Thomas Kuhn is mostly known for his contributions to the philosophy of science. However, it was chiefly to investigations in philosophy of language that he dedicated the last part of his career. The aim of this paper is to present a systematic view of Kuhn’s main ideas on this subject. I start by describing his theory of concept, in particular what he says about kind terms. Such terms, acquired in blocks that form contrast sets or “taxonomies,” are learned through ostensible (...) definitions. Next, I analyze Kuhn’s concepts of “meaning” and “truth.” Finally, I discuss a second type of kinds terms, not fully investigated by him, which is learned together with scientific laws. Resumo Thomas Kuhn é conhecido principalmente por suas contribuições para a filosofia da ciência. No entanto, foi em grande medida à filosofia da linguagem que ele dedicou a última parte de sua carreira. O objetivo deste artigo é apresentar uma visão sistemática das principais ideias de Kuhn sobre esse assunto. Começo descrevendo sua teoria do conceito, em particular o que ele diz sobre termos para espécie. Tais termos, aprendidos em blocos que formam conjuntos de contraste ou “taxonomias”, são aprendidos através de definições ostensivas. Em seguida, analiso as concepções de Kuhn de “significado” e “verdade”. Finalmente, discuto um segundo tipo de termo para espécies, não totalmente investigado por ele, que é aprendido junto com as leis científicas. (shrink)

Nesta resenha é apresentado o livro Arley Morenum Liber Amicorum – Homenagem a Arley Ramos Moreno in memoriam, publicado em 2021, como homenagemao filósofo brasileiro Arley Moreno, falecido em 2018. O livro discute, majoritariamente, temas de filosofia da linguagem – em especial a obra de Ludwig Wittgenstein – e epistemologia dialogando com o universo intelectual do homenageado. Apresenta ainda o último texto produzido por Arley Moreno no qual ele trabalha sua concepção de filosofia da linguagem.

I argue that Wittgenstein’s engagement with Russell’s The Analysis of Mind was crucial for the development of his new method. First, I show that Wittgenstein’s criticism of the causal theory of meaning (namely: that it generates an infinite regress and that it does not determine the depiction of a fact) is motivated by its incompatibility with the pictorial conception of language. Second, I show that in reacting against that theory he comes to invent the calculus conception of language. Third, I (...) argue that the calculus conception is vulnerable to critiques that parallel those presented against Russell’s theory (a rule-following regression and the indeterminacy of depicted facts). Fourth, the striking similarity between the problems present in Russell’s theory and in Wittgenstein’s own views makes him realize that both were working under misleading trains of thought and false analogies. It is this realization that brings Wittgenstein to the view that his task is to investigate the genesis of philosophical puzzlement in order to stop philosophical theorizing right from the beginning. Thus, in explaining the invention of Wittgenstein’s new method I show its relation to Russell’s philosophy and indicate the origins of the rule-following problem. (shrink)

Neste artigo começo por argumentar que devemos ver o Big Typescript como algo muito diferente de um livro planejado para a publicação. Ele deve ser tomado meramente como uma coleção de observações, que expressam a concepção de Wittgenstein de “gramática” por volta de 1932-33, quando as observações foram reunidas. Em seguida, explico a concepção substancial de “gramática” do BT. Espero tornar claro, nesta segunda parte, que o BT e o Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus são próximos no sentido de que partilham a idéia (...) de que a linguagem tem uma estrutura que opera de acordo com regras fixas de sentido (um cálculo). (shrink)

Economists since the First Industrial Revolution have been interested in the links between economic growth and resources, often pointing to resource scarcities as a hindrance to growth. Offering a counter perspective, this volume highlights the positive role that scarcities can play in inducing technical progress and economic growth. It outlines a structural framework for the political economy of scarcity and rents, and offers a novel way of organizing the evidence concerning the role of resources in industrial growth. This book proposes (...) a major shift in the treatment of scarcity issues by focusing on bottlenecks and opportunities arising within the production system, and will appeal to economists and policy makers interested in the role of resources as triggers of structural change. (shrink)

The scientific study of consciousness emerged as an organized field of research only a few decades ago. As empirical results have begun to enhance our understanding of consciousness, it is important to find out whether other factors, such as funding for consciousness research and status of consciousness scientists, provide a suitable environment for the field to grow and develop sustainably. We conducted an online survey on people’s views regarding various aspects of the scientific study of consciousness as a field of (...) research. 249 participants completed the survey, among which 80% were in academia, and around 40% were experts in consciousness research. Topics covered include the progress made by the field, funding for consciousness research, job opportunities for consciousness researchers, and the scientific rigor of the work done by researchers in the field. The majority of respondents (78%) indicated that scientific research on consciousness has been making progress. However, most participants perceived obtaining funding and getting a job in the field of consciousness research as more difficult than in other subfields of neuroscience. Overall, work done in consciousness research was perceived to be less rigorous than other neuroscience subfields, but this perceived lack of rigor was not related to the perceived difficulty in finding jobs and obtaining funding. Lastly, we found that, overall, the global workspace theory was perceived to be the most promising (around 28%), while most non-expert researchers (around 22% of non-experts) found the integrated information theory (IIT) most promising. We believe the survey results provide an interesting picture of current opinions from scientists and researchers about the progresses made and the challenges faced by consciousness research as an independent field. They will inspire collective reflection on the future directions regarding funding and job opportunities for the field. (shrink)

Mauro Basaure Cet article cherche à innover dans le cadre de la controverse sur le musée de la Mémoire et des Droits de l’homme du Chili : devrait-il ou non intégrer dans sa muséographie la période antérieure au 11 septembre 1973, c’est-à-dire le contexte du coup d’État? Je défends la thèse selon laquelle le MMDH peut intégrer une dimension contextuelle sans trahir sa mission, sa vision et sa fonction, tant qu’il répond à une approche de la notion de contexte-sans-causalité. (...) Selon moi, le grand problème de la critique venant de la droite politique – qui accuse le musée de ne pas remplir sa mission pédagogique, car il décontextualise le coup d’État – est que cette critique répond à une vision causale de la notion de contexte, ce qui la conduit à des contradictions insurmontables. Si, grâce à une muséographie bien réfléchie, le concept de contextualisation non causale était mis en oeuvre avec succès, ceci n’engendrerait pas une contradiction au sein du musée mais pourrait même le favoriser. La conviction que le coup d’État et ses atrocités n’ont ni causes ni antécédents et ne peuvent en avoir renforce la mission pédagogique du MMDH. (shrink)

La thèse de l’« inexistence intentionnelle » formulée par Brentano a été traditionnellement interprétée comme une théorie de la « relation intentionnelle », autrement dit de la relation entre l’acte mental et son « objet immanent » ou « intentionnel », c’est-à-dire interne à la conscience. Se fondant sur la lecture du fameux passage sur l’intentionnalité de la Psychologie du point de vue empirique , le présent article démontre que l’interprétation ontologique de la théorie de l’intentionnalité du premier Brentano est (...) insoutenable, toute dominante qu’elle est. Pour ce faire, nous partirons des sources de la pensée de Brentano, en particulier de la théorie de la perception et des relatifs d’Aristote, pour rejeter la conception de l’objet immanent ou intentionnel comme entité immanente à la conscience et mettre en évidence la continuité qui existe entre la première conception de Brentano de l’intentionnalité et la seconde, consécutive à ce qu’on définit comme le tournant réiste de sa pensée.Brentano’s thesis of “intentional inexistence” has been traditionally interpreted as a theory of “intentional relationships”, i.e., of the relation between a mental act and its “immanent” or “intentional object”, within consciousness. Starting from the famous passage on intentionality in Psychology from an Empirical Standpoint , the present paper shows that the dominant ontological interpretation of Brentano’s former theory of intentionality is untenable. Proceeding from the sources of Brentano’s thought, in particular from Aristotle’s theory of perception and of relatives, the conception of the immanent or intentional object as an immanent entity to consciousness is rejected. Instead, the continuity between Brentano’s former conception of intentionality and the subsequent one, following the so-called reistic turning-point in his thought, is highlighted. (shrink)

This article addresses the power of human technologies to wreak destruction on a planetary scale, such as genetic manipulation and weapons of mass destruction. It proposes the need for a new ethic that would be planetary in scale. Its central aim would be to include the great historical and contemporary diversity of human cognitive and epistemological experience. An "ethic of complexity" can weave together the threads of our common heritage. Although humanity's evolutionary past has been shown to be quite diverse, (...) recent genetic and anthropological research has shown it also to be surprisingly unified. New images and metaphors are providing humanity with a vision that transcends familiar ethnic hatreds and so-called clashes of civilizations. The new planetary culture can be a shining example of unity-in-diversity, or unitas multiplex. It will be robustly diverse, intermixed to the core, and filled with awe at the rich lineages of our common past. (shrink)

L’intentto di questo articolo è dimostrare che il tema della pace oggi si avvicina molto al concetto biblico di shalom, poiché tocca ogni sfera della vita dell’uomo. La pace è la lotta continua contro la disumanizzazione. Quindi, vogliamo comprendere: a) il significato della beatitudine: "Beati gli operatori di pace" nel contesto delle beatitudini ; b) la comprensione della pace nell’Antico Testamento; c) la pace di Cristo e la missione dei discepoli di Gesù. E in conclusione, argomentare che la pace, da (...) parte dei cristiani, non si riduce a encomiabili sforzi umani per cercare di seguire le direttive del Maestro, ma si configura come accoglienza operosa dell’azione di Colui che è presente nella storia come il Vivente, il Risorto, l’Iniziatore escatologico del piano di salvezza di Dio. La pace è realizzazione graduale del progetto creazionale di Dio. La pace è appello alla disponibilità del singolo affinché si lasci coinvolgere nella comunità; è costruzione di un modo di vivere sociale che garantisca stimoli di autentica umanizzazione per ognuno. The aim of this essay is to demonstrate that the theme of peace nowadays is very close to the biblical concept of shalom, once it touches every sphere of human life. Peace is the continuous struggle against inhumanization. Therefore we aim to understand: a) the meaning of happiness: "Blessed are the peacemakers" in the context of happiness ; b) the comprehension of peace in the Old Testament; c) the peace of Christ and the mission of His disciples. Finally, we intend to argue that peace for Christians is not only praiseworthy human efforts to try to follow the directives of the Master, but it’s also a laborious welcome of the action of Jesus who is present in history as he Living, the Resuscitated, the eschatological Beginner of God’s plan of salvation. Peace is a gradual realization of God’s creational project. Peace is an appeal for the availability and commitment of the individual so that he/she can get involved in the community;it’s a construction of a social way of living that ensures stimuli of genuine humanization for all. (shrink)

Comment pouvons-nous analyser des relations de valeur non standards, comme la parité axiologique, en termes d’attitudes appropriées? Wlodek Rabinowicz suggère que deux choses sont à parité si et seulement si il est à la fois permissible de préférer l’une à l’autre et permissible d’avoir la préférence contraire. Dans un article récent, Johan Gustafsson soutient toutefois que l’analyse de Rabinowicz viole un principe de symétrie entre valeurs et préférences, selon lequel il existe pour toute relation de valeur une relation de préférence (...) correspondante (et vice-versa). À la lumière de ce principe, Gustafsson propose une analyse alternative, selon laquelle deux choses sont à parité si et seulement si il est requis d’entretenir ces choses en parité préférentielle. Dans cet article, j’examine en détail les arguments avancés par Gustafsson contre l’analyse de Rabinowicz et je montre qu’aucun d’eux n’est convaincant. (shrink)