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1. Epistemology & Philosophy of Science: Volume > 48 > Issue: 2
Ilya Kasavin, Orcid-ID Vladimir Porus Orcid-ID
И.Т. Касавин
Философия науки в России
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The article shows that Russian philosophical community is very sensitive towards the history and the current state of philosophy of science and of science studies, which are a subject matter of special interest by virtue of a dedicated space in the university education system. This status is also supported by its proximity to the international philosophical mainstream of the 20th century and its specific object, its connection with science. Philosophy of science at the same time retains some neutrality in relation to the dominant political ideology and proposes claims for an objective knowledge. History of philosophy of science, therefore, serves largely as a history of philosophical rationalism, and its prospects are determined by the strengthening of the role of science in modern culture. However, the modern existence of philosophy of science is undergoing substantial change and experiences a series of challenges. Among them there are the humiliation of intellectuals and scientists in society political voluntarism, mass consumption and the cult of mysticism. Under these conditions, a philosophical study of science and technology is forced to take on the challenges of social criticism and shape special civil institutions for self-preservation. Thus philosophy of science integrates the political, ethical and even social engineering components that allow for treating it as a hard core of interdisciplinary interaction of all socio-humanitarian disciplines.

panel discussion panel discussion

2. Epistemology & Philosophy of Science: Volume > 48 > Issue: 2
Boris Yudin
Б.Г. Юдин
Технонаука и «улучшение» человек
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Technologies and practices aimed at improving the physical, mental, intellectual, moral and other characteristics of a person are becoming increasingly popular today. What makes all this possible is the present stage of scientific and technological development of society, often referred to as technoscience. This article discusses two general contours of what constitutes a technoscience. The author argues that, internally, technoscience is associated with establishing increasingly close and diverse links between science and technology. Externally, technoscience incorporates other components, such as business, financing the development of new technologies, a human as an individual person and, at the same time, as a mass consumer of new technologies, and society, through which the relations between all other blocks of the eireuit are carried out. What is claimed to be of crucial importance is the fact that very often becomes the target of a variety of technological interventions. For a long time, such interventions have been primarily medical, therapeutic in their nature. Gradually, however, the spectrum of applications of biomedical technologies has grown wider. A significant role in this widening ofthe spectrum during last few decades is claimed to be played by processes of medicalization of human life. The author considers the delineation between therapeutic interventions and those which are aimed at improving an individual. He addresses the problems of the connection between the projects of human enhancement, on the one hand, and their radical transformation, on the other.
3. Epistemology & Philosophy of Science: Volume > 48 > Issue: 2
Elena Bryzgalina
Е.В. Брызгалина
Технонаука и перспективы улучшения человека
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This article describes two features of technoscience, which are significant for the consideration of the prospects of human improvement projects. The first feature of technoscience is that the object of its research is artificial in origin which means created by person. As an example of new objects, situations and problems are given projects to create «designer children», development of transplantation, creating implantable neural interface. The second feature of technoscience is that the well-established methods can't be applied to determine the results of the implementation of human improvement projects. As an example, the article discussed neo-eugenics projects. The article concludes that today in the social sciences there is no clear position on the grounds of human improvement projects. However, this is not an obstacle for the development of technoscience.
4. Epistemology & Philosophy of Science: Volume > 48 > Issue: 2
Elena Grebenschikova
Е.Г. Гребенщикова
Биотехнонаука и границы улучшения человека
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The author examines the impact of the technological capabilities of medicine to review the boundaries between enhancement and therapy, artificial and natural, normal and supernormal, revealed the relationship of medicalization trends and development of the «quantified self» movement, revealed some «garage biology» ideas in connection with the development of different practices of human transformation.
5. Epistemology & Philosophy of Science: Volume > 48 > Issue: 2
Olga Stoliarova
О.Е. Столярова
Технонаука как экспериментальная среда и экспериментальная методология
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The paper provides a commentary on B.G. Yudin's paper devoted to the relationship between technoscience and contemporary human enhancement technologies. In order to discuss these issues I address to T. Kuhn's conception of two traditions in the development of modern science. I show that technoscience belongs to the tradition that Kuhn calls the Baconian or ”experimental" sciences in contrast to the ”mathematical" sciences. I argue that technoscience creates an experimental environment for the study of a human being as an integral part of this environment.
6. Epistemology & Philosophy of Science: Volume > 48 > Issue: 2
Valery A. Lukov
В.А. Луков
«Улучшение» человека как молодежная проблема
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The impact of "human enhancement" can manifest itself only overtime. And this is why, the author argues, "human enhancement" is an issue for the youth-oriented policies. As such, the problem of "human enhancement" is a social problem. The author stresses the influence of individual experiments that young people run on themselves and that have to do with human enhancement. He argues that these experiments have the potential of opening new directions for a social construction of reality. He relates this potential to the innovative impulse that young people have.
7. Epistemology & Philosophy of Science: Volume > 48 > Issue: 2
Pavel Tishchenko
П.Д. Тищенко
Двойная спираль технологизации жизни
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The author discusses B.G. Yudin's image technoscience as having two contours, the external one dealing with science, business and society, and the internal one represented by laboratories. Together these two contours present a multidimensional net of relations between science and technology in conducting experiments, development of instruments (e.g. visualization tools), etc. The author argues that, in such a system, coordinated activity of the internal and the external contours is provided by a synergy of regulatory principles of truth, good and usefulness. He discusses a case of synthetic biology which, as he argues, demonstrates that the internal and external contours of technoscience undergo a process of technologization. Technologization is understood as a transition from research techniques to systematic use of technologies. Biotechnologies are claimed to have a double socio-biological helix network structure. Each network is formed as a kind of ad hoc "factory" and is aimed at solving specific research problems.
8. Epistemology & Philosophy of Science: Volume > 48 > Issue: 2
Boris Yudin
Б.Г. Юдин
Человек в контурах технонауки
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epistemology and cognition epistemology and cognition

9. Epistemology & Philosophy of Science: Volume > 48 > Issue: 2
Tom Rockmore
Том Рокмор
Эпистемический конструктивизм, метафизический реализм и принцип тождества у Парменида
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The cognitive problem, which is a main modern theme, arises early in the Greektra- dition. Parmenides, who formulates one ofthe first identifiably "modern" approaches to epistemology, points toward identity as the only acceptable cognitive standard. The paper, which leaves epistemic skepticism for another occasion, reviews versions of metaphysicalrealism identified with Plato in ancient philosophy and Descartes in the modern tradition in suggesting that for different reasons both fail. The paper reviews German idealist versions of epistemic constructivism formulated by Kant, Fichte and Hegel. The criticalphilosophy provides a widely known, complex a priori account of cognitive constructivism.This account is amplified, corrected, and reformulated in different ways by such post-Kantian German idealists as Fichte and Hegel. A key element concerns the restatement ofthe abstract Kantian view ofthe subject as finite human being by Fichte and Hegel.Early in the Greektradition,in equatingthinking and being, Parmenides pointstothree approaches to knowledge as epistemic skepticism, metaphysicalrealism or epistemic constructivism. If epistemic skepticism is unacceptable and, metaphysical realism is implausible,then epistemic constructivism appearsto bethe most promising approach to cognition.
10. Epistemology & Philosophy of Science: Volume > 48 > Issue: 2
Dimitris Kilakos
Димитрис Килакос
От парменидовского тождества — за пределы классического идеализма и эпистемического конструктивизма
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language and mind language and mind

11. Epistemology & Philosophy of Science: Volume > 48 > Issue: 2
Ivan Mikirtumov
И.Б. Микиртумов
Некомпозициональность и интендированный смысл
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The article presents a concept apparatus of identifying and eliminating non-compositionality on the basis of intended sense reconstruction. First, two types ofnon-compositionality are delineated: pragmatically adoptable and logical. Thenon-compositionality ofthe first type has its source in underspecification of the meaning of an expression components, which is connected with non-expressible context-pragmatic conditions ofthesituation of an expression. The variants ofsuch non-compositionality are various, nevertheless allof them can be adopted with logical and semantic means. Non-compositionality ofthe secondtype is linked to the cyclic references which occur during the realisation ofthe procedure of defining the meaning. Sucha procedure is regarded as a semantic program which is capable of calculating the meaning of an expression with semantic and context-pragmatic parameters being given. The main question: howthe agents communication recognise thefactthatthe language expressions they generated are not adequate in regards of those mental representa- tionswhich constitute intended sense, particularly in the cases of non-compositionality. To answer this question the way of reconstructing intended sense is described. It includes differentiation of minimal and full senses of expression, and presupposes juxtaposing of context-pragmatic conditions of a speaker situation with the same conditions an addressee situation. If differences are uncovered which would make it impossible to achieve adequate understanding,then the parameters ofa speaker's situation are verbalised and stop beingnon-expressible turninginto obvious conditions ofthe stated. In the case of pragmatically adopted non-compositionality, full verbalisation of context-pragmatic conditions leads to obtaining full compositional meaning, which does not depend on a situation anymore. If it turns out, that logical compositionality depends on context-pragmatic conditions, then, depending on the aim of communication, it maybe localised and eliminated.

vista vista

12. Epistemology & Philosophy of Science: Volume > 48 > Issue: 2
Sergei Secundant Orcid-ID
С.Г. Секундант
Иоганн Христоф Штурм
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In this paper the philosophical ideology of eclecticism of Modern times is considered, especially as it has been formulated byJ. Ch.Sturm, and assessment of its contribution to development of philosophical and scientific thought is given. The need of differentiation of eclecticism, syncretism and conciliatorics is proved. Eclecticism is characterized as a progressive for its time current. The decisive impact eclecticism on formation of new scientific outlook is emphasized.

case-studies case-studies

13. Epistemology & Philosophy of Science: Volume > 48 > Issue: 2
Irina Gerasimova Orcid-ID
И.А. Герасимова
Гиппократ и Аристотель (к вопросу о становлении первых логических программ)
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The author argues that an analysis ofthe texts ofthe Collection of Hippocrates leads to the conclusion that long before the methodological genius of Aristotle there existed a highly analytical culture among medical professionals. The differences in understanding of the value and objectives of a valid inference in Hippocrates and Aristotle are explained in terms of the characteristics of the discourse that each of them used. Aristotle is argued to have been using a social-dialectical discourse, whereas, in medical practice, a combination of skills and reasoning had the highest value because what was expected from a doctor was the right diagnosis and the right treatment. The author argues that rational medical tradition of antiquity did not reach the logical reflection. According to her, the doctrine of the necessary connection between the logical attribute and the object of inferences had been developed in the Buddhist logic, which, as the author argues, can be considered a rational component of education in Tibetan medicine.
14. Epistemology & Philosophy of Science: Volume > 48 > Issue: 2
Vadim Rozin
В.М. Розин
Методология познания и конституирование реальности в междисциплинарных исследованиях
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The article discusses specific features of an interdisciplinary research and two strategies for introducing and constructing the objects of this research (an ontological and a constructivist strategy). The first strategy, which comes from Parmenides and Aristotle, is claimed to make a homogenous ontology a foundation ofthe process of the object construction. The second strategy, which comes from Plato, is based on the idea that the construction of an object is done by a thinking individual. Monodisciplinary research (as a part of interdisciplinary research) is characterized by a construction of idealized objects which cannot fully meet the requirement of a certain type of science. This is why it is hard to say what kind of science these objects belong to. The second feature of interdisciplinary research has to do with the interrelatedness of monodisciplinary studies. Monodisciplinary studies create the starting conditions for each other. The author argues that if the distinction between the two strategies is accepted, then a thorough reconsideration of ultimate ontologies (such as "rhizome", "complicatedness", "self-developing systems") is called for. The last part of the article is devoted to an analysis of the epistemic criteria of knowledge it interdisciplinary studies, its truthfulness and effectiveness.
15. Epistemology & Philosophy of Science: Volume > 48 > Issue: 2
Alexander Antonovski
А.Ю. Антоновский
Коммуникативная интерпретация науки в контексте классических эпистемологических проблем
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In this paper, the author analyzes and discusses the communicative approach used in the philosophy of science developed by N. Luhmann. He shows how Luhmann's communicative approach can be used to discuss a wide range "the classical problems" of knowledge: criteria for scientific knowledge, its autonomy and tools for achieving it, the problem of the foundation and structure of the scientific knowledge, the relationship between concepts and words, theories and methods.The author also analyzes the problem of the communication constraints imposed on the process of systematic organization of science (i.e. the delimitation principle): the specificity and opportunity of the social theory, its differences and similarities with the settled classic examples of the theorizing; the peculiarities of the particular types of the scientific observation.
16. Epistemology & Philosophy of Science: Volume > 48 > Issue: 2
Elena Zolotukhina-Abolina
ЕВ. Золотухина-Аболина
Здравый смысл и иррациональное
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The paper is devoted to the problem of the relations between the common sense and the various forms of the Irrational: contradictory and absurd situations, paranormal experience, depersonalization and excessive passion. First of all, the author precises the concept of common sense, distinguishing it from the so-called everyday conscience. The difference is in the personal and responsible character ofthe common sense thought and behaviour. The common sense is described as a extraordinary flexible instrument of the practical life and a particular phenomenon of the rationality. The paper demonstrates that the common sense is stable. It can be examinated and seduced by the very different irrational situations which might destroy it. But the common sense can save itself even in the paranormal experience and quit from the social daily absurd because it isn't merely logic, — it has capacity to the interpretation, humour and playing. However, the common sense cannot survive any demolition of the personality or diminution of its roles. The author examines psychological phemomena including the hypertrophy of emotion and will. It will be shown that too strong passions and loss of self controlling makes the common sense step back. The formal rule of bureaucracy is also the moment which pushs the common sense aside.

interdisciplinary studies interdisciplinary studies

17. Epistemology & Philosophy of Science: Volume > 48 > Issue: 2
Nataliya Nikolaeva
Н.Г. Николаева
«Тусклое стекло» неподобных образов
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The symbolic world of Corpus Areopagiticum is considered here from the prospect of the dichotomy in similar and dissimilar similarity (the images). The dissimilar images are divided into decent, average andthe distant ones. The similarand dissimilar images of Areopagite describe the world system by cataphatic and apophatic approach. The apophatic one seems to be noticeably more important for the author, as in denial (what God is not) or as in applying of unworthy predicates concerning him, his fundamental transcendence and unknowability become more expressive. Similarand dissimilar images are both the divine names from the NewTestament and the Old Testament respectively. They allow the agent of cognition get closer to the understanding of the universe structure. The divine names correspond to the so-called universal concepts which are considered in the works of contemporary linguistic conceptualistics. Anthropomorphic and zoomorphic characters of the Scripture belong to the dissimilar images, such as parts of the human body, wild animals etc. The most distant dissimilar images should be analyzed as the manifestations of the human passions applied to the naming or description of God. This is the most controversial aspect of the dissimilar similarities because of their provocative character for a profane reader. Thomas Aquinas, one of the ardent admirers of the Corpus, has denied it while considering the theory of images ("The Mystical Theology"). The works of Areopagite have become an example of combining the Eastern and Western traditions ofargumentation which still remains within the framework of the Christian experience.

archive archive

18. Epistemology & Philosophy of Science: Volume > 48 > Issue: 2
Tatiana Sokolova
Т.Д. Соколова
Гастон Башляр и актуальность исторической эпистемологии
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The article deals with the phenomenon of French historical epistemology and Gaston Bachelard's role in its theoretical and institutional establishment. It analyses the place of history of sciences in French historical epistemology, which was considered in France as epistemology perse from the beginning of XX century. The article accompanies first Russian translation of Bachelard's lecture "Topicality of the History of Science" and argues that this text represents Bachelardian program for reformation of scientific history as an academic discipline. The importance of this text for French epistemological tradition bases on, firstly, the analysis of methodology of the historical investigation, which subject is a scientific discipline, and secondly, historian's and epistemologist's theoretical approaches.
19. Epistemology & Philosophy of Science: Volume > 48 > Issue: 2
Gaston Bachelard
Гастон Башляр
Актуальность истории науки
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book reviews book reviews

20. Epistemology & Philosophy of Science: Volume > 48 > Issue: 2
Ilya Kasavin Orcid-ID
И.Т. Касавин
История науки a la belle lettre: опыт Лауры Снайдер
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Two books of American philosopher and science historian Laura Snyder are dedicated to the study of personality and teachings of William Whewell — an outstanding British philosopher and scholar, one of the father figures of the 19th century positivism. The author shows the role of communicative structures formed around prominent philosophers and scientists of the Victorian era, among which Whewell held a special and often the leading position. The purpose of these discussions and conversations, this selected discursive space or a trade zone served not only to find the final scientific truth. Much more they led to legitimating and consolidating the place of scientific and philosophical dispute in the structure of scientific activity and to justifying the latter. In this perspective, Snyder gives the chronicle of scientific-technical revolution of the 19th century, which brought England to the top of the leading world powers.