Author: Boruszewski Jarosław Title: MACHINES AND SYMBOLS (I) – SEMANTIC ASPECTS OF CYBERNETICS AND AUTOMATION (Maszyny i symbole (I) – semantyczne aspekty cybernetyki i automatyzacji) Source: Filo-Sofija year: 2011, vol:.12, number: 2011/1, pages: 397-425 Keywords: MACHINES, SYMBOLS, SEMANTIC, CYBERNETICS, AUTOMATION Discipline: PHILOSOPHY Language: POLISH Document type: ARTICLE Publication order reference (Primary author’s office address): E-mail: www:This article is the first part of the cycle titled “Machines and symbols”. The main issue of this cycle may be formulated as a question: (...) can machines and technical devices operate with symbols? A very important problem raised in this essay is the difference between symbols and signals. The concept of signal is also broadly discussed in the paper, because there are many different definitions of this concept. The present text contains semantic and philosophical considerations concerning cybernetics, mathematical theory of communication, industrial semiotics and semio-technics. In these theories, terms “symbol” and “signal” are often used interchangeably which leads to misconceptions. One of the most frequent misconceptions is confusing discrete signals with symbols. The author focused on communication systems where machines are senders and humans are receivers, because descriptions of these systems tend towards anthropomorphization of a machine-sender. This tendency makes signals sent out by machines treated as symbols comprehensible by a human-receiver. Another interesting aspect of machine-human communication systems is the treatment of a human-receiver as some kind of machine. Such an idea is called “mechanomorphism”. (shrink)

Rev. Professor Stanislaw Kowalczyk ist the head of the Social Philosophy Department at The Social Studies Faculty of the Catholic University of Lublin. He is a philosopher with a wide variety of interests and the author of many books. Philosophical Ideas of Postmodernism is his newest work. Kowalczyk does not present his own definition of postmodernism. He compares the most important philosophers of this trend and critically analyses their ideas from the point of view of classical philosophy.

New conjunctionlike and disjunctionlike operations on orthomodular lattices are defined with the aid of formal Mackey decompositions of not necessarily compatible elements. Various properties of these operations are studied. It is shown that the new operations coincide with the lattice operations of join and meet on compatible elements of a lattice but they necessarily differ from the latter on all elements that are not compatible. Nevertheless, they define on an underlying set the partial order relation that coincides with the original (...) one. The new operations are in general nonassociative: if they are associative, a lattice is necessarily Boolean. However, they satisfy the Foulis-Holland-type theorem concerning associativity instead of distributivity. (shrink)

Tematem artykułu jest filozofia miłości rozwijana przez dwóch wybitnych fenomenologów wymienionych w tytule: Dietricha von Hildebranda i Karola Wojtyłę. Obydwaj korzystali w swoich badaniach z metody fenomenologicznej; celem artykułu jest pokazanie, że w obydwu wypadkach metoda ta prowadziła do podobnych rezultatów. Autor czyni to w trzech krokach. Po pierwsze, pokazuje, że miłość pojętą w sensie ogólnym obydwaj autorzy rozumieją jako odpowiedź na wartość osoby. W Lubelskiej Szkole Personalizmu zasada miłości została wyrażona w formule: persona est affirmanda propter seipsam, a treścią (...) afirmacji, która jest należna osobie, jest miłość. W kategoriach von Hildebranda zasada ta wyrażona jest w sposób następujący: dobro osoby afirmowane jest poprzez obiektywne dobra dla osoby, które stanowią właściwą treść miłości. Po drugie, obydwaj autorzy wiele uwagi poświęcają tej specyficznej formie miłości, jaką jest miłość małżeńska. Podczas gdy mińość w sensie ogólnym stanowi odpowiedź na wyjątkową wartość osoby w stosunku do świata pozaosobowego, to miłość małżeńska jest odpowiedzią na wyjątkową wartość jednej osoby pośród wszystkich innych osób doświadczaną przez osobę płci przeciwnej. W tym sensie miłość małżeńska jest również specyficzną odpowiedzią na wartość. Po trzecie, doświadczenie miłości małżeńskiej pokazuje, że nie istnieje sprzeczność między wolnością a wzajemną przynależnością, co von Hildebrand wyraził w pojciu intentio unionis. (shrink)

The article reviews the book Granice pojęciowe metafizyki [The Conceptual Boundaries of Metaphysics], by Sebastian Tomasz Kołodziejczyk.

The fundamental problem of Jan Srzednicki’s new epistemology is the question: how thoughts surpass the resistance of that what is ontologically present, how this process is possible? In Srzednicki’s opinion, thinking is a process of distancing from the pressure of ontological presence. His ideas offer a splendid inspiration for philosophy of medicine which attempts to answer the question “whether (and how) a disease is cognizable?” This question refers directly to and is translated into the question of the capacity to diagnose (...) particular diseases. Answering to the above stated question whether disease is cognizable we should answer in the affirmative, however, in a “modified” form that its pre-cognitive resistance to reality is formed at the articulated level. Somewhat intuitively we feel the presence of a disease before we express it in words as a disease according to our scientific or informal thought style. (shrink)

This project envisages a study of Eric Voegelin (1901-1985) and of the role played by metaxy in his vision of political philosophy. Metaxy already defined by Plato as the "in-between" matrix of the human condition is for Voegelin a powerful notion that symbolizes the intermediate state in which man experiences diverse and opposing tensions such as the ones between immanence and transcendence or mortality and immortality. The metaxy constitutes the realm of the divine-human mutual participation (methexis), and its locus resides (...) in human consciousness (nous), there where the divine reality manifests itself as the origin of being. Being the field of intermediation between opposing forces, man has to keep the balance of consciousness in order to differentiate the noetic and pneumatic dimensions and so attune his life to the divine ground of being. This project claims that for Voegelin metaxy shapes the possibility of the philosophical, historical, political and religious orientation in life. Indeed, Voegelin's approach deserves recognition as an option adequate for addressing the intellectual challenges engendered by modern and postmodern philosophies. (shrink)

Matteo Ricci is one of the most important Christian missionaries in China whose groundbreaking method of accommodation in the context of the Chinese culture was paradigmatic and influenced the history of relationship between China and the West. Ricci’s work had a profound impact on Chinese culture. He introduced new ideas in astronomy, mathematics, cartography, and other fields. He also helped to spread Christianity in China through the means of science and dialogue built on authentic friendship. In this article we offer (...) a discussion about his missionary work that left mark on the history of evangelization of China by considering his scientific contribution, his missionary spirituality and accommodation method resulting in his personal experience of intercultural encounter leading to his profound self-transformation. As the Catholic church already officially recognized his “heroic virtues” putting Matteo Ricci on the path to sainthood, it is important to reflect about contribution of this great Jesuit to the dialogue between China and the West. Abstrak Matteo Ricci adalah salah seorang misionaris Kristen terpenting di Tiongkok, karena membuat terobosan berupa metode akomodasi yang akan menjadi paradigma kultural yang memengaruhi sejarah relasi antara Tiongkok dan Barat. Pengaruh Ricci terhadap kebudayaan Tiongkok sangat dalam karena ia memperkenalkan astronomi, matematika, kartografi, dan bidang ilmu lainnya. Ia membantu penyebaran Kristianitas di Tiongkok lewat jalan ilmu pengetahuan serta lewat dialog berdasarkan persahabatan tulus. Artikel ini mendiskusikan karya Ricci yang menandai sejarah evangelisasi di Tiongkok dengan secara khusus menyoroti kontribusinya dalam bidang sains dan dengan menelisik metode akomodasi beserta spiritualitas penginjilannya yang berakar pada perjumpaan interkultural yang membuahkan transformasi mendalam dalam kehidupan pribadinya. Mengingat Gereja Katolik telah secara resmi mengakui keutamaan-keutamaan heroik Matteo Ricci serta telah memulai proses kanonisasinya, penting kiranya merefleksikan kontribusi misionaris Yesuit ini dalam hal dialog antara Tiongkok dan Barat. Kata-kata kunci: Matteo Ricci, Tiongkok, spiritualitas, akomodasi, misi, dialog. (shrink)

'Zugang' ist der bislang übersehene Grundbegriff von Martin Heideggers Denken bis zum Hauptwerk 'Sein und Zeit' (1927). Menschsein bedeutet demnach: Zugänge erschliessen zu dem, was ist. Ermöglicht wird diese Form der Existenz durch unser gebrochenes Selbstverhältnis: die Fraktur der Subjektivität"--Page 4 of cover.

Journal of Philosophy of Education, EarlyView.

The uniqueness of Poland’s experience with the 2020 coronavirus lays in the interplay of two factors: the decisive governmental response to the pandemic, and the overlap of the pandemic with the country’s presidential election scheduled on May 10, 2020. The government’s fast reaction, combined with the citizens’ discipline, resulted in the suppression of the virus’s spread. The ratings of the current President Duda skyrocketed well above 50% needed for re-election in the first round. However, the expectation was that they would (...) be going down with the pandemic and lockdown fatigue. For almost two months, the government tried to organize the elections under the normal schedule while the opposition tried to block them. Finally, the opposition won, and the elections were rescheduled on June 28, with the President Duda’s ratings substantially lower. Nevertheless, in the runoff on July 11, Duda won. Our conclusion goes against the common opinion that electoral engineering is always one-sided. The reconstruction of the pre-electoral political maneuvers shows that many independent players were simultaneously involved in complex engineering, and that the final outcome was hard to predict until almost the very end. (shrink)

At the turn of 1960s and 1970s, Stanisław Lem devoted some of his non-fiction writing to a discussion and considerations of semiotics. Most of them were expressions of a critical approach mainly directed against structuralism. However, Lem also formulated some positive statements although they were not developed systematically. The article offers an analysis of Lem’s semiotic ideas from the perspective of semiotic functionalism of Jerzy Pelc, mainly considering its two main components: contextualism and typological approach. Special attention is paid to (...) the latter because both Pelc and Lem proposed some original solutions in this respect. What is meant here is the multidimensional typology of symbolic uses of signs developed by Pelc and Lem’s multidimensional typology of the situations of the reception of texts. Although they are independent form each other, these proposals show some convergence both in their ways of construction and roles they are supposed to perform. Henceforth, one can say that Lem was a crypto-functionalist. (shrink)

Jubilees induce one to reflect, to look back. It is a good opportunity to make some summaries, one ponders over the achievements of the past. It is also a good moment to express one's appreciation and gratitude. Such an expression of appreciation and a form of gratitude is the book Philosophy Leaning Towards Man, dedicated to Rev. Stanisław Kowalczyk, a professor of philosophy on the occasion of forty years of his scientific work at the Catholic University of Lublin and the (...) fiftieth anniversary of his ordination. This joint publication, dedicated to Prof. Kowalczyk and edited by Edward Balawajder, Arkadiusz Jabłoński and Jan Szymczyk, comprises numerous studies by his associates, colleagues and students. The whole work is thematically organized into three parts. The first part contains texts that raise anthropological issues, the second - social issues, and the third - issues concentrated around the relation between God and religion. This organization perfectly reflects the spectrum of the interests of Prof. Kowalczyk. (shrink)

Thomas Hobbes bequeathed to us a comprehensive system, the interpretation of which remains a matter of disagreement even today. In his political theory, he pays most attention to the state community. He deliberates over the reasons for its origin, its decline and fall. Among the more detailed issues dealt within his reflections, the more important ones are the following: the concept of the state of nature, human motivation, the state of war and peace, as well as considerations concerning the social (...) contract. In order to be consistent in his argument, Hobbes also deals with the analysis of the structures of the state, the division of power and with the functions a state should perform. Due to these deliberations, he finally arrives at the secret of the state’s durability. Though it is certainly the case that, since his times, the socio-political situation and circumstances have changed, many of the solutions postulated by Hobbes have not lost their value. (shrink)

Rev. Professor Stanislaw Kowalczyk ist the head of the Social Philosophy Department at The Social Studies Faculty of the Catholic University of Lublin. He is a philosopher with a wide variety of interests and the author of many books. Philosophical Ideas of Postmodernism is his newest work. Kowalczyk does not present his own definition of postmodernism. He compares the most important philosophers of this trend and critically analyses their ideas from the point of view of classical philosophy.

Jubilees induce one to reflect, to look back. It is a good opportunity to make some summaries, one ponders over the achievements of the past. It is also a good moment to express one's appreciation and gratitude. Such an expression of appreciation and a form of gratitude is the book Philosophy Leaning Towards Man, dedicated to Rev. Stanisław Kowalczyk, a professor of philosophy on the occasion of forty years of his scientific work at the Catholic University of Lublin and the (...) fiftieth anniversary of his ordination. This joint publication, dedicated to Prof. Kowalczyk and edited by Edward Balawajder, Arkadiusz Jabłoński and Jan Szymczyk, comprises numerous studies by his associates, colleagues and students. The whole work is thematically organized into three parts. The first part contains texts that raise anthropological issues, the second - social issues, and the third - issues concentrated around the relation between God and religion. This organization perfectly reflects the spectrum of the interests of Prof. Kowalczyk. (shrink)

This paper tries to present the Kantian view on ethical issues in negotiations. The central problems concerns certain manipulation techniques in negotiations, where the broadest definition of manipulation is used. The difference between informational and emotional manipulation is presented and ethical norms concerning them are shown. Despite the unequivocal Kantian view on using manipulation techniques, situations where even Kantian ethics allows for exceptions are presented.

The subject of this abstract is the description of professional ethics of a damage adjuster in an insurance company. The work of a damage adjuster in a financial institution is more than looking after the profit of the company which goes to the company shareholders. The job is very often regarded as a position of public trust. When the aggrieved parties report a damage to an insurance company they not only entrust their personal data, which are protected by law, but (...) they also reveal confidential information like medical records, their income and important personal documentation. Reporting a damage, the aggrieved party has to be sure that the entrusted information will be only used for the purpose of the liquidation of damages. On the other hand, the damage adjuster is supposed to know that when contacting the aggrieved party, who is not an expert in insurance, should never use the professional knowledge to make decisions which are not in favour of the party. In this case the damage adjuster has two roles; not only is he a professional who is responsible for the liquidation of the damage but he is also a representative of a financial institution to the aggrieved party. Therefore there are also some marketing aspects involved in the process because quick and accurate handling of the liquidation process can convince the aggrieved party to choose the insurance company’s offer. In my paper I am going to focus on ethical issues of the profession of a damage adjuster both when interacting with clients and decision taking. I will try to show what ethical and moral standards a person working as a damage adjuster should follow. These being especially important for the profession of a personal damage adjuster. The role of a damage adjuster is not only the liquidation of the damage following procedures but also help and support for the aggrieved party by explaining the procedures, existing rights and claims. (shrink)

In the paper it is shown that every physically sound Birkhoff - von Neumann quantum logic, i.e., an orthomodular partially ordered set with an ordering set of probability measures can be treated as partial infini te-valued Lukasiewicz logic, which unifies two competing approaches: the many-valued, and the two-valued but non-distributive, which have co-existed in the quantum logic theory since its very beginning.

The article reviews the book The Contribution of Polish Science and Technology to World Heritage, edited by Irena Stasiewicz-Jasiukowa.

The article reviews the book The Contribution of Polish Science and Technology to World Heritage, edited by Irena Stasiewicz-Jasiukowa.

The first traces the production of numerous stone tools from the period of the Plio-Pleistocene represent a deep antiquity technical processes in the context of human evolution. Determining cognitive ability needed to convey the first hominids manufacture of stone tools is a challenge for the cognitive archaeology. Currently, thanks to archaeological discoveries and the development of cognitive science we can try to restore all the necessary treatments aimed at the production and use of stone tools along with a broad understanding (...) of their underlying cognitive processes. Analyses based on empirical data derived from Lokalalei – one of the oldest archaeological sites – indicate that the hominids comprehensive understanding of the principles of producing stone tools already at their very beginning. (shrink)

The paper presents Husserl’s conception of the relation between science and the living world, i.e. the world of everyday experience and communication. In Husserl view, science, or, more precisely, its basic aprioric structure is founded on the primal, essential core of the living world from which it obtains its sense. Science modifies, idealizes, and mathematizes the primal aprioric Lebenswelt. Due to those operations scientific theories can represent empirical reality.

This paper discusses the notion of the ‘phenomenological world’ and the problems it generates in the ‘hard’ paradigm of Husserl’s phenomenology, such as the lack of universality and intersubjectivity of this world, its closure and privacy, and its being only the personal world of a subject. Also, an attempt was made to show some of the sources of this problematic situation and the impossibility of solving it in a fundamentalist paradigm. It is only in the last period of the development (...) of Husserl’s phenomenology (the so-called period of the Crisis) that these problems find their satisfactory solution. (shrink)

W artykule przedstawiono koncepcję filozofii in silico wraz z implementacją tej idei do fragmentów Etyki Barucha Spinozy. Zbudowano model deklaratywny w języku Prolog. Sprawdzono jego zgodność z danym fragmentem metafizyki Spinozy. Zaproponowano dalszy rozwój deklaratywnego modelowania w filozofii w kierunku dydaktycznym lub teoretycznym.

ABSTRACTThe purpose of my paper is to determine the consequences of including an education for forgiveness in the context of developing prudence. I aim to answer two questions: what is prudent forgiveness; what constitutes education for prudent forgiveness? I present my analyses in six parts. After introduction, I point to the advantages and doubts concerning forgiveness. Then, I present prudence as a basic virtue guiding human actions. I draw mainly on the approach proposed by Thomas Aquinas, who argued that prudence (...) refers to the perfection of the command. The fourth part addresses the question of the mechanisms of prudent forgiveness. I note that a decision to forgive cannot be made in haste; that it is a decision concerning some good that the victim wants to attain in the future; finally, that forgiveness is prudent in its achievement. In the last part, I transfer prior analyses to the pedagogical level. (shrink)