En obras fundamentales como On the Origin of Species (1859), The Descent of Man (1871) y The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals (1872), Charles Darwin establece un claro posicionamiento anti-antropocéntrico basado en la continuidad evolutiva entre animales-humanos, y entre todos los organismos incluyendo a la especie humana. No obstante, diversos teóricos de la síntesis evolutiva moderna, los neodarwinistas, entre ellos George Gaylord Simpson y Bernhard Rensch, vuelven a instaurar el antropocentrismo en el corazón de la teoría de (...) la evolución, aun a expensas de ideas darwinianas fundacionales, restauradas por Stephen Jay Gould. Analizaré el caso para intentar comprender cómo lo que se ha llamado la “segunda herida narcisista” infringida por Darwin a la humanidad opera en este intento que busca hacer coincidir biología y antropocentrismo en el siglo XX, a costa del propio pensamiento del padre de la biología. Para dar sentido a esta reformulación del antropocentrismo contemporáneo, seguiremos algunas pistas para comprender cómo en la cultura occidental se produce una antinomia entre dos ideas producidas en diferentes momentos de su historia intelectual: que el hombre es el centro de la naturaleza y que no lo es, escapando en ciertos aspectos a su biología mediante la excepcionalidad. La tesis de la continuidad biológica presentada por Darwin es una de las marcas más importantes de la revolución epistemológica que lleva su nombre, y aun así los herederos de su revolución la traicionan. (shrink)

Michel Henry sostiene que la subjetividad se muestra fenomenológicamente según la estructura de la autoafección, y que esta no admite ningún tipo de distancia temporal, siendo la temporalidad una marca exclusiva de la trascendencia. Sin embargo, a partir de los años noventa, Henry lleva adelante una lectura fenomenológica de ciertos aspectos de la doctrina cristiana, gracias a la cual logró dar con otro tipo de temporalidad. Esta nueva temporalidad, de carácter inmanente, es la problemática que se abordará en este artículo, (...) en el cual se buscará establecer cómo ella es efectivamente experienciable. En la primera sección, se precisará la dinámica del nacimiento trascendental y de la temporalidad que tal nacimiento entraña. La doctrina del nacimiento trascendental, que Henry elabora inspirándose en Meister Eckhart y que alude al engendramiento del viviente en la Vida absoluta sirve de guía para pensar una relación inmanente entre la eternidad, el instante y el tiempo. En la segunda sección, veremos cómo, ya desde la perspectiva del viviente, la temporalidad inmanente se articula como presente viviente. La tercera y última sección estará reservada al estudio de la afectividad y la habitualidad corporal como manifestaciones concretas de la temporalidad inmanente. Así, podremos concluir que aquello que se explica a partir de las notas particulares de la Vida absoluta no solo da cuenta de una temporalidad inmanente como una dimensión fundante de la experiencia subjetiva, sino también de una dimensión concreta y fenomenológicamente atestable para el viviente. Estos resultados permitirán, además, sentar las bases para investigaciones futuras que vinculen la temporalidad inmanente con la trascendente. (shrink)

Selective mutism (SM) is a developmental disorder characterized by a child’s inability to speak in certain contexts and/or in the presence of unfamiliar interlocutors. This work proposes a critical discussion of the most recent studies on SM, with respect to clinical and diagnostic features, as well as the etiology and treatment of this disorder. At present, all research work supports the hypothesis that SM is a complex anxiety disorder with multifactorial etiology (interaction among biological and environmental causes). The latest edition (...) of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5; American Psychiatric Association, 2013) places SM mutism among “Anxiety Disorders”, and no longer among “Other Childhood, Infant and Adolescent Disorders” (as in DSM-IV). Other important aspects relate to cognitive biases and emotional states at the base of SM, which partly explain the disorder’s persistence and represent an important objective of intervention work. No data in the literature point to a total remission of SM, but good results are achieved with cognitive behavior intervention and multimodal therapy (MMT) involving a variety of child interaction contexts. (shrink)

Histone octamers (hos) and DNA topoisomerase I contribute, along with other proteins, to the higher order structure of chromatin. Here we report on the similar topological requirements of these two protein model systems for their interaction with DNA. Both histone octamers and topoisomerase I positively and consistently respond to DNA supercoiling and curvature, and to the spatial accessibility of the preferential interaction sites. These findings (1) point to the relevance of the topology‐related DNA conformation in protein interactions and define the (...) particular role of the helically phased rotational information; and (2) help to solve the apparent paradoxical behaviour of ubiquitous and abundant proteins that interact with defined DNA sites in spite of the lack of clear sequence consensuses. Considering firstly, that the interactions with DNA of both DNA topoisomerase I and histone octamers are topology‐sensitive and that upon their interaction the DNA conformation is modified; and secondly, that similar behaviours have also been reported for DNA topoisomerase II and histone H1, a topology‐based functional correlation among all these determinants of the higher order structure of chromatin is here suggested. (shrink)

Estudiamos los hitos principales por los que ha pasado la voz fenómeno desde que la fenomenología husserliana lo tematizara. Husserl pone como condición al fenómeno la mención identificadora antecedente. Pero se plantea la posibilidad de que la donación intuitiva sobrepase la mención: es el caso de los fenómenos saturados, reivindicados por J-L Marion. Una nueva brecha se abre al fenómeno cuando se trata del rostro ajeno, en que el fenómeno se convierte en manifestación nunca concluida: su disimetría y paradoja reside (...) en que soy fenómeno para él en la medida en que él lo es para mí, manifestativos ambos de un alguien que los trasciende. Los nuevos interlocutores son Levinas y Ricoeur. Concluimos en la diversificación del fenómeno y en la consiguiente exigencia de una hermenéutica previa para delimitar su alcance. (shrink)

1 It is not unusual to come across works written by philosophers that are half way between the essay and the novel. Some even talk of a kind of dilution of philosophy into literature, from a clearly metaphysical perspective, therefore a philosophical one. After the seminal case of Friedrich Nietzsche, the relationship between philosophy and literature in the 20th century has intensified. Evidence for this state of affairs are the many excellent philosophers who are also novelists – some of th...

The main aim of this paper is to investigate the micro and macro predictors of Portuguese willingness to pay (WTP) more taxes to bolster funds channelled to the National Health Service (NHS). An online questionnaire was used to collect data from 584 Portuguese citizens. The statistical analysis was performed through the application of logistic regressions. The research shows that willingness to support increasing taxes depended on socioeconomic, behavioural, and psychological factors. The WTP more taxes to finance the NHS were associated (...) with younger ages, life satisfaction and dispositional optimism, satisfaction with the NHS performance, current perceived risk exposure, and risk orientation. Identifying and understanding the main influencing factors associated with WTP more taxes for NHS is essential to assist policy-makers in developing healthcare reforms. Decision-makers may take this opportunity to improve the NHS since those who ultimately benefit from the measures can provide an additional source of health financing. (shrink)

Spending time alone is a virtually inevitable part of daily life that can promote or undermine well-being. Here, we explore how the language used to describe time alone – such as “me-time”, “solitude”, or “isolation” – influences how it is perceived and experienced. In Study 1 (N = 500 U.S adults), participants evaluated five common labels for time alone. Descriptive and narrative evidence revealed robust interindividual variability and significant mean differences in how these labels were evaluated. Overall, “me-time” was rated (...) most positively, and “isolation” was rated least positively (but not negatively). In Study 2, we experimentally manipulated the linguistic framing of time alone, describing it as either “me-time” or “isolation”. Participants (N = 176 U.S undergraduates) then spent 30 min physically alone without in-person or digital interaction. Notably, positive affect increased for “me-time” participants but decreased for “isolation” participants. Negative affect decreased in both conditions, but the magnitude of the decrease was greater after “me-time”. People’s beliefs about being alone improved after “me-time” but not after “isolation”. Further, we explored participants’ behaviours and thoughts while alone. These findings demonstrate meaningful variation in how people perceive different time alone labels and provide preliminary evidence that simple linguistic shifts may enhance subjective experiences of time alone. (shrink)

The debate on the ethics of privacy has been mainly dominated by Western perspectives, to the exclusion of broader ethical theories and socio-cultural perspectives. This imbalance carries risks; transplanted ethical norms and values can collide with those of the communities in which they are deployed. The consequent homogenization might also represent a missed opportunity to enrich and develop the current paradigm of privacy protection so as to effectively face new technological challenges. This article introduces and discusses the sub-Saharan philosophy of (...) Ubuntu and argues how its conception of the self helps to reinterpret some of the emerging issues revolving digital information technologies. To begin with, a general overview of the debate on the ethics of privacy is provided by distinguishing between individual and relational privacy. Also, the challenges of 'group privacy' are discussed. Then, we introduce basic principles of Ubuntu focusing on how these may have affected privacy conceptions and related legal practices. By outlining opportunities and risks of intercultural information ethics, we argue how Ubuntu—similarly to other communitarian moral philosophies—strengthens the development of the concept of relational privacy and, in particular, of group privacy. (shrink)

This study provides new longitudinal evidence on two major types of gesture–speech combination that play different roles in children’s early language. We analysed the spontaneous production of 10 Italian children observed monthly from 10–12 to 23–25 months of age. We evaluated the extent to which the developmental trends observed in children’s early gesture–word and word–word productions can predict subsequent verbal abilities. The results indicate that “complementary” and “supplementary” gesture–speech combinations predict subsequent language development in a different manner: While the onset (...) of “supplementary” combinations predicts the onset of two-word combinations, the use of “complementary” combinations at 12 and 18 months predicts the vocabulary and the ability to produce more words utterances at 2 years of age. Moreover, the results suggest that both “complementary” and “supplementary” crossmodal combinations are good predictive indexes of early verbal skills during the second year of age. (shrink)

Este artículo interroga el lugar de la felicidad en un pensamiento sobre la historia. La constatación respecto de su ausencia en un pensamiento filosófico político nos lleva a revisitar críticamente dos modalidades del relato que han acogido su llamado: el pensamiento utópico y la teoría crítica. El..

L’article analyse le concept de mort dans l’œuvre d’Ernst Bloch, qui constitue un défi majeur pour le principe espérance. Lorsque Bloch aborde cette question dans ses textes, il lie la dimension du deuil au thème du travail de la vie. Si ce dernier est en fait la quête d’un sens ultime et définitif, il ne peut advenir qu’en allant à l’encontre de la finitude elle-même. Or, ce n’est qu’en se consacrant pleinement à la tâche qu’est la vie que l’existence humaine (...) peut trouver son sens. L’article analyse ces positions blochiennes en les comparant aux thèses sur la mort proposées par Vladimir Jankélévitch. (shrink)

Issues surrounding transsexualism, especially when surgical operations have been performed to achieve the desired sex, can create serious problems for canon law. After an examination of how sex is determined, the author provides a clear explanation of transsexualism and then differentiates it from hermaphroditism, homosexuality, and transvestitism. Transsexualism’s effect on the liciety of marriage is analyzed, followed by an exploration of considerations regarding transsexualism and Holy Orders. Finally, transsexualism and the vowed religious life are examined. The author encourages those faced (...) with such situations to pursue solutions that preserve, as well as possible, the good of the patient and their community, as well as the Church. National Catholic Bioethics Quarterly 14.1 : 105–118. (shrink)

This paper interprets the character and self-control as the two chief keys of the sistematic unity of human virtues, according to the thought of Saint Josemaria. First, the character is not only forged through acts, but more definitively it amounts to the identity of the heart in a biblical sense. Secondly, self-control by several ways preserves the unity of the person among the plurality of expressions corresponding to each virtue.

Recent narratives and debates surrounding long-term AI concerns—the prospect of artificial general intelligence in particular—are fraught with hidden assumptions, priorities, and values. This paper employs a humanistic, narrative-centered approach to analyze the works of two vocal, and opposing, thinkers in the field—Luciano Floridi and Nick Bostrom—to ask how the representational, descriptive differences in their works reveal the high stakes of narrative choices for how we form ideas about humanity, urgency, risk, harm, and possibility in relation to AI. This paper closely (...) reads Floridi and Bostrom using different representational models and historical narratives from works in the environmental humanities, literary theory, bioethics, and the history of technology to uncover the imaginative terrain of recent long-term AI discourse and reveal the complexity and limitations of the messaging underlying the works of different authors. (shrink)

Algunos intérpretes sostienen que la fenomenología de la inmanencia de Michel Henry amenaza el carácter singular del sujeto y la evidencia fenomenológica del mundo. En este artículo se argumentará que esas críticas deben ser matizadas. Para ello se abordará el análisis henriano de los sentimientos y se demostrará que el objetivo de Henry no es reducir la fenomenalidad a un núcleo premundano, sino describir las condiciones trascendentales por las cuales somos seres afectivos en un mundo necesariamente tonalizado.

En el marco de la fenomenología generativa presentada por Edmund Husserl, se considera que el carácter histórico de una comunidad tradicionalizada proviene del movimiento de institución, sedimentación, reinstitución y transformación de un sentido. El objetivo de este trabajo es estudiar el papel que cumple la reinstitución [Nachstiftung] dentro del “a priori estructural de la historia” y elucidar en qué radica su necesidad dentro de la constitución de una tradición. Para comprender las características particulares de la reinstitución se propone trazar un (...) paralelo entre ésta y la rememoración, en tanto momento de la temporalidad egológica. Como conclusión se mostrará que la reactivación que conduce a una mera comprensión no asegura la continuidad de una tradición. Sólo la adopción pasiva y la efectuación teleológica garantizan la durabilidad de una comunidad tradicionalizada.In the context of the generative phenomenology introduced by Edmund Husserl, it is considered that the historic nature of a traditionalized community can be traced in the movement of establishment, sedimentation, reestablishment and transformation of an original meaning. The main goal of this paper is to study the role the reestablishment [Nachstiftung] plays within the “structural a priori of history” and to elucidate where that necessity lies in concerning the constitution of a community. In order to clarify the fundamental characteristics of the reestablishment, I attempt to draw a parallel between reestablishment and recollection as a moment of the egologic temporality. As a conclusion, it will be shown that a reactivation that amounts to a mere comprehension does not ensure the continuity of a tradition. Only the passive adoption and the theleological accomplishment given for the reestablishment guarantee the durability of a traditionalized community. (shrink)

The comparison between the concept state of nature, as it appears in the contractualist theories of XVII and XVIII centuries, and the original position of the the- ory of justice by John Rawls, reveals the assumptions, difficulties and limitations of the latter. In spite of its claims, the original position does not justify the search and existence of a well ordered society, and it is far away from reach the brightness and coherence with which their predecessors argued on behalf of (...) societies where safety, freedom or equality ruled. Besides, Rawls, on amounting justice to a material welfare which must arrive, does not know the important role that the historical memory plays when claiming the resolution of the injustices from the pastLa comparación entre el concepto de estado de naturaleza, tal y como aparece en las teorías contractualistas de los siglos XVII y XVIII, y la posición original de la teoría de la justicia de John Rawls, sirve para poner de manifiesto los supuestos, dificultades y limitaciones de esta última. A pesar de sus pretensiones, la posición original no justifica la búsqueda y existencia de una sociedad bien ordenada, y está lejos de alcanzar la brillantez y coherencia con la que sus antecesores argumentaron a favor de sociedades donde reinara la seguridad, la libertad o la igualdad. Además, Rawls, al reducir la justicia a un bienestar material que ha de llegar, desconoce el importante papel que la memoria histórica desempeña a la hora de reclamar la resolución de las injusticias del pasado. (shrink)

Environmental sustainability is increasingly pressing. Achieving it depends on the contribution of all of us. There is a broad spectrum of evidence that points to a generational gap in the way of viewing and dealing with environmental issues. This evidence is, however, mixed. This paper intends to explore whether there are differences between the Portuguese Generations X, Y, and Z about general environmental concerns, their involvement in collective actions for environmental protection, and specific pro-environmental behaviors. The data gathered from 757 (...) Portuguese citizens were analyzed using descriptive and non-parametric statistical methods. Overall, we found that members of Generation Z showed the least environmental concerns and adopted fewer sustainable behaviors and little or no participation in collective actions for environmental protection. On the contrary, members of Generation X demonstrate more sustainable attitudes, followed by Millennials. In sum, the two younger generations have more in common with each other than they do with members of Generation X. This is the first attempt to understand generational differences in Portugal on specific environmental issues, helping to define policies emphasizing civil society's serious and consistent involvement in protecting the planet. Recommendations of the research enable us to understand the behaviors of individuals from different generations and allow producers and policymakers to develop and adopt measures to meet the specificities of each generation, leading them to adopt more sustainable practices, especially younger people. (shrink)

Within a general approach that implies the closely related survey of neurosciences and philosophical thought, the essays collected in the volume develop two main lines of research. The first one, thanks to the contributions of scientists and psychologists , psychoanalysists and bioengineers , allows to fix the attention on the neurobiological, psychological, psychoanalytical and physical remembering. The second one, more specifically philosophical, is declined in three different approaches. the first - with essays by Stefania Achella, Giuseppe D'Anna and Rosario Diana (...) - points to the anlysis of the role played by the rememberance and the prefiguration in the processes of identity construction. The second - with contributions from Fiorella Battaglia, Anna Donise, Sabine Marienberg and Sara Fortuna - focuses on the role of remembering in anthropology and linguistics, as well as the identification of certain diseases of memory. The third, finally - with contributions from Gabriella Baptist, Chiara de Luzenberger and Marco Boninu - tends to define the regulatory function of memory. (shrink)

TThe Pauline metaphor of corpus Christi, used abundantly by Erasmus in his writings, has had an enormous influence on Spanish sixteenth-century thought, giving rise to different interpretations of the corpus mysticum. However, what has has not been studied to this extent is its scope and meaning in the Dutch humanist, who makes a use of it which is more loaded with utopianism than what we see in the thinking of his Hispanic followers. The result is a difficulty in its political (...) implementation, on the one hand increasing the autonomy of Spanish Erasmism from its inspirer, and, on the other, allowing us to explain the eclipse of Erasmism after the death of its founder. (shrink)

Ancient biographies were more than accounts of the deeds of past heroes and guides for moral living. They were also arenas for debating pressing philosophical questions and establishing intellectual credentials, as Arthur P. Urbano argues in this study of biographies composed in Late Antiquity.

The paper relies on the idea that the context of the digital art world is the main place to observe the formation of a new ekphrasis and, at the same time, of new media. Hence it means digital ekphrasis as a productive tension, capable of generating communication through a medium-medium relationship.

The main aim of this paper is to investigate the views of healthcare professionals in Portugal about healthcare rationing, and compare them with the views of college students. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data from a sample of 60 healthcare professionals and 180 college students. Respondents faced a hypothetical rationing dilemma where they had to order four patients and justify their choices. Multinomial logistic regressions were used to test for differences in orderings, and content analysis to categorize the (...) written justifications. The findings suggest that both groups appeared to support three main rationing principles: health maximization, priority to the severely ill and priority to the young. However, professionals seemed to give less weight to the latter principle. In conclusion, professionals have similar views to students about healthcare rationing, though may be slightly less inclined to give priority to the young. (shrink)

Laughter and yawning can both occur spontaneously and are highly contagious forms of social behavior. When occurring contagiously, laughter and yawning are usually confounded with a social situation and it is difficult to determine to which degree the social situation or stimulus itself contribute to its contagion. While contagious yawning can be reliably elicited in lab when no other individuals are present, such studies are more sparse for laughter. Moreover, laughter and yawning are multimodal stimuli with both an auditory and (...) a visual component: laughter is primarily characterized as a stereotyped vocalization whereas yawning is a predominantly visual signal and it is not known to which degree the visual and auditory modalities affect the contagion of laughter and yawning. We investigated how these two sensory modalities contribute to the contagion of laughter and yawning under controlled laboratory conditions in the absence of a social situation that might confound their contagion. Subjects were presented with naturally produced laughter and yawning in three sensory modalities, and we recorded their reaction to these stimuli. Contagious responses differed for laughter and yawning: overall, laughter elicited more contagious responses than yawning, albeit mostly smiling rather than overt laughter. While the audio-visual condition elicited most contagious responses overall, laughter was more contagious in the auditory modality, and yawning was more contagious in the visual modality. Furthermore, laughter became decreasingly contagious over time, while yawning remained steadily contagious. We discuss these results based on the ontogenetic and phylogenetic trajectories of laughter and yawning. (shrink)