Colin Cherry's now famous book has been reissued in a third paperback edition in order to put into our hands an economical as well as genial and perspicuous survey of the state and contours of the so-called communication sciences. Cherry's book is properly speaking a manual, as befits its subtitle: A Review, a Survey, and a Criticism. It is composed of eight synthetic and lucid chapters each of which deals with a central area of the processes of communication. Philosophers of (...) diverse persuasions will find here a handy and reliable guide through an enormous mass of materials dealing with both the formal and the material aspects of human communication. (shrink)

We prove that everyn-modal logic betweenKnandS5nis undecidable, whenever n ≥ 3. We also show that each of these logics is non-finitely axiomatizable, lacks the product finite model property, and there is no algorithm deciding whether a finite frame validates the logic. These results answer several questions of Gabbay and Shehtman. The proofs combine the modal logic technique of Yankov–Fine frame formulas with algebraic logic results of Halmos, Johnson and Monk, and give a reduction of the representation problem of finite relation (...) algebras. (shrink)

Piguet attempts to characterize the language which is peculiar to philosophy. He rejects the contentions that the language of philosophy should be assimilated either to art or to science, and opts for a language which will serve to suggest an experience to be re-lived. Though the contrasts are interesting, the distinctions are sometimes forced.--R. P. I.

In this extremely well-written study, the author interprets man as striving towards the fullness of his personal freedom, which is achieved in the love of God. Werner's intimate familiarity with the history of philosophy and his awareness of the findings of biology and psycho-analysis enable him to develop his theme with rigor and depth. --R. P. I.

A most interesting attempt to weld together a Marxist and a semiotic approach to art. The Marxist insistence upon the historicity of consciousness and the categories in which it expresses itself is accompanied by a systematic semiotically oriented reflection upon the epistemological conditions of meaning. The principal target of della Volpe's project is the Crocean theme that there is something supra-rational conveyed by a work of art, some cosmic feeling or some ineffable content, accessible only to intuition. Della Volpe's position, (...) on the contrary, is rationalist, though with a very specific twist. (shrink)

We prove that everyn-modal logic betweenKnandS5nis undecidable, whenever n ≥ 3. We also show that each of these logics is non-finitely axiomatizable, lacks the product finite model property, and there is no algorithm deciding whether a finite frame validates the logic. These results answer several questions of Gabbay and Shehtman. The proofs combine the modal logic technique of Yankov–Fine frame formulas with algebraic logic results of Halmos, Johnson and Monk, and give a reduction of the representation problem of finite relation (...) algebras. (shrink)

Why do we persist in the relentless pursuit of artificial nourishment and other treatments to maintain a permanently unconscious existence? In facing the future, if not the present world-wide reality of a huge number of persistent vegetative state (PVS) patients, will they be treated because of our ethical commitment to their humanity, or because of an ethical paralysis in the face of biotechnical progress? The PVS patient is cut off from the normal patterns of human connection and communication, with a (...) life unlike other forms of human existence. Why the struggle to justify ending a life which, it is said, has suffered an irreversible loss of the content of consciousness? Elsewhere, the authors have addressed the ethical controversies and confusion engendered by ambiguous terminology, misuse of medical facts and the differing interpretations of what constitutes 'effective' treatment: in particular, the issue of whether in fact artificial nutrition and hydration is a medical treatment, or simply part of the obligatory care owed to all patients, permanently unconscious or not. In this paper, we intend to argue that recent analyses of medical futility, its meaning and ethical implications, despite an absence of public consensus, permit some tentative re-evaluation of our ethical obligations to the PVS patient. (shrink)

R.I.G Hughes offers the first detailed and accessible analysis of the Hilbert-space models used in quantum theory and explains why they are so successful.

Despite the developing influence of the Internet as a tool for reaching potential subjects, little empirical information exits on how individuals are recruited to participate in clinical research via the Internet or on what type of information clinical trial Web sites provide. This study revealed that roughly half of the sites failed to mention study risks or specific details about what the study required on the part of participants, while nearly three-quarters described incentives to participate. Moreover, for-profit entities were more (...) likely to be the sponsors of Web sites that did not appear to provide balanced information. These data suggest that policy-makers and IRBs should increase oversight of current online recruitment practices. (shrink)

We prove that every n-modal logic between K n and S5 n is undecidable, whenever n ≥ 3. We also show that each of these logics is non- finitely axiomatizable, lacks the product finite model property, and there is no algorithm deciding whether a finite frame validates the logic. These results answer several questions of Gabbay and Shehtman. The proofs combine the modal logic technique of Yankov-Fine frame formulas with algebraic logic results of Halmos, Johnson and Monk, and give a (...) reduction of the (undecidable) representation problem of finite relation algebras. (shrink)

Islamic ethics teaching in Quran & Hadith.

Colin Cherry's now famous book has been reissued in a third paperback edition in order to put into our hands an economical as well as genial and perspicuous survey of the state and contours of the so-called communication sciences. Cherry's book is properly speaking a manual, as befits its subtitle: A Review, a Survey, and a Criticism. It is composed of eight synthetic and lucid chapters each of which deals with a central area of the processes of communication. Philosophers of (...) diverse persuasions will find here a handy and reliable guide through an enormous mass of materials dealing with both the formal and the material aspects of human communication. (shrink)

The purpose of this book is to illustrate the heuristic power of semiotics for the interpretation of texts. It oscillates between two poles: the concrete practical pole of encounter with specific texts and the theoretical pole of constructing a model for thematizing both the role of the reader and the structure of the text itself in the creation of meaning. The book consists of eight previously published, but widely scattered, essays of one of semiotics' most talented proponents, and it offers (...) a welcome supplement to the materials contained in his A Theory of Semiotics, whose goal was a systematic overview of the whole field of sign theory. (shrink)

In their criticism of Maoism, contemporary Soviet philosophers follow the basic structure of the orthodox presentation of Marxism -- Leninism and use the whole panoply of polemical tools which the Leninist heritage offers them. Thus far, this anti--Maoism is generally maladroit and often self-contradictory.

There is a prevailing conviction that if traditional medicine (TRM) or complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) are integrated into healthcare systems, modern scientific medicine (MSM) should retain its principal status. This paper contends that this position is misguided in medical contexts where TRM is established and remains vibrant. By reflecting on the Chinese policy on three entrenched forms of TRM (Tibetan, Mongolian and Uighur medicines) in western regions of China, the paper challenges the ideology of science that lies behind the (...) demand that all traditional forms of medicine be evaluated and reformed according to MSM standards. Tibetan medicine is used as a case study to indicate the falsity of a major premise of the scientific ideology. The conclusion is that the proper integrative system for TRM and MSM is a dual standard based system in which both TRM and MSM are free to operate according to their own medical standards. (shrink)

This project tested a two-way model of communication between lay groups and experts about genetic medicine in Perth, Western Australia. Focus group discussion with community group participants was followed by a communication workshop between community group participants and experts. Four groups of concerns or themes emerged from discussion: clinical considerations; legislative concerns; research priorities, and ethical and wider considerations. Community group concerns are not always met by the actions of "experts". This is, in part, because of the differing life-worlds of (...) each group. However, the communication workshop showed the potential of two-way communication for both lay and expert members in understanding the others' viewpoint. Further, the approach developed here offers one possible way for community groups to participate in a substantial way in policy formulation processes. (shrink)