In hybrid nature that results from a random mix of technological infrastructures and natural ecosystems, environmental fundamentals are modified producing dramatic effects on the semiosis of several species. Human intrusion in ecosystems creates new spatial configurations that have a reduced ecological complexity when compared with systems less affected by human manipulation. This causes cascading effects on other environmental fundamentals. F.i., systems that face a low complexity, are more exposed to changes that in turn can reduce the performances of individual species (...) due to a higher level of uncertainty. The flux of information could be apparently maintained in hybrid nature when some natural patterns and processes are replaced by human artifacts and associated dynamics, but the process of signification could be strongly modified. The strict contact between people and wild organisms in hybrid nature requires new types of strategies to guarantee the continuation of the natural dynamic of populations and communities. Rural sanctuaries are proposed as one of the possible models on which to invest in order to harmonize the technological and natural processes with the goal to assure a multiscale sustainability. (shrink)

Describing resources and their relationships with organisms seems to be a useful approach to a ‘unified ecology’, contributing to fill the gap between natural and human oriented processes, and opening new perspectives in dealing with biological complexity. This Resource Criterion defines the main properties of resources, describes the mechanisms that link them to individual species, and gives a particular emphasis to the biosemiotic approach that allows resources to be identified inside a heterogeneous ecological medium adopting the eco-field model. In particular, (...) this Criterion allows to couple matter, structured energy and information composing the ecological systems to the biosemiotic and cognitive mechanisms adopted by individual species to track resources, transforming neutral surroundings into meaningful species-specific Umwelten. The expansion of the human semiotic niche that is a relevant evolutionary process of the present time, assigns the role of powerful and efficient agency to the Resources Criterion to evaluate the effect of human intrusion into the natural systems with habits of key stone species, under the challenge of a growing use of alloctonous, immaterial and symbolic resources of the actual globalized societal models. The Resource Criterion interprets the ecological dynamics contributing to complete the epistemology of the ecology, to open a bridge toward economy and other societal sciences, and to contribute to formulate a General Theory of Resources. (shrink)

Vivoscape, from Latin ‘vivo’ and the English ‘scape’ is presented as a new ecosemiotic agency that integrates the interactions between biological and ecological components of a taxon with the environment. According to this model, the interactions between species and the environment are fused into a new functional unity driven by external and internal events. Sensorial and relational channels are used by a taxon to sense external energy gradients, matter, information and to return actions and proactions in an external operational environment. (...) The eco-field model is suggested as the functional ecosemiotic mechanism associated with each vivoevent. (shrink)

A Rural Sanctuary is defined as an area where farming activity creates habitats for a diverse assemblage of species that find a broad spectrum of resources along the season. A Rural Sanctuary is proposed as a new model of land management to protect nature inside a framework of cultural identity and agro-forestry sustainability. A Rural Sanctuary has a dual mission: to provide immaterial and material resources for people, and to guarantee living spaces to a large assemblage of species. A Rural (...) Sanctuary represents an ecosemiotic agency in which human eco-fields and animal eco-fields interact. This reflects a model that is rooted in the Mediterranean region, where for long time people and nature have harmoniously lived in strict contact and inter-dependence. An example of a Rural Sanctuary from this region is proposed to demonstrate the amazing diversity of living beings observed on only few hectares of farmland. A Rural Sanctuary offers possibilities to educate people about a more sustainable approach to nature, and it represents a unique place to investigate animal perception. Finally, between the different approach to certify the validity of a Rural Sanctuary, sound recording is suggested as one of the less invasive methods for ecological investigation and long-term monitoring. (shrink)

Acoustic codes assure the intra and interspecific communication of vocal animals. They are composed by a sequence of nominal entities and by magnitude modulation confirming in such a way contemporarily a behavioural and ecological nature. The acoustic codes find evidence in the acoustic niche hypothesis by which species in order to reduce interspecific competition occupy a restricted portion of the available frequencies modulating very precise acoustic cues . Their evolution, like other aspect of biology, is under control of the environmental (...) conditions assuming the more favourable configurations. These nominal entities respond also to the amount of energy by which are emitted allowing to the eavesdropping individuals to range the distance at which a potential competitor is broadcasting a signal. Environmental alterations, especially if of anthropogenic origin, can produce severe consequence of the acoustic codes that in turn may affect the prey–predator balance and the complexity of communities. In fact acoustic codes under an environmental constraint like human noise intrusion can be modified in order to reduce a masking effect, demonstrating their phenological plasticity. The new ecological discipline of soundscape ecology offers the possibility to investigate the nature and the evolution of the acoustic codes in different environmental conditions. (shrink)

The sounds produced by animals have been a topic of research into animal behaviour for a very long time. If acoustic signals are undoubtedly a vehicle for exchanging information between individuals, environmental sounds embed as well a significant level of data related to the ecology of populations, communities and landscapes. The consideration of environmental sounds for ecological investigations opens up a field of research that we define with the term ecoacoustics. In this paper, we draw the contours of ecoacoustics by (...) detailing: the main theories, concepts and methods used in ecoacoustic research, and the numerous outcomes that can be expected from the ecological approach to sound. Ecoacoustics has several theoretical and practical challenges, but we firmly believe that this new approach to investigating ecological processes will generate abundant and exciting research programs. (shrink)

Despite an impressive number of investigations and indirect evidence, the mechanisms that link patterns and processes across the landscape remain a debated point. A new definition of landscape as a semiotic interface between resources and organisms opens up a new perspective to a better understanding of such mechanisms. If the landscape is considered a source of signals converted by animal cognition into signs, it follows that spatial configurations, extension, shape and contagion are not only landscape patterns but categories of identifiable (...) signals. The eco-field hypothesis, by which cognitive templates are used to identify spatial configurations as carriers of meaning according to an active function, are combined with the sign theory to create an eco-semiotic model of landscape representation. Signs from landscape change in efficacy according to mechanisms of degradation, and metric sign categories have to be considered. An interdisciplinary coalescence is expected by using the theoretical approach in different fields of conservation and resource management and planning. (shrink)

Biosemiotics to date has focused on the exchange of signals between organisms, in line with bioacoustics; consideration of the wider acoustic environment as a semiotic medium is under-developed. The nascent discipline of ecoacoustics, that investigates the role of environmental sound in ecological processes and dynamics, fills this gap. In this paper we introduce key ecoacoustic terminology and concepts in order to highlight the value of ecoacoustics as a discipline in which to conceptualise and study intra- and interspecies semiosis. We stress (...) the inherently subjective nature of all sensory scapes and propose that they should always bear an organismic attribution. Key terms to describe the sources and scales of soundscapes are described. We introduce epithets for soundscapes to point to the degree to which the global environment is implicated in semiosis ; terms for describing key ecological structures and processes and examples of ecoacoustic events are described. The acoustic eco-field is recognized as the semiotic model that enables soniferous species to intercept core resources like food, safety and roosting places. We note that whilst ecoacoustics to date has focused on the critical task of the development of metrics for application in conservation and biodiversity assessment, these can be enriched by advancing conceptual and theoretical foundations. Finally, the mutual value of integrating ecoacoustic and biosemiotics perspectives is considered. (shrink)

Sound is an inherent component of the environment that provides conditions and information necessary for many animal activities. Soniferous species require specific acoustic and physical conditions suitable for their signals to be transmitted, received, and effectively interpreted to successfully identify and utilize resources in their environment and interact with conspecifics and other heterospecific organisms. We propose the Acoustic Habitat Hypothesis to explain how the acoustic environment influences habitat selection of sound-dependent species. We postulate that sound-dependent species select and occupy habitats (...) with unique acoustic characteristics that are essential to their functional needs and conducive to the threshold of sound frequency they produce and detect. These acoustic habitats are based on the composition of biophony, geophony, and technophony in the soundscape and on the biosemiotics mechanisms described in the eco-field hypothesis. The Acoustic Habitat Hypothesis initiates questions of habitat selection that go beyond the physical attributes of the environment by applying ecoacoustics theory. We outline the theoretical basis of the Acoustic Habitat Hypothesis and provide examples from the literature to support its assumptions. The concept of acoustic habitats has been documented in the literature for many years but here, we accurately and extensively define acoustic habitat and we put this concept into a unified theory. We also include perspectives on how the Acoustic Habitat Hypothesis can stimulate a paradigm shift in conservation strategies for threatened and endangered species. (shrink)

The soundscape, which is defined as the entire acoustic environment of an area, is a relevant biosemiotic ingredient of environmental complexity. It is composed of geophonies, anthrophonies, and biophonies where, in temperate biomes, birds are the major producers of the latter. The soundscape is heterogeneous in terms of space and time, and is affected by landscape features such as vegetation cover. It also operates as a communication network in which intra- and inter-specific interactions create a complex, eavesdropping-broadcasting network, namely, the (...) soundtope. This acoustic context provides public information for tracking resources like territory, mates, food, safety, and roosting sites and it can be considered a multifunctional eco-field. The Acoustic Complexity Index is a new metric that is used to efficiently process the sound files that, when collected by sampling matrixes, return by interpolation the spatial distribution of a soundscape. High quality soundscapes are sought to guarantee the biosemiotic mechanisms among species, but polluted conditions degrade and mask biophonies, thus reducing communication efficiency, with severe consequences for both individual and collective fitness. Preserving high quality soundscapes is therefore an important conservation issue and a target to aim for if we are to assure animal and human wellbeing. (shrink)

In a development of the ecosemiotic vivo-scape concept, a ‘safety eco-field’ is proposed as a model of a species response to the safety of its environment. The safety eco-field is based on the ecosemiotic approach which considers environmental safety as a resource sought and chosen by individuals to counter predatory pressure. To test the relative safety of different locations within a landscape, 66 bird feeders (BF) were deployed in a regular 15 × 15 m grid in a rural area, surrounded (...) by shrubs, small trees, hedgerows, and buildings. On each of 48 days in November 2021 and February and March 2022, dried mealworms were placed on each BF and counts of larvae at each BF were made at noon and dusk. The European robin (Erithacus rubecula) and the great tit (Parus major) were the most regular visitors to the BFs. Land cover at each BF was recorded. Bird behaviour at the BFs was noted from direct video recordings of the birds at nine selected BFs, totalling 32 daily sessions in March. The different behaviours of the European robin and the great tit were observable. The safety eco-field changed according to the month and the time of day. The distance of the BF from the woodland edges seemed to be important only in the morning. In the afternoon, BFs that were more distant from the woodland edges received the highest number of visits. Weather conditions were found to influence the number of mealworms removed, but this requires further investigation. A significant relationship between land cover and the number of mealworm larvae removed from the BFs was observed. Within the grid of BF, three regions were distinguishable which were related to land cover in the safety eco-field process. The experimental framework confirms the adequacy, at least for birds that have cryptic predators, to map the landscape as a proxy of safety resource. From the video recordings it was noted that the European robin visits were distributed throughout the day without apparent temporal preferences, while the great tit visits were concentrated in the central part of the day. This result has the limitation of the short period of observation (March) and should be extended to the entire period of the experiment to eventually capture seasonal variation. The experimental evidence obtained confirms that the ecosemiotic-based models of safety eco-field are an efficient approach to explain bird feeding preferences and behaviours. (shrink)

Capturing information means for every organism acquiring knowledge about the living and not living objects that exist in its surroundings. In this way, the “historical” concept of Umwelt, as a subjective surrounding has been recently integrated in the theory of landscape ecology where a landscape is not only a geographical entity but also a cognitive medium. The landscape may be considered a semiotic context used by the organisms to locate resources heterogeneously distributed in space and time. In particular, inside a (...) landscape there are different eco-fields defined as spatial arrangements of objects carrier of meaning that organisms utilize to track resources. Along this epistemic path the sonic component of the landscape is an important carrier of information commonly used by the majority of animal species to managing many vital functions. In particular birds, which are animals with a complex system of acoustic communication, seem to organize acoustic centers for public information. These sonic patterns (soundtopes) are characterized by a great variability in space and time and function like a special eco-field that allows species to share information about the status of resources and the dynamics of populations. The availability of such public information avoids a deeper and more expensive exploration of the environment to assess its quality. (shrink)

The biosemiotic complexity of acoustic communities in the primary forests of Ulu Temburong and Yasunì was investigated with continuous 24-h recordings, using the acoustic signature and multiscale approach of ecoacoustic events and their emergent fractal dimensions. The 3D recordings used for the analysis were collected in undisturbed primary equatorial forests under the scope of the project, Fragments of Extinction, which produces 3D sound portraits with the highest definition possible using current technologies – a perfect dataset on which to perform a (...) multiscale qualitative analysis. The ecoacoustic events detected by a combination of the Acoustic Complexity Indices, ACIft, ACIft evenness, and ACItf evenness, and its fractal dimension were developed according to a biosemiotics approach in which the ecofield theory states that EE functions like a species-specific carrier of meaning. EEs, extracted according to 10 levels of temporal resolution, from 1 to 360 s, confirm the hypothesis that these acoustic communities have an internal complexity that responds to a fractal structure. Yasunì was richer in EEs, with a higher coefficient of variation of hourly fractal dimension. This methodology opens up promising new perspectives in the acoustic assessment of habitat quality and monitoring landscape modification. It also confirms the great potential of the biosemiotics approach in converting acoustic frequencies into ecoacoustic events through encoding procedures that mimic potential species-specific interpretations of the sonic environment. (shrink)

An ecological description of a landscape transcends its geographical definition to characterize it in terms of a complex agency composed of a spatial mosaic, structured energy, information and meaning. Because the dimensions of the landscape encompasses both natural and human processes, it requires a more robust set of theories that incorporate the material components and their perceptual meaning. A biosemiotic approach defines the landscape as the sum of its organisms’ eco-fields, which are spatial configurations that carry meanings connected to specific (...) needs and related functions. In this perspective, the new postulated General Theory of Resources, offers a substantial contribution to complete the paradigmatic framework of a “private landscape” species-, individual- and function-specific. From this theory resources are considered every material (f.i. food) or immaterial elements (f.i. safety) necessary to fullfill individual needs. The habitat becomes the “private landscape” and the well-being versus the ill-being are the emergent conditions of each individual under the environmental constraints. Definitively space is the entity on which material and immaterial resources are distributed and the dimension on which individuals species are interacting by using biosemiotic mechanisms. (shrink)

In this essay we argue for the possibility to describe the co-presence of species in a community as a consortium built by acoustic codes, using mainly the examples of bird choruses. In this particular case, the consortium is maintained via the sound-tope that different bird species create by singing in a chorus. More generally, the formation of acoustic codes as well as cohesive communicative systems (the consortia) can be seen as a result of plastic adaptational behaviour of the specimen who (...) can solve and avoid conflicts both with conspecifics and with other species in the vicinity. Thus, sign-relations appear to resolve potential conflicts, and as a foundation for symbiotic aggregations. The spatio-temporal configuration of consortia—their chronotope—includes several eco-fields as respective to different functions of the participating organisms. Biological study is combined with a semiotic approach that, as we suggest, should be more often used together to effectively describe ecological processes. (shrink)

The relations between Russell and three Polish philosophers are considered. Each of them exchanged letters with Russell but their professional interests in philosophy, their meta-philosophical views and their worldviews profoundly varied. Nevertheless, Russell’s wide intellectual horizon enabled him to have fruitful discussions with each of them. Chwistek’s philosophical aim was to improve Russell’s theory of types but he failed to publish his own book in English with Russell’s preface and he never met Russell in person. The English philosopher, however, helped (...) Chwistek in obtaining the post at Lvov University. Lutosławski was unable to develop the professional philosophical discussion with Russell, whom he met at a philosophical congress, but he expressed positive opinion on the chapters on Plato in Russell’s History of Western Philosophy. This opinion was helpful for Russell in his further cooperation with the publishing house. The last of the Poles under discussion was Themerson, rather a writer, artist and a thinker than a philosopher. He met Russell after the WW II in London, while they both lived there. Themerson edited some minor works of Russell, who wrote a preface to Themerson’s novel. Their letters provide evidence that they shared general attitude towards religion, philosophy and the outlook on the world. Key words RUSSEL, CHWISTEK, LUTOSLAWSKI, THEMERSON. (shrink)

W swojej przełomowej pracy „Denotowanie” Bertrand Russell wprowadza rozróżnienie pomiędzy prymarnym i sekundarnym użyciem zwrotów denotujących. Rozróżnienie umożliwia opis wieloznaczności niektórych zdań zawierających zwroty denotujące. Jak zauważył Saul Kripke, chociaż rozróżnienie Russella wydaje się być dychotomiczne, niektóre wieloznaczne zdania zawierające zwroty denotujące można interpretować na więcej niż tylko dwa sposoby. W niniejszym artykule argumentuję, że istnieją jeszcze inne możliwe interpretacje, niewzmiankowane ani przez Russella, ani Kripkego. Ponadto pokazuję, że te inne możliwe interpretacje różnią się również od tzw. odczytań (...) Fodor. (shrink)

Bertrand Russell was one of those moralists who advocate a broad concept of ethics, including both social and individual ethics. This latter ethics is composed of prescriptions relating to the various ways of attaining happiness and perfection. Since however both happiness and perfection, i.e. the creative experience of one’s own existence can be attained by the same way, the requirement of self-realization may contribute to the harmonious coexistence of all people an effect that is desirable from social point of view. (...) Russell believed that if all people an effect that is desirable form social point of view. Russell believed that if all individuals are granted possibilities of unrestrained self-realization armed conflicts will cease. The requirement of self-realization will be fulfilled above all when the barriers that have up to now handicapped the free development of human possibilities are pulled down. The barriers to self-realization include the restrictions connected with the specific living conditions pertinent to the industrial civilization, the commonly accepted false picture of human nature, and traditional morality. (shrink)

W artykule omówione zostały główne publikacje Bertranda Russella z lat 1905-1921 jako stanowiące inspirację dla powstania teorii wielości rzeczywistości Leona Chwistka. W ten sposób ukazano tło historyczne, tj. wpływ podnoszonych przez Russella zagadnień na postawę badawczą Chwistka. Artykuł zawiera także zestawienie poglądów obu filozofów oraz ocenę podobieństw i różnic między nimi. ----------------------- Zgłoszono: 28/03/2022. Zrecenzowano: 03/05/2022. Zaakceptowano do publikacji: 11/06/2022.

W liście do B. Russella z 19 VIII 1919 r. L. Wittgenstein pisze: „Zasadniczy sprawy jest teoria o tym, co można wypowiedzieć w zdaniach - to znaczy za pomocy języka -, a czego nie można wyrazić w zdaniach lecz tylko pokazać. Jest to, moim zdaniem, główny problem filozofii." Tym właśnie problemem zajmuje się w swojej pracy H. Watzka, wykładowcy historii filozofii w Wyższej Szkole Filozoficzno-Teologicznej Sankt Georgen we Frankfurcie nad Menem. Omawiana książka jest skróconą wersją rozprawy doktorskiej: Logik und (...) Metaphysik. Zur Statusbestimmung der Philosophie bei Wittgensein, obronionej przez Autora w 1997 roku w Uniwersytecie Humboldta w Berlinie. (shrink)

Landini discusses the second edition of Principia Mathematica, to show Russella (TM)s intellectual relationship with Wittgenstein and Ramsey.

W liście do B. Russella z 19 VIII 1919 r. L. Wittgenstein pisze: „Zasadniczy sprawy jest teoria o tym, co można wypowiedzieć w zdaniach - to znaczy za pomocy języka -, a czego nie można wyrazić w zdaniach lecz tylko pokazać. Jest to, moim zdaniem, główny problem filozofii." Tym właśnie problemem zajmuje się w swojej pracy H. Watzka, wykładowcy historii filozofii w Wyższej Szkole Filozoficzno-Teologicznej Sankt Georgen we Frankfurcie nad Menem. Omawiana książka jest skróconą wersją rozprawy doktorskiej: Logik und (...) Metaphysik. Zur Statusbestimmung der Philosophie bei Wittgensein, obronionej przez Autora w 1997 roku w Uniwersytecie Humboldta w Berlinie. (shrink)

Recent scholarship holds that unfulfilled definite descriptions do not play a role in motivating Russell’s theory of descriptions. In this paper, I make use of Gustav Bergmann’s ideal language method to develop an interpretation that restores the puzzle raised by ‘the King of France’ to the central place it once occupied in discussions of the theory of descriptions. In restoring ‘the King of France’, I show that Russell’s discussion of the problem it raises provides a decisive argument against Fregean senses, (...) a claim that also runs counter to most recent work on the theory of descriptions. (shrink)

Artykuł stanowi zrekonstruowany życiorys jednego z wybitnych Rzymian o imieniu M. V. Maximianus, który wsławił się licznymi bohaterskimi czynami w okresie tzw. wojen markomańskich. Podstawą dla dokonania tej rekonstrukcji były dwa źródła o kapitalnym znaczeniu, oba mające postać inskrypcji. Pierwszą z tych inskrypcji odkryto w dzisiejszym słowackim Trenczynie, drugą w Zanie na terenie Algierii. Co istotne ich treść wzajemnie się wzbogaca i uzupełnia. Pretekstem do podjęcia tematu była dawno odbyta rozmowa autora z Jubilatem, w której obaj zastanawiali się nad autentycznością (...) kreowanej przez Russella Crove postaci Maximusa bohatera filmu „Gladiator”, który w artykule został skonfrontowany z postacią wymienionego wyżej historycznego Maximianusa. (shrink)

Existuje překvapivě málo knih, které by se pokoušely o syntetizující pohled na analytickou filosofii. Je ovšem pravda, že ve druhé polovině našeho století se soubor filosofů, kteří se k analytické filosofii hlásí nebo kteří k ní bývají řazeni, stává natolik různorodý, že se jakákoli syntéza stává problematickou; překvapivě málo syntetizujících prací existuje ale i o ‘klasické’ analytické filosofii, to jest o analytické filosofii období zhruba od konce devatenáctého století do poloviny století dvacátého. Dejnožkova kniha je jednou z těch mála, které (...) se o něco takového pokouší, a to je třeba přivítat. Dejnožka se ovšem nesnaží podat všestranný rozbor názorů klasiků analytické filosofie; soustředí se pouze jeden aspekt jejich učení, totiž na jejich ontologii. Hned v úvodu své knihy k tomu vysvětluje, jaké opodstatnění může mít hovořit o ontologii u takového druhu filosofie, která se programově distancuje od metafyziky. Podle něj je tomu tak, že i když se někteří analytičtí filosofové někdy více či méně úspěšně vyhýbali otázkám metafyzickým (to jest otázkám po nejzákladnějších kategoriích bytí), ontologickým otázkám (to jest otázkám po povaze bytí jako takového) se v podstatě vyhnout nelze. A Dejnožka se snaží ukázat, že klasikové analytické filosofie se těmito otázkami zabývali mnohdy velice do hloubky. To je patrné zejména u Frega a Russella, kterým autor věnuje největší pozornost; avšak k těm, kteří podle Dejnožky berou ústřední otázku ontologie za svou, řadí Dejnožka i Wittgensteina i Quina (jimž se však věnuje na pouze velice omezeném prostoru - každému asi na dvanácti stránkách). (shrink)

Autor przedstawia krytyczną analizę pewnych idei nominalistycznej teorii N. Goodmana w interpretacji R. Eberlego. Teoria ta, czyli „rachunek indywiduów", oparta jest na trzech podstawowych pojęciach, zasadzie sumowania, relacji „część-całość" i zasadzie indywidualizacji. Owe pojęcia wzięte razem charakteryzują przedmioty, które chcemy zaliczyć do indywiduów, przy czym charakterystyka ta określa raczej czym jest pewien zespół indywiduów, niż to czym jest pojedyncze indywiduum. Według Eberlego na specjalną uwagę zasługują tzw. atomistyczne uniwersa indywiduów. Definicja takich uniwersów ma stanowić właśnie określenie tego, czym są indywidua. (...) W ogólności „atomistyczne uniwersum indywiduów" to podzbiór pola relacji „część-całość", w którym są spełnione odpowiednie warunki dotyczące sumowania i indywidualizacji przedmiotów. Pojęcie to autor wiąże z atomizmem logicznym B. Russella oraz rozważa jego możliwe zastosowania. (shrink)