Philosophy 342

Philosophy 342: Philosophy of Mind	Prof. Warren Schmaus
MW 10:00 - 11:15	Office: 228 Siegel Hall
Room: 204 Siegel Hall	Mailbox: 218 Siegel Hall
Office Hrs: MW 2:00 - 4:00	Email: schmaus@iit.edu
Web Site: http://mypages.iit.edu/~schmaus/Philosophy_of_Mind	Phone: x 7-3473

TENTATIVE course syllabus

What is the relationship between the mind and the body? Is the mind the same thing as the brain or is it something else? Can we explain our conscious experience in terms of what goes on in our nerve cells? Could a computer think the way we do? How can mere thoughts cause things to happen in a physical universe? Is it merely a delusion on our part to believe that our thoughts do matter? Does evolutionary theory shed light on any of these problems? How will our answers to these questions affect the way we choose to study psychology – the science of the mind? These are the sorts of questions we will discuss in this course.

This course will begin with a brief introduction to the history of philosophical thinking about the mind, especially the theory of mind-body dualism, the view that the mind and body are two distinct substances. After discussing the problems with that view, we will then turn to a survey of more recent theories of the mind, including behaviorism, materialism, and functionalism.

We will then consider what light, if any, the cognitive sciences and neurosciences may shed on these philosophical problems. Some philosophers hold that consciousness presents the most difficult problem for any scientific study of the mind, so we will focus on this one. Are the methods of the sciences sufficient for understanding consciousness? Or does this require some special philosophical method distinct from that of the sciences? Or is the phenomenon of consciousness beyond human understanding?

I call this a tentative syllabus because I may have included too much and may have to cut some things later on. A revised syllabus at some future date is thus a possibility. I’m experimenting with the course and introducing some changes, trying to include more of the relevant science and cutting some of the philosophy I covered the last time I taught the course. I won’t know whether I’ve achieved the right balance until after I’ve tried it at least once.

Required Texts:

Churchland, Patricia Smith, Brain-Wise: Studies in Neurophilosophy, (BW)

Clark, Andy, Mindware: An introduction to the philosophy of cognitive science (MW)

Heil, John, ed. Philosophy of Mind: A guide and anthology. (PM)

Course requirements:

Every student will be responsible for a library research paper of about 8 - 10 pages and a 10 -15 minute presentation based on that paper. The topic may be drawn either from the history of the philosophy of mind or from related work in the cognitive sciences, artificial intelligence, or the neurosciences. A list of suggested topics is linked to this syllabus. There will be a class visit to Galvin Library on February 24 to introduce you to some of the research tools available to you. This research project will proceed through a series of guided stages, each of which shall contribute towards your grade for the course. First each student will turn in a project proposal, including a tentative title, a one-paragraph description of the topic to be investigated, and a tentative bibliography of at least three reputable sources. This will be returned with comments by the professor. The next stage will be a progress report of about 1000 words. This may be in either prose or outline form. It should also include the current bibliography on a separate page. You may think of this progress report as serving as the basis of the class presentation. Comments on this progress report and class discussion generated by your class presentation will then provide you with feedback for writing your final paper. No particular audiovisuals are required for the class presentation; anything from chalk to power point is acceptable. Grades will be based on the content of your presentation and not on the technology employed. The final research paper is due during exam week and serves in place of the final exam.

There will also be three essays of a minimum of 500 words each, based on material covered in class. These will be due on February 3, February 22, and March 17, and will each count 8 % of your grade. In addition, there will be a series of 8 to 10 surprise quizzes that will count for 10 % of your grade, and class participation counts for another 10 %. All written work, including these essays, the research proposal, the progress report, and the final paper, are to be double-spaced and in at least a 10-point font. Plagiarized work receives a failing grade and cannot be made up. I will be providing notes on the web for most of the classes. Take your web browser to the web site named above. There you will find this syllabus with highlighted links to lecture outlines (in parentheses), paper topic assignments, and a guide to philosophy paper writing.

3 500-word essays, 8 points each, due 2/3, 2/22, 3/17		24 %
8 – 10 Surprise quizzes		10 %
Class Participation		10 %
Research Project:
3/24	Proposal: Title, description, bibliography	4 %
4/7	4 - page progress report or outline	12 %
4/19 – 4/28	Class Presentation	12 %
5/5	8 - 10 - page final paper	28 %
	Total for project:	56 %

Total:		100 %

Reasonable accommodations will be made for students with documented disabilities. In order to receive accommodations, students must obtain a letter of accommodation from the Center for Disability Resources and speak with me about it as soon as possible. The Center for Disability Resources is located in 218 Life Sciences. You can also call them at 312-567-5744 or email them at disabilities@iit.edu.

Date

Assignment (All required unless otherwise indicated.)

1/11	M	Introduction to course. Descartes on people, machines, and animals. Handout from Discourse on Method part V (Discourse).
1/13	W	Descartes’s Mind-Body Dualism. Meditations II; VI. PM, pp. 16-18, 36-50 (Descartes).
1/18	M	MARTIN LUTHER KING DAY: NO CLASS
1/20	W	Descartes, Meditations VI, concluded; objections and replies. PM, pp. 50-58 (Descartes, cont’d.).
1/25	M	Locke, Empiricism, and Behaviorism. PM, pp. 18-20, 59-67, 75-79, 85-95 (empiricism). FIRST ESSAY WILL BE ASSIGNED. DUE: 2/3.
1/27	W	Behaviorism versus Materialism. PM, pp. 79-84, 96-104, 116-127 (materialism).
2/1	M	Functionalism. Required: PM, pp. 139-149, 168-182; recommended: MW, ch. 1 (Fodor).
2/3	W	Introduction to Artificial Intelligence. PM, pp. 205-234 (Turing). FIRST ESSAY DUE.
2/8	M	The Chinese Room. Required: PM, pp. 235-252; recommended: MW, ch. 2 (Searle). SECOND ESSAY WILL BE ASSIGNED. DUE: 2/22.
2/10	W	Escaping from the Chinese Room. PM, pp. 253-271 (escape).
2/15	M	Dennett’s Intentional Stance. Required: PM, pp. 277-279, 298-320; recommended: MW, ch. 3 (Dennett).
2/17	W	Eliminative Materialism. PM, pp. 357-364, 382-413; (PMChurchland).
2/22	M	Connectionism. MW, ch. 4; BW, pp. 283-308 (connect). SECOND ESSAY DUE. THIRD ESSAY ASSIGNED. DUE 3/17
2/24	W	Visit to Galvin Library
3/1	M	Neuroscience and Artificial Life. MW, ch. 5-6 (Clark1).
3/3	W	The Brain as Dynamical System and the Role of the Environment. MW, ch. 7-8 (Clark2)
M 3/8 – F 3/12 SPRING BREAK: NO CLASSES
3/15	M	The Subjective Character of Experience. PM, pp. 521-527, 528-538 (Nagel).
3/17	W	Property Dualism and the Knowledge Argument. PM, pp. 762-771 (Jackson). THIRD ESSAY DUE
3/22	M	The Knowledge Argument Critiqued. PM, pp. 539-552 (Levin).
3/24	W	Property Dualism and Consciousness. PM, pp. 599-606, 617-640 (Chalmers). PROPOSALS DUE.
3/29	M	This Problem is Too Hard for Us! PM, pp. 781-797 (McGinn).
3/31	W	Consciousness and the Meta-Hard Problem. MW, Appendix II (Clark3).
4/5	M	Consciousness and Neuroscience. BW, pp. 127-170 (Churchland4a).
4/7	W	Monday’s assignment, cont’d. PROGRESS REPORTS DUE.
4/12	M	Consciousness, cont’d. BW, pp. 171-199 (Churchland4b).
4/14	W	Wrap-up.
M 4/19 – W 4/28 Student Presentations
M 5/3 – F 5/7 EXAM WEEK. FINAL PAPERS DUE WEDNESDAY, MAY 5, AT 12:30 P.M.