Winter Session Courses

Philosophy On-Line Courses: December 28, 2023 to January 19, 2024

Course Descriptions

Course registration for UB Winter Session typically opens in early October.

UB This Winter.

Course Descriptions

PHI 105 Contemporary Moral Problems

Online Instructor: Gloria Sanso
Online Class #10094


This course will philosophically examine contentious moral issues of the day. Among the topics that may be discussed are abortion, capital punishment, affirmative action, obligations of wealthy nations to poor nations, duties to non-human animals, vegetarianism, sex workers, pornography, legalized gambling and lotteries, gun control, drone warfare, human enhancements through drugs and prostheses, homosexual marriage, racial profiling, and legalization of currently illegal drugs. This is an online course. At NO time will this course require students to be on campus.

This course aims to introduce students to important ethical theories and their application to real problems in the world today. We will focus on questions like “is abortion permissible?”; “is it permissible to eat meat?”; “do we have a moral right to immigrate?” and “should organs be for sale?”, among others.

Because this is a condensed course, we will be covering material very quickly. The coursework will include reading philosophical texts and responding in writing assignments and quizzes. Assignments will be geared toward developing critical thinking, reading, and writing skills, as well as introducing students to the field of ethics. 

PHI 237 Medical Ethics: Values In Medicine

Online Instructor: Josh Vonderhaar
Online Class #10085


Examines current ethical positions and their application to ethical and social questions in medicine. This is an online course. At NO time will this course require students to be on campus.

In this course, we will consider a variety of ethical issues that arise in the biomedical field. You will be introduced to some of the major ethical frameworks within moral philosophy (e.g. utilitarianism, deontology) as well as the basic method and tools of philosophical analysis. We will survey examples of applications of these frameworks to various bioethical issues. You will develop the skills needed to read, discuss, and write about philosophical issues within bioethics You will practice applying the tools of philosophical analysis in order to (i) recognize the ethical frameworks being applied to various bioethical issues, (ii) identify arguments presented in the readings and assignments, (iii) discuss your own critical evaluations of the arguments, and (iv) construct and defend your own evaluations and arguments about these issues in writing. The main goal is to get you to become better, more careful thinkers, both in general and about bioethical questions in particular. Not only will you become familiar with a number of different views surrounding ethical issues in medicine, you will also have the opportunity to further develop your own view on these important issues.