Search results for "Philosophy of Science"

Ulisse Aldrovandi: Vollendung des Aristoteles in plinianischer Manier

1994

The primary goal of Ulisse Aldrovandi was to surpass his immediate predecessor Conrad Gesner, despite the fact that he never mentioned it expressis verbis. In a Plinian manner he attempted to complete Aristotle's comprehensive description of the animals. Since he always made a great effort to evaluate all existing works, and to determine their degree of truth by conducting his own studies of nature, his descriptions turn out to be more comprehensive and critical than those of his predecessors. Furthermore he based his studies on a system and also incorporated anatomy again. With his studies of nature and anatomical dissections he has expanded the knowledge of scientific facts within the dom…

Das erste zoologische Kompendium in der Zeit der Renaissance: Edward Wottons Schrift „Über die Differenzen der Tiere”

1990

The English physian Edward Wotton wrote the first zoological compendium in the time of the Renaissance. As a convinced representative of Renaissance-Humanism Wotton strictly applied Aristotelian methodological principles to Aristotelian facts. In this way he tried to make Classical Antiquity complete; the Renaissance of ancient zoology is here tantamount to a new beginning. Wotton's achievement is in the first place to have provided a good summary of the whole of ancient zoological knowledge to which he added a few observations of his own. He carried through the Aristotelian concept of differentiation by many distinguishing features more strictly than Aristotle himself and all subsequent au…

Presocratic discourse in poetry and prose: The case of Empedocles and Anaxagoras

2012

Abstract This paper explores the differences between poetry and prose in philosophical writing by examining two Pre-Socratic fragments, one in verse and one in prose, that express a very similar thought: Empedocles 59 B 17 Diels/Kranz and Anaxagoras 31 B 8 D./K. Although at first it might seem as though there is a simple division between Empedocles’ opaque and allusive hexameters and Anaxagoras’ sober prose, when we look in detail at the language used by the two authors, a close reading of the passages reveals a more complex picture. Both authors place rhetorical emphasis on their own role as innovator; Anaxagoras’ prose shows a careful attention to style and word choice no less than Empedo…

Louis Jacques Thenard's Chemistry Courses at the Collège de France, 1804–1835

2010

This article is concerned with the public courses and lecture demonstrations given by Louis Jacques Thenard at the College de France during the first decades of the nineteenth century. The expectations and needs of Thenard's auditors will be studied in order to understand the role played by chemistry courses at the College in the context of the growing and changing Parisian teaching market during the first third of the nineteenth century. The preparation and performance of lecture demonstrations was the main driving force of several major changes in the premises and the personnel associated with the chair of chemistry. Our analysis of the parallel process of expansion and functional differe…

Einstein and Relativity: What Price Fame?

2012

ArgumentEinstein's initial fame came in late 1919 with a dramatic breakthrough in his general theory of relativity. Through a remarkable confluence of events and circumstances, the mass media soon projected an image of the photogenic physicist as a bold new revolutionary thinker. With his theory of relativity Einstein had overthrown outworn ideas about space and time dating back to Newton's day, no small feat. While downplaying his reputation as a revolutionary, Einstein proved he was well cast for the role of mild-mannered scientific genius. Yet fame demanded its price. Surrounded by social and economic unrest in Berlin, he was caught between two worlds, one struggling to be born, another …

The apocryphal: prototype of a subjectivity in crisis

2013

The introduction of this paper reviews the concept of the subject, which originated in classical antiquity and developed in Western culture up to the Enlightenment and Romanticism with the addition of new aspects but without questioning its foundation as a substantial Subject. The first major crisis of this received view took place in the first quarter of the twentieth century after the assimilation of the works by Marx, Freud or Nietzsche, which laid the foundations of a thorough criticism on the subject. One important feature of this crisis was the proliferation of apocryphal writing, which reached new models in the works of Fernando Pessoa and Antonio Machado. Between them lies the scope…

Diagnosis, assessment, and management of surgical complications following esophagectomy

2018

Despite improvements in operative strategies for esophageal resection, anastomotic leaks, fistula, postoperative pulmonary complications, and chylothorax can occur. Our review seeks to identify potential risk factors, modalities for early diagnosis, and novel interventions that may ameliorate the potential adverse effects of these surgical complications following esophagectomy. ispartof: Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences vol:1434 issue:1 pages:254-273 ispartof: location:United States status: Published online

Exercise and hormesis: activation of cellular antioxidant signaling pathway.

2006

Contraction-induced production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) has been shown to cause oxidative stress to skeletal muscle. As an adaptive response, muscle antioxidant defense systems are upregulated after heavy exercise. Nuclear factor (NF) kappaB and mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) are the major oxidative stress-sensitive signal transduction pathways in mammalian tissues. Activation of NF-kappaB signaling cascade has been shown to enhance the gene expression of important enzymes, such as mitochondrial superoxide dismutase (MnSOD) and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS). MAPK activations are involved in a variety of cellular functions including growth, proliferation, and adap…

Apoptosis induced in vascular smooth muscle cells by oxidative stress is partly prevented by pretreatment with CGRP.

2003

Philosophical, Experimental and Synthetic Phenomenology: The Study of Perception for Biological, Artificial Agents and Environments

2022

AbstractIn this paper the relationship between phenomenology of perception and synthetic phenomenology is discussed. Synthetic phenomenology is presented on the basis of the issues in A.I. and Robotics that required to address the question of what enables artificial agents to have phenomenal access to the environment. Phenomenology of perception is construed as a theory with autonomous structure and domain, which can be embedded in a philosophical as well as a scientific theory. Two attempts at specifying the phenomenal content of artificial agents are discussed. Concepts and experimental evidence on the independence of perception and the coordination of motion and appearances are set out t…