755 Social Science Tower; (949) 824-1520
Penelope Maddy, Department Chair
The Department of Logic and Philosophy of Science (LPS) brings together faculty and students interested in a wide range of topics loosely grouped in the following areas: general philosophy of science; philosophy of the particular sciences; logic, foundations and philosophy of mathematics; and philosophy of mathematics in application. LPS enjoys strong cooperative relations with UCI's Department of Philosophy; in particular, the two units jointly administer a single graduate program leading to the Ph.D. in Philosophy. LPS also has strong interconnections with several science departments, including Mathematics, Physics, and Information and Computer Science, as well as the School of Biological Sciences, the Department of Economics, and the graduate concentration in Mathematical Behavioral Sciences.
Faculty
Aldo Antonelli: Logic, philosophy of mathematics, history of analytic philosophy
Jeffrey Barrett: Philosophy of science, philosophy of physics, philosophy of quantum mechanics, epistemology
Penelope Maddy: Philosophy of mathematics, philosophy of logic, philosophy of science, history of analytic philosophy
David Malament: Philosophy of physics, foundations of geometry, foundations of relativity theory
Brian Skyrms: Philosophy of science, decision theory, game theory, philosophy of biology, epistemology, metaphysics
Kyle Stanford: Philosophy of science, philosophy of biology, history of modern philosophy, metaphysics
Affiliated Faculty
Francisco Ayala, Bren Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and of Philosophy: Evolutionary biology, philosophy of science, philosophy of biology
Patricia Churchland, UC President's Professor of Philosophy, UCSD: Philosophy of neuroscience and psychology
Paul Churchland, Professor of Philosophy, UCSD: Philosophy of science, philosophy of mind, artificial intelligence and cognitive neurobiology, epistemology, and perception
Paul Eklof, Professor of Mathematics: Mathematical logic
Matthew Foreman, Professor of Mathematics and Philosophy: Mathematical logic
Steven Frank, Professor of Biological Sciences: Evolutionary biology
Donald Hoffman, Professor of Cognitive Sciences and of Information and Computer Science: Human and machine vision
Duncan Luce, UCI Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Cognitive Sciences and Economics: Mathematical behavioral science
D.A. Martin, Professor of Mathematics and Philosophy, UCLA: Logic, set theory, philosophy of mathematics
Robert May, Professor of Linguistics: Semantics, syntax, philosophy of language
James McGaugh, Research Professor of Neurobiology and Behavior: Neurobiology of learning and memory
Yiannis Moschovakis, Professor of Mathematics, UCLA: Set theory, recursion theory
Louis Narens, Professor of Cognitive Sciences: Measurement, logic, and metacognition
Riley Newman, Professor of Physics: Experimental particle physics and gravitational physics
Terence Parsons, Professor of Philosophy, UCLA: Philosophy of language, metaphysics
Donald Saari, UCI Distinguished Professor of Economics and Mathematics: Mathematical economics, mathematical behavioral science, celestial mechanics
Jonas Schultz, Professor of Physics: Experimental particle physics
Norman Weinberger, Professor of Neurobiology and Behavior and of Cognitive Sciences: Neural bases of attention and learning
The Department of Logic and Philosophy of Science and the Department of Philosophy jointly administer a Ph.D. program in Philosophy with two independent tracks: the Philosophy track and the LPS track. Both tracks begin from a common core of requirements in standard philosophical fields (e.g., history of philosophy, logic, ethics, metaphysics/epistemology) and branch off thereafter; both lead to the Ph.D. degree in Philosophy. Applicants are advised to apply to the unit whose faculty, areas of specialization, and curriculum correspond best with their interests. Students are expected to reside in the same unit as their primary advisor, but faculty in both units are available for all other academic purposes (course work, independent studies, committee membership, and more). See the Department of Philosophy in the School of Humanities for a description of the Philosophy track.
Applicants for the LPS track must have a bachelor's degree, but there is no formal requirement as to the field of that degree. The most natural undergraduate majors for LPS graduate students would be philosophy, mathematics, or the sciences, but those with other degrees who are interested in the LPS fields should feel free to apply.
Complete applications must include GRE scores, transcripts, letters of recommendation, and a writing sample. The deadline for application is January 15.
Several forms of incoming fellowships are available on a competitive basis; these include a stipend, student fees, and tuition (for out-of-state students). In subsequent years, some additional fellowship funding is available, but students in good standing are most often supported with teaching assistantships.
All required courses must be completed with a grade of B or better.
The History of Philosophy Requirement provides a broad perspective. Graduate courses in three out of the following four areas--Modern Rationalism, Modern Empiricism, Kant, and Twentieth Century--must be completed by the end of the seventh quarter in residence.
The Logic Requirement acquaints students with the fundamentals of modern logic: elementary set theory, metalogic, effective procedures and Gödel's incompleteness theorems. Social Science 205A, 205B, and 205C must be completed by the end of the seventh quarter in residence.
The Field Requirement provides exposure to a range of philosophical disciplines. One graduate course in moral philosophy and one graduate course in metaphysics/epistemology must be completed by the end of the seventh quarter in residence. (These courses may not also be used to satisfy the History Requirement.)
The Philosophy of Science Requirement provides exposure to a range of philosophy of science, from general philosophy of science to the philosophies of particular sciences (e.g., physics, biology), to the philosophies of mathematics and logic. Three selected courses from Social Science 230, 231, 232, 236, and 237 must be completed by the end of the seventh quarter in residence. (These courses may be repeated as topics vary.) Courses used to satisfy the Philosophy of Science Requirement may also be used to satisfy the History or Field Requirements.
The Tools of Research Requirement provides some flexibility for students with various levels of interest in pursuing the philosophy of a particular science. So, for example, a student most interested in historical issues in the philosophy of mathematics might benefit most from the study of German, while a student most interested in the philosophy of quantum mechanics should take a series of graduate courses in physics. (Students wishing to specialize further in the philosophy of a particular science might wish to pursue more demanding options; see the Mathematics emphasis, below.) To satisfy this requirement, a student must pass an examination on an appropriate foreign language or receive a grade of B or better in three appropriate graduate courses in a discipline or disciplines outside philosophy by the end of the ninth quarter in residence. Though the discipline(s) here must be outside philosophy, they might be taught by Philosophy or LPS faculty (e.g., a course in advanced set theory with a Philosophy or Social Science number taught by an LPS faculty member). The two-hour language examination will be administered by an LPS faculty member and will require the student to translate (with the aid of a dictionary) a passage or passages from philosophical or scientific authors.
The Portfolio Requirement ensures that students have acquired dissertation-level skills in the writing of philosophy: e.g., the ability to isolate, understand and evaluate arguments in the philosophical literature; the ability to assimilate secondary literature; the ability to formulate and defend an original philosophical thesis. The portfolio is designed to display these skills. To satisfy this requirement, a student must submit an extended writing sample, most often consisting of several individual papers, that demonstrates the skills necessary to write a Ph.D. dissertation. (A successful portfolio typically consists of several papers totaling around 80 pages. These may be revisions of term papers. Each paper should present and defend a definite thesis and should be accessible to faculty members unfamiliar with the literature in question. The papers in the portfolio need not be of publishable quality, but they must, collectively, demonstrate the specified skills.) Portfolios will be evaluated by the entire LPS faculty. (LPS track students may request that relevant Philosophy Department faculty also be present at the evaluation meeting.) Portfolios must be submitted by the end of the fourth week of the seventh quarter.
The Candidacy Examination demonstrates that the student has a viable dissertation topic and an adequate grasp of related literature. To satisfy this requirement, a student must prepare and be examined on a reading list of canonical literature in the area of the dissertation and a brief (15-20 page) dissertation proposal. The reading list should in effect define the context of the proposed dissertation. The examination must be completed by the end of the tenth quarter in residence.
Dissertation Defense. Students must pass a final oral examination focussing on the content of the dissertation administered by the Dissertation Committee.
In addition to the LPS track described above, there is a more demanding option open to LPS students wishing to specialize in the foundations and/or philosophy of mathematics. Faculty in the UCI and UCLA Departments of Mathematics participate in the Mathematics emphasis. Students in the emphasis take courses and receive advising from these participating Mathematics professors, as well as from the faculty of LPS and the Philosophy Department. Mathematics emphasis students must satisfy the following requirement in addition to the usual LPS track requirements:
Mathematics Requirement. A student must receive a grade of B or better in six graduate courses in mathematics. (Some of these courses may also be used to satisfy the Tools of Research Requirement.) In addition, the student's Candidacy and Dissertation Committees must include an active member from the UCI or UCLA Departments of Mathematics.
LPS and the Department of Philosophy jointly administer an Exchange Program with the University of Salzburg. The program has two parts. The Scholarly Exchange provides opportunities for faculty and graduate students in LPS and Philosophy to visit Salzburg and for faculty and graduate students from Salzburg to visit one or the other of the UCI units. The Program also sponsors joint conferences, held alternately in Irvine and in Salzburg; these are co-sponsored by Salzburg and the UCI Interdisciplinary Program in the History and Philosophy of Science.
To be eligible for the Salzburg Exchange, a graduate student must have advanced to candidacy. The selected student spends one semester in Salzburg, usually teaching one course in the general area of the thesis topic. An upper-division course may be taught in English, but lower-division courses must be taught in German. (Some previous visitors have learned serviceable German by attending a Goethe institute during the preceding summer.) Typically, a Salzburg visitor will receive a Salzburg Fellowship intended to cover travel expenses, and a stipend; those who teach while in Salzburg will also receive a salary intended to cover living expenses (including health and dental insurance).
Applications from LPS graduate students (including a curriculum vita and syllabi for courses that might be taught) should be sent to the LPS Salzburg Exchange Director by November 1.
Social Science 29 Critical Reasoning (4). Introduction to analysis and reasoning. The concepts of argument, premise, and conclusion, validity and invalidity, consistency and inconsistency. Identifying and assessing premises and inferences. Deductive versus inductive reasoning, and introduction to the probability calculus. Evaluating definitions. Informal fallacies. Same as Philosophy 29. (V)
Social Science 30 Introduction to Symbolic Logic (4). An introduction to the symbolism and methods of both propositional and quantificational logic, including evaluation of arguments by the techniques of natural deduction and semantic tableaux. Same as Philosophy 30. (V)
Social Science 31 Introduction to Inductive Logic (4). Philosophical questions concerning the foundations of scientific inference, e.g., the traditional problem of induction, the Goodman paradox, the concept of cause, Mill's method of inductive reasoning, probability calculus, different interpretations of probability, and their interaction in inductive reasoning. Same as Philosophy 31. (V)
Social Science 41 Scientific Inquiry (4). Introduces the ways of science focusing on scientific methods and practices. Concrete historical examples of successful scientific inquiry are used including proposed solutions. The foundations and use of the social sciences to study scientific inquiry are examined.
Social Science 104 Introduction to Logic (4). Introduction to sentence logic, including truth tables and natural deduction; and to predicate logic, including semantics and natural deduction. Same as Philosophy 104.
Social Science 105A Elementary Set Theory (4). An introduction to the basic working vocabulary of mathematical reasoning. Topics include: sets, Boolean operations, ordered n-tuples, relations, functions, ordinal and cardinal numbers. Prerequisite: Social Science 104 or an upper-division course in mathematics, or consent of instructor. Social Science 105A and Mathematics 151 may not both be taken for credit. Same as Philosophy 105A.
Social Science 105B Metalogic (4). Introduction to formal syntax (proof theory) and semantics (model theory) for first-order logic, including the deduction, completeness, compactness, and Löewenheim-Skolem theorems. Prerequisite: Social Science 105A or consent of instructor. Social Science 105B and Mathematics 150 may not both be taken for credit. Same as Philosophy 105B.
Social Science 105C Undecidability and Incompleteness (4). Introduction to the formal theory of effective processes, including recursive functions, Turing machines, Church's thesis, and proofs of Göedel's incompleteness theorem for arithmetic, and Church's undecidability theorem for first-order logic. Prerequisite: Social Science 105B or consent of instructor. Social Science 105C and Mathematics 152 cannot both be taken for credit. Same as Philosophy 105C.
Social Science 106 Topics in Logic (4). Selected topics in mathematical or philosophical logic. Prerequisite: Social Science 105B or consent of instructor. May be repeated for credit as topics vary.
Social Science 107 Effectively Computable Functions and Degrees (4). Aims to provide an introduction to recursive function theory, with special emphasis on the theory of the recursively enumerable sets of natural numbers and their "fine structure" under various notions of reducibility. Same as Philosophy 107.
Social Science 108 Topics in Probability, Induction, and Decision Theory (4). Selected topics in probability, induction, and decision theory. May be repeated for credit as topics vary.
Social Science 110 Topics in the Theory of Knowledge (4). One or more topics in the theory of knowledge, e.g., the nature of rational justification, of perceptual knowledge, of a priori knowledge. May be repeated for credit as topics vary.
Social Science 111 Topics in History of Analytic Philosophy (4). Review of one or more central theories or figures in the history of analytic philosophy. Emphasis is on the study of original sources, especially writings of Frege, Russell, Schlick, Carnap, and Quine. Topics include the nature of meaning and truth, the synthetic/analytic distinction, and scientific knowledge. May be repeated for credit as topics vary.
Social Science 112 Topics in Modern Philosophy (4). Focuses on the works of one or more of the central philosophical figures of the modern period (e.g., Descartes, Leibniz, Hobbes, Locke, Hume, Kant) or on the treatment of one or more central philosophical problems by a number of these figures. May be repeated for credit as topics vary.
Social Science 113 Topics in Metaphysics (4). Examines central philosophical questions concerning our own fundamental nature and that of the world around us (e.g., causation and necessity, determination, free will, personal identity, the mind-body problem). May be repeated for credit as topics vary.
Social Science 130 Topics in Philosophy of Science (4). Selected topics in contemporary philosophy of science, e.g., the status of theoretical entities, the confirmation of theories, the nature of scientific explanation. May be repeated for credit as topics vary. (IV)
Social Science 131A Topics in Philosophy of Physics (4). Selected topics in the philosophy of physics, e.g., the interpretation of quantum mechanics, the nature of spacetime, the problem of quantum field theories. May be repeated for credit as topics vary. Same as Philosophy 141A.
Social Science 131B Geometry and Spacetime (4). An examination of issues concerning the mathematical and philosophical foundations of the special theory of relativity. Among topics discussed is the alleged conventionality of simultaneity. Same as Philosophy 141B.
Social Science 131C Foundations of Quantum Mechanics (4). An examination of the standard von Neumann-Dirac formulation of quantum mechanics. The quantum measurement problem is discussed along with several proposed solutions, including GRW, many-worlds, many-minds, and Bohm's theory. Same as Philosophy 141C.
Social Science 131D Probability and Determinism (4). An examination of a number of interrelated issues concerning determinism and probability in physics. Includes the senses in which Newtonian mechanics is and is not deterministic and a discussion of the probabilistic structure of quantum mechanics. Same as Philosophy 141D.
Social Science 132 Writing/Philosophy of Biology (4). Philosophy of biology, e.g., scientific method in biology, the structure of evolutionary theory, teleology, ethics, and evolution. Course work includes one 4,000-word and four 1,000-word papers. Prerequisites: satisfactory completion of the lower-division writing requirement; Philosophy 40 recommended as background. Same as Biological Sciences 142 and Philosophy 142.
Social Science 133 Topics in Philosophy of Logic (4). Selected topics in the philosophy of logic, e.g., the nature of logical truth and our knowledge of it, the status of propositions, definite descriptions, and existential presuppositions. May be repeated for credit as topics vary.
Social Science 134A Introduction to Philosophy of Mathematics (4). Historical background (e.g., Kant), the three great schools at the turn of the century (logicism, formalism, intuitionism), the positivists and their critics (Carnap, Quine), contemporary views and problems (e.g., Quine, Benacerraf). Same as Philosophy 147A.
Social Science 134B Topics in Philosophy of Mathematics (4). Further historical or contemporary issues in the philosophy of mathematics. May be repeated for credit as topics vary.
Social Science 135 Topics in Philosophy of Psychology (4). Selected topics in the philosophy of psychology, e.g., the nature of psychological explanation, reductionism, issues in cognitive, behavioral, and neuroscience. May be repeated for credit as topics vary.
Social Science 136 Topics in Philosophy of Social Science (4). Selected topics in the philosophy of the social sciences, e.g., is their goal to understand behavior or to predict and control it?; are they normative and the natural sciences not?; do they incorporate philosophical doctrines about language and mind? May be repeated for credit as topics vary.
Social Science 205A Set Theory (4). The basic working vocabulary of mathematical reasoning. Topics include: sets, Boolean operations, ordered n-tuples, relations, functions, ordinal and cardinal numbers. Same as Philosophy 205A.
Social Science 205B Metalogic (4). Formal syntax (proof theory) and semantics (model theory) for first-order logic, including the deduction, completeness, compactness, and Loewenheim-Skolem theorems. Prerequisite: Social Science 205A. Same as Philosophy 205B.
Social Science 205C Effective Processes (4). Formal theory of effective processes, including recursive function, Turing machines, Church's thesis, and proofs of Goedel's incompleteness theorem for arithmetic, and Church's undecidability for first-order logic. Prerequisite: Social Science 205B. Same as Philosophy 205C.
Social Science 206 Topics in Logic (4). Same as Philosophy 206. May be repeated for credit as topics vary.
Social Science 210 Topics in Logic and Philosophy of Science (4). May be repeated for credit as topics vary.
Social Science 230 Topics in Philosophy of Science (4). Same as Philosophy 240. May be repeated for credit as topics vary.
Social Science 231 Topics in Philosophy of Physics (4). Same as Philosophy 241. May be repeated for credit as topics vary.
Social Science 232 Topics in Philosophy of Biology (4). Same as Philosophy 242. May be repeated for credit as topics vary.
Social Science 236 Topics in Philosophy of Logic (4). Same as Philosophy 246. May be repeated for credit as topics vary.
Social Science 237 Topics in Philosophy of Mathematics (4). Same as Philosophy 247. May be repeated for credit as topics vary.
