A linguistic barrier between healthcare professional and patient is a challenging experience for both parties. In many cases, the absence of formally trained medical interpreters necessitates that an informal interpreter, drawn from the immediate environment, be used to facilitate communication. While the presence of an interpreter in a medical interview raises many questions about the effectiveness of the communication between healthcare professional and patient, it also gives rise to new speculations revolving on patient rights, medical ethics and patient privacy. In (...) this article we examine the concept of communication competency in medical interviews, as well as translation theory, and link these theories to Western medical ethics in order to identify potential areas in which informal interpretation could impact on the patient. (shrink)

Can business humanize its stakeholders? And if so, how does this relate to moral consideration for stakeholders? In this paper we compare two business orientations that are relevant for current business theory and practice: a stakeholder orientation and a profit orientation. We empirically investigate the causal relationships between business orientation, humanization, and moral consideration. We report the results of six experiments, making use of different operationalizations of a stakeholder and profit orientation, different stakeholders, and different participant samples. Our findings support (...) the prediction that individual stakeholders observing a stakeholder-oriented firm see the firm’s other stakeholders as more human than individual stakeholders observing a profit-oriented firm. This humanization, in turn, increases individual stakeholders’ moral consideration for the firm’s other stakeholders. Our findings underscore the importance of humanization for stakeholders’ moral consideration for each other. This paper contributes to a deeper understanding of the firm as a moral community of stakeholders. Specifically, we move away from a focus on managers, and how they can make business more moral. Instead we direct attention to stakeholders, and how business can make these stakeholders more moral. (shrink)

Purpose: A study was made of attitudes of clinical geneticists regarding the age at which minors should be allowed to undergo a carrier test and the reasons they provide to explain their answer. Methods: European clinical institutions where genetic counselling is offered to patients were contacted. 177 (63%) of the 287 eligible respondents answered a questionnaire. Results: Clinical geneticists were significantly more in favour of providing a carrier test to a younger person if the request was made together with the (...) parents than if the adolescent requested the test personally. Although a large fraction of respondents (16%–30%) were “neither unwilling nor willing” to provide a carrier test to a 16-year-old adolescent who requested the test personally, for most disorders slightly more clinical geneticists were “very willing” or “willing”. Conclusion: Age is not the only decisive element when considering the participation of adolescents in decisions affecting their health. The clinical geneticists referred to cognitive, emotional and sexual maturity and the support of parents as crucial elements in their comments regarding when to tell children about their genetic risk or to allow adolescents to request a carrier test. (shrink)

Certain researchers in the field of moral psychology, following Turiel, argue that children and adults in different cultures make a distinction between moral and conventional transgressions. One interpretation of the theory holds that moral transgressions elicit a signature moral response pattern while conventional transgressions elicit a signature conventional response pattern. Four dimensions distinguish the moral response pattern from the conventional response pattern. 1. HARM/JUSTICE/RIGHTS – Subjects justify the wrongness of moral transgressions by stating that they involve a victim that is (...) harmed, whose rights have been violated or who has been subject to an injustice. Conventional transgressions do not involve a victim that is harmed, whose rights have been violated or who has been subject to an injustice. 2. AUTHORITY – Subjects judge moral transgressions as wrong independent of structures of authority while the wrongness of conventional transgressions can be changed by an authority. 3. GENERALIZABILITY – Subjects judge moral transgressions as generalizably wrong, i.e., independent of time and place, while conventional transgressions’ wrongness depends on time and place. 4. SERIOUSNESS – Subjects judge moral transgressions as more seriously wrong than conventional transgressions. Others have criticized this view for a diversity of reasons. Relevant for our purposes is that, first, there appear to be cultural differences in what constitutes a moral transgression and second, it is unclear what the exact hypotheses are, surrounding this supposed moral/conventional distinction. I will present planned and ongoing experimental research that investigates two specific problems we encountered in the moral-conventional literature. First of all, we cannot draw reliable conclusions from previous work about the generalizability of the wrongness of different kinds of transgressions. In previous experiments, differences in time and place are often but not always confounded with a variety of other differences. For example, Huebner et al. ask participants if the depicted act would be OK for someone who lived elsewhere where everyone else did this. Moreover, when varying time and/or place, participants are likely to assume that other things differ as well. In our study, we vary time and/or place in a variety of scenarios in order to investigate what assumptions participants make when confronted with the generalizability question. Second, it is an open question as to what extent any transgression will universally elicit one of the two signature response patterns. In our study, we make use of existing differences in participants’ value hierarchy to test this. For one and the same scenario, we compare the response of participants for whom authority is an important value with the results of participants for whom authority is not an important value, in order to see if there are differences in the two groups’ response patterns. References: Haidt J., Koller S. & Dias M. 1993. Affect, culture and morality, or is it wrong to eat your dog? Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 65:613-628. Huebner B., Lee, J.L. & Hauser, M.D. 2010. The Moral-Conventional Distinction in Mature Moral Competence. Journal of Cognition and Culture 10: 1-26. Kelly D., Stich S., Haley K.J., Eng S.J. & Fessler D.M.T. 2007. Harm, Affect, and the Moral/Conventional Distinction. Mind & Language 22:117-131. Nichols S. 2004. Sentimental Rules: on the Natural Foundations of Moral Judgment. Oxford University Press. Stich S., Fessler, D.M.T. & Kelly D. 2009. On the Morality of Harm: A response to Sousa, Holbrook and Piazza. Cognition 113:93-97. Turiel E. 1983. The Development of Social Knowledge. Morality & Convention. Cambridge University Press. (shrink)

Although Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) has increased our ability to test and diagnose, its results are often not clear-cut and require a complex interpretation and negotiation process by both healthcare professionals and patients involved. In this paper, we explore how diagnoses identified through NGS are socially shaped under influence of the broader social context. Using an analytical framework stemming from the sociology of health and illness and science and technology studies, with a focus on the construction of diagnosis and the (...) role of uncertainty in medicine, we analyze the existing corpus of literature on NGS diagnostic practices. We show how in this early implementation phase of NGS, in which standardization efforts are not yet solidified, the boundary struggles around diagnoses obtained through NGS are particularly visible. We discuss the different steps in the diagnosis shaping process and what it subsequently entails to give and a receive a diagnosis using NGS. (shrink)

The essays in this volume blend historical and philosophical reflection with concern for contemporary political problems. They show that the causes and motivations of civil religion are a permanent fixture of the human condition, though some of its manifestations and proximate causes have shifted in an age of multiculturalism, religious toleration, and secularization.

Darwins bahnbrechendes Werk 'Über die Entstehung der Arten' (1859) löste eine neue Debatte aus, die weniger durch wissenschaftliche Forschung als durch weltanschauliche Proklamationen geprägt war. Sie nahm in Deutschland einen anderen Verlauf als in England: Die dort noch starke Physikotheologie war in Deutschland bereits einflußlos geworden, und der vorangegangene Materialismus-Streit hatte den Boden für die Rezeption der Lehre Darwins vorbereitet. Von Seiten des weltanschaulichen Materialismus wurde der Darwinismus wegen seiner Eliminierung eines zwecksetzenden göttlichen Verstandes als unverhoffte Bestätigung angesehen und als (...) eine neue und zudem wissenschaftlich abgesicherte "Schöpfungstheorie" rezipiert und zum Schlüssel für die Lösung aller wissenschaftlichen und philosophischen Rätsel stilisiert. (shrink)

The Rho GTPases—Rho, Rac and Cdc42—act as molecular switches, cycling between an active GTP‐bound state and an inactive GDP‐bound state, to regulate the actin cytoskeleton. It has recently become apparent that the Rho GTPases can be activated in subcellular zones that appear semi‐stable, yet are dynamically maintained. These Rho GTPase activity zones are associated with a variety of fundamental biological processes including symmetric and asymmetric cytokinesis and cellular wound repair. Here we review the basic features of Rho GTPase activity zones, (...) suggest that these zones represent a fundamental signaling mechanism, and discuss the implications of zone properties from the perspective of both their function and how they are likely to be controlled. BioEssays 28: 983–993, 2006. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. (shrink)

Great theoretical value has always been attached toBoveri's discovery as regards chromatin diminution inAscaris, for this discovery appeared to expose the mechanism causing the propagative cells, in which all chromatin remains, to originate an entirely new organism, whereas the soma cells of which the chromosomes have been diminished are only capable of specific differentiation.Boveri was further able to show that, not only do the soma and propagative nuclei differ from each other, but that rather the character of the cell-plasma decides (...) whether the nucleus diminishes or not. Considerations are brought forward to prove that the “diminisher” hypothesis as given byKing andBeams, is untenable. Diminution has always been supposed to result in the loss of the totipotence of the diminished nuclei. In the light of recent chromosome research this course of events does not seem probable. Therefore the following theory is brought forward: When the egg ofAscaris is split, blastomeres originate, which differ from each other as to the plasma. In proportion to the quality of the surrounding plasma, now these now other genes of the totipotent nucleus react in different cells, thus originating the specific differentiation of the cell in question. This cooperation between plasma and nucleus is, however, at first obstructed in the large collective chromosomes ofAscaris, by the presence of their thickened ends. In order to keep up this cooperation a certain quality of plasma is needed, situated in a certain horizontal zone of the egg. As soon as, in the course of the division, nuclei come to rest in different zones, a diminution occurs, and differentiation of the cells in question sets in. Towards the end of the embryonic development the ends of the chromosomes are lost in the propagative cells, and also in these cells differentiation occurs.On a toujours attribué une haute signification théorique à la découverte deBoveri, de la diminution des chromatines chez l'ascaris puisqu'elle semblait expliquer le mécanisme qui cause que les cellules propagatrices où séjourne, la totalité de l'effectif des chromatines, font de nouveau sortir d'elles-mêmes un organisme entier, pendant que les cellules somatiques, dont les chromosomes ont été diminués, ne sont plus capables qu'à produire une différenciation spécifique. De plus,Boveri a pu démontrer, que les noyaux somatiques et propagateurs ne sont pas, à peu de chose près, différents, mais que c'est bien plus la qualité du plasme des cellules qui décide si les noyaux qui leur ont été distribués, diminuent ou non. Des arguments sont apportés, qui démontrent que l'hypothèse du „diminisher” échafaudée parKing etBeams est insoutenable. En général on s'est représenté. l'action de la diminution de telle façon que la totipotentialité des noyaux diminués a été perdue. Cependant, le fait n'est pas acceptable quand on le considère à la lumière de la recherche moderne sur les chromosomes. Par conséquent, nous proposons l'opinion suivante: Dans l'œuf de l'ascaris, des blastomères différant plasmatiquement les uns des autres prennent naissance pendant le fendage. Selon l'état du plasme environnant, dans les cellules individuelles on voit réagir certain gène, dans les autres un autre gène du noyau totipotentiel, causant ainsi la différenciation des cellules visées. Cette collaboration entre le plasme et le noyau est cependant premièrement bloquée dans les grands chromosomes collectifs de l'ascaris par la présence des bouts de chromosomes épaissis. Pour leur conservation une certaine qualité de plasme est requise qui se trouve dans une zone horizontale déterminée de l'œuf. Dès que, dans le procès du fendage, des noyaux arrivent dans d'autres zones du plasme, la diminution a lieu, et la différenciation des cellules visées s'opère. Cependant, après la conclusion du développement embryonal, les bouts des chromosomes se perdent dans les cellules propagatrices et la différenciation a lieu aussi dans ces cellules. (shrink)

Among recent developments in the anthropological sciences, hardly any have found so much attention and led to so much controversy as have the views advanced by the late Benjamin Whorf.The hypothesis offered by Whorf is,“that the commonly held belief that the cognitive processes of all human beings possess a common logical structure which operates prior to and independently of communication through language, is erroneous. It is Whorf's view that the linguistic patterns themselves determine what the individual perceives in this world (...) and how he thinks about it. Since these patterns vary widely, the modes of thinking and perceiving in groups utilizing different linguistic systems will result in basically different world views”.“We are thus introduced to a new principle of relativity which holds that all observers are not led by the same physical evidence to the same picture of the universe, unless their linguistic backgrounds are similar. … We cut up and organize the spread and flow of events as we do largely because, through our mother tongue, we are parties to an agreement to do so, not because nature itself is segmented in exactly that way for all to see”. (shrink)

Two studies document that people are more willing to express emotions that reveal vulnerabilities to partners when they perceive those partners to be more communally responsive to them. In Study 1, participants rated the communal strength they thought various partners felt toward them and their own willingness to express happiness, sadness and anxiety to each partner. Individuals who generally perceive high communal strength from their partners were also generally most willing to express emotion to partners. Independently, participants were more willing (...) to express emotion to particular partners whom they perceived felt more communal strength toward them. In Study 2, members of romantic couples independently reported their own felt communal strength toward one another, perceptions of their partners’ felt communal strength toward them, and willingness to express emotions to each other. The communal strength partners reported feeling toward the participants predicted the participants’ willingness to express emotion to those partners. This link was mediated by participants’ perceptions of the partner’s communal strength toward them which, itself, was a joint function of accurate perceptions of the communal strength partners had reported feeling toward them and projections of their own felt communal strength for their partners onto those partners. (shrink)

The text of the tract De arcubus similibus was published for the first time by M. Curtze in 1887. However, after examining some more Latin manuscripts and the Arabic MS Oxford, Bodleian Library, Marsh 663 it appeared, that Curtze's edition was rather an adaptation. Also Curtze's suggestion that Jordanus Nemorarius was the author was very probably wrong. The author of the tract was the Egyptian mathematician Ahmed ibn Jusuf as appears from the Latin manuscripts, and its translator, very probably, Gerard (...) of Cremona. In the tract Ahmed tried to prove, that the assertion ‘similar arcs are also equal arcs’ was wrong . His starting points were the propositions Euclid III, 20 and 21. Consequently, the tract can be looked upon as a commentary on the third book of the Elements. (shrink)

In children experiencing pain, the study of the social context of facial expressions might help to evaluate evolutionary and conditioning hypotheses of behavioural development. Social motivations and influences may be complex, as seen in studies of children having their ears pierced, and in studies of everyday pain in children. A study of opposing predictions of the long-term effects of parental caregiving is suggested.

Mitochondrial dysfunction has long been considered a key mechanism in the ageing process but surprisingly little attention has been paid to the impact of mitochondrial number or density within cells. Recent reports suggest a positive association between mitochondrial density, energy homeostasis and longevity. However, mitochondrial number also determines the number of sites generating reactive oxygen species (ROS) and we suggest that the links between mitochondrial density and ageing are more complex, potentially acting in both directions. The idea that increased density, (...) especially when combined with mitochondrial dysfunction, might accelerate ageing is supported by a negative correlation between mitochondrial density and maximum longevity in an interspecies comparison in mammals, and by evidence for an intimate interconnection between cellular ROS levels, mitochondrial density and cellular ageing. Recent data suggest that retrograde response, which activates mitochondrial biogenesis, accompanies cellular ageing processes. We hypothesise that increased mitochondrial biogenesis, and possibly also impaired degradation and segregation of mitochondria, if occurring as adaptation to pre‐existing mitochondrial dysfunction, might aggravate ROS production and thus actively contribute to ageing. BioEssays 29:908–917, 2007. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. (shrink)

This article surveys the state of the art in the field of semantic universals. We examine potential semantic universals in three areas: (i) the lexicon, (ii) semantic “glue” (functional morphemes and composition principles), and (iii) pragmatics. At the level of the lexicon, we find remarkably few convincing semantic universals. At the level of functional morphemes and composition principles, we discuss a number of promising constraints, most of which require further empirical testing and/or refinement. In the realm of pragmatics, we predict (...) that Gricean mechanisms are universal, but suggest that the precise nature of presuppositions may be subject to cross-linguistic variation. Finally, we follow E.L. Keenan in concluding that the overarching universal of effability or translatability between languages cannot be upheld in its strongest form. A recurring theme throughout this survey is how much work still remains to be done in the relatively young field of cross-linguistic formal semantics. (shrink)

For about a hundred years since the invention of the Oedipus complex, Electra stands for its feminine counterpart even though Freud would not have it thus established because he granted the female sex no claim to its own sexuality-marking complex. Electra is the mannequin on which Oedipus hangs like a coat on a coatrack.

This analysis of Hans Kelsen's international law theory takes into account the context of the German international legal discourse in the first half of the twentieth century, including the reactions of Carl Schmitt and other Weimar opponents of Kelsen. The relationship between his Pure Theory of Law and his international law writings is examined, enabling the reader to understand how Kelsen tried to square his own liberal cosmopolitan project with his methodological convictions as laid out in his Pure Theory of (...) Law. Finally, Jochen von Bernstorff discusses the limits and continuing relevance of Kelsenian formalism for international law under the term of 'reflexive formalism', and offers a reflection on Kelsen's theory of international law against the background of current debates over constitutionalisation, institutionalisation and fragmentation of international law. The book also includes biographical sketches of Hans Kelsen and his main students Alfred Verdross and Joseph L. Kunz. (shrink)

ZusammenfassungDer Verfasser geht auf Beziehungen zwischen dem von C. I. Lewis eingeführten Begriff der « strikten » Implikation und dem von ihm selbst eingeführten Begriff der « strengen » Implikation ein. Er zeigt, dass sich innerhalb des Systems der strengen Implikation ein weiterer Folgebegriff definieren lässt, der alle Eigenschaften hat, die von der strikten Implikation verlangt werden. Als dieser Folgebegriff wird genommen, dass die Konjunktion von A und dem Gegenteil von B unmöglich ist, was in dem System der strengen Implikation (...) keineswegs damit identisch ist, dass A in strenger Weise B impliziert. Das System der strikten Implikation wird dabei in einer von Arnold Schmidt gegebenen Form zugrunde gelegt.RésuméIl s'agit des relations entre la conception d'implication stricte introduite par C. I. Lewis et la conception de « strenge » implication introduite par l'auteur. L'auteur indique qu'une conception d'implication se laisse définir dans le système de « strenge » implication qui a toutes les qualités d'implication stricte. La définition est la suivante: A implique B a ce sens si la conjonction de A et non B est impossible ce qui n'équivaut pas à la proposition qu'il y a de « strenge » implication de A à B. Le système d'implication stricte est considéré sous la forme qui lui a été donnée par Arnold Schmidt.In this paper the author enters into the particulars of the relations of the concept of « strict » implication introduced by C. I. Lewis with the concept of « strenge » implication introduced by himself. He points out that within the system of « strenge »implication a further concept of implication may be defined which has all the qualities of strictimplication. The definition is the following: A implies B in this sense if the conjunction of A and non‐B is impossible, which is not the same as the « strenge » implication between A and B. The system of strict implication is taken in the form as formerly given by Arnold Schmidt. (shrink)

ZusammenfassunuIn dem vorliegenden Bericht über einige Arbeiten des Verfassers und eine daran anschliessende Arbeit von G. Emde, Marburg, wird eine Reihe von Ergebnissen behandelt, die die Kombinationen der Grundmodalitäten « Möglichkeit » und « Notwendigkeit » betreffen. Ausgehend von sehr allgemeinen Rahmenkodifikaten wird die durch Basisreduktion zu gewinnende Liste der endlich vielen implikativen Modalitätenlogiken mit idempotenter Möglichkeit erörtert; bei wichtigen Unterklassen der nicht notwendig idempotenten implikativen Modalitätenlogiken treten neben der Basisreduktion vor allem spezielle Entscheidungsprobleme in den Vordergrund.RésuméDans le rapport ci‐dessus (...) concernant quelques travaux de l'auteur et le travail de M. G. Emde qui s'y rapporte, il s'agit d'un ensemble de résultats sur la combinaison des modalités fondamentales de « possibilité» et de « nécessité». Partant de quelques codifications cadres très générales, I'auteur discute la liste en nombre fini des logiques modales implicatives à« possibilité» idempotente, une liste qui est obtenue par une réduction des bases. Quant à certaines sous‐classes importantes des logiques implicatives qui ne sont pas nécessairement idempotentes, outre la réduction des bases, les problèmes de décision qui leur sont spéciaux, se trouvent placés au premier plan.In the present report on some papers of the author and on a sequel to them by G. Emde, Marburg, a series of results concerning the combination of the basic modalities « possibility » and « necessity » are treated. Starting from some very general framing‐codifications, the list of the finitely many implicative modal logics with idempotent « possibility » which is obtainable through basis reduction is discussed. Besides basis reduction, in the case of some important subclasses of the not‐necessarily‐idempotent implicative modal logics, attention is given to the special decision problems. (shrink)

Croiser l'histoire de la lecture et l'histoire du genre implique des enjeux méthodologiques qui sont discutés dans cet article à partir de cas concrets situés dans le contexte de l'Italie de l'époque moderne. La signification de la circulation et de la consommation de textes ainsi que les tentatives pour contrôler le savoir et le comportement à travers, d'une part, des interdictions explicites et, d'autre part, des offres de lectures adéquates sont ici considérées en tenant compte du genre des auteurs et (...) des lecteurs. Il semble, en effet, que l'écrit joue à partir du XVIe siècle un rôle de plus en plus important dans la structuration de la relation entre hommes et femmes. Les sources montrent que la lectrice, destinataire consciemment construite comme influençable, pouvait néanmoins se libérer des formes de contrôle visant ses lectures. La double approche retenue permet de lire autrement des textes normatifs et tient compte des possibilités d'appropriation créative: la question de l'interdépendance entre production et réception des textes peut ainsi être revisitée. (shrink)

https://revistes.uab.cat/enrahonar/article/view/v34-von-herrmann.

SummaryAnti‐Realism claims that the Classical or Realist conception of truth as verification‐transcendent is incoherent. Our grasp of the meanings of statements from any given class is to be assimilated to a grasp of their assertibility or deniability conditions. In this paper I present an apparent counter‐example to the Anti‐Realist's positive claim which derives from the traditional problem of other minds.ResumeL'anti‐réalisme affirme ľincohérence de la conception réaliste classique de la vérité comme transcendante à la vérification. Notre saisie des significations des énoncés (...) ? une classe donnáe quelconque doit être assimilée à la saisie des conditions dans lesquelles ils peuvent être affirmés ou niés. Dans cet article, je présente un apparent contre‐exemple, tiré du problème traditionnel de l'existence ? autres sujets, à la thèse positive des anti‐réalistes.ZusammenfassungDer Antirealist behauptet, dass die klassische realistische Auffassung der Wahrheit als einer der Prüfung unzugänglichen Begriffes unhaltbar sei. Um die Bedeutungen irgendwelcher Aussagen verstehen zu können, mussen wir die Bedingungen ihrer Behauptbarkeit kennen. Ich lege ein offenbares Gegenbeispiel zur These des Antirealisten vor, das sich aus dem traditionellen Problem des Fremdbewusstseins ergibt. (shrink)

The reduction of deep-see animals is a primordial phenomenon. Connected with this, compensatory transformations of self-preservation, not yet gotten to validity, make it possible for the organism, that while descending in homogeneous surroundings it may keep itself alive, maintaining its life in that last refuge. Reduction is a primordial automatical phenomenon, permanent dwelling in homogeneous surroundings is a secondary phenomenon.La réduction des animaux de la mer profonde est un phénomène primordial. En rapport avec cela, des transformations compensatoriques de conservation personelle, (...) encore non utilisées, rendent possible pour l'organisme, qu'en se réfugiant dans un milieu homogène il y puisse maintenir sa vie, de même, que dans un asile suprême. La réduction est un phénomène primordial automatique , la résidence dans le milieu homogène est un phénomène secondaire. (shrink)

In this article, I analyze the relation between ontology and practical philosophy in Cicero’s work and the role Hellenistic philosophy plays within the work of Giorgio Agamben. I discuss the relation between life and ontology, between philosophy as a guide to living and philosophy as the study of being. Unlike philosophers who treat Hellenistic philosophy as a form of therapy, I show how Agamben interprets Hellenistic philosophy as oppressive by turning the theory of being into an injunction of having-to-be. For (...) Agamben, every philosophy implies a certain form of life, and it is thus impossible to distinguish between ontology and living. The aim of philosophy, therefore, is not to be therapeutic but rather to develop an ontology that will allow for humanity to live without oppression. Through a detailed reading of Cicero’s concept of “nature,” I develop the reading and critique of Cicero suggested by Agamben.Cet article analyse la relation entre l’ontologie et la philosophie pratique dans l’oeuvre de Cicéron et le rôle joué par la philosophie hellénistique dans l’oeuvre de Giorgio Agamben. Il discute la relation entre la vie et l’ontologie, entre la philosophie comme guide de savoir-vivre et la philosophie comme étude de l’être. Contrairement aux philosophes qui traitent la philosophie hellénistique comme une forme de thérapie, je montre que Agamben interprète la philosophie hellénistique comme essentielle-ment oppressive en transformant la théorie de l'être en une injonction normative de devoir-être. Pour Agamben, toute philosophie implique une certaine forme de vie, rendant alors la distinction entre l’ontologie et la vie impossible. Ainsi, le but de la philosophie n'est pas d’être thérapeutique mais plutôt de développer une ontologie qui permettra à l’humanité de vivre sans oppression. Par une lecture du concept de la « nature » de Cicéron, je développe l’interprétation et la critique de Cicéron proposé par Agamben. (shrink)

Les remarques de Bolzano sur les couleurs n’ont pas fait l’objet de recherches jusqu’à présent. Le but de cet article est de montrer que ses investigations sur les couleurs constituent une contribution intéressante à la théorie de la connaissance du XIXe siècle. Selon Bolzano, les couleurs sont des qualités secondes ainsi que des propriétés physiques et, par conséquent, elles sont des quantités mesurables. Il soutient que la perception des couleurs est réglée par des lois empiriques et il argumente que les (...) couleurs que nous voyons sont déterminables par des concepts de grandeur. (shrink)

Du point de vue méthodologique et épistémologique, la vision occupe une place privilégiée dans les œuvres de Galien de Pergame, ce qui explique les tentatives répétées de ce dernier pour en expliquer le fonctionnement. En partie grâce à la dissection et à la vivisection pratiquées sur des animaux de différentes espèces, il développa une connaissance détaillée de l’anatomie de l’œil, du nerf optique, du cerveau, des muscles oculaires et du système vasculaire cérébral et oculaire. Il utilisa avec habileté cet impressionnant (...) savoir anatomique pour élaborer une explication détaillée de la physiologie de la vision. Pour expliquer comment voient les êtres humains, il fit également appel à l’optique mathématique, notamment à l’optique euclidienne. Cependant, en dépit d’efforts remarquables pour intégrer anatomie, physiologie et mathématiques dans une unique théorie cohérente de la vision, une analyse plus attentive montre que son explication de la vision n’est pas exempte de lacunes non négligeables, de difficultés non résolues et de tensions internes. (shrink)

Throughout his active philosophical life, Nikolai Berdiaev was preoccupied with the philosophical and sociological questions stemming from the impact of technology on the life of modern man. He gave to his thoughts a condensed expression in a longish essay in the journal Put' for 1933 with the title "Man and Machine" [Chelovek i mashina]. But he had touched on the subject penetratingly already in his early work The Meaning of History [Smysl istorii], which was first published in Russian in 1923 (...) and in English translation in 1936, and he devoted a chapter to it in his last major work, the posthumously published The Realm of Spirit and the Realm of Caesar [Tsarstvo dukha i tsarstvo Kesaria], which came out in Russian in 1949 and in English translation in 1952. In the last year of his life, Berdiaev read a paper titled "L'homme dans la civilization technique" at a conference in Neuchâtel. The Russian original of the paper apparently has not been published. (shrink)

Ceci est un eruv -- Porte et pont -- Sur la légitimité des frontières -- Dedans et dehors -- Entre-soi -- La tradition dans la modernité -- Droit et Loi -- Orthodoxie libérale -- Question de principes -- La compétition des ordres -- La partie et le tout -- Sur la justification de reruv -- Modèles de tolérance -- Espace et territoire -- À l'ombre de la ville -- Question de souveraineté -- Question d'intention -- Nouer?

Note du traducteur: La transcription rend fidèlement l’orthographe de l’inédit autographe de Helmholtz, et cela jusqu’à l’oubli du « t » dans le mot « nicht », erreur que l’auteur ne semble pas avoir remarquée ou à laquelle il ne devait pas accorder d’importance, vu qu’il s’agissait, probablement, d’une ébauche très avancée du rapport qui aurait dû, ou pu, être copiée, après correction, pour l’envoi en Italie.Dans la transcription ainsi que dans la traduction, l’espace laissé en blanc d’une...

The article introduces the pedagogical background and impact of Grue-Sørensen. Knud Grue-Sørensen came to educational science from philosophy and was infl uenced by Kantian philosopher Leonard Nelson. Grue-Sørensen became the first professor of education at the University of Copenhagen. During an era in which research in the fi eld of education became more and more infl uenced by empirical research, Grue- Sørensen held on to a theoretically and historically rooted pedagogy. Among other works he authored a threevolume account of the (...) history of education and the encyclopaedia “Almen Pædagogik”. (shrink)

Since its origin, bioethics has attracted the collaboration of few social scientists, and social scientific methods of gathering empirical data have remained unfamiliar to ethicists. Recently, however, the clouded relations between the empirical and normative perspectives on bioethics appear to be changing. Three reasons explain why there was no easy and consistent input of empirical evidence into bioethics. Firstly, interdisciplinary dialogue runs the risk of communication problems and divergent objectives. Secondly, the social sciences were absent partners since the beginning of (...) bioethics. Thirdly, the meta‐ethical distinction between ‘is’ and ‘ought’ created a ‘natural’ border between the disciplines. Now, bioethics tends to accommodate more empirical research. Three hypotheses explain this emergence. Firstly, dissatisfaction with a foundationalist interpretation of applied ethics created a stimulus to incorporate empirical research in bioethics. Secondly, clinical ethicists became engaged in empirical research due to their strong integration in the medical setting. Thirdly, the rise of the evidence‐based paradigm had an influence on the practice of bioethics. However, a problematic relationship cannot simply and easily evolve into a perfect interaction. A new and positive climate for empirical approaches has arisen, but the original difficulties have not disappeared. (shrink)

We propose a French translation of the preface written by H. nov Helmholtz to the German translation of Fragments of Science by Tyndall. The German translation was by Anna von Helmholtz and Du-Bois Reymond and reviewed by H. von Helmholtz. The numbers in square brackets refer to the page numbers of the original text.RésuméNous proposons une traduction française de la préface de H. von Helmholtz à la traduction allemande des Fragments of Science de Tyndall, traduction allemande réalisée par Anna von (...) Helmholtz et Du-Bois Reymond et revue par H. von Helmholtz. Les nombres entre crochets rappellent la pagination du texte original. (shrink)

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work. This work is in the public domain (...) in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant. (shrink)

The field of bioethics is increasingly coming into contact with empirical research findings. In this article, we ask what role empirical research can play in the process of ethical clarification and decision-making. Ethical reflection almost always proceeds in three steps: the description of the moral question,the assessment of the moral question and the evaluation of the decision-making. Empirical research can contribute to each step of this process. In the description of the moral object, first of all, empirical research has a (...) role to play in the description of morally relevant facts. It plays a role in answering the “reality-revealing questions” (what, why,how, who, where and when), in assessing the consequences and in proposing alternative courses of action. Secondly, empirical research plays a role in assessing the moral question. It must be acknowledged that research possesses “the normative power of the factual,” which can also become normative by suppressing other norms. However, inductive normativity should always be balanced out by a deductive form of normativity. Thirdly, empirical research also has a role to play in evaluating the decision-making process. It can rule out certain moral choices by pointing out the occurrence of certain unexpected consequences or effects. It can also be useful, however, as a sociology of bioethics in which the discipline of bioethics itself becomes an object of research. (shrink)

Avec "Pathosophie", Viktor von Weizsäcker construit une nouvelle anthropologie dans laquelle la dimension passionnelle et pathique de l'homme est à la fois la base et l'origine d'une médecine repensée de pied en cap. A partir de la destinée pathosophique de l'homme, il fonde un tout autre système afin de pouvoir penser les rapports entre différentes maladies, qu'il expose dans une double triade: névrose-biose-sclérose, organose-somatose-psychose. Ce système se déploie non à l'intérieur de lui-même mais dans la relation médecin-malade, fondée sur la (...) biographie et qui prend forme dans les pathographies. Le détour par la pathographie, à laquelle Viktor Von Weizsäcker a consacré sa vie, transforme tout ce qui peut devenir système en encyclopédie. Viktor von Weizsäcker invite à faire le tour des thèmes fondamentaux de l'existence pathique (la douleur, la volonté, la sexualité, la conscience, l'Etat, le pouvoir, le mensonge, le vertige, l'ennui et la mort) et, ainsi, fait entendre plusieurs voix dans une cohérence polyphonique. Le mode de pensée encyclopédique avec ses foyers de concepts forme un paysage qui apparaît lorsque nous nous y mouvons et Viktor von Weizsäcker nous le fait sentir au lieu de nous le prouver. Selon Jacques Schotte, nous avons à penser plus avant les formulations de Viktor von Weizsäcker si "nous voulons guérir et nous guérir, c'est-à-dire vivre davantage". Comme le proclame Hölderlin: "C'est celui qui a pensé le plus profond qui aime le plus vivant". (shrink)

ABSTRACTSince its origin, bioethics has attracted the collaboration of few social scientists, and social scientific methods of gathering empirical data have remained unfamiliar to ethicists. Recently, however, the clouded relations between the empirical and normative perspectives on bioethics appear to be changing. Three reasons explain why there was no easy and consistent input of empirical evidence into bioethics. Firstly, interdisciplinary dialogue runs the risk of communication problems and divergent objectives. Secondly, the social sciences were absent partners since the beginning of (...) bioethics. Thirdly, the meta‐ethical distinction between ‘is’ and ‘ought’ created a ‘natural’ border between the disciplines. Now, bioethics tends to accommodate more empirical research. Three hypotheses explain this emergence. Firstly, dissatisfaction with a foundationalist interpretation of applied ethics created a stimulus to incorporate empirical research in bioethics. Secondly, clinical ethicists became engaged in empirical research due to their strong integration in the medical setting. Thirdly, the rise of the evidence‐based paradigm had an influence on the practice of bioethics. However, a problematic relationship cannot simply and easily evolve into a perfect interaction. A new and positive climate for empirical approaches has arisen, but the original difficulties have not disappeared. (shrink)

Ensemble d'articles fondamentaux en relation avec l'épistémologie, l'ontologie et la philosophie du langage, qui laissent apparaître les enjeux philosophiques de l'oeuvre de W. V. A. Quine. Ces neuf essais témoignent de l'articulation du logique et du philosophique et mettent en évidence la créativité de la logique, définie en conclusion du dernier essai.

Assemblée très honorée, Ce qui nous réunit ce jour, c'est la mémoire d'un homme qui plus qu'aucun autre a contribué à lier indissolublement le nom de notre ville à l'histoire culturelle de l'humanité, je veux parler de Kant, le Philosophe. Nous souhaitons ériger un monument à sa mémoire, pour montrer que notre époque et notre ville nourrissent un souvenir reconnaissant et respectueux envers les hommes qui leur apportent progrès scientifique et instruction. Par la présente conférence, je souha...

Note du traducteur: La transcription rend fidèlement l’orthographe de l’inédit autographe de Helmholtz, et cela jusqu’à l’oubli du « t » dans le mot « nicht », erreur que l’auteur ne semble pas avoir remarquée ou à laquelle il ne devait pas accorder d’importance, vu qu’il s’agissait, probablement, d’une ébauche très avancée du rapport qui aurait dû, ou pu, être copiée, après correction, pour l’envoi en Italie.Dans la transcription ainsi que dans la traduction, l’espace laissé en blanc d’une...

In Explaining Attitudes, Lynne Rudder Baker considers two views of what it is to have a propositional attitude, the Standard View and Pragmatic Realism, and attempts to argue for Pragmatic Realism. The Standard View is, roughly, the view that “the attitudes, if there are any, are particular brain states”. In contrast, Pragmatic Realism that a person has a propositional attitude if and only if there are certain counterfactuals true of that person.Baker’s case against the Standard View is a complex one. (...) One aspect of that case is that there are no good general arguments for the Standard View. We argue that one of the three she considers, an argument from causal explanation, can be defended. The problematic premise, according to Baker, is the claim that unless beliefs are [identical to, constituted by, or realized by] brain states, they cannot causally explain behavior. Baker tackles this premise in two ways: in Chapter 4, she attempts to undermine the brain-explain thesis by taking issue with the conception of causal explanation that she believes supports it; in Chapter 5, she argues against the brain-explain thesis directly, by attempting to show that it is false, whether or not the Standard View is true. Neither of these attempts are successful, on our view.The alternative version of the causal argument we develop uses the doctrine of physicalism as a supplementary premise rather than appeal to a reductive conception of causal explanation. After presenting this alternative version, we consider how Baker might respond to it by drawing on her discussion of materialism. We conclude that Baker’s argument against materialism does not generalize to physicalism as we construe it. (shrink)

Approximately a quarter of a billion people around the world suffer from malaria each year. Most cases are located in sub-Saharan Africa where Anopheles gambiae mosquitoes are the principal vectors of this public health problem. With the use of CRISPR-based gene drives, the population of mosquitoes can be modified, eventually causing their extinction. First, we discuss the moral status of the organism and argue that using genetically modified mosquitoes to combat malaria should not be abandoned based on some moral value (...) of A. gambiae. Secondly, we argue that environmental impact studies should be performed to obtain an accurate account of the possible effects of a potential eradication of the organism. However, the risks from the purposeful extinction of A. gambiae should not overtake the benefits of eradicating malaria and risk assessments should be used to determine acceptable risks. Thirdly, we argue that the eventual release of the genetically modified mosquitoes will depend on transparency, community involvement, and cooperation between different nations. (shrink)

In old times the universe was centred round the earth and the man, whose fate was written in the stars. This rational unity of the universe disappeared, when the dome of the heaven broke down and the stars moved aimlessly in the space. The conception of a general space, serving as stage for all beings, remined untouched. This view is wrong. Than both visual space und tactual space are different for different subjects and move with them.A general permanent objective room (...) doesnot exist nor do independent objects. Their qualities are created by the sensory fields of subjects and vary with the subjects. Each subject lives in his special world filled with his special objects, important for the subject. These special worlds form real unities, that enable us to construct a new picture of Nature.Anciennement on croyait que la terre était le centre de l'univers et que le sort de l'homme était écrit dans les astres. Cette unité rationnelle de l'univers se perdit plus tard, une fois que la voûte céleste se fut fendue et que les étoiles semblèrent se mouvoir à travers l'espace dans un cours sans but. Cependant, la conception d'une espace unique et fixe, servant de scène à tous les êtres vivants continuait à se maintenir. Cette conception du monde est erronée, l'espace visuelle et l'espace tactile sont différentes par rapports aux sujets différents et se meuvent avec eux.Une espace unique et permanente n'existe pas plus que des objets indépendants. Leurs qualités sont créées par les champs sensoriels des sujets et varient avéc ceux-ci. Chaque sujet vit dans son propre monde, rempli d'objets spéciaux qui sont importants pour ce sujet spécial. Tous ces mondes spéciaux constituent des unités réelles qui nous permettent de nous faire une image nouvelle de la nature. (shrink)

In order to study the relationship between genes and diseases, the increasing availability and sharing of phenotypic and genotypic data have been promoted as an imperative within the scientific community. In parallel with data sharing practices by clinicians and researchers, recent initiatives have been observed in which individuals are sharing personal genomic data. The involvement of individuals in such initiatives is facilitated by the increased accessibility of personal genomic data, offered by private test providers along with availability of online networks. (...) Personal webpages and on-line data sharing platforms such as Consent to Research, Free the Data, and Genomes Unzipped are being utilized to host and share genotypes, electronic health records and family history uploaded by individuals. Although personal genomic data sharing initiatives vary in nature, the emphasis on the individuals’ control on their data in order to benefit research and ultimately health care has seen as a key theme across these initiatives. In line with the growing practice of personal genomic data sharing, this paper aims to shed light on the potential challenges surrounding these initiatives. As in the course of these initiatives individuals are solicited to individually balance the risks and benefits of sharing their genomic data, their awareness of the implications of personal genomic data sharing for themselves and their family members is a necessity. Furthermore, given the sensitivity of genomic data and the controversies around their complete de-identifiability, potential privacy risks and harms originating from unintended uses of data have to be taken into consideration. (shrink)

Participation in healthcare decision-making is considered to be an important right of minors, and is highlighted in both international legislation and public policies. However, despite the legal recognition of children’s rights to participation, and also the benefits that children experience by their involvement, there is evidence that legislation is not always translated into healthcare practice. There are a number of factors that may impact on the ability of the child to be involved in decisions regarding their medical care. Some of (...) these factors relate to the child, including their capacity to be actively involved in these decisions. Others relate to the family situation, sociocultural context, or the underlying beliefs and practices of the healthcare provider involved. In spite of these challenges to including children in decisions regarding their clinical care, we argue that it is an important factor in their treatment. The extent to which children should participate in this process should be determined on a case-by-case basis, taking all of the potential barriers into account. (shrink)

The arising of smart cities has shown the limitations of the traditional attempts to understand and characterize cities. The smart city marks a relevant step in the evolution of urban systems which is expected to have disruptive impacts in the near future. Indeed, the ‘smartness’ qualification of cities points to relevant changes in the possibilities these complex systems offer mainly due to changes in the information which is made available. This chapter studies the notion of city from an ontological viewpoint, (...) and provides the first elements of a general framework aimed to characterize and unify how to understand the city and its evolution. It starts from historical considerations to isolate the factors that drove the changes from ancient to modern cities, and the complexity that characterizes the nature of cities. Our analysis departs from the traditional views and leads to distinguish three ontological components in the city: the modified physical place, the distributed agentivity, and the knowledge present in the system. The analysis of these components and their interactions, we argue, provides a coherent reading of the city across its evolution steps, and may be used to establish the maturity of today’s smart cities. (shrink)

BackgroundThe landscape of clinical research has evolved over the past decade. With technological advances, the practice of using electronic informed consent (eIC) has emerged. However, a number of challenges hinder the successful and widespread deployment of eIC in clinical research. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the views of various stakeholders on the potential advantages and challenges of eIC.MethodsSemi-structured interviews were conducted with 39 participants from 5 stakeholder groups from across 11 European countries. The stakeholder groups included physicians, patient organization representatives, (...) regulator representatives, ethics committee members, and pharmaceutical industry representatives, and all were involved in clinical research. Interviews were analyzed using the framework method.ResultsInterviewees identified that a powerful feature of eIC is its personalized approach as it may increase participant empowerment. However, they identified several ethical and practical challenges, such as ensuring research participants are not overloaded with information and offering the same options to research participants who would prefer a paper-based informed consent rather than eIC. According to the interviewees, eIC has the potential to establish efficient long-term interactions between the research participants and the research team in order to keep the participants informed during and after the study. Interviewees emphasized that a personal interaction with the research team is of utmost importance and this cannot be replaced by an electronic platform. In addition, interviewees across the stakeholder groups supported the idea of having a harmonized eIC approach across the European Member States.ConclusionsInterviewees reported a range of design and implementation challenges which needs to be overcome to foster innovation in informing research participants and obtaining their consent electronically. It was considered important that the implementation of eIC runs alongside the face-to-face contact between research participants and the research team. Moreover, interviewees expect that eIC could offer the opportunity to enable a personalized approach and to strengthen continuous communication over time. If successfully implemented, eIC may facilitate the engagement of research participants in clinical research. (shrink)

Following Einstein's prediction of the gravitational bending of light, and in the course of experimental work aimed at its verification, only sporadic and at times misleading references have been made to Johann Georg von Soldner. In a paper published in 1804, Soldner derived the gravitational bending of light on the classical Newtonian basis and calculated its value around the sun with remarkable accuracy. Soldner's paper, inaccessible even in German, is now presented in English translation and put in the perspective of (...) Soldner's life and the science of his day and ours. (shrink)