Leibniz’s binary numeral system is generally studied for its arithmetical relevance, but the analysis of several unpublished manuscripts shows that from the very beginning Leibniz also envisaged a new form of algebra in the context of dyadics based on the idea that its letters can only express numbers that are either 1 or 0. In this paper, I shall present the most notable results of this binary algebra: the determination of the algorithm for the expansion of squares and the development (...) of the positional notation used to express any possible number. These achievements explain the priority of dyadics over any other numeral system in Leibniz’s mind and his impressive work on the classification of numbers which was facilitated by tools and notions which were only accessible to him at that time. (shrink)

In Mossio & Taraborelli (2008) we challenged the assumption according to which the ecological and sensorimotor approaches are mere conceptual variations on the same enactive theme. We showed, on the contrary, that they endorse substantially different notions of an 'action-dependent perceptual invariant' and we submitted that this distinction has interesting theoretical and empirical implications. This dissimilarity between ecological and sensorimotor theories stems, in our view, from a more fundamental divergence on the nature of perceptual information. Since Gibson's work, the ecological (...) approach has adopted a fundamentally realist stance, according to which this information is 'picked up', 'revealed', 'encountered' and 'exploited' by the organism (as a range of affordances) but not 'constituted' by the activity of the organism. In contrast, sensorimotor approaches take an explicit interactivist position, which sees the perceiver's motor activity as a determinant of perceptual information itself. Pascal & O'Regan (2008) suggest that our analysis of the relationship between ecological, sensorimotor and enactive theories would benefit from a further distinction. The original enactive approach (Varela et al. 1991; Maturana, 2002; Thompson, 2007), they argue, should not be lumped together with contemporary sensorimotor approaches to perception: whereas sensorimotor theories endorse an externalist view of perception, according to which 'perception can only be understood as a form of interaction of the organism with the environment', the original enactive approach by Varela and collaborators would have strong 'idealist underpinnings'. (shrink)

We present computational modeling results based on a self‐paced reading study investigating number attraction effects in Eastern Armenian. We implement three novel computational models of agreement attraction in a Bayesian framework and compare their predictive fit to the data using k‐fold cross‐validation. We find that our data are better accounted for by an encoding‐based model of agreement attraction, compared to a retrieval‐based model. A novel methodological contribution of our study is the use of comprehension questions with open‐ended responses, so that (...) both misinterpretation of the number feature of the subject phrase and misassignment of the thematic subject role of the verb can be investigated at the same time. We find evidence for both types of misinterpretation in our study, sometimes in the same trial. However, the specific error patterns in our data are not fully consistent with any previously proposed model. (shrink)

Dual-process theories of the mind emphasize how reasoning is an interplay between intuitive and reflective thinking. This paper aims to understand how the two types of processing interact in the moral domain. According to a ‘default-interventionist’ model of moral reasoning intuition and reflection are conflicting cognitions: intuitive thinking would elicit heuristic and deontological responses, whereas reflection would favour utilitarian judgements. However, the evidence for the default interventionist view is inconclusive and challenged by a growing amount of counterevidence in recent years. (...) The recent empirical findings favour an interdependent rather than conflicting view of the two types of information processing in the moral domain. In this view, which I call dual-process reflective equilibrium, intuition and reflection cooperate in moral reasoning to reach a reflective goal, which is supposedly normative justification. In sum, on the one hand, the scope of moral intuitions extends to selecting relevant information and calling for reflection whenever a problem presents conflicting aspects; on the other hand, the purpose of moral reflection is to rationalize pre-reflective intuitions to provide articulated and accessible reasons. (shrink)

Besides its use in basic research, the DNA:RNA hybridization technique has helped the development of genetic engineering: it is instrumental in the isolation of specific genes that can be inserted into foreign cells, thus modifying their genetic information. Plants, animals, and microorganisms can now be altered to yield improved crops, pest-resistant plants, and a cheaper source of important proteins or drugs. The social relevance of genetic engineering received official sanction in 1980 when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that genetically modified (...) organisms can be patented. In this article I have tried to describe the discovery of the DNA:RNA hybridization technique as the successful outcome of years of intelligent and patient research in many laboratories, of inductive and deductive processes in the minds of many biologists. The synthesis that led to the final result and to the early development of the technique was made possible by the coming together of two brilliant scientists, Sol Spiegelman and Benjamin Hall. (shrink)

The article aims at showing how far the technologies of audiovisual registration affect not only the ontology of images but also our sense of realism in politics and history. As argue Jacques Derrida and Bernard Stiegler, historical events have become “tele-events” after the birth of these technologies. Our handling with images has changed accordingly. As argues Pietro Montani, we no longer consider them as “copies” of real objects but rather as “occasions” for initiating processes of “validation” of history. Hannah Arendt’s (...) opposition between the ancient concept of history being based on praxis and the modern concept of history as “fabrication” (poiesis) of the humankind must be therefore reconsidered. History is rather the negotiation between these two attitudes (praxis and poiesis): cinema might be one of the exemplary sources of this negotiation, as epitomized by the documentary work in the audiovisual archives conducted by Esfir Shub (1927) and Harun Farocki (1992). Representation (Louis Martin) becomes thus a dynamical power of imagination dealing with historical and political reality; consequently, the “ideal spectator”, just as the “ideal reader” for novels (Umberto Eco), is charged with a new task of actualizing the sense of images with regard to their historical and political references. (shrink)

The essay reconsiders Wolfgang Iser’s phenomenology of reading, taken as a possible non reductionist answer to the neuroscientific theories of literature. By emphasizing the aesthetic nature of reading, thanks also to Hans Robert Jauss’ contribution, the idea of a ‘reader’s imagination’ emerges here, as a specific and unique power which allows not only the access to the world of the literary text, but opens also new spheres for the understanding and exploration of the real world. In shorts, it is concerned (...) with the constitution of a special cognitive-emotional pattern, which depends on the building of what Iser considers as the reader’s «artificial habitats», through the interaction with the text. (shrink)

This book examines how contemporary philosophical thought (Friedrich A. von Hayek, Karl R. Popper, Hans Georg Gadamer, and Gadamer's Italian follower, Gianni Vattimo) has analysed and described the limitations of human reason.

Journal Name: Semiotica Issue: Ahead of print.

Dario Martinelli’s compact and enjoyable treatise on zoömusicology, _Of Birds, Whales and Other Musicians_ introduces musicologists, biologists, social scientists, and philosophers to a new theoretical model for studying how animal behavioral patterns relate to sound communication. Organized by musical trait rather than animal species, and drawing upon the work of such esteemed philosophers as Umberto Eco, Charles Sanders Peirce, and Thomas Sebeok, Martinelli’s analyses redefine the boundaries surrounding music and help readers—scholars and amateurs alike—to appreciate the relationship between animals (...) and musicological exchanges. (shrink)

The notion of individualised evidence holds the key to solve the puzzle of statistical evidence, but there’s still no consensus on how exactly to define it. To make progress on the problem, epistemologists have proposed various accounts of individualised evidence in terms of causal or modal anti-luck conditions on knowledge like appropriate causation, sensitivity and safety. In this paper, I show that each of these fails as satisfactory anti-luck condition, and that such failure lends abductive support to the following conclusion: (...) once the familiar anti-luck intuition on knowledge is extended to individualised evidence, no single causal or modal anti-luck condition on knowledge can succeed as the right anti-luck condition on individualised evidence. This conclusion casts serious doubts on the fruitfulness of the move from anti-luck conditions on knowledge to anti-luck conditions on individualised evidence. I expand on these doubts and point out further aspects where epistemology and the law come apart: epistemic anti- luck conditions on knowledge do not adequately characterise the legal notion of individualised evidence. (shrink)

Drosophila melanogaster is often considered to lack genomic 5‐methylcytosine (m5C), an opinion reinforced by two whole genome bisulfite‐sequencing studies that failed to find m5C. New evidence, however, indicates that genomic methylation is indeed present in the fly, albeit in small quantities and in unusual patterns. At embryonic stage 5, m5C occurs in short strand‐specific regions that cover ∼1% of the genome, at tissue levels suggesting a distribution restricted to a subset of nuclei. Its function is not obvious, but methylation in (...) subsets of nuclei would obscure functional associations since transcript levels and epigenetic modifications are assayed in whole embryos. Surprisingly, Mt2, the fly's only candidate DNA methyltransferase, is not necessary for the observed methylation. Full evaluation of the functions of genome methylation in Drosophila must await discovery and experimental inactivation of the DNA methyltransferase, as well as a better understanding of the pattern and developmental regulation of genomic m5C. (shrink)

As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to advance, one key challenge is ensuring that AI aligns with certain values. However, in the current diverse and democratic society, reaching a normative consensus is complex. This paper delves into the methodological aspect of how AI ethicists can effectively determine which values AI should uphold. After reviewing the most influential methodologies, we detail an intuitionist research agenda that offers guidelines for aligning AI applications with a limited set of reliable moral intuitions, each underlying a (...) refined cooperative view of AI. We discuss appropriate epistemic tools for collecting, filtering, and justifying moral intuitions with the aim of reducing cognitive and social biases. The proposed methodology facilitates a large collective participation in AI alignment, while ensuring the reliability of the considered moral judgments. (shrink)

Moral intuitions are generally understood as automatic strong responses to moral facts. In this paper, I offer a metacognitive account according to which the strength of moral intuitions denotes the level of confidence of a subject. Confidence is a metacognitive appraisal of the fluency with which a subject processes information from a morally salient stimulus. I show that this account is supported by some empirical evidence, explains the main features of moral intuition and is preferable to emotional or quasi-perceptual views (...) of moral intuition. (shrink)

Culminada la Guerra Fría, la sociedad global consideró superadas la colisión ideológica y la polarización de teorías. Sin embargo, al finalizar el siglo xx y descollando el siglo xxi surgieron indicios que apuntaban en dirección contraria. Los primeros con el resurgimiento del marxismo que a partir de la tesis humanista de la filosofía de la praxis revive desde Latinoamérica el legado de Mariátegui, el Che Guevara y Camilo Torres R. El artículo se pregunta si el paradigma del marxismo humanista arroga (...) los fundamentos del buen vivir o vivir bien para enfrentar al capitalismo neoliberal y su proyecto desarrollista. La aproximación al tema se hace de manera cualitativa y descriptiva. A través del método de análisis del discurso político expuesto en la teoría crítica al desarrollismo se aborda la caracterización del capitalismo neoliberal y el modelo de desarrollo, continuando con las tesis que desde el marxismo humanista y la estrategia de revolución cultural se estructura para la emancipación en Latinoamérica. Finalmente, se exponen los planteamientos del buen vivir a partir de la apropiación que hacen los neomarxistas para dar la batalla contra el capitalismo neoliberal. (shrink)

We introduce the concept of o-asymptotic classes of finite structures, melding ideas coming from 1-dimensional asymptotic classes and o-minimality. Along with several examples and non-examples of these classes, we present some classification theory results of their infinite ultraproducts: Every infinite ultraproduct of structures in an o-asymptotic class is superrosy of U^þ-rank 1, and NTP2 (in fact, inp-minimal).

Kierkegaard's notion of the aesthetic covers at least two interrelated aspects. On the one hand, it defines a way of existence characterized by either the immediate embodiment or the reflective contemplation of life's possibilities. On the other hand, it indicates the investigation of those possibilities of life within the medium of certain works of art and narratives. Both aspects entail a critical approach to existence on the basis of ethical and religious presuppositions.

: Self-consciousness is considered in a framework comprising four dimensions which are theoretically defined and supported by clinical neuropsychological evidence. Self-monitoring is defined as the ability to reflect on one’s own behaviour, with supporting evidence for deficits in this capacity noted in anosognosia syndrome. Self-feeling is defined as the capacity to feel all sensations related to one’s own body, with supporting evidence from deficiencies occurring in alexithymia, psychosomatic states and Cotard’s delusion. Identity refers to the capacity to recognize an object (...) as identical to oneself, based on autobiographic memory; pathological conditions related to this dimension include delusions of identity and the Zelig syndrome. Ownership is the capacity to perceive the status of ones’ own body, and is clinically altered in somatoparaphrenia. All four dimensions are related to specific brain networks. Keywords: Self-Monitoring; Self-Feeling; Identity; Ownership; Neurocognitive Dimensions Le dimensioni neurocognitive dell’autocoscienza Riassunto: L’autocoscienza viene inquadrata in base a quattro dimensioni, determinate in via teorica e supportate da evidenze cliniche di carattere neuropsicologico. L’automonitoraggio è definito quale capacità di riflettere sul proprio comportamento ed è sostenuto da evidenze che derivano da quella sindrome denominata anosognosia. Il sentire il proprio sé è la capacità di avvertire tutte le sensazioni del corpo proprio ; questa dimensione è supportata da evidenze derivanti da condizioni cliniche quali l’alessitimia, le affezioni psicosomatiche e il delirio di Cotard. L’identità si riferisce alla capacità di riconoscere come identico a se stesso un oggetto, fondata sulla memoria autobiografica; le condizioni patologiche legate a questa dimensione sono il delirio di identità e la sindrome di Zelig. Il possesso di sé è la capacità di percepire lo stato del proprio corpo, condizione che risulta alterata nella somatoparafrenia. Tutte queste quattro dimensioni sono collegate a specifici network cerebrali. Parole chiave: Automonitoraggio; Sentimento di sé; Identità; Padronanza di sé; Dimensioni neurocognitive. (shrink)

Recent programs aimed at the independent living of persons with disabilities, allow them to be costumers of sectors in which they have never had full access in the past. The Lisbon Treaty has distinctly recognized the existence of a community tourist area within the primary law, and CRPD has defined the principles of accessibility and accessible tourism as tools for the inclusion. In addition, tourism and transportation stakeholders must guarantee non-discriminatory services; they must approach persons with disabilities as every other (...) customer, by taking in consideration their needs and rights, especially when it comes to their accessibility, assistance, and information. Companies of transportation must cooperate with DPOs in order to define disability-related training procedures. (shrink)

The professional profile of a performer does not only consist of mere music playing, but calls into question a number of variables of private and public, musical and extra-musical articulation. Performers have their own personality and inclinations; they are exposed to different forms of education and influences; they develop certain technical and stylistic abilities; they find certain repertoires more suitable than others; they confront themselves with composers and their requests/indications; they have to take into account social demands to given repertoires; (...) they also, intentionally or not, develop a public persona; finally, and particularly nowadays, they create a number of media interfaces that allow the public to access all the previously-listed features. The present article focuses on new media communication, particularly “official websites”, as one of such media interfaces (and one of the most important ones, in present-day society): the various semiotic strategies of visual, linguistic and audiovisual representation of this medium will be applied to the case of the Lithuanian pianist Andrius Žlabys. (shrink)

The purpose of the present article is to illustrate the crucial role played by the Umwelt theory in zoomusicological (and, more generally, zoosemiotic) studies. Too much, in fact too little, has been written on the relationship between non-human animals and music. Most of these writings do not explicitly aim at contributing to the actual problem (a good example being the reflections on birdsong contained in John Locke’s Essay Concerning Human Understanding). Some are, so to speak, a little folkloristic, quite a (...) few broach the problem in strictly scientific terms, and very few take a clearly zoomusicological approach. In an attempt to understand all the possible ways in which the problem can be analysed, it turns out that all these contributions — in spite of their reciprocal diversity — have points in common, leading to three main categories of approach: discontinuity, gradualism, and pluralism (or Umwelt theory). The discontinuist attitude is by definition opposed to the intent of a zoomusicological research, which in fact defends the thesis that music is not specific only to humans. On the other hand, one might share the gradualist assumption that musicality departs from a basis common to many animal species (at least, all those provided with vocal apparatuses). However, such a basis cannot be interpreted as monolithic (i.e., as having developed in a unique and indivisible way), carrying, as a result, qualitative differences in music between species. For the above-mentioned reasons, and for others to be illustrated in the present paper, it becomes clear that the approach to zoomusicology must necessarily be pluralistic. The most suitable framework seems to be that postulated by Jakob von Uexküll, and known as the theory ofUmwelt. (shrink)

Jesus was poor and he came to proclaim the gospel to the poor. Not just to the poor in spirit, who are aware of their need of God, but also to those who are poor in economic terms, who are poor by any standards 1975:96.

This report is an attempt to reread the event of Revelation in view of DV 8: «Ecclesia, volventibus saeculis, ad plenitudinem divinae veritatis iugiter tendit, donec in ipsa consummentur verba Dei». The text aims at clarifying the eschatological character of Revelation, raising however a theological problem of great importance: if and in what measure is it possible to think of Revelation as a never concluded process, if the theological tradition asserts that Revelation is concluded with the death of the last (...) Apostle and Dei Verbum speaks of Christ as the fullness of Revelation? The eschatological character of Revelation is investigated in the light of the dynamism of the Tradition, in particular of DV 8, which gives indications of great interest to resolve the matter of the persistence of Revelation in the time of the Church. The report affirms that the Tradition does not limit itself to the understanding of the revealed fact, but it points out the participation of the Church in the dynamism of Revelation itself. The conclusion is reached by means of a description of the constitutive relationship between Christian experience and knowledge - described in Dei Verbum as intima spiritualium rerum quam experiuntur intelligentia - which has it most clear and most pertinent expression in the sensus fidei. (shrink)

Despite the substantial appeal of the safety condition, Kelp (J Philos Res 34:21–31, 2009; Am Philos Q 53:27–37; Good Thinking. A Knowledge First Virtue Epistemology, Routledge, London, 2018) has raised a difficult challenge for safety-theoretic accounts of knowledge. By combining Gettier-style fake barn cases with epistemic Frankfurt cases, he concludes that no formulation of safety can be strong enough to predict ignorance in the former and weak enough to accommodate knowledge in the latter. In this note, my contribution is two-fold. (...) Firstly, I take up Kelp’s challenge and I show that, once properly understood, safety successfully rises to it. Secondly, I draw a more general lesson on the safety condition: a satisfactory solution to Kelp’s challenge calls for a revision of the standard formulation of safety, which must be indexed to both methods and environments. My conclusion will be that an environment-relative version of safety not only meets Kelp’s challenge, but it also advances our understanding of the safety condition on knowledge. (shrink)