Simon Fraser University
Engaging the World

Course Outlines

Spring 2022 - PHIL 804 G100

Selected Topics in Philosophy of Science (5)

Causation and Time

Class Number: 7438

Delivery Method: In Person

Overview

  • Course Times + Location:

    Jan 10 – Apr 11, 2022: Fri, 9:30 a.m.–12:20 p.m.
    Burnaby

Description

COURSE DETAILS:

Selected Topics: Causation and Time

[Note: this course is to be taught concurrently with PHIL 455W.]

Important note regarding enrollment: All seats are reserved for Philosophy Graduate students. Enrollments from other departments will be considered only upon submission of the Graduate Course Add Form, and with instructor's permission. All such enrollments will be done in or after the first week of classes.

Separately, each of the topics of the nature of causation, and the nature of time and its passage, have perplexed since Aristotle. Recently, massive advances in causal modelling techniques seem to have advanced this discussion; many of these advances, though, are purely epistemological, presupposing some notion of causation and providing tools to discover and represent it, but not providing the foundational or metaphysical considerations of what it is that is thereby discovered. This course will follow discussions of what causation is, starting with some Early Modern works and continuing through the contemporary discussion. We will focus in particular on how time has been and could be used to identify causation as distinct from other relations, and how time fundamentally relates to causation. Both causation and time are asymmetric, and their arrows point in the same direction. Is one more fundamental than the other? Does the direction of one determine the direction of the other, or are both determined by something else? We will cover key highlights in both the metaphysics and methodology of causation, using time as the angle into this large discussion.

COURSE-LEVEL EDUCATIONAL GOALS:

Successful completion of this course will satisfy either the “Metaphysics and Epistemology Stream” or the "History Stream" distribution requirement toward the MA degree for Philosophy graduate students.

The primary stream designation is Metaphysics and Epistemology, and the secondary stream designation is History. There will be a substantial historical component to the reading list, and students have the option to take this course for History credit if they indicate this prior to the first day of class. Otherwise, students will receive M&E stream credit.

Grading

  • Participation: Students will submit one precis of a reading each week at the start of class. Students will submit one in-depth discussion question each week prior to the day of class, on Canvas, and respond to or comment on at least one other student’s discussion question. Students get two ‘mulligan’ weeks when they can skip submitting that week. 20%
  • Workshopping of term paper drafts:Students will be providing feedback to each other on term paper drafts; this grade is for the comments each student give to the paper(s) on which they are to comment. Note that you are also required to have a draft ready to circulate to others on which they will comment. 5%
  • 2-page detailed outline of term paper: due two weeks before the last class session. Each student will also briefly present this to the rest of class (we will go around and everyone will give a one or two minute overview of their paper). 5%
  • Term paper: Students completing this course for History credit must write a historical term paper; this will be discussed further, but it is to be distinguished from, for instance, using a historical source to contribute to a contemporary debate. 70%

NOTES:

Course delivery: in person, blended – additional weekly hour to be made up by discussions of the readings on Canvas discussion boards instead of in person (see grading section for more detail).

Materials

MATERIALS + SUPPLIES:

Students must have access to internet and a computer/other device that permits streaming video, word processing and teleconferencing with Zoom. There is likely to be at least one guest professor from another university to speak during the course of the term.

REQUIRED READING:

All readings will be made available through the Canvas page or will be downloadable from SFU Library.


Graduate Studies Notes:

Important dates and deadlines for graduate students are found here: http://www.sfu.ca/dean-gradstudies/current/important_dates/guidelines.html. The deadline to drop a course with a 100% refund is the end of week 2. The deadline to drop with no notation on your transcript is the end of week 3.

Registrar Notes:

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: YOUR WORK, YOUR SUCCESS

SFU’s Academic Integrity web site http://www.sfu.ca/students/academicintegrity.html is filled with information on what is meant by academic dishonesty, where you can find resources to help with your studies and the consequences of cheating.  Check out the site for more information and videos that help explain the issues in plain English.

Each student is responsible for his or her conduct as it affects the University community.  Academic dishonesty, in whatever form, is ultimately destructive of the values of the University. Furthermore, it is unfair and discouraging to the majority of students who pursue their studies honestly. Scholarly integrity is required of all members of the University. http://www.sfu.ca/policies/gazette/student/s10-01.html

TEACHING AT SFU IN SPRING 2022

Teaching at SFU in spring 2022 will involve primarily in-person instruction, with safety plans in place.  Some courses will still be offered through remote methods, and if so, this will be clearly identified in the schedule of classes.  You will also know at enrollment whether remote course components will be “live” (synchronous) or at your own pace (asynchronous).

Enrolling in a course acknowledges that you are able to attend in whatever format is required.  You should not enroll in a course that is in-person if you are not able to return to campus, and should be aware that remote study may entail different modes of learning, interaction with your instructor, and ways of getting feedback on your work than may be the case for in-person classes.

Students with hidden or visible disabilities who may need class or exam accommodations, including in the context of remote learning, are advised to register with the SFU Centre for Accessible Learning (caladmin@sfu.ca or 778-782-3112) as early as possible in order to prepare for the spring 2022 term.