The article attempts to reconstruct the solution of the fundamental for the Anglo-American historical school (T. Kuhn, I. Lakatos, P. Feyerabend) problem of incommensurability, proposed by Helmut Spinner, a prominent representative of German critical rationalism (hereinafter referred to as CR). It is shown that this solution became possible on the way of rethinking the shortcomings of the orthodox CR of K. Popper and H. Albert, the main one of which Spinner saw in “scarcity” pluralism and criticism. To overcome it, (...) he considered it necessary to develop the KR in the direction of “pluralistically extended fallibilist criticism” of the Feyerabend persuasion with some innovations. Spinner’s new version of the CR, was based on the following three fundamental principles: 1) the principle of radicalization of pluralism (hyperpluralism); 2) the principle of the infallibility of fallibilism (hyperfallibilism) (Fallubilität des Fallibilismus); 3) the principle (requirement) of the minimum commensurability of theories. The essence and content of the third principle is as follows. Minimal commensurability means that competing theories are commensurate, at least in one essential point: commensurability of this kind is mediated by “transition theories”. Incommensurable theories are by no means useless, for thanks to “transition theories” they can become commensurate, at least in a minimal sense. And this minimum commensurability is the most essential and desirable for theoretical pluralism, since only it provides the maximum criticism of alternative theories, thereby expanding the possibilities of confrontation and strengthening pluralistic criticism in general. (shrink)

Contributed articles on Indic philosophy, Vedic grammer, and classical Sanskrit literature; includes some on the life of Kr̥ṣṇa Mādho Jha, Sanskrit scholar.

A sampling of the philosophical writings of Karl Popper includes discussions of rationalism, knowledge, human freedom, and the scientific method.

Biography of Jiddu Krishnamurti, 1895-1986, Indian philosopher.

Treatise with auto-commentary on Dvaita philosophy.

First published in 2011. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

Explanation of terms in Mīmāṃsā, an orthodox school in Hindu philosophy.

In this long-awaited volume, Jeremy Shearmur and Piers Norris Turner bring to light Popper's most important unpublished and uncollected writings from the time of The Open Society until his death in 1994. After The Open Society: Selected Social and Political Writings reveals the development of Popper's political and philosophical thought during and after the Second World War, from his early socialism through to the radical humanitarianism of The Open Society. The papers in this collection, many of which are (...) available here for the first time, demonstrate the clarity and pertinence of Popper's thinking on such topics as religion, history, Plato and Aristotle, while revealing a lifetime of unwavering political commitment. After The Open Society illuminates the thought of one of the twentieth century's greatest philosophers and is essential reading for anyone interested in the recent course of philosophy, politics, history and society. (shrink)

Neo-Nyaya treatise on verbal testimony, presenting semantic approaches to Sanskrit case and suffix; includes seven Sanskrit commentaries and exhaustive introduction in English.

The Open Universe is the centerpiece of the argument of the Postscript.

Described by the philosopher A.J. Ayer as a work of 'great originality and power', this book revolutionized contemporary thinking on science and knowledge. Ideas such as the now legendary doctrine of 'falsificationism' electrified the scientific community, influencing even working scientists, as well as post-war philosophy. This astonishing work ranks alongside The Open Society and Its Enemies as one of Popper's most enduring books and contains insights and arguments that demand to be read to this day.

Research work on birth place of Śaṅkarācārya, Hindu philosopher.

Hagiography of Sankaracarya, the exponent of Advaita philosophy.

Comprises 82 critical essays represent the lectures delivered in Andhra University, Karnataka University and other centres of studies.

In this paper Popper formulates and discusses a new aspect of the theory of mind. This theory is partly based on his earlier developed interactionistic theory. It takes as its point of departure the observation that mind and physical forces have several properties in common, at least the following six: both are located, unextended, incorporeal, capable of acting on bodies, dependent upon body, capable of being influenced by bodies. Other properties such as intensity and extension in time may be (...) added. It is argued that a fuller understanding of the nature of forces is essential for the analysis of the mind-brain problem. The relative autonomy and indeterministic nature of mind is stressed. Indeterminism is treated in relation to a theorem of Hadamard. The computer theory of mind and the Turing test are criticized. Finally the evolution of mind is discussed. (shrink)

John McDowell argues for minimal empiricism via using the notion of second nature of human beings. I should like to invite him to discuss Helmuth Plessner's Philosophical Anthropology in order to elaborate a more substantial conception of second nature. McDowell seems to think that it is adequate for his more epistemological aim to remind us of second nature as though it were to be taken for granted. But I think, following Plessner, that this right reminder needs a therapeutic elaboration in (...) Kant's sense of propaedeutics. What had been called our second nature found itself being questioned in order to limit the range of ways of treating the self we can authorize. (shrink)

This classic remains one of Karl Popper's most wide-ranging and popular works, notable not only for its acute insight into the way scientific knowledge grows, but also for applying those insights to politics and to history.

The essays in this volume represent an approach to human knowledge that has had a profound influence on many recent thinkers. Popper breaks with a traditional commonsense theory of knowledge that can be traced back to Aristotle. A realist and fallibilist, he argues closely and in simple language that scientific knowledge, once stated in human language, is no longer part of ourselves but a separate entity that grows through critical selection.

Sanskrit text with autocommentary on Advaita philosophy by Kr̥ṣṇapaṇḍita, 18th century: based on rare manuscripts.