PART I

 

Directions: Please provide detailed and elaborate responses to the following questions.  Your response to each should be a minimum of one half of one page in length and should include examples from the reading assignments.

 

1.      Suppose that you were convinced that only objective time is real.  Would this reduce your anxieties about aging, dying, or losing what you love?  Why or why not?

 

2.      Is it possible that nothing else exists in the universe besides you?  Is it possible that the people and things you see around you are all products of your own mind, much like a dream?  How could you show that other things exist in the universe besides you and your ideas?

 

3.      Imagine that you are placed into a machine that stimulates your brain, making you think that your life is going wonderfully well, while all the time you are simply attached to an “Experience Machine” in a basement.  Given that you could not tell that your life was illusory, would you choose to enter this machine, or not?  Explain.

 

4.         In what way might our language be said to create our world?  Drawing on your answer to this question, what practical implications do you think it could have – if any – for social change?  If you believe that your answer has no such implications, explain why.

 

 

PART II: Research Paper I

 

In a research paper two to three pages in length, define and argue a position for the nature of the humanity and the enduring self.  What does it mean to be human?  What makes one a human person?

 

You must posit a position and give three substantial reasons as to why you hold to your particular view about human nature.  Please use at least two articles on this topic and to support your argument.

 

Please consider the following questions as you develop your position:

 

·       What do I believe is a human person?  What makes a person a person (soul, genetic makeup, appendages, reason, etc.)?

·         Why am I for this view?

What if one was to lose his/her limbs, cells, their memory, etc, would that person no longer be a person or would they no longer be the same person?

ADDITIONAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE CLASS

Discussion Questions (DQ)

• Initial responses to the DQ should address all components of the questions asked, include a minimum of one scholarly source, and be at least 250 words.
• Successful responses are substantive (i.e., add something new to the discussion, engage others in the discussion, well-developed idea) and include at least one scholarly source.
• One or two sentence responses, simple statements of agreement or “good post,” and responses that are off-topic will not count as substantive. Substantive responses should be at least 150 words.
• I encourage you to incorporate the readings from the week (as applicable) into your responses.

Weekly Participation

• Your initial responses to the mandatory DQ do not count toward participation and are graded separately.
• In addition to the DQ responses, you must post at least one reply to peers (or me) on three separate days, for a total of three replies.
• Participation posts do not require a scholarly source/citation (unless you cite someone else’s work).
• Part of your weekly participation includes viewing the weekly announcement and attesting to watching it in the comments. These announcements are made to ensure you understand everything that is due during the week.

APA Format and Writing Quality

• Familiarize yourself with APA format and practice using it correctly. It is used for most writing assignments for your degree. Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for APA paper templates, citation examples, tips, etc. Points will be deducted for poor use of APA format or absence of APA format (if required).
• Cite all sources of information! When in doubt, cite the source. Paraphrasing also requires a citation.
• I highly recommend using the APA Publication Manual, 6th edition.

Use of Direct Quotes

• I discourage overutilization of direct quotes in DQs and assignments at the Masters’ level and deduct points accordingly.
• As Masters’ level students, it is important that you be able to critically analyze and interpret information from journal articles and other resources. Simply restating someone else’s words does not demonstrate an understanding of the content or critical analysis of the content.
• It is best to paraphrase content and cite your source.

 

LopesWrite Policy

• For assignments that need to be submitted to LopesWrite, please be sure you have received your report and Similarity Index (SI) percentage BEFORE you do a “final submit” to me.
• Once you have received your report, please review it. This report will show you grammatical, punctuation, and spelling errors that can easily be fixed. Take the extra few minutes to review instead of getting counted off for these mistakes.
• Review your similarities. Did you forget to cite something? Did you not paraphrase well enough? Is your paper made up of someone else’s thoughts more than your own?
• Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for tips on improving your paper and SI score.

Late Policy

• The university’s policy on late assignments is 10% penalty PER DAY LATE. This also applies to late DQ replies.
• Please communicate with me if you anticipate having to submit an assignment late. I am happy to be flexible, with advance notice. We may be able to work out an extension based on extenuating circumstances.
• If you do not communicate with me before submitting an assignment late, the GCU late policy will be in effect.
• I do not accept assignments that are two or more weeks late unless we have worked out an extension.
• As per policy, no assignments are accepted after the last day of class. Any assignment submitted after midnight on the last day of class will not be accepted for grading.

Communication

• Communication is so very important. There are multiple ways to communicate with me: 
  • Questions to Instructor Forum: This is a great place to ask course content or assignment questions. If you have a question, there is a good chance one of your peers does as well. This is a public forum for the class.
  • Individual Forum: This is a private forum to ask me questions or send me messages. This will be checked at least once every 24 hours.