This book explores how and when biology emerged as a science in Germany. Beginning with the debate about organism between Georg Ernst Stahl and Gottfried Leibniz at the start of the eighteenth century, John Zammito traces the development of a new research program, culminating in 1800, in the formulation of developmental morphology. He shows how over the course of the century, naturalists undertook to transform some domains of natural history into a distinct branch of natural philosophy, which attempted not (...) only to describe but to explain the natural world and became, ultimately, the science of biology. (shrink)

Exploring the relationship between morality and professional ideals, Kultgen examines the structure and organization of occupations and the ideals and ideology associated with professions. He argues that professionalization of occupations can both harm and benefit society, and that by converting occupations into organized special interest groups, the professions serve some sectors of society at the expense of others. On the other hand, he highlights the positive points of the professional ideal and explores ways in which it can be used to (...) advance the physical and moral welfare of society. Kultgen also shows how it is the practices within the professions that determine whether rules and ideals are used as masks for self-interest or for genuinely moral purposes. ISBN 0-8122-8094-6: $14.95. (shrink)

Sawai et al. (2022) provide a good summary of the bioethical debate about brain organoids with an eye toward future directions. Like many contemporary texts in bioethics, they call for engagement w...

Includes bibliographical references and index. isbn 0-226-97861-3 (alk. paper) — isbn 0-226-97862-1 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Science — Philosophy. 2. Science — History. 3. Progress. I. Title. Q175 .Z25 2004 501 — dc2i 200301 1970 ...

This essay presents in outline of an argument for interpreting Zhu Xi’s (1130-1200) mature Daoxue 道學philosophy in terms of an architectonic of four configurative traits: form, dynamics, unification, and value. Further, it is proposed that Zhu’s Daoxue ought to be considered a form of axiology in terms of contemporary comparative global philosophical dialogue. It is important to try to present Zhu’s Daoxue or Teaching of the Way as a living philosophical option and not just a historical artifact; it is, as (...) David Hall and Roger Ames have explained, a fine example of ars contextualis or the art of the contextual as a form of relational axiology. One of the chief examples adduced to sustain this thesis is Zhu’s theory of cheng 誠 or self-realization. Further, there is also an extended discussion of the formative role of li 理 principle and qi 氣 vital force as critical elements of the structure of Zhu’s thought. (shrink)

African American theologians tend not to find philosophy as a meaningful tool to advance their theological positions. African Americans and Christianity offers an engaging and thorough bridge between African American theology and philosophy of religion.

The two theories that revolutionized physics in the twentieth century, relativity and quantum mechanics, are full of predictions that defy common sense. Recently, we used three such paradoxical ideas to prove “The Free Will Theorem” (strengthened here), which is the culmination of a series of theorems about quantum mechanics that began in the 1960s. It asserts, roughly, that if indeed we humans have free will, then elementary particles already have their own small share of this valuable commodity. More precisely, if (...) the experimenter can freely choose the directions in which to orient his apparatus in a certain measurement, then the particle’s response (to be pedantic—the universe’s response near the particle) is not determined by the entire previous history of the universe. Our argument combines the well-known consequence of relativity theory, that the time order of space-like separated events is not absolute, with the EPR paradox discovered by Einstein, Podolsky, and Rosen in 1935, and the Kochen-Specker Paradox of 1967 (See [2].) We follow Bohm in using a spin version of EPR and Peres in using his set of 33 directions, rather than the original configuration used by Kochen and Specker. More contentiously, the argument also involves the notion of free will, but we postpone further discussion of this to the last section of the article. Note that our proof does not mention “probabilities” or the “states” that determine them, which is.. (shrink)

Metacognition, the cognition about cognition, is closely linked to intelligence and therefore understanding the metacognitive processes underlying intelligence test performance, specifically on Raven’s Progressive Matrices, could help advance the knowledge about intelligence. The measurement of metacognition, is often done using domain-general offline questionnaires or domain-specific online think-aloud protocols. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between metacognitive awareness and intelligence via the design and use of a novel Meta-Cognitive Awareness Scale – Domain Specific that encourages reflection of task strategy processes. (...) This domain-specific scale was first constructed to measure participants’ awareness of their own metacognition linked to Raven’s Progressive Matrices. Following discriminatory index and Exploratory Factor Analysis, a 15-item scale was derived. Exploratory Factor Analysis showed five factors: Awareness of Engagement in Self-Monitoring, Awareness of Own Ability, Awareness of Responding Speed/Time, Awareness of Alternative Solutions and Awareness of Requisite Problem-Solving Resources. The intelligence level of ninety-eight adults was then estimated using Raven’s Standard Progressive Matrices. Participants also completed the MCAS-DS, and further items that examined their test-taking behavior and Confidence level. Metacognitive awareness was positively correlated to standardized IQ scores derived from the SPM whilst Over-Confidence derived using the Confidence level measure was negatively correlated to SPM. Despite some limitations, this study shows promise for elucidating the relationship between metacognitive awareness and intelligence using the task-specific scale. (shrink)

This article examines spiritual growth and the business career. Rather than a certain decline into workaholism or materialism, the world of business becomes a necessary step on the path of enlightenment, through the transcendant philosophical models of the Hindu householder and the Native American Medicine Wheel.The householder concept, including mastering the material world and the resulting spiritual growth, stresses the importance of action, also a criterion for success in business. Current views, based on studies of modern life, Judaic thought, and (...) Christian beliefs, add further dimension to this executive's model of enlightenment. (shrink)

Contemporary national codes of ethics hinge more on fantasy than fact: the idea that journalists control what becomes news. While journalists' influence over news has grown during much of the 20th century to the point where courts have begun to define them as professionals, it has never surpassed the influence of owners. New evidence indicates authority has eroded as media firms seek to maximize return to investors. As journalists' autonomy recedes, national ethics codes become less relevant to practitioners and more (...) publicly deceptive. The codes also are unethical themselves as journalists become decision takers rather than decision makers. Moral responsibility and real world authority diverge. It2 time to end the charade by creating new codes that include the decision makers outside the news room. (shrink)

This paper, originating from a Wittgenstein conference in Delphi, Greece in June 2001, questions Brandom’s reading of Wittgenstein on “Following a Rule”. For the purpose of our current investigative dispute, it is a very good starting point to draw our attention to some of the vital differences between Wittgenstein’s and Brandom’s approach to the relation between practice and rules that may not be quite as clear at first sight from Brandom’s own writings. This writing maintains that Brandom misconstrues Wittgenstein’s remarks (...) about signposts and Philosophical Investigations §201 with the consequence that his own explications about tacit rules involved in practice seem more Wittgensteinian than they really are. For one, Brandom duplicates Wittgenstein’s requirement of correctness in rule following: “...correctness that consists in following a rule [does not presuppose] correctness that does not.” On the other hand Brandom’s reading makes Wittgenstein’s quietism look like ”a pretext for not doing constructive work”, while Wittgenstein’s point is that there is nothing left to enquire. (shrink)

In this book, John H. Smith investigates the influences of classical and humanistic rhetoric on Hegel's theory and practice of philosophical representation. Smith focuses on Hegel's concept of Bildung (roughly, education, development, or formation) which occupies a central position in his philosophy.

Smith traces a major line in the history of theology and the philosophy of religion down the "slippery slope" of secularization—from Luther and Erasmus, through Idealism, to Nietzsche, Heidegger, Derrida, Habermas, Vattimo, and Asad.

I greatly appreciate the opportunity provided by the editor of Zygon to further develop the ideas in my book Morals Not Knowledge: Recasting the Contemporary U.S. Conflict between Religion and Science in conversation with four critical commentaries. It is an honor to have one's work focused upon so intently, and I greatly appreciate the time and effort of the critics. The book was quite intentionally written as a provocation, an attempt at agenda setting, and as a call for changing the (...) thinking of the entire religion and science academic community. In my previous writings I have kept close to the data, allowing myself at best mid‐level conclusions, but this book is a foray into the abstraction and inevitable lack of precision required for high‐level generalization. I hope that it continues to be generative of debate. (shrink)

The ongoing debate surrounding human origins and the Bible is based on interpretations of various sections of the Bible, particularly Genesis 1–3, which are believed by some to contradict some of the tenets of the modern scientific consensus . This paper suggests that an interpretation of Genesis 2–3 in light of a close reading of the Hebrew text and the recognition of its ancient Near Eastern context demonstrates that the scientific consensus need not be in conflict with sound biblical interpretation.

This commentary supports Barzykowski and Moulin's model, but departs from it on the question of functionality, where IAMs and déjà vu fractionate. The authors seem to say that IAMs are functional, while déjà vu is not. As there is no hard evidence supporting the idea that IAMs are functional, I argue that both phenomena should be viewed as cognitive failures.

Introduction We live in an age in which new levels of technical achievement impose new requirements of responsibility, corresponding to the ever- broadening ...