A compelling approach among works on temporality, phenomenology, and the ecologies of the new sound worlds, Enacting Musical Time argues that musical time is itself the site of the interaction between musical sounds and a situated, embodied listener, created by the moving bodies of participants engaged in musical activities.

Awareness of mortality is one of the key aspects of human existence. Death goes beyond the boundary of knowledge, mortality. However, it is actually experienced by man as something inevitable. Death is a fact – the end of life, and the experience of mortality is one of the borderline situations. In the essay, the author puts forward the thesis that the experience of mortality has a significant impact on the human understanding of values. Attitudes towards death be it fear, resignation, (...) indifference, fascination, mourning, sadness, despair after the loss of a loved one, or the desire for death, indicate the wealth of the world of value of axiological experience. The attitude of the person towards death, in some sense, is a test of our humanity, the principal value to which we refer most often. The author of the essay adopts the position of axiological relationalism, it implies that values are independent of the subject, they form a network of relational connections, but they are in a significant way connected with culture. The study of these connections: 1) with the world of people, 2) world of things, 3) internal relations that take place between values, allows us to get to know the complex structure of the world of values. In the article, the author analyzes in what sense mortality influences human understanding of values. (shrink)

School bullying also referred to as peer victimization is considered extremely harmful for all parties involved. It has been recognised as an important issue in Polish schools. This article presents the first stage of a project financed by the National Centre of Research and Development and includes the results of qualitative research conducted in groups of middle-school students, middle-school teachers and psychologists. The results highlight several factors leading to the exclusion from the dominant peer group. The results also indicate that (...) although students are aware of the consequences of bullying and excluding behaviours, they do not implement this knowledge when explaining their own excluding actions. All results are discussed in terms of designing and implementing a data-based programme which would effectively mitigate excluding behaviours during middle-school transition. (shrink)

This research examined the role of thought suppression in the formation of mental blocks. In Experiment 1, participants were asked to generate a series of creative associates for two target words after initially suppressing a word that was semantically related to one of the two target words. Participants produced fewer responses, and experienced a greater sensation of being mentally blocked, when attempting to produce associates for the target word that was semantically related to the suppressed word. In Experiment 2, participants (...) either thought about or suppressed a series of words prior to completing a word fragment completion task. Each word either corresponded exactly to one of the word fragment solutions or resembled one of the solutions but was slightly different in its orthographic properties . Participants performed most poorly on the items for which they had initially suppressed negative primes. (shrink)

Over the years, the Austrian School of Economics has created the image of a thinker associated with ideas of liberalism. The views of members of this school are often considered controversial. However, the concept of freedom clearly displayed by the Austrians is very popular among economists. Carl Menger is said to be the founder and a leading member of the Austrian School of Economics, and his works are mostly devoted to methodology and economic theory. Nevertheless, you can also find his (...) views on the sphere of economic liberalism and freedom. Almost 150 years after the publication of Menger’s main works, it emerged that he had created not only the timeless foundations of the theory and methodology of economics, but his theory of subjective value had become the bedrock which is used to this day in deliberations on economic liberalism. The economy pursued by Menger (based primarily on the ideas of subjectivism and individualism) continues to be an important and timeless foundation for the development of the doctrine of economic liberalism. This article is a review based on an analysis of the literature on the subject. (shrink)

In theology there has never been any doubt that God can cause things to happen, but there has been a great deal of controversy about the precise nature of God’s causal activity in nature. The theory of divine concurrentism (both God, as primary cause, and creatures, as secondary causes, are engaged in causal processes), fostering the middle way between the anti-providential notion of natural causation and occasionalism (which attributes all causation to God), was questioned in the era of modern science (...) and philosophy. The restriction of divine action to the moment of the first creation in deism led to the agnostic and atheistic rejection of God as an ‘unnecessary hypothesis.’ Most theological responses to this crisis followed the restriction of causality to efficient causes, showing an implicit tendency to speak about the causation of God and creatures in univocal terms and trying to define the ‘causal joint’ between God and nature. A philosophical analysis of evolutionary biology, emergence, big bang cosmology, chaos theory, and quantum mechanics, however, has recently brought a retrieval of a broader understanding of causation, triggering a renewed interest in divine action. The topic of causality has raised interest among analytical philosophers as well. Those following the metaphysics of dispositions and manifestations acknowledge the neo-Aristotelian flavor of their analyses, which becomes, in turn, an incentive for a revival of the classical version of divine concurrentism. (shrink)

Making more accurate marketing decisions by managers requires building effective predictive models. Typically, these models specify the probability of customer belonging to a particular category, group or segment. The analytical CRM categories refer to customers interested in starting cooperation with the company, customers who purchase additional products or customers intending to resign from the cooperation. During building predictive models researchers use analytical tools from various disciplines with an emphasis on their best performance. This article attempts to build a hybrid predictive (...) model combining decision trees and cluster analysis. During experiments five different cluster validity indices and eight datasets were used. The performance of models was evaluated by using popular measures such as: accuracy, precision, recall, G-mean, F-measure and lift in the first and in the second decile. The authors tried to find a connection between the number of clusters and models' quality. (shrink)

The main aim of the paper is to revive Zdzisław Augustynek's attempts to define the relation of genidentity. The text embraces the following issues: (i) a presentation of three axiomatic definitions of genidentity; (ii) a reconstruction of the definitions in question in the language of the predicate calculus; (iii) a supplementing the above reconstruction by appropriate proofs; (iv) an analysis of the selected methodological and ontological assumptions of the discussed systems; (v) a comparison of Augustynek's systems with Eugeniusz Żabski's proposal; (...) (vi) an outline of the definition of a thing as an abstractum (equivalence class, invariant) over the set of all punctual events under a relation of genidentity. (shrink)

In a series of influential articles Jaegwon Kim has developed strong arguments against nonreductive physicalism as a possible solution to the problem of mental causation. One of them is the Supervenience Argument which states that assuming the mental/physical supervenience thesis, the causal closure principle, the exclusion principle with the no-overdetermination requirement and property dualism we obtain the conclusion that mental causation is unintelligible. On the other hand Collin McGinn has argued that a solution to the mind-body problem is forever beyond (...) our reach: we can never understand how the brain produces consciousness and therefore the relation between them must remain mysterious. The main aim of the paper is to demonstrate that Kim's Supervenience Argument corroborates McGinn's pessimistic conclusion (of course, if we do not assume any form of reductive physicalism or epiphenomenalism). Thereby it tries to show that the Supervenience Argument could be treated as a justification of non-constructive naturalism (aka new misterianism): we do not understand mental causation, because we cannot understand how the brain generates consciousness. It also suggest considering possibility that the thesis of causal closure of the physical domain might entail the cognitive closure thesis (the claim that those properties of the brain which are responsible for conscious processes are in principle cognitively closed to us). (shrink)

The idea of the university was never a significant context for researchers of Franz Kafka work. It was the other social institutions that became the natural source of allusive recognition of literary scholars. In this sketch – written on the margins of Kafka’s famous short story: Report for the Academy – we are trying to change it. The university here becomes a “central object of criticism”, an institution in ruins, a place where one does not practice research and does not (...) perfect humanistic virtues. On the contrary, it is a space where the “gate of perception” and „critical thinking” are consistently closed – as a tribute to the particular game of interests. In the worst case – the effect of the Academy’s impact becomes destruction resulting from training and humiliation. (shrink)

The aim of the text is an elaboration of the Moses Mendelssohn’s aesthetics and its connections to the German philosophical thought of Enlightenment. I analyze the issue of sensations and so-called mixed sensations and I argue that they are the necessary condition of cognition. I present the relations between aesthetics and ethics and I elaborate so-called theory of three faculties. I argue that sense is an element conjoining action and cognition.

Your concise guide to Buddhism, mindfulness, and meditation! The Everything Essential Buddhism Book is your beginner's guide to the Buddhist principles of nonviolence, mindfulness, and self-awareness. Learn about the deceptively simple truths of this enigmatic religion, including: The life of Buddha and his continuing influence throughout the world; Buddha's teachings and the Four Noble Truths of Buddhism; The Noble Eightfold Path and how it should guide you; What the Sutras say about education, marriage, sex, and death; The proven physiological effects (...) of meditation; The growing impact of Buddhism on modern American culture. Also included is instruction for the many forms of Buddhist meditation, including Zen and Tibetan practices. Most important, you will learn how you can apply the tenets of Buddhism to your daily life--and achieve clarity and inner peace in the process. (shrink)

Autor článku se snaží dokázat, že při formulaci vhodných kritérií je možné (a užitečné) provést komparaci a hierarchizaci kultur. Práce se opírá o teoreticko-historickou metodu (Smith, Hume) i o metodologické přínosy Hayeka (kompozitivní metoda). V souladu s konceptem svobody, který je rozvíjen u Kanta, Hegela, Černého, Patočky, je v návaznosti na Fukuyamu koncipován "ideální typ" konce-vrcholu dějin. Je jím kombinace klasické liberální demokracie a kapitalismu volné tržní soutěže. Jak ukazuje historická evidence, směřování k tomuto vrcholu je inherentní tendencí samotného dějinného (...) pohybu. Pouze klasická liberální demokracie spojená s kapitalismem laissez-faire umožňuje v nejvyšší možné míře uspokojovat lidské potřeby a rozvíjet lidskou přirozenost; tento systém poskytuje prostor pro vrcholný stupeň individuální svobody, totožné se zákonem a zahrnující odpovědnost za právní a politický řád, který umožňuje spontánní fungování volné tržní soutěže. Takto formulovanou svobodu nalézáme pouze v západní kultuře. Na závěr práce je argumentována problematičnost integrace příslušníků kultury s nižší mírou svobody. (shrink)

The aim of this article is to point to the unsolved research problems connected to causation in the philosophy of economics. First, the paper defines causation and discusses two notable approaches, i.e. the realist theory of causation and the instrumentalist theory of causation. Second, it offers a review the current research activity focusing on the problem of causation in economics. Third, it discusses several case studies. On the grounds of comparison of the research practice of economists and the current issues (...) undertaken by the philosophers of economics, the paper concludes that there is a gap between the research practice and the normative methodological analyses and indicate the research questions that need to be addressed. (shrink)

The ongoing debate on the Christian philosophical and theological approach to the theory of biological evolution is multifaceted. It refers to the biblical notion of creation, as well as to some strictly philosophical issues such as the difficulty in defining species and units of evolutionary transitions, the nature of chance, and the classical principle of proportionate causation. Moving toward theology, it refers to the distinction between creation and production, and to the notion of secondary causation of creatures in the origin (...) of new forms of organisms – contrasted with the classical assertion that creatures cannot create. (shrink)

The paper consists of three parts. In the first one, I consider the validity of the “civilizational paradigm” in contemporary social sciences and humanities, with special emphasis on philosophy and comparative historiographical studies. In the second one, I juxtapose selected Western approaches to civilization—those of Arnold Toynbee, Fernand Braudel and Corroll Quigley—with the perspective proposed by Ibn Khaldūn, the scholar and thinker widely recognized as the father of social sciences, especially those focused on or at least related to civilizational investigations. (...) In the third part of the article, I raise questions about the prospects of reforming and reviving civilizations which undergo a crisis or experience a twilight phase in their development. Finally, in the context of the idea of Islamization of thought and knowledge, as postulated by Abdulhamid Abusu-layma, I address the question of the relationship between civilization and religion. (shrink)

Celem artykułu jest analiza problemu autointerpretacji w odniesieniu do formuły „mocnego wartościowania” oraz zagadnienia osoby ludzkiej. Przedmiotem analiz jest koncepcja wartości Charlesa Taylora ujęta w kontekście jego filozoficznych inspiracji oraz krytyki niektórych jego rozwiązań. Poznanie własnego „ja” dokonuje się w kontekście odkrywania i realizacji takich wartości jak wolność, godność, autentyczność, sprawczość i odpowiedzialność, itp. Można wskazać na relację, jaka zachodzi między strukturą aksjologiczną a osobą, która pozwala jej na autointerpretację. Z jednej strony dzięki wartościom podmiot określa własną tożsamość, z drugiej (...) strony stanowią one element „wspólnoty znaczeń” – umożliwiający zrozumienie „sytuacji ludzkiej” i dialog między osobami. Świat wartości odkrywamy w trakcie artykulacji i interpretacji własnych uczuć oraz rozumienia uczuć innych ludzi. Wartości umożliwiają rozmowę na temat tego, co nas łączy lub dzieli, umożliwiają porozumienie, a także na artykułowanie przyczyn nieporozumienia. Rozwój osoby jest zapośredniczony w kulturowych formach ekspresji oraz w dialogu z innymi podmiotami. Koncepcja Taylora stanowi ciekawą i ważną próbę połączenia refleksji z zakresu filozofii człowieka, teorii wartości i filozofii kultury ekspresji. (shrink)

Mental imagery, a fascinating yet contentious phenomenon, has a rich research history. Kant, for instance, believed mental imagery was necessary for perception. However, since the early 20th centur...