PHYS0100
Flat Earth to Quantum Uncertainty: On the Nature and Meaning of Scientific Explanation [ Course Website ]
From Flat Earth to Quantum Uncertainty: Physics for Physicists and Philosophers:
Physics has had a dramatic impact on our conception of the universe, our ideas concerning the nature of knowledge, as well as our view of ourselves. Philosophy, sometimes inspired by developments in physics, has treated their impact on our lives. In this course, through a study of physics as well as selected philosophical readings, we explore how classical and modern physical theory have affected our view of the cosmos, of ourselves as human beings, as well as our view of the relation of mathematical or physical structures to ‘truth’ or ‘reality’. We consider questions such as how we can know anything, from seemingly simple facts to whether a machine is conscious.
Topics in physics will cover the classical theories of Galileo, Newton and Maxwell with emphasis on the twentieth century revolutions: relativity, quantum theory and quantum field theory, as well as their interpretations.
