Sanfte Chemie was a concept formulated in the 1980s in Germany by a group of environmentally conscious scholars. It emerged within a unique environment, marked by its radical critique of dominant forms of rationality, and against the rich background of German philosophical technocritical traditions. Its purpose was to profoundly reshape the practice of chemistry and the organization of the chemical industry along the lines of sustainability. In contrast to later concepts like green or sustainable chemistry, Sanfte Chemie went beyond setting (...) new research directions; it critically reevaluated the entire epistemological foundation upon which the science of chemistry was built. Under the auspices of the German Green Party, the concept flourished in the 1980s before falling out of grace in the following decade. While largely deemed overly radical in its time and then subsequently forgotten, Sanfte Chemie not only anticipated some of the most promising trends in sustainability science today but also offered unique insights that may shed new light on the challenges of the ongoing environmental crisis. (shrink)

The concept of green chemistry dominated the imagination of environmentally-minded chemists over the last thirty years. The conceptual frameworks laid by the American Environmental Protection Agency scholars in the 1990s constitute today the core of a line of thinking aimed at transforming chemistry into a sustainable science. And yet, in the shadow of green chemistry, a broader, even if less popular, concept of sustainable chemistry started taking shape. Initially, it was either loosely associated with green chemistry or left undefined as (...) a distinct but generaly different approach. In such a vague form, it was endorsed by the organizations such as OECD and the IUPAC in the late 1990s. It was not until the 2010s however, when it solidified as a separate more embracing and more overarching tradition that could compete with green chemistry by offering insights that the latter lacked. Sustainable chemistry seeks to transcend the narrow focus on chemical synthesis and embrace a much more holistic view of chemical activities including social responsibility and sustainable business models. Due to an interesting historical coincidence, it was in Germany where sustainable chemistry took roots and became institutionalized for the first time. It was thanks to German exceptionalism and the unwillingness of German scholars to embrace the “green” terminology originating from the US, the concept of sustainable chemistry could safely mature and develop in the German-speaking world, before reaching a high degree of formalization with dedicated journals, founding articles, and programmatic principles aspiring to transform the entire chemical enterprise in the years to come. (shrink)

Stanisław Głąbiński (1862–1941) professor at the Lvov University, the author of a two volume work entitled „National economics” is a representative of the historical-national trend in Polish economics. The subject matter of his concept of national economics is the national economy which is a higher rank entity, encompassing all economic entities in the country that are related materially and spiritually. Bonds that link individuals into a higher rank entity, i.e. a nation, are reflected in the term ‘social resources’. Głąbiński understands (...) them as moral and material heritage of past generations that influences attitudes of the contemporary generation. He divides them into moral and material resources, and especially emphasizes the importance of the former ones. In the concept of moral resources, Głąbiński included his claims concerning the whole socio-ethical conditions of economic processes. He appreciated the influence exerted by the changes in the ethical viewpoint of the society on the economic activity as well as on the shaping of the sense of duty towards the whole society. Special emphasis placed in Głąbiński’s economic theory on the role of ethical motives undoubtedly springs from the influence exerted by the German historical school and, in particular, by Bruno Hildebrand. It also is a result of the effect of Polish economic thought including in particular the views of Fryderyk Skarbek and Józef Supiński. According to Głąbiński, the most important constituent element of material resources was finance, understood by him as stocks of economic goods. (shrink)

A report on the conference “Ecosemiotic Paradigm for Nature and Culture”.

A logical-philosophical approach to the meaning-carriers or meaning-processes is juxtaposed with the anthropological-biological concepts of subjective significance uniting both for the semiotics of culture and the semiotics of nature. It is assumed that certain objects, which are identifiable in the universe of man and in the world surrounding all living organisms as significant from the perspective of meaning-receivers, meaning-creators and meaning-utilizers, can be determined as signs when they represent other objects, perform certain tasks or satisfy certain needs of subjects. Hence, (...) the meaning of signifying objects may be found in the relation between the expression of a signifier and (I) a signified content, or (2) a signified function, or (3) a signified value of the cultural and natural objects subsumed by the interpreting subjects under the semiotic ones. (shrink)

How quantum computing is really done: a primer for future quantum device engineers.

"Translation [from Polish] of a revised and expanded version of his Warto©Øsci i Oceny." Bibliography: p. [177]-182. Includes index.

Henryk Kamieński (1813–1866), a philosopher, economist, and theorist of struggle for national independence, idealized petty ownership as the most appropriate form of ownership both in ethical and economic aspects. He analyzed the problem on three levels. In his proposals for a specific solution of the agrarian question, presented in the Warsaw periodicals, Kamieński supported the introduction of agricultural rent paid by peasants and the abolishment of serfdom. Calling serfdom a land usury had an ethical implication. In the protection of the (...) manor over peasants Kamieński sees the desire of manor owners to hold the victims of this usury in their hands. Replacement of serfdom with an agricultural rent was for him the first step in granting landownership to peasants. Kamieński emphasizes that petty ownership is conducive to production growth. He believes that the spread of it is an opportunity for peasants to heighten their national consciousness and a chance of civilized advancement of Polish territories. This line of thinking is clearly evident in his studies published abroad, devoted to the conception of combining a national uprising with granting freehold to peasants. Kamieński also discusses the values of petty ownership in agriculture in his theoretical work Filozofia ekonomii materialnej ludzkiego społeczeństwa [Philosophy of material economics of human society], in which he presents his vision of a system of social justice. For him, petty ownership is a guarantee of respect for human rights, the most effective safeguard of preserving the autonomy of human individual. In this reasoning we could see certain elements of personalism, which brings Kamieński’s standpoint closer to that of Pope John Paul II. (shrink)

Stanisław Głąbiński (1862–1941), economist and politician, and one of the main representatives of the historical trend, sought to develop the national school in the Polish economy. The nation and national idea were to become its starting point. By ‘people’ he meant the population in the political sense, i.e. the whole of society within the state, including the factions and national minorities. The subject of national economics is the national or social economy. It is the total unit of a higher order, (...) including all the households in the country linked by ties of mutual dependence, both material and spiritual. Its purpose and subject is the society, the nation. Therefore, national economics is a social science. Production is characterized by a social dimension, its size determined by both economic and non-economic factors as well as moral and ethical ones. These two aspects are characteristic of the two categories associated with it, i.e. the social resources and factors of production. The category of social resources is similar to Frederick List’s concept of productive forces, meaning the production capacity of the nation, the power of producing wealth. Głąbiński divides them into moral and material resources, attaching more importance to the moral resources. They are the fullest expression of the nation’s culture condition, the nation’s moral level and they also provide stable social bonds. The concept of moral resources involves two production factors: entrepreneurship as well as knowledge and work. The material resources represent the earth (nature) and capital. (shrink)

The 1840s brought a certain revival both in intellectual life and efforts to modernize agriculture in the Kingdom of Poland. Count Andrzej Zamoyski (1800–1874) played an inspiring role here. In all his properties replaced feudal service by rents. Moreover, even though the villein system was still in place, he was a spokesman for a transition to this more modern form of managing for the totality of the landed gentry. On his initiative, the periodical “Roczniki Gospodarstwa Krajowego” (“Polish Farming Annual”) came (...) out. “Roczniki” brought in representatives of the Kingdom’s landed gentry supporting actions aimed at economic development and the promotion of civilization, soon to be called organic work. Representatives of the landowning party supporting the idea of organic work were popularly called “klemensowczycy”, because of their participation in conventions held in Andrzej Zamoyski’s estate in the village of Klemensów. The leader of the “klemensowczycy” blazed a trail for Poland’s progress of civilization, where he was characterized by Occidentalism, understood as referring to historical experiences of the Western world. (shrink)

Stanisław Głąbiński (1862-1941), professor of Lviv University and the author of the two-volume ‘National Economics (‘Ekonomika narodowa’), was one of the main representatives of the historical-national approach in Polish economics. The study of national economics which he created was divided into general economics, i.e. economic theory, and practical economics, referred to as economic and social policies. Głąbiński emphasizes that there is a close relationship between the latter and ethics. Before the development of economic theory, economic thought was normative, because of (...) its close relationship to ethics. However, it was not the history of economic theory, but the history of the notion of economic politics and of its practical application. Due to the social nature of ethics, there are also specific relations between it and theoretical economics. In modern countries finding a solution to the so-called social question has become a common task of economics and ethics. Ethical topics are also contained in the content of the category ‘social resources’, in which the social determinants of human economic activity find their fullest reflection. This applies in particular to the category of moral resources, which illustrates the functioning of state bodies and public institutions, the state of education, the prevailing habits and the customs and the character of the nation. (shrink)