Cicero's philosophical works are now exciting renewed interest, in part because he provides vital evidence of the views of the Greek philosophers of the Hellenistic age, and partly because of the light he casts on the intellectual life of first century Rome. This edition uses the 1997 Clarendon text by the acclaimed translator P.G. Walsh.

In its original form Dirac's equations have been expressed by use of the γ-matrices γμ, μ=0, 1, 2, 3. They are elements of the matrix algebra M 4 (ℂ). As emphasized by Hestenes several times, the γ-matrices are merely a (faithful) matrix representation of an orthonormal basis of the orthogonal spaceℝ 1,3, generating the real Clifford algebra Cl 1,3 . This orthonormal basis is also denoted by γμ, μ=0, 1, 2, 3. The use of the matrix algebra M 4 (ℂ) (...) to represent Cl 1,3 has some unsatisfactory aspects. The γ-matrices contain imaginary numbers as entries whereas Cl 1,3 is real. Moreover, as a matrix algebra Cl 1,3 is M 2 (ℍ) but only a part of M 4 (ℂ). For that reason we investigate in this paper several forms of Dirac's equations in terms of M 2 (ℍ) instead of M 4 (ℂ). In Section1 we survey Dirac's equations describing the interaction of matter with electromagnetic, electroweak, and strong fields. Section2 deals with electromagnetic/weak interactions employing M 2 (ℍ). Finally, in Section3 we deal with Dirac's equations for strong interactions between quarks. In contrast to su(2) ⊕ u(1), the Lie algebra su(3) is not isomorphic to any subalgebra of Cl 1,3 . Therefore we do not give a description of strong interactions by use of M 2 (ℍ). Instead of such an approach we describe these interactions using the space of quadruples of bivector fields in Cl 1,3 . The thus obtained description has remarkable formal resemblance to the original Dirac equations using wave functions with values in the linear spaceℂ 4. (shrink)

It is the impression of neurologists who deal with cancer patients that the incidence of neurologic complications of cancer is increasing (Posner 1995). ...

In all of the writings of Martin Buber there is one major theme which serves as a peg upon which he hangs most of his further thoughts. Nahum Glatzer uses this underlying theme, interpreting it as a "way of response," and brings together selections from many of Buber's works. Thus not only does the reader see the centrality of the "way of response" for this great Jewish thinker, but he captures a feeling for the man himself as well. The "way (...) of response" is not a concept expounded but a life lived, and the selections Glatzer employs in his book brings this out very well.—W. P. G. (shrink)

Drawing on both anthropology and philosophy, this paper argues that the profiled form of the human hand is a universally recognizable image; one whose significance transcends temporally and geographically defined cultural divisions, and represents the earliest known artistic symbol of the human form. The unique co-occurrence of five properties in the image of the human hand and the way it is recognized support this argument, including that it is: (1) unmistakably a hand, (2) unmistakably human, (3) a universal point of (...) interface, (4) a universal referent of scale, and (5) an easy way of making a complex shape. This underappreciated aspect of hand art makes these images among the most important forms of early artistic expression encountered in the prehistoric record. (shrink)

Although most people still behave like happy meat eaters, there are good reasons to think that many are in fact ambivalent about meat. Following up on earlier findings, in this paper we describe how, in focus groups, cultured meat triggered much discussion about meat, especially among older people. While young people wondered whether they would eat cultured meat products, older people thought about diet changes in a historical perspective and wondered if and how cultured meat might become a societal success. (...) Beneath the surface of everyday behavior, in which they followed mainstream norms, many of our research participants harbored moral concerns and in various ways expressed an interest in collective change. Reflecting on the focus group discussions, we suggest, first, that appreciating the important role of ambivalence in processes of moral change requires rethinking relations between ambivalence and morality. Second, the entanglement of ambivalence with ambiguity increases the “fluidity” of such processes of change: when it is no longer clear what exactly meat is, the meanings and experiences of eating it also become unsettled. This has implications for thinking about morality in times of change. Studying consumer choices cannot do justice to processes of ambivalence and ambiguity below the surface of behavior. More generally, the idea that morality resides in making up our minds about clear moral choices gives way to the need to become skilled, collectively as well as individually, in dealing imaginatively with ambivalence and ambiguity. (shrink)

This would be admirably clear and would give excellent sense, but it does entail the deletion of as an interpolation before Marshall is aware that is a word that is not likely to be used by an interpolator, but still feels able to propose its deletion and gives a detailed account of the way in which an interpolator might have approached the sentence. When one attempts to read the mind of an ancient scribe, all sorts of possibilities are opened up; (...) in this instance, it seems equally possible that a reader who, as Marshall suggests, was faced with … and was not able to understand the sentence because he failed to separate from and to see that was to be taken in the second clause, would have been inclined first at least to see whether sense could be obtained by separating from rather than to conjure up the word. (shrink)

The development of cultured meat has gained urgency through the increasing problems associated with meat, but what it might become is still open in many respects. In existing debates, two main moral profiles can be distinguished. Vegetarians and vegans who embrace cultured meat emphasize how it could contribute to the diminishment of animal suffering and exploitation, while in a more mainstream profile cultured meat helps to keep meat eating sustainable and affordable. In this paper we argue that these profiles do (...) not exhaust the options and that feelings as well as imagination are needed to explore possible future options. On the basis of workshops, we present a third moral profile, “the pig in the backyard”. Here cultured meat is imagined as an element of a hybrid community of humans and animals that would allow for both the consumption of animal protein and meaningful relations with domestic animals. Experience in the workshops and elsewhere also illustrates that thinking about cultured meat inspires new thoughts on “normal” meat. In short, the idea of cultured meat opens up new search space in various ways. We suggest that ethics can take an active part in these searches, by fostering a process that integrates feelings, imagination and rational thought and that expands the range of our moral identities. (shrink)

It is well known that Kant was stirred from his "dogmatic slumber" by the writings of David Hume. It is not well known that Hume had a similar effect upon his contemporary Thomas Reid. Yet it was Hume who led Reid to see that the path along which British Empiricism was moving might well end in Pyrrhonian skepticism-Hume's denial to the contrary. Interest in the writings of Reid has been increasing in recent years. One reason is that the range of (...) Reid's philosophical inquiry covers a number of areas which attract a good deal of attention today. Reid offers interesting and often significant insights into aspects of epistemology, philosophy of mind, aesthetics, and philosophy of action. His philosophy has contributed to the writings of such men as G. E. Moore, C. S. Peirce, R. Chisholm, P. Winch, to mention only a few. This new edition of An Inquiry Into the Human Mind follows closely upon the heels of new editions of Reid's Essays on the Active Powers of Man and Essays on the Intellectual Powers of Man, both of which appeared in 1969. In introducing this latest edition, Duggan chose to concentrate his attention upon one aspect of Reid's thought rather than offer a rapid and perhaps superficial treatment of the multifaceted thinking of this 18th century philosopher. Duggan's critical analysis of Reid's interpretation of sensation and perception is invaluable for introducing the reader to Reid's philosophical alternative to Hume. It was this alternative which came to be known as the philosophy of common sense.--W. P. G. (shrink)

Macquarrie is thorough in his coverage of the subject matter, precise in the exposition of his thought, and creative in his attempt to explicate the principles upon which a Christian theology for the twentieth century can be based. In Twentieth Century Religious Thought, Macquarrie concluded that religion and philosophy need each other. There he claimed that from the philosophical side attention should be paid to Martin Heidegger, and from the religious side one should look at Bultmann and Tillich. Macquarrie has (...) done just this in Principles of Christian Theology. This book is divided into three main parts: philosophical theology, symbolic theology, and applied theology. Although there is much of significance in the last two sections, it is in the first one that the author makes his distinctive contribution to theology. His approach is phenomenological. This leads him to an existential interpretation of theology. What he arrived at by means of this approach he called "Existential-Ontological Theism." Although there are some theologians who may have a few doubts as to whether or not Macquarrie has reached his conclusions by stretching some fundamental interpretations too far, it still remains a certainty that this book opens up a new and creative approach to some of the traditional concepts of theology which have been under so much fire in the last few decades.—W. P. G. (shrink)