Taking into consideration the accepted evaluation and the meaning of the concepts of humanum and existence, in this paper we compare Abdulah Šarčević’s philosophy of humanity and Jean-Paul Sartre’s existentialism as humanism, and point out both the philosophical value paradigm of given reflections and the separate ethical-epistemic specificity, as well as the affinities between these humanistic intellectual worldviews, realised within the problem of anthropo-metaphysical and ethical-moral perceptions of Abdulah Šarčević’s conception of humanism in relation to Jean-Paul Sartre’s existentialistically seen humanism.

Many results in fuzzy logic depend on the mathematical structure the truth value set obeys. In this textbook the algebraic foundations of many-valued and fuzzy reasoning are introduced. The book is self-contained, thus no previous knowledge in algebra or in logic is required. It contains 134 exercises with complete answers, and can therefore be used as teaching material at universities for both undergraduated and post-graduated courses. Chapter 1 starts from such basic concepts as order, lattice, equivalence and residuated lattice. It (...) contains a full section on BL-algebras. Chapter 2 concerns MV-algebra and its basic properties. Chapter 3 applies these mathematical results on Lukasiewicz-Pavelka style fuzzy logic, which is studied in details; besides semantics, syntax and completeness of this logic, a lot of examples are given. Chapter 4 shows the connection between fuzzy relations, approximate reasoning and fuzzy IF-THEN rules to residuated lattices. (shrink)

BL-algebras rise as Lindenbaum algebras from many valued logic introduced by Hájek [2]. In this paper Boolean ds and implicative ds of BL-algebras are defined and studied. The following is proved to be equivalent: (i) a ds D is implicative, (ii) D is Boolean, (iii) L/D is a Boolean algebra. Moreover, a BL-algebra L contains a proper Boolean ds iff L is bipartite. Local BL-algebras, too, are characterized. These results generalize some theorems presented in [4], [5], [6] for MV-algebras which (...) are BL-algebras fulfiling an additional double negation law x = x **. (shrink)

A many-valued sentential logic with truth values in an injective MV-algebra is introduced and the axiomatizability of this logic is proved. The paper develops some ideas of Goguen and generalizes the results of Pavelka on the unit interval. The proof for completeness is purely algebraic. A corollary of the Completeness Theorem is that fuzzy logic on the unit interval is semantically complete if and only if the algebra of the truth values is a complete MV-algebra. In the well-defined fuzzy sentential (...) logic holds the Compactness Theorem, while the Deduction Theorem and the Finiteness Theorem in general do not hold. Because of its generality and good-behaviour, MV-valued logic can be regarded as a mathematical basis of fuzzy reasoning. (shrink)

Generalizations of Boolean elements of a BL-algebra L are studied. By utilizing the MV-center MV(L) of L, it is reproved that an element x L is Boolean iff x x * = 1. L is called semi-Boolean if for all x L, x * is Boolean. An MV-algebra L is semi-Boolean iff L is a Boolean algebra. A BL-algebra L is semi-Boolean iff L is an SBL-algebra. A BL-algebra L is called hyper-Archimedean if for all x L, xn is Boolean (...) for some finite n 1. It is proved that hyper-Archimedean BL-algebras are MV-algebras. The study has application in mathematical fuzzy logics whose Lindenbaum algebras are MV-algebras or BL-algebras. (© 2007 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim). (shrink)

Because of the gross difficulties in measuring the societal impact of academic research, qualitative approaches have been developed in the last decade mostly based on forms of interaction between university and other societal stakeholders. In this paper, we suggest a framework for qualitative analysis based on the distinction between three dimensions of societal impact: epistemological, artefactual and interactive-institutional. The epistemological dimension addresses what new research results and understanding of relevant phenomena have contributed to solving of technological and societal problems. The (...) artefactual dimension comprises analysis of the artefacts, methods, tools and services through the use of which societal impact is realized. Finally, in the interactional–institutional dimension the forms and forums of collaboration between university and other societal actors are explored. The model is elaborated by analyzing the work of three university research groups in different disciplines. The framework may be used in articulating formative and dialogical peer evaluation of research to foster learning and social improvement as well as in evaluation of research proposals and research programs. (shrink)

Alvin Plantinga's evolutionary argument against naturalism states that evolution cannot produce warranted beliefs. In contrast, according to Plantinga, Christian theism provides properly functioning cognitive faculties in an appropriate cognitive environment, in accordance with a design plan aimed at producing true beliefs. But does theism fulfill criteria I–III? Judging from the Bible, God employs deceit in his relations with humanity, rendering our cognitive functions unreliable. Moreover, there is no reason to suppose that God's purpose would be to produce true beliefs in (...) humans. Finally, from the theistic/religious perspective, it is impossible to tell whether observations have natural or supernatural causes, which undermines an appropriate cognitive environment. Reliable identification of deceit or miracles could alleviate these problems, but the theistic community has failed to resolve this issue. Dismissal of parts of the Bible, or attempts to find alternative interpretations, would collapse into skepticism or deism. Thus, Plantinga's problem of epistemic warrant backfires on theism. (shrink)