Online research in philosophy

The purpose of the paper is to explore the potential for using fuzzy logic to analyse economic decision?making under Keynesian uncertainty, and in particular in circumstances where variety of opinion is important. Fuzzy logic is shown to apply where expectations may differ because the nature of the subject matter impedes any ?crisp? way of describing the underlying variables. The particular case of the speculative demand for money is considered, since it explicitly reflects variety of opinion as to whether interest rates (...) are ?high? or ?low? (shrink)

There has been considerable discussion lately of the concept of open systems, which has revealed that different participants are using the terms ?openness? and ?closure? in different ways. The purpose of this paper is to address issues of meaning that arise in this particular discourse, with a view to clarifying both conflicts in usage and the underlying issues involved. We explore the different meanings of openness and closure extant in the literature, as applied at the ontological and epistemological levels, focusing (...) on our own use of the terms in relation to that which prevails in neoclassical economics on the one hand and to the use made of them by Tony Lawson and other critical realists on the other. (shrink)

The purpose of this paper is to consider how far the notion of schools of thought is compatible with methodological pluralism. Should economics instead be categorised simply as pluralist or non?pluralist? The notion of structured pluralism is developed, where categories, connections and (crucially) absence of connection apply at a variety of levels. Schools of thought provide some of that (provisional, mutable) structure, encapsulating, among other things, the use of language within each community. Awareness, and understanding, of the different categories and (...) meanings of different schools of thought is necessary for successful communication, and thus for the benefits of pluralism. (shrink)