The phenomenon of belief in demonic possessions always appears in times of crisis. The intention of this communication is to report the vision of Michel de Certeau, among others, on a fact of possession that occurred in Loudun and shows that religious motives, for some time in history, have been and are still being used for political manipulation. With great documentary and literary analysis, allied to intense research on the city's folklore and imagery, Certeau shows a perspective on the history (...) of religions in the least different. In the construction of his reasoning and his research, contradictory histories emerge, each at different times and places and each one connected in political and epistemological transformations, of Certeau not only maintains an unconventional authorial posture, but more importantly: it shows the reader That which is lost, missing and fragmented in the process of writing official history. (shrink)

Este artigo busca refletir sobre condições iniciais da sociedade pré- humana explicando como dois fenômenos biológicos – adaptativos, a bipedalização e neotenia, ajudaram a emergir no homem características próprias humanas tais como a solidariedade. Procura também lançar critica se a Teoria da Evolução pode ou não explicar comportamentos humanos complexos.

Aspectos biográficos -- Aspectos epistemológicos e conceituais -- Diálogos com outros autores -- Aplicação da pedagogia freireana.

The mathematical concept of pragmatic truth, first introduced in Mikenberg, da Costa and Chuaqui (1986), has received in the last few years several applications in logic and the philosophy of science. In this paper, we study the logic of pragmatic truth, and show that there are important connections between this logic, modal logic and, in particular, Jaskowski's discussive logic. In order to do so, two systems are put forward so that the notions of pragmatic validity and pragmatic truth can (...) be accommodated. One of the main results of this paper is that the logic of pragmatic truth is paraconsistent. The philosophical import of this result, which justifies the application of pragmatic truth to inconsistent settings, is also discussed. (shrink)

The issue of what consequences to draw from the existence of non-classical logical systems has been the subject of an interesting debate across a diversity of fields. In this paper the matter of alternative logics is considered with reference to a specific belief system and its propositions :the Azande are said to maintain beliefs about witchcraft which, when expressed propositionally, appear to be inconsistent. When the Azande have been presented with such inconsistencies, they either fail to see them as such (...) or else accept them as non-problematical. Is our knowledge of logical truths a relative and culturally determined phenomenon, or is there some (transcendent) criterion that allows us to adjudicate between alternative logical systems? The authors propose an approach for resolving disputes about the status of Azande reasoning which assumes a paraconsistent framework, thus providing a new perspective on this debate. (shrink)

The partial structures approach has two major components: a broad notion of structure (partial structure) and a weak notion of truth (quasi-truth). In this paper, we discuss the relationship between this approach and free logic. We also compare the model-theoretic analysis supplied by partial structures with the method of supervaluations, which was initially introduced as a technique to provide a semantic analysis of free logic. We then combine the three formal frameworks (partial structures, free logic and supervaluations), and apply the (...) resulting approach to accommodate semantic paradoxes. (shrink)

In this paper, we provide a new formulation of a coherence theory of truth using the resources of the partial structures approach − in particular the notions of partial structure and quasi-truth. After developing this new formulation, we apply the resulting theory to the philosophy of mathematics, and argue that it can be used to develop a new account of nominalism in mathematics. This application illustrates the strength and usefulness of the proposed formulation of a coherence theory of truth.Neste artigo, (...) propomos uma nova formulação de uma teoria coerentista da verdade utilizando os recursos da abordagem de estruturas parciais - em particular as noções de estrutura parcial e quase-verdade. Após desenvolver esta formulação, aplicamos a teoria resultante à filosofia da matemática, e argumentamos que aquela pode ser usada para desenvolver um novo tratamento do nominalismo na matemática. Esta aplicação ilustra a força e utilidade da formulação proposta de uma teoria coerentista da verdade. (shrink)

We formulate Suppes predicates for various kinds of space-time: classical Euclidean, Minkowski's, and that of General Relativity. Starting with topological properties, these continua are mathematically constructed with the help of a basic algebra of events; this algebra constitutes a kind of mereology, in the sense of Lesniewski. There are several alternative, possible constructions, depending, for instance, on the use of the common field of reals or of a non-Archimedian field (with infinitesimals). Our approach was inspired by the work of Whitehead (...) (1919), though our philosophical stance is completely different from his. The structures obtained are idealized constructs underlying extant, physical space-time. (shrink)

In this first paper of a series of works on the foundations of science, we examine the significance of logical and mathematical frameworks used in foundational studies. In particular, we emphasize the distinction between the order of a language and the order of a structure to prevent confusing models of scientific theories with first-order structures, and which are studied in standard model theory. All of us are, of course, bound to make abuses of language even in putatively precise contexts. This (...) is not a problem—in fact, it is part of scientific and philosophical practice. But it is important to be sensitive to the dierent uses that structure, model, and language have. In this paper, we examine these topics in the context of classical logic; only in the last section we touch upon briefly on non-classical ones. (shrink)

After mentioning the cogent connection between pure semantics and the particular set theoretical framework in which it is formulated, some issues regarding the conceptual status of semantics itself, as well as its relationship to logic, are concisely raised.

In this paper, we provide a new formulation of a coherence theory of truth using the resources of the partial structures approach − in particular the notions of partial structure and quasi-truth. After developing this new formulation, we apply the resulting theory to the philosophy of mathematics, and argue that it can be used to develop a new account of nominalism in mathematics. This application illustrates the strength and usefulness of the proposed formulation of a coherence theory of truth.

This paper is a historical companion to a previous one, in which it was studied the so-called abstract Galois theory as formulated by the Portuguese mathematician José Sebastião e Silva ). Our purpose is to present some applications of abstract Galois theory to higher-order model theory, to discuss Silva's notion of expressibility and to outline a classical Galois theory that can be obtained inside the two versions of the abstract theory, those of Mark Krasner and of Silva. Some comments are (...) made on the universal theory of structures. (shrink)

A situação atual do ser humano é deuma crise global na qual as ameaças de guerranuclear, de desastre ecológico e de colapsoeconômico apontam para o extermínio da biosferahumana. A racionalidade técnico-cientifica tornoupossível esta situação de crise, entretanto, elaprópria torna impossível a fundamentação racionalde uma ética que nos leve, em face do perigocomum, a assumir coletivamente a responsabilidade.Apel, porém, contesta a racionalidadetécnico-científica e defende a fundamentaçãoracional, intersubjetiva, de uma necessária orientaçãoético-politica capaz de lidar com os grandesdesafios que põem em risco a (...) civilizaçãohumana no final do século XX. (shrink)

AimTo evaluate the cognitive functioning of subjects practicing trance mediumship in Brazil.MethodThe study was based on the measurement of cognitive functions of 19 spirits mediums through neuropsychological tests such as the Brief Cognitive Screening Battery, the Verbal Fluency Test, the digit span test, the cube test, the five digit test and an evaluation of mental health through scales such as the Beck Depression Inventory, the Self-Report Questionnaire, and the Trauma History Questionnaire. The sample included the participation of spirit mediums divided (...) into two groups. The more experienced group with 11 subjects had more than 10 years of mediumistic practice, while the other less experienced group with 8 subjects had 1–5 years of experience. The inclusion criteria were psychophonic mediums with regular trance practices for at least one year. The data collected were analyzed using the SPSS statistical package.ResultsRegarding performance on the BCSB and digit span test, all subjects reached scores at the median or higher in comparison to standardized scores of Brazilians. Scores of 90% on the cube test and 42% on the FAS were reached in comparison to median or higher values, versus the median of standardized scores among Brazilians. On the FDT, we found statistical significance in the choice stage, with higher performance of subjects whose initial age of trance recognition occurred before 21 years old. On the BDI scale, no participant met the criteria for major depression. The SRQ showed an incidence of common mental disorders in 21% of the sample, which was more prevalent in the LEG.ConclusionThe cognitive functioning of subjects who practice trance mediumship in Brazil is associated with cognitive health. Executive dysfunction may be a tendency in LEG. However, an incidence of common mental disorders in the LEG was observed. Executive processing was higher in the subgroup with early practices of recognizing the phenomenon. (shrink)

Reviewed Works:Chris Mortensen, Inconsistent Mathematics.Chris Mortensen, Peter Lavers, Category Theory.William James, Closed Set Sheaves and Their Categories.Chris Mortensen, Joshua Cole, Foundations: Provability, Truth and Sets.

In his thesis 'Para uma Teoria Geral dos Homomorfismos' (1944) the Portuguese mathematician José Sebastião e Silva constructed an abstract or generalized Galois theory, that is intimately linked to F. Klein’s Erlangen Program and that foreshadows some notions and results of today’s model theory; an analogous theory was independently worked out by M. Krasner in 1938. In this paper, we present a version of the theory making use of tools which were not at Silva’s disposal. At the same time, we (...) tried to keep in mind, so much as possible, the gist of his standpoint. (shrink)

In order to develop an account of scientific rationality, two problems need to be addressed: (i) how to make sense of episodes of theory change in science where the lack of a cumulative development is found, and (ii) how to accommodate cases of scientific change where lack of consistency is involved. In this paper, we sketch a model of scientific rationality that accommodates both problems. We first provide a framework within which it is possible to make sense of scientific revolutions, (...) but which still preserves some (partial) relations between old and new theories. The existence of these relations help to explain why the break between different theories is never too radical as to make it impossible for one to interpret the process in perfectly rational terms. We then defend the view that if scientific theories are taken to be quasi-true, and if the underlying logic is paraconsistent, it's perfectly rational for scientists and mathematicians to entertain inconsistent theories without triviality. As a result, as opposed to what is demanded by traditional approaches to rationality, it's not irrational to entertain inconsistent theories. Finally, we conclude the paper by arguing that the view advanced here provides a new way of thinking about the foundations of science. In particular, it extends in important respects both coherentist and foundationalist approaches to knowledge, without the troubles that plague traditional views of scientific rationality. (shrink)

Fertility levels have dropped substantially in Latin America in recent decades, fuelled by increased contraceptive use and notably a method mix skewed towards female sterilization. This study examined choice of female sterilization in four Latin American countries: Brazil, Colombia, the Dominican Republic and Peru. Data were drawn from national Demographic and Health Surveys conducted in 1995s reproductive histories to consider the effects of a number of sociodemographic and contextual determinants as they pertained to status at the moment of the event. (...) The results revealed that the likelihood of a womans propensity to choose sterilization. (shrink)

Durante aproximadamente vinte séculos o que se entendia predominantemente como ciência era a ontologia clássica, entretanto, a partir da modernidade ela começou a perder o status de cientificidade e foi a filosofia crítica de Kant que de forma radical apontou para a sua impossibilidade enquanto ciência. Hegel, porém, acha que a ciência só é verdadeiramente efetiva enquanto ontologia, de modo que ele toma como tarefa de sua filosofia o resgate da ontologia enquanto ciência. Neste horizonte, Hegel através da ontologização da (...) lógica se propõe a resgatar a ontologia enquanto ciência, porém esta é uma nova concepção de ontologia e se apresenta como crítica em relação à ontologia clássica e a crítica kantiana à ontologia clássica. (shrink)

RESUMO O objetivo deste artigo é analisar o problema da extensão e do conteúdo da iluminação uma vez que se adote a interpretação regulacionista para a teoria do conhecimento de Agostinho. O regulacionismo, tese defendida por Etienne Gilson, afirma que a iluminação divina do intelecto humano diz respeito ao caráter necessário dos conhecimentos alcançados pela inteligência, e não sobre o conteúdo do conhecimento; assim, a iluminação não teria por função auxiliar na formação de conceitos, mas teria a função de julgar (...) a adequação desses conceitos à verdade. Entretanto, interpretações desse tipo trazem um problema quanto à autonomia cognitiva humana, já que o intelecto seria constrangido externamente em relação ao seu conhecimento. Trataremos, ainda, da crítica sobre a exagerada ênfase na epistemologia que a hipótese regulacionista reverbera. Por fim, e de acordo com o regulacionismo, buscaremos dar uma resposta coerente ao problema da extensão do conhecimento oriundo da iluminação, respeitando tanto a singularidade do raciocínio humano quanto a primazia do conhecimento divino. ABSTRACT The aim of this article is to analyze the issue of the extension and the content of the illumination once the regulationist interpretation for the theory of knowledge of Augustine is adopted. Regulationism, a thesis advocated by Etienne Gilson, states that the divine illumination of the human intellect concerns the necessary character of the knowledge attained by intelligence, not the content of knowledge; Thus, illumination would not have it as an auxiliary function in the formation of concepts, but would have the function of judging the adequacy of these concepts to the truth. However, interpretations of this kind bring with it a problem regarding human cognitive autonomy, given the intellect would be constrained externally in relation to its knowledge. We will also deal with the criticism about the exaggerated emphasis on epistemology in which the regulationist hypothesis reverberates. Finally, and according to regulationism, we will seek to give a coherent answer to the issue of the extension of knowledge from illumination, respecting both the uniqueness of human reasoning and the primacy of divine knowledge. (shrink)

Com a análise conceitual da arte e da expressão artística, este artigo situa a discussão do ensino de arte em síntese aos pressupostos críticos de Walter Benjamin. Busca-se, primeiramente, o sentido da arte no contexto de seu surgimento, sua valorização cultural e sua função social, para, posteriormente, mediante pressupostos da Teoria Crítica da Sociedade, verificar-se as contradições com sua desintegração na atualidade, apropriada pela indústria cultural como valor de mercadoria. Nesse trajeto, a reprodução técnica da obra de arte tornase o (...) fundamento categórico para a crítica e o desnudamento das formas decadentes sob as quais a arte é “visualizada” na modernidade. A redução das formas estéticas de percepção da arte expressa-se no desaparecimento da experiência, na incapacidade de narrar, na crise da transmissão, enfim, no ensino de arte. (shrink)

O presente artigo analisa a visão dos Estados Unidos da América por D. Francisco d’Assis Almeida Portugal (1796-1870), ao longo do século XIX. Diplomata, ministro e parlamentar da monarquia constitucional portuguesa, foi um arguto observador da evolução da política externa da república americana no relativo à América Central, África Ocidental e Europa. D. Francisco d’Assis Almeida Portugal dedicou especial atenção à escravatura, ao federalismo e à guerra civil americana (1861-1865). Nas suas reflexões não acredita na viabilidade dos EUA, considerando-o um (...) estado falhado. (shrink)

Este artigo tem como objetivo apresentar as bases nacionais que constituem a formação do homem burguês e a estruturação do processo educacional que se inicia a partir do século XVII, culminando no florescimento da escola pública na França no século XIX, estendendo-se paulatinamente no Brasil no século XX. O artigo tem como problema investigar se o modelo formativo estruturado na sociedade brasileira contemporaneamente envolve a formação integral do cidadão ou apenas o seu ajustamento à dinâmica social. Face às condições histórico-sociais (...) que imperam nos três últimos séculos, com maior ênfase na segunda metade do século XX, a formação humana sofre duros golpes e, mediante a estruturação da escola pública, a educação dirige-se para atender a ideologia e a dinâmica produtiva da estrutura capitalista do pós-guerra. Retomando autores clássicos como John Locke, Jean Jacques Rousseau, Immanuel Kant e Karl Marx a análise passa a apresentar o cenário em que se constitui a tendência liberal europeia em compreender a formação como parte do processo civilizatório. O texto procura expor que a perspectiva educacional do século XXI, se coloca como um modelo de educação aportado pelos interesses do capital, o qual interfere diretamente na execução de uma educação que poderia ser autorreflexiva e crítica, mas que se mostra oficialmente funcional, adaptativa e instrumental, sem perder de vista o ideal liberal burguês. (shrink)

We present an axiomatic framework for semantics that can be applied to natural and formal languages. Our main goal is to suggest a very simple mathematical model that describes fundamental cognitive aspects of the human brain and that can still be applied to artificial intelligence. One of our main results is a theorem that allows us to infer syntactical properties of a language out of its corresponding semantics. The role of pragmatics in semantics in our mathematical framework is also discussed.

The structure of natural languages is usually studied from three major different but interconnected points of view: syntax, semantics, and pragmatics. If we consider that the main purpose of natural languages is communication, we should consider another dimension for languages, which deals with the influence of internal states of communicating individuals on meanings. Such a dimension we refer to as internalism. Within this context, internalism cannot be confused with psycholinguistics, in the same way pragmatics cannot be confused with sociolinguistics. In (...) particular, we argue, language is tied to its systematic use. This view leads us to a non-realist perspective on linguistics. We analyze the role of natural languages into dialogues, by comparing our proposal to the dialogical approach to logic, which considers a dialogue as a game. Within our approach, there is no way to guarantee that two parties involved in a dialogue are playing the same game, due to unavoidable differences in their respective internal states. Another contribution of this paper is to argue that semantics plays a more fundamental role than syntax in the cognitive acquisition of languages. (shrink)

This article reflects on childhood times based on the words chrónos, kairós and aión, which the Greeks use to conceptualize time, in dialogue with different authors, such as Kohan, Pohlmann, Skliar, Kohan and Fernandes. In the pedagogical field, we explore how Pedagogy of Childhood has focused on the importance of childhood temporality and children’s agency, with contributions from Hoyuelos, Parrini, Aguilera et al., Barbosa, Oliveira-Formosinho e Araújo, Oliveira-Formosinho, Pinazza and Gobbi. We reflect on what forms of organizing time are possible (...) when we think about children and their childhoods. Would it be a continuous and chronological time, a time of opportunity for the instant or the timeless intensity of the aiónic? Would it be possible to open spaces in school for other temporalities, given its immersion in chronological time, and its extreme emphasis on routine? We seek a relationship between forms of temporality, philosophy, and early education in order to explore alternative possibilities in the relationship between child and the school context, and conclude that, since the child’s is the aiónic time of intense experience, it is in the heightened dynamic immediacy and the multiple symbolic languages of play that it may be possible to create pedagogical structures that provide a dwelling for childhood temporality. (shrink)

Espinosa nunca explicitou uma teoria sobre educação. Contudo, a leitura da sua obra dá-nos pistas para pensar a educação. A via para o conhecimento, que implica a interação de aspectos cognitivos e afetivos, dá-se como encontro daquele que se conhece com o conhecido, resultando no verdadeiro conhecimento, o qual é indissociável da felicidade suprema e do aumento de potência. O ignorante e o sábio são duas figuras extremas do devir-ético enquanto possibilidade de transformação inerente à existência humana, permitindo-nos refletir sobre (...) a relação ensino/aprendizagem. (shrink)

Objective: This study aims to compare the acoustic vocal analysis results of a group of transgender women relative to those of cisgender women.Methods: Thirty transgender women between the ages of 19 and 52 years old participated in the study. The control group was composed of 31 cisgender women between the ages of 20 and 48 years old. A standardized questionnaire was administered to collect general patient data to better characterize the participants. The vowel /a/ sounds of all participants were collected (...) and analyzed by the Multi-Dimensional Voice Program advanced system.Results: Statistically significant differences between cisgender and transgender women were found on 14 measures: fundamental frequency, maximum fundamental frequency, minimum fundamental frequency, standard deviation of fundamental frequency, absolute jitter, percentage or relative jitter, fundamental frequency relative average perturbation, fundamental frequency perturbation quotient, smoothed fundamental frequency perturbation quotient, fundamental frequency variation, absolute shimmer, relative shimmer, voice turbulence index, and soft phonation index. The mean fundamental frequency value was 159.046 Hz for the cases and 192.435 Hz for the controls.Conclusion: Through glottal adaptations, the group of transgender women managed to feminize their voices, presenting voices that were less aperiodic and softer than those of cisgender women. (shrink)

O estudo apresentado aqui trata da investigação do conceito de amor para o filósofo dinamarquês Søren Kierkegaard. Nessa perspectiva, o devido conceito está relacionado ao mandamento cristão de amor ao próximo. Esclarecemos, portanto o sentido do “dever amar” e o “próximo” a quem se refere. A partir disso, observamos algumas críticas a essa noção de amor elaboradas pelo filósofo alemão Theodor Adorno, onde expõe a impossibilidade do amor ser um dever e de amar um sujeito que, a priori, não deve (...) possuir rosto. (shrink)

No capítulo X de A Estrutura das Revoluções Científicas (1962) de Thomas Kuhn o conceito de paradigma figura como elemento filosófico central na tensão que se estabelece entre o âmbito perceptivo/cognitivo versus o âmbito ontológico do “problema da mudança de mundo”. No presente artigo, apresento alguns desdobramentos do conceito de paradigma com o objetivo de indicar dois sentidos principais para o termo subjacentes às formulações kuhnianas no capítulo X e que são desenvolvidos na obra tardia do autor, a saber: (1) (...) o ‘paradigma’ como exemplar, apresentado em “Postscript – 1969” (1970) e “Seconds thoughts on paradigms” (1977); e (2) o ‘paradigma’ como léxico, apresentado principalmente, em, “Metaphor in science” (1979), “Commensurability, comparability, communicability” (1983), “Possible worlds in history of science” (1989), “The road since Structure” (1990) e “Afterwords” (1993). Através do conceito de exemplar, explicito a função cognitiva que os paradigmas exercem nos membros das comunidades científicas: a singularidade dos exemplares reside não apenas no fato de eles serem exemplos-padrão para os membros de uma comunidade, mas em serem expressão de um processo cognitivo mais geral que já está pressuposto no desenvolvimento da atividade científica. Através do conceito de léxico, explicito a função constitutiva dos paradigmas como princípios a priori, porém dinâmicos e relativizados, como condições de possibilidade para a experiência do conhecimento, sendo, em particular, determinantes na experiência do sujeito no âmbito científico. Nesse sentido, a articulação teórica proposta nesse artigo evidencia que a análise do empreendimento científico na Estrutura considera processos cognitivos e ontológicos do sujeito epistêmico expressos por meio do conceito de paradigma. No entanto, essa compreensão é obscurecida diante do emprego polissêmico e impreciso do termo no decorrer de toda a obra e que se apresenta de modo particularmente conflitante no capítulo X. Palavras-chave: exemplar; léxico; paradigma; mudança de mundo; Thomas Kuhn. (shrink)

O presente artigo trata dos conceitos de desejo metafísico, desejo do infinito e rosto na ética de Emmanuel Lévinas. A assimetria do desejo e a abertura à exterioridade desloca a reflexão ética do eixo da tradição filosófica moderna ocidental produzindo uma ruptura com a quadratura egológica do cárcere ontológico do mundo moderno. Este deslocamento e esta abertura permitem o acesso ao rosto que se revela e se contrai no mistério do desejo metafísico e do desejo do infinito. No mistério do (...) rosto, na abertura à exterioridade e na assimetria do desejo se abre a possibilidade da bondade como justa medida da relação entre uns e outros. (shrink)

O que é ser “mulher”? Como se reconhece alguém que se identifica como mulher? Há diferenças entre mulheres? O significado da palavra mulher “do latim mulĭer, uma mulher é uma pessoa do sexo feminino. Trata-se de um termo que se utiliza em contraste a homem, conceito que nomeia o ser humano do sexo masculino”. A construção da mulher parece depender da existência do homem, a quem se opõe. Mulher: “pessoa do sexo feminino que já tendo chegado à sua puberdade ou (...) à idade adulta. Por conseguinte, a menina passa a ser mulher, de acordo com os padrões culturais, a partir da sua primeira menstruação”. Além do significado biológico, há também a construção do “ser mulher” em diferentes áreas do conhecimento e da cultura. (shrink)

Based on da Costa's and French's notions of partial structures and pragmatic truth, this paper examines two possible characterizations of the concept of empirical adequacy, one depending on the notion of partial isomorphism, the other on the hierarchy of partial models of phenomena, and both compatible with an empiricist view. These formulations can then be employed to illuminate certain aspects of scientific practice.An empirical theory must single out a specific part of the world, establish reference to that part, and (...) say—by way of contingent, substantial claim about the world—that its models fit that. Now, how exactly can this be done? Bas C. van Fraassen. (shrink)

RESUMO O objetivo do artigo é proceder a uma análise da personagem Alison, esposa de Bath, na obra Os contos de Canterbury, de Geofrey Chaucer. Para isso, com base em Bakhtin (2010, 2018), em particular a partir da perspectiva da carnavalização, somada à teoria da performatividade de gênero de Butler (1988, 2017), pretendemos mostrar como a referida personagem subverte, carnavalizadamente, certos textos bíblicos referentes ao papel da mulher no matrimônio. Dessa forma, nesse estudo, para efeito de análise, tomamos da obra (...) chaucereana o prólogo da esposa de Bath visto que nele a personagem elabora, de modo mais evidente, sua relação tensa e, ao mesmo tempo cômica, com a Bíblia. Da análise feita, concluímos, assim, que a esposa de Bath, de maneira carnavalizada, performatiza o gênero feminino em pleno período medieval, mostrando-se subversiva aos estereótipos da época ao profanar certas orientações bíblicas, tanto do Velho como do Novo Testamento, relativamente ao que é ser mulher e esposa. (shrink)

The aim of this paper is to provide a unified account of scientific and mathematical change in a thoroughly empiricist setting. After providing a formal modelling in terms of embedding, and criticising it for being too restrictive, a second modelling is advanced. It generalises the first, providing a more open-ended pattern of theory development, and is articulated in terms of da Costa and French's partial structures approach. The crucial component of scientific and mathematical change is spelled out in terms (...) of partial embeddings. Finally, an application of this second pattern is made, with the examination of the early formulation of set theory. (shrink)

In this paper a constructive empiricist account of scientific change is put forward. Based on da Costa's and French's partial structures approach, two notions of empirical adequacy are initially advanced (with particular emphasis on the introduction of degrees of empirical adequacy). Using these notions, it is shown how both the informativeness and the empirical adequacy requirements of an empiricist theory of scientific change can then be met. Finally, some philosophical consequences with regard to the role of structures in this (...) context are drawn.Now, we daily see what science is doing for us. This could not be unless it taught us something about reality; the aim of science is not things themselves, as the dogmatists in their simplicity imagine, but the relations between things; outside those relations there is no reality knowable. (shrink)