Admission requirements
Bachelor degree (completed)
Description
Universities belong to the oldest still existing organisations in the world. For over 800 years they have been centres of knowledge production, education, and reflection. Modern universities exhibit a high degree of specialisation within the different subject areas, usually organised in a handful faculties.
In an influential lecture from 1959, the British scientist and novelist C.P. Snow has pointed at the differences in "culture" between disciplines that fall under the sciences and those that fall under the humanities. Today we might add the social sciences as a separate category and distinguish between alpha, beta, and gamma.
In this course we identify some of the "cultural differences" between the different fields in terms of their methods, relationships to society, and epistemological values, i.e. their attitude towards knowledge-finding and "the truth." On the other hand, we investigate what is shared between fields and how the forces of multiple disciplines can be joined to see even further.
A wide range of thinkers and philosopical movements will be discussed, ranging from René Descartes to Richard Rorty, the Wiener Kreiss to Paul Feyerabend, Hildegard von Bingen to Ludwig Wittgenstein and Miranda Fricker––to name just a few. Also, attention will be paid to different forms of knowledge-gathering and -sharing, using short stories from e.g. Kafka as well as films such as The Matrix.
Course objectives
Students are able to:
reflect on the alpha, beta, and gamma division in academia in terms of methods, relationship to society, and epistemological values
explain various developments in the history of science and their implications for academia, throughout the late Middle Ages, Enlightment, Fin-de-Sciecle, 20th and 21st Century
define the field of epistemology and characterise different positions in historical as well as contemporary debates, including empiricism, rationalism, objectivism, (logical) positivism, falsificationism, relativism, and pragmaticism
formulate your own position in epistemological debates and support this with relevant arguments
reflect on alternative ways of developing and sharing academic insights, such as through written (science-)fiction and film
critically assess debates on 'truth today', both inside and outside academia, with a focus on fake news/misinformation and generative AI, and connect this to the concept of epistemic inequality
create a reflection on an aspect of choice of the course content (in consultation with the lecturer during the Individual Sessions) in the form of a written paper, podcast, mini-exhibition, short film, video game, etc.
Timetable
In MyTimetable, you can find all course and programme schedules, allowing you to create your personal timetable. Activities for which you have enrolled via MyStudyMap will automatically appear in your timetable.
Additionally, you can easily link MyTimetable to a calendar app on your phone, and schedule changes will be automatically updated in your calendar. You can also choose to receive email notifications about schedule changes. You can enable notifications in Settings after logging in.
Questions? Watch the video, read the instructions, or contact the ISSC helpdesk.
Note: Joint Degree students from Leiden/Delft need to combine information from both the Leiden and Delft MyTimetables to see a complete schedule. This video explains how to do it.
Mode of instruction
Lecture, Seminar
Assessment method
Assessment is based on three elements: 1) homework assignments, 2) a written test in class, and 3) a small end project that can take the form of an essay, fictional work, small documentary, podcast, computer programme, or physical installation.
The final grade for the course is established by determining the weighted average of the elements mentioned above (homework 20%, test 40%, small end project 40%). To pass the course, the grade for the test must be 5.5 or higher, and the grade for the homework and project must be 5.0 or higher.
Soon after the announcement of the written test result and as early as possible before the resit, the corrected test will be given to the participants for inspection and a discussion of the exam can take place on a student's request. Deadlines for homework and end project resits are determined on an individual basis, but in all cases the maximum grade is lowered to a 8.0.
Reading list
Full reference list will be disseminated through Brightspace
In addition, all students are expected to buy a copy of the following book, as we read it almost cover-to-cover:
A.F. Chalmers. 2013. What is that thing called science? 4th Ed. Queensland, Queensland UP.
Registration
As a student, you are responsible for enrolling on time through MyStudyMap.
In this short video, you can see step-by-step how to enrol for courses in MyStudyMap.
Extensive information about the operation of MyStudyMap can be found here.
There are two enrolment periods per year:
Enrolment for the fall opens in July
Enrolment for the spring opens in December
See this page for more information about deadlines and enrolling for courses and exams.
Note:
It is mandatory to enrol for all activities of a course that you are going to follow.
Your enrolment is only complete when you submit your course planning in the ‘Ready for enrolment’ tab by clicking ‘Send’.
Not being enrolled for an exam/resit means that you are not allowed to participate in the exam/resit.
Contact
Contact the lecturer(s) for course specific questions, and the programme's coordinator for questions regarding admission and/or registration.
Remarks
Elective, external and exchange students (other than Media Technology students) need to be admitted to the course before registration due to limited capacity. Contact the programme's coordinator to request admission; include a short description of your course interest and state your current study programme in your correspondence.
Software
Starting from the 2024/2025 academic year, the Faculty of Science will use the software distribution platform Academic Software. Through this platform, you can access the software needed for specific courses in your studies. For some software, your laptop must meet certain system requirements, which will be specified with the software. It is important to install the software before the start of the course. More information about the laptop requirements can be found on the student website.