A review of Jozef Kovalčik´s and Max Ryynänen´s Aesthetics of Popular Culture.

World Rugby (WR) announced in 2020 that transwomen should not be competing at the elite level because of safety and fairness concerns. WR and Jon Pike, a philosopher of sport advising them, adopted a lexical approach to get a grip on the three values in play: safety, fairness, and inclusion. Previously, governing bodies tried to balance these competing values. Michael Burke recently published a paper taking aim at Pike’s lexical approach. This is a reply to Burke.

The axial aim of the paper is to dissect the main concepts of Margaret Archer’s theoretical position. In that line, first, the broader context of critical realism as a unique standpoint of philosophy of science is depicted, as her understanding of epistemology of the social is derived from there. The main body of the manuscript conveys discussions about crucial conceptual categories of the sociology of Margaret Archer primarily linked with analytical dualism, realist social theory, and morphogenetic/morphostatic approach. Moreover, a short (...) review of novel tendencies in further articulation of Archer’s theory, such as relational sociology, is presented. Furthermore, some examples of empirical application of her concepts are noted, as well as some critical remarks addressed to her epistemological-theoretical standpoint. Finally, in the concluding section, the prospects of using Archer’s sociological theory for empirical research on the transformation of contemporary Croatian society are emphasized. (shrink)

This book is a revised translation of two works by Miroslav Hroch, which together form a pioneering comparative analysis of the various struggles for national identity in nineteenth-century Europe. It is concerned with the decisive phase of 'national renaissance', when small groups of committed patriots successfully generated mass support. When and why was their propaganda effective? The author attempts to answer this fundamental question by locating the patriots within the contemporary social structure, and uses data derived from many different (...) nationalisms. The work is divided into three sections; a theoretical examination of the origins of nationalism and nation-hood, a quantitative survey of the social and territorial structure of the patriots of eight representative national movements, and a comparative analysis of the social and professional groups that formed the milieu of patriotism. Numerous statistical tables and maps illuminate the text, which forms one of the most significant studies of the nationalist phenomenon to be published in recent years. (shrink)

University study can be a life period of heightened psychological distress for many students. The development of new preventive and intervention programs to support well-being in university students is a fundamental challenge for mental health professionals. We designed an 8-week online mindfulness-based program combining a face-to-face approach, text, audio, video components, and support psychotherapy principles with a unique intensive reminder system using the Facebook Messenger and Slack applications in two separate runs. We assessed the program’s effect on mindful experiencing, perceived (...) stress, emotion regulation strategies, self-compassion, negative affect, and quality of life. The results of the presented pilot study confirmed that eMBP is a feasible and effective tool in university students’ mental health support. The students who completed the eMBP reported a reduction of perceived stress with a large effect size as well as a decrease of negative affect experience frequency and intensity, an increase of being mindful in their life, and a higher rate of self-compassion with a medium effect size. A small effect size was found in the frequency of using a cognitive reappraisal strategy. One new result is the observation of an eMBP effect on the decrease in attributed importance to the quality-of-life components replicated in two consecutive runs of the program. The study affirms that mindfulness-based interventions can be effectively delivered in an eHealth form to university students. (shrink)

In 2004 in Prague, I met Slovak philosopher Miroslav Marcelli, who had attended Foucault's lectures in Paris in 80s. We talked about the legacy of Foucault and contemporary philosophy. Mr. Marcelli taught me philosophy at Comenius University in 1995.. I never visited his lectures, I only passed the exam.. The most interesting point was his answer to my 'provocations' replicating the common prejudice about impracticability of the philosophy. He answered "Do you think that e.g. Descartes didn't know about it?" (...) In fact, people tend to think that philosophers or mathematicians, are "asocial" without "social" intelligence, while their occasional isolation (e.g. Nietzsche) is a product of social exclusion, rather than their choice. In 2013 I applied Foucault's concept of Discontinuity to short 10 minutes movie: Discontinuity, projected in my exhibition "From Animation" in Holland Park, London. The film has 3 parts, ends as it starts to show the significant historical events in 4 windows, when the same idea appears to disappear to re-appear.. Foucault's philosophy doesn't seem to me so unique now, e.g. the idea that many historical changes or progress itself is often illusionary - masking the power structure, had already been explored 515 BC, in depth by Parmenides who concluded: the change is impossible. (shrink)

Robin Dembroff (Real Talk about the Metaphysics of Gender, 2018) believes that ‘non-binary’ is a social kind. I have my doubts about this, but if it is a social kind, then it is a very special one. The membership conditions of the social kind ‘non-binary’ are only accessible to non-binary persons. They establish and police their own membership conditions (Dembroff 2018: 36f.): ‘Individuals are granted authority over their gender kind membership.’ So, if this is indeed a ‘social kind’, then it (...) is a highly unusual one. (shrink)

The paper aims to present Spinoza’s understanding of the ontological status of finite beings, which was heavily influenced by mathematics, i.e. geometry. Spinoza stratified finite beings into two fairly incompatible layers: the one subjectively conceived, while the other is the objective level. The first level is related to the essence of being that is caused by God through immanent causality: here, we speak of entailment on the logical and epistemological level, and not the level of reality. Unlike essence, existence represents (...) the second level of being: existence is caused by the real finite being through transeunt cause. The first level, by its ontological status, is very close to mathematical entities, therefore the qualification that Spinoza ‘geometrized reality under a species of the essences’. Namely, he geometrized the segment under the scope of ontology, i.e. the essences of finite modes. The final part of the paper is dedicated to one of the main reasons why Spinoza failed to provide a satisfactory solution to this ontological problem, which is not the only such problem of his system. This would be that Spinoza paid too much attention on ethics, to the detriment of metaphysics, i.e. ontology as general metaphysics. For Spinoza, ontology is subjected to epistemology and ethics, therefore the name ‘functional metaphysics’. (shrink)

Aristotelova koncepcia definície v Druhých analytikách nepredstavuje len zásadný komponent dokazovacej vedy, ale v rôznych podobách je tiež zosobnená v spisoch jednotlivých vied a významným spôsobom ovplyvňuje podobu jeho filozofických a vedeckých skúmaní. I keď je systematickému výkladu spôsobov definovania venovaná celá druhá kniha tohto spisu, plné vyjasnenie účelu definícií sa ukáže až v širšom kontexte Aristotelovho modelu vedy. Cieľom štúdie je systematická interpretácia konceptu definície a predstavenie dvoch hlavných postupov definovania na podklade metódy vedeckého skúmania v spisoch Organonu.Podobu definície (...) do značnej miery utvára povaha objektov, ktoré vstupujú do vedeckého skúmania. V prvom rade je nutné zabezpečiť definície elementárnych objektov a vlastností, ktoré konštituujú predmet vedy. V tomto význame vystupujú definície ako jeden z bezprostredných počiatkov vedeckého sylogizmu. Postavenie takzvaných bezprostredných definícií je o to význačnejšie, že ich úlohou nie je len fixovať významy elementárnych pojmov vedeckého jazyka. Aristotelova metodológia vedy je vystavaná na esencialistických základoch a definície tak majú za úlohu zachycovať všetky nutné vlastnosti popisovaného druhu objektov, pričom zároveň z výmeru vylúčia tie vlastnosti, ktoré sú pre neho náhodné. Z toho nasleduje, že jednému druhu nutne náleží len jedna úplná a adekvátna definícia, čo vedcovi umožňuje vytvoriť spoľahlivý základ pre dokazovaciu fázu skúmania zaistením pravdivých premís, ktoré vyčerpávajúcim spôsobom popisujú svoj objekt.Na opačnom konci procesu vedeckého skúmania stoja sylogistické definície. Na rozdiel od prvého typu objektu definície, ich predmety sú komplexné a esencia nie je zjavná. Nakoľko cieľom definície je práve zobrazenie esencie, Aristoteles používa dôkaz ako nástroj jej zobrazenia. V tomto kontexte uvádza príklady prírodných fenoménov zatmenia a hromu, ktorých príčina je od nich odlišná, čo vytvára potrebu tohto špecifického postupu ich uchopenia. Na podklade Aristotelovho výkladu, štúdia analyzuje tieto dva typy definovania ako integrálnu súčasť vedeckej metódy a prirodzený dôsledok potreby adekvátneho postihnutia esencie predmetu skúmania. (shrink)

Kritická stať: Vladislav Suvák: Kynizmus grécky a moderný I.

This article is concerned with an analysis of semantics and the normativity of evaluative judgments, in which “aesthetic concepts” and “predicates of personal taste” are used in the context of the evaluation of selected cultural forms. Qualitative data obtained through semi-structured interviews with representatives in four categories of actors in the cultural field are analyzed. In the light of the findings, theories of aesthetic judgment are critically assessed, which on the one hand, postulate the categorical semantic and normative difference between (...) aesthetic concepts and predicates of personal taste and, on the other hand, conceive aesthetic disputes from an epistemological point of view and do not sufficiently take into account their pragmatic context. In conclusion, a functional analysis of the semantics and normativity of evaluative judgments is presented, in which the speakers use terms from the field of aesthetics. (shrink)

This article provides an ethical analysis of the moral conflict over access to premium audio-visual online content, which is currently regulated by geo-blocking in the domain of digital film distri...

Prior research has suggested that perceptual disfluency activates analytical processing and increases the solution rate of mathematical problems with appealing but incorrect answers (i.e., the Cogn...

Under the Second Demographic Transition, alternative forms of living arrangement are on the rise. The aim of this article is to compare quality of life in children living in married and cohabiting families. We present the results of representative research conducted in Slovakia in 2018 (N = 1,010 respondents). We tested whether children brought up in traditional married families had better material resources and healthcare, fewer behavioural problems, better peer relations and spent more leisure time with their parents than children (...) brought up by cohabiting parents. We also investigated whether number of children in the family and net monthly household income affected the children’s quality of life. The results show that there were almost no differences in quality of life between children brought up by married and by cohabiting parents and that number of children in the family and level of net monthly household income affected only the child’s material resources. (shrink)

The article based on Kuhn’s paradigmatic approach and Lakatos’ methodology of scientific research programmes, analyses certain aspects of selected cognitive functions of religous beliefs. Our approach is based on the search for angalogy between scientific theories on one hand and systems of religious beliefs on the other hand. Contemporary philosophy of science demonstrates that scientific models are the products of creative analogous immagination, data are theory-laden, theories as a whole are resistent to falsification and it is hard (if at all) (...) to find reliable criterions for the selection of a paradigm. These «subjective features» are more evident within religion, since a wider range of models, greater impact of interpretations on data, greater arduousness in regard to the commitment to a paradigm and more ambiguity in the process of the selection of a paradigm, exist in this area. However, with each of these features, I see the difference between science and religion in their degree and not in absolute contrast. (shrink)

While classical neo-positivists reject any role for traditionally understood values in science, Kuhn identifies five specific values as criteria for assessing a scientific theory; this approach has been further developed by several other authors. This paper focuses on Helen Longino, who presents a significant contemporary critique of Kuhn’s concept. The most controversial aspect of Longino’s position is arguably her claim that the criterion of empirical adequacy is the least defensible basis for assessing theories. The de-emphasizing of the importance of external (...) consistency as a value and the introduction of socio-political considerations into the processes of an assessment of scientific theories are also considered problematic issues. I provide arguments against Longino’s conception, identify some of its problems, and argue for refusal of her approach. (shrink)

We study cardinal invariants of systems of meager hereditary families of subsets of ω connected with the collapse of the continuum by Sacks forcing S and we obtain a cardinal invariant yω such that S collapses the continuum to yω and y ≤ yω ≤ b. Applying the Baumgartner-Dordal theorem on preservation of eventually narrow sequences we obtain the consistency of y = yω < b. We define two relations $\leq _{0}^{\ast}$ and $\leq _{1}^{\ast}$ on the set $(^{\omega}\omega)_{{\rm Fin}}$ of (...) finite-to-one functions which are Tukey equivalent to the eventual dominance relation of functions such that if $\germ{F}\subseteq (^{\omega}\omega)_{Fin}$ is $\leq _{1}^{\ast}$ -unbounded, well-ordered by $\leq _{1}^{\ast}$ , and not $\leq _{0}^{\ast}$ -dominating, then there is a nonmeager p-ideal. The existence of such a system F follows from Martin's axiom. This is an analogue of the results of [3], [9, 10] for increasing functions. (shrink)

ABSTRACT In the first part of this article I discuss some objections which assert that surrogacy is primarily—but not exclusively—harmful in a moral sense. After examination of mainly but not exclusively morality‐dependent harms (objections from similarity with prostitution, exploitation, etc.) and after the discussion of possible non‐morality‐dependent harms (baby, couple, surrogate mother, agency, etc.), I argue, in the second part, that no one reason supports the possible prohibition of surrogacy. In the last part I try to show why moral reasons (...) alone could not be sufficient to criminalize any kind of activity—including surrogacy—in a liberal order. (shrink)

The assumption of rational expectations (RE) plays two roles in economic models: it imposes restrictions on behaviour of agents, and it ensures model consistency. Dissatisfaction with RE on behavioural grounds has, in a variety of models, led to its replacement by more behaviourally plausible postulates. However, replacing RE by ad hoc behavioural postulates may result in internally inconsistent models. This work introduces a conceptual framework within which the nature of the issue can be described, and points to potential problems that (...) the abandonment of RE entails. We argue that the RE-based notion of consistency is model-specific rather than general, and introduce a weaker consistency condition that is relevant for non-RE models. To assess the consistency of these models, we propose a test and illustrate its use taking an example from the recent literature. Broader implications of the findings are discussed. (shrink)

World Rugby (WR) announced in 2020 that transwomen should not be competing at the elite level because of safety and fairness concerns. WR and Jon Pike, a philosopher of sport advising them, adopted a lexical approach to get a grip on the three values in play: safety, fairness, and inclusion. Previously, governing bodies tried to balance these competing values. Michael Burke recently published a paper taking aim at Pike’s lexical approach.

In this paper I will discuss two aspects of ignorance of the law: ignorance of illegality (including mistaking the law) and ignorance of the penalty; and I will look at the implications for natives, for tourists and for immigrants. I will argue that Carlos Nino's consensual theory of punishment need to rely on two premises in order to justify that (claiming) ignorance of the law is no excuse. The first premise explains why individuals are presumed to 'know' current laws. The (...) second premise explains why individuals are presumed to 'know' new legislation. (shrink)

I confront arbitrariness of the sign to a criterion assessing the quality of language, logical system, psychometrics and art.

Most people will not be familiar with the term ‘jurisprudence of sport’ (JOS). The idea is that looking at sport through the eyes of a legal scholar might illuminate our understanding of certain problems in sport (and vice versa). The term was first introduced in 2011, in the title of a paper by Mitchell N. Berman, who is also a contributor to this book. In the present volume we have contributions from around the world: Italy, Spain, Germany, Australia, Great Britain, (...) the US and the Netherlands, by authors of various nationalities. (shrink)

Given Bernard Suits’ stature in the philosophy of sport, his take on strategic fouling, surprisingly, hasn’t been given much attention in the literature. Rather than relying on a purely empirical or ‘ethos’ approach to justify the Strategic Foul he provides a mixed justification. Suits’ account combines a priori and a posteriori elements. He introduces a third kind of rule, which appears to be unlike rules of skill or constitutive rules, into his conceptual scheme. Suits claims that it is sometimes tactically (...) correct to break such a rule in order to gain an advantage. I will argue that the a priori element in his justification of strategic fouling is unconvincing because there is nothing special about ‘third type’ rule-violations, which incur a ‘fixed penalty’. Furthermore, the a posteriori element ultimately reduces to a rule of skill, and it is doubtful whether it has sufficient normative force to warrant breaking a rule. But, most importantly, the a posteriori element degrades the power of the a priori element. (shrink)

The aim of the research was to find out whether participants completing an SCM questionnaire to assess attitudes towards the Roma would give different answers in response to different sets of instructions. Three sets of instructions were tested using cognitive interviews: answer from your personal viewpoint, from the viewpoint of the majority of Slovaks, from the viewpoint of those close to you. The research sample comprised 24 respondents, of whom 12 were upper secondary school students and 12 working adults. Responses (...) from the personal viewpoint differed markedly from responses from the viewpoint of the majority of Slovaks, but were very similar to responses from the viewpoint of those close to the person. In the research, internal and external motivation to respond with/without prejudice was also investigated. Participants with internalised unbiased beliefs showed a preference for assessing the Roma minority from their own viewpoint, while participants with internalised biased beliefs thought the instructions were unimportant. (shrink)

In life there can be good reasons to break the rules. Some sports philosophers have suggested that this also holds for games. In this essay I will compare and contrast reasons for rule-breaking in life and in sports. Some of my focus will be on recent attempts to defend strategic fouling (by Eylon & Horowitz, Russell, and Flynn). Supporters of strategic fouling try to provide a philosophical underpinning for the practice, but they ignore the genealogy of such rule-violations. I will (...) also discuss how some legal theorists view rule-breaking and contrast this with sport. Lastly, I will introduce the idea of ‘transcendental rules’ in games. They are the conditions for the possibility of playing a game. Following Aurel Kolnai, I will argue that strategic fouling violates a transcendental rule – it is not just a moral error, it is also a conceptual error. (shrink)

The paper deals with cognitive interview, a method for pre-testing survey questions that is used in pilot testing to develop new measures and/or adapt ones in foreign languages. The aim is to explore the usefulness of the method by looking at two questionnaires measuring anti-Roma prejudice. The first, the Stereotype Content Model (SCM), contains questions that are dominantly used to test two dimensions of social perceptions of various groups: warmth and competence. The second, Interventions for Reducing Prejudice against Stigmatized Minorities (...) (INTERMIN) consists of the items most frequently used in contact research to measure attitudes, social distance, anxiety, trust and behavioural intentions towards outgroups. Two rounds of cognitive interviews were held on both questionnaires to verbally evaluate participants’ understanding and/or interpretation of the draft questions. The first round was attended by university students, while the second round (with improved versions of the questionnaires) was done with high school students, as they are the target group for planned interventions based on the contact paradigm. The paper explains the problems/difficulties the participants had answering some of the questions and our attempts at improving the questionnaires. The problems can be grouped around six issues: The first two deal with the strategies participants used to answer our questions – whom exactly did they have in mind when answering the questionnaires and whose viewpoint did they represent in their answers. The next four problems are around nuances in the formulations of our questions and generally have to do with how the participants interpreted our questions – they concern assumptions that distinct items were logically interconnected, the period of time and locality referred to in our questions, translation and transferability of meanings from one language to another and double negation. (shrink)

Istraživanje je provedeno na uzorku učenika trećih razreda strukovnih škola i gimnazija. Od uključenih učenika, gimnaziju je pohađalo njih 253, a srednje strukovne škole 352 učenika. Cilj istraživanja bio je ispitati neke specifičnosti u percepciji učenika srednjih škola o važnosti nastavnih predmeta iz područja likovnih umjetnosti. Napravljena je posebna analiza samo za dvije odabrane zavisne varijable: važnost nastavnih predmeta iz područja likovnih umjetnosti za razvoj pamćenja i sposobnosti za učenje ostalih nastavnih predmeta te interes i zadovoljstvo sudjelovanjem u likovnim aktivnostima. (...) Rezultati pokazuju da ne postoji statistički značajna razlika između učenika gimnazija i strukovnih škola u procjeni sudjelovanja u aktivnostima nastave likovne umjetnosti te u procjeni važnosti likovnih aktivnosti za razvoj pamćenja i sposobnosti za učenje ostalih predmeta. Postoji statistički značajna spolna razlika u procjeni sudjelovanja u aktivnostima nastave likovne umjetnosti te u procjeni važnosti likovnih aktivnosti za razvoj pamćenja i sposobnosti za učenje ostalih predmeta. Može se zaključiti da ispitanici nisu bili u mogućnosti procijeniti koliko i u koju svrhu će im u daljnjem školovanju i budućem zanimanju koristiti kompetencije stečene u nastavi likovne umjetnosti. This research was carried out on a sample of third year pupils of vocational schools and gymnasiums. Of the surveyed pupils, 253 of them attended gymnasiums, while 352 attended vocational secondary schools. The goal of this research was to examine specificities in secondary school pupils’ perceptions of the importance of subjects in the field of the fine arts. A separate analysis was undertaken for only two selected dependent variables: the importance of subjects in the field of the fine arts for developing memory and the ability to learn other subjects, and interest in and satisfaction with participation in fine arts activities. The results show that there is no statistically significant difference between the estimation of gymnasium and vocational school pupils regarding participation in fine arts activities or in their estimation of the importance of fine arts activities in developing memory and the ability to learn other subjects. There is a statistically significant gender difference in the estimation of participation in fine arts activities, as well as in the estimation of the importance of fine arts activities in developing memory and the ability to learn other subjects. It can be concluded that respondents were unable to estimate how much or why they would use competencies gained in fine arts teaching in their continued education or their future careers. (shrink)

This research was carried out on a sample of third year pupils of vocational schools and gymnasiums. Of the surveyed pupils, 253 of them attended gymnasiums, while 352 attended vocational secondary schools. The goal of this research was to examine specificities in secondary school pupils’ perceptions of the importance of subjects in the field of the fine arts. A separate analysis was undertaken for only two selected dependent variables: the importance of subjects in the field of the fine arts for (...) developing memory and the ability to learn other subjects, and interest in and satisfaction with participation in fine arts activities. The results show that there is no statistically significant difference between the estimation of gymnasium and vocational school pupils regarding participation in fine arts activities or in their estimation of the importance of fine arts activities in developing memory and the ability to learn other subjects. There is a statistically significant gender difference in the estimation of participation in fine arts activities, as well as in the estimation of the importance of fine arts activities in developing memory and the ability to learn other subjects. It can be concluded that respondents were unable to estimate how much or why they would use competencies gained in fine arts teaching in their continued education or their future careers. (shrink)