This paper examines the place of metaphorical interpretation in the current Contextualist‐Literalist controversy over the role of context in the determination of truth‐conditions in general. Although there has been considerable discussion of ‘non‐literal’ language by both sides of this dispute, the language analyzed involves either so‐called implicit indexicality, loose or loosened use, enriched interpretations, or semantic transfer, not metaphor itself. In the first half of the paper, I critically evaluate Recanati’s (2004) recent Contextualist account and show that it cannot account (...) for the metaphorical‐literal dependence characteristic of metaphor. I then turn to Carston’s (2002), and Bezuidenhout’s (2001) Contextualist accounts and show that they place no constraints on metaphorical interpretations. In the second half of the paper I sketch a Literalist theory of metaphor elaborated in Stern (2000) and respond to two kinds of Contextualist criticisms of that account by Camp (2005) and Stanley (2005). (shrink)

In most developmental studies the only error children could make on counterfactual tasks was to answer with the current state of affairs. It was concluded that children who did not show this error are able to reason counterfactually. However, children might have avoided this error by using basic conditional reasoning (Rafetseder, Cristi-Vargas, & Perner, 2010). Basic conditional reasoning takes background assumptions represented as conditionals about how the world works. If an antecedent of one of these conditionals is provided by the (...) task, then a likely conclusion can be inferred based only on background assumptions. A critical feature of counterfactual reasoning is that the selection of these additional assumptions is constrained by actual events to which the counterfactual is taken to be counterfactual. In contrast, in basic conditional reasoning one enriches the given antecedent with any plausible assumptions, unconstrained by actual events. In our tasks basic conditional reasoning leads to different answers from counterfactual reasoning. For instance, a doctor, sitting in the park with the intention of reading a paper, is called to an emergency at the swimming pool. The question, “If there had been no emergency, where would the doctor be?” should counterfactually be answered “in the park”. But by ignoring the doctor's intentions, and just reasoning from premises about the default location of a hospital doctor who has not been called out to an emergency, one might answer: “in the hospital”. Only by 6 years of age did children mostly give correct answers. (shrink)

1. Matter and form -- 2. Maimonides' theory of the parable -- 3. The parable of adamic perfection -- 4. Physical matter and its limitations on intellects -- 5. Maimonidean skepticism I -- 6. Maimonidean skepticism II -- 7. In the inner chamber of the ruler's palace: the critique of the theory of separate intellects -- 8. The embodied life of an intellect -- 9. Excrement and exegesis, or shame over matter.

Millikan's externalist account of concept acquisition cannot completely avoid the distinction between central (defining) and peripheral (characteristic) features, because some knowledge is required to achieve reference and to decide what kind of information to record about the identified substances. However, the emphasis on external reference may provide the requisite principled way to make this distinction.

Cílem studie je srovnání Platónova a Aristotelova výkladu vlastností těžké a lehké. Nejprve jsou představeny hlavní motivy obou výkladů a poté následuje srovnání z hlediska využití empirických dat, z hlediska jejich explikační síly a také co do blízkosti modernímu pojetí tíže. V závěru se ukazuje, že Aristotelova koncepce těžkého a lehkého je propracovanější a komplexnější, ovšem mnohem stručnější výklad Platónův má také značné explikační možnosti a v určitých ohledech Aristotelovu teorii předčí.

Calcium plays an important role in regulating a great variety of neuronal processes, and many efforts are made to generate gadolinium complexes that can act as calcium-dependent MRI contrast agents. A series of gadolinium chelate complexes based on DO3A were developed, bearing phosphonate groups as an additional coordination sites, which is hypothesized to change relaxivity in magnetic resonance experiments dynamically with Ca2+ concentration. Different lengths of the phosphonate side chains are expected to lead to different binding constants of the phosphonate (...) - gadolinium bonds. The latter property can be exploited for fine-tuning the sensitivity of the agent to calcium ion concentration. (shrink)

The ability of non-invasively observing changes in the Ca2+ concentrations is important in the understanding of a great variety of neuronal processes. Several compounds were designed (Fig.1) to take advantage of the different binding abilities of carboxylates and phosphonates to gadolinium. Furthermore the different affinities of the two functional groups to Ca2+ permit to obtain free coordination sites at gadolinium. The generation of these coordination sites, which are mandatory for water relaxivity, depends on the structure of the complexes and the (...) Ca2+ concentration. Gadolinium complexes 1 and 2 were synthesized and relaxivity studies were performed. (shrink)

Functionally distinct anatomic subdivisions of the brain can often be only a few millimeters in one or more dimensions. The study of metabolic differences in such structures by means of localized in vivo MR spectroscopy is therefore challenging, if not impossible. In fact, the spatial resolution of chemical shift imaging (CSI) in humans is typically in the range of centimeters. The aim of the present study was to optimize 1H CSI in monkeys and demonstrate the feasibility of high spatial resolutions (...) up to 1.4 ؋ 2 ؋ 1.4 mm3. The obtained spatial resolution permitted the segregation of gray and white matter in the visual cortex based on the concentration of different metabolites and neurotrans- mitters like N-acetylaspartate, glutamate, and creatine. Con- centration ratios of white matter versus gray matter tissue as well as between metabolites matched those reported in the literature from healthy human brain, demonstrating the consis- tency and reliability of the procedure. Magn Reson Med 54: 1541–1546, 2005. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc. Key words: in vivo 1H NMR spectroscopy; spectroscopic imag- ing; chemical shift imaging; spatial resolution; monkey visual cortex.. (shrink)

Nach Kant bleibt alles Denken auf das einzelne Subjekt des Denkens und seine Möglichkeiten zurückbezogen. Simon beschreibt Kants Werk als ein System, das den eigenen Denkansatz als einen Besonderen neben anderen begreift. Auch wenn das Subjekt anderes Denken nicht immer von sich aus versteht, bezieht es jenes als "fremde Vernunft" in seine Weltorientierung ein und erkennt es an. Damit ergibt sich die Notwendigkeit des Findens einer Sprache, in der im Ausgang vom eigenen Vorverständnis anderen etwas so gesagt werden kann, dass (...) es auch ihnen "etwas" bedeutet und in diesem Sinne als wahr erscheint. Von hier aus verändert sich dann der Begriff der Bedeutung und die Sprache der Philosophie. (shrink)