PHIL 2450

Philosophy of Science is one of the few philosophy subjects that can be highly engaging for laymen, and Mr. Humphreys manages to make it even more accessible. The lectures are example-laden and easy to follow, although their content isn't always necessary to the final exam. Also, T.A. Paul Nedelisky is great and fun to be around. Downsides include no midterm, with a large portion of the grade hinged on a term paper and final.

The TA Paul Nedelisky made this class amazing. Prof. Humphreys, though an expert in the field of philosophy of science and a wonderful lecture if you are seated in the front row, does not genuinely care about getting to know his students (which is always a shame). The content of the material can get very arcane for a newcomer to philosophy, so my general recommendation is not to take it as a first class in philosophy but to wait till second or third year to tackle it. That's not to say that it's inordinately difficult material, but the jargon can get absolutely horrendous. I have to say that I've learned a good deal from this class in terms of questioning how science works and what it is about -- determinism, explanation, causation, social construction, etc... But it was not exactly what I had hoped for and, again, had I not had Paul as a TA, Lord knows how I would have fared in this class.

This class is the hardest I've ever taken at UVA. The readings are dense and rarely unpacked during class. It is advertised as not needing philosophical knowledge. This is false. The science majors definitely struggled, while the philosophy majors thought it was just plain hard. I'd recommend only if one has a sincere interest in epistomology and meta-science (the science of science). Do NOT take to fulfill a requirement, as its perfectly possible to fail. If you DO decide to take it, please use Adam Tiller. He is great at patiently explaining things for the 3rd or 4th time (because that is what it takes).

Very interesting class, should be a requirement for philosophy majors. Humphreys is a pretty smart guy to say the least