Fortgeschrittenenseminar Philosophy of Computing and Computer Science

The aim of this course is to survey some of the more important metaphysical, epistemological, ethical, and legal questions arising from the science of computers and from their ubiquitousness in the modern world. Some of the topics we will discuss are: • the nature of the concept of computation, and its relation to and origins within logic and mathematics; • the philosophical significance of the complexity-theoretic distinction between tractable and intractable computational problems; • whether the human mind can be described as a computer in any meaningful sense, and the possibility of and our attitudes towards artificial intelligence; • the methodology of programming and the ontological status of software; • the ethics of software patents and copyrights. Students will be required to write one 12-15 page term paper, due at the end of semester, on a topic of their choice (approved by the instructor). In addition, during the semester, students will be required to informally present on a topic of their choice from the list of scheduled readings, and hand in a more formal 5-6 page written copy of their presentation upon its completion (note: depending on the number of students enrolled in and/or auditing the course, I may ask you to give two informal oral presentations; however you will only be required to hand in a written version of one of them). No prior detailed knowledge of mathematics or computer science is required for this course. However some familiarity with basic -high school”-level mathematics, and an elementary knowledge of first-order (i.e. predicate) logic, is recommended. All readings will be either available electronically through the university library website, or will be provided to you by me. A preliminary syllabus for the course can be found here: http://www.michaelcuffaro.com/files/cs_syllabus.pdf W3-Professur für Wissenschaftstheorie (Univ. Prof. Stephan Hartmann) Some basic familiarity with first order (i.e. predicate) logic is recommended.      term paper OR (presentation+essay/record), according to the lecturer's specification (= BA and general MA program in philosophy); equivalent forms of assessment by arrangement [9 ECTS-points] LMU München SoSe 2015 Fakultät für Philosophie Wissenschaftstheorie und Religionswissenschaft