It is usually assumed that the appearance of accidental degeneracy in the energy levels of a given Hamiltonian is due to a symmetry group. By considering the elementary problem of a rotator with spin-orbit coupling, when the strength of the latter is equal to the inverse of the moment of inertia, we find that this assumption does not explain the degeneracy of all the levels of the Hamiltonian. Thus the relation between accidental degeneracies and symmetry group merits further probing.

Este trabajo se inserta en la discusión sobre la filosofía de la mente de Spinoza, específicamente en torno a si ofrece o no una teoría de la consciencia. Sostenemos que sí lo hace y que se explica a través de la articulación de varios conceptos según una particular lectura del llamado «paralelismo». Procedemos de la siguiente manera. Primero ofrecemos una caracterización preliminar de definición spinoziana de mente. Entonces damos una interpretación de la ontología. Por último, aplicamos esta lectura a la (...) relación mente-cuerpo, deteniéndonos en la física, las ideas de ideas y el conatus. (shrink)

The concept of the "linear model of innovation" was introduced by authors belonging to the field of innovation studies in the middle of the 1980s. According to the model, there is a simple sequence of steps going from basic science to innovations - an innovation being defined as an invention that is profitable. In innovation studies, the LMI is held to be assumed in Science the endless frontier , the influential report prepared by Vannevar Bush in 1945. In this paper, (...) it is argued that: the LMI was introduced with critical purposes, as part of the questioning of the conception of science and the proposals for science policies put forward in Sef; at a first level of analysis, the LMI appears as a straw man, defended neither in Sef, nor anywhere else; the LMI is a weapon against the importance attributed to basic science in Sef, and its defense of the financing of basic research by the state; the LMI is a component of the process of commodification of science promoted by neoliberalism. The last section of the paper presents a qualified defense of basic science and basic research. (shrink)

Este artigo, de caráter ensaístico, não se furta a pensar o fenômeno de maior proeminência no momento em que fora escrito, a pandemia desencadeada pelo Covid-19. Partindo literalmente da premissa foucaultiana, segundo a qual a filosofia deve ter como alvo o tempo presente, e abalizado por reflexões recentes de filósofos contemporâneos influenciados por Foucault, como Paul B. Preciado e Roberto Esposito, defendo a hipótese de que o vírus carrega em si, como um espelho, tudo o que ainda não conseguimos deixar (...) de ser. Com efeito, a abordagem aqui adotada lança mão da estratégia, já recorrente na filosofia contemporânea, de ampliar a noção de “vírus” como metáfora pertinente para os mais diversos fenômenos societários. Após introduzir o que está em jogo neste contingente virótico e global, decomponho a reflexão em quatro partes: enquadramento – de uma atmosfera previamente carregada de certos hábitos de exceção e anticorpos fronteiriços; estranhamento – como princípio da imunização e da redistribuição da vulnerabilidade; confinamento – como disciplina assimétrica de sobrevivência e autossacrifício; desaparecimento – como horizonte ontológico de uma existência inerte que nos espelha. O que me interessa aqui é, mais do que delinear uma interpretação filosófica da pandemia, indiciar a lógica insuspeita e virulenta que há décadas nos cerceia enquanto corpos e anticorpos descartáveis. Concluo, à guisa do diagnóstico de Paul B. Preciado, segundo o qual o vírus atua “à nossa imagem e semelhança”, que o fenômeno pandêmico implica o recrudescimento do paradoxo neoliberal segundo o qual, para “sobrevivermos”, devemos sacrificar a nós mesmos. (shrink)

Humans have engaged in artistic and aesthetic activities since the appearance of our species. Our ancestors have decorated their bodies, tools, and utensils for over 100,000 years. The expression of meaning using color, line, sound, rhythm, or movement, among other means, constitutes a fundamental aspect of our species' biological and cultural heritage. Art and aesthetics, therefore, contribute to our species identity and distinguish it from its living and extinct relatives. Science is faced with the challenge of explaining the natural foundations (...) of such a unique trait, and the way cultural processes nurture it into magnificent expressions, historically and ethnically unique. How do the human mind and brain bring about these sorts of behaviors? What psychological and neural processes underlie the appreciation of painting, music, and dance? How does training modulate these processes? Are humans the only species capable of aesthetic appreciation, or are other species endowed with the rudiments of this capacity? Empirical examinations of such questions have a long and rich history in the discipline of psychology, the genesis of which can be traced back to the publication of Gustav Theodor Fechner's Vorschule der Aesthetik in 1876, making it the second oldest branch in experimental psychology. The Oxford Handbook of Empirical Aesthetics brings together leading experts in psychology, neuroimaging, art history, and philosophy to answer these questions. It provides the most comprehensive coverage of the domain of empirical aesthetics to date. With sections on visual art, dance, music, and many other art forms and aesthetic phenomena, the breadth of this volume's scope reflects the richness and variety of topics and methods currently used today by scientists to understand the way our mind and brain endow us with the faculty to produce and appreciate art and aesthetics. (shrink)

Esta pesquisa tem por objetivo realizar uma análise de projetos educacionais desenvolvidos por ONGs da RMC, tendo por cenário o período de aplicação das novas diretrizes neoliberais como tentativa de saída do capital para sua crise estrutural, sobressaindo-se a implementação da reestruturação produtiva, privatizações e a política do Estado mínimo, culminando em um processo de sociabilização, cuja crítica das formas de representação, destacando-se a ação estratégica do chamado terceiro setor e sua pedagogia do consenso, aplicadas por este Estado educador, se (...) faz imprescindível. (shrink)

In his introductory textbook, Philosophy of natural science, Hempel presents, as an illustration and a starting point for an analysis of the processes of inventing and testing scientific theories, an account of the researches of Semmelweis the Hungarian physician who, in the middle of the xixth century, discovered the cause of puerperal fever and an effective method of prevention. The account does not involve anything that is factually untrue, but it is quite succinct, leaving out many important aspects of the (...) case. Our thesis is that, although those omissions are justified in view of the aims of the account, they are also convenient to Hempel, because they help to propagate an image of science which goes much beyond the processes of invention and test. It is an image which reflects the positivist conception of science, and thus, whatever the intentions of the author, contributes to the dissemination and strengthening of that conception, but which, at least in this case, does not correspond to reality. To demonstrate the thesis, we give an account of the parts of Semmelweis's story omitted by Hempel, and we show how they do not fit in with the positivist image of science. Along the way, we distinguish three types of critique of positivist historiography: the Kuhnian, the post-modern, and the engagé. In the conclusion, we present some considerations concerning the medical research of today. -/- . (shrink)

Ao estudarmos a Cibercultura na perspectiva de Pierre Lévy, perceberemos a existência de certa unilateralidade, uma absolutização do ciberespaço e de seu papel na sociedade contemporânea. Isso se manifesta claramente na visão de Lévy quando o mesmo fala que o ciberespaço levará a uma reunificação da humanidade, transpondo as barreiras geográficas, históricas, culturais e de classe. Apesar dos grandes movimentos de dispersão e de aglutinação apontados pelo filósofo terem acontecido de fato, a maneira posta tende para uma explicação que naturaliza (...) esse movimento, que o inscreve como independente dos conflitos e dos percalços históricos. Tudo isso partindo de uma crença que o resultado será positivo para a sociedade como um todo e para o desenvolvimento dos indivíduos. Porém, o movimento geral que está a se realizar não aponta objetivamente neste sentido, aliás, revela direção oposta, aprofundando problemas sociais, conflitos e disputas dentro do mundo do ciberespaço. Lançando à margem do processo milhões de seres humanos, regiões inteiras do globo, culturas e histórias. Mas, Levy aponta isso como um processo natural, quase um darwinismo social e tecnológico que irá aprimorar a vida no planeta. Nesse sentido, o pensador Pierre Levy não ver os conflitos sociais como elementos impulsionadores e decisivos das soluções e perspectivas dos processos em curso, mas como meros coadjuvantes de uma força maior, com sentido já determinado, o que irá configurar um futuro melhor. Visto desta forma, os conflitos representariam meros retardamentos do processo, onde deveríamos evitá-lo, nos reservando a condição de observadores e impulsionadores deste movimento pré-determinado. (shrink)

Curso de Geografia de Jean-Jacques Rousseau integra o X volume da edição de OEuvres complètes de Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Édition thématique du Tricentenaire, Slatkine/Honoré Champion (2012), subintitulado Escritos Científicos. Para esta tradução, além do texto consagrado na edição do tricentenário, também utilizamos a edição norte-americana dos textos de Rousseau organizada por Christopher Kelly, intitulada Autobiographical, scientific, religious, moral, and literary writings (2007). Preservamos, integralmente, as indispensáveis notas ao texto em língua francesa, que são de autoria de Christophe Van Staen.

En el presente artículo se expone una reflexión sobre la idea unamuniana de la amistad. Miguel de Unamuno, pensador existencial español, invita frecuentemente en sus escritos a replantearse la autenticidad de las relaciones que mantenemos con nuestros prójimos, con aquellos con quienes compartimos vida. Veremos que entiende la amistad como el enlace espiritual entre dos almas, como un amor compartido que se funda en la afección del espíritu, siendo justamente esa afección lo que nos permite el diálogo moral con nuestro (...) amigo. Es evidente que fácil es toparse con personas con las que se pueda establecer una amistad superficial, y muy difícil encontrar a una persona en la que se pueda confiar plenamente y a la que nos podamos entregar por completo para mantener una amistad auténtica e imperecedera. Con el propósito de aprender a identificar una verdadera amistad, se pretenden analizar las claves que nos ofrece el pensamiento de Unamuno, principalmente sobre la base de sus escritos espirituales. (shrink)

La ciencia cognitiva ha evolucionado bastante y, en la actualidad, ha logrado generar grandes cambios en el pensamiento filosófico que, referido al ámbito científico, nos permite indagar respecto al proceso de generar ciencia y conocer mejor cómo ocurre la elección de teorías científicas; algo que por mucho tiempo fue entendido por los filósofos como un proceso puramente racional, en el que no había cabida para las emociones, pero ahora podemos decir que esto ha cambiado significativamente, dándole a los científicos su (...) lugar como seres humanos más que como entidades lógicas. (shrink)

In this article, I address a controversial aspect of Rawls’s treatment of the question of justice between generations: how the parties in the original position could be motivated to select Rawls’s preferred principle of intergenerational savings, which he dubs the just savings principle. I focus on the explanation found in his later work, where he proposes that the correct savings principle is the principle that any generation would have wanted preceding generations to have followed. By expanding upon this explanation, I (...) respond to the objection that this explanation disregards the perspective of the first generation. I demonstrate that this objection ceases to be a concern when a proper account of the parties’ reasoning is developed. What is notable about the explanation I defend is that it relies on the parties adopting maximax – not maximin – as a rule for rational decision making. Having established this intermediary conclusion, I depart with Rawls and consider what savings principle the parties would choose if given more options. Ultimately, I argue that the parties would select a principle that Rawls would have undoubtedly rejected if presented to him at face value. This is because the principle of savings I argue would be selected requires continual economic growth over generations to increase upwards indefinitely – a conclusion Rawls is explicitly trying to avoid in his theory of justice. (shrink)

L’entreprise intellectuelle de Théodule Ribot est fondamentale pour l’œuvre et la trajectoire d’Henri Bergson, qu’on pourrait considérer comme un de ses collaborateurs. Les combats de Ribot pour la psychologie aboutissent à la formulation de principes méthodologiques (l’introspection et le recours aux études médicales) et de principes scientifiques (les concepts de réflexe et de mouvement) utilisés librement dans Matière et mémoire. Et avec le projet de « métaphysique positive » qu’il soutient entre 1901 et 1904, Bergson prend au Collège de France (...) le relais du « positif », après que Ribot en a pacifié le terme. (shrink)

An overcomplete logic is a logic that ‘ceases to make the difference’: According to such a logic, all inferences hold independently of the nature of the statements involved. A negation-inconsistent logic is a logic having at least one model that satisfies both some statement and its negation. A negation-incomplete logic has at least one model according to which neither some statement nor its negation are satisfied. Paraconsistent logics are negation-inconsistent yet non-overcomplete; paracomplete logics are negation-incomplete yet non-overcomplete. A paranormal logic (...) is simply a logic that is both paraconsistent and paracomplete. -/- Despite being perfectly consistent and complete with respect to classical negation, nearly every normal modal logic, in its ordinary language and interpretation, admits to some latent paranormality: It is paracomplete with respect to a negation defined as an impossibility operator, and paraconsistent with respect to a negation defined as non-necessity. In fact, as it will be shown here, even in languages without a primitive classical negation, normal modal logics can often be alternatively characterized directly by way of their paranormal negations and related operators. So, instead of talking about ‘necessity’, ‘possibility’, and so on, modal logics could be seen just as devices tailored for the study of (modal) negation. This paper shows how and to what extent this alternative characterization of modal logics can be realized. (shrink)

Este artículo trata de analizar la célebre frase orteguiana “e_l hombre no tiene naturaleza, sino que tiene… historia_” dentro del contexto de su obra, mostrando su génesis y su evolución, así como las interpretaciones que se le han venido dando a la misma. Junto a este análisis, se mostrará también la importancia de esta idea dentro de la filosofía de Ortega, así como la relevancia que estas ideas podrían tener para una posible reforma de la metafísica tradicional.

It has been hypothesised that the reimbursement system pertaining to radiotherapy is influencing prescription practices for patients with cancer with bone metastases. In this paper, we present and discuss the results of an empirical study that was undertaken on patient records, referred to radiotherapy for the treatment of bone metastases, in a medium-size city, in southern Brazil, during the period of March 2006 to March 2014. Our findings seem to confirm this hypothesis: after a change in the reimbursement method, radiation (...) prescriptions were adapted accordingly, in order to maximise profits. Once such patients become highly vulnerable due to their diagnoses, they also become susceptible to a subtle form of exploitation; physicians let patients believe that more radiation will be better for their health, and they do so despite knowing otherwise, and as it seems, out of pecuniary interests. (shrink)

The purpose of this descriptive and exploratory study was to measure the perceptions regarding a variety of science, technology, and society (STS) topics among a sample of Uruguay underclassmen college students. These perceptions were compared with the viewpoints of a group of professional scientists. It was found that, for some STS topics, such as the role of humans in global climate change, the perceptions of Uruguay underclassmen and scientists were statistically identical. For topics, such as the problem of human overpopulation, (...) both groups find themselves on the same side of the issue but with a statistically significant gap between them. Uruguay underclassmen and professional scientists have opposite views on STS topics such as the use of animals for scientific research. A sizable proportion of Uruguay underclassmen were not familiar with several STS topics, such as the scientific work of the International Space Station. Implications for formal and informal STEM education efforts are discussed. (shrink)

In this article I claim that the genetic revolution, that is, the advent of a series of highly transformative and disruptive genetic technologies, will happen in the coming years. Given the importance of this historical event, I argue that we must think in advance about the socio-ethical dynamics this revolution could entail. To do this, I first explore the ways in which this genetic revolution might unfold, and the socio-ethical problems it will face. Then, I describe possible social dynamics that (...) will appear in a post genetic revolution scenario, using the example of Ecuador, a multiethnic society that had an abrupt social and genetical transformation that could resemble in some ways what the genetic revolution might bring. (shrink)

RESUMO Trata o presente artigo de um estudo sobre o modo como Merleau-Ponty busca extrair, da teoria freudiana dos sonhos, consequências ontológicas concernentes à vinculação expressiva entre as diferentes dimensões da experiência onírica, especificamente sobre o papel dos restos diurnos na descarga da libido, na realização do simbolismo ou, o que é a mesma coisa, na conversão do simbolismo em algo narrativo e sensível, especificamente afetivo. Conforme se mostrará, para Merleau-Ponty, seja no sonho sonhado seja no sonho relatado podemos verificar, (...) entre a dimensão imaginária introduzida pelos restos diurnos, por um lado, e a dimensão simbólica expressa como significante esquecido, por outro; uma sorte de unidade sem coincidência, uma indivisão meramente expressiva. A pergunta deste artigo é ‒ do ponto de vista ontológico ‒ de que modo a indivisão expressiva entre o sonhado e o relatado dispensa o recurso à ideia de uma interioridade transparente? ABSTRACT This article deals with a study on how Merleau-Ponty seeks to extract, from Freud’s theory of dreams, ontological consequences concerning the expressive link between the different dimensions of the dream experience, specifically on the role of daytime remains in the discharge of libido, in realization of symbolism or, what is the same thing, in the conversion of symbolism into something narrative and sensitive, specifically affective. As it will be shown, for Merleau-Ponty, whether in the dreamed dream or in the reported dream, we can verify between the imaginary dimension introduced by the daytime remains, on the one hand; and the symbolic dimension expressed as a forgotten signifier, on the other; a sort of unity without coincidence, a merely expressive indivisibility. The question of this article is - from an ontological point of view - how does the expressive division between the dreamed and the reported dispense the recourse to the idea of a transparent interiority? (shrink)

In this article I present and discuss a reading hypothesis, according to which, with the purpose of thinking about the genesis of meaning in the lived experience without needing, for that, to resort to the reflexive transparency expedient ensured by the idea of a pure self, Merleau-Ponty promotes a shift in the way of employing the Gestalt notion, which starts to be read from the unconscious drive Freudian theory. Interpreted from psychoanalysis, however, Gestalt's notion would no longer address the lived (...) from a descriptive point of view and would assume a dynamic point of view, which Merleau-Ponty (1964a, p. 165) will call ontological, which, in turn, it will influence the Merleau-Ponty appropriation of psychoanalysis. Beyond anthropology, psychoanalysis, as a gestalt (or ontological) reading of the way the lived is articulated, would become a form of philosophy (MERLEAU-PONTY, 1964a, p. 323), the presentation of Being as a process of differentiation between incarnated signifiers, which would configure a “primary symbolism”. And my greatest interest, with this hypothesis, is to measure to what extent, with this approaching strategy between gestalt and psychoanalytic operators, Merleau-Ponty manages to solve a problem that he himself faced in his way of understanding how it is possible to have singularity in a context of production of spontaneous and generic meanings wholes. This means asking: in what sense the notion of gestalt whole clarifies what is the intimacy that, for example, psychoanalysis believes it can hear from the people? (shrink)

A tese de Husserl - segundo a qual,os signos haveriamde encarnar nossos pensamentos - forneceuo ponto de partida ao projeto merleau-pontyanode restituição "filosófica" de nosso contato com omundo da percepção. Porquanto seriam gestosinstituídos por nosso corpo, os signos remeteriam a reflexãofilosófica à experiência sensível e, conseqüentemente,ao mundo da percepção revelado por essaexperiência. Mais do que isso, os signos esclareceriam a origemsensível dos pensamentos. O que acabaria porsuspender a própria tese fenomenológica de queos pensamentos seriam o desdobramento dosatos de uma consciência (...) pura. A interpretaçãomerleau-pontyana da teoria fenomenológica daexpressão mostrou que, tal como ôs pensamentos,a consciência de nós mesmos seria tributáriada experiência sensível. (shrink)

A central feature of experimental development economics is the use of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) to evaluate the effectiveness of prospective socioeconomic interventions. The use of RCTs in development economics raises a host of ethical issues which are just beginning to be explored. In this article, I address one ethical issue in particular: the routine use of the status quo as a control when designing and conducting a development RCT. Drawing on the literature on the principle of standard care in (...) medical research ethics, as well as considerations of distributive justice in non-ideal circumstances, I argue that the practice of using the status quo as a control is ethically justifiable. However, I add an important qualification based on the natural duty of rescue to address the concern that my account is overly permissive. (shrink)

“In the ‘interdisciplinary materialism’ theorized by Max Horkheimer and practiced by the critical-theoretical consortium of the 1930s, the critique of political economy worked both as a more general model for the critique of available knowledge and as the focal point for different disciplinary approaches. In such a constellation, the internal connection between the critical attitude and the critique of political economy also meant that ‘theory’ was the result of ‘critique’, having the critique of political economy as its model. These two (...) claims converge in that ‘theory’ was the same as producing critical diagnoses of the present time, Critical Theory’s most eminent task. Such a characterization of this first figure of Critical Theory allow us to see that the decline of the critique of political economy as a common language for collaboration from the 1940s on gave rise to a long-lasting dispute about its best substitute as the common ground for interdisciplinary research. Until today this dispute over the ‘best theory’ in the critical-theoretical field not only overshadows its most eminent aim but also threatens to blur the very distinction between Critical and Traditional contributions.”. (shrink)

We say that things happen accidentally when they do indeed happen, but only by chance. In the opposite situation, an essential happening is inescapable, its inevitability being the sine qua non for its very occurrence. This paper will investigate modal logics on a language tailored to talk about essential and accidental statements. Completeness of some among the weakest and the strongest such systems is attained. The weak expressibility of the classical propositional language enriched with the non-normal modal operators of essence (...) and accident is highlighted and illustrated, both with respect to the definability of the more usual modal operators as well as with respect to the characterizability of classes of frames. Several interesting problems and directions are left open for exploration. (shrink)

Traz depoimentos dirigidos de filósofos brasileiros sobre temas clássicos e contemporâneos da filosofia, processos de formação intelectual e a vida cultural brasileira. Ao final, apresenta breve biografia do depoente e lista das suas principais publicações.

Na contracapa deste livro o filósofo esloveno Slavoj Žižek escreve: “finalmente a voz que secretamente todos estávamos à espera (...) se cada livro pudesse ser uma arma, este sê-lo--ia!” Da exclamação passemos à interrogação: será que nos dias que correm ainda existem livros que recusem o cepticismo reinante e abalem os consensos estabelecidos? Findo o século das rupturas e das catástrofes, encontramo-nos entre paradigmas, um local de eterno presente, dominado por falsos consensos, singularid...

En este trabajo procuraremos analizar, en primera instancia, al "Festival con Luis Palau" en tanto dispositivo de impacto evangelístico, haciendo foco principalmente en la estructura organizativa que lo propició. A continuación, profundizaremos en los dispositivos de construcción del acontecimiento ..

Examina-se as posições teórico-práticas de Maquiavel e sua contraposição à moralidade tradicional, a fim de entender como se estrutura a sua nova proposta ética. A novidade está pautada nas categorias políticas da conveniência e da aparência: admite-se recorrer a todos os meios necessários para atingir os fins estabelecidos, e para manter-se no poder, obter a honra e a glória, não importa aquilo que o Príncipe é, mas o que aparenta ser perante os súditos e aliados. Disto decorre a necessidade de (...) um Príncipe com o pulso firme e que defenda, sem medir esforços, a integridade e o bem-estar seu povo. A moral do governante será dirigida pela situação política e não pelo ideal de governante universal, abstrato e perfeito. O poder político tem uma origem mundana, nasce da própria malignidade que é intrínseca à natureza humana, mas se constitui, ainda que de modo precário e transitório, como a única possibilidade de enfrentar o conflito. Enfim, cabe ao Príncipe a utilização de um conjunto de expedientes e técnicas capazes de assegurar a máxima eficácia na preservação do Estado e na conservação de sua suprema finalidade - ordem e harmonia. (shrink)

El presente artículo busca reconstituir e interpretar históricamente la percepción del cambio histórico al interior del pensamiento católico chileno durante la primera mitad de la década de 1960. Apoyados en fuentes destinadas al debate público así como en investigaciones sociológicas elaboradas en el periodo, se plantean las siguientes conclusiones: entre los factores del cambio histórico se anotaban el proceso de secularización y la articulación de una sociedad plural en Chile; la actitud frente a estos cambios no fue homogénea, conviviendo al (...) interior de la opinión católica posturas que apoyaban los cambios y otras que los percibían con temor; como forma coherente de asumir los desafíos del cambio histórico, se formularon al interior de la Iglesia Católica chilena juicios y acciones orientadas a fortalecer su presencia en la opinión pública, así como a transformar sus propias estructuras y procedimientos. (shrink)