General Objective: 

The course is aimed at providing the historical-critical tools required to know and understand the fundamental stages of the development of philosophical and scientific thought - historically contextualizing them, but also knowing how to evaluate the durable impact on contemporary thinking. Furthermore, it also aims to refine the philological-hermeneutic competences required for analyzing philosophical texts, observing the most important theoretical aspects and comparing them to those of other authors, also in a interdisciplinary perspective.

Specific objectives:

1. to be able to understand the specific vocabulary of the discipline on a specialistic level;

2. to acquire full awareness of the historical development of the philosophy of science;

3. to acquire knowledge and awareness of the epistemological complexity of the different theories taken into account;

4. to know how to read and understand a philosophical-scientific text;

5. to know how to historically contextualize the text examined;

6. to be able to interpret and analyze the text in question on a specialistic level, identifying the underlying theories and arguments used by the author to support them;

7. to know how to compare the text in question with other related texts, identifying similarities and differences in theories and topics;

8. to be able to recognize any incongruity and inconsistency in the argumentative flow and in the ideas expressed by the author;

9. to be able to reason in a transdisciplinary sense; 

10. to know how to formulate an autonomous opinion on the theories that emerged from the analysis of the text and whether they have a significance or not in today’s world.

Title of the course: "Scientific Controversies: Their Role in the Evolution of Science and Philosophy"

Description:

The English philosopher John Stuart Mill writes: “Several criticisms, of a more or less controversial nature, on this work, have appeared since the publication of the second edition; and Dr. Whewell has lately published a reply to those parts of it in which some of his opinions were controverted […]. To several of the arguments which have been urged against me, I have thought it useful to reply with some degree of minuteness; not from any taste for controversy, bur because the opportunity was favourable for placing my own conclusions, and the grounds for them, more clearly and completely before the reader. Truth, on these subjects, is militant, and can only establish itself by means of conflict. The most opposite opinions can make a plausible show of evidence while each has the statement of its own case; and it is only possible to ascertain which of them is in the right, after hearing and comparing what each can say against the other, and what the other can urge in its defense”.

Themes addressed and hours:

1. Introduction (two hours);

2. The origins in ancient Greece: Aristotle versus Plato (two hours);

3. "Aristotelismus" versus "platonismus" (two hours);

4. Horror vacui? The vacuum debate in the XVIl Century (six hours);

5. Hobbes versus Boyle (four hours);

6. Hobbes versus Wallis (four hours);

7. Hartlib e and scentific knowledge (four hours);

8. Mill versus Whewell (eight hours);

9. Carnap versus Popper (two ore);

10. Conclusions; controversies and the development of thought (two hours).

An adequate knowledge of the English language.

1. Knowledge and the ability to comprehend: to have acquired, on a specialistic level, the content foreseen by the program, understanding the fundamental lines and the particular aspects, even in a comparative perspective.

2. Application of knowledge and the ability to understand: know how to apply the concepts, ideas, theories and methodologies learned, even in contexts other than the original one; to be able to also extend across a transdisciplinary level.

3. Autonomy of judgments: reflecting and thinking about the various contents learned, developing a critical, autonomous, and flexible thought; being “open-minded”: open to the complexity of what is real, with an exploratory and investigative attitude; being able to question the theories of others and also one’s own.

4. Communicative skills: to demonstrate that we have acquired a mastery of the vocabulary of discipline and to know how to use it within a speech that is internally coherent and logically structured, according to a correct sequence of topics; the argumentative capacity must be in the use of analysis and synthesis, of inductive and deductive processes, as well as in the application of rhetorical techniques, up to the remodulation of the subject according to the supposed interlocutor.

5. Learning skills: knowing how to use complementary resources available in addition to study texts – the materials entered by the lecturer in the Moodle platform, but also search engines on the web, bibliographic tools, etc. – to create a personal in-depth course.

The teaching material prepared by the lecturer in addition to recommended textbooks (such as for instance slides, lecture notes, exercises, bibliography) and communications from the lecturer specific to the course can be found inside the Moodle platform › blended.uniurb.it

Materials published in the e-platform Moodle: blended.uniurb.it

Teaching

Lectures - students will be engaged as often as possible.

Innovative teaching methods

Attendance

It's not compulsory.

Course books

1. John loose, A Historical Introduction to the Philosophy of Science; trad. it. di Piero Budinich: Filosofia della scienza, il Saggiatore, Mlano 2016.

2. Salvatore Ricciardo (a cura di), Il dibattito sul vuoto nel XVII secolo. Antologia di testi, Carocci, Roma 2017.

3. Breve antologia di testi messa a disposizione sulla piattaforma Blended.

Assessment

Written exam.

Evaluation criteria:

the evaluation will be assessed on the basis of the student’s knowledge and skills; the following indicators will be especially taken into account:

1. relevance and effectiveness of the answers as far as the contents of the programme are concerned;

2. level of articulation of the answers: they must be clear, logic and systematic,

3. use of the specialized vocabulary of the discipline;

4. being able to connect themes (also in a transdisciplinary way) and critical thinking skills.

Disability and Specific Learning Disorders (SLD)

Students who have registered their disability certification or SLD certification with the Inclusion and Right to Study Office can request to use conceptual maps (for keywords) during exams.

To this end, it is necessary to send the maps, two weeks before the exam date, to the course instructor, who will verify their compliance with the university guidelines and may request modifications.

Teaching

Didactic materials available on the Moodle platform (see above).

Attendance

It's not compulsory.

Course books

1. John loose, A Historical Introduction to the Philosophy of Science; trad. it. di Piero Budinich: Filosofia della scienza, il Saggiatore, Mlano 2016.

2. Salvatore Ricciardo (a cura di), Il dibattito sul vuoto nel XVII secolo. Antologia di testi, Carocci, Roma 2017.

3. Breve antologia di testi messa a disposizione sulla piattaforma Blended.

Assessment

Written exam.

Evaluation criteria:

the evaluation will be assessed on the basis of the student’s knowledge and skills; the following indicators will be especially taken into account:

1. relevance and effectiveness of the answers as far as the contents of the programme are concerned;

2. level of articulation of the answers: they must be clear, logic and systematic,

3. use of the specialized vocabulary of the discipline;

4. being able to connect themes (also in a transdisciplinary way) and critical thinking skills.

Disability and Specific Learning Disorders (SLD)

Students who have registered their disability certification or SLD certification with the Inclusion and Right to Study Office can request to use conceptual maps (for keywords) during exams.

To this end, it is necessary to send the maps, two weeks before the exam date, to the course instructor, who will verify their compliance with the university guidelines and may request modifications.

Stusents are invited to contact the professor for any further inforntion needed.