The following is an incomplete list of topics covered in the course.

• Scientific knowledge
• Definitions
• Hypothesis testing
• Observations and measurements
• Experiments
• Models
• Statistical reasoning
• Causes and explanations
• Qualitative methods
• Algorithmic reasoning and its limitations
• Risk and decisions of risks
• Research ethics
• Philosophical theories about mathematical objects’ nature
• Theorethical representation theorems of measurement
• Theoretical virtues in mathematical models

After having completed the course, the student should, with regards to the theory and methodology of science, both orally as well as in writing, be able to:

• Identify definitions and descriptions of concepts, theories and problem areas, as well as identify the correct application of these concepts and theories.
• Account for concepts, theories and general problem areas, as well as apply concepts and theories to specific cases.
• Critically discuss the definitions and applications of concepts and theories as they applies to specific cases of scientific research.

These learning objectives are examined in writing via an exam and orally via seminars. 

• chart the main lines of thought in some different philosophical theories about the nature of mathematical objects and our knowledge of them.
• describe the content of some representation theorems from the theory of measurement, and discuss the import of these theorems concerning the relationship between mathematical structures and the material world.
• compare different mathematical models of one and the same phenomenon with regard to theoretical virtues such as simplicity, agreement with observations, etc.

These learning objectives are examined in writing via a project work.

Lectures

This course includes the following eleven lectures. They are all available as videos on Canvas to watch whenever you want. Their place in the schedule is a suggestion of when you might view it. The exception is the lecture “Algorithmic reasoning and its limitations” which is given as a campus lecture.

1. Introduction and scientific knowledge (26 minutes)
2. Scientific inferences (59 minutes)
3. Observation and measurement (76 minutes)
4. Experiments (49 minutes)
5. Models (62 minutes)
6. Statistics (62 minutes)
7. Explanations and causes (81 minutes)
8. Qualitative methods (93 minutes)
9. Algorithmic reasoning and its limitations
10. Research Ethics (103 minutes)
11. Anticipating Risk in Science and Engineering (85 minutes)

From the second lecture onward, there is an associated quiz of 15 questions. If you complete the quiz with at least 14 points, you will get 0,5 bonus points for the exam. You can attempt to complete the quiz as many times as you like until it closes. This quiz closes at the end of the week where the lecture is scheduled (Sunday, 23:59, of each week). (The exception is “Algorithmic reasoning and its limitations”, which has its own deadline, see Canvas.) This is to incentivise studying throughout the course, rather than only at the end. Bonus points collected during this period are valid for the exam and the re-exam belonging to this period.

In addition to these, there are two “flipped classroom” sessions. In these sessions, the lecturer answers your questions. In this period, they are given only as discussion forum interaction on Canvas. You need to have asked the question before the dates specified for the flipped classroom on Canvas, but you do not need to be present on any lecture nor do you have to watch any video. You can read the answers in the discussion forum at any time after the session.

Seminars, 1,5 credits

The course includes a mandatory seminar series comprised of four seminars. Each seminar covers selected course contents from the video lectures and course readings, and following the first seminar, each subsequent seminar connects to the previous seminars.

Seminars are intended as a collaborative learning activity where you practice critically discussing course contents and practice applying course contents to cases, with instruction and support from teaching staff. The overall topics covered during the seminar series are as follows: 

1. Definitions, operationalizations and hypotheses (course week 3) 
2. Designing a scientific study (course week 4)
3. Interpretation, analysis and evidence (course week 6)
4. Risk and research ethics (course week 7). 

Since completion of the seminar series yields course credits, the seminars feature mandatory activities: (1) preparing and passing a seminar quiz, and (2) actively participating on the seminar. Missing activities result in seminar incompletion and thus no seminar course credits. 

Before each seminar, you read the assigned readings (reading instructions available on Canvas). Before attending each seminar, you must also pass a mandatory seminar preparation quiz (See section on Schedule and see Canvas for deadlines). There is no limit on number of quiz attempts up until the quiz deadline. You must complete the quiz with a passing score of 14 points before the deadline (indicated in Canvas as “Passed”).  

The preparation quizzes are intended to ensure that all participants come prepared to the seminar for a more rewarding seminar learning experience. If you attend the seminar without completing the preparation quiz beforehand, you will not be marked as attending.  

On the seminar, you will be working together with other students on exercises as per instructed by the teacher. The exercises are formulated in such a way as to promote critical reflection and discussion, as well as to practice application of course concepts to case scenarios.*(not for AK2030 online - they have their own seminar-like assignments)  

You are expected to engage actively with the course contents and work on the exercises during the seminar. Passive attendance on the seminar will be marked as not attending. Active participation on the seminar does not mean that you are expected to demonstrate full proficiency of course contents. Rather, it means that you are expected to have properly engaged with the relevant course material beforehand and made an honest attempt at understanding it. Arisen questions and reflections can be addressed on the seminar. 

For information on what to do if you have not completed a preparation quiz or actively attended on a seminar, see the section on Examination and completion. 

Note that the TimeEdit course schedule shows multiple seminar slots for every seminar week. The different slots correspond to different seminar groups. You will join one seminar group upon course start and your group takes only one seminar per seminar week. Instructions on how to join a seminar group as well as seminar group schedule will be available on Canvas after course start and before the start of the seminar series.*(not for AK2030 online) 

Seminar contents and reading instructions

All course readings can be found on Canvas. 

Seminar 1 – Definitions, operationalizations and hypotheses

Texts: 

• Grüne-Yanoff, Till – Justified Method Choice, chapters 1, 2, 3, 13 
• Optional reading: Hansson, Sven Ove – Art of Doing Science: sections 2.2-2.8, 3.1-3.2, 5.0-5.1, and 5.8 

Topics relevant for the seminar:   

• Stipulative and lexical definitions 
• Narrowness and broadness (as applied to definitions) 
• Vagueness 
• Hypotheses (and their quality criteria)
• Direct, aided and indirect observation
• Operationalization
• Accuracy and precision (as qualities of observations and measurements)
• Measurement error (random and systematic error)
• Convergent validity and divergent validity 

Seminar 2 – Designing a scientific study

Texts: 

• Grüne-Yanoff, Till – Justified Method Choice, chapters 4, 5. 
• Optional reading: Hansson, Sven Ove – Art of Doing Science: sections 3.7, 4.2-4, and 5.1-3. 

Topics relevant for the seminar:  

• Experiment, observational studies and model studies 
• Mill’s method of difference 
• Internal validity and external validity 
• Experimental control 
• Constancy, elimination and effect separation
• Randomization
• Control group and treatment group
• Observer influence
• Confirmation bias
• Blinding
• Epistemic virtues of models (Parameter precision, Similarity, Robustness, Simplicity, Tractability, Transparency) 
• Analogies (positive, negative, neutral) 

Seminar 3: Interpretation, analysis and evidence

Texts: 

• Grüne-Yanoff, Till – Justified Method Choice: chapters 2, 6, 7.
• Seminar 3 article(s) (provided on Canvas). 
• Optional reading: Hansson, Sven Ove – Art of Doing Science: sections 1.6-7, 3.7, 3.9, 5.3-5, 5.7, 7, 8 and the box on p. 24. 

Topics relevant for the seminar:   

• Repeatability, reproducibility and replicability 
• Statistical evaluation
• Statistical significance
• Correlation and causality
• Explanatory virtues (Accuracy [of explanations], Non-sensitivity, Precision in the explanans, Precision of the explanandum, Cognitive salience)
• Duhem-Quine thesis
• Ad-hoc hypothesis
• Falsificationism (Popper)
• Inductive and deductive inferences 

Seminar 4: Risk and research ethics

Texts: 

• Grüne-Yanoff, Till – Justified Method Choice, chapters 11, 12.
• “On Being a Scientist: Responsible Conduct in Research”, National academy of Sciences.
• Ahlin, Jesper, “Ethical Thinking”.
• Optional reading: Hansson, Sven Ove - Art of Doing Science: Section 9. 

Topics relevant for the seminar:   

• Gift authorship and ghost authorship 
• Scientific misconduct (falsification, fabrication and plagiarism) 
• Informed consent 
• Deontology, consequentialism and virtue ethics 
• Precautionary principle 
• Decision making (under certainty/risk/ignorance/deep uncertainty) 

Project, 3 credits

In this part you will discuss the relationship between mathematics and reality. The part will consist of four lectures and one final assignment, graded pass, fail or revise. More information can be found on Canvas.

There are two main course texts:

• Experiments, models and methodology by Till Grüne-Yanoff.
• The Art of Doing Science by Sven Ove Hansson.

In addition, there are three supplemental texts:

• On Being a Scientist: Responsible Conduct in Research, which is an excerpt from a text by the National Academy of Sciences.
• Ethical Thinking by Jesper Ahlin.
• Algorithmic Reasoning and its Limitations by Tor Sandqvist.

Students at KTH with a permanent disability can get support during studies from Funka:

Funka - compensatory support for students with disabilities

A, B, C, D, E, FX, F

• PRO1 - Project, 3.0 credits, Grading scale: P, F
• SEM1 - Seminars, 1.5 credits, Grading scale: P, F
• TENB - Written exam, 3.0 credits, Grading scale: A, B, C, D, E, FX, F

Based on recommendation from KTH’s coordinator for disabilities, the examiner will decide how to adapt an examination for students with documented disability.

The examiner may apply another examination format when re-examining individual students.

A student can be examined in SEM1 with written assignments that replace attendance at seminars, provided that an agreement is in place for the student to take the course remotely.

Seminars

There are four seminars, all mandatory. To pass a seminar you need to: 

• read the required material 
• watch the required videos 
• pass a seminar quiz 
• actively participate in the seminar*(not for AK2030 online - participation is understood differently) 

The seminar module is graded P/F. If you have passed all seminars, you get the grade P. 

Examination

The examination is based on the lectures and the seminars, as well as the course literature. It is given on campus on the date and time indicated in the schedule. It consists of three parts. The first part is a multiple-choice part asking you to identify the definitions and applications of course concepts. The second part is an essay part where you are to submit essay answers to two problems. In this part you are asked to account for the course concepts. The third part is an essay part where you choose one out of a list of problems, which require you to account for, apply and discuss course concepts to show skills equivalent to the grade levels B and A. This part is only corrected if the student passes parts 1&2. 

The exam is open-book, which means that one is allowed to bring printed copies of the course literature or any other literature as well as one’s own notes. A dictionary (published paper dictionary, such as Swedish-English) is also allowed. All such material must be printed or hand-written on paper. No electronic devices, such as computers or phones, are allowed during the exam. 

During the course there are quizzes and flipped classroom sessions where students can collect bonus points. The bonus points are scaled to fit the exam format: maximum five points. The points are then added to the part 1 exam score, capped at the maximum for that part. Bonus points are valid for the exam and re-exam belonging to the period and year when they were collected. One may collect points valid for another exam by re-registering for that period and re-taking the quizzes. 

Project Part

Fullfilled seminar requirements, project requirements and written exam.

A student may request a home exam, with the maximum grade of E, if two requirements are fulfilled: (1) This is the last remaining exam left before graduation. (2) It is not possible for the student to attend the written exam because the student is, at the point of the request, residing outside of Sweden and will be residing outside of Sweden for at least twelve months following the request. The examiner approves or denies these requests. 

There is an opportunity to raise an approved grade via renewed examination at the re-exam or a later exam date. Re-exams are marked as such in the schedule at www.kth.se/schema. In order to do this you should contact the administration by following the link below:  

https://www.kth.se/student/kontakt/kontaktuppgifter/studentexpeditioner/studentexpeditioner-1.328345  

Include your personal number and course code, as well as the date when you wish to take the re-exam. 

If you are unable to attend a seminar at a particular time and day, you might be able to join another seminar group during the same seminar week. Consult with your course coordinator before changing seminar group.

If you fail or are unable to attend one or more of the seminars, you can sign up for a compensation seminar, offered towards the end of the course. See course schedule in TimeEdit for scheduling of the compensation seminars. Alternatively, you may re-register and attend remaining seminars during an ensuing course period, conditional on that the seminar is offered in that period. If you complete the seminar module over the course of more than one period, please inform the course coordinator that you have passed all seminars.

If you miss or fail the exam, you may take the corresponding re-exam. It may also be possible to take the exam during another period. Note however that any bonus points collected during a course period are only valid for the exam and re-exam for that period. If you wish to take the exam after the designated exam or re-exam, check which periods the course is offered in and see corresponding examination dates. Note that you must register on the course and sign up for the exam in order to take the exam.

Exam results will be communicated to students within 15 workdays following the day of the exam. This might not be met if there is a need to validate a submission or there is suspicion of cheating. 

• All members of a group are responsible for the group's work.
• In any assessment, every student shall honestly disclose any help received and sources used.
• In an oral assessment, every student shall be able to present and answer questions about the entire assignment and solution.