ArgumentThis article examines the conception of elements in the natural philosophy of Nicolaus Taurellus (1547–1606) and explores the theological motivation that stands behind this conception. By some of his early modern readers, Taurellus may have been understood as a proponent of material atoms. By contrast, I argue that considerations concerning the substantiality of the ultimate constituents of composites led Taurellus to an immaterialist ontology, according to which elements are immaterial forms that possess active and passive potencies (...) as well as motion and extension. In Taurellus's view, immaterialism about elements provides support for the theological doctrine of creationex nihilo. As he argues, the ontology of immaterial forms helps to explicate a sense in which creatures are substances, not accidents of the divine substance. In particular, he maintains that immaterial forms stand in suitable relations of ontological dependence to God: creation dependence (since forms would not exist without the divine act of creation), but neither subsistence dependence (since forms continue to exist without continued divine agency) nor activity dependence (since forms are active without requiring divine concurrence). (shrink)

This article analyzes the treatment of vegetative powers in Nicolaus Taurellus’s critical response to Andrea Cesalpino. Taurellus’s interest in this topic derives from larger metaphysical and theological concerns. His concern is that Cesalpino’s view that vegetative powers are due to a divine principle of activity inherent in natural particulars leads to a version of substance monism that is incompatible with the Christian doctrine of creation. Taurellus’s critique can best be understood within the context of his defense (...) of an immaterialist account of the basic constituents of reality, which is connected with an emergentist account of the origin of vegetative powers. (shrink)

Two Short Communications:R. A. Markus, Gregory the Great and In I Regum, by Francis ClarkAquinas's Claim ‘Anima Mea Non Est Ego’, by Stephen Priest.

Nicholas of Cusa (1401-1464), a student of canon law who became a Catholic cardinal, was widely considered the most important original philosopher of the Renaissance. He wrote principally on theology, philosophy, and church politics. This volume makes most of Nicholas's other writings on Church and reform available in English for the first time.

If people are to have rights to themselves, then they must have the right to affiliate in sovereign entities composed of people who mutually agree to affiliate with one another. This requires that any individual or group has a right to secede from any sovereign entity. The article develops the idea that a right of secession is natural when rights to territory and other gifts of nature are regarded as belonging equally to all persons, and all persons have rights to (...) themselves. The article also argues that a world that recognizes a right of secession is feasible. (shrink)

In voting theory, monotonicity is the axiom that an improvement in the ranking of a candidate by voters cannot cause a candidate who would otherwise win to lose. The participation axiom states that the sincere report of a voter’s preferences cannot cause an outcome that the voter regards as less attractive than the one that would result from the voter’s non-participation. This article identifies three binary distinctions in the types of circumstances in which failures of monotonicity or participation can occur. (...) Two of the three distinctions apply to monotonicity, while one of those and the third apply to participation. The distinction that is unique to monotonicity is whether the voters whose changed rankings demonstrate non-monotonicity are better off or worse off. The distinction that is unique to participation is whether the marginally participating voter causes his first choice to lose or his last choice to win. The overlapping distinction is whether the profile of voters’ rankings has a Condorcet winner or a cycle at the top. This article traces the occurrence of all of the resulting combination of characteristics in the voting methods that can exhibit failures of monotonicity. (shrink)

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be (...) preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant. (shrink)

Idealistische weltanschauung.-- Heroische ethik.-- Aristokratische politik.

-/- Philosophische Texte von der Antike bis zur Gegenwart sind Programm der Philosophischen Bibliothek. Jedes Jahr erscheinen in der »grünen Reihe« nach neuesten wissenschaftlichen Erkenntnissen erarbeitete Studienausgaben für alle, die es ernst meinen mit der Philosophie. -/- Herausgegeben von führenden Vertretern des Faches, eingeleitet und kommentiert, im Original, in Übersetzung oder zweisprachig, stehen hier neben den Klassikern der Philosophiegeschichte auch weniger bekannte und bisher marginalisierte Texte, die es wiederzuentdecken gilt. Repräsentative Auswahl- und Gesamtausgaben sowie Studien- und Wörterbücher ergänzen das Programm. (...) Gegenwärtig sind über 500 Titel von etwa 160 Autoren aus den letzten 2400 Jahren lieferbar. -/- Die Philosophische Bibliothek (gegr. 1868) ist die älteste und umfangreichste Sammlung philosophischer Texte, betreibt aber keine museale Rückschau auf geistesgeschichtliche Antiquitäten. Jeder einzelne Band schlägt eine Brücke zwischen aktueller Forschung und philosophischem Studium. Sorgfältigste Edition, Erläuterungen, Register und Bibliographien zeichnen diese Reihe aus, die zum Markenzeichen kritischer Textpräsentation geworden ist. (shrink)

Nicolaus Taurellus (1547-1606) developed a detailed critique of Cesalpino’s cardiocentric physiology, challenging the causal roles that Cesalpino ascribed to the heart, blood, vital spirits and vital heat in the origin of sensitive powers. He also rejected Cesalpino’s view that a cardiocentric physiology of sensation could be used as an analogy to explain in what sense the universe could be understood as being animated. The central point of Taurellus’s critique is that Cesalpino’s treatment of vital heat implies a (...) theory of divine immanence. On first sight, this critique may seem to rest on a misinterpretation since there are passages in which Cesalpino describes the relation between the causal role of vital heat and divine causation as an analogy. However, Taurellus draws attention to some aspects of Cesalpino’s thought that have not found much attention from commentators: Cesalpino’s account of divine self-reflection as a principle of final causation inherent in animals, and his account of divine self-reflection as a principle of final causation inherent in the heavens. (shrink)

The main topic of this article is Otto Frank's forgotten notion of the pressure-volume diagram of the cardiac ventricle as a means to assess the external mechanical work of the heart. Developed by Frank at the end of the 19th century, this idea was reenvisioned as pressure-volume area about 70 to 80 years later by Hiroyuki Suga. This notion now serves as a perspective for defining cardiac contractility and thus enabling the controlled clinical application of cardiac assist devices. We begin (...) our discussion, however, with the work of Ernest H. Starling, whose dominant influence on the thinking of cardio-physiologists led to a neglect of some of the fundamental insights of Frank's... (shrink)

CHAPTER ONE CUSANUS' VISION OF MAN Historical and Historiographical Backgrounds Nicolaus Cusanus has fascinated and puzzled students of late medieval and ...

The article discusses the reception of Grotius by Catholic lawyers at the university of Prague. It focuses on the Grotius commentary by Nicolaus Ignaz Königsmann, which was meant as a response to the discussion of Central European Catholic lawyers on questions of toleration and permissions in law. I argue that Königsmann agreed with Grotius because his conception could be combined with the Catholic belief in free will and dictamen sanae rationis. He grounded natural law in rational human nature and (...) rejected attempts to derive natural law from the highest principle. (shrink)

This critical edition of Nikola Vitov Gučetić’s (1549–1610) _Commentary on the First Book of Aristotle’s ‘Rhetoric’_, with an introduction and supplementary material, shows how Aristotle’s _Rhetoric_ influenced lesser-known thinkers who depended on the art of persuasion in their careers.

This chapter contains sections titled: Ptolemy and Copernicus A Clash of Two Worldviews The Heliocentric Worldview Copernicus was not a Scientific Revolutionary The Transition to Newton Some Philosophical Lessons Copernicus and Scientific Revolutions The Anthropic Principle: A Reversal of the Copernican Turn? Reading List Essay Questions.