In order to create a post-neoliberal society we need to change the way we look at the world. This article begins by considering the lesson learned in the case of “Mont Pèlerin,” where ideas that th...

En este artículo analizo como, dadas algunas tesis filosóficas compartidas, comparar a Searle y Descartes crea un efecto déjà vu. La primera tesis es la mente consciente que existe en primera persona. La segunda es que aquella se define mediante un concepto primitivo. La tercera es que la intencionalidad implica condiciones de satisfacción internistas. La cuarta es el cuerpo-máquina. Segundo, argumento que ambos hablan desde cosmovisiones incompatibles –la metafísica deísta versus los “hechos básicos”; y como un hecho “básico” biológico indica (...) la no separabilidad entre mente y cuerpo (cerebro)–, Searle ni es dualista cartesiano ni de propiedades. Palabras clave: dualismo cartesiano; dualismo de propiedades; Searle; mente consciente primitiva; intencionalidad; hechos básicos. (shrink)

Este artículo examina cómo la separabilidad y unidad mente-cuerpo resultan clave para poner de manifiesto lo inapropiado del “teatro cartesiano”, metáfora creada por Daniel Dennett para criticar la experiencia consciente unificada en Descartes. La primera sección introduce al problema de la separabilidad cartesiana. La segunda examina cómo mente y cuerpo, separables mediante lo concebible según Descartes, resultan ser cosas metafísicamente distintas. La tercera enfatiza como separables no implica separados. La última sección enfatiza el argumento de la dis-analogía del piloto y (...) el navío, y cómo, según el filósofo francés, aunque separables, mente y cuerpo son substancias estrechamente unidas, formando un ens per se. En vista de este, criticamos la metáfora del “teatro cartesiano” de Dennett: es imposible que la mente sea un espectador, puesto que la experiencia consciente ya es unificada e incluso somatizada. Notamos, por último, que pese a Dennett, hay investigadores de la Ciencia Cognitiva que coinciden con Descartes en relación con la estrecha unión mente-cuerpo, i.e., quienes defienden que la mente es encarnada, incrustada o incluso extendida. (shrink)

En el marco de los estándares profesionalizantes de la academia, con sus “rankings” y productividad científica, las humanidades subsisten. Una explicación de este fenómeno es que, según la ontología social, las razones para la acción independiente de deseos son piezas clave en la educación. Por ello, dichas razones, que constituyen obligaciones, también serían claves para el desarrollo de las humanidades. Aquí examino de qué forma el individualismo y la competencia tensionan la dinámica entre deseos y obligaciones. Ciertamente, el mercado valora (...) más la satisfacción de deseos que la teorización sobre la intencionalidad colectiva y su producto: la civilización humana. (shrink)

A dimensional reduction algorithm is applied to an intelligent classification model with the purpose of improving the efficiency and accuracy. The proposed classification model, used to distinguish the operating mode: Hard- and Soft-Switching, is presented and an analysis of the synchronized rectified step-down converter is done. With the aim of improving the accuracy and reducing the computational cost of the model, three different methods for dimensional reduction are applied to the input dataset of the model: self-organizing maps, principal component analysis (...) and correlation matrix. The obtained results show how the number of variable is highly reduced and the performance of the classification model is boosted: the results manifest an improve in the accuracy and efficiency of the classification. (shrink)

En este artículo argumento que la cooperación, que explica la realidad social, no cesa necesariamente con la ofensa y el conflicto moral gianniniano. En la primera sección, introduzco el problema. En la segunda, caracterizo qué son la ofensa y el conflicto moral para Giannini. En la tercera, explicito cómo la intencionalidad colectiva serleana se fundamenta en la cooperación y en los pactos solemnes. En la cuarta, analizo cómo la ofensa y el conflicto moral no necesariamente impiden la existencia de cooperación (...) de nivel alto. Así, concluyo que la intencionalidad colectiva solo cesa cuando la cooperación alcanza su punto final. (shrink)

Según John Searle, las posiciones _por defecto_, _i. e_., las condiciones de inteligibilidad del pensamiento y la acción son algunos _puntos de partida_ que se presuponen de manera pre-reflexiva y pragmática. Su postulación es, además, una novel manera de tratar con algunos problemas perennes de la filosofía, dejándolos entre paréntesis. Dichos problemas son la existencia del mundo externo, la verdad y como esta tiene que ver con hechos, la percepción directa, los significados de las palabras y, finalmente, la causalidad. En (...) este artículo analizamos cómo las mencionadas posiciones conforman una humanidad _por defecto_, y cómo su ausencia, _deshumanizaría_. Esto es relevante en el caso de la cooperación, una posición _por defecto_ básica para la intencionalidad colectiva, y piedra angular de la civilización humana. (shrink)

Self-control is deemed crucial for reasons-responsive agency and a key contributor to long-term wellbeing. But recent studies suggest that effortfully resisting one’s temptations does not contribute to long-term goal attainment, and can even be harmful. So how does self-control improve our lives? Finding an answer requires revising the role that overcoming temptation plays in self-control. This paper distinguishes two forms of self-control problems: temptation (the presence of a strong wayward motivation) and apathy (the lack of commitment-advancing motivation). This distinction makes (...) it possible to separate negative self-control (aimed at overcoming temptation) from positive self-control (aimed at overcoming lack of motivation). The paper argues that temptation should not play a central role in our conception of self-control, since overcoming temptation is neither necessary nor sufficient for successful self-control. (shrink)

Unfounded—conspiracy and health—beliefs about COVID-19 have accompanied the pandemic worldwide. Here, we examined cross-nationally the structure and correlates of these beliefs with an 8-item scale, using a multigroup confirmatory factor analysis. We obtained a two-factor model of unfounded (conspiracy and health) beliefs with good internal structure (average CFI = 0.98, RMSEA = 0.05, SRMR = 0.04), but a high correlation between the two factors (average latent factor correlation = 0.57). This model was replicable across 50 countries (total N = 13,579), (...) as evidenced by metric invariance between countries (CFI = 0.96, RMSEA = 0.06, SRMS = 0.07) as well as scalar invariance across genders (CFI = 0.98, RMSEA = 0.04, SRMS = 0.03) and educational levels (CFI = 0.98, RMSEA = 0.04, SRMS = 0.03). Also, lower levels of education, more fear of COVID-19, and more cynicism were weakly associated with stronger conspiracy and health beliefs. The study contributes to knowledge about the structure of unfounded beliefs, and reveals the potential relevance of affective (i.e., fear of COVID-19) and cognitive (i.e., cynicism) factors along with demographics, in endorsing such beliefs. In summary, we obtained cross-cultural evidence for the distinctiveness of unfounded conspiracy and health beliefs about COVID-19 in terms of their structure and correlates. (shrink)

This paper reports the experience of using the PAELLA algorithm as a helper tool in robust regression instead of as originally intended for outlier identification and removal. This novel usage of the algorithm takes advantage of the occurrence vector calculated by the algorithm in order to strengthen the effect of the more reliable samples and lessen the impact of those that otherwise would be considered outliers. Following that aim, a series of experiments is conducted in order to learn how to (...) better use the information contained in the occurrence vector. Using a contrively difficult artificial data set, a reference predictive model is fit using the whole raw dataset. The second experiment reports the results of fitting a similar predictive model but discarding the samples marked as outliers by PAELLA. The third experiment uses the occurrence vector provided by PAELLA in order to classify the observations in multiple bins and fit every possible model changing which bins are considered for fitting and which are discarded in that particular model. The fourth experiment introduces a sampling process before fitting in which the occurrence vector represents the likelihood of being considered in the training data set. The fifth experiment considers the sampling process as an internal step to be performed interleaved between the training epochs. The last experiment compares our approach using weighted neural networks to a state of the art method. (shrink)

Positive Youth Development (PYD) is an approach that promotes resilience and focuses on youth strengths rather than their weaknesses as done by the traditional deficit-based perspective. Research in Europe and North America show that developmental assets are associated with school success, psychological well-being, and lower health risks among youth and young adults. However, not much research has been done on these associations in Latin American contexts. The purpose of this research study is to assess the association between substance use behaviors, (...) such as drunkenness and the use of illicit drugs, and mental health, together with the mediating role of developmental assets representing youth strengths (e.g., social competence) and contextual resources (e.g., social support at home or school). Cross-national data was collected from Colombian (n= 210; 70.4% females) and Peruvian(n= 349; 66.5% females) 1st year university students. Results shed light on the protective role of developmental assets regarding substance use behaviors and mental well-being. Specifically, the results showed direct negative associations between developmental assets and substance use behaviors and positive associations of developmental assets with mental health indicators. Internal assets appear to be a stronger predictor of social, emotional, and psychological well-being compared to external assets. We did not find any statistical significance in the association of substance use behavior and mental health. We discuss implications regarding research, policy, and practice. (shrink)

En este artículo se estudia el papel jugado por diferentes órdenes religiosas con vistas a la instalación de alguna de sus comunidades en el antiguo cenobio agustino de Nuestra Señora de Regla sito en la localidad gaditana de Chipiona en el marco del proceso de restauración de las órdenes religiosas vivido en España tras la supresión de las mismas, sobre todo con la llegada al trono español del rey Alfonso XII en 1875, proceso que se vio complicado por la (...) instalación en nuestro país de las comunidades religiosas expulsadas de Francia a partir de 1880. Se analiza especialmente el papel desempeñado por los franciscanos misioneros españoles y los monjes benedictinos franceses de las abadías de Solesmes y Ligugé. (shrink)

Sobre el espacio antropológico y la verdad de la religión.

Resumen: El presente trabajo quiere mostrar la expresión del pensamiento político de Alfonso Fernández de Madrigal “El Tostado” en su obra De optima politia. Esta pequeña composición ofrece reflexiones sobre la comunidad humana que funda la política, sobre la ciudad como sede de la constitución política, sobre el mejor gobierno posible y la crítica de algunos elementos platónicos, como el comunismo de esposas y la condición y valor de la familia. ElTostado introduce como autor y fuente principal de (...) inspiración de su pensamiento a Aristóteles en la España prehumanista y en los ambientesuniversitarios del siglo XV. (shrink)

Tras el inesperado fallecimiento de la reina María de las Mercedes de Orleans el 26 de junio de 1878, las muestras de dolor y respeto se vivieron tanto dentro como fuera del Reino. De especial importancia fueron las exequias y el aparataje simbólico que la Colonia Española de Ciudad de México ofreció por el descanso de la reina en el templo de la Profesa de la capital mexicana. El objetivo de este trabajo, es analizar los valores artísticos e iconográficos de (...) las decoraciones efímeras realizadas en Ciudad de México, con motivo del fallecimiento de la esposa de Alfonso XII. (shrink)

En reseña de: Galindo, Alfonso y Ujaldón, Enrique (coords.), ¿Quién dijo populismo?, Biblioteca Nueva, Madrid, 2018.

En la Visión Deleytable encontramos la reivindicación de un racionalismo de inspiración maimonidiana y el despliegue de una amplia amalgama de saberes. Sin embargo, una pulsión de autolimitación racional recorre también la obra, una predisposición notable hacia lo esotérico y lo críptico, lo numinoso y lo arcano. Contrapunto de la vocación racionalizadora de la Visión, es esta una pulsión que se alimenta de la propia idiosincrasia de Alfonso de la Torre, de factores epocales, pero, sobre todo, de una tradición (...) cultural de la que es receptor, a la que se pliega gustoso y que cruza transversalmente la obra. Nos proponemos, en el presente artículo, una lectura de algunos de los ejemplos que mejor representan este polo de racionalidad invertida presente en esta obra excepcional. (shrink)

El presente artículo realiza una lectura de la Visión Deleytable de Alfonso de la Torre cuyo objetivo es poner de manifi esto los distintos planos intelectuales que en ella se superponen. Entre ellos destaca la presencia de una forma de racionalidad “más allá de los límites de lo racional”, que es analizada críticamente desde un diálogo comparativo de la obra con el pensamiento de las dos autoridades fundamentales cuya referencia exige: Maimónides, de cuya Guía de perplejos es en gran (...) medida deudora; Santo Tomás de Aquino, cuya articulación de las relaciones fe-razón ignora de modo premeditado o substituye. (shrink)

Se habla de las traducciones de Aristóteles y Pseudo-Aristóteles en tierras gallegas o realizados por gallegos en la Edad Media; así como los problemas inherentes a toda operación de traducción en cualquier época y circunstancia. Nos centramos en Pedro Gallego, representante de la 3º generación de los traductores de la corte toledana de Alfonso X el Sabio, de quien fue amigo y confesor, aunque afincado en Murcia y obispo titular de la recién recuperada sede de Cartagena. Y pormenorizamos las (...) distintas secuencias en el traslado de una de las obras capitales de Aristóteles, que tanto interesó a los árabes, del árabe al latín, el Liber de animalibus, compendio de diversos trabajos naturalistas y de biología, que traduce nuestro autor natural de Ortigueira (mariña lucense). (shrink)

Respuestas a Alfonso Fernández Tresguerres, José Manuel Rodríguez Pardo y Joaquín Robles.

We explore the distinctive characteristics of Mexico's society, politics and history that impacted the establishment of genetics in Mexico, as a new disciplinary field that began in the early 20th century and was consolidated and institutionalized in the second half. We identify about three stages in the institutionalization of genetics in Mexico. The first stage can be characterized by Edmundo Taboada, who was the leader of a research program initiated during the Cárdenas government (1934-1940), which was primarily directed towards improving (...) the condition of small Mexican farmers. Taboada is the first Mexican post-graduate investigator in phytotechnology and phytopathology, trained at Cornell University and the University of Minnesota, in 1932 and 1933, respectively. He was the first investigator to teach plant genetics at the National School of Agriculture and wrote the first textbook of general genetics, Genetics Notes, in 1938. Taboada's most important single genetics contribution was the production of "stabilized" corn varieties. The extensive exile of Spanish intellectuals to Mexico, after the end of Spain's Civil War (1936-1939), had a major influence in Mexican science and characterizes the second stage. The three main personalities contributing to Mexican genetics are Federico Bonet de Marco and Bibiano Fernández Osorio Tafall, at the National School of Biological Sciences, and José Luis de la Loma y Oteyza, at the Chapingo Agriculture School. The main contribution of the Spanish exiles to the introduction of genetics in Mexico concerned teaching. They introduced in several universities genetics as a distinctive discipline within the biology curriculum and wrote genetics text books and manuals. The third stage is identified with Alfonso León de Garay, who founded the Genetics and Radiobiology Program in 1960 within the National Commission of Nuclear Energy, which had been founded in 1956. The Genetics and Radiobiology Program rapidly became a disciplinary program, for it embraced research, teaching, and training of academics and technicians. The Mexican Genetics Society, created by de Garay in 1966, and the development of strains and cultures for genetics research were important activities. One of de Garay's key requirements was the compulsory training of the Program's scientists for at least one or two years in the best universities of the United States and Europe. De Garay's role in the development of Mexican genetics was fundamental. His broad vision encompassed the practice of genetics in all its manifestations. (shrink)

Tommaso si e confrontato spesso con il tema del fine dell'uomo: ampie sezioni delle sue opere vi sono espressamente dedicate e altre ne sono l'implicita trattazione. La presente ricerca vuole introdursi all'opera di Tommaso d'Aquino non tanto evocando gli spettri di polemiche solo posteriori sul soprannaturale, quanto invece gettando uno sguardo al tempo in cui e vissuto, il XIII secolo, ed ad un luogo caratteristico nel quale egli ha studiato e insegnato: l'universita di Parigi. Ne viene fuori una figura in (...) profonda osmosi con le tensioni spirituali della sua epoca e preoccupato di esprimere la perennita della fede. Alfonso Valsecchi, 1971, ha conseguito licenza e dottorato presso la Pontificia Universita Gregoriana. (shrink)

To prepare for potential human infection challenge studies involving SARS-CoV-2, we convened a multidisciplinary working group to address ethical questions regarding whether and how much SAR...

Essays on Spanish-American philosophy, particularly Mexican. Part 2 includes selections from the works of José Vasconcelos, Antonio Caso, Samuel Ramos, Adolfo Menéndez Samara, Oswaldo Robes, Alfonso Reyes, Justino Fernández, Edmundo O'Gorman, J.D. García Bacca, Eduardo Nicol, José Medina Echevarría and Juan Larrea.

Resumen:En este artículo trato con cómo Searle descuida la sociología en su ontología social. En particular, analizo dicho descuido mediante el problema de las instituciones y su reconocimiento colectivo. En la primera sección, contextualizo la aproximación serleana realista de base al estudio de la civilización humana con el objetivo de mostrar los supuestos antirrealistas constructivistas de Berger y Luckmann. En la segunda, explico cómo se vinculan los conceptos de “intencionalidad colectiva”, “reglas constitutivas” y “cooperación”. En la tercera, argumento que el (...) reconocimiento colectivo de las instituciones todavía es un problema filosófico abierto. En la cuarta, muestro de qué forma un concepto sociológico, el de “masa crítica”, permite explicar el reconocimiento de las instituciones serleanas. En la quinta, enfatizo la dinámica sociológica de los contextos C y cómo la teoría serleana subestima su rol fundamental. Finalmente, en la sexta sección, presento el ejemplo paradigmático de una institución, la del dinero, pues esta refrenda cómo la sociología ha aportado y puede seguir aportando a la ontología social serleana.Palabras clave: Searle; sociología; reconocimiento colectivo; masa crítica; dinero. (shrink)

In standard Relevance Theory, hyperbole and metaphor are categorized together as loose uses of language, on a continuum with approximations, category extensions and other cases of loosening/broadening of meaning. Specifically, it is claimed that there are no interesting differences between hyperbolic and metaphorical uses. In recent work, we have set out to provide a more fine-grained articulation of the similarities and differences between hyperbolic and metaphorical uses and their relation to literal uses. We have defended the view that hyperbolic use (...) involves a shift of magnitude along a dimension which is intrinsic to the encoded meaning of the hyperbole vehicle, while metaphor involves a multi-dimensional qualitative shift away from the encoded meaning of the metaphor vehicle. In this article, we present three experiments designed to test the predictions of this analysis, using a variety of tasks (paraph. (shrink)

The right to withdraw from research without penalty is well established around the world. However, it has been challenged in some corners of bioethics based on concerns about various harms—to participants, to scientific integrity, and to research bystanders—that may stem from withdrawal. These concerns have become particularly salient in emerging debates about the ethics of controlled human infection (CHI) studies in which participants are intentionally infected with pathogens, often in inpatient settings with extensive follow‐up. In this article, I provide support (...) for preserving the right to withdraw from research without penalty and demonstrate that it is also typically justified in the specific context of CHI studies. The right is well aligned with individual freedoms outside the research setting, where autonomous individuals are permitted to engage in behaviors that will foreseeably cause them harm; where they cannot be compelled to satisfy contracts for their services, nor penalized for failure to do so; and where their behavior is not constrained by public health authorities except in extreme circumstances. These freedoms are supported by U.S. law, as well as by ethical analysis that is more globally relevant. The problems associated with the right to withdraw, however, remain. The best approach to addressing them is not to restrict the right but rather to avoid initiating research when withdrawal would be especially problematic. If research proceeds, steps can still be taken to minimize participant withdrawal without infringing the right. Investigators can avoid participant surprise through informed consent focused on a study’s most burdensome aspects and promote study completion through financial incentives. Should participants nonetheless seek to withdraw, investigators may attempt to persuade them not to do so by encouraging consideration of the range of potential harms that may result. Researchers conducting CHI studies and other research from which withdrawal might be especially problematic should prepare for the possibility of participant withdrawal, respect participant requests to withdraw without penalty, and incorporate various measures to avoid such requests. (shrink)

It has been generally assumed in the Theory of Mind literature of the past 30 years that young children fail standard false-belief tasks because they attribute their own knowledge to the protagonist. Contrary to the traditional view, we have recently proposed that the children's bias is task induced. This alternative view was supported by studies showing that 3 year olds are able to pass a false-belief task that allows them to focus on the protagonist, without drawing their attention to the (...) target object in the test phase. For a more accurate comparison of these two accounts, the present study tested the true-belief default with adults. Four experiments measuring eye movements and response inhibition revealed that adults do not have an automatic tendency to respond to the false-belief question according to their own knowledge and the true-belief response need not be inhibited in order to correctly predict the protagonist's actions. The positive results observed in the control conditions confirm the accuracy of the various measures used. I conclude that the results of this study undermine the true-belief default view and those models that posit mechanisms of response inhibition in false-belief reasoning. Alternatively, the present study with adults and recent studies with children suggest that participants' focus of attention in false-belief tasks may be key to their performance. (shrink)