This paper aims to trace the links between Leopardi’s linguistic reflection and his theory of assuefazione, a theory that focuses on the functions of perception and the imaginative faculty within cognitive mechanisms. This theory also explains the functioning of the modalities with which human knowledge is articulated, starting from the experiential data, and therefore linguistic knowledge, in terms of a metaphorical apperception of the world. Specific attention will also be given to the notion of semantic vagueness, closely linked to the (...) general concept of indefinite: a concept that Leopardi develops in his reflections on the theory of pleasure and which is fundamental to define the peculiarities of the imaginative faculty. Furthermore, through the Garronian study of metaoperativity a more in-depth reading of the leopardian theory of assuefazione and of the link between perception and imagination too, as well as the role these two last faculties play in language will be provided. Precisely the metaoperativity allows us to explain and define with greater clarity the disposizione a poter essere, that is a precondition in order to conceive the Leopardian notion of indefinite. This conceptual clarification will also be important to highlight how the thought of Leopardi – in spite of the asystematicity that characterizes Zibaldone – is structured and deeply coherent, in line with that unitary and global approach to human knowledge of its time: an approach in which linguistic reflection and the theory of knowledge mutually imply each other, tightened by a relationship of mutual relevance. (shrink)

This paper focuses on Aristotelian phronesis and aims at highlighting its nature as an eye on particulars with general ends in sight. More specifically, it challenges the particularistic interpretation of phronesis and Aristotelian ethics in order to argue for a “qualified generalism.” After sketching a radical Particularistic Reading (PR), the paper defends an interpretation it calls the Priority of Particulars Reading (PPR). First, it shows how PPR effectively accounts for the Aristotelian priority assigned to practical perception while at the same (...) time counterbalancing that priority by means of two interpretive strategies. Then it offers further support to PPR by appealing to its own reading of Aristotle's phronesis. It aims to show that it is possible to defend a legitimate form of PPR without ending in holding PR, and that Aristotle's own theory and work ground the moderate reading. Finally, it draws some implications by analyzing educational practice. (shrink)

In this paper, I show that the conception of a virtue in positive psychology is a mishmash of two competing accounts of what virtues are: a Common Sense View and an Aristotelian View. Distinguishing the strengths and weaknesses of these two frameworks leads also to a reconsideration of an old debate, namely, that concerning the Unity of the Virtues thesis. Such thesis is rejected by positive psychologist, as well as by some philosophers among the virtue-ethical field, on the basis, I (...) argue, of a lack of accuracy in defining the very meaning of the concept of what virtues are, before examining the issues at stake. In the first part of the paper, I show to what extent the conceptions of virtue employed by the different voices diverge and the consequences of this divergence for the UV problem. Then, I go on by arguing for one of the two competing accounts, namely, the Aristotelian View, over the other, that is, the Common Sense View. Finally, I show to which of CSV theses positive psychologists are committed, so to explain their rejection of the UV thesis, and to highlight their need for a clearer account of what a virtue is. (shrink)

In conceptual debates involving the quantum gravity community, the literature discusses the so-called “emergence of space–time”. However, which interpretation of quantum mechanics (QM) could be coherent with such claim? We show that a modification of the Copenhagen Interpretation of QM is compatible with the claim that space–time is emergent for the macroscopic world of measurements. In other words, pure quantum states do not admit space–time properties until we measure them. We call this approach “Achronotopic” (ACT) Interpretation of QM, which yields (...) a simple and natural interpretation of the most puzzling aspects of QM, such as particle-wave duality, wave function collapse, entanglement, and quantum superposition. Our interpretation yields the same results in all measurements as the Copenhagen Interpretation, but provides clues toward the sub-Planckian physics. In particular, it suggests the non-existence of quantum gravity in the conventional sense understood as the quantization of a classical theory. (shrink)

Research on Augmented Reality in education has demonstrated that AR applications designed with diverse components boost student motivation in educational settings. However, most of the research conducted to date, does not define exactly what those components are and how these components positively affect student motivation. This study, therefore, attempts to identify some of the components that positively affect student motivation in mobile AR learning experiences to contribute to the design and development of motivational AR learning experiences for the Vocational Education (...) and Training level of education. To identify these components, a research model constructed from the literature was empirically validated with data obtained from two sources: 35 students from four VET institutes interacting with an AR application for learning for a period of 20 days, and a self-report measure obtained from the Instructional Materials Motivation Survey. We found that the following variables: use of scaffolding, real-time feedback, degree of success, time on-task and learning outcomes are positively correlated with the four dimensions of the ARCS model of motivation: Attention, Relevance, Confidence, and Satisfaction. Implications of these results are also described. (shrink)

The cinema of Martin Scorsese has been analysed in connection with a wide range of themes and issues. In this paper, through a film-philosophical analysis, we aim to demonstrate how his filmography produces storyworlds pervaded by a tension similar to the one Søren Kierkegaard expressed in his existentialist writings. Indeed, one of the tenets of film-philosophy is that audio-visual media generate, in an affective and experiential manner, complex moral and ethical systems and existential viewpoints with which viewers interact in a (...) direct and creative way. Empathising with the self-sacrifice of the unlikely martyr played by Jake LaMotta or feeling the collapsing certainties of a missionary in seventeenth-century Japan are thus occasions to encounter particular conceptual personae. These characters embody specific iterations of Kierkegaardian knights of faith: existentialist figures whose doom takes in ambiguous film ecologies where the desire for wholesomeness constantly clashes with mortality and finitude. (shrink)

Este artigo explora as relações entre história e literatura considerando a literatura um testemunho que pode ser lido, desconstruído e submetido ao mesmo escrutínio ao qual os historiadores submetem outras fontes que lhes permitam ter acesso à compreensão de redes e tensões sociais mais amplas. Nele são utilizadas poesias publicadas no cancioneiro Trovador: coleção de modinhas, recitativos, árias, lundus, etc.., com o objetivo de mostrar como seus autores estabeleceram um diálogo entre si e com seus leitores acerca de um assunto (...) candente do seu tempo - o progresso e seus desdobramentos para o cotidiano da sociedade – utilizando-se da literatura como instrumento de intervenção na realidade. A partir desses pressupostos, a experiência histórica vivida por escritores é considerada condição básica de análise, bem como texto e contexto são percebidos como dimensões indissociáveis de um fenômeno mais amplo que é ao mesmo tempo, cultural, econômico, social e político devendo ser abordados em conjunto levando-se em conta suas conexões recíprocas. (shrink)

The text focuses on the status of sciences, starting from the psychiatric discipline, related to the crisis that from the 60s to today has threatened his epistemological presuppositions. Not otherwise, the other sciences, on the the wave of progress and technological development, end up reaching increasingly important results, paying the price of losing the condition and the aim of research and knowledge.

Calendars, as old as humanity itself, emerged out of the attempt to break down time in units and give meaning to life and time. As far as Islam is concerned, calendar as a subject gain more importance because identifying daily and yearly rituals and performing the rituals related to time on their specific time is an essential part of Islamic religious life. With a circulation of three million yearly and more than ten million readers, the calendar printed by the Presidency (...) for Religious Affairs of Turkey is a significant instrument in forming, changing and maintaining religious perceptions. We were led to do such a study by the lack of academic studies regarding this aspect of the calendars. The study is based on the texts placed on the frontal and back sides of the calendars printed and distributed by the Presidency for Religious Affairs in the years of 2002, 2007 and 2011. The texts have been analysed by the textual analysis method and the changes in religious perceptions have been pointed out. Unlike the expected institutional continuity, when the three periods compared, it is observed that considerable perception changes have taken place; many subjects have been left out while many have been introduced into the calendars. The study found out that as the years progressed and the periods passed, the calendars also changed dramatically. The most apparent change occurred in the calendars was global understanding in choosing or replacing the subjects. This means that the 2007 and 2011 calendars have excluded some national and spiritual values that were thought to be outmoded globally but included in the 2002 calendar. This also signifies a breaking point in religious perceptions of the Presidency for Religious Affairs. (shrink)

O presente artigo apresenta os resultados de um estudo de caso clínico que buscou compreender os processos psíquicos associados às manifestações de angústia e do sintoma na infância. Com base na teoria psicanalítica, pretendeu-se identificar a representação do paciente de suas figuras parentais, ass..

Cloninger’s Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI) although elaborated on the general population, is frequently used in clinical samples. The study evaluates the psychometric characteristics of TCI in clinical populations with the aim of creating a reduced version of the test suitable for these subjects. This research was conducted on two groups of mental health outpatients. In the first study, 44 items, correlated with the psychiatric disorders, was selected. These items, divided in four dimensions utilizing both statistic and psychopathological criteria, show (...) good internal consistency and external validity and constitute a Reduced Version (TR-TCI) of the test. In the second study, the predictive validity of the TR-TCI was evaluated through the ROC curves and a logistic regression model. The results show a good predictive validity of TR-TCI, that allows us to use this instrument in order to identify the personality structures that make people sensitive to psychiatric pathologies. (shrink)

This essay argues that despite of the feminist critique of Merleau-Ponty his phenomenology can be positively appropriated to the theory of sexual difference. It focuses on three issues: the first one is closely linked to the Phenomenology of Perception and introduces a concept of "difference as differentiation". The second one is concerned with the intersubjective dimension of sexuality and will be called a "sexual syncretism". Finally, I’m referring to Merleau-Ponty's notion of "chiasm" in his late work The Visible and the (...) Invisible in order to apply it to the theory of sexual difference. At this point, the difference between sexual beings will be conceptualized as "chiasmatic intertwining". In doing so, I hope to show that Merleau-Ponty's phenomenology is a helpful resource for philosophical research that is mainly concerned with the questions of sexuality and sexual difference. (shrink)

Trotz großer Verbesserungen in der Versorgung von Menschen mit Typ-1-Diabetes (MmT1D) werden auch bei hoher Motivation und hohem Wissensstand der T1D-Grundlagen und -Therapie die angestrebten Blutglukose-Werte häufig nicht erreicht. Daher hat sich aus der Gruppe der MmT1D und ihrer Angehörigen eine Gemeinschaft zusammengefunden, die auf Basis kommerzieller Technologien sogenannte Open-Source-Closed-Loop-Systeme (OSCLS) entwickelt, welche eine automatisierte Insulinabgabe ermöglichen. OSCLS haben das Potenzial, das Management der Erkrankung zu erleichtern und normnähere Blutglukose-Werte zu erzielen. Die OSCLS sind jedoch weder offiziell geprüfte noch zugelassene (...) Systeme. Aus dem Blickwinkel der Technikfolgenabschätzung untersucht die vorliegende Arbeit mittels leitfadengestützter qualitativer Interviews mit Nutzenden und Fachkräften vorrangig, warum sich die Nutzenden der OSCLS für die Systeme entscheiden und wie sich diese auf das Leben der Nutzenden sowie auf das Gesundheitswesen auswirken. Zudem ordnet diese Arbeit die OSCLS-Bewegung in vergleichbare aktivistische Bewegungen in Medizin und Gesundheit ein sowie in den Kontext der derzeit immer stärker werdenden Bewegung der Patient Innovation. Die Autorin Silvia Woll war als Geisteswissenschaftlerin seit 2015 als Mitarbeiterin am Institut für Technikfolgenabschätzung und Systemanalyse (ITAS) im Karlsruher Institut für Technologie (KIT) tätig. Ihre inhaltlichen Schwerpunkte umfassten dabei Technologien für Gesundheit und Ernährung, Technikethik und partizipative Verfahren wie die Citizen Science. (shrink)

What are the relevant values to the appraisal of research programs? This question remains hotly debated, as philosophers have recently proposed many lists of values potentially relevant to scientific appraisal. Surprisingly, despite being mentioned in many lists, little attention has been paid to fruitfulness. It is unclear how fruitfulness should be explicated, and whether it has any substantial role in scientific appraisal. In this paper, I argue we should explicate fruitfulness as the capacity to develop of research programs. Moreover, I (...) provide a novel strategy to assess and compare the fruitfulness of programs focused on their research questions and heuristics. To illustrate how this strategy would work, I will discuss a case study, namely the adaptationist program in evolutionary psychology. (shrink)

In two studies, children's concepts of various types of ordinarily unobservable entities were examined. Study 1 confirmed earlier findings in showing that children aged 4–9 years are confident of the existence of scientific entities such as germs as well as religious beings such as God. At the same time, both age groups are skeptical of the existence of various mythical beings such as mermaids. In Study 2, older children aged 10–12 years were probed for their concepts of religious as compared (...) to scientific phenomena. Despite considerable confidence in each type, older children differentiated between them, both with respect to their level of confidence and their pattern of justification. (shrink)

Dieses Buch untersucht, was in den jeweiligen Theorieansätzen mit Bildhandeln‹ gemeint ist, indem eine Reihe von philosophischen und kunstwissenschaftlichen Ansätzen zum Verhältnis von Bild und Handlung vorgestellt und systematisiert werden. Vier paradigmatische Handlungstypen werden voneinander differenziert, die spezifische Verwendungsmöglichkeiten von Bildern umfassen. Die ersten zwei – Bildspiele‹ und Bildakte‹ – beruhen auf der sprachphilosophisch motivierten Prämisse, dass die Verwendung von Bildern der Struktur eines Sprachspieles oder eines Sprechaktes entspricht. Diese Prämisse bezieht sich auf Verwendungsweisen, durch die materiellen Gegenständen der Bildstatus (...) zugeschrieben wird. Demgegenüber werden zwei weitere Bildhandlungstypen vorgestellt, wonach Bilder nur dann verwendet werden können, wenn ihr Bildstatus bereits feststeht. Diese Bildhandlungstypen werden mit einem Vergleich von Bildern und Werkzeugen sowie der Kategorie Probehandlungen‹ thematisiert. (shrink)

Modulating connectivity measures in EEG-based neurofeedback studies is assumed to be a promising therapeutic and training tool. However, little is known so far about its effects and trainability. In the present study, we investigated the effects of up- and down-regulating SMR coherence by means of neurofeedback training on EEG activity and memory functions. Twenty adults performed 10 neurofeedback training sessions in which half of them tried to increase EEG coherence between Cz and CPz in the SMR frequency range, while the (...) other half tried to down-regulate coherence. Up-regulation of SMR coherence led to between- and within-session changes in EEG coherence. SMR power increased across neurofeedback training sessions but not within training sessions. Cross-over training effects on baseline EEG measures were also observed in this group. Up-regulation of SMR coherence was also associated with improvements in memory functions when comparing pre- and post-test results. Participants were not able to down-regulate SMR coherence. This group did not show any changes in baseline EEG measures or memory functions comparing pre- and post-test. Our results provide insights in the trainability and effects of connectivity-based neurofeedback training and indications for its practical application. (shrink)

Public engagement is one of the fundamental pillars of the European programme for research and innovation _Horizon 2020_. The programme encourages engagement that not only fosters science education and dissemination, but also promotes two-way dialogues between scientists and the public at various stages of research. Establishing such dialogues between different groups of societal actors is seen as crucial in order to attain epistemic as well as social desiderata at the intersection between science and society. However, whether these dialogues can actually (...) help attaining these desiderata is far from obvious. This paper discusses some of the costs, risks, and benefits of dialogical public engagement practices, and proposes a strategy to analyse these argumentative practices based on a three-tiered model of epistemic exchange. As a case study, we discuss the phenomenon of vaccine hesitancy, arguably a result of suboptimal public engagement, and show how the proposed model can shed new light on the problem. (shrink)

Can art, religion, or philosophy afford ineffable insights? If so, what are they? The idea of ineffability has puzzled philosophers from Laozi to Wittgenstein. In Ineffability and its Metaphysics: The Unspeakable in Art, Religion and Philosophy, Silvia Jonas examines different ways of thinking about what ineffable insights might involve metaphysically, and shows which of these are in fact incoherent. Jonas discusses the concepts of ineffable properties and objects, ineffable propositions, ineffable content, and ineffable knowledge, examining the metaphysical pitfalls involved (...) in these concepts. Ultimately, she defends the idea that ineffable insights as found in aesthetic, religious, and philosophical contexts are best understood in terms of self-acquaintance, a particular kind of non-propositional knowledge. Ineffability as a philosophical topic is as old as the history of philosophy itself, but contributions to the exploration of ineffability have been sparse. The theory developed by Jonas makes the concept tangible and usable in many different philosophical contexts. (shrink)

This chapter maps out some of the views of Scottish thinkers concerning human progress. It briefly considers Andrew Fletcher of Saltoun, who was the first to promote the language of republicanism in Scotland and to conceptualize the ‘militia issue’. It then examines Adam Ferguson’s debate with David Hume and Adam Smith. Whereas the former reasserted civic tradition and played a role in the cause of a Scottish national militia, Hume and Smith, by supporting commercial societies, pointed Scotland in a quite (...) different direction. The chapter moves on to the gender ambivalence of civilization in which women were seen as the vectors of the new values of modernity, but also as responsible for the loss of the ancient virtue of male citizens in arms. Finally, the chapter considers some of the historical alternatives to modernity, which found their models in the past: Stuart’s gothic feudalism, and the world of Ossian. (shrink)

Exposición realizada por Silvia Hernández, Doctora en Ciencias Sociales, en la segunda ronda del ciclo de conversaciones “Crítica a la Epidemiología Política. Prácticas y racionalidad neoliberales en tiempos de pandemia”, organizado por el equipo editorial de la Revista de Filosofía Otrosiglo, enero 2021. Disponible en Youtube, canal Revista Otrosiglo. _Palabras Clave: _Pandemia – Ideología – Neoliberalismo – Covid19.

Attention has recently been proposed as the mechanism underlying the cognitive effects associated with bilingualism. However, similar to bilingualism, the term attention is complex, dynamic, and can vary from one activity to another. Throughout our daily lives, we use different types of attention that differ in complexity: sustained attention, selective attention, alternating attention, divided attention, and disengagement of attention. The present paper is a focused review summarizing the results from studies that explore the link between bilingualism and attention. For each (...) level of attention, a brief overview of relevant theoretical models will be discussed along with a spotlight on paradigms and tasks used to measure these forms of attention. The findings illustrate that different types and levels of attention are modified by the variety of bilingual experiences. Future studies wishing to examine the effects of bilingualism on attention are encouraged to embrace the complexity and diversity of both constructs rather than making global claims about bilingualism and attention. (shrink)

The existence of fundamental moral disagreements is a central problem for moral realism and has often been contrasted with an alleged absence of disagreement in mathematics. However, mathematicians do in fact disagree on fundamental questions, for example on which set-theoretic axioms are true, and some philosophers have argued that this increases the plausibility of moral vis-à-vis mathematical realism. I argue that the analogy between mathematical and moral disagreement is not as straightforward as those arguments present it. In particular, I argue (...) that pluralist accounts of mathematics render fundamental mathematical disagreements compatible with mathematical realism in a way in which moral disagreements and moral realism are not. 11. (shrink)

Hybride der Romantik: Frankenstein, Olimpia und das künstliche Leben. Dieser Beitrag untersucht Vorstellungen über die Möglichkeit der Erzeugung künstlicher Lebewesen in der Zeit der Romantik und die damit verbundenen Ängste am Beispiel zweier fiktionaler Texte: Mary Shelleys Frankenstein und Ernst Theodor Amadeus Hoffmanns Sandmann. Dr. Franksteins Monster und Dr. Spalanzanis Automat verkörpern – auf unterschiedliche Weise – die Möglichkeit einer Wendung wissenschaftlicher Produkte und insbesondere künstlicher Hybride ins Monströse. Ihre Geschichten thematisieren das Grauen, das vom drohenden Kontrollverlust ausgeht und als (...) der modernen Wissenschaft innewohnende Gefahr selbst nach der Zerstörung der monströsen Kreaturen bestehen bleibt. Der Begriff des Unheimlichen, von Ernst Jentsch und Sigmund Freud mit Bezug auf Hoffmanns Sandmann formuliert und 1970 von dem japanischen Robotiker Masahiro Mori als Phänomen „des unheimlichen Tals“ (Uncanny Valley) weiterentwickelt, erlaubt weitere Einblicke in die Frage nach künstlichen Lebewesen und ihre Interaktion mit Menschen. Summary: Hybrids of the Romantic: Frankenstein, Olimpia, and Artificial Life. This essay analyzes fantasies and fears related to the possible creation of artificial humans in two influential pieces of Romantic literature, namely E.T.A. Hoffmann's Der Sandmann and Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. Both the automaton Olimpia and Dr. Frankenstein's monster are hybrid creatures. These dystopian figures represent the Romantic fear of the loss of control over the outcome of human endeavour, they symbolize the dangers immanent in modern science and technology. As hybrids, Olimpia and Frankenstein's monster are capable of breaking apparently unpenetrable boundaries, such as those between human and non‐human, and between life and death. As such, these creatures become “unheimlich” (uncanny), a critical term developed by Ernst Jentsch and Sigmund Freud, who directly referred to Hoffmann's Sandman. The term “uncanny” was further developed by the Japanese roboticist Masahiro Mori in the 1970s. Mori's investigation of human responses to androids (“Uncanny Valley”), shows the persistence of doubts and fears surrounding artificial humans far beyond the Romantic times, and opens new questions related to the issues of creation, reproduction, hybrids, hubris and gender. (shrink)

Abordamos la problemática de la elección institucional de estudios superiores en estudiantes de los Institutos de Educación Superior de la zona Este de la provincia de Mendoza a fin de conocer los aspectos que actúan en ella. Intentamos, además, identificar las representaciones sociales asociadas a dicha elección e indagar en sus causas. Procuramos dilucidar algunos interrogantes iniciales sobre los aspectos que explican la elección institucional, como los elementos del contexto, las representaciones de la formación en curso y los tópicos que (...) predominan en el imaginario sobre la educación superior de los estudiantes de los IES. Realizamos un diseño metodológico en el que convergen los abordajes cuantitativo y cualitativo. Para la recolección de la información empleamos encuestas y producciones biográfico-narrativas. A partir del análisis del discurso, analizamos e interpretamos aquellas narraciones. (shrink)

Der Alltag der Medizin sowie gesundheitspolitische Losungsstrategien legen nahe, dass unser Gesundheitssystem massgeblich vom biomedizinisch-technischen Fortschritt und der Finanzierbarkeit gepragt ist. In diesem Band kommen Mediziner, Juristen und Gesundheitswissenschaftler zu Wort, die der Uberzeugung sind, dass die entscheidenden Fragen zur Zukunft unseres Gesundheitssystems ethischer Natur sind. Sei es auf der Systemebene der Gesundheitspolitik, der Ebene der Versorgung, sei es in Interaktionszusammenhangen oder seien es rechtliche Gratwanderungen beim Umgang mit Fehlern oder der Patientenverfugung - es geht um die Fragen: Was kann, (...) darf, soll die Medizin, welche Menschenbilder und Visionen des Zusammenlebens liegen ihr zugrunde? Wie viel Zeit bleibt, daruber nachzudenken, Optionen zu entwerfen? - Neben fuhrenden Fachvertretern kommen Patienten und Angehorige zu Wort. Ihre Erfahrungen fliessen ein in ein mosaikartiges Gesamtbild, das uns hilft, die Medizin der Zukunft im Sinne einer Kontextsteuerung mitzugestalten. (shrink)

From governments to the general public, one may ask about the possible contributions of historians, if any, to the understanding and management of global disasters, as e.g. the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019. Given the confuse situation at the onset of the pandemic in terms of diagnosis, treatment, and prevention, a look into past experience with nonconventional medicine seemed relevant. In the present study I surveyed secondary literature on the role of Chinese medicine, Āyurveda, and homeopathy over time. The quantitative results (...) were disappointing: nothing on Āyurveda, and one single study each on Chinese medicine and homeopathy. The quality of the former compensates for the numerical short age. The case of homeopathy is rather sui generis, since this medical system was born and blossomed during epidemics and pandemics. I conclude with a short comment on reference sources, which might serve as point of departure for future studies of Āyurveda in epidemics. (shrink)

ABSTRACT:This article aims to enhance understanding of employee anonymous online dissent (EAOD), a controversial phenomenon in contemporary digital environments. We conceptualise and scrutinise EAOD as a communicative and interactional process among four key actors: dissenting employees, online outlet administrators, audiences, and targeted organisations. This multi-actor, dialectical process encompasses actor-related tensions that may generate unethical consequences if single voices are not brought out and confronted. Appropriating a Habermasian ethical and discursive lens, we examine and disentangle three particular challenges emerging from the (...) EAOD process: lack of accountability and potential opportunism; equal participation and resolution of actor-related tensions; and organisational participation and internalisation of dissent. We show that EAOD can initiate plural dialogue that helps co-construct and balance different voices within an informal and noninstitutionalised context for interaction and public deliberation. We conclude our inquiry by offering reflections on practical implications and a research agenda for further investigation. (shrink)