There is wide research about the Philosophy for/with Children program. However, there is not any known attempt to investigate how a philosophical discussion can be implemented through a museum workshop. The present research aims to discuss aesthetic and epistemological issues with primary school children through a temporary art exhibition in a museum in Cyprus. Certainly, paintings have been used successfully to connect philosophical topics with the experiences of the children. We suggest, though, that this is not as innovative as the (...) conduction of a dialogue in a museum. Results were mostly positive. Pupils participated in the discussion and they gave intensive definitions of beautiful paintings and counterexamples for given definitions. The structure of inductive arguments and the difference between belief and knowledge were discussed. Progress in the analysis of inductive arguments was slightly noticeable, but it is likely that this was due to limited time spent on analysing those arguments. Furthermore, more sessions are needed to make generalisations for the effectiveness of the Philosophy for Children program in a museum instead of a traditional classroom. Even though there is discussion about the different stimuli of the discussion, it might be worth considering the effectiveness of different contexts where the discussion can take place. (shrink)

According to conceptual reductive accounts, if properties of one domain can be conceptually reduced to properties of another domain, then the former properties are ontologically reduced to the latter properties. I will argue that conceptual reductive accounts face problems: either they do not recognise that many higher-level properties are correlated with multiple physical properties, or they do not clarify how we can discover new truthmakers of sentences about a higher-level property. Still, there is another way to motivate ontological reduction, the (...) truthmaker reductive explanations (TRE). TRE can be given by using resources from John Heil’s truthmaker theory and the a priori entailment view or the a posteriori entailment view. I will argue that we can give these truthmaker reductive explanations if there are various less-than-perfectly similar physical properties that can be the truthmakers of sentences about higher-level properties and the physical similarity between them can explain why an irreducible higher-level property is not needed. (shrink)

A compositional nihilist believes that the only objects that exist are simples. However, a non-nihilist believes in the existence of composite objects and challenges the nihilist to explain why there are true sentences about chairs, tables, etc., if composite objects do not exist. Different nihilist views have been suggested to explain this (the paraphrase strategy and the truthmaker theory), but I believe that they are unsuccessful (either they do not successfully paraphrase every sentence apparently about composite objects, or they are (...) not precise about the truthmakers of those sentences). I will suggest that a new truthmaker theory, which uses resources from Cameron’s truthmaker theory and van Inwagen’s paraphrase strategy, can give such an explanation and does not face the problems of other theories. Therefore, we have a good reason to accept this truthmaker theory as the best nihilist way to accommodate sentences apparently about composite objects. (shrink)

The main idea of this thesis is multi-descriptional physicalism. According to it, only physical entities are elements of our ontology, and there are different ways to describe them. Higher-level vocabularies (e.g., mental, neurological, biological) truly describe reality. Sentences about higher-level entities are made true by physical entities. Every chapter will develop multi-descriptional physicalism or defend it from objections. In chapter 1, I will propose a new conceptual reductive account that conceptually reduces higher-level entities to physical entities. This conceptual reductive account (...) combines resources from Heil’s truthmaker theory and either a priori physicalism or a posteriori physicalism. In chapter 2, I apply this conceptual reductive account to various debates. Physicalism, the multiple-realisability argument, the prototype theory of concepts, and truthmaker explanations will be discussed. In chapter 3, I will argue that a major aim of metaphysics should be to discover which entities are fundamental and explain why they suffice for the existence of derivative entities. In chapter 4, I will propose a new way to explain why sentences apparently about composite objects are true even though there are no composite objects. It combines resources from Cameron’s truthmaker theory and van Inwagen’s paraphrase strategy. In chapter 5, I will argue that the intuition that the mind and the body are very different does not show that the mind is distinct from the body. This intuition can be explained away by mentioning our dispositions to give non-physical explanations when we are ignorant of physical facts. In chapter 6, I will examine two arguments for the existence of a metaphysically independent level, and I will argue that only a modified version of one of them succeeds. I will argue that methodological principles support the view that there is a metaphysically independent level. (shrink)

Two experiments were conducted for the derivation of psychophysical scales of the following audio descriptors: spectral centroid, spectral spread, spectral skewness, odd-to-even harmonic ratio, spectral deviation, and spectral slope. The stimulus sets of each audio descriptor were synthesized and independently controlled through appropriate synthesis techniques. Partition scaling methods were used in both experiments, and the scales were constructed by fitting well-behaving functions to the listeners' ratings. In the first experiment, the listeners' task was the estimation of the relative differences between (...) successive levels of a particular audio descriptor. The median values of listeners' ratings increased with increasing feature values, which confirmed listeners' abilities to estimate intervals. However, there was a large variability in the reliability of the derived interval scales depending on the stimulus spacing in each trial. In the second experiment, listeners had control over the stimulus values and were asked to divide the presented range of values into perceptually equal intervals, which provides a ratio scale. For every descriptor, the reliability of the derived ratio scales was excellent. The unit of a particular ratio scale was assigned empirically so as to facilitate qualitative comparisons between the scales of all audio descriptors. The construction of psychophysical scales based on univariate stimuli allowed for the establishment of cause-and-effect relations between audio descriptors and perceptual dimensions, contrary to past research that has relied on multivariate stimuli and has only examined the correlations between the two. Most importantly, this study provides an understanding of the ways in which the sensation magnitudes of several audio descriptors are apprehended. (shrink)

This article examines the Byzantine responses to the battlefield tactics followed by the armies of the Turkoman chiefdoms during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. The most characteristic example reflecting the difficulties faced by the Byzantine army when confronted by the Turkomans is the battle of Pelekanos, in the gulf of Nikomedia. It was fought in 1329 between the Byzantines under the command of the emperor Andronikos III (1328–1341), and the Ottomans whose leader was Orhan (1326–1362). The outcome of this battle (...) typifies the inability of the late Byzantine armies to deal effectively with the Turkoman cavalry archers, despite the instructions given by the military treatises which were compiled in the earlier periods of Byzantine history, despite the experience of fighting against enemies of similar nature in the past, and despite the fact that generals such as Kantakouzenos possessed a good knowledge of the fighting methods of the Turkomans. This article argues that the inability of the Byzantines to adjust to the demands of the battlefield tactics of the Turkoman warriors was a combination of many factors. The loss of Asia Minor deprived Byzantium of its main source of competent archers. The Byzantines relied on heavy cavalry which, although it proved ineffective against the Turkomans, was the symbol of exalted status of members of the aristocracy. Moreover, stereotyped views about the Turkomans affected the performance of the Byzantines on the battlefield. It seems that Byzantine generals, even if they knew the fighting methods of the Turkomans, very often could not fully understand the strength of their armies. This article concludes that the failure to react successfully to the battlefield tactics of the Turkomans could be partly described as a failure of cultural adaptation, reinforced by stereotypes about ‘barbarians.’. (shrink)

During the last decade of the thirteenth and the first of the fourteenth century the Byzantine army relied heavily on large groups of mercenary soldiers, the most important being the Cretans, the Alans and the Catalan Grand Company. By examining the views George Pachymeres, Nikephoros Gregoras and Thomas Magistros express about these groups, the present investigation will examine the impact of mercenaries on the military affairs of the Byzantine state, as well as Byzantine attitudes towards mercenaries.

Syrgiannes Palaiologos Philanthropenos played a leading role in the conflicts between factions of the Byzantine aristocracy in the 1320s and 1330s. The most important historians of the period, Nikephoros Gregoras and John Kantakouzenos, depict a rather negative picture of the personality of Syrgiannes. He is portrayed as an overambitious individual who constantly plots against the throne. He is seen as a perjurer whose actions prove that he has no moral constraints and does not hesitate to betray his friends. This image (...) has influenced modern scholarship which to a large extent uncritically accepts this negative image of Syrgiannes without taking into consideration the biases and contradictions of the narratives of Gregoras and Kantakouzenos. The cross-examination of the information provided by these two historians indicates that a large part of their account of the activities of Syrgiannes and his motives should be treated cautiously. (shrink)

The contemporary physical description of the universe reflects the inanimate world only. Broadening this description by including life may limit the application of well?established physical laws and may find new forces of the universe governing living organizations. This may also require adoption of some new assumptions and methodological principles, such as a broader principle of uncertainty, and recognition of the fact that humans? ability to manifest biofield communication is distributed very unevenly in the population. Based on available body of scientific (...) literature it is suggested that at this time, before the theoretical basis of the biofield is developed, it is important to conduct a broad experimental study of highly psi?gifted individuals in order to accumulate scientific knowledge of humans? ability to interact with matter, i.e., known physical fields and living organisms by intent. One can expect that current studies of organisms? genomes and attempts to utilize stem cells in medicine will call for the recognition of the biofield and its operative control function in organisms. However, developing a from?the?top?down view on the organism by the suggested approach will shorten this process and it deserves appropriate investment of social resources. (shrink)

RésuméOn examine ?on;abord les termes explicites et implicites du contrat de justice selon Rawls. Ensuite on rappelle ľinterprétation ‘procédurale’ que ce dernier donne de ľautonomie kantienne et ľon montre ľinanité de cette interprétation. Cependant la doctrine de Rawls exprime avec bon‐heur une conception sceptique de la justice.SummaryAfter a short examination of the explicit and implicit contract of justice according to Rawls, the reasons afforded by him to give a Kantian foundation to the contract are recalled and rebutted. However Rawls's doctrine (...) remarkably expresses the main argument of a sceptical conception of justice.ZusammenfassungNach einer kurzen Untersuchung des expliziten und impliziten Begriffs des Gesellschaftsver‐trages, wie Rawls ihn versteht, wird die besondere Interpretation erOrtert, die er vom Kantschen Autonomiebegriff gibt. Es wird gezeigt, dass diese unzutreffend ist und dass Rawls Lehre eher auf eine skeptische Auffassung der Gerechtigkeit zutrifft. (shrink)

Concerns over the carbon footprint resulting from the manufacturing, usage and disposal of hardware have been growing. The right-to-repair legislation was introduced to promote sustainable utilisation of hardware by encouraging stakeholders to prolong the lifetime of products, such as electronic devices. As there is little empirical evidence from a consumer perspective on exercising the right to repair, this study aims firstly to examine the factors that underpin consumers’ intention to repair their hardware and secondly to investigate the perceived outcomes of (...) repair practices. Based on 510 responses, the results showed that intention to repair is dependent on three groups of factors, namely the facilitators of pro-environmental behaviour, repair-related factors and beliefs about legislation. If consumers have a stronger intention to repair, they have a stronger feeling of emotional self-assurance, satisfaction with the repair decision and the technology manufacturer, an intention to engage with the manufacturer and a positive perception of a repaired device’s performance. The findings contribute to the literature on sustainable behaviour and the right to repair, offering insight for policymakers and manufacturers about the strategies facilitating the wider adoption of repair practices. (shrink)

Market-like devices that enact quantification and monetization processes (QM) underpin a growing number of valuation practices, but the widespread take-up of QM has given rise to the ‘cooptation charge’: for all the good intentions and results produced by those who deploy QM, they are complicit in reinforcing problematic neoliberal tendencies. A political discourse-theoretical perspective, combined with a pragmatist scholarship that has made significant advances in our understanding of QM, suggests that the cooptation charge relies on an overly simplified picture of (...) both QM and neoliberalism. However, while we acknowledge this as an important advance, we argue that the normative, political, and ideological significance of QM remains surprisingly underspecified. We still lack a convincing theoretical framework that provides a more rounded multi-dimensional critical perspective within which to navigate the evaluative dilemmas produced by these increasingly widespread techniques, including cooptation worries. Drawing on the logics approach of the Essex school of political discourse theory, we develop a framework that brings together the strategic, normative, and ideological dimensions that otherwise tend to be treated separately in the literature, allowing a fuller assessment of such technologies. (shrink)

Language Use offers a philosophical examination of the basic conceptual framework of pragmatic theory, and contrasts this framework with detailed descriptions of our everyday practices of language use. While the results should be highly relevant to pragmatics, the investigation is not a contribution to pragmatic theory. Drawing on Ludwig Wittgenstein's approach to philosophical problems, Language Use brings out the relevance of Wittgenstein's methods to fundamental problems in central pragmatic fields of research such as deixis, implicatures, speech acts and presuppositions.

According to a widely held physicalist view, consciousness is identical with some physical or functional phenomenon just as liquidity is identical with loose molecular connection. To many of us, this claim about consciousness seems more problematic than the claim about liquidity. To many—including many physicalists—the identification of consciousness with some physical phenomenon even seems “absurd” or “crazy”. A full defence of physicalism should explain why the allegedly correct hypothesis comes across this way. If physicalism is true and we have reason (...) to accept it, why does it seem “absurd”? One possibility is that this is fully explained by the fact that we have an erroneous understanding of consciousness or its physical basis. This explanation is embraced by few if any physicalists. It is rejected by many, including proponents of the “phenomenal concept strategy”, which lately has become the dominant strategy for defending physicalism. But the “error explanation” is clearly the most plausible explanation that is available to physicalists. So this paper argues. (shrink)

ResumeUn énoncé p est nécessaire, selon Chrysippe, si et seulement si p est vrai et si, étant susceptible ?on;être faux, les circonstances extérieures s'opposent à ce qu'il soit faux. On s'appuie sur cet éclaircissement pour construire le carré ou plutôt les deux carres des modalités. Ce qu'il y a de spécifique dans la logique de Chrysippe, c'est que du nécessaire àľimpossible que non la conséquence est valide, mais qu'il n'en va pas de même pour la conséquence converse.SummaryA sentence p is (...) necessary, according to Chrysippe iff p is true and, p being susceptible of being false, the external circumstances prevent it from being false. This explanation is used in order to construct the modal square or rather the two modal squares. Something is specific in the Chrysippean logic: from the necessity of p we may validly conclude that it is impossible that not p, while the converse conclusion is not valid.ZusammenfassungNach Chrysipp ist ein Satz p dann und nur dann notwendig, wenn p wahr ist und falls p falsch sein könnte, die äusseren Umstände verhindern, dass p falsch ist. Auf diese Bestimmung aufbauend wird das Quadrat – oder werden vielmehr die beiden Quadrate – der Modalitäten konstruiert. Das Besondere an Chrysipps Logik lässt sich daran erkennen, dass von der Notwen‐digkeit von p auf die Unmöglichkeit von nicht‐p geschlossen werden darf, nicht aber umgekehrt. (shrink)

The symmetrical inter-displacements of corresponding blocks of text between strophes and antistrophes in lyrical odes, earlier proposed for A. Supp. 88–90 ∼ 93–95, 872–75 ∼ 882–84, and 906–7 ∼ 909–10, have affected all parts sung or spoken by the Egyptian herald in the amoibaion in Supp. 843–910. An ancestral text similar to a modern musical score, in which the corresponding lines of strophe and antistrophe run parallel with musical notation, could explain this type of corruption. Such a hypothetical ancestor in (...) the textual tradition would also explain apparent interpolations in Supp. 852 and 865 from 842 and 843. The corruptions may have arisen very early in the tradition, the hypothetical textual arrangement possibly being that of the author himself. (shrink)

Contrary to philosophical tradition, modern theorists of the mind have often downplayed the importance of consciousness. Instead, they have accounted for the mind in terms of phenomena like mechanisms, dispositions, abilities and even environmental features. One of many inspirations for this trend is a series of passages of the later Wittgenstein. These passages discuss a variety of specific mental phenomena, like searching, comparing, understanding and reading. The passages have often been taken them to show that one may exemplify any of (...) the phenomena at issue without being in any particular type of conscious state. I claim that the passages do not support this conclusion, and that the conclusion is, arguably, false. My conclusion is that consciousness may be a more important aspect of the mind than is supposed by many contemporary theorists--both Wittgensteinians and others. (shrink)

Objective: Illness perceptions are important predictors of emotional and behavioral responses in many diseases. The current study aims to investigate the COVID-19-related IP throughout Europe. The specific goals are to understand the temporal development, identify predictors and examine the impacts of IP on perceived stress and preventive behaviors.Methods: This was a time-series-cross-section study of 7,032 participants from 16 European countries using multilevel modeling from April to June 2020. IP were measured with the Brief Illness Perception Questionnaire. Temporal patterns were observed (...) considering the date of participation and the date recoded to account the epidemiological evolution of each country. The outcomes considered were perceived stress and COVID-19 preventive behaviors.Results: There were significant trends, over time, for several IP, suggesting a small decrease in negativity in the perception of COVID-19 in the community. Age, gender, and education level related to some, but not all, IP. Considering the self-regulation model, perceptions consistently predicted general stress and were less consistently related to preventive behaviors. Country showed no effect in the predictive model, suggesting that national differences may have little relevance for IP, in this context.Conclusion: The present study provides a comprehensive picture of COVID-19 IP in Europe in an early stage of the pandemic. The results shed light on the process of IP formation with implications for health-related outcomes and their evolution. (shrink)

RésuméAu cours de son développement historique, le bouddhisme a montré une capacité remarquable à s'insérer dans les contextes sociaux les plus variés. Les cas de l'Inde et de Ceylan sont examinés, l'un longuement, l'autre brièvement. L'auteur cherche àétablir quelques‐unes des raisons pour lesquelles, à partir d'un donné social analogue, le bouddhisme a disparu de l'Inde, mais s'est maintenu à Ceylan.SummaryIn the course of its historical development Buddhism has shown a remarkable ability to find its way into the most diverse social (...) contexts. The cases of India and Ceylon are studied, the former at length, the latter briefly. The author seeks to establish some of the reasons why, though the social context is similar in both countries, Buddhism has disappeared in India but has survived in Ceylon.ZusammenfassungDer Buddhismus konnte sich im Laufe der Geschichte erstaunlich gut an die unter‐schiedlichsten gesellschaftlichen Verhältnisse anpassen. Der Verfasser geht gründlich auf den Fall Indiens und kurz auf denjenigen Ceylons ein und sucht nach Ursachen, weshalb der Buddhismus in Indien verschwunden ist, sich hingegen in Ceylon zu halten vermochte, obwohl sich die beiden Länder gesellschaftlich durchaus vergleichen lassen. (shrink)

Résumé L'association pour l'étude du fait religieux a tenu en juin 1975, à l'université de Genève, son premier colloque. Thème général: société, religion et spiritualité. Objectif: d'une part, essayer de distinguer les aspects social et spirituel de la religion et, de l'autre, promouvoir une discussion interdisciplinaire entre spécialistes d'approches différentes. Ce numéro 76/4 de DIALECTICA contient le texte des exposés qui ont introduit le colloque.Summary The Association for the study of the religious fact held its first symposium in June 1975 (...) at the University of Geneva. The general theme was society, religion and spirituality. The aims were on the one hand, to distinguish between the social and spiritual aspects of religion and, on the other, to encourage an interdisciplinary discussion between specialists with different points of view. The present number 76/4 of DIALECTICA contains the text of the expositions which were presented at the beginning of the symposium.Zusammenfassung Die Gesellschaft zur Erforschung des Religiösen führte im Juni 1975 an der Universität Genf ihr erstes Kolloquium durch. Das allgemeine Thema lautete: Gesellschaft, Religion und Spiritualität. Die Zielsetzung bestand darin, einerseits den gesellschaftlichen und geistlichen Aspekt der Religion zu unterscheiden suchen und andererseits eine interdisziplinare Diskussion zwischen Spezialisten verschiedener Fachgebiete zu fördern. Die vorliegende Ausgabe 76/4 von DIALECTICA enthält den Wortlaut der Einfiihrüngsreferate dieses Kolloquiums. (shrink)

RésuméContrairement à ce que pourrait donner à penser la these de E. Mayr sur ľimportance actuelle des explications évolutives en biologie, par opposition aux explications fonctionnelles, ľauteur soutient que, pour ľépistémologie de la causalité, le second type ?on;explication reste plus significatif que le premier. II tente de le montrer en reprenant brièvement son analyse des travaux de P.E. Pilet sur les inhibiteurs de croissance , telle qu'elle a ete présentée dans quatre articles antérieurs.SummaryStarting from E. Mayr's distinction between functional and (...) evolutionary explanation, the author suggests that, as far as the epistemological analysis of causality is concerned, the former type of explanation remains of more interest than the latter. He illustrates this claim by briefly taking up his philosophical and logico‐linguistic study of P.E. Pilet's work on growth inhibitors in the field of plant growth regulation, which was presented in a series of four previous papers.ZusammenfassungVon E. Mayrs Unterscheidung zwischen funktionaler und evolutiver Erklärung ausgehend, weist der Autor nach, dass die erste Art der Erklärung in bezug auf die erkenntnistheoretische Analyse der Kansalität mehr Bedeutung hat. Er versucht aufgrund seiner früheren Analysen von P.E. Pilets Schriften über Wachstumsinhibitoren auf dem Gebiet der Wachstumsregulation von Pflanzen diese Auffassung zu erhärten. (shrink)

RésuméĽétude du développement?on;un organisme fait appel à diverses approches choisies en fonction des objectifs fixés par ľexpérimentateur. Ainsi, la mise en évidence?on;une corrélation entre deux paramétres, par exemple biochimique et morphologique, permet de les considérer comme associés, sans nécessairement dégager entre eux un lien direct de causalité. Ce dernier peut être explicité par une autre approche, comme ľillustre une étude portant sur la relation entre une enzyme ‐glycohydrolase) et la différentiation sporale chez Neurospora crassa.SummaryThe study of the development of an (...) organism requires diverse approaches selected on the basis of experimental objectives. For instance, the finding of a correlation between two parameters, i.e. biochemical and morphological, allows them to be considered as associated without necessarily pointing to a direct causal relationship. This latter may be brought out by another approach, as illustrated by this study bearing on the relation between an enzyme ‐gly‐cohydrolase) and differentiation of spores in Neurospora crassa.ZusammenfassungDas Studium der Entwicklung eines Organismus erfordert verschiedenartige Annäherungen, je nach den vom Experimendierenden gestellten Ziele. Daher erlaubt der Nachweis einer Korrela‐tion zwischen zwei Parametern, zum Beispiel einem biochemischen und einem morphologischen, sie als verbunden zu betrachten ohne notwendigerweise eine Kausalbeziehung zwischen Ihnen zu beweisen. Eine solche kann von einer anderen Seite geklärt werden, wie es eine Studie der Beziehung zwischen einem Enzym ‐glycohydrolase) und der Sporendifferenzierung bei Neurospora crassa zeigt. (shrink)

RésuméEn introduisant les concepts disjoints de temps et d'espace absolus, Newton dote la physique d'un double cadre encore reçu au début du XXe siècle. Par l'énoncé du principe de Relativité restreinte, Einstein joint les dew cadres en un seul, l'espace‐temps, lui‐même disjoint de son contenu, l'univers physique. Par le biais du principe d'équivalence, la Relativité générale réalise la fusion du cadre de l'espace‐temps et de son contenu, l'univers physique. Cette vision «classique» est cependant perturbée par les conséquences des principes de (...) la Physique quantique, qui jettent comme une sorte de voile sur la structure spatio‐temporelle de l'espace‐temps relativiste, fondement de la Cosmologie contemporaine: le concept même d'espace‐temps, plus précisément sa séparabilité sont remis en question.Il en résulte une situation de précarité qui affecte jusqu'aux modkles d'univers fournis par la Cosmologie contemporaine, celui du Grand Boum compris. (shrink)