The Center for Philosophy of Computer Science is devoted to the philosophical and foundational issues in the field of Computer Science (Informatics). The Center is part of the Department of Information and Computing Sciences of Utrecht University. For more information see home.

This is a continuation of the page: Readings.

Philosophy of Computer Science

• A. Asperti, H. Geuvers, R. Natarajan, Social processes, program verification and all that, Math. Struct. in Comp. Science 19 (2009) 877-896.
• N. Bostrom, Are you living in a computer simulation?
• Ph. Brey, J.H. Soraker, Philosophy of computing and information technology, in: A. Meijers (Ed.), Philosophy of Technological Sciences. In: Handbook of the Philosophy of Science, North-Holland (Elsevier), Amsterdam, (to appear).
• P.M. Churchland, P.S. Churchland, Could a machine think, Scientific American 262:1 (1990) 32-39.
• P.J. Denning, Great principles of computing, Comm. ACM 46:4 (2003) 15-20. See also the Great Principles website.
• P.J. Denning, Computing is a natural science, Comm. ACM 50:7 (2007) 13-18.
• P.J. Denning, The science of computer science, Comm. ACM 56:05 (2013) 35-38.
• I. Foster, A two-way street to science's future, Nature 440 (2006) 419.
• G. Gonzalo, Is computer science truly scientific?, CACM 53:7 (2010) 37-39.
• S. Gregor, The nature of theory in information systems, MIS Quarterly 30:3 (2006) 611- 642.
• S. Kritchman and R. Raz, The Surprise Examination Paradox and the Second Incompleteness Theorem.
• MacroVU, Mapping great debates: can computers think?, set of argumentation maps.
• L. Valiant, A theory of the learnable.
• J. Wing, Computational thinking, CACM, 2006.

History of Computer Science

• Smithsonian: Information age: people, information & technology.
• HiTMiLL: History of computers.
• History: calculating tools, computers, internet, people (Dalakov).
• M. Sipser, The history and status of the P versus NP Question.
• M. Tedre, The development of computer science - A sociocultural perspective (PhD Thesis, 2006 see here).

Philosophy of Computation

• S. Aaronson, NP-complete problems and physical reality.
• D. Chalmers, Does a rock implement every finite-state automaton?
• S. Lloyd, Computational capacity of the Universe.
• I. Parberry, Knowledge, understanding, and computational complexity.
• J. Schmidhuber, A computer scientist's view of Life, the Universe, and Everything.
• J. van Leeuwen, J. Wiedermann, How we think of computing today, in: A. Beckmann, C. Dimitracopoulos, and B. Löwe (Eds.), Logic and Theory of Algorithms, Proc. CiE 2008, LNCS Vol. 5028, Springer, Berlin, 2008, pp. 579- 593.
• J. Wiedermann, J.van Leeuwen, Exploring the frontiers of computability, ERCIM News No.50, July 2002.
• A. Wigderson, P, NP and Mathematics.

Philosophy of Information

• L. Floridi, Open problems in the philosophy of information, Metaphilosophy 35(4), 554-582, 2004.
• P. Domingos, The role of Occam's Razor in Knowledge Discovery

Philosophy of Software Technology

• U Essex, Philosophy of programming languages (online resources).
• I. Ventura, On philosophy and software design.

Philosophy of Technology

• Philosophy of technology (Stanford)
• D. Chalmers, The Singularity: A philosophical analysis.
• Andrew Feenberg, The question concerning techne: Heidegger's Aristotle.
• Andrew Feenberg, From Essentialism to Constructivism: Philosophy of Technology at the crossroads .
• M. Heidegger, The age of the world picture (on science and research), 1938.
• M. Heidegger, The question concerning technology, 1954.

Sociology of Computer Science

• S. Ayers, The Cultural Impact of Computer Technology, Yale, 1999.
• D.F. Nel, J.H. Kroeze, Information Technology as an Agent of Post-modernism, preprint, 2008.
• M. Tedre, The development of computer science - A sociocultural perspective, PhD Thesis, University of Joensuu, 2006, (see here).

Some Journals

• Minds and Machines (see also here).
• Philosophy & Technology.
• Techne: Research in Philosophy and Technology.
• Knowledge, Technology & Policy.
• E-data & Research (NL).
• British Journal for the Philosophy of Science.
• The Hindu Folio (millennium issue).
• Mathematical Structures in Computer Science (Cambridge).

Miscellanea

• J. Pulkkinen, The paradigms of e-Education - An analysis of the communication structures in the research on information and communication technology integration in education, PhD Thesis, University of Oulu, 2004.
• T. Winograd, Thinking machines: can there be? Are we?, 1990.
• R. de Wolf, Philosophical applications of computational learning theory, Amsterdam, 1997.
• A. Wright, Glut: Mastering Information Through the Ages, Cornell University Press, 2008.
• H. Wupper, H. Meijer, Wat is informatica eigenlijk? (als beroep, 1997).

Suggestions