(OHSC0) Understanding Epistemology With HSC Peer Tutor Sebastian Zuba

In this article, the Board of SASS interviews HSC Peer Tutor Sebastian Zuba. We hope that this article will help current and future HSC students in their academic journey!

When did you take History and Philosophy of Science (OHSC0), and who was your instructor?

I took HSC in the 2019-20 school year and my instructor was Dr. Wallhagen.

About how much time did you spend a week working on assignments and preparing for discussion sessions in History and Philosophy of Science (OHSC0)?

To the best of my memory I spent probably about an hour total preparing for discussion sessions every week, and 5-10 hours on every writing assignment

What did the typical week in History and Philosophy of Science (OHSC0) look like?

Typically we’d cover some philosopher or other, and the bulk of my thought and time would go towards discussions in class, on top of that I’d put a couple hours in for writing or preparing for a WA/project

What did you enjoy about History and Philosophy of Science (OHSC0)?

HSC was a class that introduced me to so many topics i never heard about, and then challenged me to argue thoughtfully about it. This combination was really fun and a great teacher and class helped a lot.

What was your favorite topic covered in History and Philosophy of Science (OHSC0)?

My favorite topic covered in HSC was the general theme of epistemology and how we know what we know.

What challenged you the most in History and Philosophy of Science (OHSC0)? How did you overcome those challenges?

Sometimes, in HSC, I struggled to understand complex scientific topics. I got through this by participating a lot in class.

Are there midterms/finals in this class? How would you recommend reviewing for these exams?

There are final exams for this class, although I’m not sure how they’ve been affected by COVID. The best thing you can do to prepare for these tests is to try to form your own opinions about topics and understand the different sides to arguments well, so you can easily compose topical essays.

What are the major assignments for this class? How would you recommend approaching these assignments?

The biggest assignment for this class is the final project. My recommendation would be to cover the topic you understand best, and to set up an idea and angle as soon as you can, that you know you can prove and accomplish, so you don’t overwhelm yourself.

Do you recommend typing or hand-writing notes for History and Philosophy of Science (OHSC0)?

I recommend hand-writing notes for HSC. There’s a lot of complex ideas that sometimes need more than just letters to get across

How should a student participate and engage in discussions of History and Philosophy of Science (OHSC0)?

It’s hard to not want to participate in HSC, but ensuring that you’re comfortable postulating ideas and getting to know your students can help you get over any fears of doing so.

What tips do you have that could be useful to students taking History and Philosophy of Science (OHSC0)?

Make sure you have logical, step-by-step, and not overly complicated arguments for your writing assignments.

If you have taken any other core classes at the OHS, how does History and Philosophy of Science (OHSC0) compare to other courses in the core sequence?

HSC is much less political than the later core courses. Compared to MSB, HSC is simply more fun, less stem-based, and more discussion-oriented

Do you have any resources (i.e. study tips, useful websites) to share with students who want to take the course?

Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy can be used to understand almost all topics, even when reading it isnt explicitly assigned.

Sebastian Zuba is a Peer Tutor for History and Philosophy of Science and can be found on the Writing and Tutoring Center.

#HSC #OHSC0