Heusser                                                                                    Philosophy 100                                                                  SG #2b

 

Philosophy Journal: Part B. Experiences

 

  • See SG 2a for general Journal format and Part A. Reason Questions.
  • The Experience section will ask for your observations about philosophical ideas found in student presentations as well as reflections about audio segments, film clips, and website components that I introduce throughout the semester in class. You are asked to elaborate on some of these experiences for both times you turn in your Philosophy journal.
  • Note that some websites require you to download shockwave or flash. If you cannot access a website, try using a campus computer or stop by my office for assistance.
  •  Contents are listed topically and will be presented and discussed in this order.
  • Each of the two times you submit the journal should include 5 experience reports:
  1. 1 Student Presentations (a group presentation counts as one but do not report on your own presentation)
  2. 1 Video or Audio Film Clips shown in class (see below for list)
  3. 1 Interactive Website referred to in Experiences handout (see below for list)
  4. 2 Additional Experiences from the above 3 categories (from any on list).

 

Part B. Experience Format: You should follow the following format for ALL reports (including presentations, websites, or film clips):

  1. Presentation Title and date: For student presentations include their name and their Philosopher, for films include the film name, and for websites include URL.
  2. Summary: List two main points of the presentation or experience. This may be 2 philosophical things you learned or 2 philosophical points covered. Explain.
  3. 1 Reason Question: Write one question that is raised by the presentation or experience. Is there any question in our reason section the experience ties in with? Write your own Socratic Question that fits the point of the experience. Why is this question important? (The right question is oftentimes better than the right answer)
  4. Optional: Rate the presentation or experience. Was it 5 Excellent, 4 Above Average, 3 Average, 2 Below Average, 1 Poor, or No Opinion. Was your experience useful or irrelevant? Note: I will not be grading student presentations based on student responses. Do not fret!

·        Note: For presentations, attempt to interpret the presenter’s main points. However, in the case of film clips and websites, it may be easier to detail what you learned or what questions you think are important.

·        This is an informal exercise so there are not word limits or anything along those lines. However, for those wanting a guideline, one paragraph is sufficient for the main part of your summary and Socratic question.

·        2 points extra credit is possible if you email me a site that has specifically interactive components and has to do with philosophy in a relevant way (up to 4 points). Interactive means that there are elements to the site that allow you to provide input and receive custom output. A search engine or Philosophy dictionary does not count. Click on “Bending Beams I” for a physics example at http://www.colorado.edu/physics/2000/index.pl?Type=TOC

Experience Part I:

 

Reason and Philosophical Method: + “Questions for Consideration”

1. Saturday Night Live: Steve Martin Theodoric of York: Medieval Barber

  • What is a problem with blindly following the traditions of the past? Can we do better? Can we do worse? How so, in either case? When Martin’s test did not work, what was suggested? What are proper testing procedures?
  • Other films: Monty Python and the Holy Grail: “[Burn the] Witch Village”

Websites

2. www.martinlutherking.org What are your expectations? What did you discover?

3. http://sprott.physics.wisc.edu/pickover/esp.html Pickover's ESP site says it is "psychic." Follow directions and explain if your mind was read correctly or not.

4. TPM: Philosophical Health Check: Tension Quotient: http://www.philosophers.co.uk/games/check.htm Include results

5. TPM: Laws: http://www.philosophers.co.uk/games/dealing_with_science.htm

  • Include results

 

God

6. Men in Black: Infinity. What happened? Could the process go on forever?

Websites

7. TPM: God: http://www.philosophers.co.uk/games/god.htm Include results

8. http://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/primer/java/scienceopticsu/powersof10/ Can this go on?

 

Order and Chance

9. 2001: “The Dawn of Man” (18m).

  • Did humans develop naturally or supernaturally? What does the water represent? The obelisk? The Bone? The Ship? What did you think about the fight?

10. http://evolution.berkeley.edu Click on “Misconceptions”

Evil and the Problem of Evil

11. Joe Frank: (Audiotape) “Bad Karma” What do you think is evil for Joe Frank?

12. PBS Frontline: Faith and Doubt at Ground Zero.

  • Part II. The Face of God (Track 3: 22-46: 24m) This clip presents some who lost loved ones on 9/11. How did Praimnath and Clark react differently? What point did the Rabbi make about God’s plan? What is meant by “Our toy, our game”? Why relate Sisyphus to this topic? (For more on Sisyphus by Camus see: http://stripe.colorado.edu/~morristo/sisyphus.html) Part V. The Face of Religion/Ground Zero (6: 136-143: 7m) What did the Priest think of religion?
  • Other films: Parenthood: Roller Coaster

 

Mind and the Mind-Body Problem

13. The Fly: Transporter.

  • What does a molecular analyzer do? For what purpose does this serve? What does Goldblum mean by “That’s the real one.” Is any of this possible for kittens?

14. The 6th Day: (“Repet”: 20m + Infomercial 2m)

  • What is syncording? If souls exist, do clones have one? Are clones identical? Can intelligence be created by humans? Is the lab a proper “mother”?

15. Koyaanisqatsi: Life Out of Balance: “The Grid” (Track 10: 44-50 6m OR 61-68)

  • Other films on mind: TRON: “Group 6 Access”, MindWalk: Systems Theory, Probability Patterns, and Atom Size, A.I., Nova: Mysteries of the Brain. What point is made about phantom pains?
  • If time: Show and Tell: StereoScopic Glasses

 

Non-Humans and A.I.

16. Star Trek: The Next Generation: “The Measure of a Man” (45m).

  • Enjoy, but toward the end: What are the 3 criteria of sentience? See Study Guides.

17. Blade Runner: The Blush Response (if time)

  • What is the Voight-Kampf test? What is Rachel’s point about retiring humans? Websites

18. www.Alicebot.org Click on “A.L.I.C.E.” and ask several questions.

 

Experience Part II

 

Certainty and Knowledge

19. The Matrix: We’ll try to view 3 parts. See SG 15c

  • “Down the Rabbit Hole” (Track: 8-12: 19m): When did Neo leave the Matrix? In what 4 ways is Neo connected to the Matrix? Why did the computers unplug him?

II. “They’re coming for you” (Track: 5-7: 13m): What does “the bug is real” mean?

III. “Training begins” (13-17: 15m +8 Cypher/Mouse): “Some rules can be bent”?

20. Waking Life: “Dreams” (6m).

  • What is lucid dreaming? What marks distinguish dreaming from being awake? If dreams are only real as long as they last, then how is this different than life?
  • Other films questioning appearance and reality: Dark City, The Truman Show, The 13th Floor, Jacob’s Ladder, Vanilla Sky, Ghost in the Shell

 

Websites

21. TPM: Matrix: http://www.philosophers.co.uk/games/matrix_start.htm (Include in your journal only if you skipped the Pickover site in #4)

 

Freedom and Determinism

22. Jurassic Park: “Start the Tour!” (9m)

  • What is Jurassic Park? What point is made about 65 million years of instinct? What is Chaos Theory? What is the Butterfly effect?

23. Waking Life:

  • Part I. “Free Will and Physics” (8m). What does quantum mechanics offer to the free will dialogue? Why is Professor Sosa unsatisfied with Quantum Mechanics as an example of free will? Part II. Do you think the angry man is happy? If he was happy, would he have been like he was?

Websites

24. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aso/tryit/brain/probe.html PBS Brain Probe (may need shockwave: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aso/tryit/brain/ )

 

Good and Morality

25. Rage against the Machine:

  • “The Battle of Mexico City”: Documentary V (Track 16: 2m). What is the IMF? What is the WTO? What is the big issue according to Zach?

26. Joe Frank: “Red Sea” (audiotape)

  • Do you think it is possible the Rabbi and the Rabbi’s wife both state the truth? Are their views contradictory? Must one be lying?
  • Other films on Ethics: The Examined Life: Do the ends justify the means? Do you think that nature has intrinsic value? Why? Is it a “relative truth” that the expansion of the city would benefit the villagers? What does “relative” mean?

Websites

27. TPM: Morality: http://www.philosophers.co.uk/games/morality_play.htm

  • Include Results

 

Beauty and Art

28. Audio: Radiohead’s “Subterranean Homesick Alien” vs. Aphex Twin’s “Jynweythek Ylow”. Feel free to bring a CD of your favorite or least-liked music. We’ll vote on it! See http://socialscience.cypresscollege.edu/~wheusser/100/guides/aphex_reviews.htm for reviews on Amazon.com. Does disparity in opinion show that beauty is in the eye of the beholder?

Websites

29.TPM: Brittany Spears vs. Shakespeare: http://www.philosophers.co.uk/games/britney_spears.htm Include results

 

Sensation and Qualities of Objects

30. At First Sight: “Visual Agnosia” (7m)

  • Had Virgil ever read before? If so, why couldn’t he read now?
  • Other Films about the role the mind in sensation: Memento (a personal favorite)

Websites

31. http://www.yorku.ca/eye/thejoy.htm Click 3 “fun things” in vision and “blind spot”

 

Matter, Time, and Space (only if time)

32. Donnie Darko: “Time Storm” What is time travel?

 

Personal Identity (only if time)

33. Nova: Life’s Greatest Miracle (3m)

  • What answer does this give you to the question “Who are you?” Where were you before you were born? What would be a philosophical objection to this answer?
  • Other films: Maharaji: About Life What claims are made by Maharaji?

Websites

35. TPM: Identity: http://www.philosophers.co.uk/games/identity.htm Include results

  • The Fine Print: Every effort will be made to present each Film and Audio clip, but several will not be shown because of time constraints. If a clip is not shown, then do not include it in your journal as I may want us to focus on a specific portion of a clip instead of the entire film. Thus, you should not wait until the last moment to finish your journals hoping that all posted clips will be shown near the end.
  • Note: Even if you address all of the “Questions for Consideration” that I have listed by each film clip, you must still follow the format listed on page 1 as well (e.g., Summary and Socratic Questions).