This is the home page for Philosophy 361, “Philosophy in Science Fiction”, being taught in the Fall 2024 semester by Professor Ron McClamrock of the University at Albany Department of Philosophy.

Here is an old syllabus for this course; the fall 2024 version of the course will follow a similar overall structure, but with changes to be posted in August 2024.

The course description:

An examination of some central issues in philosophy, using the occurrence of those issues in science fiction as a starting point. Topics to be covered will likely include the following: Can machines think? Through what changes can our self-identity persist? What kinds of beings count as persons? Is time-travel possible? Could the world be a huge illusion? This course will focus primarily on the traditional philosophical issues raised in science fiction rather than on the science fiction itself as literary or cinematic. But the settings for framing these problems will come from science fiction readings, movies, and television.

Please contact me at rmcclamrock at albany dot edu if you have questions.