Philosophy of Science Commons^™

Extended Minds: The Externalization And Expansion Of Human Minds Beyond The Body, Dmitri Wolfe

Penn Journal of Philosophy, Politics & Economics

Despite the commonly accepted notion that the mind is inseparable from the body, the extended mind hypothesis claims human minds can become linked with the world around us. Through various avenues such as spoken and written language, humans may use non-biological means to allow the mind to store, access, and communicate information in extended capacities not otherwise possible. Though the extended minds hypothesis may be viewed as a result of advancing technology, it makes up only a small part of the way in which externalization may occur. Everyday life is full of examples of extended minds, from computers and phones ...

The Dna Cloud: Is It Alive?, Theodoros Bargiotas

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In this analysis, I will firstly be presenting the current knowledge concerning the materiality of the internet based Cloud, which I will henceforth be referring to as simply the Cloud. For organisation purposes I have created two umbrella categories under which I place the ongoing research in the field. Scholars have been addressing the issue of Cloud materiality through broadly two prisms: sociological materiality and geopolitical materiality. The literature of course deals with the intricacies of the Cloud based on its present ferromagnetic storage functionality. However, developments in synthetic biology have caused private tech companies and University spin-offs to flirt ...

What Documents Cannot Do: Revisiting Michael Polanyi And The Tacit Knowledge Dilemma, C. Sean Burns

Information Science Faculty Publications

Our culture is dominated by digital documents in ways that are easy to overlook. These documents have changed our worldviews about science and have raised our expectations of them as tools for knowledge justification. This article explores the complexities surrounding the digital document by revisiting Michael Polanyi’s theory of tacit knowledge—the idea that “we can know more than we can tell.” The theory presents to us a dilemma: if we can know more than we can tell, then this means that the communication of science via the document as a primary form of telling will always be incomplete ...

Building Brain-Bridge Between Scientists And Philosophers, Contributing New Wisdom To Science And Technology Development, Chunli Bai

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

In the new era, China's scientific and technological development is undergoing historic changes, with its fundamental feature as to put "the promotion of original innovation capabilities in a more prominent position". The study proposes that in this context, we should attach great importance to the connection between science and philosophy, as well as the alliance of scientists and philosophers. It also discusses the positive effects of philosophy on science from the origin of science, development momentum, and the shaping of scientists' creative thinking. The study also puts forward three policy recommendations on how to establish an alliance between scientists ...

Can Philosophy Be Midwife Of Scientific Innovation?, Jing Zhu

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

Based on the rapid developments in economy and society in past decades, China has already become one of the largest countries in scientific research and technology development. However, China is still far from being a leading country in science and technology. Can philosophy help to promote China's scientific innovations? It is argued in this paper that philosophy, in its proper role, can help by facilitating the growth of philosopher-scientists in China, who may play key roles in some original innovations that are in need in China.

Review Of Recent Developments Of International Interdisciplinary Research In Philosophy And Science, Chuang Liu, Kefu Zhu

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

In this article we discuss a selected sample of interdisciplinary researches between philosophy and science in the forefront of high energy physics, science of intelligence, biological science, and social science. We discuss both the ideas and the important international institutions and figures.

Philosophy And Physics Meet In Quantum World, Liuxiang Hao

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

On the basis of discussion about the ontological status of quantum state in quantum mechanics, the properties of particle in the quantum theory of fields and the problem of time in the canonical quantum gravity, the author argues that the hard core of any physical theory consists of some metaphysical assumptions. The author points out that from the perspective of the history and philosophy of science, the relationship between philosophy and physics is in some way analogous of that between mathematics and physics, so the reunion of philosophy and physics will help us to clarify and even solve those fundamental ...

Promote Mutual Learning And Progress Together Of Science And Philosophy, Contributing Editor

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

No abstract provided.

Scientific Practice And Democratic Virtues, Gregory R. Peterson

School of American and Global Studies Faculty Publications with a focus on History, Philosophy, Political Science, and Religion

Chapter 21: Scientific Practice and Democratic Values

Democracy and science, it might be thought, go hand in hand. As we commonly think of it, science has its roots in the heritage of Greek thought, and the same is true of democracy. And while Athenian democracy developed at best a complicated relationship with its intellectual luminaries, Athens was nevertheless home to both Plato’s Academy and Aristotle’s Lyceum. Nearly two centuries later, the scientific revolution most quickly took root in those nations that had come to have some semblance of democratic rule. While the Republic of Florence had passed under ...

Examining The Notion Of The Boundary Object In Information Systems: The Transdisciplinary Oeuvre Of Cognitive Science, Laura Elien Ridenour

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the transdisciplinary area of cognitive science, and was framed around the sociological notion of the boundary object. Harmonizing theoretical and technical approaches, methods introduced in this work moved beyond qualitative study practices traditional to boundary object theory work to a mixed-methods data-driven approach. Bibliometric Web of Science data, enriched with National Science Foundation (NSF) journal classifications, formed the foundation from which a seed-and-expand dataset were created from journals containing the string cogni* and their cited articles for the years 2006-2016. This two-tiered dataset allowed for the analysis of boundary-spanning interdisciplinary concepts, as identified by noun phrases, and ...

Concerning Mostly Nonacademic Aspects Of My July 2006 Visit To Salzburg, Austria For The 6th International Whitehead Conference At Salzburg University, Theodore Walker

Perkins Faculty Research and Special Events

Here are travel notes concerning mostly nonacademic aspects of my July 2006 visit to Salzburg, Austria for the 6th International Whitehead Conference at Salzburg University. These travel notes supplement the book Whiteheadian Ethics: Abstracts and Papers from the Ethics Section of the Philosophy Group at the 6th International Whitehead Conference at the University of Salzburg, July 2006 (Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2008) edited by Theodore Walker Jr. and Mihály Toth.

Lack Of Consensus On An Aging Biology Paradigm? A Global Survey Reveals An Agreement To Disagree, And The Need For An Interdisciplinary Framework, Alan A. Cohen, Anne M. Bronikowski, Luigi Ferrucci, Et Al.

Ecology, Evolution and Organismal Biology Publications

At a recent symposium on aging biology, a debate was held as to whether or not we know what biological aging is. Most of the participants were struck not only by the lack of consensus on this core question, but also on many basic tenets of the field. Accordingly, we undertook a systematic survey of our 71 participants on key questions that were raised during the debate and symposium, eliciting 37 responses. The results confirmed the impression from the symposium: there is marked disagreement on the most fundamental questions in the field, and little consensus on anything other than the ...

Ethical Implications Of The Legal Definition Of Brain Death In Light Of Modern Technological Advancements, Jordyn E. Fullaway

The Macksey Journal

Modern medical advancements in resuscitation and life support shifted the idea of death from a cardio-respiratory view to that of a neurocentric view. As a result, the definition of brain death (BD) emerged, which is the irreversible loss of brain function in both the brainstem and cerebral cortex. Consequentially, guidelines for determining BD were defined under law, and it is now legal to remove a patient from life support if they are diagnosed as brain dead. According to policy, one is considered brain dead if they have no brainstem reflexes, a lack of cerebral blood flow, and an absence of ...

The Modes Of Intervention In Alvin Lucier’S I Am Sitting In A Room, Daniel Fox

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Alvin Lucier’s I am sitting in a room (1969) is an icon of experimental music and sound art. The sizable literature addressing the aesthetic and philosophical implications of this piece rarely discusses the performance practice beyond what is indicated in the score itself. This is problematic for two reasons: 1) The meaning that is derived from the piece often hinges not just on what sounds are obtained, but on how they are obtained. 2) Over the past 50 years, changes in the performance practice have altered what constitutes the work: magnetic tape was used until 2000 when it was ...

The Law Of Black Mirror - Syllabus, Yafit Lev-Aretz, Nizan Packin

Open Educational Resources

Using episodes from the show Black Mirror as a study tool - a show that features tales that explore techno-paranoia - the course analyzes legal and policy considerations of futuristic or hypothetical case studies. The case studies tap into the collective unease about the modern world and bring up a variety of fascinating key philosophical, legal, and economic-based questions.

From Case Study As Symptom To Case Study As Sinthome: Engaging Lacan And Irigaray On "Thinking In Cases" As Psychoanalytic Pedagogy, Erica Freeman

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation accomplishes two goals. First, this dissertation articulates a Lacanian account of the epistemological and historical presuppositions of the psychoanalytic case study genre, while engaging reflexively with extant Foucauldian scholarship on this genre as well as feminist psychoanalyst Luce Irigaray’s criticisms of Lacan. Irigaray’s critique is engaged in order to tarry with its implications for a Lacanian approach to the psychoanalytic case study genre. Second, this dissertation critically examines the significance of Lacan’s (re)reading, in Seminar V, of Joan Riviere’s (1929) “Womanliness as Masquerade” in the midst of his oral teachings on the psychoanalytic ...

When Some Animals Are More Equal Than Others, Steve Clarke

Animal Sentience

Mikhalevich & Powell (2020) argue that we should attribute moral standing not only to vertebrates but also to certain invertebrates. M&P also object on ethical grounds to policies of scientific funding agencies that encourage scientists to replace vertebrates by invertebrates in research. M&P do allow that some invertebrates with brains may have lower levels of moral status than some vertebrates, but this seems to conflict with their case against replacement policies.

The Crisis Of Communication In The Information Age: Revisiting C.P. Snow's Two Cultures In The Era Of Fake News, Aaron Green

Irish Communication Review

The purpose of this paper is to revisit C.P. Snow’s “Two Cultures” lecture in light of the cultural dominance of information technology. The crisis of communication in the information age, whether in fake news, political polarisation or science denial, has come about because both scientific and literary cultures, in seeking a world without entropy, have inadvertently stumbled upon a world without meaning. In order to explain how this has happened, the paper first explores Snow's challenge: to describe the second law of thermodynamics. The paper then provides a description of entropy that is neutral with regard to ...

Spineless And Sentient: A Challenge For Moral Comparison, Patrick Forber, Robert C. Jones

Animal Sentience

We agree with Mikhalevich & Powell but take issue with their criteria for attributing sentience. This problem is connected with difficult issues concerning moral comparisons and evaluating moral decisions when interspecific moral interests conflict.

Roots Of Coded Metaphor In John Dee's Monas Hieroglyphica, Joshua Michael Zintel

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

An enormous amount of research on John Dee has materialized within the last forty years. Contrary to research published earlier in the twentieth century, such relatively recent studies have considered Dee’s idiosyncratic plurality of parallel traditions instead of trying to pigeonhole his activities into one of several discrete camps. That research (much of which is listed in the Bibliography) has been helpful hypothesizing what his Monas Hieroglyphica (1564) may mean for several fields of study in an interstitial capacity. Students of Early Modern mathematics, neoplatonism, and the histories of alchemy, chemistry, Christian kabbalah, and astronomy are among the many ...