Human cognition is unique in the way in which it relies on combinatorial (or compositional) structures. Language provides ample evidence for the existence of combinatorial structures, but they can also be found in visual cognition. To understand the neural basis of human cognition, it is therefore essential to understand how combinatorial structures can be instantiated in neural terms. In his recent book on the foundations of language, Jackendoff described four fundamental problems for a neural instantiation of combinatorial structures: the massiveness (...) of the binding problem, the problem of 2, the problem of variables, and the transformation of combinatorial structures from working memory to long-term memory. This paper aims to show that these problems can be solved by means of neural “blackboard” architectures. For this purpose, a neural blackboard architecture for sentence structure is presented. In this architecture, neural structures that encode for words are temporarily bound in a manner that preserves the structure of the sentence. It is shown that the architecture solves the four problems presented by Jackendoff. The ability of the architecture to instantiate sentence structures is illustrated with examples of sentence complexity observed in human language performance. Similarities exist between the architecture for sentence structure and blackboard architectures for combinatorial structures in visual cognition, derived from the structure of the visual cortex. These architectures are briefly discussed, together with an example of a combinatorial structure in which the blackboard architectures for language and vision are combined. In this way, the architecture for language is grounded in perception. Perspectives and potential developments of the architectures are discussed. Key Words: binding; blackboard architectures; combinatorial structure; compositionality; language; dynamic system; neurocognition; sentence complexity; sentence structure; working memory; variables; vision. (shrink)

Various issues concerning the neural blackboard architectures for combinatorial structures are discussed and clarified. They range from issues related to neural dynamics, the structure of the architectures for language and vision, and alternative architectures, to linguistic issues concerning the language architecture. Particular attention is given to the nature of true combinatorial structures and the way in which information can be retrieved from them in a productive and systematic manner.

We discuss a visual blackboard architecture that could be involved in imagery. In this architecture, networks that process identity information interact with networks that process location information, in a manner that produces structural (compositional) forms of representation. Architectures of this kind can be identified in the visual cortex, but perhaps also in prefrontal cortex areas related with working memory.

Cognitive agents are dynamical systems but not quantitative dynamical systems. Quantitative systems are forms of analogue computation, which is physically too unreliable as a basis for cognition. Instead, cognitive agents are dynamical systems that implement discrete forms of computation. Only such a synthesis of discrete computation and dynamical systems can provide the mathematical basis for modeling cognitive behavior.

We discuss the role of synchrony of activationin higher-level cognitive processes. Inparticular, we analyze the question of whethersynchrony of activation provides a mechanismfor compositional representation in neuralsystems. We will argue that synchrony ofactivation does not provide a mechanism forcompositional representation in neural systems.At face value, one can identify a level ofcompositional representation in the models thatintroduce synchrony of activation for thispurpose. But behavior in these models isalways produced by means conjunctiverepresentations in the form of coincidencedetectors. Therefore, models that rely onsynchrony (...) of activation lack the systematicityand productivity of true compositional systems.As a result, they cannot distinguish betweentype and token representations, which resultsin misrepresentations of spatial relations andpropositions. Furthermore, higher-levelcognitive processes will likely integrateinformation from widely distributed areas inthe brain, which puts severe restrictions onthe underlying neural dynamics if synchrony ofactivation is to play a role in theseprocesses. We will briefly discuss theserestrictions in the case of feature binding invisual cognition. (shrink)

Beschouwing door de rabbijn over het wetsvoorstel om onverdoofde, rituele slacht te verbieden, gezien als een aantasting van de vrijheid van godsdienst van zowel joden als moslims.

van de Kamp, Gerrit Interest in various types of Spirit Christology has remained constant throughout the past. This type of Christology is usually recognised and valued for the attention it devotes to the true humanity of Christ. In this area Spirit Christology has an advantage over classical Christology, as the latter is blamed for not doing justice, or for being incapable of doing justice, in its expositions, to the fact that Christ is truly man. On the other hand Spirit Christology (...) fails to escape the charge that it cannot do justice to maintaining the uniqueness of Christ. In discussing the work of theologians who advocate some kind of Spirit Christology, therefore, we encounter the names of historical propositions that have been condemned in pronouncements of authoritative church fathers and councils. In Christological perspective this generally means adoptionism or in one instance psilanthropism, the proposition that Jesus was merely man. At the base of this rejection lies the fear of putting church teaching on the Trinity at risk through modalism or binitarianism. So we often see that those sympathising with Spirit Christology still opt for classical Christology. (shrink)

De essays die hier zijn verzameld, gaan alle op hun manier op zoek naar wat het betekent dat wij, modernen, 'subject' zijn geworden. Voor de moderniteit, in de christelijke middeleeuwen, was God het 'subjectum', dit wil zeggen de 'drager' waarin de mens zichzelf en zijn wereld gegrondvest wist. Met de moderniteit heeft de mens die rol van 'drager' en 'subject' overgenomen: de plaats waarin hij zichzelf en zijn wereld gegrond kon weten, was voortaan enkel en alleen nog zijn eigen eindige (...) 'zelf'. De essays die Marc De Kesel hier bijeenbrengt, stellen op diverse manieren de vraag naar wat het wil zeggen dat de plaats waar wij, modernen, onszelf treffen, niet langer de plaats is waar een God ons zou hebben geschapen en evenmin de plaats waar wij zonder meer bij onszelf aanwezig zouden zijn (en onze drager, ons eigen 'subjectum' zou zijn). Aan de hand van een aantal hedendaagse (Lacaniaanse, Bataillaanse en andere) denkschema's tracht hij aan te tonen hoe die plaats ons wezenlijk vreemd blijft, omdat wij drager-subject zijn geworden van iets dat ons in laatste instantie blijft ontsnappen; alleen moet dat 'transcendente' niet langer in een of andere verre God worden gezocht, maar in de banale woordenstroom waar ons dagelijks bestaan op drijft. De Kesels essays gaan vaak rechtstreeks in op concrete situaties, wat ze dwingt hun gedachtengang dicht bij de realiteit te houden. Dit kan een denken dat onze filosofische traditie niet schuwt, alleen maar ten goede komen. (shrink)

L’herméneutique critique ou matérielle peut-elle être appliquée à des œuvres qui ne sont plus textuelles, mais picturales ? C’est la tentative effectuée ici à partir d’un tableau de Rembrandt (« Aristote ») en montrant également les limites méthodologiques de l’herméneutique traditionnelle ou de la phénoménologie ordinaire. La première ne parvenant pas à une « réduction » suffisante de la structure proprement picturale, la seconde n’exploitant pas assez les données historiennes des débats au sein desquels l’œuvre prend parti.

Dans son cours sur L’Encyclopédie de la philologie classique, Nietzsche prend explicitement parti pour August Boeckh dont la conception de sa discipline s’appuie explicitement sur la philosophie hégélienne. On pourra constater par la suite, et bien que Nietzsche ne soit pas disciple de Hegel, que ce choix initial intradisciplinaire a des répercussions notables sur le terrain de la « philosophie » de l’histoire : ce qui opposait, sur un plan méthodologique et tout à la fois philosophique, Boeckh et Schleiermacher – (...) autrement dit, la « philosophie » de l’histoire et l’herméneutique comme « théorie » ou méthode – se retrouve dans la manière dont Nietzsche va concevoir, dans la Généalogie de la morale, par exemple, l’histoire qu’il appelle « essentielle » en l’opposant à l’histoire « universelle », mais aussi dans son rejet partiel de ce qu’il a appelé « l’esprit historien ». (shrink)

L'article thématise la tension entre la compréhension d'une « Écriture sainte » et une philosophie critique « éclairée » dont la position est, au premier chef, représentée par Kant. Pour lui, l' interprétation de l' Écriture obéit uniquement au strict paradigme herméneutique. Il part du fait que l'homme, un être qui n'est pas purement rationnel, mais qui est simultanément raisonnable et soumis aux sens, est moralement obligé de saisir positivement les commandements éthiques fondés dans la raison comme des commandements divins. (...) Pour ce faire, il est « au mieux » préférable d'avoir une Écriture « sainte ». Son caractère « sacré » signifie que son texte reste, face à toute interprétation par une raison finie, ouvert à d'autres interprétations de sorte qu'aucune ne peut se dire définitive. Cela vaut tout particulièrement pour certains passages de l' Écriture qui sont difficiles voire impossibles à comprendre dans l'esprit et l'horizon d'une époque donnée. L'épisode de la tour de Babel et celui du bon Samaritain servent ici d'exemples. Der Aufsatz hat die Spannung zwischen einer kritischen, « aufgeklärten » Philosophie und dem Verstehen einer « Heiligen Schrift » zum Thema. Für die Position kritischen Philosophie steht in erster Linie die Philosophie Kants. Für ihn ist die Schriftauslegung immer noch das hermeneutischen Paradigma schlechthin. Er geht davon aus, daß der Mensch, als ein Wesen, das nicht rein vernünftig, sondern als Vernunftwesen zugleich Sinnenwesen ist, moralisch verpflichtet sei, die in reiner Vernunft begründeten Gebote der Moral positiv als göttliche Gebote aufzufassen. Dazu habe man « am besten » eine « heilige » Schrift. Ihre « Heiligkeit » bedeutet, daβ ihr Text gegenüber jeder Auslegung durch endliche Vernunft stehenbleibt für andere Auslegungen, so daβ keine Interpretation sich als endgültig verstehen kann. Das gilt besonders für Passagen der Schrift, die aus dem Geist und dem Horizont einer bestimmten Zeit schwer oder gar nicht zu verstehen sind. Als Beispiele dienen vor allem die Schriftstellen vom Turmbau zu Babel und vom barmherzigen Samariter. (shrink)

Slavoj Zizek ist einer der prominentesten linken Intellektuellen. Der Sammelband lädt ein, Zizeks Ideen kritisch zu diskutieren, insbesondere sein Verständnis von Politik, politischen Organisationen und dem (vergangenen, gegenwärtigen und zukünftigen) Staat.

We present a model of rational behavior by which we characterize business ethical dilemmas as trade-offs between processes and consequences. As an illustration, we formulate the oil industry's business ethical dilemma as a trade-off between a socially detrimental process (emitting greenhouse gases, hence inducing a risk of climate change) and a self-interested consequence (profits). The proposed framework allows us to specify two types of strategies, differing by whether priority is given to the consequences or to the processes. We analyze and (...) illustrate these strategies at both the behavioral and the discursive levels. In particular, communication strategies raise questions about good faith in business argumentation, in the sense that business discourse may or may not be consistent with actual assumptions and/or actual behaviors. We conclude on possible drivers of more ethical business behavior. (shrink)

This is the first collection of essays examining Paul Ricoeur's writings on law, bringing together eminent Ricoeur scholars from around the world to demonstrate the importance of Ricoeur's philosophy for the juridical field while offering new paths to extend and build on his work.

The caricature of Friedrich Nietzsche as a proto-Nazi is still with us. Behind this caricature sits a long history of misreading and deception, including the well-known story of Nietzsche's Nazi sister, Elisabeth Förster, who took over Nietzsche's work when he became catatonic and systematized a disparate set of texts as The Will to Power. Despite much remarkable work by scholars to debunk the idea that Nietzsche was a racist, or an anti-Semite, or both, this view continues to influence much of (...) the popular perception of Nietzsche and his work. In Nietzsche and Race, Marc de Launay, editor of the Pléiade edition of Nietzsche's writings, deftly counters this persistent narrative in a series of concise and highly accessible reflections on the concept of "race" in Nietzsche's published writings, notebooks, and correspondence. De Launay relates these discussions of race to the central themes of Nietzsche's philosophical project, definitively showing how Nietzsche's use of the term "race" simply does not map onto "racism" in any of the ways his detractors have claimed. (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)

Belgium is one of very few countries where euthanasia on the basis of psychiatric illness is legally possible. Three physicians involved in the euthanasia of a 38-year-old woman suffering from psychiatric illness recently faced a criminal trial for “murder by poisoning”, for allegedly having failed to comply with several requirements of the Belgian Euthanasia Law. Although none of the physicians were convicted, the case generated extensive debate, in the media and the general public as well as in the medical profession (...) and among policy makers. In this chapter, we take this trial as the starting point for a critical analysis of the clinical-psychiatric, ethical, and legal issues involved in evaluating euthanasia requests in cases of complex psychiatric disorders. In these cases, the requirements of the Belgian Euthanasia Law could be improved by mandating the advice of two psychiatrists, who are experts in the treatment of the specific condition of the person requesting euthanasia. Simultaneously with the process of evaluating the euthanasia request, there should be a parallel treatment track in which all therapeutic and recovery-oriented options are explored. These two tracks should not be in the hands of the same physician. (shrink)

In spirituality and mysticism, many seek a counterbalance to the strong emphasis on the self that modernity demands of us: We desire a fixed self on the one hand and are fascinated by selflessness on the other. But is our fascination with selflessness not a ruse to make that self of ours even stronger? And is that self-critical question not the kernel of even traditional mysticism? Marc De Kesel investigates some dark rooms of the mystical tradition to clarify this. (...) This is a book for all who want to free themselves from the conceptual frameworks and rigid dogmas of late-modern religiosity. The first part of the volume deals directly with early modern Christian mysticism, and more specifically with the French spiritualité and discussions centered around the problem of what it means to love God in a pure, radically unselfish way. The second part explores the paradoxical dialectics between self and selflessness in relation to the way Christian religion deals with its own identity. If Christian love is selfless, why has Christianity in the end not given up its own self, its own identity? The third and last part of the volume discusses the dialectics between self and selflessness in three other domains: popular spirituality, politics, and modern science. It makes clear that "selflessness" is not limited to mysticism but is both a fascination and a problem/paradox for modernity in many fields. (shrink)

There is a growing recognition that philosophy isn’t unique to the West, that it didn’t begin only with the classical Greeks, and that Greek philosophy was influenced by Near Eastern traditions. Yet even today there is a widespread assumption that what came before the Greeks was "before philosophy." In Philosophy before the Greeks, Marc Van De Mieroop, an acclaimed historian of the ancient Near East, presents a groundbreaking argument that, for three millennia before the Greeks, one Near Eastern people (...) had a rich and sophisticated tradition of philosophy fully worthy of the name. In the first century BC, the Greek historian Diodorus of Sicily praised the Babylonians for their devotion to philosophy. Showing the justice of Diodorus’s comment, this is the first book to argue that there were Babylonian philosophers and that they studied knowledge systematically using a coherent system of logic rooted in the practices of cuneiform script. Van De Mieroop uncovers Babylonian approaches to knowledge in three areas: the study of language, which in its analysis of the written word formed the basis of all logic; the art of divination, which interpreted communications between gods and humans; and the rules of law, which confirmed that royal justice was founded on truth. The result is an innovative intellectual history of the ancient Near Eastern world during the many centuries in which Babylonian philosophers inspired scholars throughout the region—until the first millennium BC, when the breakdown of this cosmopolitan system enabled others, including the Greeks, to develop alternative methods of philosophical reasoning. (shrink)

This publication contains reflections on Jacques Ranciáere's essay 'The Ignorant Master' by the artist Marc De Blieck and the art philosopher Volkmar Mèuhleis. The artist's practice is assuming an expanding variety of forms, the artist can leap from one method to another, and the media available to him, old and new, appear inexhaustible. Can and should art education prepare the artist for this? One possibility is to bring a never-ending abundance of experts into the art schools. Ranciáere offers us (...) a provocative alternative in the form of Jacotot, the ignorant master. In part, the book indirectly endorses present-day art education, but at the same time a number of the controversial arguments it contains challenge one to self-reflection. (shrink)

The dominant view of the ventral and dorsal visual systems is that they subserve perception and action. De Wit, Van der Kamp, and Masters suggested that a more fundamental distinction might exist between the nature of information exploited by the systems. The present study distinguished between these accounts by asking participants to perform delayed matching , pointing and perceptual judgment responses to masked Müller–Lyer stimuli of varying length. Matching and pointing responses of participants who could not perceptually judge stimulus length (...) at brief durations remained sensitive to veridical stimulus length , but not the illusion , which was effective at long durations. Distinct thresholds for egocentric and allocentric information pick up were thus evident irrespective of whether perception or action responses were required. It was concluded that the dorsal and ventral systems may be delineated fundamentally by fast egocentric- and slower allocentric information pick up, respectively. (shrink)

Governments and companies are increasingly promoting and organizing Responsible Innovation. It is, however, unclear how the seemingly incompatible demands for responsibility, which is associated with care and caution, can be harmonized with demands for innovation, which is associated with risk-taking and speed. We turn to the tradition of virtue ethics and argue that it can be a strong accomplice to Responsible Innovation by focussing on the agential side of innovation. Virtue ethics offers an adequate response to the epistemic and moral (...) complexity in innovation and encourages moral behaviour. We enumerate a number of virtues that people involved in Responsible Innovation would need to cultivate both related to responsibility, such as justice, anticipation, civility and inclusion, and virtues related to innovation, such as courage, dedication, curiosity and creativity. We put forward practical wisdom as a key virtue to regulate relevant virtues and to deal with the tension between responsibility and innovation. Practical wisdom helps an agent to find an appropriate mean in exercising and expressing the other virtues—where the mean is relative to the specific context of action and the role and abilities of the agent. (shrink)

While COVID-19 spreads aggressively and rapidly across the globe, many societies have also witnessed the spread of other viral phenomena like misinformation, conspiracy theories, and general mass suspicions about what is really going on. This study investigates how exposure to and trust in information sources, and anxiety and depression, are associated with conspiracy and misinformation beliefs in eight countries/regions during the COVID-19 pandemic. Data were collected in an online survey fielded from May 29, 2020 to June 12, 2020, resulting in (...) a multinational representative sample of 8,806 adult respondents. Results indicate that greater exposure to traditional media is associated with lower conspiracy and misinformation beliefs, while exposure to politicians and digital media and personal contacts are associated with greater conspiracy and misinformation beliefs. Exposure to health experts is associated with lower conspiracy beliefs only. Higher feelings of depression are also associated with greater conspiracy and misinformation beliefs. We also found relevant group- and country differences. We discuss the implications of these results. (shrink)

Taking regular walks when living with Parkinson’s disease has beneficial effects on movement and quality of life. Yet, patients usually show reduced physical activity compared to healthy older adults. Using auditory stimulation such as music can facilitate walking but patients vary significantly in their response. An individualized approach adapting musical tempo to patients’ gait cadence, and capitalizing on these individual differences, is likely to provide a rewarding experience, increasing motivation for walk-in PD. We aim to evaluate the observance, safety, tolerance, (...) usability, and enjoyment of a new smartphone application. It was coupled with wearable sensors and delivered individualized musical stimulation for gait auto-rehabilitation at home. Forty-five patients with PD underwent a 1-month, outdoor, uncontrolled gait rehabilitation program, using the BeatWalk application. The music tempo was being aligned in real-time to patients’ gait cadence in a way that could foster an increase up to +10% of their spontaneous cadence. Open-label evaluation was based on BeatWalk use measures, questionnaires, and a six-minute walk test. Patients used the application 78.8% of the prescribed duration and enjoyed it throughout the program. The application was considered “easy to use” by 75% of the patients. Pain, fatigue, and falls did not increase. Fear of falling decreased and quality of life improved. After the program, patients improved their gait parameters in the six-minute walk test without musical stimulation. BeatWalk is an easy to use, safe, and enjoyable musical application for individualized gait rehabilitation in PD. It increases “walk for exercise” duration thanks to high observance.Clinical Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02647242. (shrink)

Die Buchreihe Linguistische Arbeiten hat mit über 500 Bänden zur linguistischen Theoriebildung der letzten Jahrzehnte in Deutschland und international wesentlich beigetragen. Die Reihe wird auch weiterhin neue Impulse für die Forschung setzen und die zentrale Einsicht der Sprachwissenschaft präsentieren, dass Fortschritt in der Erforschung der menschlichen Sprachen nur durch die enge Verbindung von empirischen und theoretischen Analysen sowohl diachron wie synchron möglich ist. Daher laden wir hochwertige linguistische Arbeiten aus allen zentralen Teilgebieten der allgemeinen und einzelsprachlichen Linguistik ein, die aktuelle (...) Fragestellungen bearbeiten, neue Daten diskutieren und die Theorieentwicklung vorantreiben. (shrink)