This paper examines two questions about scientists’ search for knowledge. First, which search strategies generate discoveries effectively? Second, is it advantageous to diversify search strategies? We argue pace Weisberg and Muldoon (2009) that, on the first question, a search strategy that deliberately seeks novel research approaches need not be optimal. On the second question, we argue they have not shown epistemic reasons exist for the division of cognitive labor, identifying the errors that led to their conclusions. Furthermore, we generalize (...) the epistemic landscape model, showing that one should be skeptical about the benefits of social learning in epistemically complex environments. (shrink)

This article examines two questions about scientists’ search for knowledge. First, which search strategies generate discoveries effectively? Second, is it advantageous to diversify search strategies? We argue pace Weisberg and Muldoon, “Epistemic Landscapes and the Division of Cognitive Labor”, that, on the first question, a search strategy that deliberately seeks novel research approaches need not be optimal. On the second question, we argue they have not shown epistemic reasons exist for the division of cognitive labor, identifying the errors that (...) led to their conclusions. Furthermore, we generalize the epistemic landscape model, showing that one should be skeptical about the benefits of social learning in epistemically complex environments. (shrink)

Commentaries on Aristotle's writings have been produced since the 2nd century AD. This edition contains Greek commentaries on his work from the 3rd to the 8th centuries AD by, among others, Alexander of Aphrodiensias, Themistios, Joh. Philoponus, Simplicius in Greek.

Naturalism in the philosophy of mathematics is the view that philosophy cannot legitimately gainsay mathematics. I distinguish between reinterpretation and reconstruction naturalism: the former states that philosophy cannot legitimately sanction a reinterpretation of mathematics (i.e. an interpretation different from the standard one); the latter that philosophy cannot legitimately change standard mathematics (as opposed to its interpretation). I begin by showing that neither form of naturalism is self-refuting. I then focus on reinterpretation naturalism, which comes in two forms, and examine the (...) only available argument for it. I argue that this argument, the so-called Failure Argument, itself fails. My overall conclusion is that although there is no self-refutation argument against reinterpretation naturalism, there are as yet no good reasons to accept it. Naturalism in mathematics The consistency of mathematical naturalism The failure argument Objections to the failure argument Philosophy as the default. (shrink)

Violent video games (VVGs) are a source of serious and continuing controversy. They are not unique in this respect, though. Other entertainment products have been criticized on moral grounds, from pornography to heavy metal, horror films, and Harry Potter books. Some of these controversies have fizzled out over time and have come to be viewed as cases of moral panic. Others, including moral objections to VVGs, have persisted. The aim of this paper is to determine which, if any, of the (...) concerns raised about VVGs are legitimate. We argue that common moral objections to VVGs are unsuccessful, but that a plausible critique can be developed that captures the insights of these objections while avoiding their pitfalls. Our view suggests that the moral badness of a game depends on how well its internal logic expresses or encourages the players’ objectionable attitudes. This allows us to recognize that some games are morally worse than others—and that it can be morally wrong to design and play some VVGs—but that the moral badness of these games is not necessarily dependent on how violent they are. (shrink)

A study investigating the ideas of Pre-Reformation Scottish philosophers such as John Duns Scotus, John Ireland, John Mair of Haddington and George Lokert of Ayr.

The intense media coverage of the latest version of “human cloning” that began in mid‐October with a front‐page story in the New York Times revealed more than the public's deep fascination with the prospect of endless human replicas.1 It also served as a reminder that for the past decade no official, broad‐based advisory bioethics body has operated in the United States.

Physicalism can be roughly characterised as the view that everything is physical, or that everything that is fundamental is physical, or that any non-physical entity—property, substance, fact, event, kind and what have you—is both dependent upon and fully determined by physical entities. Perhaps the greatest challenge facing physicalism is to explain how conscious experience can be accounted for within the physicalist framework. Given these rough characterisations of physicalism, before setting out to address the problem posed by consciousness, there is some (...) prior conceptual work that must be done. In order for debates concerning the nature of consciousness and the ontology of mind and body to proceed in good order, something needs to be said about what it is for an entity to be a specifically physical entity. This paper offers reasons to think that, (i) at least given certain common metaphysical assumptions, discussions of what it is to be physical in general ought to be primarily concerned with what it is to be a physical property and that (ii) two popular approaches to characterising the physical - the Via Negativa and Object Physicalist approaches - face a serious problem. (shrink)

Δωρίχα, ὀστέα μὲν σὰ πάλαι †κοιμήσατο δεσμῶνχαίτης† ἥ τε μύρων ἔκπνοος ἀμπεχόνη,ᾗ ποτε τὸν χαρίεντα περιστέλλουσα Χάραξονσύγχρους ὀρθρινῶν ἥψαο κισσυβίων·Σαπφῷαι δὲ μένουσι φίλης ἔτι καὶ μενέουσιν 5ᾠδῆς αἱ λευκαὶ φθεγγόμεναι σελίδες.οὔνομα σὸν μακαριστόν, ὃ Ναύκρατις ὧδε φυλάξειἔστ’ ἂν ἴῃ Νείλου ναῦς ἐφ’ ἁλὸς πελάγη.

Physicians have special professional obligations to respond to medical emergencies. A bioterrorism attack would be a medical emergency. Thus, it seems that physicians would have an obligation to respond to a bioterrorist attack. However, the scope of those obligations, and their limits, are vexed topics. General rules may be comforting but the details and nuances of particular situations will always be relevant.

La philosophie peut-elle changer le monde? À en écouter Wittgenstein, la réponse est non. La philosophie laisse le monde tel qu’il est. Sa tâche consiste en la résolution des « pseudo-problèmes » qu’elle s’est elle-même posée. Pour Hans Jonas, au contraire, cette manière de philosopher est vaine. Oui, la philosophie peut et doit changer le monde, elle doit même s’emparer des problèmes du moment. Après être devenu un érudit du gnosticisme, Jonas comprend les limites de sa tour d’ivoire et rép...

À propos de la « pensée 68 » selon Serge AudierComme tous les dix ans, l’anniversaire de Mai 68 a donné lieu à un déluge de publications ; et, comme tous les dix ans, il fallait qu’émerge de la masse une poignée de titres qui dispenseraient de regarder les autres. Celui de Serge Audier fit partie de ceux-là, avec son titre accrocheur et toutes les apparences d’une grosse étude sérieuse sur un pan de l’histoire intellectuelle récen..

First-order formalisations are often preferred to propositional ones because they are thought to underwrite the validity of more arguments. We compare and contrast the ability of some well-known logics—these two in particular—to formally capture valid and invalid arguments. We show that there is a precise and important sense in which first-order logic does not improve on propositional logic in this respect. We also prove some generalisations and related results of philosophical interest. The rest of the article investigates the results’ philosophical (...) significance. A first moral is that the correct way to state the oft-cited superiority of first-order logic vis-`a-vis propositional logic is more nuanced than often thought. The second moral concerns semantic theory; the third logic’s use as a tool for discovery. A fourth and final moral is that second-order logic’s transcendence of first-order logic is greater than first-order logic’s transcendence of propositional logic. (shrink)

The tides of change constantly surface new currents in the world of business. No longer is it sufficient to seek the static positional advantage offered by classical Porterian analysis. This article explores the emerging direction of business strategy as expressed by the concept of evolutionary advantage. It examines first the major forms of business knowledge over the last century, then considers mainstream frameworks for strategic analysis, and offers, as a compelling alternative, the emerging notions of evolutionary development and evolutionary learning. (...) Through application of Evolutionary Systems Design, it is shown how an organization may cultivate strategies for sustainable success. (shrink)

This article analyses how Rousseau's First Discourse and the questions it posed about human progress and the reform of society were debated in the institutional context of the Berlin Academy by Formey and Herder. Despite some important disagreements, Formey and Herder fundamentally shared Rousseau's assumption that erudition could be detrimental both to society and to the individual. In order to limit the socially corrosive effects of the arts and the sciences, and in an attempt to realize their full beneficent potential, (...) they called for their reform through institutional regulation and management by a meritocracy of scholarly experts. Drawing on Hume, Herder in particular developed a positive role for the modern state as an active agent of enlightenment, provided it not only promoted the arts and sciences but also guaranteed freedom and the rule of law to ensure their flourishing. (shrink)

The term ‘Orthodox Christian medicine’ has become so customary among believers in Russia that the concept behind it is rarely questioned. However, it is worth articulating both for the sake of the profession and for the benefit of patients whether such a phrase is at all meaningful and if so what exactly it stands for. The following analysis, based on a public lecture, draws on the personal experience and reflections of a practicing GP and cardiologist who is also the Chairman (...) of the Society of Orthodox Christian Physicians of Russia. (shrink)