Comprehensive evaluation and study of man's theories and knowledge of genetical characteristics and the evolutionary processes.

WE HAVE LEARNED in the preceding chapter that a revolutionary change of the species concept is in the making, a change which not only affects taxonomic procedure, but which also contributes considerably toward a better understanding of ...

This is an important book for students, biologists, and general readers interested in the history of ideas--especially ideas that have radically altered our ...

In this book the author analyzes the work of physicists, mathematicians, biologists, historians, and philosophers in order to discover the principles that underlie their various ways of knowing and in terms of which they describe the ...

I analyze a number of widespread misconceptions concerning species. The species category, defined by a concept, denotes the rank of a species taxon in the Linnaean hierarchy. Biological species are reproducing isolated from each other, which protects the integrity of their genotypes. Degree of morphological difference is not an appropriate species definition. Unequal rates of evolution of different characters and lack of information on the mating potential of isolated populations are the major difficulties in the demarcation of species taxa.

The anthropological scale -- Organ projection -- The first tools -- Limbs and measure -- Apparatuses and instruments -- The inner architecture of the bones -- Steam engines and rail lines -- The electromagnetic telegraph -- The unconscious -- Machine technology -- The fundamental morphological law -- Language -- The state.

This book grew out of that conviction, and as such it brought a fresh perspective to some of the rarely examined assumptions and methods of analysis.

While robotics has benefited from inspiration gained from biology, the opposite is not the case: there are few if any cases in which robotic models have lead to genuine insight into biology. We analyze the reasons why biorobotics has been essentially a one-way street. We argue that the development of better tools is essential for progress in this field.

Unter den Philosophen war Cassirer einer der ersten, der die philosophischen Probleme erkannte und aufgenommen hat, die durch Fortschritte der modernen Physik aufgeworfen wurden. In seinem Vorwort zu der in diesem Band enthaltenen Schrift "Zur Einsteinschen Relativtätstheorie" erklärt er es zum Ziel seiner Studie, in den aus dieser Theorie folgenden erkenntnistheoretischen Fragen, über welche das Urteil der Philosophen und der Physiker damals noch weit auseinandergingen, eine wechselseitige Verständigung zwischen beiden anzubahnen. Inhalt: Maßbegriffe und Dingbegriffe, Die empirischen und begrifflichen Grundlagen der (...) Relativitätstheorie, Der philosophische Wahrheitsbegriff und die Relativitätstheorie, Materie – Äther – Raum, Der Raum- und Zeitbegriff des kritischen Idealismus und die Relativitätstheorie, Euklidische und Nicht-Euklidische Geometrie, Die Relativitätstheorie und das Problem der Realität. (shrink)

This book represents a unique attempt to reconcile the traditional oppositions of the natural law and social utopian traditions, providing basic insights into the meaning of human rights in a socialist society.

The Dual State, first published in 1941, remains one of the most erudite books on the legal origins of democracy and dictatorship. It provided the first comprehensive analysis of the rise and nature of National Socialism, and was the only such analysis written from within Hitler's Germany. Fraenkel's concept of the dual state, being the normative state and the the prerogative state. It retains its vital relevance for the theory of democracy in the twenty-first century. The Dual State considerably influenced (...) scholars studying and working on questions of political justice in the period following World War II, particularly in the context of political and legal theory; in the domain of legal history; in the area of constitutional theory; in the context of comparative politics; and in what has become known as the field of comparative constitutional law. This republication of Fraenkel's classic work makes it once again widely available to scholars and students in the field. It includes both Fraenkel's 1974 introduction to the German second edition, never before published in English, and a new introduction by Dr Jens Meierhenrich, examining the world in which The Dual State was originally published, and the lasting legacy of this classic work. (shrink)

Das Bemühen um eine methodische Grundlegung der Geisteswissenschaften führte Cassirer zu dem Schluß, daß die allgemeine Erkenntnistheorie in ihrer tradierten Form nicht ausreiche, um die verschiedenen Grundformen des Weltverstehens bestimmt voneinander abzugrenzen. An die Stelle des rein rationalen Erkennens, dem in der Philosophie der Neuzeit immer ein Primat zukam, tritt die Pluralität von symbolischen Formen, in denen sich jeweils eine spezifische Spontaneität des menschlichen Geistes bekundet. "Die Kritik der Vernunft", so heißt es in der "Philosophie der symbolischen Formen", "wird damit (...) zur Kritik der Kultur". In den 1942 im Göteborger Exil veröffentlichten fünf Studien "Zur Logik der Kulturwissenschaften" unternimmt Cassirer eine genauere wissenschaftstheoretische Bestimmung des geisteswissenschaftlichen Feldes. Ausgangspunkt allen Kulturverstehens ist für ihn die Ausdruckswahrnehmung im Gegensatz zur Dingwahrnehmung in den exakten Wissenschaften. Die Kulturwissenschaften arbeiten nicht in erster Linie mit Natur- und Geschichtsbegriffen, sondern mit Form- und Stilbegriffen. Nicht "die Individualität der Gesetze" ist das Erkenntnisziel der Kulturwissenschaften, "sondern die Totalität der Formen, in denen sich menschliches Leben vollzieht". In diesem für die im 20. Jahrhundert entstehenden Kulturwissenschaften fundamentalen Werk entwickelt Cassirer bereits präzise das Motiv seiner Anthropologie, das 1944 im "Essay on Man" (Philosophische Bibliothek Band 488) zur Entfaltung kommt. Im Anhang beigegeben ist der 1939 ebenfalls in Göteborg gehaltene Vortrag "Naturalistische und humanistische Begründung der Kulturphilosophie". (shrink)

Complementary and alternative medicine has become an important section of healthcare. Its high level of acceptance among the general population represents a challenge to healthcare professionals of all disciplines and raises a host of ethical issues. This article is an attempt to explore some of the more obvious or practical ethical aspects of complementary and alternative medicine.

Are people selfish or altruistic? Throughout history this question has been answered on the basis of much introspection and little evidence. It has been at the heart of many controversial debates in politics, science, and philosophy. Some of the most fundamental questions concerning our evolutionary origins, our social relations, and the organization of society are centered around issues of altruism and selfishness. Experimental evidence indicates that human altruism is a powerful force and unique in the animal world. However, there is (...) much individual heterogeneity and the interaction between altruists and selfish individuals is key for understanding the evolutionary dynamics as well as the proximate patterns of human cooperation. Depending on the environment, a minority of altruists can force a majority of selfish individuals to cooperate or, conversely, a few egoists can induce a large number of altruists to defect. Current gene-based evolutionary theories cannot explain important patterns of human altruism pointing towards the need for theories of cultural evolution and gene-culture coevolution. (shrink)

Continued failure to limit emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that are causing global climate change has brought increased attention to climate engineering technologies, which actively modify the global environment to counteract heating and climate disruptions caused by elevated greenhouse gases. Some proposed forms of CE, particularly spraying reflective particles in the upper atmosphere to reduce incoming sunlight, can cool the average temperature of the Earth rapidly and cheaply, thereby substantially reducing climate-related risks. Yet CE interventions provide only (...) imperfect corrections for the climatic and other environmental effects of elevated greenhouse gases, and carry their own environmental risks. Moreover, they may also increase other risks, by weakening political support for essential emissions reductions or providing new triggers for international conflict. These technologies thus require international governance, but also pose novel and severe challenges to current international laws and institutions. Effective governance of CE will require a capacity to make decisions regarding the conditions, if any, under which specific interventions are authorized, plus realtime operational oversight of any interventions that are conducted. Decision processes must be effectively linked with scientific research and assessment, and with institutions to manage and respond to threats of CE-related conflict. We advance preliminary suggestions to address two priority areas for early investigation: how international cooperation on early CE research can help develop shared norms that can grow robust enough to support future decision needs; and how early research and development on CE can be made to complement and encourage, rather than undermine, parallel efforts to reduce climate risks by cutting emissions. (shrink)

The big question at the end of Feferman is: Is it possible to find a foundation for unlimited category theory? I show that the answer is no by showing that unlimited category theory is inconsistent.