CS203 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Testability
CS203(A) Conceptual Issues in Communication and Culture
Dr. Herbert Pimlott
Office: DAWB 3rd floor, 3-150
Phone: 519-884-0710 ext 2522
hpimlott@wlu.ca
Hours: weeks 1-12 M 4:30-5:30 or by appt… special office hours weeks 3-12 T 12:00-1:30
Tutorial attendance and participation - 20%
Take home midterm - 25% (due 6pm oct 20)
Written assignment - 25% (due 6pm nov 14)
Take home final - 30% (due 6pm dec 11)
2% bonus marks for speaking about readings in office hours (week 3-12)
Theory, Fact, Opinion
● Fact: thing that is known to be true or to exist
● Opinion: belief based on grounds short of proof, view held as probable, what one thinks
about something
What is Theory?
● Original: contemplation, spectacle, mental conception → old greek spectator (OED)
● “A statement that sets out to explain something, event, etc”
● Theory is: “supposition to account for something; system of rules and principles,
especially distinguished from practice… speculative…”
○ Supposition is an uncertain belief
Monkey Typewriter Theory: The experiment attempts to prove the theory that an infinite number
of monkeys sitting at an infinite number of typewriters would eventually reproduce the works of
Shakespeare by chance.
Theory: Aims & Objectives
● Making the familiar strange
● Children make the best theorists
● Description: what is it?
● Explanation
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Hours: weeks 1-12 m 4:30-5:30 or by appt special office hours weeks 3-12 t 12:00-1:30. Take home midterm - 25% (due 6pm oct 20) Written assignment - 25% (due 6pm nov 14) Take home final - 30% (due 6pm dec 11) 2% bonus marks for speaking about readings in office hours (week 3-12) Fact: thing that is known to be true or to exist. Opinion: belief based on grounds short of proof, view held as probable, what one thinks about something. Original: (cid:3247)contemplation(cid:3248), (cid:3247)spectacle(cid:3248), (cid:3247)mental conception(cid:3248) old greek (cid:3247)spectator(cid:3248) (oed) Theory is: supposition to account for something; system of rules and principles, A statement that sets out to explain something, event, etc especially distinguished from practice speculative . Monkey typewriter theory: the experiment attempts to prove the theory that an infinite number of monkeys sitting at an infinite number of typewriters would eventually reproduce the works of. How well does it answer: what, how, or why.
