Spinoza genellikle zamanın gerçekdışı olduğunu düşünen bir filozof olarak değerlendirilmektedir. Bu makale Spinoza’nın zamanla ilgili yaklaşımını ele almakta, bu kapsamda öncelikle onun bu konuda geliştirdiği kavramların ve genel olarak zaman anlayışının dikkatli bir şekilde analiz edilmesi gerektiğini vurgulamaktadır. Bunun yanında, Spinoza’nın zamanla ilgili düşüncelerinin tarihsel bağlamına, örneğin sonsuzluk, nedensellik, Tanrı ve Kartezyen felsefe ile ilgili tartışmalara odaklanmaktadır. Son olarak, Spinoza’nın zaman felsefesini Laplaceçı determinizm ve blok evren teorisi gibi modern görüşlerle karşılaştırmalı olarak değerlendirmektedir. Zamanın gerçekdışı olduğu yönündeki argümanlar genellikle gündelik (...) zaman algımızın sorgulanması üzerine inşa edilmektedir. Spinoza, tüm varlıkların ebedî olanla ilişkisi içerisinde kavranması gerektiğini vurgulamıştır. Ona göre ebediyet özünde zamansızdır, ancak zamandaki öncesiz ve sonrasız olma durumunu gerektirir. Spinoza, süreyi varlığın ebedî doğasına benzer bir etkinlik olarak tanımlamıştır. Süre başlı başına zamansal değildir, ancak sürenin niceliksel karşılaştırmalar yoluyla sınırlandırılması sonucunda zaman ortaya çıkar. Spinoza’nın zamanı perspektife bağlıdır; bizle evren arasındaki ilişkiden doğar. Onun zorunluluğa dayanan zamansızlık düşüncesi blok evren teorisini çağrıştırır. Ne var ki Spinoza —blok evren teorisinin altında yatan düşüncelerden biri olan— mekanistik anlayışı nedenselliği dışsal olarak ele almakla eleştirmiş, bunun yerine ebedî olanla fiziksel zorunluluğun ontolojik bütünleşmesini önermiştir. (shrink)

In the 7th century, when Islam emerged, the Arabian peninsula was under the influence of the Sassanid empire, one of the two great world powers, culturally as well as economically/politically. Like the Sasanian/Zoroastrian belief system, the Arabs of the Ignorance period had a dualist cosmology in essence. In the world of the Arabs of Ignorance, who think of man as a being between "good" and "evil" forces, it is believed that evil forces such as "jinn and devils" can have an (...) effect on people, as well as Allah. In the period of ignorance, which is generally accepted to be understood through "idol worship", idols actually function as a form for the embodiment of these metaphysical powers. Therefore, idols themselves are not gods; Just like the manifestation of the human spirit in the body, they are worshiped because they enable metaphysical entities to "take on flesh and bones", that is, to occupy a place in the visible realm. However, in accordance with the dualist belief, the polytheists place idols around the Kaaba in the center of the city so that the angels can be incarnated, they also place idols in the wild and desolate places and build temples and altars for demonic forces. According to Ibn al-Kalbī, for example, the idol of al-ʻUzzā is a female devil and its altar is located in the Batn al-Nahle valley, 45 km northeast of Mecca. As a result, the main characteristic feature of the cosmology of the Age of Ignorance is the belief that evil metaphysical beings can affect human life as well as benevolent forces. What happens to human beings caught between these two metaphysical powers is also explained by the concept of "Dahr", which means time, which occurs as a result of the synthesis of the conflict between the two. Islam flatly denies the ability of a power other than Allah to have such an effect on existence in the universe. Polytheism, which Islam qualifies and condemns as "shirk", is essentially this dualism. In the Qurʾān, this is emphasized as " Take not (for worship) two gods: for He is just One Allah." (an-Naḥl, 16/51.). By making only the will of Allah valid in the universe, Islam also unifies the order in the physical world and the mind. Thus, an important step has been taken towards rational thinking in the universe where the rule of a single mind is valid. Even in the Qurʾān, it is emphasized that the Prophet was a "human" like other people, did not have any supernatural abilities, and did not know the "unseen", that is, events beyond what time or material means allowed. As a matter of fact, since the Prophet did not have any superhuman claims, the polytheists accuse him of "ordinariness" and claim that what he tells is only the "word of man". However, Islam does not stay here either, it declares the end of prophethood with Muhammad. According to this, it will not be possible for Allah to address another person after Muhammad as the carrier of a divine message that must be socially obeyed. From now on, human beings will walk the rest of the way on their own in a world where a single rational, consistent mind is valid. Of course, in this journey, the light of the Qur'an, the last revelation, and all the acquis of humanity up to that time will be benefited, but the guidance of a living prophet will no longer be in question. This situation, which is described as the "sealing of the prophethood" in the classical literature, represents a new stage for human beings in terms of the history of thought. However, all this rationalization fails when the parties to the conflict in the history of Islam after the death of the Prophet tend to justify their political positions with occultist arguments. Especially in the Umayyad period, political legitimacy is based on metaphysical claims rather than being taken from the society itself. According to classical sources, the expression "the shadow of God on earth" is used for the first time for Muʿāwiya. With the same method, it is possible to provide theological explanations for tragic events such as the events in Karbala. This situation leads to the reproduction of the dialectical relationship between good and evil forces, which were known in the Ignorance period and revealed the concept of Dahr, this time by attributing "evil" (shar) to Allah. Objections to all these interpretations also form the basis of the first debates about the essence of God in Islamic thought. (shrink)

The The sustainability of social life is based on social values. The manifestation of these values also takes place within the society. On the other hand, the realization of individuals is possible in society because a non-social human being is not a "human" in the philosophical sense. With human-oriented conditions that manifest themselves in the network of social relations, the criteria (moral values) related to the purpose of creation crystallize and become known so that the construction of a social paradigm (...) becomes possible. However, the society in which individuals live is also surrounded by an external world (material world). For this reason, the social paradigm also indirectly relies on a perception of the outside world. Thus, no matter what period of history, people's endeavor for an ideal society is accompanied by an interpretation of the external world, and with this "cumulative" knowledge, a "reducing" simulation of being is derived (cosmology). In fact, causality, which is the subject of physics, becomes the subject of philosophy in this mediation. As it can be understood, a significant problem here is the correlation between the fixed values (unconditional imperatives) that form the core of the social paradigm and the variable external world knowledge that is culturally effective in the manifestation of these values. Consequently, while determining the rules in the social order, one should act on the basis of values, not as if they have absolute knowledge of the material world. Whether we believe that the universe consists of "seven heavens" and is geocentric or heliocentric; Existential values such as justice, equality, and freedom are essential regardless of time and space. However, as historical facts show, those who have problems with this value system, which is accompanied by an interpretation of the external world, have raised objections through ever-developing knowledge of nature instead of universal values. For this reason, the geocentric perception of the universe, which forms the basis of the political paradigm in the class-based society of medieval Europe, was strongly desired to be maintained by the ruling classes. Ultimately, although this model of the universe collapsed, moral pursuits of human life continued to be sabotaged for the same political reasons, and disinformation began. Thus, scientific studies and the search for the truth (philosophy) were accompanied by endless polemics disguised as "philosophy." In fact, this situation reveals two opposing attitudes that repeat themselves in history, either in the East or the West: paradigmatic attitude (paradigmism) and enigmatic attitude (enigmatism). As a reflection of these two attitudes, the dominant discourse, which categorically accuses even the interest in understanding Western modernization in the Islamic world as heresy, did not occasionally hesitate to refer to some Western references by confirming with a vulgar pragmatism. For instance, Newtonian physics has been ignored. On the other hand, an attempt has been made to jump directly from Aristotelian physics to quantum physics by assuming an overlapping in classical texts. However, facing the new knowledge of nature has more actual consequences than polemics. To face these results and to show the legitimacy of Islamic values in the modern era, which are in conformity with the creation of human beings, the developments in the current knowledge of the universe (modern cosmology) cannot be ignored. This endeavor can be possible only when the philosophical and historical foundations of the subject are examined throughout the Western experience. (shrink)

İslam dünyasının Batı karşısındaki geri kalmışlık sorunu Osmanlı’nın son dönemlerinden beri defaatle tartışılmış ve modern bilim tekniğin benimsenmesi konusu vurgulanmıştır. Ancak aradan geçen onca zamana rağmen bu yönde kayda değer bir başarı gösterildiğini söylemek mümkün görünmemektedir. Bunda da çoğunlukla tartışmayı bile gerektirmeyecek kadar aksi bir durum yokmuş gibi geçiştirilse muhafazakâr aklın bilimsel düşünceye bakışı ve maddi dünya algısının rolü inkar edilemez. Nitekim 1970’lerden itibaren “modernite” kavramı etrafında geliştirilen söylem, toplumsal ana gövdeyi temsil eden muhafazakâr kitlelerin kanaat oluşturucuları için sanayi ve (...) teknoloji kavramlarının hiç de müspet çağrışımları olmadığını göstermektedir. İşin daha garibi, teknik geri kalmışlığın ağır sonuçlarına rağmen en büyük iddiası “Batı karşıtlığı” olan bu çevreyi böyle bir din tasavvuruna sevk eden asıl saikın bizzat kendisinin Batılı olmasıdır: Postmodernizm. (shrink)

In this paper, I propose an account that accommodates the possibility of experimentation being exploratory in cases where the procedures necessary to plan and perform an experiment are dependent on the theoretical accounts of the phenomena under investigation. The present account suggests that experimental exploration requires the implementation of an exploratory procedure that serves to extend the range of possible outcomes of an experiment, thereby enabling it to pursue its objectives. Furthermore, I argue that the present account subsumes the notion (...) of exploratory experimentation, which is often attributed in the relevant literature to the works of Friedrich Steinle and Richard Burian, as a particular type of experimental exploration carried out in the special cases where no well-formed theoretical framework of the phenomena under investigation exists. I illustrate the present account in the context of the ATLAS experiment at CERN’s Large Hadron Collider, where the long-sought Higgs boson has been discovered in 2012. I argue that the data selection procedure carried out in the ATLAS experiment illustrates an exploratory procedure in the sense suggested by the present account. I point out that this particular data selection procedure is theory-laden in that its implementation is crucially dependent on the theoretical models of high energy particle physics which the ATLAS experiment is aimed to test. However, I argue that the foregoing procedure is not driven by the above-mentioned theoretical models, but rather by a particular data selection strategy. I conclude that the ATLAS experiment illustrates that, contrary to what previous studies have suggested, there are cases of experimentation in which exploration serves to test theoretical predictions and that theory-ladenness plays an essential role in experimentation being exploratory. (shrink)

ArgumentIn the theory-dominated view of scientific experimentation, all relations of theory and experiment are taken on a par; namely, that experiments are performed solely to ascertain the conclusions of scientific theories. As a result, different aspects of experimentation and of the relations of theory to experiment remain undifferentiated. This in turn fosters a notion of theory-ladenness of experimentation (TLE) that is toocoarse-grainedto accurately describe the relations of theory and experiment in scientific practice. By contrast, in this article, I suggest that (...) TLE should be understood as anumbrella conceptthat has different senses. To this end, I introduce a three-fold distinction among the theories of high-energy particle physics (HEP) as background theories, model theories, and phenomenological models. Drawing on this categorization, I contrast two types of experimentation, namely, “theory-driven” and “exploratory” experiments, and I distinguish between the “weak” and “strong” senses of TLE in the context of scattering experiments from the history of HEP. This distinction enables identifying the exploratory character of the deep-inelastic electron-proton scattering experiments – performed at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC) between the years 1967 and 1973 – thereby shedding light on a crucial phase of the history of HEP, namely, the discovery of “scaling,” which was the decisive step towards the construction of quantum chromo-dynamics as a gauge theory of strong interactions. (shrink)

According to the hierarchy of models (HoM) account of scientific experimentation developed by Patrick Suppes and elaborated by Deborah Mayo, theoretical considerations about the phenomena of interest are involved in an experiment through theoretical models that in turn relate to experimental data through data models, via the linkage of experimental models. In this paper, I dispute the HoM account in the context of present-day high-energy physics (HEP) experiments. I argue that even though the HoM account aims to characterize experimentation as (...) a model-based activity, it does not involve a modeling concept for the process of data acquisition, and it thus fails to provide a model-based characterization of the theory-experiment relationship underlying this process. In order to characterize the foregoing relationship, I propose the concept of a model of data acquisition and illustrate it in the case of the ATLAS experiment at CERN’s Large Hadron Collider, where the Higgs boson was discovered in 2012. I show that the process of data acquisition in the ATLAS experiment is performed according to a model of data acquisition that specifies and organizes the experimental procedures necessary to select the data according to a predetermined set of selection criteria. I also point out that this data acquisition model is theory-laden, in the sense that the underlying data selection criteria are determined by considering the testable predictions of the theoretical models that the ATLAS experiment is aimed to test. I take this sense of theory-ladenness to indicate that the relationship between the procedures of the ATLAS experiment and the theoretical models of the phenomena of interest is first established, prior to the formation of data models, through the data acquisition model of the experiment, thus not requiring the intermediary of other types of models as suggested by the HoM account. I therefore conclude that in the context of present-day HEP experiments, the HoM account does not consistently extend to the process of data acquisition so as to include models of data acquisition. (shrink)

According to the hierarchy of models account of scientific experimentation developed by Patrick Suppes and elaborated by Deborah Mayo, theoretical considerations about the phenomena of interest are involved in an experiment through theoretical models that in turn relate to experimental data through data models, via the linkage of experimental models. In this paper, I dispute the HoM account in the context of present-day high-energy physics experiments. I argue that even though the HoM account aims to characterize experimentation as a model-based (...) activity, it does not involve a modeling concept for the process of data acquisition, and it thus fails to provide a model-based characterization of the theory-experiment relationship underlying this process. In order to characterize the foregoing relationship, I propose the concept of a model of data acquisition and illustrate it in the case of the ATLAS experiment at CERN’s Large Hadron Collider, where the Higgs boson was discovered in 2012. I show that the process of data acquisition in the ATLAS experiment is performed according to a model of data acquisition that specifies and organizes the experimental procedures necessary to select the data according to a predetermined set of selection criteria. I also point out that this data acquisition model is theory-laden, in the sense that the underlying data selection criteria are determined by considering the testable predictions of the theoretical models that the ATLAS experiment is aimed to test. I take this sense of theory-ladenness to indicate that the relationship between the procedures of the ATLAS experiment and the theoretical models of the phenomena of interest is first established, prior to the formation of data models, through the data acquisition model of the experiment, thus not requiring the intermediary of other types of models as suggested by the HoM account. I therefore conclude that in the context of present-day HEP experiments, the HoM account does not consistently extend to the process of data acquisition so as to include models of data acquisition. (shrink)

I examine the construction process of the “Higgs mechanism” and its subsequent use by Steven Weinberg to formulate the electroweak theory of elementary particle physics. I characterize the development of the Higgs mechanism as a historical process that was guided through analogies drawn to the theories of solid-state physics and that was progressive through diverse contributions in the sixties from a number of physicists working independently. I also offer a detailed comparative study of the similarities and the differences that exist (...) between the approaches taken in these contributions. (shrink)

I examine the construction and evaluation of machine learning binary classification models. These models are increasingly used for societal applications such as classifying patients into two categories according to the presence or absence of a certain disease like cancer and heart disease. I argue that the construction of ML classification models involves an optimisation process aiming at the minimization of the inductive risk associated with the intended uses of these models. I also argue that the construction of these models is (...) underdetermined by the available data, and that this makes it necessary for ML modellers to make social value judgments in determining the error costs used in ML optimization. I thus suggest that the assessment of the inductive risk with respect to the social values of the intended users is an integral part of the construction and evaluation of ML classification models. I also discuss the implications of this conclusion for the philosophical debate concerning inductive risk. (shrink)

Bu çalışmada, varoluş kavramı felsefi açıdan detaylı bir şekilde ele alınarak, varoluşun günümüzün gittikçe sanallaşan insanı açısından ne anlama geldiği incelenmektedir. Varoluş kavramı, insanın varoluşunu ve yaşamını anlamaya yönelik felsefi bir kavramdır. Bu çalışmada Kierkegaard’ın varoluş aşamaları günümüz perspektifinden ele alınarak, insanlığın karşı karşıya olduğu mevcut dijital sorunlar ve değişim süreci incelenmektedir. Kierkegaard’ın varoluş aşamaları ışığında fiziksel dünyada yaşanan varoluş süreçlerinin, metaverse sanal evreninde nasıl gerçekleştiği değerlendirilmekte ve özellikle estetik varoluş üzerinde durularak ve bireyin sanal dünyada estetik varoluşu Kierkegaard’ın betimlediği (...) karakterler üzerinden haz kavramı temelinde tartışılmaktadır. Çalışmada, teknoloji, sanal evren, metaverse gibi kavramlar irdelenirken bu kavramlarla karşı karşıya kalan günümüz insanının varoluşunu algı tuzaklarına düşmeden ne ölçüde gerçekleştirebileceği Kierkegaard’ın Mefisto karakteri üzerinden ele alınmaktadır. Buna bağlı olarak teknolojinin gelişmesi ve varoluş kavramları ışığında, hız ve haz ekseninde konumlanan bir bireyin karşı karşıya olduğu psikolojik riskler, diğer insanlarla ilişkileri, kendisi ile olan ilişkisi, sosyal mecralar ile olan ilişkisi ele alınarak derin düşünmekten sürekli kaçınarak yüzeyselliğe ve hazzın büyüsüne sığınan insanlığın karşılaştığı tehlikeye dikkat çekilmektedir. Mefisto karakteri analizinin bu konularda hem aydınlatıcı hem de farkındalık yaratıcı olması amaçlanmaktadır. (shrink)

The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of personal values on auditor's ethical decisionmaking in two countries, namely, Pakistan and Turkey. This study is the first that empirically addresses the role of values in the ethical decision-making processes of Pakistani and Turkish Professional auditors. This study surveys a random sample of these countries' professional certified auditors to assess their value preferences and reactions to an ethical dilemma. This study measures practicing auditors' value preferences by using the Rokeach (...) value survey, and a case study is used to measure the reactions to an ethical dilemma involving client pressure for aggressive financial reporting. This study did not find statistically significant difference between the mean values of moral intensity in these two countries. On the other hand, we found statistically significant differences between the terminal and instrumental values of the auditors in the countries studied. This study suggests that perceptions of moral intensity influenced both ethical judgments and behavioral intensions. (shrink)

In relatively recent years, quite a number of diverse case studies concerning the use of visual displays—such as graphs, diagrams, tables, pictures, drawings, etc.—in both the physical and biological sciences have been offered in the literature of the history and philosophy of science —see, e.g., Miller 1984; Lynch and Woolgar 1990; Baigrie 1996; Pauwels 2006. These case studies have shown that visual representations fulfill important functions in both the theoretical and experimental practices of science, thereby emphasizing the non-verbal dimension of (...) scientific inquiry that had been neglected by the traditional language-based conception of science, which takes the production, justification and... (shrink)

In the philosophical literature concerning scientific experimentation, the notion of robustness has been solely discussed in relation to experimental results. In this paper, I propose a novel sense of experimental robustness that applies to experimental procedures. I call the foregoing sense of robustness procedure robustness and characterize it as the capacity of an experimental procedure to maintain its intended function invariant during the experimental process despite possible variations in its inputs. I argue that PR is a precondition for what I (...) call result robustness, which refers to the traditional sense of experimental robustness, namely the existence of convergent experimental results obtained through different and independent means of detection. Furthermore, I argue, PR and RR constitute useful experimental strategies in the context of high-energy physics experiments, but these strategies are not without limitations. (shrink)

In the theory-dominated view of scientific experimentation, all relations of theory and experiment are taken on a par; namely, that experiments are performed solely to ascertain the conclusions of scientific theories. As a result, different aspects of experimentation and of the relation of theory to experiment remain undifferentiated. This in turn fosters a notion of theory-ladenness of experimentation that is too coarse-grained to accurately describe the relations of theory and experiment in scientific practice. By contrast, in this article, I suggest (...) that TLE should be understood as an umbrella concept that has different senses. To this end, I introduce a three-fold distinction among the theories of high-energy particle physics as background theories, model theories and phenomenological models. Drawing on this categorization, I contrast two types of experimentation, namely, “theory-driven” and “exploratory” experiments, and I distinguish between the “weak” and “strong” senses of TLE in the context of scattering experiments from the history of HEP. This distinction enables to identify the exploratory character of the deep-inelastic electron-proton scattering experiments—performed at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center between the years 1967 and 1973—thereby shedding light on a crucial phase of the history of HEP, namely, the discovery of “scaling”, which was the decisive step towards the construction of quantum chromo-dynamics as a gauge theory of strong interactions. (shrink)

I examine the relation between explanation and unification in both the original Kaluza–Klein theory, which originated in the works of Theodor Kaluza and Oskar Klein in the 1920s, and in the modern Kaluza–Klein theories which date back to the late 1970s and which are still considered by the majority of the physics community to be the best hope for a complete unified theory of all fundamental interactions. I use the conclusions of this case study to assess the merits of Philip (...) Kitcher's account of explanation as unification. I also draw lessons about physicists’ pursuit of the higher dimensional unification of the fundamental forces of nature. (shrink)

In this thesis, I discuss the organism's self-organization from the perspective of relational ontology. I critically examine scientific and philosophical sources that appeal to the concept of self-organization. By doing this, I aim to carry out a thorough investigation into the underlying reasons of emergent order within the ontogeny of the organism. Moreover, I focus on the relation between universal dynamics of organization and the organization of living systems. I provide a historical review of the development of modern ideas related (...) to self-organization. These ideas have been developed in relation to various research areas including thermodynamics, molecular biology, developmental biology, systems theory, and so on. In order to develop a systematic understanding of the concept, I propose a conceptual distinction between transitional self-organization and regulative self-organization. The former refers to the spontaneous emergence of order, whereas the latter refers to the self-maintaining characteristic of the living systems. I show the relation between these two types of organization within biological processes. I offer a critical analysis of various theories within the organizational approach. Several ideas and notions in these theories originate from the early studies in cybernetics. More recently, autopoiesis and the theory of biological autonomy asserted certain claims that were critical toward the ideas related to self-organization. I advocate a general theory of self-organization against these criticisms. I also examine the hierarchical nature of the organism's organization, as this is essential to understand regulative self-organization. I consider the reciprocal relation between bottom-up and top-down dynamics of organization as the basis of the organism's individuation. To prove this idea, I appeal to biological research on molecular self-assembly, pattern formation (including reaction-diffusion systems), and the self-organized characteristic of the immune system. Finally, I promote the idea of diachronic emergence by drawing support from biological self-organization. I discuss the ideas related to constraints, potentiality, and dynamic form in an attempt to reveal the emergent nature of the organism. To demonstrate the dynamicity of form, I examine research into biological oscillators. I draw the following conclusions: synchronic condition of the organism is irreducibly processual and relational, and this is the basis of the organism's potentiality for various organizational states. (shrink)

Mandatory reporting of infectious diseases (MRID) is an essential practice to prevent disease outbreaks. Disease notification is a mandatory procedure for most infectious diseases, even during non-pandemic periods in healthcare. The main rationale behind MRID is the protection of public health. The information and data provided by infectious disease reports are used for many purposes, such as preventing the spread and potential negative impact of infectious diseases, assessing the national and global situation regarding reported diseases, conducting scientific research and planning (...) health policy. In this context, the relevant information benefits public health, health systems and scientific work. Additionally, the follow up and treatment of individuals with infectious diseases is a necessity in certain cases to protect those who cohabit with them. However, these benefits cannot be accepted as unrestricted justifications for MRID, since it is evident that reporting should be conducted within ethical and legal boundaries. MRID should only be devised and implemented with due regard to balancing potential benefits between all individuals, as well as between the individual and the rest of society. Disease notification systems that are not designed with a balancing and harm-reductionist approach may lead to stigmatisation and discrimination. This study aims to investigate the legal framework and ethical issues regarding the reporting of individuals diagnosed with COVID-19 in Turkey—which is a primary example of a developing country. (shrink)

A case study was conducted to explore teachers? current technology use in elementary schools in Ankara, the capital of Turkey. The data were collected through a survey, and participants included 1030 classroom teachers across eight districts. The present study results revealed that significant challenges remain with regard to technology use in the classroom, even in the capital of Turkey, where teachers have advantages in terms of technology access and use compared to rural areas. The participant teachers used technologies most frequently (...) for lesson preparation activities, rather than for delivering instruction. Although the teachers felt that school principals and colleagues were usually supportive of technology use in lessons, they complained about insufficient professional development activities and incentives. Representing a snapshot of teachers? technology use in elementary school settings, this study sheds light on essential factors that should be considered in any technology integration process in schools. The study findings offer valuable insight for policy-makers and school leaders on how to support the technology integration process and allocate money for technology initiatives. (shrink)

Gravity’s Ghost is a book about the search for gravitational waves , which are predicted by the general theory of relativity to be ripples in space–time that propagate at the speed of light. The direct detection of GWs, if they exist at all, is exceptionally difficult, because they are theoretically expected to be very weakly coupled to matter. To this date, there is yet no conclusive evidence for the direct detection of GWs. The search for GWs was started by a (...) series of experiments performed by Joseph Weber in the 1960s. The history of the early GW detection experiments, as well as Weber’s claimed detection of GWs, which was eventually discredited, has been examined in great details by Harry Collins .Collins has long advocated a sociological approach to the study of scientific research groups that is premised on the view that in order to understand how scientific knowledge is produced collectively by a group of researchers, it is necessary to engage in the cultu .. (shrink)

The present special section brings together three articles that seek to elucidate the epistemological and ontological foundations of the Higgs mechanism, as well as the epistemic dynamics of the development of the models beyond the “standard model” of elementary particle physics.The standard model of elementary particle physics consists of two gauge theories; namely, the electroweak theory of the weak and electromagnetic interactions, and the theory of quantum chromo-dynamics which describes the strong interaction. This introduction will provide a brief overview of (...) the key issues concerning the foundations of the Higgs mechanism.Historically, the main motivation for the Higgs mechanism stemmed from the need to account for the non-zero masses of the intermediate vector bosons of the weak interaction within a gauge theory of the Yang-Mills type. One way to give mass to the IVBs, called “explicit symmetry breaking,” is to add mass terms directly to the Lagrangian of the gauge theor .. (shrink)

Yirminci yüzyılın son çeyreğinden itibaren ortaya çıkan “Kur’ân ansiklopedisi” başlıklı matbu çalışmaların sayısı her geçen gün artmaktadır. Kur’ân ansiklopedileri birçok dilde telif edilmiştir. Bu çalışma “Kur’an ansiklopedisi” başlıklı çalışmaların genel bir değerlendirmesini hedeflemektedir. Kur’ân ansiklopedileri; çalışmayı hazırlayanlara, muhataplara ve içeriklerine göre farklılıklar arz etmektedir. Kur’ân ansiklopedileri yazımında farklı yollar izlenebilmektedir. Bazı çalışmalar ferdi ürün olabilirken, grup yahut kurum çalışmalarına da rastlanabilmektedir. Ayrıca derleme hüviyetinde çalışmalar da bulunmaktadır. Bu çalışmaların muhatapları da; halk, akademik camia, gençler veya çocuklar gibi farklı gruplar olabilmektedir. (...) Kur’ân ansiklopedileri içerisinde, mushaf tertibince -muhtasar veya geniş- tefsir formunda olanlar, Kur’ân ilimleri şeklinde olanlar, soru-cevap tarzında olanlar ve sûre eksenli oluşturulanlar olduğu gibi, -ansiklopedilerin yaygın formatı olan- maddeler veya makaleler halinde yazılanlar da vardır. Maddeler/makaleler halinde oluşturulan ansiklopediler de farklı hacim ve içeriklere sahiptirler. Ayrıca, Kur’ân hakkında “ansiklopedik sözlük” tarzı çalışmalar da bulunmaktadır. Farklı içerik ve türlerle karşımıza çıkan bu çalışmaların -daha genel bir değerlendirme ile- başlıca iki türe ayrıldığını söyleyebiliriz. Kur’ân ansiklopedilerinden bir kısmı Kur’ân muhtevasına tahsis edilmişken; bazıları, Kur’ân ve tefsir okumaları veya araştırmaları rehberi şeklinde karşımıza çıkmaktadır. (shrink)

In this paper, I discuss the neo-Aristotelian approaches, which usually reinterpret Aristotle’s ideas on form and/or borrow the notion of formal cause without engaging with the broader implications of Aristotle’s metaphysics. In opposition to these approaches, I claim that biosemiotics can propose an alternative view on life’s form. Specifically, I examine the proposals to replace the formal cause with gene-centrism, functionalism, and structuralism. After critically addressing these approaches, I discuss the problems of reconciling Aristotelianism with the modern view of life’s (...) organization. I claim that the notion of the final cause proposes a cosmological hierarchy and that this is the main problem with applying the formal cause to biology. An alternative categorization of conceptualizing life’s form involves the processual identity, relational property clusters, and context-dependent transmission of representational units. The third category points to a semiotic basis of the form of life. In this context, I offer to readjust the focus of the problem of matter-form duality by pointing out that form is primarily an issue of the subject-object relation. Biosemiotics helps to understand the constructive role of symbolic representation in living systems, which is crucial to extend the analysis of the form from cognitive representations to external phenomena. Emergence of subjectivity and perspectivity of interactions are key elements to bridge the form and actual processes within a non-hylomorphic account. To demonstrate transitions from the physical influence of shapes to the organic recognition of forms, I address the biological studies on the synchronization of coincidental inputs and enzyme specificity. (shrink)