Teaching
Below is a list of recent course syllabi. (Note: ‘syllabi’ sounds better to my ear than ‘syllabuses’. For more on the topic, see this analysis.)
Philosophy 10: Introduction to Logic — Spring 2024
This course will introduce students to basic formal logic, including translations from natural language into formal notation, truth table representations of truth functions, and sentential logic derivations; and also informal critical reasoning skills, including informal fallacies, and cognitive biases.
Philosophy 136: Philosophy of Mind — WINTER 2024
This class has three components. The first third covers traditional topics in philosophy of mind, including substance and property dualism, identity theory and functionalism. The second third moves to more contemporary views, including Fodor’s language of thought, Dennett’s intentional stance, and Churchland’s eliminative materialism. The final third of the course explores the issue of group minds, including an exploration of social insects, and topics in corporate responsibility.
Philosophy 234: Philosophy of Language — FALL 2021
This seminar will be a slow and careful reading of Robert Brandom’s Making It Explicit.
Philosophy 10: Introduction to Logic — SUMMER 2021
This course will introduce students to basic formal logic, including translations from natural language into formal notation, truth table representations of truth functions, and sentential logic derivations; and also informal critical reasoning skills, including informal fallacies, and cognitive biases.
Philosophy 10: Introduction to Logic — SPRING 2021
This course will introduce students to basic formal logic, including translations from natural language into formal notation, truth table representations of truth functions, and sentential logic derivations; and also informal critical reasoning skills, including informal fallacies, and cognitive biases.
Philosophy 136: Philosophy of Mind — WINTER 2021
This class has three components. The first third covers traditional topics in philosophy of mind, including substance and property dualism, identity theory and functionalism. The second third moves to more contemporary views, including Fodor’s language of thought, Dennett’s intentional stance, and Churchland’s eliminative materialism. The final third of the course explores the issue of group minds, including an exploration of social insects, and topics in corporate responsibility.
Philosophy 10: Introduction to Logic — WINTER 2021
This course will introduce students to basic formal logic, including translations from natural language into formal notation, truth table representations of truth functions, and sentential logic derivations; and also informal critical reasoning skills, including informal fallacies, and cognitive biases.
Philosophy 230: Metaphysics — FALL 2020
Strawson’s Kantian Metaphysics. A close reading of Chapters 1-4 of Peter Strawson’s Individuals; The Bounds of Sense, Parts I, II, and III.1-2; then following up on topics relevant to space, objectivity and the self by looking at some articles by Strawson, Bennett, Evans, Anscombe, Shoemaker and McDowell.
Philosophy 10, Introduction to Logic
Summer Session II 2020
This course will introduce students to basic formal logic, including translations from natural language into formal notation, truth table representations of truth functions, and sentential logic derivations; and also informal critical reasoning skills, including informal fallacies, and cognitive biases.
Philosophy 1, Introduction to Philosophy
Winter 2019
This class will introduce students to the methods of philosophy by exploring how those methods can be applied in three different domains: proofs for (and against) the existence of God; topics in biomedical ethics; and personal identity.
Philosophy 136, Philosophy of Mind
Spring 2017
This class has three components. The first third covers traditional topics in philosophy of mind, including substance and property dualism, identity theory and functionalism. The second third moves to more contemporary views, including Fodor’s language of thought, Dennett’s intentional stance, and Churchland’s eliminative materialism. The final third of the course explores the issue of group minds, including an exploration of social insects, and topics in corporate responsibility.