This paper studies Lamarck's scientific method both from the point of view of his methodological discourse and according to his scientific praxis. Lamarck's methodology is compared to Condillac's as well as to that of the idéologues - a group in which Lamarck is usually included. The analysis of this paper shows that Lamarck's methodological discourse is very similar to Condillac's, but his scientific praxis does not follow this view. Instead of following an empiricist approach, Lamarck's work is grounded upon general (...) metaphysical principles concerning nature. Thus, from the ideologues's point of view, Lamarck's work should have been rejected -and that is what really happened - as being a mere metaphysical system grupo no qual se costuma incluir o próprio Lamarck. Mostra-se que o discurso metodológico de Lamarck assemelha-se ao dos ideólogos; no entanto, sua prática científica não se coaduna com esse enfoque. Em vez de seguir uma abordagem empirista, a obra de Lamarck se fundamenta em princípios metafísicos gerais sobre a natureza. Sob o ponto de vista dos ideólogos, seu trabalho deveria ser rejeitado - o que de fato ocorreu - como um mero sistema metafísico - no sentido pejorativo utilizado pelos seguidores de Condillac. No entanto, o presente artigo argumenta que esse é justamente um importante e inovador aspecto da obra de Lamarck, que permitiu a eclosão do evolucionismo moderno. (shrink)

The chromosome theory of inheritance was established during the three first decades of the 20th century. During the early stage of its substantiating, there were lots of puzzles and little evidence that could validate it. The cytological processes were obscure and several scientists maintained serious doubts concerning the existence of a connection between Mendel’s principles and the behaviour of chromosomes during cell division. It was vital to associate an external, observable characteristic of the organism to a specific chromosome, and this (...) was achieved when sex was connected to special chromosomes. At that time, however, some important scholars refused to accept or delayed acceptance of the conception that the hereditary factors (later called genes) were physical entities located along the chromosomes. Such was the case of Thomas Morgan (1866-1945) and William Bateson (1861-1926). Their attitudes could be explained by considering the doubtful ground of the hypothesis at that time. It is more difficult, however, to understand the attitude of Edmund Beecher Wilson (1856-1939). Being an expert in cytology he was acquainted with all the difficulties concerning the chromosome hypothesis. Nonetheless, from 1905 onward, he attributed little weight to the problems and dedicated a notable effort to obtaining evidence that could have grounded it. This paper analyses Wilson’s attitude focusing on his studies from 1900 to 1915 and the scientific context of this period. This study led to the conclusion that Wilson’s attitude could be explained in methodological terms by the adoption of an instrumentalist attitude, while Bateson and Morgan adopted a realistic perspective. (shrink)

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) has become a much-discussed subject in the business world. The Internet has become one of the main tools for CSR information disclosure, allowing companies to publicise more information less expensively and faster than ever before. As a result, corporations are increasingly concerned with communicating ethically and responsibly to the diversity of stakeholders through the web. This paper addresses the main question as whether CSR information disclosure on corporate websites is influenced by country of origin and/or industry (...) sector. Analysing the websites of 127 corporations from emerging countries, such as Brazil, Chile, China, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Thailand and South Africa, it becomes evident that both country of origin and industry sector have a significant influence over CSR information disclosure on the web (CSRIDOW). Based on the data studied, country of origin has a stronger influence over CSRIDOW than industry sector. (shrink)

Corporate social responsibility has become a much-discussed subject in the business world. The Internet has become one of the main tools for CSR information disclosure, allowing companies to publicise more information less expensively and faster than ever before. As a result, corporations are increasingly concerned with communicating ethically and responsibly to the diversity of stakeholders through the web. This paper addresses the main question as whether CSR information disclosure on corporate websites is influenced by country of origin and/or industry sector. (...) Analysing the websites of 127 corporations from emerging countries, such as Brazil, Chile, China, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Thailand and South Africa, it becomes evident that both country of origin and industry sector have a significant influence over CSR information disclosure on the web . Based on the data studied, country of origin has a stronger influence over CSRIDOW than industry sector. (shrink)

How can law ethically regulate a future of fast-changing technologies? From recent inventions to science fiction, Future Law explores how law, ethics and regulation must respond to new technologies that challenge the boundaries of our ethics.

The paper focuses on the difference between event‐conditionals and premise‐conditionals. An event‐conditional contributes to event structure: it modifies the main clause event; a premise‐conditional structures the discourse: it makes manifest a proposition that is the privileged context for the processing of the associated clause. The two types of conditional clauses will be shown to differ both in terms of their ‘external syntax’ and in terms of their ‘internal syntax’. The peripheral structure of event conditionals will be shown to lack the (...) functional head Force, which encodes illocutionary force. Event conditionals are merged inside the IP of the matrix clause. Premise‐conditionals contain the head Force and they are merged outside the associated CP. (shrink)

Although Confucianism is a resilient cultural tradition in Asian societies, its role in their corporate governance systems is ambiguous. Confucian values have been pushed to the periphery because of a preoccupation in these countries to emulate corporate governance systems from the West. This article argues that Confucianism has much to offer in enhancing director conduct and corporate governance standards. As the attention of the global business community turns eastwards, it is opportune to revive interest in Confucianism and to explore ways (...) in which it can be integrated formally into companies' governance systems. (shrink)

The ability to sequence individual genomes is leading to the identification of an increasing number of genetic risk factors for serious diseases. Knowledge of these risk factors can often provide significant medical and psychological benefit, but also raises complex ethical and social issues. This paper focuses on one area of rapid progress: the identification of mutations causing long QT syndrome and other cardiac channel disorders, which can explain some previously unexplained deaths in infants (SIDS) and children and adults (SUDS) and (...) prevent others from occurring. This genetic knowledge, discovered posthumously in many cases, has implications for clinical care for surviving family members who might carry the same mutations. The information obtained from genetic testing, in the context of personal and family history, can guide individually tailored interventions that reduce risk and save lives. At the same time, obtaining and disclosing genetic information raises difficult issues about confidentiality and decision making within families. We draw on the experience of the Montefiore-Einstein Center for Cardiogenetics, which has played a leading role in the genetic diagnosis and clinical management of cardiac channel diseases, to explore some of the challenging ethical questions arising in affected families with adolescent children. We focus on the related issues of (1) family confidentiality, privacy and disclosure and (2) adolescent decision making about genetic risk, and argue for the value of interdisciplinary dialogue with affected families in resolving these issues. (shrink)

We defend Joseph Melia's thesis that the role of mathematics in scientific theory is to ‘index’ quantities, and that even if mathematics is indispensable to scientific explanations of concrete phenomena, it does not explain any of those phenomena. This thesis is defended against objections by Mark Colyvan and Alan Baker.

Offers a comprehensive view of St Augustine's political ideas.

Although environmental philosophy and the human exploration of space share common beginnings, scholars from either field have not given adequate attention to the possible connections between them. In this essay, we seek to spur the rapprochement and cross-fertilization of philosophy and space policy by highlighting the philosophic dimensions of space exploration, pulling together issues and authors that have had insufficient contact with one another. We do so by offering an account of three topics: planetary exploration, planetary protection and the search (...) for extraterrestrial life, and terraforming. The resulting synthesis seeks to change our thinking about earthbound environmental ethics as it considers the philosophical dimensions of space exploration, and introduces the possible benefits of a humanities-oriented approach to space policy. (shrink)

La Universidad, y específicamente la escuela de filosofía, como centros de educación y de formación, están llamados a jugar un rol trascendental frente a la grave situación actual en relación con todos los aspectos de la vida. En tanto dominios de formación y transformación, entonces, han de a dejar de lado su condición de críticos y analistas pasivos de un contexto sistemáticamente difícil para devenir en un frente activo de reflexión y de búsqueda de posibilidades y de respuestas, en aras (...) de una verdadera terapia y una transformación social y humana. Este breve artículo constituye tan solo una tentativa de reflexión, precisamente sobre la capacidad terapéutica y transformativa del ámbito académico frente a una sociedad cada vez más afectada por un severo estado patológico. (shrink)

The article re-examines the relationship between the works of Alfred Schütz and Harold Garfinkel, focusing on their respective approaches to temporality in interaction. Although there are good reasons to emphasize the differences between Schütz’s notion of individual projects of action and Garfinkel’s interest in communicative sequencing, there is also an interesting historical connection. In order to elucidate this connection, the article provides a close reading of the steps that lead Schütz from his premise of ‘egological’ time consciousness to his understanding (...) of the reflexive and interactive process of meaning establishment and interpretation developed in his first book, _The Phenomenology of the Social World_ (1967 [1932]). The article reflects further upon which aspects of Schütz’s considerations resonated with Garfinkel in his formative years and how Garfinkel related to them variously in his later development of ethnomethodology. Hence, it appears that Garfinkel’s ethnomethodology successively departs from many of Schütz’s premises while simultaneously incorporating and further developing some of his notions on the sequential organization and temporal flux of interactive processes. (shrink)

Thomas Hofweber argues that the thesis of direct reference is incompatible with physicalism, the claim that the nonphysical supervenes on the physical. According to Hofweber, direct reference implies that some physical objects have object-dependent properties, such as being Jones’s brother, which depend on particular objects for their existence and identity. Hofweber contends that if some physical objects have object-dependent properties, then Local-Local Supervenience (the physicalist doctrine on which he concentrates) fails. In this note, we argue that Hofweber has failed to (...) show that the possession by physical objects of object-dependent properties implies the falsity of Local-Local Supervenience. (shrink)

The World Unclaimed argues that Heidegger's critique of modern epistemology in Being and Time is seriously flawed.

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) has become a much-discussed subject in the business world. The Internet has become one of the main tools for CSR information disclosure, allowing companies to publicise more information less expensively and faster than ever before. As a result, corporations are increasingly concerned with communicating ethically and responsibly to the diversity of stakeholders through the web. This paper addresses the main question as whether CSR information disclosure on corporate websites is influenced by country of origin and/or industry (...) sector. Analysing the websites of 127 corporations from emerging countries, such as Brazil, Chile, China, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Thailand and South Africa, it becomes evident that both country of origin and industry sector have a significant influence over CSR information disclosure on the web (CSRIDOW). Based on the data studied, country of origin has a stronger influence over CSRIDOW than industry sector. (shrink)

Este artigo pretende mostrar e propor adaptações metodologias centradas na abordagem comunicativa, usando metodologias ativas e as ferramentas TIC para facilitar o ensino-aprendizagem de PLE a deficientes visuais espanhóis. Dada a natureza e índole de caráter introdutório, panorâmico, sistemático e claramente didático deste trabalho, o leitor poderá ter uma compreensão direta e científica do mundo educativo que rodeia o educando deficiente visual.A metodologia utilizada neste trabalho foi quantitativa e qualitativa, a abordagem foi respaldada em bibliografia pertinente e em dados empíricos (...) coletados pela pesquisadora por meio de entrevistas com diretores, coordenadores, docentes. Após as observações e entrevistas foram desenvolvidas e adaptadas algumas metodologias para após serem aplicadas aos alunos dos distintos centros de reabilitação e por último foi feita a análise dos resultados obtidos. Algumas atividades também foram utilizadas em grupos de PLE fora dos centros de reabilitação. (shrink)

Un concepto que solía pertenecer al mundo de la informática (hacking) ahora se combina con las ciencias de la vida (bio). Sin gran dificultad, hemos empezado a ver la vida como un conjunto de datos, el ADN como un código, el cuerpo como una máquina y la mente como un software... todos susceptibles de ser leídos, manipulados y ahora incluso hackeados. ¿Pero manipulados por quiénes? Las comunidades de biohackers y DYIbio (do-it-yourself biology) quieren la biotecnología disponible para todos y la (...) información compartida abiertamente. En este trabajo, propongo una reflexión sobre qué está pasando y el posible por qué. En la primera parte, presento el biohacking como un fenómeno social, dando algunos ejemplos de biohackers y diferenciando tipos de biohackers. En la segunda parte, hago un acercamiento al Transhumanismo. La existencia de biohackers sólo es posible gracias a la creciente disponibilidad de información y biotecnología combinada con una cierta mentalidad. El principal objetivo es profundizar en la reflexión sobre la relación entre biohacking y Transhumanismo. Analizo el biohacking como una de las expresiones de este movimiento y uno de los fenómenos que contribuyen a él. Al final, ofrezco una reflexión sobre la cultura, deseos y miedos de nuestra sociedad, reconociendo también algunas de las preguntas que ellos provocan. (shrink)

Este artigo objetiva fazer um resgate histórico da infância no Brasil a partir do período denominado filantrópico-higienista até os dias atuais. Inicia com o Movimento da Escola Nova, com a instauração sutil das formas de disciplinarização. Logo, a introdução da Psicologia nas políticas públicas se ..

ABSTRACT Pharmacogenetics is a rapidly expanding area of research exploring the relationship between inter‐individual genetic variation and drug response, with the goal of developing genetically optimised therapies. Slippery slope arguments claim that a particular action should be rejected (or supported) because it might be the first step onto a slippery slope leading to undesirable (or desirable) consequences. In this article, several slippery slope arguments relevant to the context of pharmacogenetics are evaluated under consideration of underlying reasons for their popularity. The (...) author concludes that although the examined arguments are unconvincing as slippery slope arguments, they do matter in this context. While positive slippery slope arguments serve as a driving force to fuel the development of pharmacogenetics, their negative counterparts play an important role to sensitise policy makers and the public to potential problems. (shrink)

Este artigo apresenta um projeto de pesquisa clínica qualitativa, que busca compreender a função da família, seu caráter de transmissão, no que se refere à constituição subjetiva da criança, considerando as profundas transformações contemporâneas das instituições, inclusive da família. Propomos uma discussão sobre a temática em articulação com a educação, abordando-a no contexto social e avançando para perspectiva psicanalítica. Notamos que a noção de função da psicanálise pode nos fazer avançar teórica e clinicamente na tentativa de superar modelos parentais ou (...) de comportamentos que supostamente pudessem garantir um desenvolvimento adequado à criança, permitindo a problematização dos ideais de família marcantes em nosso imaginário social e a reflexão sobre seus possíveis impactos na saúde mental dos aprendentes, familiares e educadores nos contextos educativos. (shrink)

This paper is concerned with Michel Serres’s critique of property. Through the concept of ‘le propre,’ which in French can mean both ‘clean’ and ‘one’s own,’ and a naturalist reading of Rousseau, he proposes a ‘stercorian’ eco-criticism of property. Focusing on concepts of limits provides a fruitful angle from which to illuminate Serres’s critique of law and property. The first section will introduce Serres as a thinker of limits, borders, and boundaries. In the second and third parts, attention will be (...) drawn to his eco-criticism of law and property from a feminist and philosophy of science perspective, concluding with a fourth part, in which Serres’s approach will be contextualized in relation to other naturalisms. His work has far-reaching consequences for discourses of human agency in the context of the Anthropocene and makes a crucial contribution to how a new naturalist criticism of property might be conceived. (shrink)

La présente contribution analyse dans quelle mesure une approche de précaution permettant de mettre en balance des intérêts de libéralisation commerciale et des préoccupations de diversité culturelle peut être caractérisée en droit international, sous quelles formes et par quels mécanismes. Elle examine l’application d’une telle approche en matière de commerce international en mettant en lumière le besoin de prudence dans l’articulation entre « commerce et culture », ainsi que la manière dont le droit international de la culture peut légitimer et (...) renforcer une telle approche. (shrink)

Trends and issues in the dissemination of knowledge are discussed in terms of current trends. The general trends include the rapid rate at which new journals and documents are produced and increasing specialization in the field. Among the issues discussed are the optimum information hypothesis, optimum conceptual size of information, vividness and propitiousness of the information, and orientations to knowledge of subcultures within a professional field. The field of early childhood education is used as the example of each trend and (...) issue. (shrink)