The Republic of Poland is one of the European Union countries that have not yet implemented Directive (EU) 2019/1937 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2019 on the protection of persons reporting breaches of EU law (Journal of Laws EC L 305/17 of November 26, 2019). Even though signalling illegal acts is a more and more common occurrence and the social perception of such behaviours is also changing, the “whistleblowers” are not under any legal protection (...) in Poland. In the Sejm of the 9th Term of office, legislative work is underway to pass the act on the protection of persons reporting violations of the law. This will be a legal act containing comprehensive legal protection of whistleblowers. In hereby publication the author focuses on presenting the role of whistleblowers in preventing law violations by employers in the current legal state. In the next part, the above-mentioned draft act is analyzed in terms of provisions ensuring the protection of persons who disclose irregularities. Numerous tragic incidents which could have been avoided if people that were aware of irregularities could safely reveal the information are evidence of how needed an act on whistleblower protection is. The author cites examples of the sinking of the MF Herald of Free Enterprise ferry and the Deepwater Horizon platform as well as the methane explosion in the Halemba mine in Ruda Śląska. (shrink)

BackgroundMedical tourism, the practice of persons intentionally travelling across international boundaries to access medical care, has drawn increasing attention from researchers, particularly in relation to potential ethical concerns of this practice. Researchers have expressed concern for potential negative impacts to individual safety, public health within both countries of origin for medical tourists and destination countries, and global health equity. However, these ethical concerns are not discussed within the sources of information commonly provided to medical tourists, and as such, medical tourists (...) may not be aware of these concerns when engaging in medical tourism. This paper describes the methodology utilized to develop an information sheet intended to be disseminated to Canadian medical tourists to encourage contemplation and further public discussion of the ethical concerns in medical tourism.MethodsThe methodology for developing the information sheet drew on an iterative process to consider stakeholder feedback on the content and use of the information sheet as it might inform prospective medical tourists’ decision making. This methodology includes a literature review as well as formative research with Canadian public health professionals and former medical tourists.ResultsThe final information sheet underwent numerous revisions throughout the formative research process according to feedback from medical tourism stakeholders. These revisions focused primarily on making the information sheet concise with points that encourage individuals considering travelling for medical tourism to do further research regarding their safety both within the destination country, while travelling, and once returning to Canada, and the potential impacts of their trip on third parties. This methodology may be replicated for the development of information sheets intending to communicate ethical concerns of other practices to providers or consumers of a certain service. (shrink)

Limited edition of 101 copies of the first printing of cloth-bound edition.

In this paper, we defend a representational approach to at least some kinds of non-human psychopathology. Mentally-ill non-human minds, in particular in delusions, obsessive-compulsive disorders and similar cognitive states, are traditionally understood in purely behavioral terms. In contrast, we argue that non-human mental psychopathology should be at least sometimes not only ascribed contentful mental representation but also understood as really having these states. To defend this view, we appeal to the interactivist account of mental representation, which is a kind of (...) a constructive approach to meaning. We follow Mark Bickhard in assuming that only an organism – either human or non-human – capable of detecting its own misrepresentations is representational. However, under his autonomy-based account of biological function these minds are incapable of misrepresentations because these minds are, ex hypothesi, unable to detect error in such representations. To solve this problem, we argue that adding a historical dimension – as in Millikan’s view on mental representations – to Bickhard’s account of function makes mental misrepresentation of mentally-ill minds possible. Using Bickhard’s dynamic account of function, it is possible to explain why delusions and other mental disorders can be seen as locally functional. However, an etiological dimension can further explain why misrepresentations seem to be globally dysfunctional. Even if representational or biosemiotic hypotheses about non-human psychopathology are difficult to confirm empirically, we defend the view that they can enrich our understanding of the causes and development of such pathologies, and may constitute a new progressive research programme. (shrink)

In this paper, I analyze a type of externalist enactivism defended by Riccardo Manzotti. Such radical versions of enactivism are gaining more attention, especially in cognitive science and cognitive robotics. They are radical in that their notion of representation is purely referential, and content is conflated with reference. Manzotti follows in the footsteps of early causal theories of reference that had long been shown to be inadequate. It is commonly known that radical versions of externalism may lead to difficulties with (...) the notion of representation, especially if they cannot help themselves with the notion of syntax. I argue that a type of externalism present in Manzotti’s enactivism may well lead to anti-representationalism. (shrink)

Celem artykułu jest ukazanie, jak, mimo ustalonych dawno temu postulatów, nakazujących „oczyszczenie” powieści kryminalnej z elementów fantastycznych i nadprzyrodzonych, motywy te funkcjonują we współczesnych utworach z tego gatunku. Jako kontekst należy wskazać zjawiska dające się zauważyć w najnowszej literaturze i kulturze popularnej. Jednym nich jest zmiana postrzegania typowych monstrów z horroru, które stają się zarówno „mniej groźne”, jak i „bardziej ludzkie”. Kolejnym – zakwestionowanie związku postaci (a także zespołu motywów) z fabułą. To na przykład, co było dotąd typowe dla horroru, (...) może pojawić się w powieści kryminalnej. Przeprowadzono analizę wybranych utworów dwojga współczesnych pisarzy: Katarzyny Puzyńskiej (Czarne narcyzy, Martwiec, Rodzanice i Utopce) oraz Wojciecha Chmielarza (Wampir, Zombie i Wilkołak) pod kątem występowania w nich motywów rodem z powieści grozy. We wszystkich omawianych tekstach to ludzie, a nie potwory są zabójcami. W utworach Chmielarza nazwy rodem z horroru to metafory ludzkiego zła lub szaleństwa (autor odwołuje się do zakorzenionych w kulturze znaczeń słów użytych jako tytuły). Katarzyna Puzyńska z kolei za miejsce zdarzeń wybiera małe, często prawie wyludnione miejscowości, gdzie wciąż żywa jest wiara w duchy, wampiry, nawiedzone domy (autorka odwołuje się między innymi do wierzeń słowiańskich). Ukazuje przy tym siłę ludzkich lęków (dotyczy to, w odpowiednich okolicznościach, nawet policjantów), jak również fakt, że istoty ludzkie potrafią być gorsze od potworów z fikcji literackiej. Motywy rodem z horroru funkcjonują w omawianych tekstach na kilka sposobów: 1) jako odwołania do doświadczenia odbiorcy, który odczytuje np. zaprezentowane w powieści nazwy w oparciu o własną wiedzę; 2) jako element lokalnej lub rodzinnej tradycji (żywy najczęściej w miejscach oddalonych od „centrów”); wreszcie 3) ucieleśnienie ukrytych w ludzkiej psychice obsesji i lęków, które niespodziewanie mogą się ujawnić. (shrink)

Medical tourism, the practice of persons intentionally travelling across international boundaries to access medical care, has drawn increasing attention from researchers, particularly in relation to potential ethical concerns of this practice. Researchers have expressed concern for potential negative impacts to individual safety, public health within both countries of origin for medical tourists and destination countries, and global health equity. However, these ethical concerns are not discussed within the sources of information commonly provided to medical tourists, and as such, medical tourists (...) may not be aware of these concerns when engaging in medical tourism. This paper describes the methodology utilized to develop an information sheet intended to be disseminated to Canadian medical tourists to encourage contemplation and further public discussion of the ethical concerns in medical tourism. The methodology for developing the information sheet drew on an iterative process to consider stakeholder feedback on the content and use of the information sheet as it might inform prospective medical tourists’ decision making. This methodology includes a literature review as well as formative research with Canadian public health professionals and former medical tourists. The final information sheet underwent numerous revisions throughout the formative research process according to feedback from medical tourism stakeholders. These revisions focused primarily on making the information sheet concise with points that encourage individuals considering travelling for medical tourism to do further research regarding their safety both within the destination country, while travelling, and once returning to Canada, and the potential impacts of their trip on third parties. This methodology may be replicated for the development of information sheets intending to communicate ethical concerns of other practices to providers or consumers of a certain service. (shrink)

This paper presents an argument for the realism about mechanisms, contents, and vehicles of mental representation at both the personal and subpersonal levels, and showcases its role in instrumental rationality and proper cognitive functioning. By demonstrating how misrepresentation is necessary for learning from mistakes and explaining certain failures of action, we argue that fallible rational agents must have mental representations with causally relevant vehicles of content. Our argument contributes to ongoing discussions in philosophy of mind and cognitive science by challenging (...) anti-realist views about the nature of mental representation, and by highlighting the importance of understanding how different agents can misrepresent in pursuit of their goals. While there are potential rebuttals to our claim, our opponents must explain how agents can be rational without having mental representations. This is because mental representation is grounded in rationality. (shrink)

Pro-social basic human values and civic involvement. The moderating role of survival vs self-expression cultural context The present study investigated a hypothesis that the pro-social values differentiated by S. Schwartz's model of basic human values - universalism and benevolence - would positively predict civic involvement. Most importantly, authors expected that the type of pro-social value that would play a dominant motivational role would depend on moderating role of the level of self-expression and benevolence - cultural value dimension developed by R. (...) Inglehart. Based on discriminant function analyses performed on the data gathered in 17 European countries through the European Social Survey conducted in 2002, authors found that universalism predicts civic involvement only in self-expression countries, whereas the role of benevolence is rather neglectable and independent of the cultural context. The results are discussed with reference to cross-cultural differences in Europe. (shrink)

The contemporary changes in the countries of western culture include the refutation of the traditional principles of sexual relations; this is treated as a fundamental change which – as the author tries to show – has several entirely different consequences. The new moral situation stimulates.

Trying to avoid the dilemma of axiological subjectivism and objectivism “The World of Experience” is taken as the starting point of this article. Basic values are meant to represent notions which symbolize the meaning of human experience of the world. Simultaneously these notions symbolize the meanings of the basic relations between subject and object of experience. Utility, truth and beauty are in this conception the most general notions symbolizing the meanings of practical, cognitive and aesthetic experiences. Moral goodness is a (...) notion symbolizing the meaning of personal experiences of the subject. The practical, cognitive and aesthetic experiences occur within the frame of unilateral, matter of fact contacts of the subject with an object. The specific trait of the personal experience lies in the direct contact with the subjectivity of another human being. The experience of another man as of “one who also experiences” is the foundation of moral experiences. Recognition of the subjective autonomy of another man leads to the experience which presents him as a moral subject. The relations between moral subjects are moral relations. These relations obtain within communities whose members observe certain rules which are adopted in order to protect their autonomy and to strengthen the bonds between them, which are a warrant of the existence of their community. The effort made to preserve one’s subjective autonomy and to establish bonds with other people considered as other autonomous subjects is at the same time the essence. (shrink)

The concept of narrow content is still under discussion in the debate over mental representation. In the paper, one-factor dimensional accounts of representation are analyzed, particularly the case of Fodor's methodological solipsism. In methodological solipsism, semantic properties of content are arguably eliminated in favor of syntactic ones. If “narrow content” means content properties independent of external factors to a system (as in Segal's view), the concept of content becomes elusive. Moreover, important conceptual problems with one-factor dimensional account are pointed out (...) as a result of analysis arguments presented by J. Searle, S. Harnad and T. Burge. Furthermore, these problems are illustrated with psychological and ethological examples. Although understanding content as partially independent from contextual factors allows theorists to preserve content properties, it seems that understanding content in total abstraction from external factors of these properties is implausible. As a result, internalism is rejected in favor of externalism. (shrink)

We consider modal epistemic and doxastic logics as intuitively inadequate logics of information, and we outline a modal system of the operator being informed that which avoids inconsistency with our intuitive concept of information. The system has modal structure of the normal modal logic K4, and is sound and complete on the class of all transitive frames. We compare this logic with Floridi’s KTB information logic, and we consider a possibility of extending our system to a dynamic logic.

The main aim of the present article is an outline of an intuitively adequate system of logic of the operator "being informed". Such a system should be different from the familiar systems of epistemic and doxastic logic. The principle of veracity occurring in epistemic logics does not describe adequately the information operator, since the information may be true as well as false. On the other hand, the principle of consistency of beliefs, occurring in doxastic logics, cannot be applied to information, (...) because the information can be inconsistent. Our logic of information, although it is based on Kripke's semantics, includes principles not occurring in the systems of epistemic and doxastic logics, such as the principle of incompleteness of information and the Brouwerian Axiom. We prove that this system is incomplete. We also suggest that it can be generalized to a dynamic logic in the sense of van Benthem. (shrink)

SummaryInfand mortality for the period 1950—70 has been analysied in a North-Swedish isolate, a population characterized by a high incidence of schizopherenic psychoses and other neuorpsychiatric disorders. Infand mortality is higher than in Sweden generally. As many as 45·9% of the deceased infands in the population sccumbed during the first week of their life, compard to 28·1% in the general Swedish population.

In the article, composed of two parts with the titles Spektakl modernistyczny czy seans spirytystyczny? (A modernist spectacle or a spiritistic seance?) and Dlaczego Słowacki niszczy konterfekt księcia Józefa? (Why does Słowacki destroy the portrait of Prince Józef?), presents a contextual interpretation of Jan Lechoń’s poem Duch na seansie (A Ghost at a Seance). The author questions the opinion, which was widespread in literary criticism, that Lechoń together with other members of the Skamander group discredited Romantic poetry and national mythology (...) on the threshold of independence. The analysis of the poem made in the article leads to the conclusion that the poet fought stereotypes deeply rooted in public opinion, which in the eyes of the general public were also reinforced by Slowacki’s poetry. Thus, Słowacki appears at the seance to demystify a belief in the messianic, necrotic and patriotic tone of his poetry, in the bard-creator of the national Gospel, who is endowed with the power to discover absolute truths, and in the „master of the word” as well as the „creator of artistic beauty” as well as the only generally-accepted opinion. Optimistic signs of revival have dominated the symbols of suffering, the talkativeness has been replaced by silence, the word by the iconoclastic deed, the mystical heat by ironic distance. The symbols, images, references to literary texts and other signes of culture help to create a revalued portrait of Słowacki and mould a myth of gray heroism, which is a complete contrast to the myth of the „colourful uhlan”. The destruction of the portrait of Prince Józef Poniatowski and a reference to Piłsudski found in the last line of Karmazynowy poemat (The Crimson Poem) are the signs of the ideological declaration of the young poet, who referring to great Romantic tradition, discovers new and new meanings. (shrink)