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English summary: Currently, for many of the central problems that challenge human survival, such as the limitation of resources, problems in intercultural relations, information overload, and so on, there is hardly a satisfying solution. The relevant areas of tension are captured in this book, and placed in the context of the overextension and rebellion of individuals and of society. The pre-critical conditions, crisis, and borderline situations are the motivations behind the philosophical thoughts and conceptualizations captured in the essays in this (...) work. These studies consider themselves as a contribution to a life-serving communication, and for the development of a common construction meaning and symbols in dialogue. Overcoming threshold situations proves to be a case of "what humans really are and what they can really be." (Karl Jaspers) This book shows on the basis of numerous examples from psychotherapeutic, artistic, and political fields of actions, that historical and phenomenological analysis are complimented by a process-dynamic approach to social and conceptual problems. German description: Fur kaum eines der zentralen Uberlebensprobleme der Menschheit, Begrenztheit der Ressourcen, transkulturelle Verstandigungsprobleme, Informationsuberflutung u.a. liegen bislang uberzeugende Losungskonzepte vor. Die diesbezuglichen Spannungsfelder werden in dem vorliegenden Band aufgegriffen und in den Zusammenhang von Uberforderung und Rebellion des Einzelnen und der Gesellschaft gestellt. Die prakritische Ausgangslage, Krise und Grenzsituation werden Anstoss zum philosophischen Denken und zur Konzeptualisierung des hier vorgelegten Ansatzes. Dieser versteht sich als Beitrag zu lebensdienlicher Kommunikation und zu gemeinsamer Sinn- und Symbolbildung im Dialog. In der Uberwindung der Grenzsituation erweist sich, "was der Mensch eigentlich ist und werden kann" (Karl Jaspers). Das vorgelegte Buch zeigt anhand zahlreicher Beispiele aus Psychotherapie, kunstlerischem und politischem Handlungsraum, dass die historische und phanomenologische Analyse durch einen prozessdynamischen Ansatz zu erganzen ist. (shrink)

Name der Zeitschrift: Neue Zeitschrift für Systematische Theologie und Religionsphilosophie Jahrgang: 59 Heft: 1 Seiten: 80-109.

The truthmaker literature has recently come to the consensus that the logic of truthmaking is distinct from classical propositional logic. This development has huge implications for the free will literature. Since free will and moral responsibility are primarily ontological concerns (and not semantic concerns) the logic of truthmaking ought to be central to the free will debate. I shall demonstrate that counterexamples to transfer principles employed in the direct argument occur precisely where a plausible logic of truthmaking diverges from classical (...) logic. Further, restricted transfer principles (like the ones employed by McKenna, Stump, and Warfield) are as problematic as the original formulation of the direct argument. (shrink)

Based on neurobiological data, modern concepts of self-organization and a careful rationale, the hypothesis is put forward that the fleeting, highly ordered patterns of electric and/or magnetic fields, generated by assemblies of dendritic trees of specialized neuronal networks, should be thought of as the end-product of chaotic, dynamically governed self-organization. Such patterns encode for subjective experiences such as pain and pleasure, or perceiving colours. Because by quantum mechanical definition virtual photons are the theoretical constituents of electric and magnetic fields, the (...) former hypothesis can be re-formulated as follows: it is the highly ordered patterns of virtual photons that encode for subjective experiences. Arguments are then given that consciousness did not emerge during evolution only after neuronal networks had been formed able to generate electric and/or magnetic fields of sufficient complexity but, rather, that subjectivity already existed in a very elementary form as a fundamental property of the omnipresent virtual photons, i.e., of matter. The contribution of neuronal networks to consciousness was to generate highly ordered patterns of germs of subjectivity , so allowing complex subjective experiences. Due to the omnipresence of virtual photons, it follows finally that the whole universe must be imbued with subjectivity. An experimental strategy is proposed to test the hypothesis. (shrink)

The Direct Argument is an important argument for demonstrating that moral responsibility is incompatible with determinism because it makes no presuppositions about the nature of free will. One of the inference rules employed in the Direct Argument is rule A: If a proposition is broadly logically necessary, then it is true and no one is, nor ever has been, even partially morally responsible for the fact that the proposition is true. While inference rule A is assumed by all parties to (...) the debate, I demonstrate that the rule is invalid. (shrink)