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The review of: ŠTĚDROŇ, B. – MATĚJKA, J. – NAVRÁTIL, J. – PROROK, V. a kol. (2020): Právo a umělá inteligence. Plzeň: Aleš Čeněk. 208 s. ISBN 978-80-7380-803-7.
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If the field of economics has today become the archetype for determinism in the social sciences, it comes at the price of a form of objectivity founded on the complex process of the reduction and naturalization of a certain type of social relation, a process best described via the real approach or the ‘approach by value.’ A radical critique of this process requires the deconstruction of this dominant approach, characterized by the articulation of neoclassical theory and economic liberalism. It is only once the repression of the desire for money, a repression constitutive of false economic objectivity, has been denounced that the standard model can then be subject to such a critique. This will in turn open the possibility of an economic theory which is radically anti-naturalist.
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I would like to take, as my starting point, the famous 1959 lecture of C. P. Snow, The Two Cultures, where science fiction is by and large ignored, and see how the consecutive points Snow is making are also discussed in the following decades of the 20th century by other philosophers of science, among them Stanisław Lem, Steven Weinberg, and Jonathan Gottschall. In 1959 Snow postulated re-uniting the two cultures through the reform of education. In the 1960s and 1970s Lem did not believe in any reform, but prophesied that science left alone would procure the final war and, probably, the self-inflicted technological death of the West. I am then going to juxtapose Snow’s argument with a science fiction novel concerned with the same civilizational crisis: Stanis law Lem’s His Master’s Voice.
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This short essay aims to provide insight into the emotional background underlying Quaternary palaeontology and encourage scholars to thoroughly discuss the psychological determining factors behind its practice. The nostalgia for past times and the feeling of loss of a world that will never return are the emotional landmark of Quaternary palaeontology. Due to its taste for perished things and nostalgic turn into the past, Quaternary palaeontology participates in the bias of the pagan version of the Ubi sunt elegiac motif. While this work specifically concerns Quaternary palaeontology, it can probably serve as a guide to reveal the perceptions and motivations behind other sciences.
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The article investigates the possible outcomes of assuming that there is no “scientific knowledge” - the self-contained univocal faculty derivable from the natural world order by scientific institutions and therefore immune to external nonscientific (political, economic, ethical, or societal) influences. If speculative attempts to establish and/or (re)construct scientific knowledge are counter-productive, we must consider replacing “scientific knowledge” with a sort of posthumanist scientific erudition. Therefore, the author suggests that scientific activity should be pursued, not by collecting novel methodological and disciplinary capacities, but by “rebooting” the “inquiry mode”: a practical flexibility to mediate socio-political issues, the techno-digital sphere and biological (in a broad sense) makeup.
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The famous astronomer Fred Hoyle (1915-2001) started his research career as an atheist. Hoyle’s most important contribution to astrophysics is the theory of nucleosynthesis, i.e. the idea that chemical elements such as carbon can form in stars on the basis of hydrogen and helium. Essentially here was his prediction that the carbon core has a state with a specific energy which is precisely adapted to the basic fusion process. This result was one of the most important breakthroughs in modern astrophysics, and the so called Hoyle state has become a cornerstone for state-ofthe-art nuclear theory. The calculations he made, eventually revealed a fine-tuning of the universe. Hoyle’s work in this area supported the anthropic principle that the universe was fine-tuned so that intelligent life would be possible. It is said that what really made him conclude that creation demanded intelligence, were his calculations of the special properties of the carbon atom. This shook his atheism fundamentally [1, p. 57]. In this paper we describe this discovery.
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The theory of divine leverages into matter
The link between seen and unseen, matter and spirit, flesh and soul was always presumed, but never clarified enough, leaving room for debates and mostly controversies between the scientific domains and theologies of a different type; how could God, who is immaterial, have created the material world? Therefore, the logic of obtaining a result on this concern (would be) is first to see how religions have always seen the ratio between divinity and matter/universe. In this part, the idea of a world personality is implied by many, so that nature itself was transformed into a person ; others have seen within the universe/the world a Spirit ruling all, connecting all and bending all to God’s commands. In a way or another, every culture has gifted the universe/nature with the capability of ruling all, seeing everything and controlling, even determining facts by connecting all together with a Great Spirit. What is this Great Spirit of all and where it resides? With the analogy of human body in relation to his Spirit we will try to figure out a place or vehicle for the Spirit to dwell the body, and the Great Spirit the matter. The Christianity names this linkage between God and matter as ‘the (un)created grace of God’, which indwells matter and helps the Creator move and transform things. Is there any scientific argument to sustain such assertion? Can we argue somehow that God’s voice makes matter vibrate from within the way it can recombine primer elements into giant stars to the human body? If so, what should be the ratio between theology and science on this issue and with these assertions? How could God command to matter to bring things and beings out of it and what were the material leverages that was supposed to be operated to accomplish His will? However, if we can assume that God resides in the universe – as a whole, His body, or as in its very fabric – can we also figure out how is this even possible, without transforming our explanation into a pantheistic and immanent exclusive one? Through these ‘divine leverages within matter’ theory, there is no need for questioning evolutionism, creationism, pantheism, deism and many other cosmological hypotheses any longer.
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The argument put forth in this article shows that the hitherto scientific-realist approaches to econometrics are incongruent with the realistically reconstructed empirical macroeconomics. The SR approaches share in common being realist about the relations depicted by (successful) models. The economic models of data are sensitive to minor changes in sample and estimating methods what creates the ‘emerging contrary result’ phenomenon: the community of econometricians accept models that are inconsistent. Being SR about econometrics equals committing oneself to the following trilemma: (1) it is feasible to indicate the successful models that rightly isolate/idealize the regularities of the economy (the knowledge thesis); (2) econometric models are about the economic world (the independence thesis); and, at least in some areas of application, (3) successful econometric models contradict each other.
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A christian and bioethic approach
Abortion, the cruel reality of the contemporary mankind, bites with no mercy our life and lacerates the humanity face, relativizing life’s ultimate value. We fight for the animal’s lives and rights, but we kill our children in womb. We are confused and living up to the rules imposed by us, and we fail, because we do not see the „Light of the world” (John 8,12) - Jesus Christ, losing sight of the reference frame – the divinity. We have declared God dead [1], the fountain of life , and we put ourselves in His place. We lost indiscriminatingly the values of “as Gods” ( Genesis 3,5) and “as God’s image” (Genesis 1, 27) drifting on the gradient of big fails, as big as God we have chased but never listened. So, that, from the survival outlook and lacking of love in our life, the fight for survival targets against the somebody ‘s else life, and no illustration is more eloquent and tragic as the mothers, families and society’s fight against the procreation generally, and particularly against the unborn child.
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The Uppsala School in philosophy and the Vienna Circle are prima facie similar currents in contemporary philosophy. Both reject metaphysics, claim that reality is a spatio‑temporal realm and adhere to noncognitivism in terms of values. However, justifications of these assumptions are quite different. In the following article we reconstruct main theses of both mentioned currents and then we indicate their impact on one of the major jurisprudential movements, namely Scandinavian Legal Realism. We focus on Alf Ross’ legal philosophy, as it was an attempt to accommodate both: the philosophy of the Uppsala School and of the Vienna Circle (while other Scandinavian realists referred exclusively to Uppsala philosophy). We trace those two sources of inspiration in Ross’ theory of legal validity and of legal concepts.Słowa kluczoweVienna Circle; Uppsala School; legal realism; neopositivismPełny tekst:PDF (ENGLISH)
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The early history of thermometry is most commonly described as the result of a continuous development rather than the product of a single brilliant mind, and yet scholars have often credited the Italian physician Santorio Santori (1561–1636) with the invention of the first thermometer. There are good reasons for this. It was indeed Santorio who first applied a graded scale behind the thermoscope allowing it to measure the temperature of both the air and the body. To this end, he set the parameters of the instrument, by measuring the minimum and maximum temperature in terms of change in the water level, obtained by exposing the glass bulb to candle fire and snow. Experimentally, Santorio understood the need to take measurements within constant periods of time, which he did by means of his pendulum regulated devices, called pulsilogia. Finally, the invention of the thermometer follows Santorio’s programme of quantification of the physiological parameters of the human body which started approximately in the 1580s and is reflected in the invention of similar other devices (scales, pulsilogia, hygrometers). Although generally known in outline, this story lacks many and significant details. The purpose of using such instruments within the traditional context of Galenic medicine has not been investigated and scholars have consistently assumed that, being subject to the influence of atmospheric pressure and environmental heat, Santorio’s instruments provided unreliable measurements. The discovery that, as early as 1612, Santorio describes all vacuum-related phenomena as effects of the atmospheric pressure of the air, provides ample room for reconsidering his role in the development of precision instruments and the early history of thermometry in particular. By drawing on a variety of written and visual sources, some unpublished, in this article I argue that Santorio’s appreciation of phenomena related to weight of the air resulted in the construction of the first thermometers which worked as sealed devices. In the final part, I also consider Santorio’s use of the thermometer as related to seventeenth-century medical practice and his way to measure the temperature as based on a wide sample of individuals.
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Gordon Tullock is acknowledged for being the first to recognize the true costs of rent-seeking as including not only the Harberger triangle but also the Tullock rectangle. This rectangle does not constitute merely a lossless transfer of wealth, but it causes a misallocation of resources as rent-seekers invest resources in lobbying. However, a close reading of Tullock’s writings shows that his arguments are formulated in a holistic fashion, speaking of what is efficient or inefficient for society. Rent-seeking is inefficient because it reduces societal welfare. But according to a methodologically individualist and subjectivist economics, such a claim is invalid. We must distinguish between positive economic fact and normative moral philosophy. We call for a reconstruction of utility and welfare economics based on methodological individualism and subjectivism with implications for the theories of monopoly and competition: practices which Neoclassical perfect-competition theory considers to be evidence of rent-seeking should instead be deemed as indications of genuine competition Political economy should be concerned with ascertaining which institutions will best enable individuals to pursue their individually subjective ends – or else economists should be explicit about their normative preferences and political philosophies.
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The figure of the White Knight in Lewis Carroll’s Through the Looking-Glass has often been read as part of a tradition of “nonsense literature”. While this is true, I wish to extend that argument and locate the figure of the White Knight in the context of the debates around the Patent Law of 1852. While defining and recognising the role of mechanical labour, the role and function of artistic labour also featured in these debates. The White Knight’s “inventions” are deeply resonant with these debates and prompt us to ask: what is the role of the artist in an industrial society? How can art retain its autonomy and justify itself when confronted with the pervasive discourse of utilitarianism? This paper argues that the anxiety around the role of the artist is palpable in the figure of the White Knight, and through him Carroll enunciates what may be read as his intervention in this debate.
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The article proves that the widespread use of philosophical ideas is characteristic of liberal Orthodox theological comprehension of modern cosmology, carried out by Alexei Nesteruk. Among these ideas, the most influential was Kant’s doctrine of things in themselves and his teleology, the metaphysical doctrine of analogies, the doctrine of contemplation of the mind, borrowed from Schelling teaching and Russian religious philosophy. The theological understanding of these philosophical concepts allows formulating a new interpretation of the anthropic principle, the initial conditions for the existence of the Universe, and its eschatological future. The form of ideas of Alexei Nesteruk was influenced by the phenomenology of Jean-Luc Marion, the post-metaphysical theology of Sergiy Khoruzhy and Christos Yannaras. As postmodern ideas do not define the content of theology of Alexei Nesteruk, the theory of Volodimir Hritsyshyn about the postmodern nature of Nesteruk’s speculation about cosmology is under discussion. Specifically, these speculations have only a postmodern form of expression but are a controversial combination of theologically redefined metaphysical and Kantian concepts by themselves.
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The article argues that theorizing about the origin of the universe is imbued with metaphorical language. Only such a language can produce intuitive representations about some cosmic “cause” of the birth of the universe. Nor can it be otherwise, when one strives to say something about the genesis of everything – whether the theorizing be couched in theological or in purely scientific concepts.
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This article aims to bridge the gap between history and archaeology by linking the methodological and theoretical developments of both scientific disciplines. This is done by tracing general societal trends and developments within both disciplines, divided into five periods, from the professionalization of the sciences in the nineteenth century, up to the present day. The result will hopefully offer practitioners of both disciplines an insight into the others’ intellectual framework, and thereby foster better understanding and opportunities for future cooperation.
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In this paper, I investigate the logical relation between two claims: (1) observations are theory-laden1 and (2) there is no empirical common ground upon which to evaluate successive scientific theories that belong to different paradigms. I, first, construct an argument where (1) is the main premise and (2) is the conclusion. I argue that the term „theory-laden” has three distinct senses: semantic, psychological and epistemic. If ‘theory-laden’ is understood in either epistemic or psychological senses, then the conclusion becomes a claim about people. If incommensurability is to be a claim about theories, then ‘theory-laden’ in the main premise should be understood in the semantic sense. I, then, argue that there is a further distinction to be drawn between the absolute and relative senses of theory-laden. The relative sense of theory-laden allows observations that are relatively neutral between the theories under examination. I then conclude that the argument from theory-ladenness only shows that foundational empiricism is not a tenable philosophical position, but it fails to show that no empirical test can decide between successive theories that belong to different paradigms.
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This short paper is a note offering provisional results of my current research in philosophical economics and the philosophy of economics. It is offered in the spirit of promoting discussion of an interesting topic worthy of further investigation.
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The most common catchphrase of physicalism is: “everything is physical”. According to Hempel’s Dilemma, however, physicalism is an ill-formed thesis because it can offer no account of the physics to which it refers: current physics will definitely be revised in the future, and we do not yet know the nature of future physics. The dilemma arises due to our difficulty to set the boundaries of the concept ‘physical.’ In order to confront the dilemma, a physicalist must ensure that physics is not going to broaden itself artificially (or in some trivial way) to become complete—perhaps by adding non-reductive mental entities to elementary physical theory, making it impossible to distinguish physicalism from dualism. I offer a solution to the dilemma which is a version of the ‘via negativa’ (standardly taken to be a stipulation that the physical not include the mental), albeit one that is specified and worked out in a distinctive way. My suggested formulation of the physicalist hypothesis allows us to establish a refutation condition of physicalism. The refutation condition is general and not only dualistic. Consequently, the physicalist can choose the second horn of the dilemma, and hold that physicalism is indeed refutable (and not a trivial thesis).
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Thermodynamics serves as a basis for optimal solutions of the tasks of physiology, which are solved by organisms in the characteristic process of life: evolution, development, homeostasis, and adaptation. It is stated that the quasi-equilibrium thermodynamics of quasi-closed complex systems serves as an impetus of evolution, functions, and activities of all levels of biological systems’ organization. This fact predetermines the use of Gibbs’ methods and leads to a hierarchical thermodynamics in all spheres of physiology. The interaction of structurally related levels and sub-levels of biological systems is determined by the thermodynamic principle of substance stability. Thus, life is accompanied by a thermodynamic optimization of physiological functions of biological systems. Living matter, while functioning and evolving, seeks the minimum of specific Gibbs free energy of structure formation at all levels. The spontaneous search of this minimum takes place with the participation of not only spontaneous but also non-spontaneous processes, initiated by the surrounding environment. The hormone optimization of the treatment of various pathologies, presented by Dr. Sergey A. Dzugan et al. demonstrates the effectiveness of their innovative medical approach.
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