For fall 2022, the seminar topic for PHIL 490 is paradoxes. A paradox is something that catches us off our intellectual guard as suggested by the etymology of ‘paradox’; the word derives from the ancient Greek word, ‘παραδόξα’, meaning ‘contrary to expected opinion or belief.' Some paradoxes turn out on closer inspection to be shallow and to admit of straightforward resolution; others turn out to be very deep, to not admit of easy resolution, to even threaten the coherence of some of our most basic concepts and assumptions. In this course, we’ll study a bunch of paradoxes — most of them very deep — related to infinity, motion, decision theory, change, identity, logic and truth.

Instructor: Donald Smith, Ph.D.