Philosophy of science examines the assumptions, foundations, methods, and consequences of the empirical sciences. How can science be distinguished from pseudoscience? What is the scientific method, and is science fundamentally methodological? What goals does science pursue? Does science provide a true description of the world or is it merely a useful tool for harnessing nature? What do concepts such as laws of nature and scientific explanation mean? These are among the questions pursued in this branch of human knowledge. Philosophers of science attempt to examine the claims of the empirical sciences from different perspectives, such as semantics, metaphysics, epistemology, and methodology, in a deeper layer. These investigations also include philosophical issues related to specific sciences. The analysis of the fundamental concepts of scientific theories, such as the concept of space-time and the concept of life, as well as the examination of the philosophical assumptions and consequences of those theories, is the responsibility of philosophers of science. The formation of dynamic fields such as the philosophy of physics and the philosophy of biology is the result of these investigations. The philosophy of science is also linked to the ethical and theological consequences of the empirical sciences. Ethical concerns about human simulation, some concerns about the remarkable progress of artificial intelligence, questions raised about the relationship of divine action to the laws of nature, as well as issues related to the confrontation between evolutionism and creationism, are among the aforementioned consequences. The examination of these matters, which, of course, is closely related to the teachings of the philosophy of ethics and the philosophy of religion, is another part of the preoccupations of philosophers of science.
The Philosophy of Science course was formed in 2008 with the aim of examining such issues in a specialized manner and was welcomed by students and academic communities after a short period of time. This course consists of 14 core course units, 14 elective course units, and 4 thesis units. The core courses offered in this course are:
Philosophy of Science 1 (3 units)
Western Philosophy (3 units)
Physics and Philosophy 1 (2 units)
Islamic Philosophy (2 units)
General Logic (2 units)
Ancient Logic (2 units)
Among the elective courses, we can mention courses such as Comparative Metaphysics, Epistemology, Sociology of Science, Philosophy of Technology, Philosophy of Information, and Philosophy of Mind.
All students in this course can obtain a thesis if they comply with the legal framework.