This book continues the Muirhead Library of Philosophy series. It is a sequel to Trethowan’s own Absolute Value, to which frequent reference is made by the author. Together with that work, it comprises the lectures the author delivered in the Department of Religion of Brown University in 1969. It is chiefly a work of theological reflection: Trethowan is seeking new conceptual models for the Christian experience of God. In this vein, he devotes the bulk of the book to explorations of (...) the nature of faith and of the At-onement effected in the experience of God by the Christian mystics. An interesting treatment of the mystical experience of the Absolute concludes the book. This is not to suggest that Trethowan’s work will not be of interest to a general philosophical audience as well. The author begins his investigations with a discussion of contemporary positions which are opposed to metaphysical and theistic claims; within this context, Trethowan’s suggests some useful criticisms of Flew’s position. Searching for an experience of the Absolute that can serve to ground theistic claims, Trethowan examines the formulations of Coreth and Marcel; in the author’s estimate each yields an important emphasis, although some criticism must be directed to their respective accounts. The author’s own solution surfaces in the course of his treatment of faith. Its inspiration is largely Blondel’s "logic of action" : man’s experience of his own range of action leads him to an "option" in favor of the Absolute, an option which includes assent to the Christian experience of the Absolute. Trethowan also indicates a theory of signs, in which signs mediate but also are dynamically directed toward an experienced Absolute. The author’s treatment of Blondel has the advantage of providing the reader with lengthy citations from Blondel in translation.—W. L. P. (shrink)

As one might expect of a book of this modest size which bears such a title, this work concentrates upon only one of the many topics subsumed under the rubric "supernatural." After some reflection, the impression develops that this focus is on a colloquy between scholastic and contemporary formulations of the personal relationship between God and man in the process of divinization by grace. Kenny seems to offer the theory of "created actuation by Uncreated Act" as a particularly valuable model (...) of explanation for this personal union. The genre of this work is too technical in its language to be described as popular and perhaps too brief and unnuanced to appeal to a technical audience. The mode under which Kenny approaches his problem is historical. Nonetheless, the author excuses himself from treating antecedent formulations, although he averts to the different way in which the question has been posed in Eastern Christianity. Kenny opens his own account with a brief precis of some "constants" in Catholic grace-doctrine. It is regrettable that William of St.-Thierry and Peter Lombard were not treated more extensively, for the formulation of deifying grace in terms of its "uncreatedness" received a new slant in their works. This slant can be illuminated considerably if one recalls that these theologians had at their disposal only an impoverished, "Platonizing" schema of causal explanation, plotted only on the axis of formal causality and its intentional-exemplar modes. Lacking such a preface in twelfth-century formulations, the author’s treatment of "high Scholastic" grace-doctrine largely from the perspective of Thomas’ and Bonaventure’s insistence on "created grace" seems to be rather abruptly introduced. However, this sense of abruptness disappears if one correctly grasps the thesis toward which Kenny’s argument is aimed. Chapter Four treats the fourteenth- and fifteenth-century nominalist formulations, with Ockham and Biel as examples. Kenny is highly critical of the subversion of the doctrine of grace as intrinsic divinization and as personal union which these theologians effected. Chapter Five is billed as a survey of the theme of supernatural union in post-Tridentine theology. Curiously, the bulk of the chapter is expended on an amicable presentation of the De la Taille-Rahner explanation of graced divinization in terms of quasi-formal causality. Chapters Six and Seven are reworkings of previously published materials. The book includes a selected bibliography. (shrink)

We study partitions of Fraïssé limits of classes of finite relational structures where the partitions are encoded by infinite binary strings which are random in the sense of Kolmogorov-Chaitin.

As one might expect of a book of this modest size which bears such a title, this work concentrates upon only one of the many topics subsumed under the rubric "supernatural." After some reflection, the impression develops that this focus is on a colloquy between scholastic and contemporary formulations of the personal relationship between God and man in the process of divinization by grace. Kenny seems to offer the theory of "created actuation by Uncreated Act" as a particularly valuable model (...) of explanation for this personal union. The genre of this work is too technical in its language to be described as popular and perhaps too brief and unnuanced to appeal to a technical audience. The mode under which Kenny approaches his problem is historical. Nonetheless, the author excuses himself from treating antecedent formulations, although he averts to the different way in which the question has been posed in Eastern Christianity. Kenny opens his own account with a brief precis of some "constants" in Catholic grace-doctrine. It is regrettable that William of St.-Thierry and Peter Lombard were not treated more extensively, for the formulation of deifying grace in terms of its "uncreatedness" received a new slant in their works. This slant can be illuminated considerably if one recalls that these theologians had at their disposal only an impoverished, "Platonizing" schema of causal explanation, plotted only on the axis of formal causality and its intentional-exemplar modes. Lacking such a preface in twelfth-century formulations, the author’s treatment of "high Scholastic" grace-doctrine largely from the perspective of Thomas’ and Bonaventure’s insistence on "created grace" seems to be rather abruptly introduced. However, this sense of abruptness disappears if one correctly grasps the thesis toward which Kenny’s argument is aimed. Chapter Four treats the fourteenth- and fifteenth-century nominalist formulations, with Ockham and Biel as examples. Kenny is highly critical of the subversion of the doctrine of grace as intrinsic divinization and as personal union which these theologians effected. Chapter Five is billed as a survey of the theme of supernatural union in post-Tridentine theology. Curiously, the bulk of the chapter is expended on an amicable presentation of the De la Taille-Rahner explanation of graced divinization in terms of quasi-formal causality. Chapters Six and Seven are reworkings of previously published materials. The book includes a selected bibliography. (shrink)

It is well known that when resolution occurs in the stichic iambics and trochaics of tragedy word-end is not found between the two shorts so produced: w or, more accurately, that the first short of resolution must not be the last syllable of a polysyllabic word. Moreover, the syllables in resolution most often form part of the same word as the following short or anceps, e.g.: Ion 1143.

The aim of the study was to determine the acceptance and perception of Nigerian patients to medical photography. A self-administered questionnaire was distributed among Nigerian patients attending oral and maxillofacial surgery and plastic surgery clinics of 3 tertiary health institutions. Information requested included patients' opinion about consent process, capturing equipment, distribution and accessibility of medical photographs. The use of non-identifiable medical photographs was more acceptable than identifiable to respondents for all purposes (P = 0.003). Most respondents were favourably disposed to (...) photographs being taken for inclusion in the case note, but opposed to identifiable photographs being used for other purposes most especially in medical websites and medical journals. Female respondents preferred non-identifiable medical photographs to identifiable ones (P = 0.001). Most respondents (78%) indicated that their consent be sought for each of the outline needs for medical photography. Half of the respondents indicated that identifiable photographs may have a negative effect on their persons; and the most commonly mentioned effects were social stigmatization, bad publicity and emotional/psychological effects. Most of the respondents preferred the use of hospital-owned camera to personal camera/personal camera-phone for their medical photographs. Most respondents (67.8%) indicated that they would like to be informed about the use of their photographs on every occasion, and 74% indicated that they would like to be informed of the specific journal in which their medical photographs are to be published. In conclusion, non-identifiable rather than identifiable medical photography is acceptable to most patients in the studied Nigerian environment. The use of personal camera/personal camera-phone should be discouraged as its acceptance by respondents is very low. Judicious use of medical photography is therefore advocated to avoid breach of principle of privacy and confidentiality in medical practice. (shrink)

This volume brings together a number of important studies by leading scholars on ritual and law, philosophy and religion, literature and entertainments in Qin and Han China. A few contributions deal with the Han legacy to later Chinese culture.

This article presents an overview ofregulations, guidelines and societal debates ineight member states of the EC about a)embryonic and fetal tissue transplantation(EFTT), and b) the use of human embryonic stemcells (hES cells) for research into celltherapy, including `therapeutic' cloning. Thereappears to be a broad acceptance of EFTT inthese countries. In most countries guidance hasbeen developed. There is a `strong' consensusabout some of the central conditions for `goodclinical practice' regarding EFTT.International differences concern, amongstothers, some of the informed consent issuesinvolved, and the (...) questions whether anintermediary organisation is necessary, whetherthe methods of abortion may be influenced bythe possible use of EFT, and whether EFTTshould only be used for the experimentaltreatment of rare disorders. The potential useof hES cells for research into cell therapy hasgiven a new impetus to the debate about (human)embryo research. The therapeutic prospects withregard to the retrieval and research use of hEScells appear to function as a catalyst for theintroduction of less restrictive regulationsconcerning research with spare embryos, atleast in some European countries. It remains tobe seen whether the prospect of treatingpatients suffering from serious disorders withtransplants produced by therapeutic cloningwill decrease the societal and moral resistanceto allowing the generation of embryos for`instrumental' use. (shrink)

Objectives: To study the attitudes of both medical and non-medical students towards the do-not-resuscitate decision in a university in Hong Kong, and the factors affecting their attitudes.Methods: A questionnaire-based survey conducted in the campus of a university in Hong Kong. Preferences and priorities of participants on cardiopulmonary resuscitation in various situations and case scenarios, experience of death and dying, prior knowledge of DNR and basic demographic data were evaluated.Results: A total of 766 students participated in the study. There were statistically (...) significant differences in their DNR decisions in various situations between medical and non-medical students, clinical and preclinical students, and between students who had previously experienced death and dying and those who had not. A prior knowledge of DNR significantly affected DNR decision, although 66.4% of non-medical students and 18.7% of medical students had never heard of DNR. 74% of participants from both medical and non-medical fields considered the patient’s own wish as the most important factor that the healthcare team should consider when making DNR decisions. Family wishes might not be decisive on the choice of DNR.Conclusions: Students in medical and non-medical fields held different views on DNR. A majority of participants considered the patient’s own wish as most important in DNR decisions. Family wishes were considered less important than the patient’s own wishes. (shrink)

In C.Q. xliii , p. 126, Messrs. Klos and Minio-Paluello write: ‘Burnet's and Robin's collations of W… differ for the text of the Phaedo in about 130 readings of a more than orthographical interest. A new inspection of the manuscript has shown that Robin very often corrected Burnet, but added some twenty mistakes.’ As this may give a false impression of Burnet as a collator, it will be well to recall Burnet's own statement in C.Q. xiv , p. 132: ‘He (...) [Wilamowitz] says that my collations of W are inadequate, and have been shown to be so by Schoene for the Symposium, and by Hensel for the Theaetetus and Politicus. As he refers his readers to my Prefaces , he has presumably read them, and ought to have known that I never collated W at all or even saw it.’. (shrink)

This is a worthy addition to P. U. F.'s useful series, "Philosophes." Robinet succeeds in touching, briefly but illuminatingly, on all important aspects of Merleau-Ponty's thought, including the renewed interest in ontological questions in the posthumous Le Visible et l'Invisible. The philosopher's political writings, which have been dismissed as irrelevant by some students of Merleau-Ponty, are shown to be the product of an inquiry into our "perception of history." Of note, also, are Robinet's remarks concerning his subject's historical antecedents, among (...) whom he regards Malebranche as especially important.—W. L. M. (shrink)