This book examines philosophical and scientific implications of Neodarwinism relative to recent empirical data. It develops explanations of social behavior and cognition through analysis of mental capabilities and consideration of ethical issues. It includes debate within cognitive science among explanations of social and moral phenomena from philosophy, evolutionary and cognitive psychology, neurobiology, linguistics, and computer science. Cognitive Science (CS) provides an original corpus of scholarly work that makes explicit the import of cognitive-science research for philosophical analysis. Topics include the nature, (...) structure, and justification of knowledge, cognitive architectures and development, brain-mind theories, and consciousness. (shrink)

O envelhecimento populacional é uma preocupação mundial e exige medidas de prevenção de saúde a serem adotadas com a maior brevidade possível. Esse processo é, muitas vezes, acompanhado pelo declínio das habilidades cognitivas, como a memória e as funções executivas. O objetivo do presente estudo é ..

Residuated fuzzy logic calculi are related to continuous t-norms, which are used as truth functions for conjunction, and their residua as truth functions for implication. In these logics, a negation is also definable from the implication and the truth constant $\overline{0}$ , namely $\neg \varphi$ is $\varphi \to \overline{0}$. However, this negation behaves quite differently depending on the t-norm. For a nilpotent t-norm (a t-norm which is isomorphic to Łukasiewicz t-norm), it turns out that $\neg$ is an involutive negation. However, (...) for t-norms without non-trivial zero divisors, $\neg$ is Gödel negation. In this paper we investigate the residuated fuzzy logics arising from continuous t-norms without non-trivial zero divisors and extended with an involutive negation. (shrink)

The biblical source mentions on three occasions the nautical journeys of Solomon, king of Judah and Israel, and Hiram of Tyre to Ophir in search of riches. Throughout the study, we point out that the mention of the journeys constitutes a theological construction, composed between the twilight of the 6th century BC and the first half of the 5th century BC, to magnify, in contrast with the nautical failure of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, the figure of Solomon as the prototype (...) of the ideal monarch to whom pagan nations, represented by the Phoenicians, render servitude,. The later biblical tradition, manifested by the Greek, Latin and Arabic translation, will continue to magnify the figure of the monarch, placing the location of Ophir on an increasingly more distant horizon. (shrink)

The monoidal t-norm based logic MTL is obtained from Hájek''s Basic Fuzzy logic BL by dropping the divisibility condition for the strong (or monoidal) conjunction. Recently, Jenei and Montgana have shown MTL to be standard complete, i.e. complete with respect to the class of residuated lattices in the real unit interval [0,1] defined by left-continuous t-norms and their residua. Its corresponding algebraic semantics is given by pre-linear residuated lattices. In this paper we address the issue of standard and rational completeness (...) (rational completeness meaning completeness with respect to a class of algebras in the rational unit interval [0,1]) of some important axiomatic extensions of MTL corresponding to well-known parallel extensions of BL. Moreover, we investigate varieties of MTL algebras whose linearly ordered countable algebras embed into algebras whose lattice reduct is the real and/or the rational interval [0,1]. These embedding properties are used to investigate finite strong standard and/or rational completeness of the corresponding logics. (shrink)

The monoidal t-norm based logic MTL is obtained from Hájek's Basic Fuzzy logic BL by dropping the divisibility condition for the strong (or monoidal) conjunction. Recently, Jenei and Montgana have shown MTL to be standard complete, i.e. complete with respect to the class of residuated lattices in the real unit interval [0,1] defined by left-continuous t-norms and their residua. Its corresponding algebraic semantics is given by pre-linear residuated lattices. In this paper we address the issue of standard and rational completeness (...) (rational completeness meaning completeness with respect to a class of algebras in the rational unit interval [0,1]) of some important axiomatic extensions of MTL corresponding to well-known parallel extensions of BL. Moreover, we investigate varieties of MTL algebras whose linearly ordered countable algebras embed into algebras whose lattice reduct is the real and/or the rational interval [0,1]. These embedding properties are used to investigate finite strong standard and/or rational completeness of the corresponding logics. (shrink)

This conceptual paper explores and compares the ethical dimension of Islamic and so-called ethical banks. The investigation is made in two succeeding steps. First, an individual analysis as regards the respective level of correspondence between ethical principles and business practice. For the latter, a time-based perspective is adopted. Second, a side-by-side comparison of their overall “ethical coherence gap”. The results show that this gap is wider in the case of Islamic banks. The final part of the paper draws up three (...) different scenarios for future development of these financial institutions where their ethical coherence is enhanced. (shrink)

What are financial institutions' social responsibilities in developing countries? On the one hand, these institutions share the generic responsibilities of all human organizations and business enterprises. However, their specific social responsibility is the performance of the social function of financial intermediaries, which, in the case of emerging countries, consists mainly of contributing to economic growth and solving the problem of poverty. This paper describes a number of technical-economic and moral problems that take us to a consideration of the performance of (...) banking operations in microfinancing, with special reference to Latin America. The paper also provides a series of recommendations that, in addition to contributing to solving the development and poverty problems in emerging countries, help define financial institutions' social responsibility in such countries. (shrink)

What are financial institutions' social responsibilities in developing countries? On the one hand, these institutions share the generic responsibilities of all human organizations and business enterprises. However, their specific social responsibility is the performance of the social function of financial intermediaries, which, in the case of emerging countries, consists mainly of contributing to economic growth and solving the problem of poverty. This paper describes a number of technical‐economic and moral problems that take us to a consideration of the performance of (...) banking operations in microfinancing, with special reference to Latin America. The paper also provides a series of recommendations that, in addition to contributing to solving the development and poverty problems in emerging countries, help define financial institutions' social responsibility in such countries. (shrink)

The purpose of this article is to present and discuss some of the best practices of financial industry, in three emerging economies: Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru. The main thesis is that, notwithstanding the importance of certain specific deficiencies, such as an inadequate regulatory context or the lack of financial education among the population, the main factor that explains the low banking levels in emerging and developing economies, affecting mostly lower-income segments, is the use of inefficient financial service distribution models. In (...) connection with this thesis, we will try to show that traditional financial institutions, both in developing countries and in the advanced economies have a special social responsibility to help create an efficient financial system that makes saving and borrowing instruments available to the greatest possible number of citizens. (shrink)

Globalisation has given rise to a new field of debate due to the growing mobility of the workers and the consequent cultural diversity inside companies. In this sense, a complex world like ours demands a review of the professional profile which should include the so called intercultural competences as a structuring element of companies’ policy and strategic plan. Subsequently it is suggested that, as the intercultural competences affect the cognitive, affective and behavioural aspects, they actually imply a transformation of the (...) person’s identity. (shrink)

This paper aims at being a systematic investigation of different completeness properties of first-order predicate logics with truth-constants based on a large class of left-continuous t-norms . We consider standard semantics over the real unit interval but also we explore alternative semantics based on the rational unit interval and on finite chains. We prove that expansions with truth-constants are conservative and we study their real, rational and finite chain completeness properties. Particularly interesting is the case of considering canonical real and (...) rational semantics provided by the algebras where the truth-constants are interpreted as the numbers they actually name. Finally, we study completeness properties restricted to evaluated formulae of the kind , where φ has no additional truth-constants. (shrink)

The concept of the Noosphere is of great importance when looking at the values underpinning the technocratic artifacts and technocracies (human physical technological objects and knowledge processes) by which Humans relate to the Geosphere through other human beings. In this sense, the Noosphere may inform geoethics as an environmental, social, and spiritual praxis and thinking aiming at ecological justice. The concept of the Noosphere represents the coexistence and coevolution of Humans and the Geosphere, overcoming the dichotomy between instrumental materialistic and (...) intrinsic ecocentric values but considering the meaning of a constitutive dimension. Thus, the Noosphere becomes a concept for reconnection with the human community, the natural world, and the Divine, and develops into an ecological mysticism that, in turn, unfolds in resistance in hope as a kind of spiritual activism. The theoretical framework is illustrated with the case study of the Terres de L’Ebre in Catalonia (Spain). (shrink)

El trabajo parte de la distinción teórica entre nación en sentido jurídico-político y nación en sentido histórico-cultural. Sobre esa base, se trata de averiguar cuál es el concepto de nación que utiliza la Constitución española. Del análisis jurídico-constitucional efectuado, se concluye que la palabra nación se utiliza en el sentido jurídico-político y se equipara a pueblo, a patria, a España o a Estado, aunque cabe hacer la distinción entre nación-constituyente y nación-constituida para encontrar el significado preciso de todos estos términos. (...) En cambio, el concepto de nación en sentido histórico-cultural es utilizado parcialmente en la Constitución —si nos fundamos en la voluntad del constituyente— bajo el término nacionalidades o regiones, aunque limitando las aspiraciones de éstas —por ello decimos parcialmente— al derecho a la autonomía y no al derecho a la soberanía. (shrink)

The framework presented by Bayefsky and Berkman is based on having clear and accurate genetic information to offer parents, for them to either decide to prepare for birth or to terminate the...

En 1935 Baltasar Samper pronunció varias conferencias sobre jazz en Barcelona. La recuperación de los textos de dichas conferencias nos sirven ahora para resaltar la dimensión didáctica del compositor en un contexto cultural marcado por el academicismo. Sin embargo, los esfuerzos de Samper por divulgar la música de jazz entre sus colegas, quienes consideraban el jazz una música estigmatizada, dará lugar a unos contenidos a la altura de los postulados del parisino Hugues Panassié. Este artículo concluye constatando la vigencia de (...) las enseñanzas samperianas sobre jazz y apuntando su continuidad en contextos didácticos actuales. (shrink)