LEMUS LECTORIUM
LEMUS
A PROJECT FOR ECTS -
European Credit Transfer System
TEACHING SUBJECT CHART -- METHODLOGY OF SCIENCES
"Czy ciepło jest substancją?" Fragment ss.43-50 [a passage in]:
Albert Einstein, Leopold Infeld: "Ewolucja fizyki", PWN, Warszawa 1962,
translated by Ryszard Gajewski.
English original: "The Evolution of Physics", Cambridge University Press, 1947.
Steve Hoenisch:
"Max Weber's View of Objectivity in Social Science".
Witold Marciszewski:
"Charakterystyka nauk ze względu na metody uzasadniania i metody uzyskiwania
pierwszych przesłanek."
"Struktura i dynamika teorii empirycznych".
"O tym, jak tworzyć pojęcia teoretyczne, stosując postulaty znaczeniowe i
wskaźniki obserwacyjne".
Logika współczesna pod kątem zastosowań w naukach społecznych.
Additional (recommended) reading
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Kazimierz Ajdukiewicz: "Logika pragmatyczna", PWN, Warszawa 1965.
English translation by Olgierd Wojtasiewicz: "Pragmatic Logic",
Reidel/PWN, Dordrecht/Warsaw 1965.
Witold Marciszewski (red.): "Mała encyklopedia logiki" [A Concise
Encyclopedia of Logic], Ossolineum, Wrocław etc. 1970, 1988.
Witold Marciszewski (red.): "Logika formalna. Zarys encyklopedyczny
z zastosowaniem do informatyki i lingwistyki" [Formal Logic. An Encyclopedic
Outline with Applications to Computer Science and Linguistics], PWN, Warszawa 1987.
English counterparts of the both Polish encyclopedias listed above are found
in the extensive English volume:
Witold Marciszewski (ed.): "Dictionary of Logic as Applied in the Study
of Language. Concepts, Methods, Theories", Martinus Nijhoff, The Hague etc. 1981.
Karl Popper: "Unended Quest. An Intellectual Autobiography",
Fontana/Collins, 1982.
Alfred Tarski: "Wprowadzenie do logiki i do metodologii nauk dedukcyjnych",
Philomath, Warszawa 1994, 1996. Edited by Witold Marciszewski, translated by
Monika Sujczyńska from the fourth English edition "Introduction to Logic and
to the Methodology of Deductive Sciences", Oxford University Press 1994.
Methods of teaching
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Students obtain course credits (a number of scores) for regular attending
lectures and exercises, and for successful activities as listed above in the
item "Student outcomes assessment". Students receive them after final
consultation and discussion with the course leader. The maximal amount of
scores equals 100%.
ECTS grades to record assessments
~~~~~~~~~~~
satisfactory (3)
51 - 60%
good (4)
75 - 84%
very good (5)
95 - 100%
ECTS Code
Subject title: METHODOLOGY OF SCIENCES
The Course Leader: Witold Marciszewski
Ordinary Professor, Habil. Dr.
Lectures: 2 hours every week, one semester
Student outcomes assessment with:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
(1) written partial exams
(2) written semester homework
(3) interactive seminars (within lectures)
(4) final spoken exam.
Full-time studies, Second Year, Philosophy.
The goals of the course.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Students should learn basic concepts of the general methodology of sciences
as a basis for more specific methodological rules. Among the latter mainly
those are taken into account which would help the listeners to continue
their studies in the direction of either philosophy or social sciences.
Preparatory Requirements
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
at least basic knowledge of English
versatility in using the Web.
The set of key concepts
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
algorithm, axiological commitment, classification, computational
tractability, consistency, counterexample, decidability, deductive theory,
definition, empirical theory, falsification, hypothesis, meaning postulates,
model, science, scientific law, observation, operationalization,
philosophical text (interpretation of), theoretical concept.
Table of contents as divided into instructional two-hours lecture units
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1. On classification of academic disciplines with respect to the content
and with respect to the methods; the latter as distinguishing the deductive
and the empirical disciplines. The meaning of "science".
2. The structure of deductive theories exemplified with logic, arithmetic, geometry.
3. The problems of consistency, completeness and decidability of deductive theories.
4. Observation evidence as the basis of empirical sciences. Observation statements.
Their role as potential falsifiers of a theory.
5. Observation statements vs. meaning postulates.
6. Theoretical concepts as defined by operational definitions.
7. The structure and dynamics of empirical theories.
8. The use of mathematical models in empirical teories, exemplified with
game-theoretical models in economics and sociology.
9. The problem of decidability and computational tractability in empirical,
esp. social theories.
10. The methods of substantiating scientific laws and hypotheses.
11. Kinds and rules of definitions.
12. Axiological commitment of social sciences.
13. Applying the logic of questions in social research.
14. Methodological peculiarity of philosophical investigations.
15. Methods of analysis and interpretation of philosophical texts.
Obligatory reading
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"The Karl Popper Web". A lot of data concerning Popper's methodological ideas.