Introduction to Scientific Reasoning

This course aims to provide students with the preliminary notions and practical skills required to understand the modes of argumentation that are typical of scientific reasoning.

Knowledge and understanding
When completing this course students will be able to:
Recognize the logical structure of scientific arguments via examining general patterns of inference and their instantiation in historically significant examples.
Present the basic ideas underlying a scientific theory, paradigm or research programme.

Applying knowledge and undestanding
When completing the course students will be able to:
analyse a text that deals with scientific problems or philosophical issues concerning scientific theories.
apply the acquired notions and tools in case-studies of particular philosophical interest.

Making judgments
express an adequate level of autonomy in making judgments about the fundamental aspects of a scientific debate.
Communication skills
communicate clearly and in a focused and accurate way, avoiding obscure and vague phrasing and properly selecting the key elements.
esplicit the acquired skills and the underlying problematic aspects.