Revolutions in Science: Plato to Nato

X-102 — Fall 2025

Instructor
Domenico Bertoloni Meli
Course Description
Science is the most successful way humans have found to produce knowledge of the world. But the success of science lies in the fact that it is not just a collection of facts and theories — science's success comes from critical attitudes and methodologies.
This course covers topics essential for understanding scientific reasoning.  By the end of the course, students will understand the concepts of logical validity and soundness, laws of nature and scientific models, causation, principles of statistical reasoning, experimental design, and pseudoscience.  Other topics may include ethics in science, decision theory, and scientific realism.