First published in 1981 this book presents an original theoretical treatment of the problems of maintaining full employment in a multisector economic system with a growing population and different rates of technical progress in different sectors. The conditions for full employment and full capacity utilisation are examined when prices are stable and when there is inflation. This approach is carried out, not in terms of input-output relations, as has become customary in multisector models, but rather in terms of vertically integrated (...) sectors. This makes it possible to analyse the economic growth process in terms of the structural dynamics of production, of prices and of employment. Remarkable implications are drawn for a surprisingly large number of theoretical problems, which have been under discussion since Adam Smith: from price theory to the theory of rates of profit and the rates of interest; from production theory to the theories of fluctuating growth, ever-changing composition of output, choice of technique and international trade. (shrink)

This 1974 collection of six essays in economic theory represents a major contribution to the field. The first contains the formulation of the Ricardian system, whilst the next two contain, respectively, the author's synthetic treatment of the complex problems of fluctuations and economic growth, and his well-known theorem that in the long run the rate of profit and income distribution are independent of the propensities to save of the working class. The essays that follow provide the missing links: a coherent (...) picture of the macroeconomic theories that have originated in Cambridge and a discussion of their deep foundations in classical economic analysis. Finally, the author evaluates some economic controversies and draws his conclusions on the basic forces determining rate of profit in the process of economic growth. Although the arguments are highly theoretical, they require no knowledge of mathematics beyond elementary calculus and algebra. (shrink)

What was the Keynesian revolution in economics? Why did it not succeed to the extent that Keynes and his close pupils had hoped for? Keynes and the Cambridge Keynesians addresses these and other questions by tracing the historical development of Keynesian economics. The book is split into three parts. Part I contains the author's Caffè Lectures on Keynes's 'unaccomplished revolution'. Part II is a series of biographical essays where the author, himself a witness and participant of the group on which (...) he writes, presents the successful and unsuccessful endeavours of Keynes's most important pupils: Richard Kahn, Joan Robinson, Nicholas Kaldor, Pierro Sraffa and Richard Goodwin. Part III of the book looks to the future by developing a conceptual analytical framework that makes sense of Keynes's 'revolution in economics', discussing the many ways in which the Keynesian way of doing economics is incompatible with the neoclassical tradition. (shrink)

A prominent member of the second generation of Cambridge Keynesians, Luigi Pasinetti has been a key player in the development of neo-Ricardian economics as well. Having studied under Piero Sraffa at Cambridge, he developed a mathematical representation of Ricardo's theory of value and distribution, as well as the reswitching problem in neoclassical capital theory: thus making him a leader of the British Cambridge side during the Cambridge Capital Controversy. Since leaving Cambridge for Rome, he has become particularly interested (...) in structural change, i.e. the responses of multi-sectoral models of the economy to technical changes. This book draws together Pasinetti's main contributions in the field of value theory. (shrink)

This book is a theoretical investigation of the influence of human learning on the development through time of a 'pure labour' economy. The theory proposed is a simple one, but aims to grasp the essential features of all industrial economies. Economists have long known that two basic phenomena lie at the root of long-term economic movements in industrial societies: capital accumulation and technical progress. Attention has been concentrated on the former. In this book, by contrast, technical progress is assigned the (...) central role. Within a multi-sector framework, the author examines the structural dynamics of prices, production and employment against a background of 'natural' relations. He also considers a number of institutional problems. Institutional and social learning, know-how, and the diffusion of knowledge emerge as the decisive factors accounting for the success and failure of industrial societies. (shrink)

Previously published as special issues of _The European Journal of the History of Economic Thought_ and _The Review of Political Economy_, this volume contains the papers devoted to the life and work of Piero Sraffa. Sraffa was a leading intellectual of the twentieth century. He was brought to Cambridge by John Maynard Keynes and had an important impact on the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein. He received the golden medal Söderström of the Swedish Academy of Sciences for his edition of David Ricardo's (...) _Works and Correspondence_ and he is the author of _Production of Commodities by Means of Commodities_, one of the most often cited book in economics. Using hitherto unpublished material from Sraffa's literary heritage kept at Trinity College, Cambridge, the papers throw new light on the intellectual development of the young Sraffa and correct several of the received views on him and his contribution. Themes covered concern his: objectivism rediscovery and reformulation of the classical theory of value and distribution criticism of Alfred Marshall's analysis relationship with his Cambridge colleagues and friends biography around the time when he left Italy for the UK friendship with Wittgenstein and his impact on the latter's thinking. (shrink)

This thought-provoking book discusses the concept of progress in economics and investigates whether any advance has been made in its different spheres of research. The authors look back at the history, successes and failures of their respective fields and thoroughly examine the notion of progress from an epistemological and methodological perspective. The idea of progress is particularly significant as the authors regard it as an essentially contested concept which can be defined in many ways – theoretically or empirically; locally or (...) globally; or as encouraging or impeding the existence of other research traditions. The authors discuss the idea that for progress to make any sense there must be an accumulation of knowledge built up over time rather than the replacement of ideas by each successive generation. Accordingly, they are not concerned with estimating the price of progress, reminiscing in the past, or assessing what has been lost. Instead they apply the complex mechanisms and machinery of the discipline to sub-fields such as normative economics, monetary economics, trade and location theory, Austrian economics and classical economics to critically assess whether progress has been made in these areas of research. -/- Bringing together authoritative and wide-ranging contributions by leading scholars, this book will challenge and engage those interested in philosophy, economic methodology and the history of economic thought. It will also appeal to economists in general who are interested in the advancement of their profession. (shrink)

The precarious rights of senior citizens, especially those who are highly educated and who are expected to counsel and guide the younger generations, has stimulated the creation internationally of advocacy associations and opinion leader groups. The strength of these groups, however, varies from country to country. In some countries, they are supported and are the focus of intense interest; in others, they are practically ignored. For this is reason we believe that the creation of a network of all these associations (...) is essential. The proposed network would act as a support for the already-existing policies of the United Nations’ High Commission for Human Rights, of independent experts, and of the Global Alliance for the Rights of Older People. All three have long ago recommended the creation of a recognized instrument for uniting presently scattered efforts. The proposed network, therefore, will seek to promote the international exchange of relevant expertise, and it will reinforce the commitments and actions that single countries are currently taking to meet these objectives. For example, informative public events can be organised to promote particular support initiatives and to provide an opportunity for new members of the network to be presented. The network will promote health for senior citizens, disease prevention, senior mobility, safe free time for seniors, alimentary education, protection against new risks and dangers, as well as equity in the services necessary for seniors to adopt new information and communication technologies. In the case of retired academic members, the network will promote equality with respect to continuing use of digital technologies (particularly email), continuing access to research libraries, and the guaranteed ability for seniors to fund their own research programs and to deliver free seminars. (shrink)

The study of biodiversity spans many disciplines and includes data pertaining to species distributions and abundances, genetic sequences, trait measurements, and ecological niches, complemented by information on collection and measurement protocols. A review of the current landscape of metadata standards and ontologies in biodiversity science suggests that existing standards such as the Darwin Core terminology are inadequate for describing biodiversity data in a semantically meaningful and computationally useful way. Existing ontologies, such as the Gene Ontology and others in the Open (...) Biological and Biomedical Ontologies (OBO) Foundry library, provide a semantic structure but lack many of the necessary terms to describe biodiversity data in all its dimensions. In this paper, we describe the motivation for and ongoing development of a new Biological Collections Ontology, the Environment Ontology, and the Population and Community Ontology. These ontologies share the aim of improving data aggregation and integration across the biodiversity domain and can be used to describe physical samples and sampling processes (for example, collection, extraction, and preservation techniques), as well as biodiversity observations that involve no physical sampling. Together they encompass studies of: 1) individual organisms, including voucher specimens from ecological studies and museum specimens, 2) bulk or environmental samples (e.g., gut contents, soil, water) that include DNA, other molecules, and potentially many organisms, especially microbes, and 3) survey-based ecological observations. We discuss how these ontologies can be applied to biodiversity use cases that span genetic, organismal, and ecosystem levels of organization. We argue that if adopted as a standard and rigorously applied and enriched by the biodiversity community, these ontologies would significantly reduce barriers to data discovery, integration, and exchange among biodiversity resources and researchers. (shrink)

Recreational Drugs European Network (ReDNet) project aims to use the Psychonaut Web Mapping Project database (Psychonaut Web Mapping Group, 2009) containing novel psychoactive compounds usually not mentioned in the scientific literature and thus unknown to clinicians as a unique source of information. The database will be used to develop an integrated ICT prevention approach targeted at vulnerable individuals and focused on novel synthetic and herbal compounds and combinations. Particular care will be taken in keeping the health professionals working directly with (...) young people showing problematic behaviors regularly updated in terms of novel compounds and combinations as well. A user-friendly project website will be developed aimed primarily at delivering the information/prevention approaches, but will also be a way of communicating with project partners and relevant stakeholders (e.g. thematic forum facilities, instant messages, blogs, video chat, wikiblog, newsletters distributed via mailing list). The website will support various ICT prevention tools, including an SMS alert service. Different areas and sections will be aimed specifically at the different target groups. -/- . (shrink)

Biological ontologies are used to organize, curate, and interpret the vast quantities of data arising from biological experiments. While this works well when using a single ontology, integrating multiple ontologies can be problematic, as they are developed independently, which can lead to incompatibilities. The Open Biological and Biomedical Ontologies Foundry was created to address this by facilitating the development, harmonization, application, and sharing of ontologies, guided by a set of overarching principles. One challenge in reaching these goals was that the (...) OBO principles were not originally encoded in a precise fashion, and interpretation was subjective. Here we show how we have addressed this by formally encoding the OBO principles as operational rules and implementing a suite of automated validation checks and a dashboard for objectively evaluating each ontology’s compliance with each principle. This entailed a substantial effort to curate metadata across all ontologies and to coordinate with individual stakeholders. We have applied these checks across the full OBO suite of ontologies, revealing areas where individual ontologies require changes to conform to our principles. Our work demonstrates how a sizable federated community can be organized and evaluated on objective criteria that help improve overall quality and interoperability, which is vital for the sustenance of the OBO project and towards the overall goals of making data FAIR. Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest. (shrink)

Nel mio articolo propongo una lettura dei §§ 79-84 della Critica del Giudizio, parte della sezione Metodologia del Giudizio teleologico. Dapprima mi interrogo sul significato di una Methodenlehre del Giudizio teleologico, che rintraccio in un’attività metariflessiva del Giudizio; procedo poi ad una lettura analitica del testo nelle sue varie articolazioni, nella quale passo in rassegna le questioni attinenti alla specificità dello statuto epistemologico della teleologia, alla possibile convivenza tra finalismo e meccanicismo nella scienza della natura, all’origine della vita, allo scopo (...) ultimo della natura e allo scopo finale della creazione; approdo, infine, ad un’interpretazione per cui l’intera teleologia rationis humanae, che si estende dalla teleologia naturale alla teleologia morale passando per l’antropologia e per la filosofia della storia, viene in questa sezione riarticolata intorno ad un nuovo fulcro concettuale di livello trascendentale, che può garantire l’effettivo collegamento tra queste diverse parti della filosofia proprio perché esso non si esercita in forma di dominio legislativo, ma in forma di riflessione sul molteplice empirico e sulla causalità teleologica propria dell’uomo. (shrink)

La piega critica del realismo filosofico di Tommaso rivela una realtà inaferrabile dischiudendo al soggetto nuove possibilità conoscitive, che ci restituiscono un Tommaso un po' meno tomista.

1. Critica de capire e altri scritti. 2. Scritti kantiani. 3. L'analitica trascendentale. 4. Il problema della scienza e il giudizio storico.

War and the future of the international order. For the members of the Bush administration, the clash between the USA and the UN over war in Iraq would appear to have weakened or irrevocably discredited the UN. Luigi Ferrajoli argues that, on the contrary, the conflict actually signals a revival of the UN, after a period characterised by its servile submission to imperialism. Thanks to the current international situation, and secure in the knowledge that world opinion supports its stance, (...) the UN, by its refusal to countenance the invasion, has for the first time demonstrated its capacity to comply with the pacifist stipulations of the United Nations, giving them the force of international law. While the author does not draw conclusions which are entirely optimistic, he does however consider that the outcome of the invasion has modified the relative strength of the two opposing parties : the US and the movement of resistance which has gained expression worldwide. (shrink)

Il seguente articolo si prefigge di analizzare il fenomeno delle alleanze di brand e il loro sviluppo nell’attuale contesto economico. Con l’ampliarsi del lavoro di rete, e la creazione di valore che ne deriva, i legami di partnership tra le imprese evidenziano un salto prestazionale. Ciò avviene anche attraverso la creazione di un’identità condivisa, che ne rafforza la competitività. Dopo la definizione di co-branding, e l’esposizione dei benefici e dei rischi, vengono considerate le opportunità di crescita che ne derivano. Queste (...) alleanze consentono alle reti tra imprese di riposizionarsi nel proprio contesto di appartenenza, migliorando la governance e le strategie di mercato. Anche la relazione con l’attuale crisi economica evidenzia la capacità del co-branding di fronteggiare con maggiore efficacia i momenti di emergenza. Come evidenziato in numerose ricerche, la gestione della crisi trova nelle alleanze di brand uno strumento strategico essenziale per crescere anche se l’instabilità e l’incertezza dell’economia sono elevate. Attraverso l’esame di alcuni case-histories, viene elaborato un modello di co-branding. Si tratta di un prisma dove sono evidenziati sei asset strategici: velocità, personalizzazione, flessibilità, facilità, dialogo e convergenza. Sono questi i fattori che hanno determinato una performance di successo durante la crisi. I risvolti positivi che ne derivano avranno un impatto evidente anche dopo il periodo di emergenza. (shrink)

The article presents sociological considerations in regards to the advent of globalism. With the implosion of capitalism and the acceleration of globalization, the concept of globalism is in need of new interpretations. Some sociologists indeed would see it solely as the ideology of globalization. In the article, globalism is regarded as a social system not only with ideological characteristics but also economic ones. This radically changes the very logic of capitalism, which is focused on linear and monocentric production. Through the (...) theory of link-value the article illustrates the process by which economic development takes place. It is shown that as well as the assets identified by the main economic schools, development is based on factors such as infrastructure investments, technologies, and networking. Today, with globalism, it is economic ties that create wealth and they are more important than the production process itself. Such transformation is highlighted through the growth of the financial and commercial dimensions, as well as the change in industrial activities. The article deals with the fundamental importance of the global value chain in nowadays, as well as the reshoring and the nearshoring. After illustrating the evolution of territorial networks, several case histories are presented: from the new economic centres of globalism to the decline of industrial districts. Finally, the article examines new generations models of innovation and culture districts. Keywords : Economic development; Globalism; Production processes; Global value chain; Territorial networks; Open innovation. [1] Sunto L'articolo espone alcune considerazioni sociologiche relative all'avvento del globalismo. Con l'implosione del capitalismo e l'accelerazione della globalizzazione, il concetto di globalismo necessita di nuove interpretazioni. Alcuni sociologi infatti lo considerano solamente come l'ideologia della globalizzazione. Nell'articolo, il globalismo è considerato come un sistema sociale con caratteristiche non solo ideologiche ma anche economiche. Questo cambia radicalmente la logica stessa del capitalismo, che è incentrato sulla produzione lineare e monocentrica. Attraverso la teoria del valore-legame l'articolo illustra il processo attraverso il quale si crea lo sviluppo economico. Viene dimostrato che oltre ai fattori proposti dalle principali scuole economiche, quali le infrastrutture pubbliche e la tecnologia, lo sviluppo dipende anche dal networking. Oggi, con il globalismo, sono i legami economici che creano ricchezza e questi ultimi diventano più importanti del processo produttivo in sé. Tale trasformazione è evidenziata dalla crescita delle dimensioni finanziarie e commerciali dell’economia, nonché dal mutamento delle attività industriali. Nell’articolo viene trattata l’importanza che attualmente rivestono le catene globali del valore, ma anche i nuovi fenomeni del reshoring e del nearshoring. Dopo aver illustrato l’evoluzione delle forme di networking territoriale, vengono presentati diversi casi-studio: dai nuovi poli produttivi globalizzati al declino dei distretti industriali. Nella parte finale dell’articolo vengono illustrati modelli distrettuali di nuova generazione come quelli dell’innovazione e della cultura. Parole Chiave : Sviluppo economico; Globalismo; Processi produttivi; Catena globale del valore; Reti territoriali; Innovazione aperta. (shrink)

The article presents sociological considerations in regards to the advent of globalism. With the implosion of capitalism and the acceleration of globalization, the concept of globalism is in need of new interpretations. Some sociologists indeed would see it solely as the ideology of globalization. In the article, globalism is regarded as a social system not only with ideological characteristics but also economic ones. This radically changes the very logic of capitalism, which is focused on linear and monocentric production. Through the (...) theory of link-value the article illustrates the process by which economic development takes place. It is shown that as well as the assets identified by the main economic schools, development is based on factors such as infrastructure investments, technologies, and networking. Today, with globalism, it is economic ties that create wealth and they are more important than the production process itself. Such transformation is highlighted through the growth of the financial and commercial dimensions, as well as the change in industrial activities. The article deals with the fundamental importance of the global value chain in nowadays, as well as the reshoring and the nearshoring. After illustrating the evolution of territorial networks, several case histories are presented: from the new economic centres of globalism to the decline of industrial districts. Finally, the article examines new generations models of innovation and culture districts. Keywords : Economic development; Globalism; Production processes; Global value chain; Territorial networks; Open innovation. [1] Sunto L'articolo espone alcune considerazioni sociologiche relative all'avvento del globalismo. Con l'implosione del capitalismo e l'accelerazione della globalizzazione, il concetto di globalismo necessita di nuove interpretazioni. Alcuni sociologi infatti lo considerano solamente come l'ideologia della globalizzazione. Nell'articolo, il globalismo è considerato come un sistema sociale con caratteristiche non solo ideologiche ma anche economiche. Questo cambia radicalmente la logica stessa del capitalismo, che è incentrato sulla produzione lineare e monocentrica. Attraverso la teoria del valore-legame l'articolo illustra il processo attraverso il quale si crea lo sviluppo economico. Viene dimostrato che oltre ai fattori proposti dalle principali scuole economiche, quali le infrastrutture pubbliche e la tecnologia, lo sviluppo dipende anche dal networking. Oggi, con il globalismo, sono i legami economici che creano ricchezza e questi ultimi diventano più importanti del processo produttivo in sé. Tale trasformazione è evidenziata dalla crescita delle dimensioni finanziarie e commerciali dell’economia, nonché dal mutamento delle attività industriali. Nell’articolo viene trattata l’importanza che attualmente rivestono le catene globali del valore, ma anche i nuovi fenomeni del reshoring e del nearshoring. Dopo aver illustrato l’evoluzione delle forme di networking territoriale, vengono presentati diversi casi-studio: dai nuovi poli produttivi globalizzati al declino dei distretti industriali. Nella parte finale dell’articolo vengono illustrati modelli distrettuali di nuova generazione come quelli dell’innovazione e della cultura. Parole Chiave : Sviluppo economico; Globalismo; Processi produttivi; Catena globale del valore; Reti territoriali; Innovazione aperta. (shrink)

Il saggio delinea il pensiero e la formazione culturale di Giovanni Spadolini, celebre politico, giornalista e accademico italiano attivo dal secondo dopoguerra ai primi anni '90 del Novecento. L'autore, traendo spunto dalle citazioni dello stesso statista, mostra un quadro dei valori politici e umani che Spadolini ha lasciato in eredità all'Italia odierna tramite la sua attività, tra cui un senso di rispetto sacro verso la democrazia e una battaglia determinata contro ogni tipo di spettacolarizzazione. La figura che emerge è quella (...) di un uomo spiritualmente libero che incarna l'inclusività, sempre aperto al dialogo e al confronto, ma comunque fermo sulle proprie opinioni. Il volume è diviso in quattro capitoli: il primo si concentra sul pensiero di alcuni dei più grandi letterati italiani riguardo i problemi politici, nazionali e sociali dell'Italia, e del modo in cui questi uomini influenzarono lo stesso Spadolini con i loro scritti; il secondo è invece caratterizzato dalle figure cruciali, Gobetti su tutti, stimate dallo statista durante l'arco della sua vita; la terza sezione riguarda più strettamente l'attività politica di Spadolini, mentre l'ultimo capitolo si concentra in particolare sugli ultimi anni della sua carriera. (shrink)

Th e autho r brief ly e xplain s th e epistemol o gica l line s an d methodol o gica l principle s of th e theo r y h e d e v elop s i n Principi a iuris . T eori a de l diritt o e dell a democ r acia . Th e author ha s bee n w orkin g o n thi s subjec t fro m th e 1960 s an (...) d i n thi s a r ticl e h e brief ly set s ou t the metho d adopte d , th e objec t o r un i v ers e o f th e theoretica l discours e an d th e aim s pursued by hi s theo r y . Thi s theo r y i s a r ticulate d i n t w o pa r ts : th e theo r y o f l a w d e v elope d usin g a axiomati c metho d an d th e theo r y o f constitutiona l democra c y , w hic h i s a n empirica l and no r mat i v e inte r pretatio n o f th e fo r me r , bot h connecte d by th e isomo r phi c relationshi p that join s democra c y an d th e constitutiona l paradig m o f th e r ul e o f l a w. (shrink)

En jetant la sonde de l’interrogation philosophique au lieu de soi, Jean-Luc Marion nous donne une approche organique et originale à la pensée d’Augustin, en entrecroisant entre eux deux plans herméneutiques : sur le premier, l’on poursuit un itinéraire de rapprochement au cœur de la confessio augustinienne permettant de réduire le vaste univers sémantique d’Augustin à un noyau génétique unifiant; sur le second plan, le parcours philosophique de l’auteur se développe ultérieurement, tendant à désarticuler un bloc théorique d’ontologie et métaphysique (...) et atteignant ainsi par une voie phénoménologique une idée de philosophie finalement affranchie de la présupposition du caractère central de la question de l’étant et du fondement. En tout cas, même si l’on ne veut pas donner trop d’éclat à la critique anti-ontologique et antimétaphysique caractérisant l’approche à la pensée augustinienne proposée dans cet ouvrage, l’acquis spéculatif de celle-ci ne semble pas diminuer. Un parmi les mérites principaux de ce livre est d’avoir restitué à la confessio sa dignité théorique, en y apercevant un lieu phénoménologique originaire où la relation entre moi et Dieu se noue; une relation dont le caractère paradoxal, autrement insoutenable, est résolu par le primat du don et de l’amour. Ce sont tous ces traits originaux qui nous mènent à dire qu’Au lieu de soi n’est pas seulement un livre sur Augustin, car il est plus qu’un livre sur Augustin. (shrink)

_Abstract_: In this paper, I will examine the Goldstein-Cassirer approach to neuropathology to determine its current potential for yielding valuable insights. To this end, I will reconstruct the philosophical and theoretical underpinnings of such a standpoint in the first four sections. What will emerge is that it entails a definition of pathology as the loss of balance in the adaption of human beings to the environment, leading to a lack of proclivity to categorical behaviour and symbolic performances. Furthermore, we will (...) see that there are behavioural alterations which are not related to the locus of lesions. In the fifth section, I will compare and contrast the holistic stances with current research in neuropsychology. The sixth section is dedicated to conclusive remarks. _Keywords_: Psychopathology; Neuropathology; Ernst Cassirer; Kurt Goldstein; Holism _ La mente ordinatrice. La concezione di Goldstein e Cassirer della neuropatologia e la sua rilevanza oggi _ _Riassunto_: In questo articolo intendo analizzare l’approccio Goldstein-Cassirer alla neuropatologia per comprendere se esso può rivelarsi ancora utile alla luce delle ricerche attuali. A tal fine, ne ricostruirò le basi filosofiche e teoriche nei primi tre paragrafi. Scopriremo che esso implica una definizione di patologia come perdita di equilibrio nell’adattamento degli esseri umani all’ambiente, a seguito della quale viene a mancare la naturale tendenza verso il “comportamento categoriale” e le prestazioni simboliche. Vedremo, inoltre, che vi sono alterazioni del comportamento non collegabili al sito delle lesioni. Nel quinto paragrafo, metterò a confronto le istanze olistiche con le ricerche contemporanee nel campo della neuropsicologia. Il sesto paragrafo contiene le considerazioni conclusive. _Parole chiave_: Psicopatologia; Neuropatologia; Ernst Cassirer; Kurt Goldstein; Olismo. (shrink)