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Articles 1 - 12 of 12
Full-Text Articles in Philosophy of Science
Disease Mongering: How Sickness Sells, Vanessa C. Iroegbulem
Disease Mongering: How Sickness Sells, Vanessa C. Iroegbulem
Augustana Center for the Study of Ethics Essay Contest
“Disease mongering” is the practice of widening diagnostic boundaries of an illness and promoting their public awareness to expand the markets for treatment and to increase profits. This tactic typically used by pharmaceutical companies, medical equipment manufacturers, insurance companies, and even some doctors and patient groups, has become a great concern. Disease mongering has since increased in parallel with “medicalization,” which attempts to label normal human conditions as medical problems, thus becoming the subject of medical study, diagnosis, prevention, or treatment. This paper first seeks to examine how an increasing amount of life’s natural conditions and ailments are being seen …
Art's Truth: An Aid To Ethical Sensibility, Nova Quaoser
Art's Truth: An Aid To Ethical Sensibility, Nova Quaoser
CMC Senior Theses
In this paper I explore the philosophical implications of decision theory and deliberation on ethics, paying special attention to how vicious individuals yearn for a separate philosophical account. Drawing largely on Fricker, McDowell, Paul, and Nussbaum I discuss how transformative experiences open a window for understanding moral development in terms of habituation in the Aristotelian sense, and further how the vicious individual’s failure to deliberate may be remedied via a transformation through art.
The Confluence Of Philosophy And Biology: An Excavation Of Philosophical Issues In Molecular And Developmental Biology, Patrick Johnson Mendie, Emmanuel Bassey Eyo (Ph.D)
The Confluence Of Philosophy And Biology: An Excavation Of Philosophical Issues In Molecular And Developmental Biology, Patrick Johnson Mendie, Emmanuel Bassey Eyo (Ph.D)
Journal of Health Ethics
Philosophical evaluations have played an influential role in the growth and development of molecular and developmental biology to ensure that every individual is born healthy, born wanted and has the privilege to fulfil his or her potentials for a life free from disease and disability. This is why it becomes necessary for biologists to carefully understand human genes, evolution, cells and general human anatomy to fulfil this project. During this process, they are faced with challenges where they also lack the foundation on how to solve them. This challenge gave birth to a philosophical excavation of molecular and developmental biology. …
Affective Neuroscience And The Philosophy Of Self, Stephen Asma
Affective Neuroscience And The Philosophy Of Self, Stephen Asma
Stephen T Asma
The nature of self awareness and the origin and persistence of personal identity still loom large in contemporary philosophy of mind. Many philosophers have been wooed by the computational approach to consciousness, and they attempt to find the self amidst the phenomenon of neocortical information processing. Affective neuroscience offers another pathway to understanding the evolution and nature of self. This paper explores how affective neuroscience acts as a positive game-changer in the philosophical pursuit of self. In particular, we focus on connecting 'mammalian agency' to (a) subjective awareness, and (b) identity through time.
The New Atheists' Narrow World-View, Stephen Asma
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 …
Una Reflexión Entorno A “El Espíritu De La Ilustración” De Tzvetan Todorov., Mariado Hinojosa
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.
What We Talk About When We Talk About The Soul, Stephen Asma
What We Talk About When We Talk About The Soul, Stephen Asma
Stephen T Asma
The author discusses the popularity among college students of the concept of the soul, and attempts to place it in its proper context. He dispenses with orthodox theological arguments and New Age arguments as scientifically untenable. He takes a so-called Wittgensteinian approach, noting soul's linguistic significance. He analyzes expressions which use the concept of soul and concludes that they are qualitatively different from testable factual expressions. He notes that soul talk is about hopes and aspirations, inspiration, or feelings deeper than friendship. He assigns it meaning outside of scientific concepts. He likens expressions of soul to creative and ethical acts, …
Monsters And The Moral Imagination, Stephen Asma
Monsters And The Moral Imagination, Stephen Asma
Stephen T Asma
The article discusses the cultural interest in monsters in the 21st century. The author speculates on the reasons for the interest, citing anxiety after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, the war in Iraq, or the global financial crisis of 2008-2009. He notes a conference in September 2009 at the University of Oxford entitled "Monsters and the Monstrous." Cultural uses of monsters, he notes, include scolding ourselves for failure to be inclusive, the medievals' punishment for the sin of pride, or the ancient Greeks' warnings of impending calamity. He notes that monster stories can promote the individual's thought about what …
Never Mind Grendel! Can Beowulf Conquer The 21st-Century Guilt Trip?, Stephen Asma
Never Mind Grendel! Can Beowulf Conquer The 21st-Century Guilt Trip?, Stephen Asma
Stephen T Asma
The writer casts doubt on whether the emasculated Beowulf put forward by J. R. R. Tolkien and in the recent movie version of the story transcends and nullifies the heroic original. He suggests that both Beowulfs may be necessary.
Looking Up From The Gutter: Pop-Culture And Philosophy, Stephen Asma
Looking Up From The Gutter: Pop-Culture And Philosophy, Stephen Asma
Stephen T Asma
No abstract provided.
Against Transcendentalism: The Meaning Of Life And Buddhism, Stephen Asma
Against Transcendentalism: The Meaning Of Life And Buddhism, Stephen Asma
Stephen T Asma
From the 1970s cult TV show, Monty Python’s Flying Circus, to the current hit musical Spamalot, the Monty Python comedy troupe has been at the center of popular culture and entertainment. The Pythons John Cleese, Graham Chapman, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin, and Terry Gilliam are increasingly recognized and honored for their creativity and enduring influence in the worlds of comedy and film. Monty Python and Philosophy extends that recognition into the world of philosophy. Fifteen experts in topics like mythology, Buddhism, feminism, logic, ethics, and the philosophy of science bring their expertise to bear on Python movies such …
'Mass Delusion' Or 'True Myth'? Pbs Considers The Question Of God, Stephen Asma
'Mass Delusion' Or 'True Myth'? Pbs Considers The Question Of God, Stephen Asma
Stephen T Asma
The Question of God is a new 4-hour miniseries from PBS. It is based on a long-running course taught by Harvard University psychiatry professor Armand Nicholi that compares the biographies and theories of Sigmund Freud, skeptic, and C. S. Lewis, believer. On balance, the miniseries succeeds as an introduction to complex issues.