The patient’s autonomy and well-being are sometimes seen as central to the ethical justification of voluntary euthanasia (VE) and physician-assisted suicide (PAS). While respecting the patient’s wish to die plausibly promotes the patient’s autonomy, it is less obvious how alleviating the patient’s suffering through death benefits the patient. Death eliminates the subject, so how can we intelligibly maintain that the patient’s well-being is promoted when she/he no longer exists? This article interrogates two typical answers given by philosophers: (a) that death (...) confers a well-being benefit in the sense that it actualises a comparatively better life course for the patient (ie, a shorter life with less net suffering), and (b) that death is beneficial because non-existence which entails no suffering is superior to an existence filled with suffering. A close examination of the two senses in which the patient might incur a well-being benefit reveals problems that preclude physicians delivering VE/PAS in the name of beneficence. (shrink)

I have three types of interrelated comments. First, on the choice of the proposed criteria, I argue against any list and for a system of criteria. Second, on grading, I suggest modifications with respect to consciousness and development. Finally, on the choice of “theories” for evaluation, I argue for Edelman's theory of neuronal group selection instead of connectionism (classical or not).

This is the first of a two-volume monograph on the Unification of Artificial Intelligence and Psychology. It unifies the topics of representation, meaning, thinking, communication, and understanding. Such a unification requires the establishment of a novel, fully explicated, theoretical construct —noémon system— that replaces all the inadequately developed concepts that historically have been used as constitutive notions of cognitive science. The space of noémon systems encompasses an awe-inspiring variety of noémon species and an increasing variety of artificially noémon entities and (...) hybrid noémon systems. As such, it is a superspace of the space of phenomena addressed by cognitive science. The theory of noémon systems (TNS) described in this two-volume monograph is envisaged as the first step towards an emerging science of noémon systems. (shrink)

This book explores the overlooked but vital theoretical relationships between R. M. Hare, Alan Gewirth, and Jürgen Habermas. The author claims their accounts of value, while failing to address classic virtue-theoretical critiques, bear the seeds of a resolution to the ultimate question "What is most valuable?" These dialectical approaches, as claimed, justify a reinterpretation of value and value judgment according to the Carnapian conception of an empirical-linguistic framework or grammar. Through a further synthesis with the work of Philippa Foot and (...) Thomas Magnell, the author shows that "value" would be literally meaningless without four fundamental phenomena which constitute such a framework: Logical Judgment, Conceptual Synthesis, Conceptual Abstraction, and Freedom. As part of the 'grammar of goodness,' the excellence of these phenomena, in a highly concrete way, constitute the essence of the greatest good, as this book explains.. (shrink)

The best developed formulation of closed system quantum theory that handles multiple-time statements, is the consistent (or decoherent) histories approach. The most important weaknesses of the approach is that it gives rise to many different consistent sets, and it has been argued that a complete interpretation should be accompanied with a natural mechanism leading to a (possibly) unique preferred consistent set. The existence of multiple consistent sets becomes more problematic because it allows the existence of contrary inferences [1]. We analyse (...) the conceptual difficulties that arise from the existence of multiple consistent sets and provide a suggestion for a natural set selection criterion. This criterion does not lead to a unique physical consistent set, however it evades the existence of consistent sets with contrary inferences. The criterion is based on the concept of preclusion and the requirement that probability one propositions and their inferences should be non-contextual. The allowed consistent sets turn-out to be compatible with coevents which are the ontology of an alternative, histories based, formulation [2–4]. (shrink)

Following the argument of Pusey et al. (in Nature Phys. 8:476, 2012), new interest has been raised on whether one can interpret state-vectors (pure states) in a statistical way (ψ-epistemic theories), or if each one of them corresponds to a different ontological entity. Each interpretation of quantum theory assumes different ontology and one could ask if the PBR argument carries over. Here we examine this question for histories formulations in general with particular attention to the co-event formulation. State-vectors appear as (...) the initial state that enters into the quantum measure. While the PBR argument goes through up to a point, the failure to meet some of the assumptions they made does not allow one to reach their conclusion. However, the author believes that the “statistical interpretation” is still impossible for co-events even if this is not proven by the PBR argument. (shrink)

In this article, I try to present some effects of the acceptance of nonconceptual content of perception in the realism problem. After having enhancement as main the problem of discrimination observable - unobservable into the conflict of realism with the constructive empiricism, I criticize a particular aspect, that nonconceptual content of perception strengthens the realistic position. Arguing that, while the starting point of the realist position is the existence of entities of common sense, there is nothing that assures us that (...) the world of our daily life consists of objective, specific, unambiguous entities, that is made up the deep structure of the world - as realists believes - and entities are not just "relevant" objects, which are meant only for our own biological species. These “subjective for species” entities we are obliged, as a particular species, to percept with particular perceptual organs in order to satisfy specific needs, and manage to survive ourselves in a particular environment. (shrink)

Tomos II. Koinōnikes epistēmes kai epistēmes tou anthrōpou: ho gallikos dromos tēs ennoias.

(1997). A rudimentary theory of information: Consequences for information science and information systems. World Futures: Vol. 49, The Quest for a Unified Theory of Information, pp. 275-286.

The Web may critically transform the way we understand the activity of proving. The Web as a collaborative medium allows the active participation of people with different backgrounds, interests, viewpoints, and styles. Mathematical formal proofs are inadequate for capturing Web-based proofs. This article claims that Web provings can be studied as a particular type of Goguen's proof-events. Web-based proof-events have a social component, communication medium, prover-interpreter interaction, interpretation process, understanding and validation, historical component, and styles. To demonstrate its claim, the (...) article discusses the Kumo and Polymath projects, both of which employ Web-based communication as part of proving. Web proving is a novel type of proving activity that may have a serious impact on the change in mathematical practices, despite the fact that it is not currently a universally acceptable methodology. (shrink)

I propose a physicalist theory of consciousness that is an extension of the theory of noémona species. The proposed theory covers the full consciousness spectrum from animal to machine and its huma...

Absolut-realistisch und als solche idealistisch ist die Marxsche Geschichtsphilosophie a) insofern, als derer «Kategorien... nicht mehr oder minder reflexive Aussagen über etwas Seiendes oder Werdendes, sondern bewegende Formen der Materie selbst», ja sogar vielmehr, logisch-historische dialektische Realstrukturen des als real vorkonzipierten weltgeschichtlichen dialektischen Gesamtprozesses selbst sind; und b) insofern, als sie ihren Erkenntnisstandpunkt nicht kritisch hinterfragt, sondern die Sinnerkenntnis des weltgeschicht- lichen Prozesses auf definitive und damit dogmatisch-metaphysische Weise sich erschlossen zu haben vorgibt.

Based on the philosophical and scientific analysis of the conflict between the Catholic ecclesiastic doctrine and wisdom of «living faith» the article discovers the algorithm of counteractions of philosophy of conformity and non-conformism in response to the pressure of modern civilization changes. It is proved that the cost of these two paths for the Catholic Church is about the same, because none of them is effective in establishing an overall upgrade strategy and outlining general perspectives. Truly constructive for the Catholic (...) Church, in this situation, may be the «Middle Way», renewal without a «surrender» in the eye of the world. (shrink)

Late Protestantism - Baptists, Pentecostals, Adventists, and Jehovah's Witnesses have existed in Ukraine for over a hundred years. Under Soviet rule, these denominations were under constant administrative pressure, subject to party-ideological criticism, atheistic propaganda. The Pentecostals were virtually banned and non-registrable, since they were forcibly annexed by evangelical Baptist Christians after the August 1945 state agreement initiated by the Moscow authorities. From the very beginning of the establishment of Soviet power in Western Ukraine, Jehovah's Witnesses were declared an "anti-Soviet sect" (...) and were therefore banned. In March 1951, an act of genocide was committed against Jehovah's Witnesses: according to the "Memorandum Note of the USSR Ministry of State Security", approved by J. Stalin's personal signature, all Jehovah's Witnesses, together with their families, were sent from Ukraine to eternal settlement in Siberia. without the right of return to Ukraine, and their homes and property were confiscated by the state. (shrink)

An important event of the Orthodox world of the last year was the Cathedral, which took place on June 19-28 on. Mole. The extraordinary nature of this council is that it was convened 1229 years after the last Ecumenical Council in 787, which was not yet split into Orthodoxy and Catholicism of a single Christian Church. The Catholic Church then independently held its 22 councils, the last of which - the Second Vatican Council was held in 1962-1965. In Orthodoxy, extraterrestrial (...) silence prevailed, since its hierarchs believed that for the "fullness and maturity" of the Christian Church there was enough canonical work of the seven Ecumenical Councils that took place during 325-787 years. (shrink)

The article analyzes the impact of modern digital technologies used in the information society on democracy, human rights, and the rule of law in general. Both positive and negative aspects of such impact are considered. The importance of this topic is due to the need for further deepening of scientific knowledge related to the development of the rule of law in the information society and insufficient research from the legal point of view of current theoretical problems of the rule of (...) law in the digital era. The purpose of this article is to study the rule of law as a principle of the modern state of the 21st century and to study the problems in matters of human rights that have arisen with the development of modern digital technologies. The study of this issue is quite relevant, considering the conclusions, made as a result of our work, can be taken into account in further theoretical developments of international and national human rights protection aimed at improving the effectiveness of human rights judicial protection and improving current legislation. (shrink)

The so-called international colloquium, which took place in Kyiv on April 13-14, 1994, was attended by scientists, university professors and religious figures. In numerous reports and reports, many interesting questions were raised about the history and contemporary activities of Protestant churches in Ukraine - ECH, HVJ, ADS, and others.

The article contains general definition of the phenomenon of hypertext and the Internet in a virtual consciousness philosophy of post-modernism. Describes the phenomenon of hypertext as nonlinear forms of computer and literary texts, its structural units and the main aspects of the organization of hypertext. The article contains the detailed analysis of publications on the issue of hypertext and the history of investigation of this problem. The specific features which allow defining of hypertext as the brand new phenomenon are analyzed (...) in the article. Among them we can mention the following points: - Hypertext is constantly updateable, amendable, editable; - Hypertext has neither any set beginning or the end nor any hierarchical structure; - Hypertext has decentralized nature; - The specific features of hypertext are manifested in text transformations. If an "ordinary" text has linear character, and one can move in its "area" only in the directions limited by one and the same space, then rhizomorphic hypertext opens new "transverse" changes in the text Universe. The way of organizing of text in Internet corresponds to the major ideas of "nomadology" and "Rhizome" developed by Gilles Deleuze and F?lix Guattari in their Capitalism and Schizophrenia project. Postmodernist electronic hypertext is a phenomenon by its nature opposite to modernist printed text. This allows us to consider hypertext as one of the features of coming of "post- Gutenberg era". Hypertext fundamentally changes the way of construction of text environment - to replace the one-dimensional text comes multi-dimensional. In the phenomenon of the global information network, created on the basis of hypertext technology, - intertextual fiber, series of texts, which intercross with other texts, produce new texts. In conclusions of the article - the characterization of hypertext as postmodernist phenomenon is given and the major views of postmodernism which are represented in hypertext - plurality, decentration, fragmentariness, intertextuality - are provided. (shrink)

This paper considers the impact of the AI R&D programme on human society and the individual human being on the assumption that a full realisation of the engineering objective of AI, namely, construction of human-level, domain-independent intelligent entities, is possible. Our assumption is essentially identical tothe maximum progress scenario of the Office of Technology Assessment, US Congress.Specifically, the first section introduces some of the significant issues on the relational nexus among work, education and the human-machine boundary. In particular, based on (...) a Russellian conception of rationality I briefly argue that we need to change our related conceptions of work, employment and free time, through a new human-centred education. On the human-machine boundary problem, I make a couple of tentative suggestions and put forward some crucial open questions.Section two discusses the impact of the emerging machine intelligence on human nature both as modification of its self-image, keeping human nature itself unchanged, and its potential for altering human nature itself. I briefly argue that: (i) in a certain context, the question of the supremacy or uniqueness of human intelligence loses much, if not all, of its ‘weight’; and (ii) appearance of Robot-X species would immortalise the human spirit. (shrink)

Predictive processing as a computational motif of the neocortex needs to be elaborated into theories of higher cognitive functions that include simulating future behavioural outcomes. We contribute to the neuroscientific perspective of predictive processing as a foundation for the proposed representational architectures of the mind.

Events that preceded the Brest Union in 1596 followed by her has long been the subject of numerical research. Little is a historical event like The Berne Union has found such a wide coverage in history.

Розроблені у 1970–1980 рр. постіндустріальні теорії продовжують зберігати свій вплив і значущість для наукових досліджень, прийняття політичних рішень та формування домінантних у суспільстві уявлень про майбутнє. Водночас, поза увагою часто залишаються суперечності, закладені в основі цих теорій, та їхній неоднорідний зміст. Розвинутий у статті підхід розглядає постіндустріалізм як результат поєднання критичного аналізу суспільних процесів, що властиві минулому і теперішньому, з ідеологічними компонентами та образами майбутнього, котрі мають явні ознаки утопії. Виокремлення утопічних елементів із найвідоміших концепцій постіндустріального та інформаційного суспільства дає (...) змогу зробити висновок про їхній тісний зв’язок із соціалістичними і технологічними утопіями доіндустріальної та індустріальної епох. Головні особливості постіндустріальної утопії зумовлені намаганнями її авторів узгодити власний ідеальний образ майбутнього, що радикально відрізняється від індустріальної дійсності, із притаманним індустріалізму лінеарним метапатерном та ідеєю безальтернативного прогресу. (shrink)

This article is concerned with the concept of ambiguity in argumentation. Ambiguity in linguistics lies on the coexistence of two possibly interpretations of an utterance, while the role of contextual factors and background/encyclopedic knowledge within a specific society seems to be crucial. From a systemic point of view, Halliday has proposed three main language functions (meta-functions): a) ideational function, b) interpersonal function, c) textual function. Language could reflect speaker’s experience of his external and internal world, interpersonal relationships and organization of (...) text, respectively. Lexico-grammatical choices under a micro-level perspective and context (the environment of language) may lead to inconsistent interpretations through semantic or syntactic ambiguities. In philosophy and argumentation logic, strategies of ambiguity have been investigated by Aristotle, since the first sophistic movement. In his Topics, Metaphysics and Rhetoric, has pointed out the notion of “τὸ διττῶς / διχῶς λεγόμενον”, meaning that a term can have different senses and double interpretation. In this paper we discuss how we reconstruct the meaning of an utterance in dialogue through the mechanism of interpretation and how we analyze and construe ambiguities, combining the insights of argumentation theory and text linguistics. Research results show that in case of misunderstanding, the “best interpretation” is the less defeasible one according to contextual presumptions. (shrink)

The authors analysed the essence of the institutional approach in scientific researches and the peculiarities of its types using in the analysis of political phenomena and processes. Characterised types of the institutional approach are used to analyse democracy with the distinction of institutional and organisational, institutional and legal and institutional and cultural dimensions.