"Is my girlfriend or boyfriend cheating on me?" "Could Alan Greenspan have failed to know that the self-interest of lending institutions would prove woefully inadequate to protect shareholders’ equity?" "What is Dubstep?" "Did the Trump campaign collude with Russia during the 2016 election?"  These questions are the ponderings of our everyday lives.  However, finding satisfactory answers to such practical questions presupposes answers to deeper philosophic questions regarding the nature, sources, structure, and extent of human knowledge: (1) "What is the nature of knowledge?" (2) "What are the sources of knowledge for humans (and others?)?" (3) "Is there a relationship or structure between individuals bits of human knowledge and if so, what is that structure?" (4) "What are the limitations of knowledge for humans (and others?)?" An adequate answer to the first question would tell us what sorts of things can be (or are) knowledge, what properties distinguish knowledge from other states (like opinions), and how (and to what extent) knowledge benefits the knower.  An adequate answer to the second question would provide a basis for identifying the sources (and potential sources) for human knowledge, how these sources give us knowledge, if these sources would provide knowledge for other creatures, how we could tell if other sources were potential sources of knowledge for some creatures, etc.. Similarly, an answer to the third question would tell us what, if anything, humans cannot know, what conditions would prevent knowledge, and even what humans might find difficult to learn and know. Thus, the study of epistemology enriches our understanding of ourselves as cognitive creatures and leads, potentially to improvements in our efficacy as epistemic agents in the real world. This class looks at important answers to the philosophic questions underlying our everyday concerns about knowledge and knowing. We will survey the works of historical and contemporary thinkers from Philosophy and Psychology. The class also examines the background assumptions and methodology behind the views of these thinkers and of contemporary philosophy in general.

Books

Optional Text Human Knowledge: Classical and Contemporary Readings (ed.) Paul Moser 2nd or 3rd Editions

3rd Edition

2nd Edition

Some On-line book sites:
addall (search engine)
amazon

Most Articles will also be available electronically through the links in this syllabus page.

Password for electronic reserve materials: wallis

Username for electronic reserve materials: wallis

Please be advised that in using electronic material, you agree to the following:
The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted materials. Under certain conditions specified in the law, libraries and archives are authorized to furnish a photocopy or other reproduction. One of these specified conditions is that the photocopy or reproduction is not to be "used for any purpose other than private study, scholarship, or research." If a user makes a request for, or later uses, a photocopy or reproduction for purposes in excess of "fair use," that user may be liable for copyright infringement. 

I strongly encourage non-majors and students with limited experience in upper division philosophy courses to consult the resources listed on the Reading and Writing Philosophy Papers Page 

March 26th-April 1st: Spring Recess (Classes Not In Session)

Goals

I have four basic goals for this course: (1) Students learn to read and evaluate scholarly journal articles from the epistemic and psychological literature. I emphasize development of the following abilities; the ability to extract arguments from a text, evaluate those arguments by challenging either their assumptions or logical form, the ability to identify a thesis and relate the elements of a paper to the development of that thesis, and the ability to place a book or article a larger historical and/or disciplinary context. (2) Students gain significant insight into the historical development, intellectual movements, particular theories, investigative methodologies of philosophical epistemology, as well as interactions between philosophy and science--especially cognitive science--in addressing fundamental epistemic questions. (3) Students should show a grasp of the practical implications and real-world instances of epistemological questions and theories, including a sense of the potential impact of epistemological theories on the student’s life. (4) Students improve their writing abilities, particularly with respect to their ability to write concise, highly organized, and self-contained expositions of theories, arguments, empirical findings, as well as the interrelationships between theories, arguments, and empirical findings.

Course Requirements

Course grades will be based upon four 3-4 typed page take-home tests, labs,  attendance, and homework assignments.  I assign grades for each test (A-F) as well as a point number (usually 0-30).  I weight test scores as follows: 10%  of your course grade for the 1st test, 20% of your course grade for each of the 2nd-4th tests.  The attendance counts for 10% of your grade.  Labs and homework have a point value assigned to them (generally point scores from 0-10).  Labs and homework assignments count for 20% of your grade.  Should I suspect students are not submitting their own original work on tests (e.x. word for word identical passages in two different tests) I will switch to in-class essay tests.  The tests answers can be written in response to questions (handed out the week before) and will be of a primarily discursive nature.
 

Cheating and Plagiarism

The CSULB Policy on Cheating and Plagiarism will be followed strictly. (See 2016-17 Catalog) Students who have any questions or uncertainty whatsoever about this policy are responsible for meeting individually with the instructor to discuss the policy. All tests and papers are submitted to Turnitin for evaluation.  Students discovered cheating or plagiarizing on any exam, quiz, or other course element will be FAILED for the COURSE and will be reported to the Office of Judicial Affairs for possible probation, suspension, or expulsion.

Withdrawals

I follow the university policy on withdrawals.  I have no disinclination towards signing withdrawal forms up until the last date allowed by the university policy.   

Disabilities

I am happy to accommodate any students with disabilities.  It is the student's responsibility to inform me of their disability and need for accommodation.  The office of Disabled Student Services (5-5061) serves as an information source and evaluates students’ needs.  DSS often proctors tests for students with disabilities.

Make-up exams

Make-up exams will be permitted only for serious illness and mandatory University policies. A physicians' note will be required for illness. If you will need to take a make-up exam, you must send an e-mail no later than 9:00 a.m. the day of the exam. 
 

Web Resources

This web site contains the syllabus, lecture slides from lectures already given, links, and test questions.  Lecture slides and links are not required course material, nor are they an adequate substitute for class attendance. They are posted solely to further aid students in their studies.  However, students often comment upon the usefulness of this material and I strongly encourage students to visit the site at least once.

Need some help with your writing? Try the Style and Writing Tips page.
 
Got Test Anxiety?  Check out these pages.

Dr. Tom Stevens Learning Improvement Site

49'er Test Anxiety Article

Urbana-Champagne Test Anxiety Page

Western Ontario Test Anxiety Page