The aim of this article is to offer a rejoinder to an argument against scientific realism put forward by van Fraassen, based on theoretical considerations regarding microphysics. At a certain stage of his general attack to scientific realism, van Fraassen argues, in contrast to what realists typically hold, that empirical regularities should sometimes be regarded as “brute facts”, which do not ask for explanation in terms of deeper, unobservable mechanisms. The argument from microphysics formulated by van Fraassen is based on (...) the claim that in microphysics the demand for explanation leads to a demand for the so-called hidden-variable theories, which “runs contrary to at least one major school of thought in twentieth-century physics”. It is shown here that this argument does not represent an insurmountable obstacle to scientific realism, not even when a series of important theoretical and experimental results against hidden-variable theories — and not merely a conflict with a certain school of thought—is taken into account. (shrink)

Both in the Treatise of Human Nature and in the Enquiry concerning Human Understanding, Hume defends that “there is no chance in the world”, and that “what the vulgar call chance is nothing but a secret and conceal’d cause”. This view plays a crucial role in Hume’s influential analysis of free will and moral responsibility. It functions also as a central presupposition in his discussion of miracles. However, Hume himself argued convincingly that the “maxim of causality”, according to which “whatever (...) begins to exist, must have a cause of existence” cannot be established a priori, by either intuition or demonstration. He concludes, then, that such “opinion must necessarily arise from observation and experience”. In the present article I analyse this latter statement, showing, first, what was Hume detailed proposal for funding the principle of causality on experience. Given the apparent weakness of this proposal, I then speculate on what kind of firmer empirical foundation could, instead, have been given, in Hume’s time, to the principle of causality, namely, the indirect support offered by Newtonian mechanics. Finally, I show how this theoretical link between experience and the principle, and also Hume’s straightforward, inductive argument, were undermined by the inception of quantum physics, at the beginning of the 20th century. (shrink)

Ao defender, nos Princípios matemáticos de filosofia natural, a existência de uma força de gravitação universal, Newton desencadeou uma onda de dúvidas e objeções filosóficas. Suas próprias declarações sobre a natureza da gravitação não são facilmente interpretáveis como formando um conjunto consistente de opiniões. Por um lado, logo após fornecer as três definições de "quantidades de forças centrípetas" (Defs. 6-8), Newton observa que está tratando tais forças "matematicamente", sem se pronunciar sobre sua realidade física. Mas, por outro lado, no Escólio (...) Geral inserido no final da segunda edição do livro, Newton diz que foi capaz de "explicar" vários fenômenos de movimento por meio da força de gravidade - que ele mostrou ser um tipo de força centrípeta -, embora não tivesse ainda conseguido explicar a causa dessa força. Uma interpretação plausível dessas últimas afirmações é que Newton acreditava que pôde inferir, a partir dos fenômenos, a existência da força de gravidade, enquanto agente causal real de certos movimentos, mas que ainda não havia tido sucesso em descobrir a causa dessa causa. O objetivo principal do presente artigo não é aprofundar a análise histórica das declarações de Newton, mas examinar como essa questão se insere no debate mais geral sobre o estatuto epistemológico das hipóteses científicas que transcendem a experiência imediata. Segundo a posição defendida, entre muitos outros, por John Locke, tais hipóteses devem ser interpretadas como tentativas legítimas de descrever aspectos inobserváveis da realidade. Em contraste com isso, no caso específico das hipóteses sobre forças - de gravitação ou quaisquer outras -, George Berkeley argumentou vigorosamente a favor de sua interpretação como meros artifícios teóricos úteis às "demonstrações matemáticas" na ciência da mecânica. Ao longo da análise das vantagens e desvantagens filosóficas dessas posições opostas, indica-se aqui que, embora a interpretação realista pareça fazer mais justiça ao desenvolvimento real da física após os Princípios matemáticos, a interpretação instrumentalista de Berkeley tem o mérito filosófico inegável de representar uma adesão mais firme ao empirismo, que é, de um modo ou de outro, valorizado por ambas as partes envolvidas na disputa sobre a natureza da gravitação. Newton's defence, in the Principia, of the existence of a universal force of gravity immediately gave rise to a wave of philosophical doubts and objections. His own remarks on the nature of gravitation are not easily amenable of a consistent, uniform interpretation. This paper begins by reviewing briefly these remarks. Its primary objective is, however, to examine how this important scientific issue contributed to demarcate two main epistemological positions on the status of scientific hypotheses transcending immediate experience. In Newton's time, two exponents of these positions were, respectively, Locke and Berkeley. Intriguingly, Newton fuelled both the Berkeleyan, instrumentalist interpretation, and the Lockean, realist interpretation. On the one hand, immediately after offering the definitions of "quantities of centripetal forces" (Definitions 6-8), he warned that he was treating these forces "mathematically", without pronouncing on its physical status. This remark lends support to Berkeley's anti-realist interpretation of forces, as Berkeley himself was keen to point out. But in the General Scholium, at the end of the book, Newton declared that he could "explain" certain important phenomena of motion by the force of gravity, although he had not yet been able to explain the cause of this force, adding, famously, that he would "feign no hypotheses" about this issue. A natural, realist interpretation of this statement is that Newton believed that he could infer, from the phenomena, the existence of gravity, as a real, causal physical agent, but that he had not yet succeeded in discovering the cause of this cause. In discussing the shortcomings and advantages of these opposing views, we indicate that although the realist interpretation appears to do more justice to the actual development of physics after the Principia, Berkeley's interpretation has the philosophical merit of representing a firmer adherence to empiricism, a position valued, in one way or another, by all parties involved in the dispute on the nature of gravitation. (shrink)

http://dx.doi.org/10.5007/1808-1711.2008v12n1p49 The aim of this article is to offer a rejoinder to an argument against scientific realism put forward by van Fraassen, based on theoretical considerations regarding microphysics. At a certain stage of his general attack to scientific realism, van Fraassen argues, in contrast to what realists typically hold, that empirical regularities should sometimes be regarded as “brute facts”, which do not ask for explanation in terms of deeper, unobservable mechanisms. The argument from microphysics formulated by van Fraassen is based (...) on the claim that in microphysics the demand for explanation leads to a demand for the so-called hidden-variable theories, which “runs contrary to at least one major school of thought in twentieth-century physics”. It is shown here that this argument does not represent an insurmountable obstacle to scientific realism, not even when a series of important theoretical and experimental results against hidden-variable theories — and not merely a conflict with a certain school of thought—is taken into account. (shrink)

This paper discusses an argument for scientific realism put forward by Anthony Quinton in The Nature of Things. The argument – here called the controlled continuity argument – seems to have received no attention in the literature, apparently because it may easily be mistaken for a better-known argument, Grover Maxwell’s “argument from the continuum”. It is argued here that, in point of fact, the two are quite distinct and that Quinton’s argument has several advantages over Maxwell’s. The controlled continuity argument (...) is also compared to Ian Hacking’s “argument from coincidence”. It is pointed out that both arguments are to a large extent independent from considerations about high-level scientific theories, and that both are abductive arguments at the core. But these similarities do not dilute an important difference related to the fact that Quinton’s argument cleverly seeks to anchor belief in unobservable entities in realism about ordinary objects, which is a position shared by most contemporary scientific anti-realists. (shrink)

http://dx.doi.org/10.5007/1808-1711.2012v16n2p229 Tanto no Tratado da Natureza Humana como na Investigação sobre o Entendimento Humano , Hume mostra-se convencido de que “não há acaso no mundo”, e que “aquilo que o vulgo chama de acaso não passa de uma causa secreta e escondida”. Essa tese desempenha papel crucial em sua análise do livre-arbítrio e, conseguintemente, da responsabilidade moral; é também um elemento importante em sua discussão sobre os milagres. No entanto, o próprio Hume ofereceu, no Tratado , um argumento convincente para (...) mostrar que o princípio de causalidade, segundo o qual tudo o que começa a existir tem uma causa, não pode ser conhecido a priori , por intuição ou demonstração. Logo, essa “opinião tem necessariamente de provir da observação e experiência”. O presente trabalho examina essa tese, mostrando, inicialmente, qual era a proposta de Hume para fundar na experiência o princípio de causalidade, e depois qual, de fato, teria sido o mais robusto fundamento para esse princípio: a mecânica newtoniana. Explica-se, por fim, como esse fundamento empírico indireto e o próprio argumento de Hume foram solapados pela física quântica, no século XX. (shrink)

Both in the Introduction to the Treatise of Human Nature and in the, Hume expressly declared that his goal was to contribute to the development of a “science of man” methodologically akin to the natural sciences, and capable of emulating their “accuracy” and explanatory success. He regarded these sciences as starting from careful observation of phenomena, and proceeding to the establish-ment of “principles” of increasing generality. Although rejecting as vain any hope of discovering “the ultimate principles” of any science, he (...) did not make clear what exactly he thought the principles actually involved in natural philosophy are. This article aims to shed some light on this issue through a survey and examination of the principles of Hume’s “science of man”, and of the most representative examples of principles of natural philosophy considered by Hume. (shrink)

A Constituição dos Atenienses é uma pequena obra acerca da politeia de Atenas e das condições que permitem que a democracia permaneça em Atenas como forma de gerenciar a vida da polis. Esta obra representa um problema filológico e historiográfico, porque, embora esteja no corpus das obras de Xenofonte, ela é considerada obra de outro autor, conhecido como Pseudo-Xenofonte ou “Velho Oligarca”. Trata-se de um pamphlet de orientação oligárquica que apresenta Atenas como um mundo ao contrário, em que os piores (...) comandam e os melhores são como escravizados pela multidão ignorante. (shrink)

The psychopathological analysis of hysteria is a victim of narrow conceptualizations. Among these is the inscription of hysteria in the feminine sphere, about body and sexuality, which incentivized conceptual reductionism. Hysteria has been mainly considered a gendered pathology, almost exclusively female, and it has been associated with cultural and/or religious features over time rather than treated as a psychopathological world. Further, hysteria has been dominated by conceptual inaccuracies and indecision, not only in terms of clinical features but also in terms (...) of its definition. For this reason, it seems necessary to “undress” hysteria from this feminization, sexualization, and corporealization with which it has been abundantly clothed over the years. “Undressing” hysteria will make possible a reconfiguring and deconstructing of the explanatory-causal model of Charcot and Freud. However, if we take out this cultural heritage, the stigma accompanying this diagnosis, and the weight of the enormous historical tradition that hysteria carries, the world of hysteria continues to constitute a domain full of complexity and nosographic challenges. Hysteria has been considered a sum of psychological behaviors and states illustrated by drama, mystery, or falsity. The difficulty in understanding the multiple somatic manifestations which characterize this clinical condition created several controversies and much confusion. In the current nosography, the personological component of hysteria has been separated from its symptomatic manifestation, in the Histrionic Personality Disorder and Conversion Disorder categories, respectively. This segmentation by descriptive nosography does contribute to a unitary understanding of the phenomenon and, consequently, of daily clinical practice. Clinical complexity can be grasped and deciphered only if the symptom is inscribed in the patient’s lifeworld and his/her subjective life history. Clinical practice is thus thought of in terms of a structural aggregation of a homogeneous set of phenomena, together constituting a specific way of being in the world. The starting point of this article is the evident modalities characterizing this life-world, taking care not to confuse the point of origin with the point of expression. (shrink)

The pandemic period has placed the organizations in a state of great tension. It has generated a situation of confusion, lack of rules, and production-related criticalities that have called into question the very existence of many productive realities. This article aims to highlight the dimensions of care and ethics put in place by HR managers in COVID-19. The objective that animated the authors have focused on the HRM level of medium and large companies in Italy to highlight the protective actions (...) toward people and the organization in the period COVID 19, highlighting what were the ethical values and actions of care put in place. In this article, we wanted to give voice to managers who had management tasks in their organizations by asking them to tell us how they dealt with the challenges imposed by the emergency. In the research, we start from a way of understanding workplaces understood as a “process of ongoing social relationship” within which the HR function is dedicated to the care of the quality of relationships. HR managers have to manage a complex role of mediating between the interests of people and employers by trying to find good mediations. (shrink)

O Argumento da Terra Gêmea Moral (ATGM) é o desafio semântico central para o Realismo Moral Naturalista (RMN). À fim de evitar tal problema, os defensores do RMN têm articulado uma série de réplicas ao ATGM. Neste artigo, abordo algumas dessas réplicas e defendo a tese de que elas não refutam o ATGM. Considero duas propostas em específico: o Argumento da Tradução, de D. Copp, e o Argumento do Fim da Investigação Moral, de A. Viggiano. Apresento essas objeções, mostro em (...) que sentido pretendem responder ao ATGM e argumento que cada uma delas é vulnerável a vários problemas. Concluo que os ataques de Copp e Viggiano ao ATGM devem ser recusados e que o desafio semântico ao RMN persiste. (shrink)

This text through the direct use to Foucault’s work and using the concepts of ‘care of the self’ and biopolitics is questioning and analyzing resistance and practices of freedom. Mainly, from the Foucault’s courses at the College de France and the methodological tools found there, here I present a discussion about Gilles Deleuze’s contributions to Foucault’s thought and I develop a dialog where I try to explain the concepts of domination, power, ethics, esthetics and the relationship of the self with (...) himself. (shrink)

Vision is the main entrance for environmental input to the human brain. Even if vision is our most used sensory modality, its importance is not limited to environmental exploration. Rather it has strong links to motor competences, further extending to cognitive and social aspects of human life. These multifaceted relationships are particularly important in developmental age and become dramatically evident in presence of complex deficits originating from visual aberrancies. The present review summarizes the available neuropsychological evidence on the development of (...) visual competences, with a particular focus on the associated visuo-motor integration skills in health and disease. With the aim of supporting future research and interventional settings, the goal of the present review is to constitute a solid base to help the translation of neuropsychological hypotheses into straightforward empirical investigations and rehabilitation/training protocols. This approach will further increase the impact, ameliorate the acceptance, and ease the use and implementation of lab-derived intervention protocols in real-life situations. (shrink)

In the literature, the nature of the relationships between memory processes and summary evaluations is still a debate. According to some theoretical approaches (e.g., “two-memory hypothesis”; Anderson, 1989) retrospective evaluations are based on the impression formed while attending to the to-be-assessed stimuli(on-line judgment) – no functional dependence between information retrieval and judgment is implied. Conversely, several theories entail that judgment must depend, at least in part, on memory processes (e.g., Dougherty, Gettys, & Ogden, 1999; Schwarz, 1998; Tversky & Kahneman, 1973). (...) The present study contributes to this debate by addressing two important issues. First, it shows how more comprehensive memory measures than those used previously (e.g., Hastie & Park, 1986) are necessary in order to detect a relationship between memory and retrospective evaluations. Secondly, it demonstrates how memory strategies influence the relationship between memory and judgment. Participants recalled lists of words, after having assessed each of them for their pleasantness. Results showed a clear association between memory and judgment, which was mediated by the individual strategies participants used to recall the items. (shrink)

This paper explores how some Italian HR managers narrate the changes imposed by the COVID-19 threat in the workplace. Events since December 2019 have presented exceptional circumstances to which HR managers have reacted in very different ways. This study explored how HR managers came to introduce organizational changes aimed at coping with the emergency, as well as how employees were involved in those organizational changes. The article is based on a thematic analysis of some interviews with Italian HR managers whose (...) companies decided to switch working from home on a massive scale. We wanted to offer some reflections on the actions taken by a few HR managers and Italian companies to keep working at a time when most workers were forced to respect the lockdown. (shrink)

Resumo: Entre 1450 e 1750, na Europa e nas suas colônias, milhares de mulheres, mas não só, foram processadas pelo crime de bruxaria. A acusação se baseava em fofocas difundidas e muitas vezes acreditadas pela “má fama” dos acusados. Seria redutivo atribuir toda a responsabilidade a um complexo de crenças fruto de uma desordem mental generalizada. A caça às bruxas foi uma combinação de intervenções precisas e racionalizadas que objetivavam construir o espectro do monstro demoníaco. O tribunal inquisitório, formalmente obstinado, (...) na busca do crimine exceptum se transformou em um mecanismo infernal: uma engrenagem que produzia culpados. Poucos se deram conta do que estava acontecendo. Os mais doutos puseram à disposição a sua doutrina para sustentar culturalmente carnífices. Mas houve um pequeno rebanho que não se deixou envolver nesta “embriaguez”. Entre estes se encontrava um confessor de bruxas: o jesuíta alemão Friedrich von Spee. Redescobrir o seu pensamento, a sua doutrina, o seu empenho e a sua vida significa realizar uma obra obrigatória de reparação a um injustificado esquecimento. Mas também contribuir, com novos elementos, ao debate sobre o papel da Igreja Católica na “caça às bruxas”. Palavras-chave: Bruxas. von Spee. Exoterismo. (shrink)

This article suggests developing the concept of spiritual ecology into that of balanced spiritual ecosystems. Philosophies, theologies, education systems, political parties, and gender-based and ethnic identity politics need to be critiqued both from within and without so that they can finally contribute to the creation, maintenance and flourishing of balanced spiritual ecosystems.Contribution: Spiritual ecology is a concept on which converge different worldviews. This article recommends using balanced spiritual ecosystems, instead. The new concept could provoke further reflection on how our -ontologies (...) and communities co-exist and whether they do it organically and spiritually. This article befits HTS’s interest in ‘theology and nature’. (shrink)

Confronted by answering a complex question such as ‘What are the Limit(s) of Compromise?’ when ‘unpacking State-Society Relations in the Urban Space’, some problematising thoughts are offered to further elaborate urban studies by resorting to systems thinking and its leverage points concept. Both social and ecological issues are addressed, and specific references to Venice, Italy, are offered, including recent grassroot experiences. The dissertation includes some epistemological dilemmas and some initial projections to start to measure ourselves with a new epoch, able (...) to interact with all of the above: social, ecological, urban, and power/governance dimensions. (shrink)

Does Wittgenstein have a coherent philosophy of mathematics? Here, I will be concerned with showing that the answer is positive. However, given that his life-long philosophical perspective on mathematics tends to be misleading, I focus on the specific problem posed by Paul Benacerraf in ‘Mathematical Truth’, that is: the puzzle about how to reconcile the metaphysics with the epistemology for mathematics. My aim is to show that there is an adequate anti-platonistic solution to that puzzle in the mature writings of (...) the Austrian philosopher. (shrink)

We characterise the collections of infinite binary sequences that, when barred by a set of finite binary sequences, are also barred by a finite subset of such a set.

Abstract.Formal topologies are today an established topic in the development of constructive mathematics. One of the main tools in formal topology is inductive generation since it allows to introduce inductive methods in topology. The problem of inductively generating formal topologies with a cover relation and a unary positivity predicate has been solved in [CSSV]. However, to deal both with open and closed subsets, a binary positivity predicate has to be considered. In this paper we will show how to adapt to (...) this framework the method used to generate inductively formal topologies with a unary positivity predicate; the main problem that one has to face in such a new setting is that, as a consequence of the lack of a complete formalization, both the cover relation and the positivity predicate can have proper axioms. (shrink)

*Doutor pela Universidade Estadual de Campinas. Professor da Universidade Estadual de Campinas. ** Docteur à la Université de Paris 8. Professeur de philosophie de l'éducation, Université de Rouen. Apoio: CAPES-COFECUB. A noção de diferença ganhou o mundo, no final do século vinte, e chegou ao campo teórico da educação e às escolas. Educar a diferença; educar na diferença; educar para a diferença passaram a ser palavras de ordem em planos de educação de órgãos governamentais, em projetos políticos pedagógicos de escolas, (...) em projetos de organizações não governamentais. Projetos multiculturais proliferam, culturas de paz, tolerância e convivência consensual são afirmadas nos mais diversos âmbitos. No caso específico do Brasil, a diferença passou a ser palavra-chave das políticas públicas, seja para embasar a pluralidade, seja para embasar a educação inclusiva. Mas uma pergunta se impõe: compreendemos, de fato, a diferença? Vivemos a diferença, ou ela está apenas em nossos discursos? Enfim: como nos relacionamos com as diferenças? A problemática tem ganhado diferentes contornos nos dois países nos últimos anos. No Brasil, as últimas duas décadas foram momento de desenvolvimento de políticas públicas de cunho afirmativo, centrados na perspectiva de uma educação inclusiva. Partia-se do princípio de que uma educação democrática deve estar aberta para todos, sem exceção, de modo que a escola deve ser o lugar da manifestação das diferenças, mas tratadas todas de modo igualitário. Diferenças sociais, de gênero, de cor, de cultura, de níveis e condições de aprendizagem devem conviver, num ato solidário de construção de uma cultura democrática comum. Mais recentemente, a emergência de uma onda neoconservadora tem colocado em questão alguns destes princípios e práticas, em reação contrária àquilo que vinha sendo produzido. Um exemplo são os esforços em diversas regiões do País para impedir que questões relativas ao gênero sejam trabalhadas nas escolas; e mesmo os debates colocados em pauta pelo movimento que se autodenomina “Escola sem partido”, que defende a prática de uma suposta “neutralidade” que, sabemos, é impossível no ato educativo. No contexto francês, a problemática assume outros contornos, mas também se reveste de especial importância. País com larga tradição republicana, que se traduz também no campo da educação, vive-se ali de forma intensa a problemática do convívio com imigrantes de diferentes culturas. Lembremos, por exemplo, da proibição do uso de véu islâmico pelas meninas nas escolas públicas, alguns anos atrás, sob a alegação de que a escola é laica e não pode admitir a ostentação de símbolos religiosos. É uma questão de desrespeito ao outro? De desrespeito à liberdade de crença? De desrespeito a uma cultura? Ou afirmação de uma pluralidade em que condições singulares não podem prevalecer sobre o global? Questões certamente polêmicas. E hoje, com a intensificação do movimento de refugiados pela Europa, a questão se vê acirrada. Forças nacionalistas defendem que se limite o acesso ao estrangeiro, ou que este se submeta aos princípios da cultura francesa; mas, anos atrás, filósofos como René Schérer e Jacques Derrida defendiam o princípio da hospitalidade, do acolhimento do outro como sendo um dos mais fundamentais de uma política republicana. Enfim, com histórias diferentes e com contextos muito diferenciados entre si, os dois países se veem confrontados com o dilema de como lidar com as diferenças, de como tratá-las no contexto escolar. O propósito deste dossiê é o de oferecer distintas abordagens conceituais do tema, evidenciando as contribuições que a Filosofia da Educação pode oferecer para pensar os problemas contemporâneos. Ele é fruto das ações de um projeto de cooperação internacional entre universidades brasileiras e universidades francesas financiado pelo acordo CAPES-COFECUB. O projeto se intitula Diferença, Pluralismo e Confiança em Educação e Formação, com vigência entre janeiro de 2015 e dezembro de 2018, e tem como objetivo central pensar conceitualmente estes temas, como forma de oferecer subsídios teóricos para o campo educativo, na interface Brasil-França. Data de registro: 17/05/2017 Data de aceite: 04/12/2016. (shrink)

Monadic second order logic and linear temporal logic are two logical formalisms that can be used to describe classes of infinite words, i.e., first-order models based on the natural numbers with order, successor, and finitely many unary predicate symbols.Monadic second order logic over infinite words can alternatively be described as a first-order logic interpreted in${\cal P}\left$, the power set Boolean algebra of the natural numbers, equipped with modal operators for ‘initial’, ‘next’, and ‘future’ states. We prove that the first-order theory (...) of this structure is the model companion of a class of algebras corresponding to a version of linear temporal logic without until.The proof makes crucial use of two classical, nontrivial results from the literature, namely the completeness of LTL with respect to the natural numbers, and the correspondence between S1S-formulas and Büchi automata. (shrink)

I propose to show in this paper how Bosanquet’s aesthetics, in certain of its aspects, conditions William Temple’s reflection on art — a reflection which occupies a central position in Temple’s “Christo-centric metaphysics,” and which finds expression particularly in Mens Creatrix. Bosanquet’s influence becomes still more evident if we compare Temple’s position with the philosophy of art which R.G. Collingwood delineated in the initial phase of his thought, above all in Speculum Mentis and Outlines of a Philosophy of Art.

Este texto reflete sobre o memoricídio, consequente à presunção racial branca, como vestígio de operações para o genocídio dos corpos e das mentes negras a partir da Peleja de Inácio da Catingueira contra Romano. Sob o jogo discursivo da humilhação, já se encontrava a vontade brutal de destruição de qualquer traço, perspectiva, visão remanescente de saberes e culturas africanas ou descendentes, fossem de cunho material, simbólico, reflexivo, imagético, expressivo, na língua, no corpo. No embate, Inácio, negro, escravizado, já rebaixado sob (...) a égide do sistema escravocrata, embate-se contra a tentativa presunçosa de aniquilamento perpetrada por seu oponente. (shrink)