HWC 44 Models of Scientific Thought

Purposes of the Course:

This is a course about science and scientists. It is a course neither in a particular science nor exclusively in the history or philosophy of science. Rather, the course is designed to introduce you to the ways scientists have come to understand the world around them, and the way they express and solve problems.

Scientists work with models to help them understand the puzzles of nature and to allow them to make predictions about natural phenomena. Scientific models serve not only to describe nature in terms understandable to scientists, but also to offer theoretical frameworks that permit scientists to anticipate how nature will respond when conditions are varied. Scientists do not work in a social and cultural vacuum. The models they construct are influenced by thinking and attitudes of the non-scientific community. In turn, scientific thinking and models influence the social and political theories of their time, and are reflected in the art and literature of the period.

HWC 44 is designed to introduce you to the language, methods, and at times, the madness of science. You must be prepared to give up many notions you now have about science and scientists. Be prepared to explore the relatively ordered world of “normal science” but also the many blind alleys, wrong turns, and false starts that characterize both “normal” and “revolutionary” science. At the same time, be willing to give careful attention to the important connections between the sciences and the humanities.

Course Quiz Policy

To see or print the Course Syllabus on-line

in Adobe PDF format (with all formatting saved) go to: http://artemis.austincollege.edu/acad/bio/gdiggs/HWC44syllabus2002.pdf

in HTML format (some formatting lost) go to http://artemis.austincollege.edu/acad/bio/gdiggs/hwc44syllabus2002.html