We solve the problem of formulating Brownian motion in a relativistically covariant framework in 3+1 dimensions. We obtain covariant Fokker–Planck equations with (for the isotropic case) a differential operator of invariant d’Alembert form. Treating the spacelike and timelike fluctuations separately in order to maintain the covariance property, we show that it is essential to take into account the analytic continuation of “unphysical” fluctuations.

La polémica Mach-Planck acerca del estado cognitivo de las teorías científicas nos permite llegar a las siguientes conclusiones. No siempre el que defendió las posturas luego asentadas científicamente desarrolló los mejores argumentos en la polémica. Por ejemplo, Planck malinterpretó las tesis de Mach acerca de la imagen científica, sus conceptos y leyes. La postura de ambos estaba fundada en distintas filosofías y, por ende, en distintos sistemas de valores y en modos diferentes de priorizarlos. Hay una relatividad temporal (...) de un aparente vencedor por sobre otro que se invierte en otro momento del desarrollo histórico de la física. No hay algoritmo o argumento definitivo alguno para declarar vencedora a ninguna de las posturas. Dicotomías filosóficas como realismo-instrumentalismo son insuficientes para captar la complejidad de las posturas epistemológicas y ontológicas de los científicos. Finalmente, la polémica enfatiza el rol decisivo de la dimensión filosófica en cuestiones teóricas de la física. The Mach-Planck controversy about the cognitive status of scientific theories lead us to the following conclusions. Not always the one who maintains some theses that look better is the one who advanced the best arguments for criticizing his opponent. Their views were grounded in different philosophies, and consequently, in different valuesystems. There was no absolute winner-loser; each one might look like a winnerloser depending upon de historical and scientific context relative to which the choice is being made. There is no algorithm and definitive argument for declaring a final winner-loser. Standard philosophical dichotomies like realism vs. instrumentalism are insufficient for grasping the complexity of the epistemological and ontological positions of scientists. Finally, the controversy emphasizes the decisive role played by philosophy in the theoretical issues of physics. (shrink)

Studie s příznačným názvem "O Planckově víře, nejen v soulad vědy s náboženstvím" se zabývá především otázkou, zda je reálně možné bezesporné fungování vědy a náboženství. Max Planck tomuto problému věnoval celou přednášku, jež se stala zdrojem této studie, jejímž cílem je kriticky posoudit Planckovy jednoznačně vyznívající závěry, totiž že vzájemné fungování vědy s náboženstvím není ani nemůže být ničím narušeno. Stručně je nastíněno i historické pozadí, jež provázelo Planckův život, neboť i to se jistě podílelo na Planckově postoji (...) ke kontroverzní otázce "náboženství a věda". (shrink)

O tema central desta monografia é a noção de realidade, tal como esta foi entendida por alguns cientistas naturais da primeira metade do século XX. Os cientistas-filósofos escolhidos são: Max Planck, Albert Einstein, Niels Bohr, Werner Heisenberg, Erwin Schrödinger e Max Born. À guisa de comentário introdutório, devo observar que o tema da realidade não é o único aqui abordado, e que a presente monografia pode ser tomada como uma primeira introdução às ideias e teses filosóficas dos seis cientistas (...) referidos. Ao escrever este trabalho, o meu principal objetivo foi o de fazer com que os estudantes de graduação dos cursos de filosofia tenham a possibilidade de ler um comentário geral sobre as ideias filosóficas – em particular, as metafísicas, portanto referentes à natureza da realidade – de alguns dos físicos mais importantes do século passado. Um segundo público alvo possível pode ser encontrado entre os estudantes do ensino médio. Finalmente, este texto pode, eventualmente, ser definido como paradidático, atraindo a atenção de professores, principalmente daqueles que atuam neste último segmento. (shrink)

Deliberative democracy entails a commitment to deciding political questions on their merits. To that end, people engage in an exchange of reasons in a shared endeavour to arrive at the right answer or the best judgement they can make in the circumstances. Of course, in practice a shared judgement may be impossible to reach. Yet while compromise may seem a natural way of dealing with the disagreement that deliberation leaves unresolved – for example, some deliberative theorists argue that a willingness (...) to compromise manifests respect for the considered views of others, even as we continue to disagree with them – the relationship between deliberation and compromise is not as straightforward as one might think. To explain why, this paper contrasts conflicts of judgement with conflicts of preference, interest and value to show why greater attention needs to be paid to the character of the decision to be made. (shrink)

An unorthodox cosmology is based on a notion of “standpoint,” distinguishing past from future, realized through Hilbert-space representation of the complex conformai group for 3+1spacetime and associated coherent states. Physical symmetry attaches to eight-parameter complex Poincaré displacements, interpretable as growth of standpoint age, boost of matter energy-momentum in standpoint rest frame and displacement of matter location in a compact U⊗O/O spacetime attached to standpoint. An “initial” condition is characterized by a huge dimensionless parameter α that breaks dilation invariance. Four major (...) length scales are recognized, called “Planck,” “particle,” “lab,” and “Hubble,” with separations controlled by α; all physical concepts, including spacetime, depend on wideness of scale separation. (shrink)

Ofrecemos un estudio introductorio del papel que tuvo el concepto de partícula en los artículos fundacionales de la mecánica cuántica. Nos centramos en el período 1925-1927, lo que incluye el análisis de los primeros trabajos de Heisenberg, Born, Jordan, Schrödinger y Dirac, y también las primeras formulaciones de la complementaridad de Bohr. Nuestro objetivo es discutir hasta qué punto se puso en duda entre los creadores de la nueva teoría, justo en el momento de su creación y cuando aún no (...) existía una interpretación consensuada ni establecida, el concepto de partícula. Posteriores desarrollos, como la teoría cuántica de campos, pusieron la vigencia de ese concepto bajo sospecha. Mostramos que un análisis historiográfico articulado mediante este concepto permite caracterizar la relación que los distintos autores de la mecánica cuántica mantuvieron con la visualización de los procesos atómicos. En algunos casos, como el de Heisenberg, su evolución es especialmente significativa. Asimismo, también citaremos algunos fragmentos donde los autores considerados reclaman para sí el legado de la antigua teoría cuántica, tratando de legitimar sus propios desarrollos a partir de su coherencia con los primeros descubrimientos de los Planck, Einstein o De Broglie. De prácticamente todos ellos hemos encontrado textos en este sentido. (shrink)

Ujedinjenje velikih teorija fizike − teorije relativnosti, kvantne mehanike i fizike svemira i čestica − ostaje snom fizike i filozofije znanosti i na početku 21. stoljeća. Sve se one u pogledu konačnih zakona svemira slažu da je početak bio, te da su konačni zakoni oni koji su već vladali u početku evolucije svemira. Početak svemira podrazumijeva njegovo stvaranje i nužno upućuje na Stvoritelja−religijskog Boga, na uspostavljanje mosta između moderne kozmologije i religije. U tome se podudaraju klasične kozmologije s modernim kozmološkim (...) modelima astročestične teorijske fizike, odnosno mišljenja vodećih modernih kozmologa: Einsteina, Weinberga, Penrosea, Hawkinga i drugih. Naglašavamo da su i veliki svjetski kongresi iz povijesti znanosti u 21. stoljeću naročito reafirmirali komplementarni odnos znanosti i religije kao pravog puta za univerzalnim horizontom svijeta u 21. stoljeću. Situaciju odnosa znanosti i religije, Einstein je izvrsno opisao slikom: »Znanost bez religije je kljasta, a religija bez znanosti slijepa« . Stvaranje svijeta u Knjizi postanka , napose u Prvome izvještaju o stvaranju jest Božje stvaranje: Bog stvara riječju ili djelovanjem − trenutačno i u stvarnome vremenu − u fazama stvaranja što se mjere u danima. Knjigu postanka rese svi moderni početni kozmološki uvjeti i parametri: postanak, početak i kraj svemira, vrijeme i prostor, struktura i evolucija svemira, uloga i značenje života u svemiru. Ovakva teološka kozmologija, sa svim živim bićima u njoj i njihovom hijerarhijom s čovjekom kao kraljem, koliko god u znanstvenome pogledu bila jednostavnom i kratkom pričom, može biti uzorom modernim kozmološkim modelima jer svemir što ga je stvorio Bog jest svemir tvari i života. Mogli bismo reći da kozmološke modele i simulacije, kao i velike pokuse u fizici visokih energija, izvodimo da bismo dokučili kako je Bog stvarao. S druge strane, u suvremenoj fizici, pogotovo u modernoj kozmologiji, pojam Boga se često »efektivno« iskorištava u definiranju pojedinih problema ili u interpretacijama računa, što ne valja promatrati kao osiromašenje teološke ili vjerske uzvišenosti toga pojma kakvu nalazimo u Newtona, Petrića, Boškovića, Kanta ili P. Daviesa.U članku se pregledno osvrćemo na principe i tzv. »velike uspjehe« što su nastali na mostu povezivanja suvremene kozmologije i religije: »sudjelujući« svemir i princip antropičnosti, te izazovni teorijski proboji u kozmologiji naših dana u sektoru M–teorije koji govore i o suparničkim scenarijima stanja svemira prije−velikog praska. Upitat ćemo se da li suvremena upućenost fizike i religije proizlazi možda iz karakteristične »eksperimentalne nemoći« moderne kozmologije koja trpi teški tehnički problem: iznalaženje golemih energija za eksperimentalna opažanja čestica kakve fizika Big Banga zahtijeva? To su, primjerice, energije oko 1019 GeV koje odgovaraju trenu od 10−43 sekunde nakon Velikog praska. U članku se, na kraju, na Kantovu tragu, promišlja jesu li suvremeni teorijski proboji što se čine u kvantoj kozmologiji na Planckovoj skali relevantni i za Kantovu kozmološku skalu − onu do koje se dolazi jednostavnim proširenjem kategorija do neuvjetovanog, što sintezu odvodi do stupnja što nadilazi svako moguće iskustvo.Uniting the great theories of physics – i.e. the theory of relativity, quantum mechanics and astroparticle physics – continues to remain a dream of both physics and the philosophy of science even at the beginning of the 21st century. In respect of the ultimate laws of the universe they all agree that there was a beginning and that the ultimate laws are those that have already ruled at the beginning of the evolution of the universe. The beginning of the universe implies its creation and necessarily points to a Creator – a religious God, to building a bridge between modern cosmology and religion. In regard to the above classical cosmologies correspond to the modern cosmological models of astroparticle theoretical physics, i.e. the reflections of the leading modern cosmologists: Einstein, Weinberg, Penrose, Hawking and others. The author highlights that even great international symposia on the history of science keep on reaffirming the complementary relation between science and religion as the true and only path to a universal horizon of the world in the 21st century. Einstein describes the state of affairs of the relation between science and religion exceptionally well with the following words: »Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind« . The creation of the world described in Genesis, particularly in The Beginning, is God’s creation: God creates by the agency of words or actions – immediately and in real time – in the phases of creation measured in days. Genesis is adorned by all the modern initial cosmological conditions and parameters: creation, the beginning and end of the universe, time and space, the structure and evolution of the universe, the role and meaning of life in the universe. Irrespective of the extent to which, scientifically speaking, it is a simple and short narrative, this theological cosmology – including all the living creatures in it and their hierarchy with man as king – can indeed serve as a role model to the modern cosmological models, since the universe created by God is a universe of matter and life. We can say that we design cosmological models and conduct simulations and great experiments in the high energy physics in order to reach and understand the way in which God created. On the other hand, however, in contemporary physics in general and in modern cosmology in particular, the concept of God is frequently »effectively« used either in defining certain problems or in interpreting scientific calculations, which must not be viewed as the impoverishment of the theological or religious eminence of the concept as can be found in Newton, Petrić, Bošković, Kant or Davies.This paper also surveys the principles and the so-called »great successes« achieved on the bridge that connects contemporary cosmology and religion: ‘participatory’ universe and the anthropic principle, as well as the challenging theoretical advances in today’s cosmology in the field of M−theory which also discuss rival ideas of the pre-big bang scenarios. The author also poses the following question: does the contemporary crossroad of physics and religion perhaps issue from modern cosmology’s peculiar »experimental helplessness« taking shape in a grave technical problem, i.e. finding immense energies for experimental particle observations required by the physics of the Big Bang? These energies are, for example, approximate to 1019 GeV , which corresponds to 10−43 of a second after the Big Bang. A thinking in the paper was finally concluded, on the Kant’s trail, whether the contemporary theoretical advances achieved in quantum cosmology at Planck’s scale are also relevant for Kant’s cosmological scale – the one arrived at by a simple expansion of the categories to the unconditioned, which brings synthesis to a point that surpasses all possible experience. (shrink)

An analysis of how Adorno's "pure" philosophy can be seen to provide a justification of the rationality required by critical theory.

Анотація. У статті розглянуто тісний зв´язок між зменшенням впливу Московського патріархату на суспільно-політичні процеси в Україні та відновленням українського культурно-цивілізаційного простору. А саме – поступове позбавлення православних віруючих проявів постімперського синдрому, зокрема установок, уявлень, поведінкових моделей тощо, пов´язаних із перебуванням українців у складі іншомовної та чужої за ментальністю й культурою імперії. Зазначено, що отримання православними віруючими України Томосу про визнання автокефалії і конституювання Православної Церкви України позитивно впливає не лише на розвиток самої ПЦУ, але й рівня патріотизму, відновлення і розвою (...) україномовного середовища, архетипних традицій, обрядів, поведінкових моделей тощо. Все це, у підсумку, сприяє українському поступу від азійської до європейської культурно-цивілізаційної моделі. (shrink)

The background to the regime : Demetrius of Phalerum's early years. The years in obscurity : the reigns of Philip, Alexander, and the age of Lycurgus -- Demetrius' rise to prominence : Athens after Alexander -- The decade of Demetrius : some introductory observations -- Demetrius the law-giver : the moral programme. Burial laws -- The gunaikonomoi and their laws -- The nomophulakes -- Demetrius and the ephêbeia -- The laws : an interpretation and discussion of the historical context -- (...) The institutions of democracy. The citizen body -- The assembly and council -- Elections and the archonship -- Jurisdiction in the courts : the graphê paranomôn and eisangelia -- The Areopagus -- The Athenian institutions : a summary -- Festivals and finances : the economic administration of Athens. Demetrius and the khorêgeia -- The other liturgies -- The Athenian economy, 317-307 -- Philosophy and the Phalerean regime. Demetrius' laws and the Peripatos -- The philosophical schools and political calumny -- Demetrius : orator, peripatetic, and patron of philosophers -- Athens and Cassander. The years 317-307 : a narrative history -- Athenian foreign policy under Demetrius of Phalerum -- Conclusion -- Appendix 1. The literary sources for the regime of Demetrius -- Appendix 2. Gunaikonomoi & nomophulakes : a comparison -- Appendix 3. The duties of the gunaikonomoi : a rejected suggestion. (shrink)

Thomas Piketty’s Capital and Ideology constitutes a landmark achievement in furthering our understanding of the history of inequality, and presents valuable proposals for constructing a future economic system that would allow us to transcend and move beyond contemporary forms of capitalism. This article discusses Piketty’s conceptions of ideology, property, and ‘inequality regimes’, and analyses his approach to social justice and its relation to the work of John Rawls. I examine how Piketty’s proposals for ‘participatory socialism’ would function not only to (...) redistribute income and wealth, but also to disperse economic power within society, and I discuss the complementary roles of redistribution and predistribution in his proposals, and Piketty’s place in a tradition of egalitarian political economy associated with James Meade and Anthony Atkinson. Having elaborated on Piketty’s account of the relationship between economic policy and ideational change, and his important idea of the ‘desacralization’ of private property, I develop ‘seven theses’ on his proposals for participatory socialism, examining areas in which his approach could be enhanced or extended, so as to create a viable twenty-first century version of democratic socialism. (shrink)

Este artigo tem como objetivo discutir a Dualidade Onda-Partícula e o Princípio da Incerteza como expressões de uma ideia mais geral de natureza interpretativa: o Princípio de Complementaridade, formulado pelo físico dinamarquês Niels Bohr. Trata-se, conforme defenderemos, de uma interpretação antirrealista que é fundada na objetividade da Física. A impossibilidade de utilização simultânea das leis de conservação de energia e momento (asserção de causalidade) e da coordenação espaço-temporal será problematizada, analisando-se uma possível incompatibilidade desta complementaridade com o antirrealismo. Discute-se, ainda, (...) o processo de medição quântica numa perspectiva conceitual e epistemológica, e o significado da constante de Planck, enfatizando a ideia de que, nesta interpretação ortodoxa, o vetor de estado, que contém todas as informações do sistema, tem um significado meramente epistêmico. Assim, no que pese a extraordinária precisão com que a teoria quântica permite predizer e comunicar resultados de uma medida em um contexto experimental bem definido, a teoria não se ocupa de responder o que é o objeto quântico, no sentido ontológico, conferindo-lhe assim seu aspecto antirrealista e, ao mesmo tempo, objetivo. (shrink)

The essays in this collection are not confined to any one period or any one subject.

An analysis of Rousseau's interactions with the 'philosophes' and how this shaped his political ideas in the age of Enlightenment.

This book discusses Thomistic commentary on the topics of physical premotion, grace, and the permission of sin, especially as these relate to the mysteries of predestination and reprobation. The author examines the fundamental tenets of the classical Thomistic account, and on this basis critiques the 20th century revisionist theories of Domingo Banez, Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange, Francisco Marin-Sola, Jacques Maritain, Bernard Lonergan, and Jean-Herve Nicolas. In conclusion, the implications of the traditional view are considered in light of the spiritual life.

This article argues that reality and virtuality are still very much phenomenologically distinguishable, although this might not be the case forever. I argue for two main types of virtuality – one inherently involved in the dynamic horizons of perceptual experiences, while the other is all of our experiences of digital images – in order to show that a particular possible instantiation of the latter type, namely “pure” mixed reality (MR), might come to blur and collapse various experiential categories in the (...) future, not least real and irreal, like never before. To show this, there are three main sections. First, I outline my understanding of the two basic types of virtuality, as understood from a classical phenomenological analysis. Second, I give an account of the most important family of “virtual technologies” relevant to the question at hand, namely virtual, augmented and mixed reality (VR, AR and MR respectively) technologies. After homing in on MR, I explain what “pure” MR is and how, through tactile holograms, this might change even basic experiential distinctions going forward, and not necessarily for the better. (shrink)

A concise and readable account of Burke's political philosophy.

The article seeks to explore the mindset of young émigré poets of the 1920s–1930s, to identify possible ideological influences on the literature and literary criticism of the first wave of Russian emigration and to determine the spiritual origins of the ‘Paris Note.’ Among many other influences on the young émigré poetry (Henri Bergson, Nikolai Berdyaev, Vasily Rozanov, Nikolai Fedorov and others) the influence of Lev Shestov’s philosophy is particularly evident. However, it manifested itself not directly but indirectly, mainly through the (...) Parisian critic Georgy Adamovich, who, unlike young poets, read Shestov carefully and appreciated him very highly. The philosophy of Adamovich’s poetry, which brought to life the phenomenon of the ‘Paris Note,’ had many parallels with Shestov’s thoughts. Hence the unexpected concordance between the central issues and artistic practice of the participants of the ‘Paris Note’ and Existentialism emerging in the 1930s in the literature of France. (shrink)

During the Soviet-German war, the Soviet upper party leadership of the USSR decided to unify state religious policy, leading the movement to unite various Protestant organizations into a single governing spiritual center of the six churches. The secular atheist power sought to fully subdue all religious movements in the USSR in order to establish full control over the believing population of the Soviet Union and the spiritual sphere of life of Soviet citizens. Not all believers liked this prospect, and they (...) tried to resist this "unbelievers" pressure. (shrink)

Empedocles' fr. 24 is known only from its quotation by Plutarch. The words as quoted leave themselves open to divergent interpretations. The context in Plutarch nonetheless holds out some hope of being able to decide which of the divergent interpretations would have matched the use that Empedocles himself made of the two verses in his poem.

Plato's paradox of relative change in size and number (154e7-155c7) cannot be understood unless the text is emended (see Part i of this article) and unless full weight is given to shifts of mood and tense and to the play of particles. The critical reader will also need to adapt to a non-Fregean concept of equality and to a definition of change different from Geach's definition of "Cambridge change''. Only so will the structure of the paradox explain young Theaetetus' bewilderment, (...) while also showing that the author of the dialogue was not himself a victim of the paradox he has created. (shrink)