REV - Scientia et Fides - Vol 6, Nº2 (2018)
Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/10171/45447
See
Results
- Review of the Autobiography of Josef Svoboda, Canadian Arctic Climate Scientist(Universidad Nicolás Copérnico de Torun, 2018) Woollard, G. (Geoffrey)In Wine from Raisins, Josef Svoboda, a Canadian arctic climate scientist, tells the story of his own life that encompassed 20th-century history and winds up facing the most important questions of the 21st century – questions about what we have learned from nature, what we have done to our environment and who we will become as we drift away from the natural world toward one immersed in our own technological creations. Readers of Wine from Raisins will glimpse the world through the eyes of Svoboda, who combines scientific training with a contemplative gaze.
- Czy przyroda może mieć intencje?(Universidad Nicolás Copérnico de Torun, 2018) Dobrzeniecki, M. (Marek)The review concentrates on Fodor and Piattelli-Palmarini’s philosophical critique of adaptationism – one of the pillars of the theory of evolution. Their main objection refers to the explanatory weakness of Darwin’s theory, namely that it is unable to predict (and explain) what are the traits that natural selection acts on? Because of this the authors classify theory of evolution under the rubric: “natural history”, and they deny that it depicts a law of nature.
- Biología y racionalidad. El carácter distintivo del cuerpo humano(Universidad Nicolás Copérnico de Torun, 2018) Montoya-Camacho, J.M. (Jorge Martín)¿Cuáles son los componentes distintivos del cuerpo humano que permiten identificarlo como un elemento material diferente del resto del mundo físico? ¿Son tales elementos algo meramente funcional, o remiten a otra dimensión que va más allá de la instrumentalidad? Estas son las preguntas que se plantean en el libro “Biología y racionalidad. El carácter distintivo del cuerpo humano” de José Ángel Lombo y José Manuel Giménez Amaya. Partiendo desde la perspectiva filosófica, los autores buscan clarificar estas cuestiones ofreciendo un marco conceptual interdisciplinar que remite en todo momento a la unidad de la persona humana.
- Czy współczesne nauki przyrodnicze mogą inspirować filozoficzny i teologiczny namysł nad przyczynowością?(Universidad Nicolás Copérnico de Torun, 2018) Tabaczek, M (Mariusz)Współpraca nauk szczegółowych, filozofii i teologii w analizie relacji i zależności przyczynowych bytów we wszechświecie wydaje się słuszna i uprawniona. Okazuje się jednak, że w praktyce rodzi ona często pewne napięcia, pytania i trudności, prowadzące do alternatywnych, czy wręcz konkurencyjnych modeli przyczynowości oraz działania Boga w świecie. Co więcej, (1) nastawienie po-nowożytnych nauk szczegółowych na poznanie zjawisk naturalnych w celu ich przewidywania i kontroli, bez pretensji do określenia ich ostatecznej racji przyczynowej, (2) krytyka i odrzucenie pojęcia przyczynowości przez Hume’a, oraz (3) skupienie filozofów analitycznych na opisie tego, co towarzyszy zdarzeniom określanym mianem przyczynowo-skutkowych, z pominięciem próby określenia metafizycznego statusu przyczyn i skutków – wydają się uniemożliwiać interakcję i wzajemne odniesienie współczesnych nauk szczegółowych, filozofii i teologii w kwestii przyczynowości. Zasadniczym celem niniejszego artykułu jest obrona tezy o możliwym i faktycznym wpływie naukowej refleksji nad związkami przyczynowo-skutkowymi na filozoficzny i teologiczny namysł nad przyczynowością, nie tylko w średniowieczu i nowożytności, lecz także w myśli współczesnej. Zwieńczeniem przedstawienia najnowszych stanowisk w debacie na temat działania Boskiego w świecie przyrody będzie argument na rzecz aktualności modelu wypracowanego przez filozofów i teologów reprezentujących szkołę tomistyczną.
- La naturaleza de la natura: una apunte sobre mística y ciencia en el franciscanismo medieval de la Península Ibérica(Universidad Nicolás Copérnico de Torun, 2018) Lázaro-Pulido, M. (Manuel)The present paper shows the relationship between the concepts Natura (Latin term, understood as common creatural reality) and Nature (Vernacular term, understood as personal and social reality) at Castillan Court and Franciscan Peninsular thinking on XIII century. Especially we study this distinction in Juan Gil de Zamora wisdom methodology of natural philosophy, equilibrating science, and mystical approach.
- Physiological and Psychological Foundation of Virtues: Thomas Aquinas and Modern Challenges of Neurobiology(Universidad Nicolás Copérnico de Torun, 2018) Mróz, M. (Miroslaw)This article regards the field of neuroscience and indicates on the proper or erroneous functioning of the human brain. Intellectual virtues, especially practical wisdom (prudence/ prudentia) play a significant role in capturing the truth and implementing it in life. The agile formation of the cognitive function of man encompasses both his reason as well as the sensual judgment of utility with all the bodily backup (vis cogitativa). The brain possesses great plasticity in the production of neuronal connections. Habit as a permanent wont utilizes the reactions being developed to the construction of often inappropriate mechanisms, that in turn are not easy or completely impossible to eliminate. When practical reason is introduced into a false ethos, the brain responds by forming “ruts” of neuronal connections which seem difficult to consider as something appropriate. The reparation of the existing situation and the removal of the wrong habit require relevant virtues so as to unblock the psychological resistance that is deeply rooted within the physiological neuronal substrate. The learning about the virtues of St. Thomas Aquinas is the best warranty not only for theoretical explanations, but also for the practical application of virtues in dealing with the arised situation. Only well-formed virtues give the opportunity to correct the false instinctive cognition and liberate from erroneous actions.
- The Hard Problem of Consciousness in the Light of Onto-Gnoseological Uncertainty(Universidad Nicolás Copérnico de Torun, 2018) Mamchenkov, D.V. (Dmitry Valerievich); Gnatik, E.N. (Ekaterina Nikolaevna); Lokhov, S.A. (Sergey Alexandrovich); Matyushova, M.P. (Maria Petrovna)Purpose: The main purpose of this article is to show that the paradigm of viewing the ‘hard problem’ of consciousness in analytic philosophy makes it a pseudo-problem rather than a ‘hard problem’. The objectives of this research included showing the reasons for the authors’ thesis, demonstrating the irreducibility of consciousness as a special layer of reality, and proposing a way to overcome these difficulties. Design/methodology/approach: In this article, the ‘hard problem’ of consciousness is viewed from the standpoints of the transcendental-phenomenological and dialectical approaches and is analyzed through the prism of the principle of onto-gnoseological uncertainty. Findings: It is shown that the way of formulating the ‘hard problem’ in the analytical philosophical tradition inevitably makes it a pseudo-problem. At the same time, with the consistent realization of the principle of onto-gnoseological uncertainty, the antinomy of solutions to the problems of consciousness is eliminated, which opens up a way to a productive solution of problems related to the interpretation of consciousness both in natural sciences and in philosophy. Originality/value: This research reveals the methodological potential of applying the principle of onto-gnoseological uncertainty to the problems that arise in modern philosophy in connection with the achievements of natural sciences.
- La relevancia de la neurociencia en el estudio de la religiosidad(Universidad Nicolás Copérnico de Torun, 2018) Sanguineti, J.J. (Juan José)El artículo intenta averiguar si la neurociencia es relevante para una mejor comprensión de las actividades religiosas. La respuesta a este problema subraya la distinción entre operaciones mentales y su contenido intencional. Los estudios neurobiológicos, sostengo, pueden ser importantes para valorar la dimensión psicológica y neural de los actos religiosos, con prudencia debido a su gran complejidad, pero no para evaluar la verdad y genuinidad de su contenido, ni para solucionar problemas religiosos objetivos. La neurociencia puede ser una ayuda para el discernimiento de algunas experiencias religiosas extraordinarias y también para el estudio de las patologías pseudo-religiosas.
- The Interaction of Noetic and Psychosomatic Operations in a Thomist Hylomorphic Anthropology(Universidad Nicolás Copérnico de Torun, 2018) De-Haan, D.D. (Daniel D.)This article, the second of a two-part essay, outlines a solution to certain tensions in Thomist philosophical anthropology concerning the interaction of the human person’s immaterial intellectual or noetic operations with the psychosomatic sensory operations that are constituted from the formal organization of the nervous system. Continuing with where the first part left off, I argue that Thomists should not be tempted by strong emergentist accounts of mental operations that act directly on the brain, but should maintain, with Aquinas, that noetic operations directly interact with psychosomatic operations. I develop a Thomist account of noetic–psychosomatic interactions that expands upon the first part’s rapprochement between the new mechanist philosophy of neuroscience and psychology and hylomorphic animalism. I argue that noetic–psychosomatic interactions are best understood as analogous to the way diverse higher and lower order psychosomatic powers interact by actualizing, coordinating, and directing the operations of other psychosomatic powers. I draw on James Ross’s arguments for the immateriality of intellectual operations as realizing definite pure functions in order to elucidate the way noetic operations uniquely actualize, coordinate, and direct the psychosomatic operations they interact with. I conclude with a conjectural sketch of how this presentation of Thomist philosophical anthropology understands the noetic and psychosomatic deficits brought about by damage to the nervous system.
- Homo technologicus and the Recovery of a Universal Ethic: Maximus the Confessor and Romano Guardini(Universidad Nicolás Copérnico de Torun, 2018) Delicata, N. (Nadia)On September 1st 2017, Pope Francis and the Ecumenical Patriarch Bar¬tholomew issued a Joint Message for the World Day of Prayer for Creation. The gesture reveals the church’s efforts “to breathe with two lungs” on the urgent matter of climate change and ecological sustainability. But, the church leaders have also insisted on a philosophical and religious reflection on technology if humanity is to take respon¬sibility for the environment. In particular, they have sought to correct the wrong inter¬pretation of the biblical imperative to “have dominion over” (Gen 1:26) the creatures of the Earth and to “subdue it” (Gen 1:28) that for centuries has condoned ecological abuse, in particular in the name of technological progress. In this paper, I propose a theological reflection on Homo technologicus through the writings of the seventh century monk Maximus the Confessor and the twentieth cen¬tury Catholic priest Romano Guardini. Maximus offers a systematic account of human techne as reflecting the mark of sin, while being God’s gift to assist us in stewarding creation. Guardini offers a challenging argument for the moral nature of technology in our times. In an age where technology extends human power, even as it seemingly takes on a life of its own, Maximus’ and Guardini’s insights on the “technological human” offer a renewed Christian anthropology that, in the tradition of natural law reasoning, can ground a global ethic for a “sustainable and integral development.” (Joint Message, 2017)