Its author was a Carthusian monk. Offered here is a translation, with annotation and an important introduction, of the four books on natural philosophy, the predecessor of modern science.

This collection of essays by Gregor Sebba reflects the curiosity and insight of his mind. The range of topics is wide, including philosophy and the history of ideas, literature and art; yet there is a single underlying theme - human creativity and the search for truth - pursued along paths as diverse as Greek tragedy, Eric Voegelin's concept of order in history, and the poetry of Rainer Maria Rilke and T.S.Eliot.

Visual representations (photographs, diagrams, etc.) play crucial roles in scientific processes. They help, for example, to communicate research results and hypotheses to scientific peers as well as to the lay audience. In genuine research activities they are used as evidence or as surrogates for research objects which are otherwise cognitively inaccessible. Despite their important functional roles in scientific practices, philosophers of science have more or less neglected visual representations in their analyses of epistemic methods and tools of reasoning in science. (...) This book is meant to fill this gap. It presents a detailed investigation into central conceptual issues and into the epistemology of visual representations in science. (shrink)

This collection offers a new understanding of the epistemology of measurement. The interdisciplinary volume explores how measurements are produced, for example, in astronomy and seismology, in studies of human sexuality and ecology, in brain imaging and intelligence testing. It considers photography as a measurement technology and Henry David Thoreau's poetic measures as closing the gap between mind and world. -/- By focusing on measurements as the hard-won results of conceptual as well as technical operations the authors of the book no (...) longer presuppose that measurement is always and exclusively a means of representing some feature of a target object or entity. Measurement also provides knowledge about the degree to which things have been standardized or harmonized – it is an indicator of how closely human practices are attuned to each other and the world. (shrink)

In modern times, religion seems to have taken leave of itself to the extent that, conversely, the scientific, rational view of the world has taken on this task. Apparently there is an exclusive relationship between the two, which makes peaceful and equal coexistence more or less impossible. In this volume of the "Philosophy and Psychology in Dialogue" series, Martin Klüners and Jörn Rüsen analyze the role religion plays in human existence and life. While Klüners interprets religion historically as a "pre-scientific" (...) soul science and sees the antagonism of the principle of reality and pleasure as responsible for the opposition of reason and belief, Rüsen locates religion within historical thought. Like history itself, religion appears to be a significant factor in the cultural orientation of human life practice. (shrink)

Gregor Schiemann verteidigt die Aktualität des aristotelischen und cartesianischen Naturbegriffes, die Natur in Gegensatz zu Nichtnatürlichem definieren. Als gültig könnnen sich diese traditionellen Naturbegriffe jedoch nur noch innerhalb begrenzter Kontexte erweisen. -/- Im ersten Teil seines Buches zeigt der Autor, dass Aristoteles' Bestimmung der Natur als Gegenbegriff zur Technik in der Lebenswelt sowie Descartes' Dualismus von Natur und Geist für das eigene Bewusstseinserleben orientierungsleitend geblieben sind. Dass die Begriffspaare nicht nur in gesonderten Kontexten vorkommen, sondern sich ihre Anwendungen auch (...) wechselseitig durchdringen, führt er im zweiten Teil am Beispiel von Aristoteles' Seelenlehre und Descartes' Mechanismus aus. Die naturphilosophische und erkenntnistheoretische Untersuchung verbindet Elemente der analytischen Philosophie mit Ansätzen der Phänomenologie. Sie will zu einem pluralen Verständnis der Natur beitragen, das universelle Geltungsansprüche verabschiedet. (shrink)

Datafizierung, Publizierung, Metrisierung – unter diesen Stichpunkten untersuchen die AutorInnen des vorliegenden Bandes die Auswirkungen der zunehmenden Digitalisierung auf die Erzeugung, Auswahl, Bereitstellung und Bewertung wissenschaftlicher Erkenntnis. Wie wird Wissen aus den Weiten des digitalen Raums herausgefiltert? Wie wird es generiert? Was wird als Wissen verfügbar gemacht – und was nicht? Wie und von wem wird das digital erfasste Wissen evaluiert? Diese den Wissenschaftsbetrieb herausfordernden Fragen diskutieren ExpertInnen aus Philosophie, Informations- und Bibliothekswissenschaft sowie Informatik. Ihre Beiträge reflektieren in kritischer und (...) konstruktiver Weise die Gestaltung und Folgen der digitalisierten Wissenschaftspraxis. (shrink)

The circadian clock is a cell autonomous oscillator that controls many aspects of physiology through generating rhythmic gene expression in a time of day dependent manner. In addition, in endothermic mammals body temperature cycles contribute to rhythmic gene expression. These body temperature‐controlled rhythms are hard to distinguish from classic circadian rhythms if analyzed in vivo in endothermic organisms. However, they do not fulfill all criteria of being circadian if analyzed in cell culture or in conditions where body temperature of an (...) endothermic organism can be manipulated. Here we review and compare these characteristics, discuss the core clock independent mechanism of temperature‐controlled alternative splicing and highlight the requirement of double‐checking rhythms that appear circadian within an endothermic organism in a system that allows temperature manipulation. (shrink)

The present article deals with the power of the axiom of choice within the second-order predicate logic. We investigate the relationship between several variants of AC and some other statements, known as equivalent to AC within the set theory of Zermelo and Fraenkel with atoms, in Henkin models of the one-sorted second-order predicate logic with identity without operation variables. The construction of models follows the ideas of Fraenkel and Mostowski. It is e. g. shown that the well-ordering theorem for unary (...) predicates is independent from AC for binary predicates and from the trichotomy law for unary predicates. Moreover, we show that the AC for binary predicates follows neither from the trichotomy law for unary predicates nor from Zorn's lemma for unary predicates nor from the formalization of the axiom of choice for disjoint families of sets for binary predicates, and that the trichotomy law for unary predicates does not follow from AC for binary predicates. (shrink)

At first glance there seem to be many similarities between Thomas S. Kuhn’s and Ludwik Fleck’s accounts of the development of scientific knowledge. Notably, both pay attention to the role played by the scientific community in the development of scientific knowledge. But putting first impressions aside, one can criticise some philosophers for being too hasty in their attempt to find supposed similarities in the works of the two men. Having acknowledged that Fleck anticipated some of Kuhn’s later theses, there seems (...) to be a temptation in more recent research to equate both theories in important respects. Because of this approach, one has to deal with the problem of comparing the most notable technical terms of both philosophers, namely ‘‘thought style’’ and ‘‘paradigm’’. This paper aims at a more thorough comparison between Ludwik Fleck’s concept of thought style and Thomas Kuhn’s concept of paradigm. Although some philosophers suggest that these two concepts are essentially equal in content, a closer examination reveals that this is not the case. This thesis of inequality will be defended in detail, also taking into account some of the alleged similarities which may be responsible for losing sight of the differences between these theories. (shrink)

I. The framework. 1, Aristotle's project and methods. 2, The perceptual capacity of the soul. 3, The sensory apparatus. 4, The common sense and the related capacities -- II. The terminology. 1, Overlooked occurrences of the phrase 'common sense'. 2, De anima III.1 425a27. 3, De partibus animalium IV.10 686a31. 4, De memoria et reminiscentia 1 450a10. 5, De anima III.7 431b5. 6, Conclusions on the terminology -- III. Functions of the common sense. 1, Simultaneous perception and cross-modal binding. 2, (...) Perceptual discrimination. 3, Waking, sleep, and control of the senses. 4, Perceiving that what we see and hear, and monitoring of the senses. 5, Other roles of the common sense -- Conclusion. (shrink)

Gregor Betz explores the following questions: Where are the limits of economics, in particular the limits of economic foreknowledge? Are macroeconomic forecasts credible predictions or mere prophecies and what would this imply for the way economic policy decisions are taken? Is rational economic decision making possible without forecasting at all?

Gregor Paul, Philosoph an der Universität Karlsruhe, will zeigen, “dass ein Krieg gegen den Terrorismus unmöglich wäre, wenn man gültiger Argumentation folgte”. Die Frage ist, ob es einen „gerechten Krieg“ überhaupt gibt – eine alte Frage, auf die nicht nur in der abendländischen Philosophie unterschiedliche Antworten gegeben worden sind. Paul lässt hier die alte chinesische Philosophie zu Wort kommen. An den Beispielen der Kriege in Afghanistan und Irak wie dem sogenannten Krieg gegen den Terrorismus zeigt Paul, wie für deren (...) “Gerechtigkeit” nicht nur nicht offen argumentiert, sondern eine notwendige allseitige Diskussion verhindert wurde. Erst eine solche offene Diskussion würde das Gewicht der Argumente zeigen und Paul ist überzeugt, dass die Argumente für Kriege jeglicher Art vor dem Forum der Vernunft als zu leicht befunden würden. (shrink)

Im vorliegenden Artikel geht Gregor Paul von einer Redeweise aus, die gerade im Zusammenhang mit interkulturellen Themen ziemlich häufig anzutreffen, in sehr vielen Fällen wohl wenig überlegt, in ihren Konsequenzen aber alles andere als harmlos ist – von der Rede über eine “andere Logik” in “anderen Kulturen” oder insbesondere über eine “östliche Logik”. Diese Rede hält Paul für unbegründet, für verhängnisvoll, und für falsch. Er identifiziert gängige Argumente und versucht, diese zu widerlegen. Im Folgenden bringt Paul einerseits Argumente für (...) die Universalität von logischen Gesetzten und detaillierte Belege für deren Annahme vor allem in Texten der chinesischen Tradition. (shrink)

The aim of this paper is to develop and defend an Attentional View of bodily awareness, on which attention is necessary for bodily awareness. The original formulation of the Attentional View is due to Marcel Kinsbourne. First, I will show that the Attentional View of bodily awareness as formulated by Kinsbourne is superior to other accounts in the literature for characterizing the relationship between attention and bodily awareness. Kinsbourne’s account is the only account in the literature so far which can (...) accommodate key neurological diseases such as personal neglect. Second, when I consider Kinsbourne’s view in more detail, I will argue that Kinsbourne’s Attentional View faces problems because it is too reductive. Kinsbourne deviates from the standard taxonomy on which there is a body schema and a body image. Instead he reduces the body image to the neural representation of the body in the somatosensory cortex, the body schema and attentional shifts. I will present two challenges to Kinsbourne’s view which demonstrate that Kinsbourne’s reduction of the body image is unsuccessful. Finally, I will present a revised version of the Attentional View that is both empirically adequate and philosophically satisfactory. (shrink)

The internet has considerably changed epistemic practices in science as well as in everyday life. Apparently, this technology allows more and more people to get access to a huge amount of information. Some people even claim that the internet leads to a democratization of knowledge. In the following text, we will analyze this statement. In particular, we will focus on a potential change in epistemic structure. Does the internet change our common epistemic practice to rely on expert opinions? Does it (...) alter or even undermine the division of epistemic labor? The epistemological framework of our investigation is a naturalist-pragmatist approach to knowledge. We take it that the internet generates a new environment to which people seeking information must adapt. How can they, and how should they, expand their repertory of social markers to continue the venture of filtering, and so make use of the possibilities the internet apparently provides? To find answers to these questions we will take a closer look at two case studies. The first example is about the internet platform WikiLeaks that allows so-called whistle-blowers to anonymously distribute their information. The second case study is about the search engine Google and the problem of personalized searches. Both instances confront a knowledge-seeking individual with particular difficulties which are based on the apparent anonymity of the information distributor. Are there ways for the individual to cope with this problem and to make use of her social markers in this context nonetheless? (shrink)

The ideal of value free science states that the justification of scientific findings should not be based on non-epistemic (e.g. moral or political) values. It has been criticized on the grounds that scientists have to employ moral judgements in managing inductive risks. The paper seeks to defuse this methodological critique. Allegedly value-laden decisions can be systematically avoided, it argues, by making uncertainties explicit and articulating findings carefully. Such careful uncertainty articulation, understood as a methodological strategy, is exemplified by the current (...) practice of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). (shrink)

Thinking is a kind of dialogue ─ according to Plato thinking is a silent and inner conversation of the soul with itself. Understanding presupposes thinking. Therefore, understanding presupposes a kind of dialogue. From this conclusion arises not only the question of what dialogue and understanding are in essence, but also the question of the connection between dialogue and understanding. This volume explores these two question complexes in both a philosophical-historical and a systematic manner and presents possible answers from a classical (...) as well as a modern perspective. Contributors to this volume are Gregor Damschen (Oldenburg), Lourdes Flamarique (Navarra), Vittorio Hösle (Notre Dame), Hans Lenk (KIT), Dmitri Nikulin (The New School for Social Research), Jorge Afredo Roetti (CONICET), Jochen Sauer (Bielefeld), Alejandro G. Vigo (Navarra), Mirko Wischke (Halle), and Ángel Xolocotzi (Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla). (shrink)

With contributions by John J. Cleary, Gregor Damschen, Rainer Enskat, Francisco J. Gonzalez, Jürgen Mittelstraß and Carlo Natali (all on Plato) as well as by Enrico Berti, Nicolas Braun, Graciela M. Chichi, Wolfgang Kullmann, Helmut Mai, Alejandro G. Vigo, Franco Volpi and Hermann Weidemann (all on Aristotle).

Wenn Philosophie sich ihrer Zukunft zuwendet, geht es ihr um eine grundlegende programmatische Selbstverstandigung anlasslich einer zumindest gefuhlten Krise, es geht um eine besondere Form von Philosophie: der Philosophie in Zeiten der Not. Welche Not? Heute ist es die als alternativlos erlebte Grundlagenkrise allen fundierten Wissens, in Logik, Mathematik, Theologie etc. - und eben Philosophie. Dieser Band versammelt Aufsatze, die die Aufgabe der Philosophie angesichts dieser Alternativlosigkeit hinterfragen und radikale Neuansatze und alternative Forschungsperspektiven prasentieren.

In this important new book, Brian Gregor gives a comprehensive account of Paul Ricoeur’s philosophy of religion, which focuses on the regeneration of human capability. Gregor documents the thinkers, movements, and themes that shaped Ricoeur’s thought and gives a critical examination of Ricoeur’s philosophical interpretation of religion.

In the field of contemporary continental ontology, Speculative realist thinkers are now grappling with the genealogy of their ideas in the history of modern philosophy. The Speculative Realism movement prompted a debate, criticizing the predominant postmodernist orientation in philosophy, which located its origins in Kantian "correlationism" which supposedly ended the period of early modern naive realist metaphysics by showing that the mind and the outside world can only ever be understood as correlates. The debate over a new kind of realism (...) has attracted many supporters and critics. In order to refocus its specific interpretation of modern philosophy in general and of the Kantian gesture in particular, this volume brings together major authors working on contemporary ontology and historians of ideas. It underlines and illustrates the fact that contemporary continental philosophy is rediscovering its past in original ways by productively re-interpreting some of the key concepts of modern philosophy. The perspectives and accounts of the key concepts of the history of philosophy are different in the views of individual contributors, and sometimes radically so, yet the discussion between contemporary realists and their critics shows that the real battleground of new ideas lies not in developing the philosophical motifs of the end of the 20th century, but rather in rethinking the milestones of modern philosophy. (shrink)

Der Band soll beides bieten: Eine möglichst genaue Beschreibung historisch und inhaltlich unbestritten wichtiger Beispiele von Philosophie, Poetik und Literatur in der Geschichte Japans sowie eine Bewertung aus komparativer und allgemein-systematischer Perspektive. Damit soll berechtigten Forderungen nach Kontextualisierung Rechnung getragen werden, aber auch die Frage nach der Qualität der Texte und Theorien Berücksichtigung finden. Thematisch sind u. a. Konfuzianismus, Buddhismus und deren Rolle in der Entwicklung der Menschenrechtsphilosophie in Japan; Religionsphilosophie, Logik, klassische Ästhetik und Literaturtheorie, tragische wie komische Literatur und (...) Haiku."-- Back cover. (shrink)

By means of multi-agent simulations, it investigates the truth and consensus-conduciveness of controversial debates. The book brings together research in formal epistemology and argumentation theory.