The book, written in a clear, engaging style, contains four chapters.

ABSTRACT This essay has three goals. The first is to introduce the notion of fundamentality and to argue that physicalism can usefully be conceived of as a thesis about fundamentality. The second is to argue for the advantages of fundamentality physicalism over modal formulations and that fundamentality physicalism is what many who endorse modal formulations of physicalism had in mind all along. Third, I describe what I take to be the main obstacle for a fundamentality-oriented formulation of physicalism: ‘the problem (...) of abstracta’, which asks how physical can accommodate phenomena such as mathematics and universals, and which modal formulations do not face. I canvas three solutions: the inapt for ground solution, the concrete restriction, and the contingency restriction. (shrink)

Several philosophers have argued recently that semantic properties do play a causal role. 1 It is our view that none of these arguments are satisfactory. Our aim is to reveal some of the deficiencies of these arguments, and to reassess the question in our own way. In section 1, we shall explain in more detail what is involved in the pretheoretical idea of a causally efficacious property and so provide a fuller sense of the issue. In section 2 we shall (...) discuss Fodor's and Kim's arguments that the semantic properties of mental events are causally efficacious. Their tactic is to articulate sufficient conditions for the causal efficacy of a property, and then apply these conditions to the psychological properties under consideration. We shall show that both formulations are inadequate. However, each account can remedy some of the defects of the other. We shall argue that by putting the two together, and modifying this combined account in certain ways, we can arrive at something that might just pass as a general sufficient condition for causal efficacy. We believe that the question of causal efficacy of content is best approached as a question in the philosophy of science. If one wants to know whether a given species of property is efficacious, the most productive strategy is to find a science that investigates the properties and examine the role they are assigned. In keeping with this attitude we shall restrict our discussion to the notion of content deployed within cognitive science. In section 3 we examine the role of content in cognitive science and discuss whether this role suits content to the conditions on efficacy articulated in section two. Our conclusion will be conditional and hedged: on certain views of cognitive science, content will meet the sufficient condition for efficacy. If other views are correct, the question remains open. (shrink)

Perceptual learning is characterized by long-term changes in perception as a result of practice or experience. In this paper, I argue that through perceptual learning we can become newly sensitive to basic perceptual features. First, I provide a novel account of basic perceptual features. Then, I argue that evidence from experience-based plasticity suggests that basic perceptual features can be learned. Lastly, I discuss the common scientific and philosophical view that perceptual learning comes in at least four varieties: differentiation, unitization, attentional (...) weighting and stimulus imprinting (Goldstone 1998, Connolly 2019). Becoming newly sensitive to basic perceptual features, I argue, does not fit into any of these categories. This paper’s contribution to the literature is twofold. First, I present a novel view of basic perceptual features which can be used in subsequent theorizing. Second, I show that learning basic perceptual features, since it does not fit into this standardized taxonomy, constitutes an underappreciated form of perceptual learning. This result has important implications for recent discussions in the philosophy of perception and epistemology. (shrink)

El artículo gira en torno a la pregunta de si la filosofía de la ciencia no habrá llegado a su fin en la medida en que sigue siendo planteada como un programa de investigación que no aborda el problema hermenéutico fundamental, a la hora de intentar resolver el problema de la carga de teoría de la base empírica. Para ello, se repasa la historia del problema, tanto en sus aspectos metodológicos como fi losóficos; se reseña la filosofía de la ciencia (...) posterior a Feyerabend (que nosotros llamamos post-popperiana), y se pone peculiar atención al “nuevo experimentalismo” y a la noción de “teoría” que está en juego en el debate. Allí es donde introducimos la importancia del giro hermenéutico y una propuesta conceptual y terminológica para el famoso “testeo empírico”. Aclaramos luego que el realismo en la filosofía de la ciencia es una cuestión filosófica, no metodológica, para concluir finalmente en lo que se quería demostrar. (shrink)

We introduce several senses of the principle ofcompositionality. We illustrate the difference between them with thehelp of some recent results obtained by Cameron and Hodges oncompositional semantics for languages of imperfect information.

I would like to discuss the claim that the resources of plural reference and plural quantification are sufficient for the purpose of paraphrasing all ordinary statements apparently concerned with composite material objects into plural statements concerned exclusively with simples.

The doctrine that whatever could exist does exist leads to a proliferation of possibly concrete objects given certain principles of recombination. If, for example, there could have been a large infinite number of concrete objects, then there is at least the same number of possibly concrete objects in existence. And further cardinality considerations point to a tension between the preceding doctrine and the Cantorian conception of the absolutely infinite. This paper develops a parallel problem for a variety of possible worlds (...) accounts of modality which eschew the commitment to a plethora of possibly concrete objects. Moreover, the difficulty is importantly different from more familiar threats of paradox exemplified by certain descendants of Russell's paradox of propositions and Kaplan's paradox. (shrink)

Schelling entwirft in seiner Spätphilosophie einen neuen Philosophietypus, der in Konkurrenz zu Hegels Metaphysik tritt. Dabei greift er Hegel nicht nur auf dem Gebiet fundamentaler theoretischen Annahmen an, sondern sucht ihn insbesondere durch einen neuen Begriff von Religion zu überbieten. Die Arbeit untersucht dies im Ausgang von Schellings "Philosophie der Mythologie".

Journal of Mathematical Logic, Ahead of Print. Given a structure [math] and a stably embedded [math]-definable set [math], we prove tameness preservation results when enriching the induced structure on [math] by some further structure [math]. In particular, we show that if [math] and [math] are stable (respectively, superstable, [math]-stable), then so is the theory [math] of the enrichment of [math] by [math]. Assuming simplicity of [math], elimination of hyperimaginaries and a further condition on [math] related to the behavior of algebraic (...) closure, we also show that simplicity and NSOP1 pass from [math] to [math]. We then prove several applications for tame expansions of weakly minimal structures and, in particular, the group of integers. For example, we construct the first known examples of strictly stable expansions of [math]. More generally, we show that any stable (respectively, superstable, simple, NIP, NTP2, NSOP1) countable graph can be defined in a stable (respectively, superstable, simple, NIP, NTP2, NSOP1) expansion of [math] by some unary predicate [math]. (shrink)

Musical systems develop associations over time between aspects of musical form and concepts from outside of the music. Experienced listeners internalize these connotations, such that the formal elements bring to mind their extra-musical meanings. An example of musical form-meaning mapping is the association that Western listeners have between the major and minor modes and happiness and sadness, respectively. We revisit the emotional semantics of musical mode in a study of 44 American participants (musicians and non-musicians) who each evaluated the relatedness (...) of 96 melody-word pairs. Among the tonal melodies, we manipulated mode (major and minor) and timbre (clarinet and flute) while systematically controlling for other musical factors including pitch register and melodic contour. Similarly, among the English words, we manipulated word affect (happy and sad) while systematically controlling for other lexical factors including frequency and word length. Results demonstrated that participants provided a higher proportion of related responses for major melodies paired with happy words and minor melodies paired with sad words than for the reverse pairings. This interaction between mode and word affect was highly significant for both musicians and non-musicians, albeit with a larger effect for the former group. Further interactions with timbre suggested that while both clarinet and flute conveyed happiness when in the major mode, the clarinet was somewhat more successful than the flute at conveying sadness in the minor mode. Debriefing questionnaires suggested that the majority of the participants, including all of the non-musicians, had no awareness of the major-minor manipulation, and instead directed their attention to register and contour. We argue that the affective character of the major and minor modes is but one example of form-meaning mapping in music, and suggest further exploration of the roles of timbre, register, and contour in conveying musical emotions. (shrink)

Philosopher, c’est, pense-t-on, faire de l’histoire de la philosophie ; c’est lire et interpréter les textes canoniques des grands penseurs de la tradition européenne en suivant l’enchaînement des idées depuis les Grecs anciens. Cette manière de pratiquer la philosophie est devenue tellement naturelle qu’elle en a oublié sa propre historicité. D’où la nécessité de la mettre en évidence en examinant de près ses multiples conséquences. C’est justement un des objectifs de l’analytique des pratiques philosophiques entreprise dans le présent ouvrage. -/- (...) Ce livre propose en même temps une logique historique et herméneutique alternative s’inscrivant en faux contre la philosophie contemporaine, notamment dans ses diverses tentatives de « rupture », plus ou moins superficielles sur le plan pratique. Dans un dialogue avec les sciences humaines et sociales, il reprend à nouveaux frais et d’un tout autre point de vue les trois moments privilégiés de notre histoire de « la » philosophie (le commencement, le tournant moderne, le moment présent). Ne visant pourtant pas à entériner la réduction de la philosophie à une pratique historique et herméneutique, il s’agit avant tout de mettre en lumière la contingence d’une telle détermination afin de déplacer les marges de manœuvre imposées aux penseurs d’aujourd’hui et faire de la place à d’autres pratiques théoriques (qu’elles soient historiques et herméneutiques ou non). Le résultat, c’est une investigation méthodologique dont les enjeux et les conséquences dépassent de loin les limites de la philosophie dans son acceptation traditionnelle. -/- Approximate English Translation: -/- Philosophy, we tend to think, amounts to doing the history of philosophy, to reading and interpreting the canonical texts of the great thinkers of the European tradition, following the sequence of ideas since the ancient Greeks. This way of practicing philosophy has become so natural—at least within the ‘continental’ tradition—that it has forgotten its own historicity. It is for this reason that it is necessary to bring it to light by examining its multiple consequences. This is precisely one of the objectives of the analytic of philosophic practices undertaken in the present work. -/- This book proposes, at the same time, an alternative historical and hermeneutic logic that critically distances itself from contemporary philosophy, particularly in its diverse attempts to propose a “rupture,” which remain more or less superficial at a practical level. In dialogue with the social and human sciences, it reassesses, from an entirely different point of view, the three privileged moments of our supposed history of philosophy (the beginning, the modern turn, the present moment). It does not aim, however, at endorsing the reduction of philosophy to a historical and hermeneutic practice. It is above all a matter of bringing to light the contingency of such a determination in order to displace the margins of maneuverability imposed on thinkers today and to make room for other theoretical practices (if they be historical and hermeneutic or not). The result is a methodological investigation whose stakes and consequences far surpass the limits of philosophy as it is traditionally understood. (shrink)

This paper looks at the question of what regions of space are possibly exactly occupied by a material object.

The proper limit to paternalist regulation of citizens' private lives is a recurring theme in political theory and ethics. In the present study, we examine the role of beliefs about free will and determinism in attitudes toward libertarian versus paternalist policies. Throughout five studies we find that a scientific deterministic worldview reduces opposition toward paternalist policies, independent of the putative influence of political ideology. We suggest that exposure to scientific explanations for patterns in human behavior challenges the notion of personal (...) autonomy and, in turn, undermines libertarian arguments against state paternalism appealing to autonomy and personal choice. (shrink)

This article explores the phenomenon of object performance in the US and France in the late 1970s and early 1980s, variously described as tabletop spectacles, ready-made puppetry, and théâtre d’objets. It focuses on the late-1970s work of three artists: Stuart Sherman, Paul Zaloom, and Christian Carrignon (of Théâtre de Cuisine), whose work in this “minor genre” has been widely influential. Examining the shared and diverging formal aspects of their object work, this article argues that their performances are marked by an (...) implied or explicit ecological consciousness and a connection to childhood and play. Situating the emergence of tabletop object performance within the end of the postwar economic boom, the article claims that these artists working in affluent economies invented a playful and incisive response to the growing crisis of the accumulation of waste. Drawing on Michael Marder’s Dump Philosophy, the essay argues that these object performances intervene in the epistemological and material dump of postwar consumer capitalism, offering playful strategies of navigating a world of refuse. The article suggests that these performances continue to resonate in the present day, with object play remaining a viable mode of grappling with the material and psychological overwhelm of our current ecological crises. (shrink)

In continuation with the New Thought movement that arose in the United States in the 19th Century, there is now a massive self-help industry that markets books and seminars. This industry has also extended to healthcare in the form of positive thinking, i.e., the idea that happy thoughts are essential for health. While some of these claims may seem reasonable and commonsensical, they are not free of problems. This article posits that positive thinking has some ethical underpinnings. Extreme positive thinking (...) may promote alternative forms of medicine that ultimately substitute effective treatment, and this is unethical. The emphasis on positive thinking for cancer patients may be too burdensome for them. Likewise, unrestricted positive thinking is not necessarily good for mental health. After considering the ethics of positive thinking, this article proposes a more realistic approach. (shrink)

Le 'Journal métaphysique', qui, primitivement, n'était pas destiné à la publication, est constitué par un ensemble de notes philosophiques rédigées au jour le jour. L'évidente différence de style entre les deux parties tient au fait que sous la pression de la guerre la pensée de l'auteur s'est tournée de plus en plus résolument vers le concret, vers l'existentiel, qui a trouvé dans le Journal métaphysique une des premières expressions qu'il ait revêtues en France. Il ne faut d'ailleurs pas parler de (...) l'existentialisme, mais une thématique de l'existence considérée dans sa spécificité tend à s'y constituer par une réflexion qui se concentre de plus en plus sur le corps propre (par opposition au corps-objet ou instrument), sur la sensation traitée non plus comme message mais comme façon d'être au monde, sur la mémoire, sur la volonté, etc. Des phénomènes métaphysiques tels que la télépathie, la lecture de pensées, etc. sont considérés avec une attention particulière et l'auteur va jusqu'à se demander s'il ne conviendrait pas d'inverser la relation communément pré-supposée entre le psychologique et le métapsychique et si la clef des phénomènes dits normaux ne devrait pas être cherchée dans le supra-normal. (shrink)

As we have discussed elsewhere, Franz Boas and John Dewey were intellectual and political allies at Columbia University for over thirty years.1 Dewey advocated for an increased role of anthropology for philosophical insight, and he often used anthropological knowledge as a starting point for his ethics and politics, including such knowledge as learned from Boas. We hold that Boas and Dewey shared a common core understanding of human global and evolutionary diversity, and that this shared understanding itself forms a core (...) component of their progressive projects.However, with regard to the problem of racism in the United States, Boas and Dewey had different engagements. Boas made the questioning... (shrink)

Ranging from behavioral to molecular levels of analysis, this informative study presents the results of recent research into the biochemistry and neural mechanisms of imprinting. Horn discusses some of the difficulties that researchers have encountered in analyzing the neural basis of memory and describes ways in which these difficulties have been overcome through the analysis of memories underlying habituation and imprinting. He also considers the biochemical consequences of imprinting and its cerebral localization, and examines the relationships between human and animal (...) memory. (shrink)

Demonstrating that in George Berkeley's last major work, Siris, Berkeley had converted to a belief in the usefulness of the concept and existence of minute particles, Moked here posits that Berkeley developed a highly original brand of corpuscularian physics.

The primary contribution of this dissertation is the development and defense of a novel subjectivist account of meaning in life—the Resonating Role Account (RRA). I argue that ‘meaning in life’ is an evaluative phrase applied when a subject’s pursues a unique social and/or natural role well, when the role(s) resonate with her, and when they maintain a minimum balance of her attention. A defense of subjectivism over its competitors—objectivism and hybrid theory— is the second main contribution of the dissertation. These (...) two theories are rejected on the grounds that they are not responsive to a subject’s central concerns. The arguments against objectivism center on the criticism that the theory entails that meaning is possible for subjects who are alienated by what they do. The main argument against hybrid theory is that it assumes an implausible view of subjects’ adopting valuing attitudes. For these reasons, and because a subjective account avoids such objections, a wholly subjectivist account of meaning is more plausible. Nonetheless, it is widely agreed upon that subjectivism has serious counterintuitive implications. My response is that these are confined to a simple version of the theory, and that RRA addresses those implications with the addition of a host of conditions: External condition (ExC) First, meaning must be evaluated externally, that is, through observational evidence that is inter-subjectively available. Second, ExC also claims that meaning is not dependent on any feelings caused by a subject’s projects/activities. Principled concern condition (PCC), only concerns related to the successful fulfillment of one’s natural role(s) or social role(s) are relevant for meaning. Resonance condition (RC), which states that a role must resonate with a subject for it to be one that confers meaning, where resonance is a connection that is compelling or attractive to some degree. Minimal balance condition (MBC), which states that one’s roles must maintain some minimal level of attention in order to continue to be meaning conferring. I argue that with the addition of these conditions, RRA effectively counters the major objections that plague simple subjectivism. Therefore, subjectivism is a defensible theory regarding meaning in life. Advisor: John Brunero. (shrink)

In chapter 3.3 of Cyropaedia, Xenophon offers a wide-ranging meditation on the role of speech in arousing enthusiasm for battle. He emphasizes the uselessness of general exhortations, arguing that being prepared in body and mind is the crucial factor not only for being capable of fighting but also for stirring the right emotions. Although pre-battle exhortations have little utility, however, Cyrus does not condemn their use altogether: he only denies that they are a substitute for rigorous training. The very need (...) for an exhortation implies a lack of readiness on the part of the soldiers and a lack of confidence in them by the leader, and therefore, aside from being superfluous, an exhortation may have a negative effect on the soldiers. The King of Assyria provides a caricature of a bad exhortation by threatening and scaring his soldiers with ill-conceived and inappropriate exhortatory tropes. (shrink)

Examines Albert Schweitzer's philosophy in an attempt to determine whether he is Christian.