We reconsider the nonlocal aspects of quantum mechanics with special reference to the EPR argument. We first confine our considerations to the correlations between the outcomes of measurements on spatially distant constituents, without worrying about the measurement problem. We pay particular attention to the relativistic aspects of the problem. Our first conclusion is that, when developed along the lines we follow, the EPR inference that quantum correlations and locality together imply incompleteness, is appropriate. We then investigate whether the other common (...) conclusion from the EPR argument, i.e. that standard quantum theory implies a spooky action at a distance, is correct. We emphasize the crucial role played by the locality assumption and we discuss the use of counterfactuals in the ‘relativistic’ reformulation of the EPR argument. We show that the above conclusion is false if understood as saying that standard quantum theory exhibits, at least with reference to possessed elements of physical reality, some sort of parameter dependence. Thus, in a sense, the coexistence of quantum mechanics with relativity is even more peaceful than commonly thought. We then go through a similar analysis by taking explicitly into account the measurement process. We point out the difficulties which one meets when confronting reduction mechanisms with relativistic requirements. This leads us to recognize the necessity of reconsidering the criteria for attributing objective properties to individual physical systems. Our final conclusion is that, in principle, it is perfectly possible to build up theories leading to the objectification of macroscopic properties which do not imply any spooky action at a distance. (shrink)

Originally published in English in 1980, Rhetoric as Philosophy has been out of print for some time. The reviews of that English edition attest to the importance of Ernesto Grassi’s work. By going back to the Italian humanist tradition and aspects of earlier Greek and Latin thought, Ernesto Grassi develops a conception of rhetoric as the basis of philosophy. Grassi explores the sense in which the first principles of rational thought come from the metaphorical power of the word. He finds (...) the basis for his conception in the last great thinker of the Italian humanist tradition, Giambattista Vico (1668–1744). He concentrates on Vico’s understanding of imagination and the sense of human ingenuity contained in metaphor. For Grassi, rhetorical activity is the essence and inner life of thought when connected to the metaphorical power of the word. (shrink)

We apply the distinction between parameter independence and outcome independence to the linear and nonlinear models of a recent nonrelativistic theory of continuous state vector reduction. We show that in the nonlinear model there is a set of realizations of the stochastic process that drives the state vector reduction for which parameter independence is violated for parallel spin components in the EPR-Bohm setup. Such a set has an appreciable probability of occurrence (≈ 1/2). On the other hand, the linear model (...) exhibits only extremely small parameter dependence effects. We investigate some specific features of the models and we recall that, as has been pointed out recently, if one wants to be able to speak of definite outcomes (or equivalently of possessed objective elements of reality) at finite times, one has to slightly change the criteria for their attribution to physical systems. The concluding section is devoted to a detailed discussion of the difficulties which one meets when one tries to take, as a starting point for the formulation of a relativistic theory, a nonrelativistic scheme which exhibits parameter dependence. Here we derive a theorem which identifies the precise sense in which the occurrence of parameter dependence forbids a genuinely relativistic generalization. Finally we show how the appreciable parameter dependence of the nonlinear model gives rise to problems with relativity, while the extremely weak parameter dependence of the linear model does not give rise to any difficulty, provided one takes into account the appropriate criteria for the attribution of definite outcomes. (shrink)

By going back to the Italian humanist tradition and aspects of earlier Greek and Latin thought Ernesto Grassi develops a conception of rhetoric as the basis of philosophical thought. In the development of modern philosophy since Descartes and Locke rhetoric has been seen as superfluous to knowledge. Rhetoric has been commonly understood as the speech that plays on the emotions the use of thought and words to persuade, rather than their use as the basis to seek knowledge. How does the (...) mind generate the principles upon which rational thought is based? Rational thinking exploits the logical power of the word, but logic never enlightens us on the nature of its own starting points. Grassi explores the sense in which the first principles of rational thought come from the metaphorical power of the word. He finds the basis for his conception in the last thinker of the Italian humanist tradition, Giambattista Vice, in Vice's understanding of imagination and the sense of human ingenuity contained in the metaphor. Professor Grassi connects rhetoric with the power of language to bring the starting points for thought into being. This power of speech is at the basis of the philosophical and rational search for truth. (shrink)

With reference to recently proposed theoretical models accounting for reduction in terms of a unified dynamics governing all physical processes, we analyze the problem of working out a worldview accommodating our knowledge about natural phenomena. We stress the relevant conceptual differences between the considered models and standard quantum mechanics. In spite of the fact that both theories describe systems within a genuine Hilbert space framework, the peculiar features of the spontaneous reduction models limit drastically the states which are dynamically stable. (...) This fact by itself allows one to work out an interpretation of the formalism which makes it possible to give a satisfactory description of the world in terms of the values taken by an appropriately defined mass density function in ordinary configuration space. A topology based on this function and which is radically different from the one characterizing the Hilbert space is introduced, and in terms of it the idea of similarity of macroscopic situations is precisely defined. Finally, the formalism and the interpretation are shown to yield a natural criterion for establishing the psychophysical parallelism. The conclusion is that, within the considered theories and at the nonrelativistic level, one can satisfy all sensible requirements for a completely satisfactory macro-objective description of reality. (shrink)

When engaging with magic, we are moved by seemingly impossible events that contradict what we believe to be possible in the real world. We are surprised, curious, and baffled when we cannot explain how the magic we are witnessing is possible. We generally understand the events to be illusions. But how is it possible to be moved by something we know to be unreal? This problem is related to the paradox of fiction in aesthetics. Here, we introduce the problem in (...) the domain of theatrical magic, discuss possible solutions, and present a tentative account that allows us to accommodate inconsistent, seemingly incompatible beliefs at different representational levels in the viewers’ mind. (shrink)

Heidegger's affirmation is categorical: “… the thinking expressed in Being and Time is against humanism”. Heidegger's thesis is not only categorical, it is also polemical. He maintains that the humanist conception does not grasp man's essence, and it is for this reason that he is opposed to humanism, which is a doctrine that “has not thought profoundly enough of man's humanitas.

Francisco Leocata propone una nueva reducción fenomenológica, que llama reducción vital, la cual nombra el centramiento del sujeto encarnado, la necesidad de sabernos traspasados por la historia y por los otros como punto de partida para la producción de conocimiento en el seno de nuestra experiencia de la vida. Esta reducción vital permite pensar al ser humano desde las diversas disciplinas científicas, en diálogo con la fenomenología y la metafísica. Si bien Leocata construye su fenomenología personalista sobre las bases de (...) la fenomenología trascendental de Edmund Husserl, en este trabajo queremos resaltar las posibilidades que se abren a partir de un diálogo más estrecho con Merleau-Ponty, quien ha subrayado el carácter interdisciplinar de la fenomenología. (shrink)

Con ocasión del centenario del nacimiento de Ernesto Grassi, nacido en Milán el 2 de mayo de 1902, Cuadernos sobre Vico publica a continuación el primer texto donde Grassi interpreta en 1940 el De nostri temporis studiorum ratione, ya dentro de la línea de la tradición del humanismo retórico, a cuyo rescate y estudio dedicaría el autor italo-germano buena parte de su vida. En la reveladora claridad de las páginas de Ernesto Grassi en torno a La crítica de Vico a (...) la supremacía del saber - para nosotros la parte más importante de este amplio trabajo sobre El comienzo del pensamiento moderno. De la pasión y la experiencia de lo originario, publicado en la capital alemana por el editor Helmut Küpper en el año 1940-, el lector de Cuadernos sobre Vico podrá descubrir inmediatamente ese singular humus viquiano que durante más de medio siglo propició la radical circunstancia especulativa y el pensamiento del autor de Vico y el humanismo. Ensayos sobre Vico, Heidegger y la retórica .La dirección de Cuadernos sobre Vico agradece al prof. Emilio Hidalgo-Serna la autorización para publicar la traducción de este importante ensayo de Grassi, inédito hasta ahora en español.On the centenary of Ernesto Grassi's birth, born in Milan on May 2 1902, Cuadernos sobre Vico publishes in Spanish the first text where Grassi interprets De nostri temporis studiorum ratione, already inside the line of the tradition of the rhetorical humanism, that he rescue and study. In the rewatching clarity of Ernesto Grassi's pages concerning Vico's critique to the supremacy of to knowledge -for us the most important part of this wide work The beginning of the modern thought, published in Germany for the editor Helmut Küpper in the year 1940-, the reader of Cuadernos sobre Vico will be able to discover immediately this singular humus vichian that during more than half a century caused the radical speculative circumstance and the thought of the author of Vico and the Humanism. Essays on Vico, Heidegger and the Rhetoric.The Editors of Cuadernos sobre Vico are grateful to prof. Emilio Hidalgo-Serna by the authorization to publish the translation in Spanish of Grassi's essay. (shrink)

RESUMENEn el presente trabajo queremos mostrar cómo en Gabriel Marcel la existencia tan sólo puede ser reconocida a partir de la condición encarnada del hombre. Para ello, contrapondremos primeramente la existencia a la objetividad, gracias a las nociones capitales de presencia y de participación. En segundo lugar, mostraremos cómo el cuerpo propio es fundamento de nuestro ser en el mundo. Por último, veremos porqué la encarnación es el dato central de la reflexión metafísica, en tanto que gracias a ella puedo (...) yo acceder a lo ontológico.PALABRAS CLAVES MARCEL, EXISTENCIA, OBJETIVIDAD, ENCARNACIÓN, METAFÍSICAABSTRACTIn this paper we would like to show how existence can only be recognized from man’s incarnate condition. In order to accomplish this task, we will have to contrast, in the first place, existence to objectivity, thanks to the capital notions of presence and participation. In the second place, we will show how the body-qua-mine is the foundation of our being in the world. Finally, we will focus on why incarnation is the central datum of metaphysical reflection, for thanks to it we may access ontological dimension.KEYWORDSMARCEL, EXISTENCE, OBJECTIVITY, INCARNATION, METAPHYSICS. (shrink)

RESUMENEn el presente trabajo queremos mostrar cómo en Gabriel Marcel la existencia tan sólo puede ser reconocida a partir de la condición encarnada del hombre. Para ello, contrapondremos primeramente la existencia a la objetividad, gracias a las nociones capitales de presencia y de participación. En segundo lugar, mostraremos cómo el cuerpo propio es fundamento de nuestro ser en el mundo. Por último, veremos porqué la encarnación es el dato central de la reflexión metafísica, en tanto que gracias a ella puedo (...) yo acceder a lo ontológico.PALABRAS CLAVES MARCEL, EXISTENCIA, OBJETIVIDAD, ENCARNACIÓN, METAFÍSICAABSTRACTIn this paper we would like to show how existence can only be recognized from man’s incarnate condition. In order to accomplish this task, we will have to contrast, in the first place, existence to objectivity, thanks to the capital notions of presence and participation. In the second place, we will show how the body-qua-mine is the foundation of our being in the world. Finally, we will focus on why incarnation is the central datum of metaphysical reflection, for thanks to it we may access ontological dimension.KEYWORDSMARCEL, EXISTENCE, OBJECTIVITY, INCARNATION, METAPHYSICS. (shrink)

El problema del anti-humanismo de Heidegger se clarifica a la luz del valor propio y real del humanismo, cuyos principales temas alcanzarán con Vico su máximo significado y expresión. Se debate por ello el problema generado por la identificación del humanismo con una actitud metafísica tradicional de indiferenciación ontológica, cuando, dilucidando el humanismo retórico, se entiende que el pensamiento humanista no comienza con el problema de los entes sino con el de la preeminencia de la palabra, y, especialmente, de la (...) palabra metafórica, generando un filosofar retórico. El antihumanismo heideggeriano se afianza, por tanto, en un conocimiento indirecto del humanismo con los prejuicios de las interpretaciones modernas, y no en el conocimiento del específico y original valor de éste. La rehabilitación del humanismo retórico nos muestra asimismo que la tesis heideggeriana de la prioridad de la palabra poética y metafórica nos conduce al punto crucial para nosotros: la especificidad del pensamiento humanístico no comienza –en su nuevo y particular filosofar– con el problema de los entes, sino con el de la palabra, a saber, de la palabra metafórica y retórica. La cuestión que se trata, por tanto, va más allá de una discusión sobre Heidegger, enfrentándonos con importantes problemas históricos y teoréticos. The dilemma of Heidegger's anti-humanism is clarified in the light of the real and proper value of humanism itself, whose principal themes reach through Vico their highest significance and expression. This work debates the problem generated by the identification of humanism with a traditional metaphysical attitude of ontological indifferentation; when elucidating rhetorical humanism it is understood that humanist thought does not begin with the problem of the beings but with the preeminence of the word, especially the metaphoric word, giving risk to a rhetorical philosophizing. In such a way, the anti-humanism of Heidegger is strengthened by an indirect knowledge of humanism with the prejudices of modem interpretations, and not in the knowledge of its own specific and original value. The rehabilitation of the rhetorical humanism show us more over, that the Heideggerian thesis of the priority of the poetic and metaphoric words brings us to the most important point for us: the specificity of humanistic thought that does not –in its particular and new philosophizing– begin with the problem of beings, but with that of the word, namely poetic, metaphorical and rhetorical word. Thus, the question dealt with, goes beyond a discussion of Heidegger, to confront important historical and theoretical problems. (shrink)

Jean-François Lyotard s'interroga sulla forma delle organizzazioni sociali e ne identifica la problematica principale nell'eterogeneità che esse veicolano tra i differenti regimi di frasi: si sofferma, in particolare, sull'incompatibilità tra il regime della conoscenza e quello della libertà. A partire da tale riflessione, l'articolo esamina come le società attuali, multiculturali e globalizzate, siano chiamate oggi a compiere una scelta: abbracciare la sintesi dell'eterogeneo oppure rispettare e far rispettare la presenza inevitabile del dissidio. Nella prima occorrenza si corre il rischio di (...) trasformare il diritto in succedaneo dell'ordalia e di accendere la guerra di tutti contro tutti. Nella seconda, invece, si sperimenta la costruzione d'interazioni di tipo dipolare le quali, pur non potendo garantire contro lo scatenamento smisurato della violenza, riescono potenzialmente ad arginarlo. Queste ultime, infatti, spostano la misura della sopravvivenza dall'esclusione delle ostilità alla loro elusione, dal rifiutare il conflitto all'addomesticarlo, dal rinunciare allo sforzo muscolare al calibrarlo. (shrink)

These essays discuss Vico's conception of metaphor and the imagination as unique elements in the history of Western philosophy that allow Vico to formulate a new relationship between rhetoric and philosophy. On this basis, rhetorical forms of thought and senses of language are shown to be at the basis of philosophical thought. Philosophy is understood as an enterprise that cannot overlook its traditional roots in poetic and rhetorical senses of the word. Connections between this point of view and Heidegger's analysis (...) of language and Being are shown. (shrink)

El presente trabajo intenta introducir al lector en la problemática de la intersubjetividad desde la perspectiva fenomenológica-hermenéutica de Paul Ricoeur, atendiendo a la necesidad de las mediaciones simbólicas en el orden del reconocimiento. El fenómeno de la intersubjetividad será abordado aquí desde una perspectiva gnoseológica, ética, sociológica y hermenéutica, intentando desentrañar cómo es posible el reconocimiento mutuo entre subjetividades extrañas en un mundo común. Una reflexión sobre la intersubjetividad debe tener siempre presente la irreductibilidad de la persona como tal, reconocimiento (...) que es posible, en última instancia, por el amor y la caridad, el cual se manifiesta en la dinámica del intercambio de dones. Por otra parte, esta irreductibilidad de la persona supone el rechazo de la postulación de una tercera sustancia diferente del yo y del tú, que los subsumiera en su entidad, tal como parece suceder en el estructuralismo y en el hegelianismo. Es nuestra intención mostrar que se trata en Ricoeur de una fenomenología genética que rastrea lo extraño desde lo propio, teniendo como núcleo pivotante de su reflexión el homo capax que somos cada uno de nosotros y que actúa siempre en un mundo compartido (Lebenswelt). The present work pretends to be an introduction to the problem of intersubjectivity from the phenomenological and hermeneutical point of view of Paul Ricoeur. The phenomenon of intersubjectivity will be studied from a gnoseological, ethical, sociological and hermeneutical perspective, trying to disclose how a mutual acknowledgment between strange subjects in a common world can be possible. Meditation upon intersubjectivity must always attend on the irreductibility of persona as such, acknowledgment made possible by love and charity, and that reveals it sense in the espirit of giveness. In the other hand, the irreducitibility of persona implies rejecting the possibility of building a third substance, different from the I and the Thou, and which would submit them to its reality, as structuralism and hegelianism seems to propose. We intend to show that Ricoeur's position is one of a genetic phenomenology that search for the strange from the own, stating the homo capax that acts always in a shared world (Lebenswelt) as its central idea. (shrink)

La historia que Agustín de Hipona nos cuenta de sí mismo en sus Confesiones nos confronta con la esencial ambivalencia del lenguaje y la textualidad. Por un lado, los textos son ocasión para que los hombres se pierdan en cuestiones vanas y para que alimenten su soberbia. Por otro lado, es a través de los textos que Agustín encuentra el camino hacia Dios y la Verdad: la lectura de Cicerón, de Plotino y, ante todo, de las Sagradas Escrituras, lo llevan (...) a la conversión. Sin embargo, la ambivalencia de las letras muestra su mayor tensión en que es el mismo texto de la Biblia el que, al mismo tiempo, lo aleja y lo acerca a Agustín a Dios. En última instancia, la ambivalencia de las letras se resuelve en el modo en que el lector hace uso de ellas, en el modo en que las toma y se las apropia al modo de ser apropiadas por ellas. Las Confesiones son la historia de un letrado, el drama de una lectura que puede condenarnos tanto como salvarnos. (shrink)

The study of the chaotic dynamics in fractional-order discrete-time systems has received great attention over the last years. Some efforts have been also devoted to analyze fractional maps with special features. This paper makes a contribution to the topic by introducing a new fractional map that is characterized by both particular dynamic behaviors and specific properties related to the system equilibria. In particular, the conceived one dimensional map is algebraically simpler than all the proposed fractional maps in the literature. Using (...) numerical simulation, we investigate the dynamic and complexity of the fractional map. The results indicate that the new one-dimensional fractional map displays various types of coexisting attractors. The approximate entropy is used to observe the changes in the sequence sequence complexity when the fractional order and system parameter. Finally, the fractional map is applied to the problem of encrypting electrophysiological signals. For the encryption process, random numbers were generated using the values of the fractional map. Some statistical tests are given to show the performance of the encryption. (shrink)

Although acoustic frequency is not a spatial property of physical objects, in common language, pitch, i.e., the psychological correlated of frequency, is often labeled spatially (i.e., “high in pitch” or “low in pitch”). Pitch-height is known to modulate (and interact with) the response of participants when they are asked to judge spatial properties of non-auditory stimuli (e.g., visual) in a variety of behavioral tasks. In the current study we investigated whether the modulatory action of pitch-height extended to the haptic estimation (...) of height of a virtual step. We implemented a HW/SW setup which is able to render virtual 3D objects (stair-steps) haptically through a PHANTOM device, and to provide real-time continuous auditory feedback depending on the user interaction with the object. The haptic exploration was associated with a sinusoidal tone whose pitch varied as a function of the interaction point’s height within (i) a narrower and (ii) a wider pitch range, or (iii) a random pitch variation acting as a control audio condition. Explorations were also performed with no sound (haptic only). Participants were instructed to explore the virtual step freely, and to communicate height estimation by opening their thumb and index finger to mimic the step riser height, or verbally by reporting the height in centimeters of the step riser. We analyzed the role of musical expertise by dividing participants into non musicians and musicians. Results showed no effects of musical pitch on high-realistic haptic feedback. Overall there is no difference between the two groups in the proposed multimodal conditions. Additionally, we observed a different haptic response distribution between musicians and non musicians when estimations of the auditory conditions are matched with estimations in the no sound condition. (shrink)