Course Description: An introduction to the philosophy of science. Topics include the nature of scientific method, hypothetical-deductive and probabilistic testing of hypotheses, limits of inductive inference, questions about operational definition, the relationship between observation and theory, the nature of scientific explanation, and the relationship between the various sciences. Examples will be drawn from the physical, biological, psychological, and social sciences.

This course is now completed, and most of the materials have been taken down. If you’d like to look at the syllabus from the course, it’s right here.

If you have questions please e-mail me at ron at albany dot edu.