Philosophy Minor

An examination of what makes something art, what makes someone an artist; how painting, music, literature, movies, and performance are similar and different; and the role of art in our social and political lives.

Survey of the philosophical relationships between ethics (including political and cultural values) and science (as a practice and form of inquiry). Topics include research ethics, experimentation on animals, biotechnology, information technology, gender in science, religion and science, and science policy.

Examines the pertinence and practice of antiracist thought by addressing the historical and political conditions of the emergence and endurance of racism, and different strategies to talk, challenge, and transform racist societies. Racism is addressed in relation to sexism, classism, ableism, and other forms of discrimination in our contemporary world.

Examines the ethical and philosophical dimensions of climate change through an interdisciplinary exploration of such issues as climate justice, uncertainty and risk, individual and collective responsibilities for climate change and climate action, the role of science and technology in policy, and the ethics of geoengineering.

Explores how recent developments in moral theory, political philosophy, and philosophy of science and technology can clarify issues in public policy. Topics include the nature of government, the justification and limitations of collective action, the instruments of public policy, democracy and the economy, social costs and benefits, science and technology policy, computers and information policy, food and water policy, and environmental and development policy.

Focus on critical thinking to develop the skills for making sound arguments and for evaluating the arguments of others in order to recognize the difference between arbitrary and well-reasoned judgments. Topics include deductive and inductive modes of practical reasoning, common fallacies, rules of inference, and the formal rules of logic.