Physics & Philosophy

Course detail Description

We have designed our joint honours Physics & Philosophy MSci to offer you the opportunity to study both subjects at master’s level. The course is initially split equally between physics and philosophy modules, with the opportunity to specialise in one discipline in the final years if you choose. Ours is one of the few physics and philosophy joint honours courses that follows an integrated approach to the two subjects, with modules in the philosophy of physics and philosophy of science, offering you a deeper understanding of some of the conceptual puzzles that you will encounter in your physics courses.

The physics section of the course covers core theoretical aspects of physics, including areas such as relativity, quantum mechanics, fields and waves, electromagnetism and nuclear physics.

This will give you important numerical and analytical skills, as well as preparing you for further study in theoretical physics.

In the philosophy section of the course you will learn to address difficult questions about the world, our knowledge of it and our values. This will give you highly transferable and valuable skills in reasoning and argument. We have designed our philosophy modules during the first year to give you a good grounding in a range of important philosophical concepts. Later on you will be free to choose from an exceptionally broad range of philosophical topics. At the same time, modules in the Philosophy of Spacetime Physics, the Philosophy of Quantum Mechanics and the Philosophy of Science offer you the opportunity to apply your reasoning skills to physics and to explore some of the fascinating problems encountered in interpreting modern physics.

In the final year, you will undertake a Physics project and research and write a Philosophy dissertation to explore your own academic interests. You will also be able to choose from a wide range of modules from either discipline, including modules offered by other University of London colleges.

We will teach you through lectures, seminars, laboratory classes, tutorials and project work. All academic staff are involved with the undergraduate teaching course.

You are expected to spend approximately 10 hours work per credit for each module you attend in your degree, e.g. 150 hours work for a 15 credit module. These hours cover every aspect of the module.

We assess our modules through written exams and essays, with some class testing, assignment reports and oral presentations.

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Structure

• Year 1
• Year 2
• Year 3
• Year 4

Year 1

Courses are divided into modules. In each year you will normally take modules totalling 120 credits.

King’s College London reviews the modules offered on a regular basis to provide up-to-date, innovative and relevant programmes of study. Therefore, modules offered may change. We suggest you keep an eye on the course finder on our website for updates.

You are required to take:

Physics

• Mathematics & Computation for Physics (30 credits)

• Classical Physics (30 credits)

• Introduction to Modern Physics (15 credits)

Philosophy

You are required to take two modules, one from each of the following groups:

Group A

• Elementary Logic (15 credits)

• Methodology (15 credits)

Group B

• Metaphysics I (15 credits)

• Epistemology I (15 credits)

Physics

There are no optional Physics modules for this course in your first year.

Philosophy

In addition, you are required to take one module from a range of optional modules, which may typically include:

• Greek Philosophy I (15 credits)

• Ethics I (15 credits)

• Modern Philosophy I (15 credits)

• Political Philosophy I (15 credits)

Any of the required philosophy modules listed above

Year 2 In your second year you will take 75 credits in Physics and 60 credits in Philosophy. Required Modules

In your second year you will take 75 credits in Physics and 60 credits in Philosophy.

Physics

You are required to take:

• Mathematical Methods for Physics (15 credits)

• Thermal Physics & Properties of Matter (15 credits)

• Quantum Mechanics I (15 credits)

• Electromagnetism (15 credits)

• Relativity & Sub-atomic Physics (15 credits)

Philosophy

You are required to take:

• Philosophy of Physics I: Space & Time (15 credits)

• Philosophy of Science (15 credits)

In addition, you are required to take two modules from at least two of the following groups which offer a range of optional modules, which may typically include:

Group A

• Greek Philosophy II: Plato (15 credits)

• Greek Philosophy II: Aristotle (15 credits)

• Modern Philosophy II: Locke & Berkeley (15 credits)

• Modern Philosophy II: Spinoza & Leibniz (15 credits)

Group B

• Ethics II: History of Ethical Philosophy (15 credits)

• Ethics II: Contemporary Ethical Philosophy (15 credits)

• Political Philosophy II: History of Political Philosophy (15 credits)

• Topics in Applied Ethics & Politics (15 credits)

Group C

• Epistemology II (15 credits)

• Metaphysics II (15 credits)

• Philosophy of Logic & Language (15 credits)

• Philosophy of Mind (15 credits)

• Intermediate Logic (15 credits)

There are no optional Physics or Philosophy modules in your second year.

Year 3 Required Modules

Physics

You are required to take:

• Statistical Mechanics (15 credits)

• Quantum Mechanics II (15 credits)

• Third Year Project in Physics (15 credits)

In addition, you are required to take up to a maximum of two modules from a range of optional modules, which may typically include:

• University Ambassador Scheme (15 credits)

• Advanced Mathematical Methods for Theoretical Physics (15 credits)

• Fundamentals of Nanotechnology (15 credits)

• General Relativity & Cosmology (15 credits)

• Optics (15 credits)

• Condensed Matter Physics I (15 credits)

• Particle Physics (15 credits)

Philosophy

In addition, you are required to take sufficient credits to bring your total for the year to 120, from a range of optional Philosophy modules.

If you take 45 philosophy credits, you must select at least 30 credits from the range of Level 6 (Year 3) optional modules. If you are taking 60 to 75 philosophy credits, you must select at least 45 credits from the Level 6 (Year 3) optional modules. You may select your remaining credits from either Level 6 (Year 3) or Level 5 (Year 2) optional modules.

The range of optional Level 6 modules may typically include:

• Dissertation (30 credits)

• Philosophy of Physics II: Quantum Mechanics (15 credits)

• Hellenistic Philosophy (15 credits)

• Indian Philosophy: The Orthodox Schools (15 credits)

• Indian Philosophy: The Heterodox Schools (15 credits)

• Kant’s Epistemology & Metaphysics (15 credits)

• Philosophy of Mathematics (15 credits)

• Philosophy of Psychology I (15 credits)

• Set Theory (15 credits)

• 19th Century Continental Philosophy (15 credits)

• Aesthetics (15 credits)

• Topics in Greek Philosophy (15 credits)

• Topics in Modern Philosophy (15 credits)

• Topics in Political Philosophy (15 credits)

• Medieval Philosophy (15 credits)

• Philosophy of Religion (15 credits)

• Ethics & Politics of Science & Technology (15 credits)

• Modal Logic (15 credits)

• Topics in the Philosophy of Mind (15 credits)

• Gender & Philosophy (15 credits)

• Philosophy of Race (15 credits)

• Philosophy of Psychology II (15 credits)

• Topics in Metaphysics (15 credits)

• Philosophy of Biology (15 credits)

• First-Order Logic (15 credits)

• Utilitarianism (15 credits)

• Neoplatonism (15 credits)

• Morality & Convention (15 credits)

• Mathematical Logic: Limitative Results (15 credits)

For the range of optional Level 5 modules, see Year 2. The groups do not apply in your final year.

Year 4 Required Modules

Physics

You are required to take:

• Physics Project (30 credits)

Philosophy

There are no required modules for Philosophy in your fourth year.

Physics

In addition, you are required to take up to a maximum of four modules from a range of optional modules, which may typically include:

• Advanced Photonics (15 credits)

• Experimental Techniques in Condensed Matter (15 credits)

• Bio and Nanomaterials in the Virtual Lab (15 credits)

• Standard Model Physics & Beyond (15 credits)

• Condensed Matter Physics II (15 credits)

• Modelling Quantum Many-body Systems (15 credits)

• Dark Matter and Dark Energy (15 credits)

• Scientific Communications (15 credits)

• Modules available at other University of London Colleges

Philosophy

• Introduction to Chinese Philosophy (20 credits)

• Kant I: Critique of Pure Reason (20 credits)

• Kant II: Moral Philosophy (20 credits)

• Mathematical Logic: Limitative Results (20 credits)

• Morality and Convention (20 credits)

• Medieval Philosophy (20 credits)

• Metaphysics (20 credits)

• Philosophy, Literature and Method (20 credits)

• 19th Century Continental Philosophy (20 credits)

• 20th Century Continental Philosophy (20 credits)

• Perspectives on Death & Killing (20 credits)

• Philosophy of Mathematics (20 credits)

• Philosophy of Biology (20 credits)

• Philosophy of Medicine (20 credits)

• Philosophy of Language (20 credits)

• Philosophy of Mind (20 credits)

• Philosophy of Mind II: Special Topics (20 credits)

• Philosophy of Psychology I (20 credits)

• Philosophy of Psychology II (20 credits)

• Philosophy of Religion (20 credits)

• Political Philosophy (20 credits)

• The Concept of Mental Disorder (20 credits)

• The Philosophy of the Vienna Circle (20 credits)

Please note: if you didn’t take the Philosophy Dissertation module in your third year you have to complete dissertation in your fourth year.

Students may not take modules in which the syllabus overlaps substantially with modules taken in year two and year three. Personal tutors and module tutors will determine what constitutes substantial overlap.