Note: This is the 2020–2021 eCalendar. Update the year in your browser's URL bar for the most recent version of this page, or .
Program Requirements
History and Philosophy of Science at McGill is an interdisciplinary program that aims to provide students with an understanding of science through the study of both its historical development and of some of the fundamental philosophical principles upon which it rests. For more information about the program and events, please visit .
Complementary Courses (18 credits)
18 credits with a maximum of 9 credits at the 200 level selected as follows:
Philosophy of Science
6-12 credits of courses focused on the Philosophy of Science with no more than 6 credits at the 200 level chosen from the following:
Communication Studies (COMS)
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COMS 210 Introduction to Communication Studies (3 credits)
Overview
Communication Studies : The social and cultural implications of media. Surveys theory and case studies relevant key issues such as the ownership, structure and governance of media industries; the significance of emergent media technologies; and the roles of media as cultural forms and practices.
Terms: Fall 2020
Instructors: Sterne, Jonathan (Fall)
Restriction: Not open to students who have taken ENGL 278 or ENGC 210
History and Philosophy of Science (HPSC)
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HPSC 300 Independent Studies: History and Philosophy of Science (3 credits)
Overview
Hist & Phil of Science : Offered by special arrangement between students in Arts or Science and a professor in either a Science or a Social Science Department. The purpose is to enable a student to undertake for credit the study of a special topic in the History or the Philosophy of Science.
Terms: Fall 2020, Winter 2021
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Restriction: Permission of Director and History & Philosophy of Science Committee
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HPSC 500 Interdisciplinary Seminar: History & Philosophy of Science (3 credits)
Overview
Hist & Phil of Science : At least one topic will be chosen from each of the four major areas: the mathematical, the physical, the biological, the social sciences.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Restriction: Permission of Instructor
Philosophy (PHIL)
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PHIL 210 Introduction to Deductive Logic 1 (3 credits)
Overview
Philosophy : An introduction to propositional and predicate logic; formalization of arguments, truth tables, systems of deduction, elementary metaresults, and related topics.
Terms: Fall 2020, Summer 2021
Instructors: Hallett, Michael Frank (Fall) Therrien, Valérie Lynn (Summer)
Restriction: Not open to students who are taking or have taken MATH 318
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PHIL 221 Introduction to History and Philosophy of Science 2 (3 credits)
Overview
Philosophy : A survey of the development of modern science since the Eighteenth Century.
Terms: Fall 2020, Winter 2021
Instructors: Magal, Oran (Fall) Gold, Ian Jeffrey (Winter)
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PHIL 306 Philosophy of Mind (3 credits)
Overview
Philosophy : A survey of major positions of the mind-body problem, focusing on such questions as: Do we have minds and bodies? Can minds affect bodies? Is mind identical to body? If so, in what sense "identical"? Can physical bodies be conscious.
Terms: Fall 2020
Instructors: Davies, David (Fall)
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PHIL 310 Intermediate Logic (3 credits)
Overview
Philosophy : A second course in Logic. NB. The course will be technical in nature, and some mathematical aptitude is essential. The emphasis is on the expressive properties of standard logical systems, including implications for the philosophy of mathematics. We will study the Completeness of First-Order Logic, then the 'limitative' theorems of Tarski and Gödel.
Terms: Winter 2021
Instructors: Hallett, Michael Frank (Winter)
Prerequisite: PHIL 210 or equivalent
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PHIL 311 Philosophy of Mathematics (3 credits)
Overview
Philosophy : This course provides an historically informed introduction to philosophy of mathematics. It gives the student an overview of prominent issues and arguments, to enable her to follow and discuss contemporary research in philosophy of mathematics.
Terms: Fall 2020
Instructors: Schlimm, Dirk (Fall)
Prerequisite: PHIL 210
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PHIL 340 Philosophy of the Social Sciences 1 (3 credits)
Overview
Philosophy : An introduction to foundational issues in the social sciences and to the broader implications of these issues for both philosophy and science. Topics to be discussed may include methodology in natural and social science, objectivity in the social sciences, and cultural relativism.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2020-2021 academic year.
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PHIL 341 Philosophy of Science 1 (3 credits)
Overview
Philosophy : A discussion of philosophical problems as they arise in the context of scientific practice and enquiry. Such issues as the philosophical presuppositions of the physical and social sciences, the nature of scientific method and its epistemological implications will be addressed.
Terms: Winter 2021
Instructors: Clairmont, Sarah (Winter)
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PHIL 350 History and Philosophy of Ancient Science (3 credits)
Overview
Philosophy : Topics in ancient pure mathematics (geometry and number theory), "mixed mathematics" (astronomy, music theory, optics, mechanics), and/or natural science (including medicine), studied with a view to philosophical issues raised by the content of ancient science and/or by the logic of scientific argument.
Terms: Fall 2020
Instructors: Hallett, Michael Frank (Fall)
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PHIL 411 Topics in Philosophy of Logic and Mathematics (3 credits)
Overview
Philosophy : A course focusing on some philosophical issue (e.g., the nature of numbers or the relation of truth to provability) as it arises in the study of mathematics and logic.
Terms: Winter 2021
Instructors: Hallett, Michael Frank (Winter)
Prerequisites: PHIL 210 or the equivalent, and one intermediate course in philosophy
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PHIL 440 Philosophy of Social Sciences 2 (3 credits)
Overview
Philosophy : An advanced course on such topics as methodology of, or explanation, in the social sciences or models of rationality. Topics will vary from year to year.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Prerequisite: PHIL 340 or written permission of the instructor
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PHIL 441 Philosophy of Science 2 (3 credits)
Overview
Philosophy : An analysis of some key philosophical ideas in science and technology, e.g. problem, explanation, forecast, testability and truth.
Terms: Winter 2021
Instructors: Tal, Eran (Winter)
Prerequisite: PHIL 341 or written permission of the instructor
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PHIL 453 Ancient Metaphysics and Natural Philosophy (3 credits)
Overview
Philosophy : An examination of central themes of ancient metaphysics and/or natural philosophy as treated by two or more contrasting philosophers or philosophical traditions - probably including Plato and/or Aristotle, and possibly including some Hellenistic or post-Hellenistic schools.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Religious Studies (RELG)
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RELG 340 Religion and the Sciences (3 credits)
Overview
Religious Studies : Philosophies of science and of religion have created a more positive dialogue on questions of method, symbolism and rationality. Examines key issues (e.g. creation and evolution; objectivity and involvement; determinism and freedom) raised by natural and social sciences, and various possible solutions.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Fall and Summer
Sociology (SOCI)
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SOCI 338 Introduction to Biomedical Knowledge (3 credits)
Overview
Sociology (Arts) : The dynamics of biomedical disciplines and specialties. Social, scientific, political and commercial aspects of biomedical research. The organization of work in clinical and fundamental research and its consequences on the choice of research topics.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2020-2021 academic year.
History of Science
6-12 credits of courses focused on the History of Science with no more than 6 credits at the 200 level chosen from the following:
Anthropology (ANTH)
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ANTH 359 History of Archaeological Theory (3 credits)
Overview
Anthropology : A systematic investigation of the theories that have guided the interpretation of prehistoric archaeological data since the Middle Ages; the relationship between these theories and theoretical developments in the other social sciences.
Terms: Winter 2021
Instructors: Couture, Nicole (Winter)
Biology (BIOL)
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BIOL 210 Perspectives of Science (3 credits)
Overview
Biology (Sci) : This course is an introduction to the thinking, language and practices of scientists. Its objective is to bridge the gap between science and the humanities, and in particular to allow students enrolled in the Minor Concentration in Science for Arts to pursue their interests in specific scientific disciplines.
Terms: Fall 2020
Instructors: Watt, Alanna; Hendricks, Michael (Fall)
Fall
3 hours lecture
History (HIST)
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HIST 249 Health and the Healer in Western History (3 credits)
Overview
History : The natural history of health and disease and the development of the healing arts, from antiquity to the beginning of modern times. The rise of "western" medicine. Health and healing as gradually evolving aspects of society and culture.
Terms: Fall 2020
Instructors: Wallis, Faith; Schlich, Thomas (Fall)
Note: Also available to first-year medical students in their options program.
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HIST 319 The Scientific Revolution (3 credits)
Overview
History : The intellectual and cultural history of science and technology, in Europe and in the wider world, from the time of Leonardo to the time of Newton (c. 1500-c.1700).
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2020-2021 academic year.
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HIST 335 Science and Medicine in Canada (3 credits)
Overview
History : The social and intellectual history of science and medicine in Canada, from early exploration, through the rise of learned societies, universities and professional organizations, to World War II.
Terms: Fall 2020
Instructors: Wright, David John (Fall)
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HIST 350 Science and the Enlightenment (3 credits)
Overview
History : Explores the relationship between the natural sciences and the eighteenth-century Enlightenment. Examination of works in post-Newtonian science as well as their broader cultural meaning, the history of material practices, the origins of social science, and the role of geography and international context beyond Western Europe.
Terms: Winter 2021
Instructors: Dew, Nicholas (Winter)
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HIST 356 Medicine in the Medieval West (3 credits)
Overview
History : The history of ideas about the human body, disease and therapeutics and the diverse practices of medicine in western Europe in the Middle Ages (ca. AD 300-1500), with particular attention to their social, intellectual, cultural and religious context.
Terms: Winter 2021
Instructors: Wallis, Faith (Winter)
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HIST 410 Topics in History of Science (3 credits)
Overview
History : Specific theme in the history of science, such as scientific instruments, experimental practices, uses of the body, knowledge and museums, scientific institutions, or science and empire.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Prerequisite: A prior course on history of science or HPSC 300 or permission of Instructor.
Restriction(s): Not open to U0 or U1 students
Themes (and/or periods) vary year to year.
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HIST 452 Topics in Pre-Modern Medicine (3 credits)
Overview
History : The history of the evolution of ideas about the human body, disease and therapeutics and the diverse practices of medicine prior to the advent of modern clinical and laboratory medicine in the 19th c., with particular attention to social, political, cultural and religious context.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2020-2021 academic year.
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HIST 457 Topics in Medical History (3 credits)
Overview
History : This course explores different topics in medical history. Topics to be explored include the role of medicine from ancient to modern times.
Terms: Fall 2020, Winter 2021
Instructors: Tone, Andrea (Fall) Schlich, Thomas (Winter)
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HIST 558 Modern Medicine: Seminar (3 credits)
Overview
History : The emergence of scientific medicine, medical professionalization, the development of public health and the process of medical specialization since 1700.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2020-2021 academic year.
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HIST 559 Modern Medicine: Research (3 credits)
Overview
History : Supervised design, research, writing, and discussion of a major research paper on a theme in the history of modern medicine since 1700.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2020-2021 academic year.
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HIST 567D1 Seminar: Medieval Medicine (3 credits)
Overview
History : Models of the body, disease and medical intervention current in western Europe between 400 and 1500 AD will be examined through analysis of primary sources in translation, and modern historical scholarship.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Students must register for both HIST 567D1 and HIST 567D2
No credit will be given for this course unless both HIST 567D1 and HIST 567D2 are successfully completed in consecutive terms
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HIST 567D2 Seminar: Medieval Medicine (3 credits)
Overview
History : Models of the body, disease and medical intervention current in western Europe between 400 and 1500 AD will be examined through analysis of primary sources in translation, and modern historical scholarship. The sequel to this course is HIST 496.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Prerequisite: HIST 567D1
No credit will be given for this course unless both HIST 567D1 and HIST 567D2 are successfully completed in consecutive terms
History and Philosophy of Science (HPSC)
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HPSC 300 Independent Studies: History and Philosophy of Science (3 credits)
Overview
Hist & Phil of Science : Offered by special arrangement between students in Arts or Science and a professor in either a Science or a Social Science Department. The purpose is to enable a student to undertake for credit the study of a special topic in the History or the Philosophy of Science.
Terms: Fall 2020, Winter 2021
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Restriction: Permission of Director and History & Philosophy of Science Committee
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HPSC 500 Interdisciplinary Seminar: History & Philosophy of Science (3 credits)
Overview
Hist & Phil of Science : At least one topic will be chosen from each of the four major areas: the mathematical, the physical, the biological, the social sciences.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Restriction: Permission of Instructor
Islamic Studies (ISLA)
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ISLA 345 Science and Civilization in Islam (3 credits)
Overview
Islamic Studies : History of scientific traditions and ideas in Islamic civilization, from the origins of Islam to the early modern period. Emphasis is on the derivation, development and transmissions of Islamic science, as well as on the assimilation and influence of science within Islamic culture.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Winter
Prerequisite: ISLA 200 or permission of the instructor.
Note: All readings are in English.
Mathematics (MATH)
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MATH 338 History and Philosophy of Mathematics (3 credits)
Overview
Mathematics & Statistics (Sci) : Egyptian, Babylonian, Greek, Indian and Arab contributions to mathematics are studied together with some modern developments they give rise to, for example, the problem of trisecting the angle. European mathematics from the Renaissance to the 18th century is discussed in some detail.
Terms: Fall 2020
Instructors: FOX, THOMAS; Hurtubise, Jacques Claude (Fall)
Fall
Psychology (PSYC)
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PSYC 403 Modern Psychology in Historical Perspective (3 credits)
Overview
Psychology : A survey of the scientific and ideological influences on psychology from its philosophical beginnings through the period of the schools to its modern situation.
Terms: Fall 2020
Instructors: Roy, Mathieu (Fall)
Fall
2 lectures
