Page 98 of Albion College Departments and Courses Catalog by Albion College Michigan

Examines theoretical and practical perspectives on ethical issues in relation to the environment. The theoretical issues range from whether we should assign moral value to species other than the human (and if so, on the basis of what criteria) to whether we have moral obligations to preserve the environment for future generations (and if so, what this would imply for the present generations). The practical issues range from creating incentives for restricting population growth without abdicating responsibilities toward the world's hungry, to the issue of what short-and long-term policies and practices need to be adopted to deal effectively with reducing pollution and hazardous waste while working toward a recycling, sustainable global society. Madhok. 302 Leadership Ethics (1) Spring Examines the ethical foundations of leadership. Involves an in-depth discussion of foremost leadership theories and their applications to different contexts; critically examines the morally distinct aspects of leadership by looking at the relationships among power, self-interest, and morality; and analyzes leadership from within the ethical frameworks of virtue, duty, and utility along with discussing the ethical challenges of diversity (culture relativism, race, and gender) to traditional leadership ethics. Madhok. 303 Business Ethics (1) Summer An examination of selected moral problems posed by corporate conduct--e.g., profit-maximization vs. social responsibility, corporate crime and the criminal justice system, business vs. environmental concerns, preferential hiring vs. reverse discrimination, employee autonomy vs. corporate loyalty, deception vs. honesty in advertising, corporate vs. government regulation. Clarification and critical examination of different ethical perspectives for resolving these moral dilemmas. Staff. 304 Ethics and Public Policy (1) Spring Emphasizes the ethical foundations of public policy. Rights, obligations, justice, autonomy, the nature of the good life: should these play a role in determining public policy, and if so, how? Focuses on the interaction between ethical values and public policy in areas such as health care, law, government, foreign policy, citizenship, education and media. Madhok. 306 Neuroscience and Ethics (1) Spring An introduction to the dialogue that has developed between cognitive neuroscientists and moral philosophers. Cognitive neuroscience brings to the study of ethics an interest in the way the brain processes information and in the kinds of brain states that subserve thought and action--in short, it is answering the question of what kind of information-processing creatures we are. Garvin/Madhok. 307 Symbolic Logic (1) Fall A study of the formal conceptual tools used by modern deductive logic to express and evaluate arguments. This course emphasizes the use of propositional and quantifier logic to clarify and evaluate arguments. Cline, Garvin. 308 Biomedical Ethics (1) Fall The application of major ethical theories to some of the moral problems raised by recent developments in medical technology. Does increased medical knowledge (the end) justify experimentation with human subjects (the means)? How much should a patient be told and who decides? Do parents have the right to give birth to a defective infant and thereby apparently pollute the gene pool? To whom is the genetic counselor responsible--fetus, parent, future generations? Is there a right to die? Who should be the ultimate decision-maker-physician, patient, pastor? Is health care a right or a privilege? In answering these dilemmas, are there any moral rules to follow or does each person decide what is best in the situation? Madhok. 315 Epistemology (1) Spring Prerequisite: Philosophy 107 or 307. A critical examination of recent work in the theory of knowledge, i.e., of classic contemporary papers on skepticism, knowledge and the justification of belief. Garvin. 335 Philosophical Issues in the Law (1) Spring Designed both for students interested in philosophy and for those interested in political science, history, economics, or sociology. Provides an explanation of legal concepts and institutions from the philosophical perspective. Develops in the student: (1) an understanding of some of the major philosophical issues in the law and (2) the ability to reflect critically upon them. Cline. 360 Science and the Self (1) Spring An historical and philosophical introduction to the Enlightenment conception of self, the growing scientific evidence against it, and the emergence of biologically realistic conceptions of self. Reviews humans identification of the self with the conscious mind and the view of the self as a free, rational agent from pre-Socratic Greek philosophy to the present day. Examines recent neuroscientific research revealing how the brain creates a sense of self, fueling a revolution in current thinking about what it is to be human. Garvin. 381, 382 Readings in Philosophy (1 each) Fall, Spring Prerequisite: Permission of instructor. Recommended for advanced students. Careful and critical study of one or more of the outstanding works in the history of philosophy. Staff. 391, 392 Internship (1/2, 1) Fall, Spring Offered on a credit/no credit basis. Staff. Page 4 of 5 Albion College Catalog 2006-2007 Philosophy 5/10/2006 http://www.albion.edu/academics/catalog/departments/philosophy.asp

[close]