Mechanisms And The Nature Of Causation,
2011
Butler University
Mechanisms And The Nature Of Causation, Stuart Glennan
Stuart Glennan
In this paper I offer an analysis of causation based upon a theory of mechanisms – complex systems whose "internal" parts interact to produce a system's "external" behavior. I argue that all but the fundamental laws of physics can be explained by reference to mechanisms. Mechanisms provide an epistemologically unproblematic way to explain the necessity which is often taken to distinguish laws from other generalizations. This account of necessity leads to a theory of causation according to which events are causally related when there is a mechanism that connects them. I present reasons why the lack of an account of …
Just-If-Ication,
2011
SelectedWorks
Coerced Confessional, Miracle Exoneration: The Case Of Ex-Monster Jerry Hobbs,
2011
Columbia College Chicago
Coerced Confessional, Miracle Exoneration: The Case Of Ex-Monster Jerry Hobbs, Stephen Asma
Stephen T Asma
No abstract provided.
The New Atheists' Narrow World-View,
2011
Columbia College Chicago
The New Atheists' Narrow World-View, Stephen Asma
Stephen T Asma
The article discusses atheism, Buddhism, and the practice of animism in southeast Asia. Atheists such as Christopher Hitchens and Sam Harris are discussed as is the argument regarding the "provincialism" of religion. It is noted that some atheists echo the statement by philosopher Karl Marx that religion is an opiate that should be done away with because it has little moral value. The use of spirit houses as a part of religious practice in southeast Asia is described. The opinion held by theists on animism is explored. Other topics include living conditions in Cambodia and the role of religion in …
Singular And General Causal Relations: A Mechanist Perspective,
2011
Butler University
Singular And General Causal Relations: A Mechanist Perspective, Stuart Glennan
Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS
My aim in this paper is to make a case for the singularist view from the perspective of a mechanical theory of causation (Glennan 1996, 1997, 2010, forthcoming), and to explain what, from this perspective, causal generalizations mean, and what role they play within the mechanical theory.
Visual Rhetoric And The Promotion Of Scientific Ideas: The Strange Case Of The Prion,
2011
Butler University
Visual Rhetoric And The Promotion Of Scientific Ideas: The Strange Case Of The Prion, Carol Reeves
Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS
In the field that investigates infectious brain diseases such as mad cow disease, the verbal and visual packaging of scientific visuals associated with identifying the agent, prion, its processes, and structure served the community ritual of establishing belief in a highly unorthodox phenomenon. Visual promotion fed into cultural expectations of single agents and simple processes, even though the actual agency and disease process have proven highly complex and perhaps unknowable.
“Describing Our Whole Experience”: The Statistical Philosophies Of W.F.R. Weldon And Karl Pearson,
2011
Louisiana State University
“Describing Our Whole Experience”: The Statistical Philosophies Of W.F.R. Weldon And Karl Pearson, Charles H. Pence
Faculty Publications
There are two motivations commonly ascribed to historical actors for taking up statistics: to reduce complicated data to a mean value (e.g., Quetelet), and to take account of diversity (e.g., Galton). Different motivations will, it is assumed, lead to different methodological decisions in the practice of the statistical sciences. Karl Pearson and W. F. R. Weldon are generally seen as following directly in Galton’s footsteps. I argue for two related theses in light of this standard interpretation, based on a reading of several sources in which Weldon, independently of Pearson, reflects on his own motivations. First, while Pearson does approach …
Nietzsche’S Aesthetic Critique Of Darwin,
2011
Louisiana State University
Nietzsche’S Aesthetic Critique Of Darwin, Charles H. Pence
Faculty Publications
Despite his position as one of the first philosophers to write in the “post- Darwinian” world, the critique of Darwin by Friedrich Nietzsche is often ignored for a host of unsatisfactory reasons. I argue that Nietzsche’s critique of Darwin is important to the study of both Nietzsche’s and Darwin’s impact on philosophy. Further, I show that the central claims of Nietzsche’s critique have been broadly misunderstood. I then present a new reading of Nietzsche’s core criticism of Darwin. An important part of Nietzsche’s response can best be understood as an aesthetic critique of Darwin, reacting to what he saw as …
Elliott Sober: Did Darwin Write The Origin Backwards? Philosophical Essays On Darwin’S Theory,
2011
Louisiana State University
Elliott Sober: Did Darwin Write The Origin Backwards? Philosophical Essays On Darwin’S Theory, Charles H. Pence, Hope Hollocher, Ryan Nichols, Grant Ramsey, Edwin Siu, Daniel John Sportiello
Faculty Publications
No abstract provided.
A Sharp Eye For Kinds: Collection And Division In Plato's Late Dialogues,
2011
The University of Western Ontario
A Sharp Eye For Kinds: Collection And Division In Plato's Late Dialogues, Devin Henry
Devin Henry
This paper focuses on two methodological questions that arise from Plato’s account of collection and division. First, what place does the method of collection and division occupy in Plato’s account of philosophical inquiry? Second, do collection and division in fact constitute a formal “method” (as most scholars assume) or are they simply informal techniques that the philosopher has in her toolkit for accomplishing different philosophical tasks? I argue that Plato sees collection and division as useful tools for achieving two distinct goals – generating real definitions and discovering the basic natural kinds of a given domain of knowledge – both …
Una Reflexión Entorno A “El Espíritu De La Ilustración” De Tzvetan Todorov.,
2011
University of Valencia, Spain
Una Reflexión Entorno A “El Espíritu De La Ilustración” De Tzvetan Todorov., Mariado Hinojosa
Mariado Hinojosa
Tomando como referencia la obra de Tzvetan Todorov, el presente artículo reflexiona brevemente sobre algunos de los presupuestos heredados de la Ilustración y que marcaron profundamente el horizonte social, cultural y político del pasado siglo XX.
The Exploratory Value Of Agent-Based Models In Social Science,
2011
University of Texas at El Paso
The Exploratory Value Of Agent-Based Models In Social Science, Ricardo Andress Rivera
Open Access Theses & Dissertations
N/A
The Relationship Between Divided Government And Real Per Capita Gross State Product,
2011
University of Texas at El Paso
The Relationship Between Divided Government And Real Per Capita Gross State Product, Adrian Christopher Villasenor
Open Access Theses & Dissertations
This paper analyzes the relationship between divided government and real per capita gross state product in U.S. states using a panel study of data from all of the contiguous U.S. states, except Nebraska, for the period of 1990 to 2007. Some literature can be found on the relationship between divided government and economic growth at the national level. There is a lack of study of this relationship at the state level. Real per capita gross state product is the dependent variable in this study. Divided government, partisan control of the governor's office, partisan control of the state legislature, combined federal …
Does The Mind Extend Out Into The World,
2011
Claremont McKenna College
Does The Mind Extend Out Into The World, Andrew D. Kishino
CMC Senior Theses
The extended mind debate juggles the possibilities of whether or not the mind extends out into the world. Today, with the rise in technology, we have an additional claim that our tools are responsible for extending our minds. The internet, smart phones, and other tools give us a foothold in the extended mind debate by providing real world examples of how our mind is perceived as extending out into the world. In discovering where the divide between mind and environment exists we can come up with a conclusion whether or not the mind truly extends out into the world.
Co-Creation Of Experiential Qualities,
2011
Chapman University
Co-Creation Of Experiential Qualities, Vuk Uskoković
Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research
Cognitive sciences have been interminably in search for a consistent philosophical framework for the description of perceptual phenomena. Most of the frameworks in usage today fall in-between the extremes of constructivism and objective realism. However, whereas constructivist cognitive theories face difficulties when attempting to explain the experiential commonality of different cognitive entities, objectivistic theories fail in explaining the active role of the subject in the formation of experiences. This paper undertakes to compare and eventually combine these two major approaches to describing cognitive phenomena. It is argued that constructivist explanations inevitably refer to a ‘hidden’ ontological source of experience, and …
A Sharp Eye For Kinds: Collection & Division In Plato's Late Dialogues,
2010
The University of Western Ontario
A Sharp Eye For Kinds: Collection & Division In Plato's Late Dialogues, Devin Henry
Devin Henry
No abstract provided.
Aristotle And The Unity And Diversity Of Life (Project Description),
2010
The University of Western Ontario
Aristotle And The Unity And Diversity Of Life (Project Description), Devin Henry
Devin Henry
No abstract provided.
Mariska Leunissen, Explanation And Teleology In Aristotle’S Science Of Nature,
2010
University of Iowa
Mariska Leunissen, Explanation And Teleology In Aristotle’S Science Of Nature, David J. Depew
David J Depew
No abstract provided.
Aristotle's Pluralistic Realism,
2010
The University of Western Ontario
Aristotle's Pluralistic Realism, Devin Henry
Devin Henry
In this paper I explore Aristotle’s views on natural kinds and the compatibility of pluralism and realism, a topic that has generated considerable interest among contemporary philosophers. I argue that, when it came to zoology, Aristotle denied that there is only one way of organizing the diversity of the living world into natural kinds that will yield a single, unified system of classification. Instead, living things can be grouped and regrouped into various cross-cutting kinds on the basis of objective similarities and differences in ways that subserve the explanatory context. Since the explanatory aims of zoology are diverse and variegated, …
Aristotle’S Pluralistic Realism,
2010
The University of Western Ontario
Aristotle’S Pluralistic Realism, Devin Henry
Devin Henry
In this paper I explore Aristotle’s views on natural kinds and the compatibility of pluralism and realism, a topic that has generated considerable interest among contemporary philosophers. I argue that, when it came to zoology, Aristotle denied that there is only one way of organizing the diversity of the living world into natural kinds that will yield a single, unified system of classification. Instead, living things can be grouped and regrouped into various cross-cutting kinds on the basis of objective similarities and differences in ways that subserve the explanatory context. Since the explanatory aims of zoology are diverse and variegated, …
