This paper tries to ‘liberate’ Augustine’s view on time from certain modern prejudices, e.g. that the church father’s theory of time involves the modern dichotomy between subjectivism and objectivism (Ricœur), that his understanding of time can be seen as a precursor of modern phenomenology (Husserl, Heidegger), that Conf. XI lacks a coherent theory of time as such or that, at least, it falls short of the insights of Kant’s enlightened transcendentalism (Flasch). By contrast, the church father circumvents typically modern aporiai (...) by both differentiating between time on the level of physics and time on the level of soul as well as by accounting for the link between these two ‘times’: Whereas the time of physics tends to non–existence, it is the soul that, by cognizing a certain process in its (relative) entirety, establishes actual time; on the level of soul, time persists and is preserved (in contrast to physical time). Neither does Augustine propose nor need the notion of any ‘absolute time’. Maybe Augustine’s theory of time is compatible with certain assumptions of modern physics (e.g. Einstein’s theory of relativity) although the church fathers’ view can in no way be reduced to the level of physics. (shrink)

Advance directives (ADs) are assumed to reflect the patients’ preferences, even if these are not clearly expressed. Research into whether this assumption is correct has been lacking. This study explores to what extent ADs reflect the true wishes of the signatories.

Journal of Social Philosophy, EarlyView.

Wissenschaft und wissenschaftliche Entwicklung sind zunehmend von Differenzierungen und Spezialisierungen gekennzeichnet, die der Öffentlichkeit immer schwieriger zu vermitteln sind. Dies äußert sich in Bedenken gegenüber der Wissenschaftsfreiheit, wie umgekehrt in Bemühungen, sie als wertvolles Gut der Gesellschaft zu aktualisieren. Freiheit der Wissenschaft ist so Brennpunkt eines Bündels von Problemstellungen und wird hier aus Sicht von Naturwissenschaft, Medizin, Recht, Wissenschaftstheorie und Ethik verhandelt.

This article offers a functionalist account of trust. It argues that a particular form of trust—Communicated Interpersonal Trust—is paradigmatic and lays out how trust as a social practice in this form helps to satisfy fundamental practical, deliberative, and relational human needs in mutually reinforcing ways. We then argue that derivative (non-paradigmatic) forms of trust connect to the paradigm by generating a positive dynamic between trustor and trustee that is geared towards the realization of these functions. We call this trust’s proleptic (...) potential. Our functionalist approach does not only provide important insights into the practice of trust and its place in the broader web of social life, but also illuminates existing philosophical debates. First, pointing out how opposing theoretical accounts of trust each capitalise on only one of its functions, our paradigm-based approach reveals why they each contain a kernel of truth but are also deficient: the optimal realization of each function is tied to the existence of the other functions as well. Second, we show how a functionalist re-orientation can illuminate two recent disputes regarding (i) the question whether trust is explanatorily two- or three-place and (ii) whether (and to what extent) we can decide to trust others. (shrink)

Journal of Political Philosophy, EarlyView.

Friedemann Affolderbach vertritt die These, dass Öffentlichkeit und Gegenöffentlichkeit als wechselseitig aufeinander bezogenes Verhältnis zu interpretieren sind. Entsprechend ist Öffentlichkeit als Deutungszusammenhang sowie Praxis umkämpft und bildet das Spannungsfeld sozialer Bewegungen zur Gewinnung von öffentlichen Erfahrungsräumen. Gegenöffentlichkeit im Sinne einer Demokratie als Lebensform kennzeichnet dabei die Möglichkeiten zur Erweiterung von Erfahrungs- und Experimentierräumen. Ihre Bedeutung besteht darin, Räume für Erfahrungen von Selbstverfügung herauszubilden und erweiterte Handlungsmöglichkeiten in praktische Weltverfügung umzusetzen. Gesellschaftliche Veränderung wird an dieser Stelle als eine öffentliche erfahrbar. (...) Die Herausbildung einer Gegenöffentlichkeit selbst wird als Praxis von Bildung interpretiert und am exemplarischen Beispiel untersucht. (shrink)

Recent years have witnessed the rise of digital platforms that allow economic agents to arrange ever more fine-grained contracts. This article zooms in on labour-based platforms that permit the hire of labour in a just-in-time fashion (and are part of the broader trend towards on-demand work). Its principal contribution comes in three parts. First, exposing the frequently overlooked diversity of labour-based platforms, the article proposes to distinguish platform companies, which directly sell services and then purchase the labour needed to provide (...) them, and broker platforms, which act merely as intermediaries. Second, it examines how platforms of each type pose distinct threats to labour justice, thereby extending Daniel Halliday's (2021) analysis. Drawing on empirical studies of the experiences of platform workers, it identifies a power imbalance as the root cause of these threats across all platforms. Finally, the article assesses three strategies to counter these threats: introducing stricter regulation, turning platforms into worker-run co-ops, and improving outside job opportunities. In exploring how each strategy could be implemented for specific platforms, it makes the case for always discussing labour-based platforms with one eye to their specific structural features and the other eye to the broader labour market. (shrink)

Enlightenment All the Way to Heaven: Emanuel Swedenborg in the Context of Eighteenth-Century Theology and Philosophy is an English translation of Friedemann Stengel's 2009 German habilitation (qualifying) thesis, which was published by Mohr Siebeck Tübingen in 2011, Aufklärung bis zum Himmel: Emanuel Swedenborg im Kontext der Theologie und Philosophie des 18. Jahrhunderts. In this volume, Stengel provides a survey of Swedenborg's philosophical influences, as well as an assessment of Swedenborg's own influence on the German theology of his time, thereby (...) giving the reader new insight into the nature of the Enlightenment. Exploring Swedenborg's many inspirations, from Plato to Aristotle, Augustine to Descartes, and Malebranche to Leibniz, just to name a few, Stengel shows the breadth of their impact on Swedenborg and the resultant sophistication of the Swedish prophet's ideas. Enlightenment All the Way to Heaven is the twenty-fourth installment in the Swedenborg Studies scholarly series. (shrink)

Müller's target article aims to summarize approaches to the question of how language elements (phonemes, morphemes, etc.) and rules are laid down in the brain. However, it suffers from being too vague about basic assumptions and empirical predictions of neurobiological models, and the empirical evidence available to test the models is not appropriately evaluated. (1) In a neuroscientific model of language, different cortical localizations of words can only be based on biological principles. These need to be made explicit. (2) Evidence (...) for and against word class differences could be evaluated more rigorously. (3) All (and only) humans are able to learn languages with complex syntactic structures; it is, therefore, not appropriate to deny innateness and universality of syntactic principles. The real question appears to be the following: Which neurobiological principles are the linguistic principles based on? (shrink)

Explains how the subconscious mind creates survival patterns and how to transform them into the six keys to self-empowerment. Provides mind-activating methods and practical tools based on Neuro-linguistic Programming and clinical hypnotherapy. Shows how engaging the subconscious mind accelerates healing, growth, and change and allows you to eliminate the root causes of chronic anxiety, depression, and other psychological conditions.

What is unique about the development of business ethics in the USA, and how does it compare with various countries of Europe and with Japan? Institutional, legal, social and cultural factors are identified by the Professor of Business and Public Policy at the Haas School of Business, University of California at Berkeley. An earlier version of this article titled “The Globalization of Business Ethics: Why America Remains Distinctive” was published in the Fall 1992 issue of the California Management Review, Vol. (...) 35, No. 1. Reprinted by Permission of The Regents of the University of California. (shrink)

The real history of physical chemistry did not begin until 1887, when Svante Arrhenius postulated the existence of ions, Henrik van't Hoff developed the concept of osmosis and Wilhelm Ostwald was appointed professor of physical chemistry at Leipzig university. But already some seventeen years earlier the first chair of physical chemistry had been created, the very chair which was occupied by Ostwald in 1887. The article deals with the circumstances related to this event. The founding of the chair was promoted (...) against famour Leipzig organic chemist Hermann Kolbe by two faculty members. Wilhelm Scheibner and Carl Neumann, both mathematicians, in collaboration with the saxon minister of cultural affairs, von Falkenstein. (shrink)

After considering Buber’s and Levinas’s critiques of Heidegger and of each other, I propose that we should acknowledge authenticity, “essential relations” of love and friendship, and holiness as aspects of a good life, though they pull in different directions. We should resist the temptation to take sides in a battle between different approaches to the complex nature of our social being.

The essays are grouped in three sections. In Part I Vogel considers the relationship between feminism and socialism.

Das Erhabene dient Hegel zur asthetischen Beschreibung des Judentums und verdeutlicht die enge Verbindung von Kunst und Religion in seinem Denken. Friedemann Barniske erschliesst Hegels Begriff des Erhabenen vor dem Hintergrund seiner Logik und Symboltheorie, sodass sich theologische Perspektiven fur das moderne Christentum eroffnen. Hegels Asthetik spannt einen religionsgeschichtlichen Bogen u.a. vom alten Indien uber die persische Dichtung und die hebraische Gottesvorstellung des Alten Testaments bis zur christlichen Romantik. Dabei wird jeweils das Zusammenspiel von ideeller Bedeutung und sinnlicher Gestalt (...) zum Kriterium der einzelnen Spielarten von Kunst und Religion. Dem Erhabenen schreibt Hegel die besondere Rolle zu, die Unmoglichkeit eines angemessenen Ausdrucks des Gottlichen zur Sprache zu bringen. Darin liegt auch das Potenzial der Erhabenheit fur das Christentum der Gegenwart. (shrink)

When is state coercion for the provision of public goods justified? And how should the social surplus of public goods be distributed? Philosophers approach these questions by distinguishing between essential and discretionary public goods. This article explains the intractability of this distinction, and presents two upshots. First, if governments provide configurations of public goods that simultaneously serve essential and discretionary purposes, the scope for justifiable complaints by honest holdouts is narrower than commonly assumed. Second, however, claims to distributive fairness in (...) the provision of public goods also turn out to be more complex to assess. (shrink)

Elijah Fenton’s Phaon to Sappho has so far never been in the focus of literary criticism. The article aims at a more detailed understanding of Fenton’s technique of literary reception by means of a close reading of both Phaon to Sappho and Fenton’s model, the Ovidian Epistula Sapphus. As will be seen, Fenton offers an unexpected perspective on the ancient myth through the eyes of ‘his’ Phaon: Phaon did not leave Sappho out of faithlessness but was completely unable to entertain (...) any feelings of true love, because he had been cursed by Venus for being unfaithful to his former girl-friend in Malea. Phaon merely enjoyed Sappho’s gift of song as a temporary remedy for the agony within his cursed mind, but had to leave her whenever she stopped singing. At this point Phaon is asking for Sappho’s intercession with Venus on his behalf. Although Fenton makes crucial changes to the plot, he does neither ‘deconstruct’ nor ‘correct’ the myth as such: instead, he meticulously retains all the major motifs developed in Ovid’s epistle and thus achieves a literary transformation of the myth, enabling the reader to regard either perspective on the two protagonists’ relationship as logically possible. (shrink)

In his epic Paradise Lost, John Milton aims at a philosophically and theologically sound theodicy in order to “justify the ways of God to men”1. Milton’s approach has been criticised for creating an unsolvable tension between God’s foreknowledge and man’s free will and responsibility. The article wants to show that this criticism turns out to be unjustified if the philosophical basis behind the epic is thoroughly examined. Milton draws heavily on St. Augustine’s ontology: Every kind of being depends on its (...) intrinsic goodness insofar as it really is what it is by nature. God himself is the ultimate goodness: Therefore he is not subject to change, but transcends space and time. In his perfection, he cannot lack any kind of knowledge, but knows all things in an atemporal manner, without depriving men and women of their capability of free choice and action, for these are the distinct features that constitute the goodness of human nature. The crucial question of the article is why, according to Augustine and Milton, God’s foreknowledge should not at all be confused with fated determinism. (shrink)

Neurons repeatedly exposed to similar perceptual experiences fire together and wire together to form ‘meaning kernels’ of concepts. Pulvermueller argues that abstract concepts may be devoid of meaning kernels, because the perceptual experiences that construct abstract concepts are subject to great variation and share few common features. Abstract concept are therefore grounded in the brain through features that belong to ‘meaning halos’, rather than to ‘meaning kernels’.

The lack of engagement of philosophy with decisions made under conditions of risk and uncertainty has lately received increasing attention. But philosophers have devoted little thought to the development of a conceptual framework for distinguishing different types of risks. This article begins by illustrating the need for a more nuanced conceptual framework. As the normative considerations risks give rise to are highly varied, ethicists need to distinguish between different types of risks. It then offers two ideas. First, it proposes that (...) we understand ‘risk’ as a multi-dimensional concept, i.e. a concept that can always be evaluated in different dimensions, e.g. a qualitative, a quantitative and an epistemic dimension. While this understanding of risk underlies the current practice of risk analysis, making it explicit is of value, in particular for the philosophical debate. It draws attention to the diversity of risks, helps to group them sensibly and sharpens existing arguments. Second, the article introduces a novel account of the notion ‘systemic risk’. Criticising existing accounts, it proposes we understand ‘systemic risk’ as referring to a risk that endangers the functioning of a system and originates in the system or its background noise, where a system is conceived of as a set of interdependent, interacting components that form a complex, functionally defined whole. The article identifies a number of structural features shared by systemic risks and evaluates the distinctive normative considerations they give rise to. It then argues that the notion ‘systemic risk’ is particularly suited to characterise some of the most pressing risks faced in an increasingly interconnected world. While the notion ‘systemic risk’ rests on the understanding of ‘risk’ as a multi-dimensional concept, it also complements it. Its necessity shows that in addressing risks, it is sometimes helpful to move beyond a characterisation based solely on their dimensions. (shrink)

Die platonische Teilhabe-Ontologie besitzt in Antike und Mittelalter ein konkretes Potential fur einen philosophisch begrundeten interreligiosen Dialog. Das Buch fuhrt Proklos' Henadenlehre im Kontext seines Teilhabe-Theorems einer schlussigen Interpretation zu und zeigt, wie Nikolaus von Kues das Theorem verwendet, um in seinem Werk "Uber den Frieden im Glauben" u.a. die divergenten Perspektiven von Islam und Christentum auf die Trinitatslehre miteinander zu vermitteln.