U radu se artikulisu i razvijaju ontoloske postavke i posledice Rusoovih razmatranja o slobodi, koje su u njegovim spisima cesto ostajale u drugom planu. Posebno se naznacuje jedan ontoloski bitan aspekt Rusoove radikalnosti, u kojem je raskidanje veza s prirodom, takozvani izlazak iz prirodnog stanja i sklapanje drustvenog ugovora, neodvojivo od njegovog razumevanja slobode, jednakosti i politicke delatnosti. Pokazuje se kako totalna alijenacija dovodi do radikalnog raskida s prirodom, a nenuzno iskrsavanje opste volje i uspostavljanje slobode kao samozakonodavstva tumaci se (...) kao dogadjaj politike, ciji uslov i zakon jeste opsta jednakost. (shrink)

Polazeci od jedne Fukoove opaske o vaznosti Kantovog razumevanja prosvetiteljstva za modernu filozofiju uopste, u ovom tekstu pokusavamo da sledimo trag veze izmedju pitanja o aktuelnosti, prosvetiteljstva i moderne kod Kanta. Ideje slobode i subjektivnosti uocavamo kao nezaobilazne za razumevanje kantovskog prosvetiteljskog projekta i njegove aktuelnosti. U tekstu pokusavamo da pokazemo kako se kod Kanta nailazi na specificno moderno shvatanje aktuelnosti koje ima dalekosezne ontoloske posledice, narocito u pogledu kategorije mogucnosti. Na osnovu sprovedenih analiza dolazimo do teze da se odgovor (...) na pitanje o aktuelnosti prosvetiteljstva ispostavlja kao ulog u borbi za ostvarenje nemoguceg. (shrink)

FROM THE ACTIVITIES OF THE INSTITUTE Olga Nikolić, Deana Jovanović i Igor Cvejić.

It is usually believed that science goes with things like theoria, ‘knowing that’, ontology and representing, and that techne, know-how, technology and intervening are only instrumental to science or its beneficial but nonetheless accidental side effect. In this context to be instrumental means also to be eliminable, or at least transparent, something that leaves no trace. Following the historical development of experimentation, from simple observation to modern microscopic experiments. I try to show how that view loses its ground. To produce (...) an artefact, scientific or other, is to be engaged in a complex dynamics, both ontological and epistemological in which at least two component processes, that of bringing forth and that of bringing into, are intertwined. The old dictum: ‘Science discovers, technology invents’, should be replaced by: science discovers because it invents. As a consequence scientific theory becomes an instrument of design. (shrink)

The article examines how recovering drug addicts employ testimonies of conversion and addiction to develop and sustain personal identity and create meaning from varied experiences in life. Drawing on 31 autobiographies of recovering drug addicts we analyze conversion and addiction testimonies in two European contexts. The analysis shows how existing frames of reference and self-understanding are undermined and/or developed. We first describe the substance abuse in participants’ addiction trajectory. Next, we outline the religious aspects and the primary conception of recovering (...) addicts’ conversions as an example of spiritual transformation and narrative change. Moreover, participants select and creatively adapt cultural practices in their testimonies. In many of these examples converts clearly employ elements from their personal and family histories, their ethnic and religious heritages, and their larger cultural and historical context to create a meaningful conversion narrative. (shrink)

The article analyses how robotisation as the latest advance in military technology can depersonalise the methods of killing in the 21st century by turning enemy soldiers and civilians into mere objects devoid of moral value. The departing assumption is that robotisation of warfare transforms military operations into automated industrial processes with the aim of removing empathy as a redundant?cost?. The development of autonomous weapons systems raises a number of sharp ethical controversies related to the projected moral insensitivity of robots regarding (...) the treatment of enemies and civilian population. The futurist vision of war as a foreign policy instrument entirely?purified? of the risk of morally wrong actions is in opposition with the negative effects of the use of drones. The author concludes that the use of lethal robots in combat would eventually remove enemy soldiers and civilians from the realm of ethical reasoning and deprive them of human dignity. Decision to kill in military operations ought to be based on human conscience as the only proper framework of making decisions by reasoning whether an action is right or wrong. (shrink)

This paper emphasizes the place and the role of the aesthetic quality and the role of the erotic in Levinas?s project that deals with ethical an-archaeology. Despite Levinas?s categorical statements that there are irreconcilable differences between ethics and aesthetics, i.e. between ethics and the erotic, above all, it is emphasized here that these differences do not represent a stark or sharp contrast, but quite contrary, they often constitute a subversive ontological element. On the other hand, somewhat unexpectedly, with its ethical (...) anti-aestheticism Levinas?s?noncontemporary? thought appears to be, at the same time, both significant and critical, elementary, emancipatory and contemporary in relation to present-day reactionary reactualization and revitalization of the aesthetic quality which mechanically proceeds to develop on the margins of Levinas?s emancipatory past. nema. (shrink)

This paper tries to critically analyse Jeffrey Alexander?s cultural sociology. In the first part of the paper I will examine Alexander?s conception of hermeneutical structuralism which argues that conventional systemic sociology and richness of experience found in everyday praxis can be reconciled. In the next section I will provide a critique of this kind of approach to social theory and maintain that Alexander?s sociology is, in principle, reductionist regarding everyday life. In addition, I will also point out some of the (...) comparative advantages that pragmatically oriented theory has in the attempt of integrating theoretical and practical knowledge. In the final section of the paper, I will try to illustrate some of the major shortcomings of Alexander?s sociology on the concrete example of advances in computer technology. (shrink)

Although Lermontov is traditionally viewed as Russia's “second greatest poet,” the bard of Russia's beauty and the critic of Russia's “superfluous men,” the philosophical content of his poetry and prose remains relatively unexamined. The article considers Lermontov's themes of the rebellious angel, freedom, and fate, and argues that although these themes were a product of his time, they are still relevant today.

Bosonic and fermionic particle currents can be introduced in a more unified way, with the cost of introducing a preferred spacetime foliation. Such a unified treatment of bosons and fermions naturally emerges from an analogous superstring current, showing that the preferred spacetime foliation appears only at the level of effective field theory, not at the fundamental superstring level. The existence of the preferred spacetime foliation allows an objective definition of particles associated with quantum field theory in curved spacetime. Such an (...) objective definition of particles makes the Bohmian interpretation of particle quantum mechanics more appealing. The superstring current allows a consistent Bohmian interpretation of superstrings themselves, including a Bohmian description of string creation and destruction in terms of string splitting. The Bohmian equations of motion and the corresponding probabilistic predictions are fully relativistic covariant and do not depend on the preferred foliation. (shrink)

U ovom clanku prezentovane su osnovne informacije o islamskim predstavnickim institucijama na prostoru bivse Jugoslavije. Raspadom SFR Jugoslavije i stvaranjem novih nacionalnih drzava, jedinstvena Islamska zajednica u SFR Jugoslaviji transformisala se u nekoliko samostalnih islamskih zajednica. Autor se u ovom tekstu bavi samo promenama organizacionih struktura islamskih zajednica i pruza osnovu za dalja analiziranja i istrazivanja tih promena, svestan da su institucionalne promene deo sireg procesa transformacije balkanskih drustava, odnosno etnicke homogenizacije, revitalizacije religije, politizacije religije, religizacije politike, demografskih kretanja itd. (...) Situacija je najslozenija u Srbiji gde su muslimani organizovani u nekoliko islamskih zajednica. Medjusobno osporavanje legitimiteta predstavnickih tela islamskih zajednica predstavlja veliki problem u zastupanju verskih prava i interesa muslimana i nepostojanje jedinstvene verske organizacije u velikoj meri otezava njihov polozaj. (shrink)

Spontaneous intrusive recollections are known to follow emotional events in clinical and non-clinical populations. Previous work in our lab has found that women report more SIRs than men after exposure to emotional films, and that this effect is driven entirely by women in the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle. To replicate and extend this finding, participants viewed emotional films, provided saliva samples for sex hormone concentration analysis, and estimated SIR frequency following film viewing. Women in the luteal phase reported (...) significantly more SIRs than did women in the follicular phase, and SIR frequency significantly correlated with salivary progesterone levels. The results are consistent with an emerging pattern in the literature suggesting that menstrual cycle position of female participants can potently influence findings in numerous cognitive domains. The potential implications of these results for disorders characterized by intrusions, such as post-traumatic stress disorder, are also discussed. (shrink)

Some contemporary theorists such as Mazzocchi, Theise and Kafatos are convinced that the reformed complementarity may redefine how we might exploit the complexity theory in 21st-century life sciences research. However, the motives behind the profound re-invention of “biological complementarity” need to be substantiated with concrete shreds of evidence about this principle’s applicability in real-life science experimentation, which we found missing in the literature. This paper discusses such pieces of evidence by confronting Bohr’s complementarity and ion channel modeling practice. We examine (...) whether and to what extent this principle might assist in developing ion channel models incorporating both deterministic and stochastic solutions. According to the “mutual exclusiveness of experimental setups” version of Bohr’s complementarity, this principle is needed when two mutually exclusive perspectives or approaches are right, necessary in a particular context, and are not contradictory as they arise in mutually exclusive conditions (mutually exclusive experimental or modeling setups). A detailed examination of the modeling practice reveals that both solutions are often used simultaneously in a single ion channel model, suggesting that the opposite conceptual frameworks can coexist in the same modeling setup. We concluded that Bohr’s complementarity might find applications in these complex modeling setups but only through its realistic phenomenological interpretation that allows applying different modes of description regardless of the nature of the underlying ion channel opening process. Also, we propose the combined use of complementarity and Complex thinking in building the multifaceted ion channel models. Overall, this paper’s results support the efforts to establish a more general form of complementarity to meet today’s complexity theory-inspired life sciences modeling demands. (shrink)

V. A. Lektorsky: Subject, Object, Cognition, Moscow, Progress Publishers 1984, 280 pp.

Since Bohmian mechanics is explicitly nonlocal, it is widely believed that it is very hard, if not impossible, to make Bohmian mechanics compatible with relativistic quantum field theory. I explain, in simple terms, that it is not hard at all to construct a Bohmian theory that lacks Lorentz covariance, but makes the same measurable predictions as relativistic QFT. All one has to do is to construct a Bohmian theory that makes the same measurable predictions as QFT in one Lorentz frame, (...) because then standard relativistic QFT itself guarantees that those predictions are Lorentz invariant. I first explain this in general terms, then I describe a simple Bohmian model that makes the same measurable predictions as the Standard Model of elementary particles, after which I give some hints towards a more fundamental theory beyond standard model. Finally, I present a short story telling how my views of fundamental physics in general, and of Bohmian mechanics in particular, evolved over time. (shrink)

The aim of this paper is to show certain aspects of Rorty?s philosophy that are relevant to social theory, and also to point out the most important divergences of Rorty?s insights from postmodern understanding of social reality. Therefore, in the first part of the paper I will examine both Rorty?s philosophy of edification and all relevant criticisms to his view of philosophy?as a communication of mankind?. Furthermore, I will try to establish to which extent Rorty?s understanding of contingency and its (...) implications really falls close to postmodern thought. I will also argue that the impossibility of philosophical justification of social reality, according to Rorty, does not entail impossibility of moral progress and that the role of social theory is actually in raising the level of inclusion of social interaction and in providing social hope. Moreover, it will be shown that Rorty, unlike Foucault and Derrida, thought that the institutions of Western democracy and liberalism are quite capable to achieve these goals and that accomplishment of this liberal utopia greatly depends on the degree of commitment to moral progress that all actors within the cultural field share. Namera ovog rada je da prikaze odredjene aspekte Rortijeve filozofije koji imaju drustvenoteorijski znacaj kao i da naznaci najznacajnije tacke u kojima se ovi njegovi uvidi razmimoilaze sa odredjenim postmodernistickim razumevanjem drustvene stvarnosti. Stoga ce se u prvom delu rada narocita paznja biti posvecena Rortijevoj filozofiji edifikacije, ali i relevantnim kritikama koje su tokom godina bile upucene njegovom shvatanju filozofije kao svojevrsne filozofski neutemeljene?komunikacije covecanstva?. Nakon toga, pokusacemo da utvrdimo u kojoj meri je Rortijevo shvatanje kontigencije i njenih posledica blisko postmodernoj misli. Argumentovacemo da nemogucnost filozofskog opravdanja drustvene stvarnosti po Rortiju ne nalaze i nemogucnost moralnog progresa, te da je osnovna uloga svake drustvene teorije zapravo povecavanje inkluzivnosti drustvene interakcije i pruzanje drustvene nade. Stavise, Rorti je za razliku od Fukoa i Deride smatrao da su institucije zapadne demokratije i liberalizma potpuno dovoljne za postizanje ovih ciljeva, te da stoga dosezanje ove liberalne utopije u velikoj meri zavisi od toga koliko su delatnici unutar kulturne sfere spremni na aktivno zalaganje u cilju dostizanja ovog moralnog progresa. (shrink)

A common understanding of quantum mechanics (QM) among students and practical users is often plagued by a number of “myths”, that is, widely accepted claims on which there is not really a general consensus among experts in foundations of QM. These myths include wave-particle duality, time-energy uncertainty relation, fundamental randomness, the absence of measurement-independent reality, locality of QM, nonlocality of QM, the existence of well-defined relativistic QM, the claims that quantum field theory (QFT) solves the problems of relativistic QM or (...) that QFT is a theory of particles, as well as myths on black-hole entropy. The fact is that the existence of various theoretical and interpretational ambiguities underlying these myths does not yet allow us to accept them as proven facts. I review the main arguments and counterarguments lying behind these myths and conclude that QM is still a not-yet-completely-understood theory open to further fundamental research. (shrink)

Even though the Bohmian trajectories given by integral curves of the conserved Klein-Gordon current may involve motions backwards in time, the natural relativistic probability density of particle positions is well-defined. The Bohmian theory predicts subtle deviations from the statistical predictions of more conventional formulations of quantum theory, but it seems that no present experiment rules this theory out. The generalization to the case of many particles or strings is straightforward, provided that a preferred foliation of spacetime is given.

Recently, swimming-style colour synaesthesia was introduced as a new form of synaesthesia. A synaesthetic Stroop test was used to establish its genuineness. Since Stroop interference can occur for any type of overlearned association, in the present study we used a modified Stroop test and psychophysiological synaesthetic conditioning to further establish the genuineness of this form of synaesthesia. We compared the performance of a swimming-style colour synaesthete and a control who was trained on swimming-style colour associations. Our results showed that behavioural (...) aspects of swimming-style colour synaesthesia can be mimicked in a trained control. Importantly, however, our results showed a psychophysiological conditioning effect for the synaesthete only. We discuss the theoretical relevance of swimming-style colour synaesthesia according to different models of synaesthesia. We conclude that swimming-style colour synaesthesia is a genuine form of synaesthesia, can be mimicked behaviourally in non-synaesthetes, and is best explained by a re-entrant feedback model. (shrink)

After Husserl?s transcendental turn and the discovery of the correlation between consciousness and the world the concept of the noema becomes one of the constant leitmotifs of Husserl?s philosophy. My paper will be devoted to the clarification of this concept and its implications for Husserl?s theory of sense. The leading question will be: How can the noema play the role of both the sense and the objective correlate of the intentional act? I will start with presenting the problematic of sense (...) in Husserl?s phenomenology from the Logical Investigations to the Ideas I. The central part of my paper will be devoted to the influential debate regarding the interpretation of the noema. Finally, I intend to point out the most important ways in which the notion of the noema becomes enriched in later Husserl?s philosophy, as well as the difference between linguisitic and non-linguistic sense, based on the Analyses Concerning Passive and Active Synthesis. I hope to show that Husserl?s phenomenological theory of sense offers a valuable alternative to the exclusively language-oriented theories of sense. (shrink)

Spontaneous intrusive recollections follow traumatic events in clinical and non-clinical populations. To determine whether any relationship exists between SIRs and enhanced memory for emotional events, participants viewed emotional or neutral films, had their memory for the films tested two days later, and estimated the number of SIRs they experienced for each film. SIR frequency related positively to memory strength, an effect more pronounced in the emotional condition. These findings represent the first demonstration of a relationship between SIRs occurring after an (...) emotional experience and subsequent memory strength for that experience. The results are consistent with the possibility that emotional arousal leads both to elevated SIR frequency and better memory, and that the covert rehearsal associated with SIRs enhances memory for emotional relative to neutral stimuli. Additional evidence of menstrual cycle influences on SIR incidence in female participants appears to merit consideration in future work. (shrink)

This paper presents the results of research on changes in attitudes towards music education among teacher education students who were exposed to vocal-instrumental lessons over the course of two semesters. The research was conducted among second-year students of teacher education at the Faculty of Education in Osijek, Croatia. The results have shown that students’ attitudes towards music education are relatively positive both before and after exposure to music lessons. Students with choir experience had more positive attitudes towards music education. Although (...) positive attitudes after music lessons are somewhat higher, there is no statistically significant difference between the attitudes of students before or after music lessons. Further research on attitudes towards music education is suggested across a larger population of teacher education students, over a longer period of time, and using a wider range of instruments. U radu su predstavljeni rezultati istraživanja mogućnosti promjena stavova studenata učiteljskoga studija o glazbenom obrazovanju nakon dva semestra vokalno-instrumentalne nastave. Istraživanje je provedeno sa studenticama druge godine učiteljskoga studija na Fakultetu za odgojne i obrazovne znanosti u Osijeku, Hrvatska. Rezultati su pokazali kako studentice imaju relativno pozitivne stavove o glazbenom obrazovanju prije i poslije nastave glazbe, a pozitivniji stavovi su zabilježeni kod studentica koje imaju iskustvo pjevanja u zboru. Iako se može uočiti trend pozitivnijih stavova nakon nastave glazbe razlika u stavovima studentica o glazbenom obrazovanju prije i poslije nastave glazbe nije statistički značajna. Sugerira se istraživanje stavova o glazbenom obrazovanju na većem uzorku studenata učiteljskoga studija, kroz duže vremensko razdoblje i to opsežnijim mjernim instrumentom. (shrink)

U radu su predstavljeni rezultati istraživanja mogućnosti promjena stavova studenata učiteljskoga studija o glazbenom obrazovanju nakon dva semestra vokalno-instrumentalne nastave. Istraživanje je provedeno sa studenticama druge godine učiteljskoga studija na Fakultetu za odgojne i obrazovne znanosti u Osijeku, Hrvatska. Rezultati su pokazali kako studentice imaju relativno pozitivne stavove o glazbenom obrazovanju prije i poslije nastave glazbe, a pozitivniji stavovi su zabilježeni kod studentica koje imaju iskustvo pjevanja u zboru. Iako se može uočiti trend pozitivnijih stavova nakon nastave glazbe razlika u (...) stavovima studentica o glazbenom obrazovanju prije i poslije nastave glazbe nije statistički značajna. Sugerira se istraživanje stavova o glazbenom obrazovanju na većem uzorku studenata učiteljskoga studija, kroz duže vremensko razdoblje i to opsežnijim mjernim instrumentom. (shrink)

The aim of this paper is to clarify specific aspects of the impact of the brain-machine interface on our understanding of subjectivity. The brain-machine interface is presented as a phase of cyborgization of humans. Some projects in the field of brain-machine interface are aimed at enabling consensual telepathy - communication without symbolic mediation. Consensual telepathy refers to one of potential ways of transmission of information within singularity. Therefore, consensual telepathy is an important aspect of singularity. Singularity or human-machine symbiosis shows (...) some similarities with child-mother unity. Therefore, the psychodynamic perspective might be considered useful in thinking about human-machine symbiosis. Knowledge from developmental psychodynamic psychology combined with insights by Slavoj Zizek and Jean Baudrillard provides an additional perspective looking at human-machine symbiosis. The paper claims that if consensual telepathy becomes another way of communication, it will have the potential to annihilate subjectivity making it schizophrenic. At the same time, we look at the possibility of an escape from our inner world through the prism of addictions. (shrink)

Measurements of the dimensionality of chaotic attractors obtained on behavioral data represent the task complexity and also could be hypothesized to reflect the number of synchronized neural groups involved in the generation of the data. The changes in dimensionality for different experimental conditions suggest that limited processing capacity, task complexity, demand, and synchrony in neural firing might be closely related.

Times of uncertainty and fear were brought on by Covid-19. The ongoing pandemic is a fruitful ground for fake news, as citizens try to find explanations that fit into their worldviews. This process polarizes society and creates echo chambers amplified by recommender systems. Our main goal is to detect anti-vaxxer echo chambers in Serbia by analyzing online reactions to the recent detention of prominent anti-vaxxer Dr. Jovana Stojkovic. A content analysis of online comments is deployed in anti-regime left-leaning, anti-regime right-leaning, (...) and pro-government media to explore attitudes towards a vaccination conspiracy theory, police action towards anti-vaxxers, and the government crisis response team. We clearly identify the anti-vaccine echo chamber among commentators of anti-regime right-leaning media (YouTube podcasts). Additionally, we describe attitudes expressed around issues related to vaccination. Limitations and implications for future research are discussed. (shrink)

Brojna su istraživanja potvrdila vezu između glazbenog obrazovanja i dobrobiti za opći razvoj djeteta. Glazbene aktivnosti koje stavljaju težište na ritam u nekim su se istraživanjima istakle kao sredstvo poticaja djetetovog razvoja u ne-glazbenim domenama. Rad se bavi ulogom temporalne dimenzije glazbe u glazbenom i općem razvoju djeteta. Iznose se dosadašnje spoznaje o percepciji, obradi i izvođenju glazbenog ritma, pulsa i metra te tijeku ritamskog razvoja djeteta. Daje se pregled istraživanja utjecaja glazbenih aktivnosti koje se temelje na ritmu na ne-glazbene (...) domene razvoja te se preporuča rani rad na ritmu. Ističe se potreba provođenja eksperimentalnih istraživanja koja bi rasvijetlila ulogu ritma u razvoju djeteta i modeli rada na ritmu primjenjivi u institucijama koje se bave djecom, uključujući i terapijske te rehabilitacijske ustanove. Numerous studies have confirmed the correlation between music education and child development. In some studies, musical activities based on rhythm have been highlighted as a means of stimulating children’s development in non-music domains. The paper deals with the role of the temporal dimension of music for both the musical and general development of the child. The text presents knowledge about the perception, processing, and performance of music rhythm, pulse, and meter, as well as the course of the rhythmic development of the child. An overview is provided of the impact of rhythm-based music activities on non-music developmental domains together with recommendation for early work on rhythm. We emphasized the need to conduct experimental research to shed light on the role of rhythm in the development of the child and the rhythmic models applicable in child care institutions, including therapeutic and rehabilitation institutions. (shrink)