philosophy of Science.

HPS/Pl 122. Probability, Evidence, and Belief. 9 units (3-0-6). For course description, see History and Philosophy of Science.

HPS/Pl 124. Philosophy of Space and Time. 9 units (3-0-6). For course description, see History and Philosophy of Science.

HPS/Pl 125. Philosophical Issues in Quantum Physics. 9 units (3-0-6). For course description, see History and Philosophy of Science.

HPS/Pl 128. Philosophy of Mathematics. 9 units (3-0-6). For course description, see History and Philosophy of Science.

HPS/Pl 129. Introduction to Philosophy of Biology. 9 units (3-0-6). For course description, see History and Philosophy of Science.

HPS/Pl 130. Philosophy and Biology. 9 units (3-0-6). For course description, see History and Philosophy of Science.

HPS/Pl 132. Introduction to Philosophy of Mind and Psychology. 9 units (3-0-6). For course description, see History and Philosophy of Science.

HPS/Pl 133. Philosophy and Neuroscience. 9 units (3-0-6). For course description, see History and Philosophy of Science.

HPS/Pl 134. Current Issues in Philosophical Psychology. 9 units (3-0-6). For course description, see History and Philosophy of Science.

HPS/Pl 138. Human Nature and Society. 9 units (3-0-6). For course description, see History and Philosophy of Science.

Pl 150. 17th-Century Philosophy: Bacon to Leibniz. 9 units (3-0-6); first, third terms. The course will examine the work of one or more philosophers active during the so-called Century of Genius. Although we will focus on the arguments each author brings to bear in support of his or her philosophical position, historical background will be introduced to provide scientific, religious, and political context. The topics will include the limits of human knowledge, the existence and nature of mind, matter, and God, and the relationship between science and philosophy. Philosophers discussed are selected from Bacon, Mersenne, Descartes, Gassendi, Hobbes, Digby, Spinoza, Malebranche, Arnauld, More, Cudworth, Locke, Newton, and Leibniz. Instructor: Manning.

Pl 151. 18th-Century Philosophy: Locke to Kant. 9 units (3-0-6); second term. The course will examine the work of one or more philosophers active during the so-called Age of Enlightenment. Although we will focus on the arguments each author brings to bear in support of his or her philosophical position, historical background will be introduced to provide scientific, religious, and political context. The topics will include ideas and perception, belief and knowledge, passion and reason, matter and mind, causation and free will, and the relationship between science and philosophy. Philosophers discussed are selected from Locke, Huygens, Leibniz, Newton, Wolff, Berkeley, Rousseau, Hume, Reid, and Kant. Instructor: Manning.

Pl/HPS 157. Leibniz vs. Newton: Philosophers at War. 9 units (3-0-6).This course takes up a fascinating exchange between Leibniz and Newton, two towering figures at the dawn of modern physical science. It centers on the correspondence between Leibniz and Newton’s disciple Samuel Clarke. Their letters (1714–1716) address foundational issues of 17th century dynamics: the existence of space and time; the architecture of matter; God and his agency in the world; miracles and laws of nature; free will and divine choice. A detailed overview of the scientific, philosophical, and religious background to the debate will serve to introduce the debate. Not offered 2012–13.

HPS/Pl 169. Selected Topics in Philosophy of Science. 9 units (3-0-6). For course description, see History and Philosophy of Science.

HPS/H/Pl 173. History of Chemistry. 9 units (3-0-6). For course description, see History and Philosophy of Science.

Pl/HPS 183. Bioethics. 9 units (3-0-6); offered by announcement. A survey of issues in bioethics. Topics may include: abortion and reproductive rights; euthanasia; cloning; genetic modification of organisms (including humans); moral status of chimeras; stem-cell research; organ transplantation, distribution and sale; cure vs. enhancement; use of human subjects in research; the concept of informed consent; research on non-human animals. Pre-med students may want to consider taking HPS/Pl 191 instead of this course. Students will not be permitted to take both HPS/Pl 183 and HPS/PL 191 for credit Instructor: Cowie.

Pl/HPS 184. Science, Ethics, and Public Policy. 9 units (3-0-6); offered by announcement. This course discusses some moral and social issues concerning research in the sciences (chiefly, biomedicine, with special attention to stem-cell research.) We will begin by discussing attempts to find a framework within which the issues can be addressed, and then we will discuss some specific topics. In most cases we will not so much seek answers to moral questions as attempt to identify helpful questions, clarify the issues involved, and analyze the moral status of the protagonists. We will also pay special attention to issues of public policy, and ask how scientific research should be organized and funded in a democracy. Not offered 2012–13.

Pl 185. Moral Philosophy. 9 units (3-0-6); third term. A survey of topics in moral philosophy. The emphasis will be on metaethical issues, although some normative questions may be addressed. Metaethical topics that may be covered include the fact/value distinction; the nature of right and wrong (consequentialism, deontological theories, rights-based ethical theories, virtue ethics); the status of moral judgments (cognitivism vs. noncognitivism, realism vs. irrealism); morality and psychology; moral relativism; moral skepticism; morality and self-interest; the nature of justice. The implications of these theories for various practical moral problems may also be considered. Not offered 2012–13.

Pl 186. Political Philosophy. 9 units (3-0-6); offered by announcement. This course will address one or more issues in contemporary political theory and/or the history of political thought. Topics may include the nature of democracy; liberalism; distributive justice; human rights; the moral and legal regulation of warfare; the status of positive law; social choice theory; the relations between the market and the state. The work of figures such as Plato, Aristotle, Locke, Hobbes, Mill, Machiavelli, and Rawls will be discussed. Not offered 2012–13.

Pl 187. Natural Justice. 9 units (3-0-6); third term. This course examines the unorthodox view that morality is a natural phenomenon—the product of a combination of biological and cultural evolution. It reviews and criticizes the traditional arguments used to deny both moral natu-ralism and moral relativism, notably the Naturalistic Fallacy. It assesses the success of the approach advocated by evolutionary biologists and psychologists. It examines the evidence from laboratory experiments on fairness and justice. Finally, it attempts to synthesize all these strands using the theory of games as a unifying framework. Not offered 2012–13.

HPS/Pl 188. The Evolution of Cognition. 9 units (3-0-6). For course description, see History and Philosophy of Science.

Pl/HPS 191. Biomedical Ethics. 9 units (3-0-6); offered by announcement. A survey of issues in bioethics, tailored for pre-med students (though non-premeds are welcome to attend UNLESS they have previously taken Pl 183, in which case they may not). General topics in bioethics will be covered in the first part of the course (may include issues like: abortion and reproductive rights, cloning, stem-cell research, organ transplantation and sale, informed consent, euthanasia, research ethics - human and animal). The second part of the course will focus on issues of particular concern to students intending to pursue a career in medicine, including: professional ethics, doctor-patient confidentiality, the ‘therapeutic privilege’ and truth-telling, informed consent, participation in biomedical research. Instructor: Cowie.