Link to Galileo

ChapterCritiques
& Hume-Geisler

Exam Questions

Cluster
Descriptions

[Barnes' 
homepage] 

Link to Student
Handbook
on plagiarism: 
(go to "Academic
Information,"

Fall 2007  

GENERAL COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course is part of the Values, Technology, and Society cluster,
as well the the Perspectives on Global Environmental Issues 
[See the link at the left to a page on the clusters and Humanities Base] 
  
This course will explore the different kinds of relations that may exist between religious beliefs (primarily Western) and modern science.  This includes topics of the methods of science and of religion, of the nature, existence, and activity of God, of the origin, order, and destiny of the universe, of the evolution of life and the nature of the human self.  It will end with a brief review of ideas about the place of humankind in the process of the universe, and mplications for technological and environmental issues.  

TEXTS 
John Haught, Science and Religion: From Conflict to Conversation (Paulist Press, 1995),
Michael Barnes, Religion and Science Reader and Notes for Rel. 375 
   Bring this to class with you everyday; we will be using its surveys, charts, etc., frequently.
Some additional readings, as indicated on the calendar page

EVALUATION
The final grade will be based on a possible maximum of 400 points. 
    93% = A  90% = A-;  87% = B+'  83% = B;   80% = B-; etc. 
There are 3 essay exams, including the final, worth 100 points each.
Four written critiques of 5 chapters in Haught are each worth up to 20 points.
There is also one written critique of arguments on miracles, from David Hume and Norman Geisler, worth 20 points.
Critiques may be handed in late, but will lose points for lateness. 
See the web pages listing exam questions and the reading guide assignments [The exam questions will be posted in advance of each exam.]  
Class participation will count in your favor in any marginal situation, provided the participation is relevant and cogent, helpful to the class, or raises interesting questions relevant to the material. 

SPECIAL PROBLEMS
Inform me of needs or disabilities that require accommodations.  I will be happy to work with you.

OTHER REQUIREMENTS
     As in any course you are responsible for whatever happens in class, even in your absence.  In case of your absence be sure to have someone who can inform you about class material and announcements.
     If you are going to miss an exam or be late on an assignment, please call me, Barnes, in advance if at all possible.
     Cooperative learning is good.  If you are having trouble with aspects of the course, please feel free to work with others in the course to learn from them.  But on the exams and on the critiques, the material you hand in must be your own understanding and your own wording of that understanding.  Always be sure to identify any sources from whom you are taking material.  When you are taking it from Barnes or from Haught, you can refer simply to B or H with a page number.  Be sure to use quotation marks if when you quote a source, and always cite your source when you quote or paraphrase .   (Plagiarism can earn an "F" for the assignment or even the entire course.  See the student handbook on this  Use the link at the left here. The relevant section is under "Academic Information.)