Scientific realism and democratic society : the philosophy of Philip Kitcher /
:
Philip Kitcher is among the key philosophers of science of our times. This volume offers an up to date analysis of his philosophical perspective taking into account his views on scientific realism and democratic society. The contributors to the volume focus on four different aspects of Kitcher's thought: the evolution of his philosophy, his present views on scientific realism, the epistemological analysis of his modest ("real" or "piecemeal") realism, and his conception of scientific practice. In the final chapter, the philosopher replies to his critics. The volume will be of interest to philosophers as well as anyone interested in the relation between science and society.
:
Papers presented at a conference held in Spain, at the University of A Coruña, Ferrol campus.
Includes a contribution by Philip Kitcher, entitled Second thoughts (p. [353]-389). :
1 online resource (432 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references and indexes. :
9789401207355 :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Science in Culture : Translated from the Polish by Hugh McDonald.
:
This book tries to uncover science's discoverer and explain why the conception of science has been changing during the centuries, and why science can be beneficial and dangerous for humanity. Far from being hermetic, this research can be interesting for all who want to understand deeper what really conditions the place of science in culture.
:
1 online resource (351 pages) :
9789401203852 :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Brill's companion to the philosophy of biology : entities, processes, implications /
:
"In this volume, Andrea Borghini and Elena Casetta introduce a wide spectrum of key philosophical problems related to life sciences in a neat framework and an accessible style, with a special emphasis on metaphysical issues. The volume is divided into three parts. The first addresses the two main questions stemming from life sciences: what is life, and what is the correct understanding of the theory of evolution? The second part looks at metaphysical questions concerning biological entities: environments, species, organisms, and biological individuals. The third part focuses on theoretical questions of particular ethical and political significance: sex and gender, the biotechnological revolution, and the evolution of behavior and culture. Each chapter is followed by a list of further readings".
:
1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references. :
9789004400160
Naturalized epistemology and philosophy of science /
:
Much has happened in the field of contemporary epistemology since Quine's "Epistemology Naturalized" was published in 1969. Even before Ronald Giere published his article "Philosophy of Science Naturalized," naturalized philosophy of science had been influenced by the so-called historical approach. Kuhm, Lakatos, Feyerabend and Laudan all contributed importantly to this trend. In this light it has emerged, without a doubt, that philosophy of science is closely related to epistemology. This volume explores some of the relevant relations and will be of interest to epistemologists and philosophers of science.
:
"The 2006 Soochow international philosophy conference and workshop 'Naturalized Epistemology and Philosophy of Science', held in Taipei, Taiwan ..."--Preface. :
1 online resource (196 pages) : illustrations. :
Includes bibliographical references. :
9789401204361 :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Cutting through the surface : philosophical approaches to bioethics /
:
This book examines the role of philosophy and philosophers in bioethics. Academics often see bioethical studies as too practical while decision makers tend to see them as too theoretical. The purpose of this collection of new essays by an international group of distinguished scholars is to explore the troubled relationship between theory and practice in the ethical assessment of medicine, health care, and new medical and genetic technologies. The book is divided into six parts. In the first part, philosophers consider the definition of bioethics, the nature of applied ethics more generally, and the possibility of combining utilitarian and liberal strands of thinking in moral and political studies. In the second part, authors discuss the place and justification of principles in bioethics and the significance of medical and nursing experience in moral decision making. The third part addresses the complementary (or contradictory, as the case may be) principles of dignity, autonomy, precaution, and solidarity, and their use in theoretical and practical settings. In the fourth part, public health measures and experimental research are defended against traditional moral concerns. Part five scrutinizes parental responsibilities in bearing and rearing children, especially the reasons for and against human reproduction in individual cases. In part six, enhancements to human nature by various means are analyzed. Following in the footsteps of four previous collections in the Values in Bioethics special series by the same editorial team- Scratching the Surface of Bioethics , Bioethics and Social Reality , Ethics in Biomedical Research , and Arguments and Analysis in Bioethics -this book, compiled in honor of Professor Matti Häyry's 50th birthday, drills into the core of the discipline to show the philosophical depths that lie under the polished surface of policy-driven everyday bioethics.
:
1 online resource (xii, 258 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789042027404 :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Debating cognitive existentialism : values and orientations in hermeneutic philosophy of science /
:
Cognitive existentialism is a version of hermeneutic philosophy. The volume provides a summation of the critical approaches to this version. All essays are engaged in probing the value of universal hermeneutics. Drawing on various conceptions developed in analytical and Continental traditions, the authors explore the interpretative dimensions of scientific inquiry. They try to place the projects of their investigations in historical, socio-cultural, and political contexts. The task of extending hermeneutics to the natural sciences is an initiative of much relevance to the dialogue between the scientific and humanistic culture. A special aspect of this dialogue, addressed by all authors, is the promotion of interpretive reflexivity in both kinds of academic culture.
:
1 online resource (x, 201 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004299191 :
0929-8436 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Thinking about provincialism in thinking /
:
The volume addresses a problem rarely discussed by philosophers - the question of provincialism in science (in the broadest sense of the term). There are only a few great centers of science, which attract funding and provide almost ideal opportunities for research and development. They also attract some of the best researchers. Some - but not all. For a variety of reasons, some of the best researchers, or ones who have that potential, may do science outside these centers, in the provinces. The volume is devoted to the problems they face. What is an intellectual province? Who are the provincial thinkers? What is the mark of provincialism? Do provincial (or central) thinkers have any special duties? Are there ways of overcoming one's own provincialism? The authors address these questions across different disciplines, cultures, locations and time periods.
:
1 online resource (301 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references. :
9789401209007 :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
The limits of science : an analysis from "barriers" to "confines" /
:
The problem of the limits of science is twofold. First, there is the problem of demarcation, id est, the boundaries or "barriers" between what is science and what is not science. Second, there is the problem of the ceiling of scientific activity, which leads to the "confines" of this human enterprise. These two faces of the problem of the limits - the "barriers" and the "confines" of science - require a new analysis, which is the task of this book. The authors take into account the Kantian roots but they are focused on the current stage of the philosophical and methodological analyses of science. This vision looks to supersede the Kantian approach in order to reach a richer conception of science.
:
1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004325401 :
0303-8157 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Essays in the philosophy and history of logic and mathematics /
:
The book is a collection of the author's selected works in the philosophy and history of logic and mathematics. Papers in Part I include both general surveys of contemporary philosophy of mathematics as well as studies devoted to specialized topics, like Cantor's philosophy of set theory, the Church thesis and its epistemological status, the history of the philosophical background of the concept of number, the structuralist epistemology of mathematics and the phenomenological philosophy of mathematics. Part II contains essays in the history of logic and mathematics. They address such issues as the philosophical background of the development of symbolism in mathematical logic, Giuseppe Peano and his role in the creation of contemporary logical symbolism, Emil L. Post's works in mathematical logic and recursion theory, the formalist school in the foundations of mathematics and the algebra of logic in England in the 19th century. The history of mathematics and logic in Poland is also considered. This volume is of interest to historians and philosophers of science and mathematics as well as to logicians and mathematicians interested in the philosophy and history of their fields.
:
A collection of previously published essays; those originally written in Polish have been translated into English for this publication. :
1 online resource (343 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references (p. 301-334) and index. :
9789042030916 :
0303-8157 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Aristotle and mathematics : aporetic method in cosmology and metaphysics /
:
John Cleary here explores the role which the mathematical sciences play in Aristotle's philosophical thought, especially in his cosmology, metaphysics, and epistemology. He also thematizes the aporetic method by means of which he deals with philosophical questions about the foundations of mathematics. The first two chapters consider Plato's mathematical cosmology in the light of Aristotle's critical distinction between physics and mathematics. Subsequent chapters examine three basic aporiae about mathematical objects which Aristotle himself develops in his science of first philosophy. What emerges from this dialectical inquiry is a different conception of substance and of order in the universe, which gives priority to physics over mathematics as the cosmological science. Within this different world-view, we can better understand what we now call Aristotle's philosophy of mathematics.
:
1 online resource (xxxvi, 558 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references (p. 505-528) and indexes. :
9789004320901 :
0079-1687 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.