In 2005, Ram Roy Bhaskar was the examiner for a PhD thesis by Dr. Chris Sarra entitled Strong and Smart: Reinforcing Aboriginal Perceptions of Being Aboriginal at Cherbourg State School. Bhaskar described the thesis as ‘an exemplary paradigm of how research should be conducted’ and suggested that it would be ‘invaluable for all future studies of indigenous people in Australia and indeed to educationalists and social theorists throughout the world’. With thanks to Chris Sarra, we are delighted to be able (...) to publish this examiner's report, which illustrates educational themes in Bhaskar's work and provides Bhaskar's response to Sarra's critique of his idea that there is a ‘common core humanity’. In its practical consideration of the question of human identity – a question currently much debated – this report is an excellent and timely complement to Bhaskar’s (2020) article Critical Realism and the Ontology of Persons. It also showcases Bhaskar's concepts of Power1/Power2 and concrete universality/singularity. We hope that publishing this report will draw attention to Sarra's exceptional work which, according to Bhaskar, ‘may well come to take on the role of a paradigm for multi-ethnic and similarly divided and contested communities’. (shrink)

SummaryThis article surveys recent scholarship on the early history of British geology. It finds that many of the developments called for a decade ago by Dr Eyles and Dr Rappaport have not yet been realized. However, there has been progress in the broader understanding of geological ideas in their historical context, and a start has been made on the social history of the science. Some suggestions are offered as to a field of problems for the future, and a selective bibliography (...) of secondary materials, thematically arranged, is appended. (shrink)

This book has a twofold purpose: the first is to trace the development of cosmology, the study of the universe, and the second is to demonstrate the limitation of science. Dr. Peacock questions the idea that the universe is infinite, showing that science can answer the hows of the universe, but not the whys.

There is a unique hospital in Canada-and perhaps in the world-because it is built outside prison walls and it exists specifically for the psychiatric treatment of prisoners. It is on the one hand a hospital and on the other a prison. Moreover it has to provide the same quality and standard of care which is expected of a hospital associated with a university. From the time the hospital was established moral dilemmas appeared which were concerned with conflicts between the medical (...) and custodial treatment of prisoners, and also with the attitudes of those having the status of prisoner-patient. Dr Roy describes these dilemmas and attitudes, and in particular a special conference which was convened to discuss them. Not only doctors and prison officials took part in this meeting but also general practitioners, theologians, philosophers, ex-prisoners, judges, lawyers, Members of Parliament and Senators. This must have been a unique occasion and Dr Roy's description may provide the impetus to examine these prison problems in other settings. (shrink)

In the spring of 1987, I was in Havana, Cuba, where I was participating in planning a large-scale longitudinal study of the neurophysiological, neurochemical, and behavioral characteristics of cohorts of patients with cerebrovascular disease, depression, senile dementia, schizophrenia, or learning disabilities; and also part of this study were their first-degree blood relatives. This study was the outgrowth of a long-term project on the practical application of computer methods for the evaluation of brain electrical activity related to anatomical integrity, maturational development, (...) and sensory, perceptual;·-and cognitive processes, especially in chil dren. For many years, that project had been supported by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the National Scientific Research Center of Cuba (CNIC), and the Ministries of Public Health and of Education of Cuba. Since its inception, I had served as a technical advisor to the UNDP project. When the project began, I became acquainted with Dr. Jose M. Miyar Barrueco, who was at that time the Rector of the Medical School of the University of Havana. Because of his keen interest in the new computer technology and its potential utility in developing countries, we met from time to time during my visits. These occasional meetings continued after he became Secretary of the Cuban Council of State, so that he could remain apprised of progress and problems with which he might help. (shrink)

Deze studie wil de wijsgerig-ethische stromingen van de 19e en 20e eeuw op een overzichtelijke wijze presenteren. Zij biedt veel en ongetwijfeld kan zij dienst doen als een eerste oriëntatie. De continentale filosofie komt goed aan de orde, zij het dat de auteurs de aandacht voor de bibliografische notities vaak laten gaan ten koste van de toch al summiere inhoudelijke inleidingen. De auteurs beschrijven en beoordelen - dikwijls in moraliserende termen - maar gaan niet in dialoog noch met de behandelde (...) auteur noch met de lezer. De angelsaksische wereld komt nauwelijks aan de orde (29 blz.). De betekenis van de analytische ethiek voor de normatieve ethiek wordt niet gezien. Het boek stopt ook te vlug. De recente ontwikkelingen komen niet aan de orde. Over narratieve ethiek wordt niet gesproken. Maar evenmin over de hernieuwde aandacht voor de deugden-ethiek. Deze studie laat duidelijk zien dat de gigantische onderneming om een goede inleiding in de wijsbegeerte en de ethiek van de 19e en 20e eeuw te schrijven, niet door een of twee personen kan worden voltooid. (Biblion recensie, Prof. dr. F.J. Heggen.). (shrink)

Sorensen offers the following definition of a ‘knowledge-lie’: ‘An assertion that p is a knowledge-lie exactly if intended to prevent the addressee from knowing that p is untrue but is not intended to deceive the addressee into believing p.’ According to Sorensen, knowledge-lies are not meant to deceive their addressee, and this fact is supposed to make them less bad than ordinary lies. I will argue that standard cases of knowledge-lies, including almost all the cases Sorensen considers, do in fact (...) involve deception, contrary to what Sorensen claims. And while there are cases of non-deceptive knowledge-lies, such cases are deviant, either because it is only incidental that the knowledge-preventing assertion is a lie, or because it is only incidental that the lie doesn't deceive. Here's an example of a knowledge-lie: Dr Head is considering firing Dr Appendix because of his weak research. But he doesn't want to fire Appendix unless he knows that Appendix's research isn't good, and so he consults Dr Heart. Head knows that if Appendix's research is good, then Heart will tell the truth and say so, whereas if Appendix's work isn't good, then Heart may or may not …. (shrink)

Autonomy, we suppose, is self-regulation or self-direction. There is a distinct idea that is easily confused with self-direction, namely, self-expression, self-fulfillment, or self-realization. Although it will turn out paradoxically that autonomy is neither self-regulation nor self-realization, it is reasonable to suppose that the former is a superior candidate. My teacher of Indian religion, Dr. Subodh Roy, blind from birth, chose not to undergo an operation that would have made him sighted because he believed, perhaps rightly, that the ability to see (...) would interfere with his religious quest. He thereby chose not to realize one of his fundamental human capacities, one whose cultivation has produced some of the finest fruits of civilization. Joseph Raz describes a case in which a man places his life in jeopardy by undertaking a trip to deliver medical aid to a group of people in a distant place. Since he will be unable to secure food for several days, he, in effect, subordinates one of his own basic needs or interests to a goal that he deems more important. There is no reason to believe that, in refusing to express or realize a dimension of self, either Dr. Roy or Raz's philanthropist have failed to act autonomously. (shrink)

The Vedanta of conciousness : transcendence, enlightenment and everyday life -- The alienated self and the Kabbala of transformation -- The Zen of creativity and the critique of the discursive intellect -- The Tao of love and unconditionality in commitment -- The yoga of action and effortless efficiency -- The nous of perception and the re-enchantment of the tree of life -- The gnosis of freedom and the Fana of fulfilment.

Philosophical instruction in the French Universities usually consists in more or less direct preparation for the licence-ès-lettres and the agrigation , or in informal discussion with candidates preparing for the Doctorate. But it has for long been the practice at the Sorbonne in Paris for the Professors to deliver a course of public lectures lasting throughout a half or the whole of the academic year. And since the eleinehts of logic and philosophy are taught in the top form of every (...) lycèe quite a large part Of the ordinary educated public is able to follow with profit the communications of the foremost philosophers. This year, Professor A. Lalande lectures on “General Methodology”; Professor Brunschvicg on “The Object in Perception and in Science”; Professor Delacroix on “Consciousness and Personality”; Dr. Wallon on “Explanation and Constructive Thought in the Child”; Professor Basch on “The Æsthetic Categories,” and on “English Æsthetics in the Eighteenth Century,” and Professor E. Gilson on “The Main Problems of Mediaeval Philosophy.” At the College de France, Professor Le Roy lectures on “The Primitive Forms of Intelligence,” Professor Pierre Janet on “The Psychological Evolution of Personality,” and Professor Pièron on “Pain and Affective Reactions.”. (shrink)

Four recent turns in social thought are discussed and related to the four dimensional schema of dialectical realism the author has recently outlined. It is shown how ontology matters, and indeed is not only necessary but inevitable, The nature of the reality of ideas is demonstrated and the most prevalent mistakes in the metatheory of ideas and ideation analysed. The significance of categorical realism and the character of those specific types if ideas known as ‘ideologies’ are then discussed. Finally some (...) good and bad dialectical connections of ideas and related phenomena are sketched. (shrink)

(1890). NOTE ON LOCUSTS AS PROPAGATORS OF FOOT AND MOUTH DISEASE. Transactions of the South African Philosophical Society: Vol. 8, No. 2, pp. 84-85.

A partir de algunos motivos presentes en Poesie in forma di rosa, La Divina Mimesis y, sobre todo, Petrolio, atenderemos algunos motivos de la propuesta estética de Pasolini en relación con la crítica de lo político. Lo que inicialmente parece una crítica o semiología de la sociedad y lo político se revela, con el tiempo, como un problema artístico en el cual el arte es en sí político y lo político es en sí artístico. Este asunto no es más que (...) el de la forma tal y como aparece en las mencionadas obras del poeta. (shrink)

In educational organizations, digital resource management refers to the organization and enhancement of electronic resources, including databases, libraries, and digital instructional materials. Excellent administration ensures optimal utilization, improves accessibility, and advances learning objectives. To achieve better institutional results, this approach entails incorporating digital tools, handling issues like data security and user training, and adjusting to new technological developments. Using an emphasis on the integration of digital libraries, e-learning platforms, and research databases, this study investigates the technologies and approaches used in (...) maintaining digital resources within higher education circumstances. Through the use of a survey research design, this study employed a quantitative research methodology. Data gathered from a sample of 250 undergraduate students was utilized in this investigation. This study looks at the connections between teaching profile (TP), technology competence (TC), digital technology awareness (DTA), utility perception (UP), and usage motivation (UM). SPSS was utilized statistically to obtain the outcomes. Descriptive, correlation, and regression analysis were used to obtain the results utilizing data gathered from a sample of university participants. Significant of both conceptual and actual consequences have resulted from the findings.According to the study's findings, efficient use of digital resources in academic institutions greatly improves accessibility and resource utilization, both of which contribute to better learning outcomes. (shrink)

The article discusses issues of interaction between the scientific systems of Eastern and Western Europe in the context of current global and local conflicts. Also, ethical issues are considered in connection with solving such problems in science, as well as examining similarities and differences of the scientific systems and their possible modelling. Some practical recommendations are included, based on the suggested academic speculations.

The use of cost-benefit analysis (CBA) in environmental decision-making and the contingent valuation (CV) technique as input into traditional CBA to elicit environmental values in monetary terms has stimulated an extensive debate. Critics have questioned the appropriateness of both the method and the technique. Some alternative suggestions for the elicitation of environmental values are based on a social process of deliberation. However, just like traditional economic theory, these alternative approaches may be questioned on their implicit value judgements regarding the legitimacy (...) of the social-political organisation of the process of value elicitation. Instead of making assumptions a priori, research efforts should be focused on the processes by which actual public attitudes and preferences towards the environment can best be elicited and fed into environmental or other public policy decision-making. In the study presented in this paper, support was found for both the individual WTP based approach and a participatory social deliberation approach to inform the environmental decision-making process, suggesting that a combination of both approaches is most appropriate. (shrink)

Auguste Comte (1798-1857) und Raoul Heinrich Francé (1874-1943) hatten einen ungewöhnlichen (nicht-akademischen) Zugang zu Wissenschaft. Francé bezog sich in seiner biozentrischen Philosophie (lebensbezogene Natur- und Weltanschauung) immer wieder auf Comte und andere Positivisten. In Entwicklungsprozessen sahen beide Harmonie und Ordnung gegenstrebiger Vorgänge. Konkrete Wahrnehmung und Experimente sind an Beobachtungen geknüpft, durchaus frei von metaphysischen Überhöhungen (Positivismus). Obwohl sie den zeitgenössischen Fortschrittsoptimismus nicht teilen, sind sie doch unermüdliche Befürworter des Lebens in Mannigfaltigkeit und Singularität.

Transformation in the discipline of Social Sciences is a global phenomenon but in the post-colonial societies it means two things. First, far reaching societal changes resulting into the emergence of new fields in Social Sciences fulfilling new conditions and requirements of society. Second, the growing need and relevance of Social Sciences research so as to address issues which cause serious societal changes. Marginalization of Social Sciences and social scientists in case of Pakistan is not a new phenomenon. There cannot be (...) any time line which can be given for modernizing Social Sciences in Pakistan which can meet the criteria and standards of 21st century. Yet, those who teach and do research in different subjects of Social Sciences must come forward and play a leadership role in this regard. This would require a paradigm shift in the arena of admitting students and appointing faculty so that the best stuff both at the student and faculty level is motivated to join the subjects of Social Sciences in order to ensure quality control and standard which seem to have deteriorated in the last four decades is restored. By attracting the best talent in the subjects of Social Sciences one can expect positive transformation in the state and societal patterns of Pakistan. (shrink)

In our recent book (Abraham and Roy 2010) we have repurposed a mathematical model for the quantum vacuum as a model of consciousness. In this model, discrete space and time are derived from a discrete cellular dynamical network. As our model is essentially atomistic, we included in our book a short support chapter on atomism. In this aticle we expand on the few pages of that chapter devoted to the history of atomism, to place the current revival of atomism in (...) a larger context. (shrink)

Building on its origins at a seminar in Oslo organized by two of the editors, this book combines classic texts of Nordic ecophilosophy and the original contributions of those influenced by this tradition to present the view that critical realism is indeed a worthy intellectual tradition to carry forward and further develop the work of the founders of Nordic ecophilosophy. It was clear at the seminar that there was a promising convergence of interests and themes in the two approaches; while (...) at the same time, within the Nordic ecophilosophical tradition, there was appreciation of the capacity of critical realism, with its provision of a robust philosophical ontology and generation of totalizing immanent critiques of Western philosophy, to provide an expansive and secure home for the development of ecophilosophical work generally. If there is a single overarching theme of critical realist philosophy, it surely must be that of the unity of theory and practice, which Bhaskar, following Hegel, has also called "seriousness". This makes the applicability, relevance and actionability of critical realism key considerations for critical realists. There can be no doubt that this concern was shared fully by the Nordic ecophilosophers; and this quality of "seriousness" is a striking feature of the Nordic contributions presented in this book. (shrink)