We offer a review of some of the most influential views on the status of Reichenbach’s Principle of the Common Cause (PCC) for genuinely indeterministic systems. We first argue that the PCC is properly a conjunction of two distinct claims, one metaphysical and another methodological. Both claims can and have been contested in the literature, but here we simply assume that the metaphysical claim is correct, in order to focus our analysis on the status of the methodological claim. We briefly (...) review the most entrenched or classical positions, including Salmon’s ‘interactive forks’, van Fraassen’s scepticism, and Cartwright’s generalisation of the fork criterion. We then go on to review the results of the ‘Budapest school’ on the existence of formally defined screening-off events for any correlation —by means of the ideas of probability space extensibility and (Reichenbachian common cause) completability. We distinguish the Budapest doctrine clearly from any of the classical conceptions, and thus present an overall framework for discussions of causal inference in quantum mechanics. The framework, however preliminary, is essential work for a thorough assessment of the conditions under which PCC may be a reliable tool for causal inference in a genuinely probabilistic (indeterministic) context. (shrink)

We offer a review of some of the most influential views on the status of Reichenbach’s Principle of the Common Cause (RPCC) for genuinely indeterministic systems. We first argue that the RPCC is properly a conjunction of two distinct claims, one metaphysical and another methodological. Both claims can and have been contested in the literature, but here we simply assume that the metaphysical claim is correct, in order to focus our analysis on the status of the methodological claim. We briefly (...) review the most entrenched or classical positions, including Salmon’s ‘interactive forks’, van Fraassen’s scepticism, and Cartwright’s generalisation of the fork criterion. We then go on to review the results of the ‘Budapest school’ on the existence of formally defined screening­ off events for any correlation —by means of the ideas of probability space extensibility and (Reichenbachian common cause) completability. We distinguish the Budapest doctrine clearly from any of the classical conceptions, and thus present an overall framework for discussions of causal inference in quantum mechanics. We argue that this review is preliminary essential work for a thorough assessment of the conditions under which RCCP may be a reliable tool for causal inference in a genuinely probabilistic (indeterministic) context. (shrink)

Place?based science education engages with the laboratories of complex reality where natural processes combine with social practice, going beyond the physical world, to encompass the meanings and sense of attachment local residents feel for places. This brief report describes how a university science methods class in a primary teacher training programme situated scientific understandings in the rich cultural context of the historically rural and socio?economically disadvantaged area of Galicia in north?western Spain, where agrarian traditions continue to influence local culture. Focusing (...) on student responses to two assignments, this brief report explores how the preparation of lesson plans related to food and environmental investigation projects served to integrate aspects of the natural, social and cultural environment to foster a critical pedagogy of place. (shrink)

Desde un punto de vista interdisciplinar, esta investigación explora la forma en que la palabra miedo funciona en la novela de Miguel Ángel Oeste Vengo de ese miedo (2022). A partir de este análisis, el trabajo pretende dar cuenta de la problemática de la identidad y la búsqueda del sentido del ser humano en el mundo contemporáneo, esclarecer la importancia del cuerpo y las emociones en la sociedad posmoderna y arrojar más luz sobre una de las tendencias más importantes de (...) la literatura actual, como es la autoficción. (shrink)

It is still a matter of controversy whether the Principle of the Common Cause (PCC) can be used as a basis for sound causal inference. It is thus to be expected that its application to quantum mechanics should be a correspondingly controversial issue. Indeed the early 90’s saw a flurry of papers addressing just this issue in connection with the EPR correlations. Yet, that debate does not seem to have caught up with the most recent literature on causal inference generally, (...) which has moved on to consider the virtues of a generalised PCC-inspired condition, the so-called Causal Markov Condition (CMC). In this paper we argue that the CMC is an appropriate benchmark for debating possible causal explanations of the EPR correlations. But we go on to take issue with some pronouncements on EPR by defenders of the CMC. (shrink)

We argue for an account of chemical reactivities as chancy propensities, in accordance with the ‘complex nexus of chance’ defended by one of us in the past (Suárez, 2017, 2020). Reactivities are typically quantified as proportions, and an expression such as “A + B → C” does not entail that under the right conditions some amounts of A and B react to give the amount of C that theoretically would correspond to the stoichiometry of the reaction. Instead, what is (...) produced is a fraction α < 1 of this theoretical amount, and the corresponding percentage is usually known as the yield, which expresses the relative preponderance of its reaction. This is then routinely tested in a laboratory against the observed actual yields for the different reactions. Thus, on our account, reactivities ambiguously refer to three quantities at once. They first refer to the underlying propensities effectively acting in the reaction mechanisms, and which in ‘chemical chemistry’ (Schummer, 1998) are commonly represented by means of Lewis structures. Besides, reactivities represent the probabilities that these propensities give rise to, for any amount of the reactants to combine as prescribed. This last notion is hence best understood as a single case chance and corresponds to a theoretical stoichiometric yield. Finally, reactivities represent the actual yields observed in experimental runs, which account for and provide the requisite evidence for / against both the mechanisms and single case chances ascribed. (shrink)

We argue for an account of chemical reactivities as chancy propensities, in accordance with the ‘complex nexus of chance’ defended by one of us in the past. Reactivities are typically quantified as proportions, and an expression such as “A + B → C” does not entail that under the right conditions some given amounts of A and B react to give the mass of C that theoretically corresponds to the stoichiometry of the reaction. Instead, what is produced is a fraction (...) α < 1 of this theoretical amount, and the corresponding percentage is usually known as the yield, which expresses the relative preponderance of its reaction. This is then routinely tested in a laboratory against the observed actual yields for the different reactions. Thus, on our account, reactivities ambiguously refer to three quantities at once. They first refer to the underlying propensities effectively acting in the reaction mechanisms, which in ‘chemical chemistry’ (Schummer in Hyle 4:129–162, 1998) are commonly represented by means of Lewis structures. Besides, reactivities represent the probabilities that these propensities give rise to, for any amount of the reactants to combine as prescribed. This last notion is hence best understood as a single case chance and corresponds to a theoretical stoichiometric yield. Finally, reactivities represent the actual yields observed in experimental runs, which account for and provide the requisite evidence for/against both the mechanisms and single case chances ascribed. (shrink)

It is still a matter of controversy whether the Principle of the Common Cause can be used as a basis for sound causal inference. It is thus to be expected that its application to quantum mechanics should be a correspondingly controversial issue. Indeed the early 90’s saw a flurry of papers addressing just this issue in connection with the EPR correlations. Yet, that debate does not seem to have caught up with the most recent literature on causal inference generally, which (...) has moved on to consider the virtues of a generalised PCC inspired condition, the so called Causal Markov Condition. In this paper we argue that the CMC is an appropriate benchmark for debating possible causal explanations of the EPR correlations. But we go on to take issue with some pronouncements on EPR by defenders of the CMC. (shrink)

Background: Heart rate variability (HRV) has been considered as a measure of heart-brain interaction and autonomic modulation, and it is modified by cognitive and attentional tasks. In cognitive tasks, HRV was reduced in participants who achieved worse results. This could indicate the possibility of HRV predicting cognitive performance, but this association is still unclear in a high cognitive load sport such as chess Objective: To analyse modifications on HRV and subjective perception of stress, difficulty and complexity in different chess problem (...) tasks. Design: HRV was assessed at baseline. During the chess problems, HRV was also monitored, and immediately after chess problems the subjective stress, difficulty and complexity were also registered. Method: A total of 16 male chess players, age: 35.19 (13.44) and ELO: 1927.69 (167.78) were analysed while six chess problem solving tasks with different level of difficulty were conducted (two low level, two medium level and two high level chess problems). Participants were classified according to their results into two groups: high performance or low performance. Results: Friedman test showed a significant effect of tasks in HRV indexes and perceived difficulty, stress and complexity in both high and low performance groups. A decrease in HRV was observed in both groups when chess problems difficulty increased. In addition, HRV was significantly higher in the high performance group than in the low performance group during chess problems. Conclusions: An increase in autonomic modulation was observed to meet the cognitive demands of the problems, being higher while the difficulty of the tasks increased. Non-linear HRV indexes seem to be more reactive to tasks difficulty, being an interesting and useful tool in chess training. (shrink)

Burnout is characterized by emotional exhaustion and caused by exposure to excessive and prolonged stress related to job conditions. Moreover, burnout is highly prevalent among health care professionals. The aim of this study is, first, to examine the mediating role of social support over the effect of burnout in health care professionals and, second, to explore potential gender differences. A convenience sample of 1,035 health professionals from Ecuador, including 608 physicians and 427 nurses, was surveyed using the Maslach Burnout Inventory, (...) Social Support Survey, and General Health Questionnaire as measures of burnout, social support, and general health, respectively. Social support was found to mediate the negative effects of burnout on health regardless of gender. Differences across the three dimensions of burnout and health are further discussed, along with their implications for designing effective burnout interventions for health care professionals in Ecuador. (shrink)

Los Anales de la Cátedra Francisco Suárez cumplen cincuenta años desde su fundación en el año 1961. En la conmemoración de un aniversario de estas características parece obligado hacer algún tipo de balance del tiempo transcurrido y del trabajo realizado. Sin embargo, no voy a cometer la osadía de dar cuenta en esta presentación de la historia pormenorizada de los ACFS durante estos cincuenta años. Una historia que, por lo demás, ya ha sido narrada por protagonistas directos en estas (...) mismas páginas. (shrink)

La Masonería es una o r ganización que ha estado presente en España, como en el mundo, en los períodos liberales y que ha sido per s e guida y ha desaparecido casi en los totalitarismos, sean comunistas o fascistas. La masonería española, tradicionalmente vincu- lada el modelo europeo continental, ha concedido gran impo r tancia a la pa r ticipación act i v a en los grandes debates sociales. El cometido fundamental de la masonería es la fo r mación (...) de sus miembros como ind i viduos y como ciudadanos. Desde tal perspec t i v a, los talleres masónicos han sido reconocidos como auténticas escuelas de formación de élites democráticas y constitu y en un capítulo tan impo r tante como ignorado de nuestra cultura política. Además, la masonería ha mostrado un sobresaliente interés hacia la enseñanza, l l e gando con frecuencia a reducir las g randes cuestiones sociales a un pro b lema educacional. Dentro del marco ético-jurídico laicista, la ref l e xión sobre la acción fo r mat iv o-democrática de la masonería se centra con intensidad creciente en "educar para la paz". Un ejemplo re l ev ante del l e gado cultural paci f ista de la masonería histórica lo constitu y e los siete insignes maso- nes distinguidos con el Premio Nobel de la P az. La masonería debe considerarse pues, por derecho propio, como una escuela de fo r mación laica para la democracia y para la paz. (shrink)

La Masonería es una organización que ha estado presente en España, como en el mundo, en los períodos liberales y que ha sido perseguida y ha desaparecido casi en los totalitarismos, sean comunistas o fascistas. La masonería española, tradicionalmente vinculada el modelo europeo continental, ha concedido gran importancia a la participación activa en los grandes debates sociales. El cometido fundamental de la masonería es la formación de sus miembros como individuos y como ciudadanos. Desde tal perspectiva, los talleres masónicos han (...) sido reconocidos como auténticas escuelas de formación de elites democráticas y constituyen un capítulo tan importante como ignorado de nuestra cultura política. Además, la masonería ha mostrado un sobresaliente interés hacia la enseñanza, llegando con frecuencia a reducir las grandes cuestiones sociales a un problema educacional. Dentro del marco ético-jurídico laicista, la reflexión sobre la acción formativo-democrática de la masonería se centra con intensidad creciente en ¿educar para la paz¿. Un ejemplo relevante del legado cultural pacifista de la masonería histórica lo constituye los siete insignes masones distinguidos con el Premio Nobel de la Paz. La masonería debe considerase pues, por derecho propio, como una escuela de formación laica para la democracia y para la paz. (shrink)

Este artículo tiene por objeto subyacente abordar un nuevo diálogo entre derecho y ciencia basado en la aplicación de las teorías del caos y de la complejidad al ámbito jurídico. Para ello se sirve, a modo introductorio, de los diversos artículos en los que el estadounidense John B. Ruhl se ha ocupado de esta materia. Así, además de una descripción breve de las teorías, se discute acerca de la aplicabilidad directa o analógica de las mismas y se presentan los elementos (...) que, a juicio del Ruhl, permiten considerar al derecho como un sistema adaptativo complejo, además de su propuesta normativa. (shrink)

Recensión de M. J. Falcón y Tella, La desobediencia civil, Marcial Pons, Madrid, 2000.

Among late Renaissance and early Modern philosophers, the concepts of “sympathy” or “harmony” are a recurring theme. My goal is to show that theories which rely on such concepts, far from being an attempt to avoid the emerging mechanistic or empirical trends, are actually the form which these trends took in the wake of an increasing disenchantment with Aristotelian psychology. Fracastorius, Suarez and Descartes provide the texts: their accounts of the interaction between cognitive faculties exhibit a growing awareness that the (...) conception of causality had to be supplemented. And while each appears to share the general belief that aspects of the Thomistic-Aristotelian framework can survive the necessary changes, they disagree about how much dogmatic psychology has to be discarded. What they decide to leave in and the reasons given for discarding the rest provide insight into the history of explanation. It is in the metaphysics of harmony that we can trace the early growth of Rationalism. (shrink)

Ocho años después del 11 de Septiembre de 2001, dedicar la sección monográ­fica de los Anales de la Cátedra Francisco Suárez al tema "libertad y seguridad" puede que no constituya una novedad editorial. No obstante, las respuestas políticas y jurídicas que nuestras sociedades vienen articulando para hacer frente a algunas de las consecuencias que aquel atentado desató entre nosotros (el miedo, la inse­ guridad, la presencia de nuevas amenazas) muestran la perseverante presencia y actualidad de un debate acerca de (...) la relación entre esos dos valores que, lejos de estar cerrado, cada día presenta nuevas aristas, demandando nuevas reflexiones y respuestas a las que creemos que nuestra revista puede contribuir modestamente abriéndole las páginas de su sección monográfica. (shrink)

Ocho años después del 11 de Septiembre de 2001, dedicar la sección monográ­fica de los Anales de la Cátedra Francisco Suárez al tema "libertad y seguridad" puede que no constituya una novedad editorial. No obstante, las respuestas políticas y jurídicas que nuestras sociedades vienen articulando para hacer frente a algunas de las consecuencias que aquel atentado desató entre nosotros (el miedo, la inse­ guridad, la presencia de nuevas amenazas) muestran la perseverante presencia y actualidad de un debate acerca de (...) la relación entre esos dos valores que, lejos de estar cerrado, cada día presenta nuevas aristas, demandando nuevas reflexiones y respuestas a las que creemos que nuestra revista puede contribuir modestamente abriéndole las páginas de su sección monográfica. (shrink)

El artículo aborda la cuestión de cuál es el valor que deben de atribuirse a las razones económicas en la justificación racional de una decisión legislativa y cuál es el papel que el análisis económico del derecho puede jugar en la evaluación ex ante y ex post de la legislación. En concreto, se señalan las potencialidades y las limitaciones del uso del instrumental del análisis económico del derecho en los hoy obligados estudios de impacto normativo. Se concluye con una reflexión (...) de fondo sobre si el coste de las distintas opciones legislativas puede constituir una razón suficiente para la toma de decisiones políticas. (shrink)

Cuand o l a edició n d e est e númer o d e lo s Anale s d e l a Cáted r a F r ancisc o Suá r ez estab a a punt o d e ce r rars e no s so r prendi ó e l f allecimient o d e fo r m a repentin a e inesperad a d e Nicolá s Lópe z Calera , Directo r d e est a pu b (...) licació n durant e má s de cuarent a años . P ar a e l equip o editoria l qu e fo r mamo s pa r t e d e lo s A CF S s u mue r te h a significad o un a pérdid a i r repara b l e po r l a huell a imbo r ra b l e qu e s u labo r aca- démic a y dedicació n un i v ersitari a h a dejad o entr e nosotros . Est e númer o adquiere u n significad o especia l po r qu e e l aza r quis o qu e e l Prof . Lópe z Caler a no s e n viase par a s u pu b licació n e n l a secció n abie r t a e l últim o trabaj o qu e habí a te r minado a f inale s de l pasad o v erano , un a i n v estigació n sobr e “Guille r m o d e Ockha m y el laicism o mode r no” . T ra s s u f allecimiento , e l Consej o d e Redacció n consider ó más apropiad o pu b lica r dich o trabaj o com o l o qu e s u mue r t e l o habí a acabad o con- vi r tiendo : u n document o póstumo . U n document o ademá s especialment e emot iv o par a todo s lo s qu e l o conocimo s y trabajamo s co n él . E n l a secció n habitua l d e la r e vist a podr á disf r uta r e l lecto r d e est e trabaj o de l Prof . Lópe z Caler a e n e l que v olví a a mostra r un a d e su s pasione s intelectuale s preferida s com o er a l a lectur a y l a constant e vuelt a a l pensamient o d e lo s clásico s desd e lo s qu e afronta r lo s temas má s contemporáneos. (shrink)

E n e l a r tícul o s e aborda n lo s pro b lema s d e l e gitimació n qu e plantea n la s nu ev a s fo r mas d e r e gulació n qu e s e asocia n co n l a “gobe r nanza ” com o model o d e ejercici o de l poder distint o a l “gobie r no” . Ant e l a crisi (...) s d e lo s criterio s tradicionale s d e l e gitimida d anclados e n e l model o representat ivo d e la s democracia s d e lo s Estado-nación , l a gobe r nanz a se reclam a com o un a fo r m a d e gobie r n o n o sol o má s e f ica z e n té r mino s d e gobe r nabilida d de l a complejida d d e l a socieda d globalizad a d e nuestro s días , sin o tambié n má s democrática po r e l pape l qu e atribu ye a l a deliberació n y a l a pa r ticipació n d e actore s pr iv ado s y pa r tes interesada s e n e l proces o d e tom a d e decisiones . E n pa r ticula r , s e analiza n la s apo r taciones pr o v eniente s d e Estado s Unido s de l llamad o “ e xperimentalism o democrático ” o “polia r quía deliberat iva directa ” y s u pa r ticula r influenci a e n e l ámbit o d e l a Unió n Europea , e n cu yo sen o la s nu ev a s fo r ma s d e gobe r nanz a y d e e xperimentalism o democrátic o —cas o del “métod o abie r t o d e coordinación” — s e ha n presentad o com o l a estrat e gi a má s adecuada par a afronta r e l pro b lem a crónic o de l dé f ici t democrátic o d e l a polític a y de l derech o co- munitario . A pesa r d e la s sugerente s promesa s democráticas , e l auto r present a la s paradojas y riesgo s e n té r mino s d e l e gitimida d democrátic a d e esta s nu ev a s fo r ma s d e r e gulació n y conclu ye qu e s u llamad a a l a pa r ticipació n d e l a socieda d e n l a tom a d e decisione s puede se r considerad a má s u n mit o qu e un a realidad. (shrink)

Después del número extraordinario con el que conmemoramos el cincuenta aniversario de nuestra revista, el número 45/2011 de los ACFS que ahora presentamos retoma su formato habitual y dedica su sección monográfica al tema “Igualdad y derecho antidiscriminatorio”. Nuestro propósito es acoger en nuestras páginas algunos de los problemas y de los debates más candentes en el terreno de las políticas de igualdad y del derecho antidiscriminatorio, reuniendo una serie de contribuciones que, desde la pluralidad de enfoques y temáticas, puedan (...) ser representativas del trabajo que actualmente se está llevando en este campo tanto desde el enfoque de la teoría jurídica como de la reflexión filosófica y política. (shrink)

Una de las lagunas más fuertemente denunciadas en el ámbito de la teoría y de la ciencia jurídica ha sido su focalización casi exclusiva en el momento de la interpretación y aplicación del derecho. El modelo de jurista y de enseñanza del derecho continúa centrado en el momento aplicativo del derecho en el que la ley, la norma, es considerada un dato previo, un material básico a partir del cual el jurista despliega sus artes interpretativas, exegéticas, sistematizadoras, argumentativas y retóricas. (...) Los juristas se formaron y se siguen formando en nuestras facultades de derecho para resolver problemas de lege data y no de lege ferenda, están entrenados para aplicar e interpretar normas jurídicas pero no para crearlas o evaluarlas. Durante mucho tiempo nuestra cultura jurídica ha desdeñado el estudio y el cultivo de una “ciencia de la legislación” que vaya más allá del estudio de los tradicionales problemas de técnica legislativa, para explorar las condiciones y posibilidades de la argumentación racional en el ámbito legislativo. (shrink)

El importante papel que el perdón juega en el ámbito de la justicia transicional hace necesario verificar cómo se justifica en el imaginario de nuestra sociedad contemporánea. Puesto que parece tratarse de una realidad que pertenece más bien al campo de lo religioso, resulta más relevante aún considerar la discusión sobre su posible fundamento moral. Para ello, hay que partir de la distinción entre perdón incondicional y perdón condicionado, y plantear la posibilidad e incluso la obligatoriedad de cada uno. Pues (...) bien, la contradicción inherente a la defensa del carácter obligatorio del perdón concluye en la naturaleza supererogatoria del mismo. Este carácter supererogatorio muestra todo perdón como inmerecido. Así, el principal problema que queda sin resolver es la ausencia de puntos de partida para una argumentación sobre el perdón. De ahí, las dificultades de nuestras comunidades políticas contemporáneas para gestionar las situaciones de justicia transicional. (shrink)

Table of Contents: Preface.- 1. Introduction; Mauricio Suárez.- PART I: PROBABILITIES.- 2. Probability and time symmetry in classical Markov processes; Guido Bacciagaluppi.- 3. Probability assignments and the principle of indifference: An examination of two eliminative strategies; Sorin Bangu.- 4. Why typicality does not explain the approach to equilibrium; Roman Frigg; PART II: CAUSES.- 5. From metaphysics to physics and back: The example of causation; Federico Laudisa.- 6. On explanation in retro-causal interpretations of quantum mechanics; Joseph Berkovitz.- 7. Causal completeness (...) in general probability theories; Balasz Gyenis, Miklós Rédei.- 8. Causal Markov, robustness and the quantum correlations; Mauricio Suárez, Iñaki San Pedro.- PART III: PROPENSITIES.- 9. Do dispositions and propensities have a role in the ontology of quantum mechanics? Some critical remarks; Mauro Dorato.- 10. Is the quantum world composed of propensitons?; Nicholas Maxwell.- 11. Derivative dispositions and multiple derivative levels; Ian Thompson. (shrink)

Enrique Gómez Arboleya chose as the subject for his doctoral thesis the study of Hermann Heller's theoretical proposals. This research was done in Nazi Germany to be read in the Republican Spain of 1935, but was not published until 1940, after the Civil War. The present article seeks to compare the 1935 original version, until now unknown, with that subsequently published in 1940, while at the same time assessing these works for the Spain of that time and for the author.s (...) intellectual production. In spite of the radically opposed historical and personal circumstances of the writing and publication, the differences are not so great because the author limits himself to setting out the thought of the German theorist without evaluating it. Nevertheless, these works are a good introduction to Heller's thought, despite certain gaps and the iusnaturalist nuances added in the 1940 version, and open up the sociological and humanist path that would mark Gómez Arboleya's intellectual trajectory. (shrink)

Este artículo ofrece una aproximación psicoanalítica al Derecho en el contexto de un mercado global como el actual. El propósito es explicar la ruptura entre Derecho, mercado y política, como consecuencia de la globalización económica, y proponer un esquema para pensar su posible articulación. Para explicar la ruptura entre Derecho, mercado y política, se describen tres modos de relación con el Derecho en la evolución de la economía de mercado, en analogía con los modos de relación con la ley edípica (...) en las tres estructuras psíquicas que define Lacan (psicótica, neurótica, perversa); la conclusión es que el modo de relación con el Derecho en el contexto económico actual corresponde a una estructura perversa. Para pensar la posible articulación entre Derecho, mercado y política, se recurre a una analogía con los tres registros de lo psíquico según Lacan -Simbólico, Imaginario, y Real-, y al concepto de sinthome, como solución singular que permite anudar esos tres registros. (shrink)

Entre las teorías de Thomas Hobbes y Baruch de Spinoza hay destacadas coincidencias y también importantes diferencias. Inician y revelan cambios en la teoría y la práctica políticas que ocurren en corto espacio de tiempo pero que son decisivos. Antecesores del positivismo, ambos compartieron bases ontológicas y metodológicas, lo que suele interpretarse, por razones cronológicas, como una influencia de Hobbes en Spinoza. Las diferencias entre ambos versan sobre el sentido de la religión en relación con su papel en la política; (...) las relaciones entre la revelación divina, la ley y la razón naturales y el orden moral; el iusnaturalismo como fundamento del sistema jurídico-político; el sentido y contenido del contrato social como fundamento de la obligación civil. Todas estas divergencias conducen a la más importante de todas, y es que Hobbes se enroca en un absolutismo que desconoce los derechos de la conciencia, mientras que Spinoza se erige en defensor del fuero interno. (shrink)

Twenty years before Suárez’s Metaphysicae disputationes, Pedro da Fonseca offered one of the most impressive modern attempts to reorder Aristotle’s Metaphysics. In the present chapter, I will endeavour to show how insightful Fonseca’s effort truly was, by dealing with his ousiology. I will focus especially on the Jesuit’s account of three pivotal concepts in the scholastic theory of substance, i.e. Divine Substance, created substance and prime substance, or supposit. These notions are primarily metaphysical, but — according to a (...) long-standing scholastic framework — are also deeply indebted to Patristic Trinitarianism. As I shall argue, this is especially true for Fonseca, who welcomes and defends the idea of a conceptual unity between ontology, ousiology and Trinitarism he received from a centuries-long tradition. (shrink)

This volume publishes the Proceedings of the 1st International Meeting "Thinking Baroque in Portugal" (26-28 June 2017), which dealt with the metaphysical, ethical and political thought of Francisco Suárez. Counting on the collaboration of some of the greatest international specialists in the work and thought of this famous professor of the University of Coimbra in the 17th century, this volume celebrates the 400th anniversary of his death and marks the productivity of his philosophical-theological legacy.

This volume is the first collection of essays in English devoted to Pedro da Fonseca SJ (1527-1599), his intellectual endeavour, and thought. The book brings together some of today's leading specialists in early modern scholasticism, Portuguese Aristotelianism, and the history of the Society of Jesus, in order to present a reliable portrait of Fonseca's institutional role, to reconstruct his thought on many important aspects of scholastic metaphysics, and to discuss the reception of his work in the early modern age. (...) -/- . (shrink)

In this paper I focus on the historiographical fate of Francisco Suárez (1548–1617) and Pedro da Fonseca (1528–1599) in two Iberian journals ran by Jesuits and founded in 1945: the Spanish Pensamiento, and the Portuguese Revista portuguesa de filosofia. I endeavor to show that the discussions of Suárez’s and Fonseca’s ideas on these journal is a two-sided case of constructing the legacies of major figures in late scholasticism, and I emphasize how the demand to identify cultural national (...) heroes intertwines with theoretical and ideological elements, especially the peculiar history of the Iberian Peninsula, and to the historical relationships between Spain and Portugal. With regard to Suárez, the Pensamiento group strives to carve out a specific place for Neo-Suarezianism within Neo-Thomism, also via a substantive reassessment of Suárez’s importance in the history of scholasticism and of philosophy in general. Hence, Suárez’s thought undergoes triumphant reevaluation, which even aims at ousting Aquinas as the ultimate reference of scholasticism, to make Suárez’s Thomism the principal authority of contemporary schools. By contrast, Fonseca remains a rather obscure and neglected figure, dug up by his fellow compatriots on the Revista portuguesa de filosofia, also against this attempt at establishing a Suarezian, Spanish hegemony. (shrink)

This paper is aimed to indicate two new possible Descartes’ sources. As far as the Cartesian theory of free creation of eternal truths is concerned, this doctrine has often been considered as a reaction to the thought of Francisco Suárez. In this article, we tried to demonstrate that there is the possibility of extending the domain of Cartesian references. In this regard, we have focused on Pedro da Fonseca and the Coimbra Commentaries, trying to point out some additional (...) sources in the Cartesian reflection. (shrink)

This book collects six unpublished and published academic studies on the thought of Francisco Suárez, which is addressed through accurate textual analyses and meticulous contextualization of his doctrines in the Scholastic debate. The present essays aim to portray two complementary aspects coexisting in the work of the Uncommon Doctor: his innovative approach and his adherence to the tradition. To this scope, they focus on some pivotal, but often neglected, topics in Suárez’s metaphysics and psychology – such as his (...) theories of cognition and truth, angelology, continuous quantity – thereby developing an original inquiry into a crucial moment in the development of Western philosophy. (shrink)

La técnica no es un fenómeno más de nuestra época, sino que ha llegado a convertirse en la figura metafísica que la define. El estudio analiza el alcance de esta tesis planteada por Jaspers y Heidegger. Para ello ofrecemos, en un primer momento, una tematización del elemento innovador que caracteriza a la técnica moderna respecto de épocas anteriores, atendiendo especialmente a su carácter totalizador y a la inversión antropológica que supone. A continuación, discutiremos algunas de las consecuencias antropológicas del estatuto (...) ontológico de la técnica. Un fenómeno sin precedentes en la historia de la humanidad, por cuanto la técnica ha dejado de ser un medio o instrumento al servicio de las necesidades y fines humanos para convertirse en un fenómeno capaz de producirlos, estableciendo posibilidades de sentido. Una inversión onto-antropológica que provoca una alienación de la existencia misma. (shrink)

En el artículo se ofrece un análisis crítico de la misión como inculturación del Evangelio, desde una perspectiva filosófico-teológica. Para comenzar, se exponen las deficiencias de la evangelización colonizadora en América. Posteriormente, se proponen dos posibles sentidos de la plantatio ecclesiae como meta de la misión. En tercer lugar, se esclarece la manera en la que se entiende la relación entre Evangelio y cultura en la Nueva Evangelización. La tesis por demostrar es que el principal problema al que está expuesta (...) la inculturación del Evangelio es la idolatría. (shrink)

This article provides a state of the art review of the philosophical literature on scientific representation. It first argues that the topic emerges historically mainly out of what may be called the modelling tradition. It then introduces a number of helpful analytical distinctions, and goes on to divide contemporary approaches to scientific representation into two distinct kinds, substantive and deflationary. Analogies with related discussions of artistic representation in aesthetics, and of the nature of truth in metaphysics are pursued. It is (...) finally urged that the most promising approaches - and the ones most likely to feature prominently in future developments - are deflationary. In particular, a defence is provided of a genuinely inferential conception of representation. (shrink)

This article provides a state-of-the-art review of the philosophical literature on scientific representation. It first argues that the topic emerges historically mainly out of what may be called the modelling tradition. It then introduces a number of helpful analytical distinctions and goes on to divide contemporary approaches to scientific representation into two distinct kinds, substantive and deflationary. Analogies with related discussions of artistic representation in aesthetics and the nature of truth in metaphysics are pursued. It is finally urged that the (...) most promising approaches—and the ones most likely to feature prominently in future developments—are deflationary. In particular, a defense is provided of a genuinely inferential conception of representation. (shrink)

During the second half of the 16th century, some members of the Society of Jesus began to develop different interpretations around the doctrine of causality within the history of Aristotelian commentaries. Since Aristotle had not proposed an unambiguous definition of cause, the debate grew between the interpreters of his Physics and Metaphysics. Therefore, before Suarez systematized the theories in his Metaphysical Disputations, the professors of the Colleges of Arts and Jesuit Universities discussed the definition of cause (ratio formalis causae). In (...) this essay, I intend to reconstruct the history of causality debate before 1597 when Suarez published his successful metaphysical work and went to Coimbra as a professor of theology. The aim of this essay is to analyse some of the most influential Portuguese professors from Evora and Coimbra and their commentaries on the Aristotle’s works including those proposed by Ignatio de Tolosa (1564), Pedro da Fonseca (1589) and Manuel de Gois (1592). In this way, knowledge of the different views within the Society of Jesus will allow a better understanding of the developments made by Suarez to define causality as principle in the new metaphysical (theological and trinitarian) perspective towards Modernity. (shrink)

In this work, I offer an interpretation of the principle of individuation and the ontological status of individual bodies in the work of Margaret Cavendish. By proposing an alternative to the mechanical model of natural philosophy, Cavendish must approach the metaphysics of matter from a different angle. Such a perspective can offer fruitful elements to understand the complex and diverse landscape of natural philosophy in Early Modern Philosophy. I contextualize Cavendish’s natural philosophy and its relation to the developments of other (...) early modern approaches. Section 1 is dedicated to an overview of Cavendish’s natural philosophy. In Sect. 2, I present the difficulty concerning the individuation of bodies in modern philosophy in order to reveal the background in which Cavendish develops her position. Before turning to the analysis of the central passages in which Cavendish explores the problem of individuation, in Sect. 4, I introduce the basic tenets of her metaphysics in Sect. 3. Finally, in Sect. 5, I turn to motion and its causes, given its fundamental role in individuation. (shrink)