Considering the importance of research in the development of nursing, we examine the ethical principles governing nurses' investigative activity, as well as the different codes regulating biomedical investigation with human beings, amongst which are the Nuremberg Code, the Declaration of Human Rights, and the Declaration of Helsinki. From the perspective of the central points of the article reference is made to different codes proposed by international nursing associations, as well as reviewing the Deontological Code of Spanish Nursing. The ethical principles (...) a nurse has to bear in mind in research are analysed, with respect to patients, society and the profession. Finally, we refer to certain ethical aspects to be considered in the elaboration and development of a research project, as well as publication of the results. (shrink)

Synaesthesia is a condition in which one type of stimulation evokes the sensation of another, as when the hearing of a sound produces photisms, i.e. mental percepts of colours. R is a 20 year old colour blind subject who, in addition to the relatively common grapheme-colour synaesthesia, presents a rarely reported cross modal perception in which a variety of visual stimuli elicit aura-like percepts of colour. In R, photisms seem to be closely related to the affective valence of stimuli and (...) typically bring out a consistent pattern of emotional responses. The present case study suggests that colours might be an intrinsic category of the human brain. We developed an empirical methodology that allowed us to study the subject's otherwise inaccessible phenomenological experience. First, we found that R shows a Stroop effect elicited by photisms despite the fact that he does not show a regular Stroop with real colours. Secondly, by manipulating the colour context we confirmed that colours can alter R's emotional evaluation of the stimuli. Furthermore, we demonstrated that R's auras may actually lead to a partially inverted emotional spectrum where certain stimuli bring out emotional reactions opposite to the normal ones. These findings can only be accounted for by considering R's subjective colour experience or qualia. Therefore the present paper defends the view that qualia are a useful scientific concept that can be approached and studied by experimental methods. (shrink)

Synaesthesia is a condition in which one type of stimulation evokes the sensation of another, as when the hearing of a sound produces photisms, i.e. mental percepts of colours. R is a 20 year old colour blind subject who, in addition to the relatively common grapheme-colour synaesthesia, presents a rarely reported cross modal perception in which a variety of visual stimuli elicit aura-like percepts of colour. In R, photisms seem to be closely related to the affective valence of stimuli and (...) typically bring out a consistent pattern of emotional responses. The present case study suggests that colours might be an intrinsic category of the human brain. We developed an empirical methodology that allowed us to study the subject's otherwise inaccessible phenomenological experience. First, we found that R shows a Stroop effect (delayed response due to interference) elicited by photisms despite the fact that he does not show a regular Stroop with real colours. Secondly, by manipulating the colour context we confirmed that colours can alter R's emotional evaluation of the stimuli. Furthermore, we demonstrated that R's auras may actually lead to a partially inverted emotional spectrum where certain stimuli bring out emotional reactions opposite to the normal ones. These findings can only be accounted for by considering R's subjective colour experience or qualia. Therefore the present paper defends the view that qualia are a useful scientific concept that can be approached and studied by experimental methods. (shrink)

This paper intends to identify the functions of the French particle “comme” (“like” in opposition to “as”) and “comme si” (“as if”) in the work of French contemporary philosopher Jean-Luc Marion, especially in L’idole et la distance (American translation: The Idol and Distance), Dieu sans l’être (American translation: God without Being), Étant donné (American translation: Being given) and De surcroît (American translation: In excess). The author of this paper focuses on the relation between phenomenology and theology in order to demonstrate (...) its complexity by an analysis of linguistic phenomenology. At the end of this analysis, the “saturated phenomenon”, as proposed by Jean-Luc Marion, becomes an important notion to understand the boundaries of both disciplines, phenomenology and theology. (shrink)

In this paper we state that, up to now, scholars have read the Husserliana—that is Husserl’s official texts—only partially. This statement must be considered within the History of phenomenology and, more precisely, with-in the history of Husserlian studies: from Heidegger to Jean-Luc Marion, including Levinas, Ingarden, Sartre, Merleau-Ponty and so on, Husserl’s texts have been read only partially. With the exception of some analysis proposed by Derrida—or, nowadays, by Natalie Depraz or Elianne Escoubas—, and as far as I know, all (...) the interpretations of Husserl’s texts have considered them just as a support to ex-pose theories or to describe phenomena, but not in themselves, that is, not as texts. Our aim here is then to propose a new perspective to to phenomenalize Husserliana as a text and focus precisely on Husserl’s praxis of writing. Here we will develop specially an analysis of one mode of writing used in Husserl’s praxis of writing and called: bildliche Rede. We will finally compare the results of our analysis to Heidegger’s and Jean-Luc Marion’s praxis of writing.Podem afirmar que, fins avui, els in-vestigadors han llegit la Husserliana —és a dir, els textos de Husserl publicats de manera ofici-al— només parcialment. Cal considerar aquesta afirmació en el marc de la Història de la feno-menologia i, més precisament, en el marc de la història del estudis husserlians: des de Heidegger fins a Jean-Luc Marion —més de cent any de fenomenologia—, els textos de Husserl han estat considerats només com a suport per a exposar teories o descriure fenòmens, però no s’han considerat en ells mateixos, és a dir, no com a textos. Posant en pràctica l’acció de “llegir fenomenologia” en un nou sentit fort del verb “llegir”, aquest article comença identificant els diferents modes de la praxis d’escriptura de Husserl. Després ens concentrarem en un d’aquests modes d’enunciació, anomenat “bildliche Rede”, per desenvolupar així una història de la figurativitat. Finalment, esbossa-rem una breu comparació dels resultats amb la praxis d’escriptura de Heidegger i Marion. (shrink)

Neste artigo tenta-se uma aproximação do pensamento de E. Levinas em sua busca de aberturas no discurso-do-serpara a emergência ética do sentido, de um Sentido desconstrutor dos sentidos constituídos, Sentido dos sentidos e do não-sentido. Trata-se, assim, de uma tentativa de superação do esquecimento mais tipico do centralismo da nossa tradição de pensamento: o da Intriga, que é também tensão, do Outro no seio do Mesmo - ou seja, da Transcendência na e à ordem do mundo. Mais do que o (...) esquecimento do Ser, é o esquecimento do Outro que está na origem da presente crftica à filosofia estabelecida - "visibilidade do Mesmo para o Mesmo". Assim, entendendo-se a si mesmo como pequeno ensaio de abertura a uma "ontologia do Exilio" - "ontologia relational", capaz de renunciar ao primado dos esquemas de uma constituição transcendental do sentido e ao privitégio tradicionalmente concedido à manifestação e à presença -, o presente artigo fazuma abordagem do tratamento dado por E. Levinas (prestando em certo momento também atenção ao caminho colateral de M. Heidegger) a três fundamentais dimensões do nosso ser-no-mundo - a interrogação, a linguagem e o corpo - em ordem a uma redefinição do Sentido e da Inteligibilidade da Transcendência, ou seja, à produção de um discurso aberto à vivacidade do enigma que é a presença do Outro no seio do Mesmo. O resultado é como que uma prova em ordem a uma (futura) "filosofia da encarnação", de um pensamento da subjectividade humana em termos de "maternidade e vulnerabilidade", de um ser-aberto à intriga da relação radical no ser. /// Cet article essaye une approximation de la pensée de E. Levinas en cherchant des ouvertures dans le discours-de-l'être à l'émergence éthique du sens, sens déconstructeur des sens constitués, Sens du sens et du non-sens. Il s'agit, done, d'essayer une supération de l'oubliement le plus typique du centralisme de notre tradition de la pensée: l'oubliement de l'Intrigue, qui est aussi tension, de l'Autre dans le Mdme, e'est-à-dire de la Transcendance dans et à l'ordre du monde. Plus qu'oubliement de l'être, e'est l'oubliement de l'Autre qui est à l'origine de la présente critique à la philosophie établie - "visibilité du Même pour le Même". Se comprenant soi-même comme un petit essai d'ouverture à une "ontologie de l'Exile" - "ontologie relationelle", capable de renoncer au primat des schèmes d'une constitution transcendantale du sens et au privilège traditionellement donné par E. Levinas à la manifestation et à la présence, cet article considère le traitement donné par E. Levinas (avec quelque attention au chemin colllatéral de M. Heidegger) à trois dimensions fondamentales de notre être-dans-le-monde - l'interrogation, le langage et le corps - pour une redéfinition du Sens et de l'Intelligibilité de la Transcendance, c'est-à-dire pour un discours ouvert à l'énigme qui est la présence de l'Autre dans le Même. Le résultat est une façon d'épreuve pour une (future) philosophie de l'incarnation, d'une pensée de la subjectivité humaine par rapport à la maternité et vulnérabilité, d'un "être-ouvert à l'intrigue de la relation radical dans l'être. /// In this article an attempt is made to approach Levinas's thought from the perspective of his search for openings that can be discovered in ontological discourse and that point towards the emergence of meaning as ethical, of Meaning which deconstructs constituted meanings, the Meaning of meanings and of non-meaning. It involves an overcoming of the kind of forgetting which is central to our philosophical tradition: that of Intrigue, the tension of the Other in the heart of the Same, i. e., of Transcendence in the order of the world. More than the forgetting of Being, it is the forgetting of the Other that is at the source of the criticism of established philosophy - "the visibility of the Same for itself". In proposing an "ontology of exile", a "relational ontology", capable of renouncing the primacy of transcendental constitution of meaning and the privilege given to manifestation and presence, this article considers Levinas's treatment (with some attention given to Heidegger in this regard) of three fundamental dimensions of our being-in-the-world: interrogation, language, and the body. A redefinition of Meaning and of Inteligibility of Transcendence is thereby sought by being attentive to the production of a discourse which is sensitive to the enigma of the Other in the Same. The possibility of a (future) philosophy of incarnation, where human subjectivity can be thought of in terms of maternity and vulnerability to the degree that it is open to the intrigue in the heart of being, is being tested here. (shrink)

Les Journées maliotes organisées à l'École française d'Athènes les 2 et 3 novembre 2007 portaient sur l'organisation des espaces et l'exploitation des ressources, thèmes qui permettaient d'unir les approches effectuées ces dernières années selon deux échelles différentes, celle de l'agglomération et de l'urbanisme d'une part, celle de l'organisation du territoire d'autre part. Les contributions portent toutes sur des recherches en cours, dont la publication est récente ou proche. Elles sont publiées ici sous forme de résumés argumentés et reflètent fidèlement les (...) discussions qui les suivirent. (shrink)

Verses on Hindu cosmology based on Puranas; includes interpretation.

This article puts forward solutions to some of the ethical and legal dilemmas posed in the current discussion on how to program crash algorithms in autonomous or self-driving cars. The first part of the paper defines the scope of the problem in the criminal legal field, and the next section gives a critical analysis of the proposal to always prioritise the interest of the occupant of the vehicle in situations with conflict of interests. The principle of minimizing social damage as (...) a model for configuring self-driving cars is examined in the third section. Despite its apparent plausibility, within the framework of a liberal legal system that recognises humans as free agents who have rights and responsibilities, maximizing the function of social utility does not justify harmful interference into a person’s legal sphere. Therefore, in the fourth part, the author argues the need to program the crash algorithms of autonomous cars based on a deontological understanding of the system of justifications in criminal law. The solution to the dilemma lies in a prior analysis of the legal positions of all agents involved in the conflict, from a perspective of the principles of autonomy and solidarity as the core of the system of justifications. (shrink)

Journal of Applied Philosophy, EarlyView.

In this paper I will critically assess a very popular interpretation of Heidegger’s early thought, according to which meaning (Bedeutung) is conceived as ontologically dependent on human existence (Dasein). In order to criticize this subjectivist understanding of meaning, I will offer an interpretation of Heidegger’s analysis of signs in Being and Time (§17). This will reveal two main things: first, that the ubiquity of sign-phenomena is founded on the universality of the structure known as reference (Verweisung); second, that Heidegger’s idea (...) of reference offers a non-substantialist understanding of meaning and its relation to the world. (shrink)

The necessity defense is barely accepted in contemporary Western case law. The courts, relying on the opinion held by the majority of legal scholars, have reduced its margin of application to practically zero, since in the framework of contemporary welfare states, there is almost always a “legal alternative.” The needy person who acts on their own behalf, regardless of whether they save an interest higher than the one they injure, does not show due deference to democratic legal solutions and procedural (...) channels. This article aims to contest this abrogative interpretation of the necessity defense and to outline the limits of its legitimate scope. Even in welfare states, there are actions in a necessity scenario that neither question the legal decisions of the democratically elected legislature nor make a mockery of established procedural channels. (shrink)

Scientifically speaking, quantum mechanics (QM) is the most successful theory ever made. Philosophically speaking, however, it is the most controversial theory. Its basic principles seem to contravene our deepest intuitions about reality, which are reflected in the metaphysical commitments of classical mechanics (CM). The aim of this paper is twofold. First, I argue that QM implies an ontological challenge, and not merely an “ontic” one, as it has been traditionally interpreted in the analytic tradition. Second, I suggest that positions known (...) as “ontological pluralism” exhibit an internal weakness due to its unwarranted compromise to a representational view of scientific theories. (shrink)

Faced with the inaction of liberal democracies to effectively tackle global warming, many climate activists engage in forms of protests that involve committing minor criminal offences. They seek to shape official decisions on climate policies by resorting to civil disobedience. Some of these activists, rather than accepting punishment, have successfully claimed to be acting in a justified manner by invoking the necessity defence. The aim of this article is to show that, within the framework of representative democracies guided by the (...) rule of law, the climate necessity defence must be rejected, since such protests do not meet the ‘non-legal alternatives’ requirement. This does not mean, however, that protesters should be punished as common offenders. Their acceptance of responsibility and political motivation should be taken into account as a mitigating factor at sentencing. (shrink)

Germany is joining a long list of European democracies that have modified or expressed a willingness to modify their citizenship laws to denationalize first and then prevent the return of or expel those citizens accused of having participated in terrorist activities abroad. The formal labelling of citizenship deprivation as an administrative measure outside the scope of criminal justice has prevented scholars of criminal law from undertaking a thorough scrutiny of its legitimacy. In this paper I seek to fill this gap. (...) Specifically, after demonstrating why deprivation of citizenship is a measure of a criminal nature, I argue against its legitimacy, either as a punishment or as a risk-based measure. Instead I propose that we should understand citizenship deprivation as a paradigmatic response from an illegitimate enemy criminal law. Notwithstanding the foregoing, I claim that states that choose to denationalize terrorists should do it within the framework of a process with the highest (criminal procedural) guarantees. (shrink)

El aumento en la producción y consumo de frutas y hortalizas mínimamente procesadas de los últimos años ha con­tribuido a incrementar las toxiinfecciones alimentarias asociadas al consumo de productos vegetales frescos. Esto es debido a que los tratamientos desinfectantes llevados a cabo actualmente por industria de IV gama son insuficientes para garantizar la seguridad microbiológica de los productos finales, y además estos no reciben ningún tratamiento capaz de eliminar todos los patógenos antes de su consumo. Por lo tanto, es necesario (...) utilizar estrategias al­ternativas para reducir los microorganismos patógenos y alteran­tes en frutas y hortalizas. La bioconservación, mediante el uso de microorganismos o sus metabolitos, es una alternativa que, en combinación con las prácticas habituales, puede reducir o prevenir el crecimiento de patógenos en productos mínimamente procesa­dos, mejorando su calidad microbiológica. En este artículo se pre­sentan los resultados más relevantes sobre la bioconservación de frutas y hortalizas mínimamente procesadas. (shrink)

¿Qué es la mente humana? ¿Es un aspecto de la naturaleza? ¿O acaso la trasciende? ¿Se puede explicar enteramente al hombre en un lenguaje científico-natural? Desde que Aristóteles definió al hombre como un "animal racional", el pensamiento occidental ha erigido una distinción ontológica entre hombre y naturaleza. Sin embargo, el darwinismo nos ha legado una verdad ineludible: que somos organismos animales, cuyas capacidades conceptuales no escapan a los procesos propios de la naturaleza. ¿Se puede, entonces, pensar al hombre como un (...) ser mental, y al mismo tiempo como un organismo natural? Para ello, sin duda, será necesario reformular los conceptos tradicionales de "mente" y de "naturaleza" en busca de una reconciliación conceptual. El siguiente volumen recorre campos como la fenomenología trascendental, la lógica, la biología, la semiótica, la lingüística y la psicología con el fin de superar este dualismo tan antiguo como la filosofía. (shrink)

Among the advocates of expressive theories of punishment, there is a strong consensus that monetary fines cannot convey the message of censure that is required to punish serious crimes or crimes against the person. Money is considered an inappropriate symbol to express condemnation. In this article, I argue that this sentiment is correct, although not for the reasons suggested by advocates of expressivism. The monetary day-fine should not be understood as a simple deprivation of money, but as a punishment that (...) reduces the offender’s capacity to consume for a certain period of time. Conceived in this manner, I argue that it is perfectly suitable to convey censure. However, the practical impossibility of ensuring that the person who pays the fine is the same person who has been convicted of the offense seriously undermines the acceptability of the monetary fine as an instrument of censure. Minimizing the risk of the fine’s hard treatment being transferred to third parties is a necessary condition for the monetary fine to be considered a viable alternative to lengthy prison sentences. (shrink)

Noël Carroll denies and Robert Stecker affirms that it is a necessary condition of aesthetic experience that it should be valued for its own sake. I make use of their controversy to argue for the psychological impossibility of discharging very common practices of art evaluation and analysis without undergoing an aesthetic experience valued for its own sake. By way of supporting my thesis and also making progress in Stecker and Carroll’s dispute about aesthetic experience, I analyse their methodological assumptions and (...) develop further our understanding of negative, indifferent and unexpected aesthetic experiences. The article provides a defence of Stecker’s position based on my contention regarding art evaluation and analysis. (shrink)

ABSTRACT In the 1960s, when Dr. Belding Scribner discovered how to accomplish the process of dialysis in a repeated way, he could not imagine that in solving such a problem others as or more difficult would appear. Given the technological progress and the impossibility of assisting all patients through the most modern methods, the medical doctor often finds himself faced with the moral dilemma of choosing which patient in the waiting list will receive the treatment. This same dilemma is amplified (...) in the case of organ transplants. Professionals, students, professors of the juridical and health fields, and the population in general, were interviewed as a means of documenting the moral concepts and opinions surrounding this problem. In the reality in which we find ourselves, it seems to us that deciding who lives, and the responsibility for all the events that culminate in such decisions, is still a subject left open to discussion. (shrink)

In this article I argue that a high capacity for courage, in the sense of the strength of character that enables one to face distress, angst or psychological pain, is required of Hume’s ideal critics just as the other well-known five characteristics are. I also explore the implications of my proposal for several aspects of Hume’s aesthetics, including the one brought into relief by Shelley’s interpretation of Hume along the lines of distinguishing between the perceptual and affective stages in aesthetic (...) appreciation. (shrink)

Through expert analysis, this text proves that John Dewey's views on efficiency in education are as relevant as ever. By exploring Deweyan theories of teaching and learning, the volume illustrates how they can aid educators in navigating the theoretical and practical implications of accountability, standardization, and assessment. The Contemporary Relevance of John Dewey's Theories on Teaching and Learning deconstructs issues regarding accountability mechanisms, uniform assessment systems, and standardization processes through a Deweyan lens. Connecting the zeitgeist of the era from which (...) Dewey's ideas emerged and current global political, social, and economic contexts, the book emphasizes the importance of resilient systems in reconciliating the tension between standardized assessments and individual student development. Contributors provide insights from a range of settings across Pre-K, primary, secondary, and higher education and address topics including teacher agency, voice, leadership, and democracy. The volume will be of interest to scholars, researchers, and academics with an interest in philosophy of education, education policy and the impact of neoliberal agendas, as well as teaching and learning more broadly. (shrink)