Kripke (1977) presents an argument designed to show that the considerations in Donnellan (1966) concerning attributive and referential uses of (definite) descriptions do not, by themselves, refute Russell’s (1905) unitary theory of description sentences (RTD), which takes (utterances of) them to express purely general, quantificational, propositions. Against Kripke, Marga Reimer (1998) argues that the two uses do indeed reflect a semantic ambiguity (an ambiguity at the level of literal truth conditions). She maintains a Russellian (quantificational) analysis of utterances involving attributively (...) used descriptions but attempts to defend the following two claims about utterances involving referentially used descriptions (referential utterances) (1998, p. 89). (shrink)

Cet article aborde la question générale du développement d'une histoire sociale des mathématiques et de la logique, à partir d'un cas historique. Il vise à rendre compte de certains traits de l'histoire récente de la logique floue. À cette fin, il met en oeuvre une sociologie des pratiques de démonstration et une approche fondée sur l'analyse matérielle du travail logique, notamment de l'activité d'écriture et de lecture. Il esquisse la construction d'une histoire sociale des formes de démonstration.

Cet article vise à montrer en quoi la production de connaissances certifiées en logique représente un objet d'investigation sociologique, partant du suivi empirique et de l'analyse d'un processus collectif d'accréditation d'un théorème. Dépassant un traitement programmatique de cette question, prenant le contre-pied d'hypothèses réductionnistes, relativistes ou idéalistes et d'une stylisation des dynamiques en jeu, il souligne notamment l'importance du travail matériel des démonstrations, des interactions entre acteurs sociaux, de l'économie imparfaite de l'écriture, de la lecture et de la visibilité des (...) preuves, susceptible de conduire à la formation d'énoncés collectifs. Il livre les résultats d'une première exploration fondamentale de cités par trop occultées en sociologie : celles retranchées derrière les formalismes, les tours de main et les mécanismes probatoires des ouvriers de la logique. (shrink)

Logic has long been seen as a natural and universal human ability, as much as a series of skills that only “sane,” “educated,” and “civilized” men can master. The volume investigates this tension. It explores how various logical skills have been established as social norms and have been attributed, or denied, to some actors or groups in different spaces throughout history. Written by historians, philosophers, and sociologists, and drawing on several case studies, it examines how these skills were defined, taken (...) as standards and identified in some individuals, while they were deemed missing in others. It studies how they have been mobilized in educational theories, practices, and policies. It examines the dynamics of valuation and implementation of these skills across different epochs, ranging from the Middle Ages until the present day. It specifies the different conceptions of logic underpinning these approaches, as well as their social and political stakes. This introduction presents the approach adopted by the editors of the volume. Such approach is based on the view that anthropology, sociology, and history share a common project. The editors explain how they wish to promote a historical sociology and anthropology of logic while addressing the issue of logical skills. The contributions to the volume are summarized in the last section of this introduction. (shrink)

This contributed volume explores the ways logical skills have been perceived over the course of history. The authors approach the topic from the lenses of philosophy, anthropology, sociology, and history to examine two opposing perceptions of logic: the first as an innate human ability and the second as a skill that can be learned and mastered. Chapters focus on the social and political dynamics of the use of logic throughout history, utilizing case studies and critical analyses. Specific topics covered include: (...) the rise of logical skills problems concerning medieval notions of idiocy and rationality decolonizing natural logic natural logic and the course of time Logical Skills: Social-Historical Perspectives will appeal to undergraduate and graduate students, as well as researchers in the fields of history, sociology, philosophy, and logic. Psychology and colonial studies scholars will also find this volume to be of particular interest. (shrink)

Civil status, and particularly birth certificates, rather than identity papers, are the legal basis of identification in France. Its nineteenth-century history presents a complex picture, which cannot be reduced to a process of increasing state control. Far from implementing ambitious registration projects, French liberal administration left information scattered and scarce as compared to European standards. It had to find a balance between the need to provide open information in order to minimize uncertainty in social and economic relationships, and the protection (...) of personal and family honour and reputation. Citizens' agency and consent have been determinant in this process, whose traces are still visible in contemporary France. (shrink)

Le fruit d'une enquête sociologique, menée dans les années 1990 aux Etats-Unis, sur la forme d'activité scientifique réputée la plus pure et la plus rebelle à l'investigation des sciences sociales : celle des logiciens et des chercheurs en intelligence artificielle.

L'historiographie française prête une attention croissante à l'échelle microscopique, en associant essentiellement cette dernière à la microstoria italienne. Il existe pourtant, au Royaume-Uni et en Allemagne notamment, d'autres traditions nationales de « microhistoire », qui proposent des usages différents de ce niveau d'observation. De même, les propriétés prêtées au micro (le primat du local, le refus des explications fonctionnalistes) ne lui sont pas nécessairement spécifiques. À partir d'un objet précis, la question du rapport entre populations et ressources et sa formulation (...) par le modèle dit «homéostatique», l'article s'efforce de nuancer l'idée selon laquelle chaque échelle serait dotée d'attributs qui lui seraient propres. En montrant les convergences possibles entre des niveaux d'observation apparemment incommensurables, il considère que les effets d'échelles dépendent davantage de situations historiographiques locales que de propriétés abstraites. (shrink)