Scientific Thought I

Schedule and Lecture Notes

Fall 2009

Date	What's on	Quizzes
Aug 24	Lecture 1: Thales
26	Lecture 2: Anaximander, Anaximenes, Pythagoras, Philolaus
28	Lecture 3: Parmenides and Anaxagoras
31	Lecture 4: Empedocles, Leucippus, Democritus	Quiz 1
Sep 2	Lecture 5: Euclid to proposition 1
4	Lecture 6: Euclid propositions 2 and 3
9	Lecture 7: Plato's theory of forms
11	Lecture 8: Plato's cosmology	Quiz 2
14	Lecture 9: Plato's theory of matter
16	Lecture 10: Aristotle on demonstration
18	Lecture 11: Aristotle on skepticism and necessity
21	Lecture 12: Aristotle on knowledge of principles	Quiz 3
23	Review (discussion of the questions for exam 1)
25	Exam 1
28	No class
30	Lecture 13: Aristotle on change
Oct 2	Lecture 14: Aristotle on nature and causes
5	Lecture 15: Aristotle on elements
7	Lecture 16: Ptolemy on the shape of heaven and earth	Quiz 4
9	Lecture 17: Ptolemy on the motion of the earth
12	Lecture 18: Copernicus on the earth's daily rotation
14	Lecture 19: Copernicus on the earth's orbit around the sun
16	Lecture 20: Bacon on interpretation of nature and idols	Quiz 5
19	Lecture 21: Bacon on the state of science
21	Lecture 22: Bacon on forms
23	Lecture 23: Bacon on crucial instances
26	Lecture 24: Comparison of Bacon and Copernicus	Quiz 6
28	Review (discussion of the questions for exam 2)
30	Exam 2
Nov 2	No class
4	Lecture 25: Galileo on uniform motion
6	Lecture 26: Galileo on natural and uniform acceleration
9	Lecture 27: Galileo on properties of uniform acceleration
11	Lecture 28: Galileo's experimental evidence	Quiz 7
13	Lecture 29: Descartes on the principles of philosophy
16	Lecture 30: Descartes on matter and motion
18	Lecture 31: Descartes's astronomy
20	Lecture 32: Descartes's methodology	Quiz 8
30	Lecture 33: Newton on space, time, and motion
Dec 2	Lecture 34: Newton on gravity
4	Lecture 35: Newton on scientific method
7	Lecture 36:Newton on ether	Quiz 9
9	Review (discussion of the questions for exam 3)
15	Exam 3 at 1:30 PM in the usual classroom