O artigo objetiva demonstrar que a Semântica formal, enquanto campo de articulação entre Lógica e Ontologia, exige sua fundamentação em uma Antropologia. Para isso, será necessário demonstrar que Tugendhat conduz a Semântica formal ao modo de fundamentação da Fenomenologia de Heidegger, por meio dos estados-de-ânimo. Para tanto, partiremos da distinção entre fundamento relativo e absoluto, introduzida nos primeiros capítulos das Lições Introdutórias à Filosofia Analítica da Linguagem, com a finalidade de demonstrar que a dimensão semântica da filosofia de Tugendhat somente (...) pode fundamentar relativamente seu conceito de Filosofia. Pelo contrário, a dimensão fenomenológica, enquanto oferece uma motivação para a atividade de filosofar, pode fornecer também o ponto de apoio para uma fundamentação absoluta deste conceito. Com isto, entretanto, o que Tugendhat parece não ter percebido é que, por meio desse movimento, ele inverte a relação de implicação entre ambos os métodos, de tal modo a tornar o método fenomenológico fundamento do método analítico. Assim, sendo absoluta, devemos considerar a dimensão motivadora, no caso os estados-deânimo, fundamento da fenomenologia de Ser e Tempo, como originária frente à dimensão relativa oferecida pela Semântica formal. Será com base nesta relação, portanto, que tomaremos a circularidade entre o fundamento nos estados-de-ânimo e o fundamento nas regras semânticoformais para enunciados assertóricos com a finalidade de demonstrar que o campo de articulação entre Lógica e Ontologia exige sua fundamentação em uma Antropologia. (shrink)

Ao longo desse texto intencionamos desenvolver a ideia segundo a qual há uma estreita conexão estrutural entre categorias como vontade, razão, autonomia, liberdade e causalidade no interior da filosofia prática de Kant. Assim, partindo da identificação de vontade e razão procuraremos demonstrar que esse paralelismo só é possível por meio da purificação da vontade e pela atribuição de uma função prática à razão. Entretanto, somente a purificação da vontade ainda não será suficiente para permitir a identificação entre vontade e razão. (...) Com efeito, para identificá-las devemos demonstrar como passar da liberdade da vontade, da liberdade considerada negativamente, portanto, para a liberdade da razão prática, enquanto liberdade em sentido positivo. (shrink)

This article aims to present a discussion about childhood from the issues raised by the short film entitled Alma, directed, produced and scripted by the filmmaker André Morais. In the work, we experience a day in the life of a girl who lives with her grandmother and who, throughout the plot, weaves questions about her own existence, the senses of life and the dimensions of the relationships we establish with each other. It is discussed in this article, therefore, the power (...) of cinema and childhood as dimensions that invite a dialogue capable of converging art and life, also revitalizing the field of science, from the reflections that are dear to the dynamics of human experience. What conceptions of childhood are presented in the production? In what ways does the chosen approach broaden the discussion about childhood and cinema as potencies? To what extent do the questions raised by the child connect their childhood experience to the experiences of those who watch it on screen? In order to mobilize the discussion, the text is organized from scenes, which characterize the sequence of events that give meaning to what the film wants to express. In the first, the central theme is presented; in the second, the questions for which the short awakens us throughout the narrative; and in the third, it seeks to expand the possibilities of reading, rather than closing them. These scenes support the discussions brought here through Walter Benjamin, Mikhail Bakhtin, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Aristotle and Hannah Arendt. (shrink)

Nun liegt dieses große prosopographische Werk in erstaunlich kurzer Zeit abgeschlossen vor. Noch weit mehr als bei der PLRE (geringere Personenzahl) und dem PLP (zwar viel größere Personenzahl, jedoch oft leichtere Auffindbarkeit durch differenzierende Familiennamen) bedurfte dieses Instrumentum studiorum einer Aufschlüsselung durch umfassende Register. Wie beim PLP ist auch hier passenderweise auf den Seiten 7–84 ein vollständiges, erneuertes Abkürzungsverzeichnis vorangestellt (Quellen, Sekundärliteratur und Zeitschriftensiglen). Darauf folgen sehr willkommene Addenda und Corrigenda (S. 85–134), in die erfreulicherweise auch so manches aus meinen (...) ausführlichen Rezensionen (in BZ 92–94) eingeflossen ist. Der Hauptteil des Bandes mit den Indices (angeführt werden die Nummern und Namen der in der PMBZ behandelten Personen) wird eingeleitet durch eine Auflistung sämtlicher (sinnvoller) Namensvarianten, Familiennamen und Beinamen (S. 143–166). Danach folgt ein eher unerwartetes, vermutlich auch nicht sonderlich wichtiges Verzeichnis der Quellenstellen (S. 167–215, hier werden nur die Nummern angeführt). Als sicherlich bedeutendstes Register ist das der Titel und Berufe zu betrachten, durch das ja erst umfassende Studien zur Verwaltungs-, Wirtschafts-, Sozialgeschichte usw. ermöglicht werden bzw. erhebliche Erleichterung erfahren. Den Abschluß bilden – auch hier folgt die PMBZ dem Vorbild des PLP – die geographischen und topographischen Namen, deren Auflistung im Rahmen einer Prosopographie ja nicht unbedingt zu erwarten ist. (shrink)

Oxycholesterols (OS) are formed from cholesterol or its immediate precursors by enzymatic or free radical action in vivo, or they may be derived from food. OS exhibit a wide spectrum of biological activities. In OS cytotoxicity, several mechanisms seem to be involved: e.g. inhibition of HMG‐CoA reductase activity, antiproliferative action, apoptosis induction, replacement of cholesterol by OS in membranes followed by changes in cellular membrane structure and functionality, and immune system functions alteration. Furthermore, OS may be mutagenic and carcinogenic and (...) may serve as intracellular signaling or regulatory molecules. Here we review OS cellular activities with special attention to the cytotoxic action in vivo and in vitro using experimental models. BioEssays 28: 387–398, 2006. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. (shrink)

Biological individuality is a notoriously thorny topic for biologists and philosophers of biology. In this paper we argue that biological individuality presents multiple, interconnected questions for biologists and philosophers that together form a problem agenda. Using a case study of an interdisciplinary research group in ecology, behavioral and evolutionary biology, we claim that a debate on biological individuality that seeks to account for diverse practices in the biological sciences should be broadened to include and give prominence to questions about uniqueness (...) and temporality. We show that broadening the problem agenda of biological individuality draws attention to underrecognized philosophical issues and discussions and thereby organizes and enriches the existing debate. (shrink)

In this paper I develop a concept of behavioural ecological individuality. Using findings from a case study which employed qualitative methods, I argue that individuality in behavioural ecology should be defined as phenotypic and ecological uniqueness, a concept that is operationalised in terms of individual differences such as animal personality and individual specialisation. This account make sense of how the term “individuality” is used in relation to intrapopulation variation in behavioural ecology. The concept of behavioural ecological individuality can sometimes be (...) used to identify individuals. It also shapes research agendas and methodological choices in behavioural ecology, leading researchers to account for individuals as sources of variation. Overall, this paper draws attention to a field that has been largely overlooked in philosophical discussions of biological individuality and highlights the importance of individual differences and uniqueness for individuality in behavioural ecology. (shrink)

Hitler rend visite en 1932 à la sœur de Nietzsche qui règne à Weimar sur les archives de son frère; Mussolini, devenu fasciste, subventionne l'entreprise d'édition de ses oeuvres: est-ce à dire que le philosophe, qui meurt en 1900, mais dont l'œuvre s'arrête en 1889, a pu contribuer à l'apparition du fascisme et du nazisme, alimenter leur propagande et soutenir leur idéologie raciste? Les faits nous apprennent au contraire que les efforts des nazis pour l'enrôler ont été vains, et que (...) les Archives Nietzsche sont même passées à la trappe dès la déclaration du conflit. La 'volonté de puissance' justifie-t-elle la formation d'une hiérarchie des valeurs qui exigerait une 'race forte' pour s'imposer? N'y a-t-il pas chez Nietzsche une exaltation de la force, de la guerre, de la 'barbarie' créatrice? Sa critique de la pitié, de la compassion pour tous les êtres vulnérables ne fait aucun doute. Pourtant, il s'oppose à tous les nationalismes comme à l'État ou aux masses. La plupart des courants et tendances du XXe siècle se sont réclamés de la pensée du philosophe. Dans ce livre, Marc de Launay rappelle que Nietzsche espère la venue des esprits libres affranchis des phobies raciales."--Page 4 of cover. (shrink)

Hermann Glockner, von W. Ritzel.--Hermann Glockners Ethikvorlesung, von M. Trapp.--Folgenreiche Begegnung mit einem Lexikon, von J. Günther.--Das Einzelne, das Allgemeine und das Individuelle, von E. Heintel.--Philosophisches und mathematisches Kontinuum, von F. Kaulbach.--Fall, Norm, Typus, von K. Larenz.--"... als allein ein guter Wille," von O. F. Bollnow.--Kants Begründung der Gemeinschaft durch die Idee der Menschheit, von D.-J. Löwisch.--Dilthey und das Problem der Geschichtlichkeit, von J. Derbolav.--Gleichzeitigkeit--oder: Platon übersetzen, von A. Hübscher.--Zur Theorie des menschlichen Spiels, von H. Zdarzil.-Anlässlich eines Stillebens von (...) Kalff und eines Figurenbildes von Vermeer, von H. Schrade.--Pessimismus und Fortschrittsglaube, von W. Hof.--Orwells dialektischer Roman "Nineteen Eighty-Four, von H.-J. Lang.--Reisen mit Goethes Auge, von M. Weinhandl.--Incipit vita nova, von J. Overhoff.--Verzeichnis sämtlicher Veröffentlichungen von Hermann Glockner (p. 375-388)--Anschriften der Mitarbeiter. (shrink)

Niche construction theory (NCT) aims to transform and unite evolutionary biology and ecology. Much of the debate about NCT has focused on construction. Less attention has been accorded to the niche: what is it, exactly, that organisms are constructing? In this paper I compare and contrast the definition of the niche used in NCT with ecological niche definitions. NCT’s concept of the evolutionary niche is defined as the sum of selection pressures affecting a population. So defined, the evolutionary niche is (...) narrower than the ecological niche. Moreover, when contrasted with a more restricted ecological niche concept, it has a slightly different extension. I point out three kinds of cases in which the evolutionary niche does not coincide with realized ecological niches: extreme habitat degradation, commensalism, and non-limiting or super-abundant resources. These conceptual differences affect the role of NCT in unifying ecology and evolutionary biology. (shrink)

This paper addresses a relatively new mode of ecological research: data synthesis studies. Data synthesis studies involve reusing data to create a general model as well as a reusable, aggregated dataset. Using a case from movement ecology, I analyse the trade-offs and strategies involved in data synthesis. Like theoretical ecological modelling, I find that synthesis studies involve a modelling trade-off between generality, precision and realism; they deal with this trade-off by adopting a pragmatic kludging strategy. I also identify an additional (...) trade-off, the synthesis trade-off, between making data easy to synthesise for a particular project, on the one hand, and facilitating data reuse for other projects, on the other. In response to this synthesis trade-off, researchers create flexible datasets that are relatively easy to use for particular projects and can be adjusted to suit some other purposes. The flexibility compromise is also found in broader open data efforts, making it a significant element in the future of data-intensive ecology. (shrink)

One of Hans Christian Andersen's most beautiful tales is "The Emperor's Nightingale." Its message—an exceptionally sobering one in the present context—is that nature is altogether finer and more enduring than art. It tells how a Chinese emperor, beguiled by a precious imitation bird that had been given him, forsook a natural songster he had once favored. But when that glittering counterfeit broke down, its clockwork sound silenced, the now aged ruler found welcome solace in the real bird's return, in its (...) more reliable and spiritually healing song. . . . Despite the artist's foregone defeat in any contest with nature , over the ages artists have been irresistibly drawn to the challenge of imitating nature. The persistence of these claims upon their skills and the inventive flight that have been elicited in the process testify to the extraordinary hold that the desire to mirror nature, or better still, to capture something of its essence, can exert over artists and their public. Accounts of imitative prowess go back to the most ancient days, beyond the fabled skills of Zeuxis and Apelles. There is no need here to summarize the complicated but almost domestically familiar history of illusionism. Rather, it is my present intention to reflect upon some contradictions inherent in the conception of art as illusion and to review some of the more exaggerated forms in which efforts have been made to break down the boundaries between art and nature. Frank Anderson Trapp, William Rutherford Mead Professor of Fine Arts, chairman of the department of art, and director of the Mead Art Museum at Amherst College, is the author of The Attainment of Delacroix and a number of essays on the history of art. (shrink)

Several philosophers of science have taken inspiration from biological research on niches to conceptualise scientific practice. We systematise and extend three niche-based theories of scientific practice: conceptual ecology, cognitive niche construction, and scientific niche construction. We argue that research niches are a promising conceptual tool for understanding complex and dynamic research environments, which helps to investigate relevant forms of agency and material and social interdependencies, while also highlighting their historical and dynamic nature. To illustrate this, we develop a six-point framework (...) for conceptualising research niches. Within this framework, research niches incorporate multiple and heterogenous material, social and conceptual factors (multi-dimensionality); research outputs arise, persist and differentiate through interactions between researchers and research niches (processes); researchers actively respond to and construct research niches (agency); research niches enable certain interactions and processes and not others (capability); and research niches are defined in relation to particular entities, such as individual researchers, disciplines, or concepts (relationality), and in relation to goals, such as understanding, solving problems, intervention, or the persistence of concepts or instruments (normativity). (shrink)

Elizabeth Grosz's interpretation of Darwinian evolutionary theory to ground a feminist ontology of biology has been particularly controversial. Most critics have understood Grosz as supporting her theory with empirical evidence, and they criticize her for being either inaccurate or uncritical of and overly dependent on science. I argue that Grosz reads Darwin as a philosopher in a Deleuzian and Irigarayan sense, and that Grosz's project is therefore better understood in terms of its ethical and political goals rather than in terms (...) of empirical adequacy. Employing this evaluative framework leads to a novel route for critique of Grosz's ontology in terms of its reliance on the Darwinian distinction between organism and environment. I conclude that Grosz's work is valuable for the way it maintains ethical and political considerations in feminist ontological debates, and that introducing a more sensitive understanding of the organism–environment relation will lead us closer to a truly feminist ontology of biology. (shrink)

This chapter questions the way “sex” features in behavioral ecological research as a standard explanatory variable. Researchers often use sex to explain variation in a trait or phenomenon that they are studying. This practice is widespread, partly because sex is often easy to identify and often explains some variation, thus making it easier to discover and test other causal patterns of interest. Yet, sex also frequently fails to explain variation. Using a couple of recent examples, it is shown how the (...) pervasiveness of sex as an explanatory variable is partly due to the structure of scientific research, including the use of data from large longitudinal studies, and generalization from previous studies. Researchers should more carefully assess and justify the relevance of sex to each new study, to avoid overgeneralization and the perpetuation of assumptions about sexual difference and its importance in biology. (shrink)

Tracking technology has been heralded as transformative for animal ecology. In this paper I examine what changes are taking place, showing how current animal movement research is a field ripe for philosophical investigation. I focus first on how the devices alter the limitations and biases of traditional field observation, making observation of animal movement and behaviour possible in more detail, for more varied species, and under a broader variety of conditions, as well as restricting the influence of human presence and (...) observer bias. I reconstruct these as shifts in scope, objectivity, accuracy and fruitfulness. The second transformation is slightly less obvious but equally significant for animal ecology. Tracking devices generate complex data that demands both statistical and biological expertise, which has led to increasingly frequent and intensive collaborations between statisticians and biologists. Based on interviews, I examine how researchers in these interdisciplinary collaborations negotiate the collection, analysis and interpretation of movement data, integrating research interests, methodological constraints, previous field observations, and background theory. Tracking technology is therefore also shifting which disciplinary considerations are brought to bear on research into animal movement and behaviour and how this research is conducted. (shrink)