|
Computation in Physical Systems
from Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
(2015-5-14 8:47)
|
[Revised entry by Gualtiero Piccinini on May 13, 2015.
Changes to: Main text, Bibliography]
In our ordinary discourse, we distinguish between physical systems that perform computations, such as computers and calculators, and physical systems that don't, such as rocks. Among computing devices, we distinguish between more and less powerful ones. These distinctions affect our behavior: if a device is computationally more powerful than another, we pay more money for it. What grounds these distinctions? What is the principled difference, if there is one,...
|
|
Reconciliation
from Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
(2015-5-12 11:18)
|
[New Entry by Linda Radzik and Colleen Murphy on May 11, 2015.]
Among the things commonly described as reconciled are ideas, narratives, persons, groups, and God. To reconcile theories with one another is to render them mutually consistent. To reconcile yourself to the fact that you have cancer is to live better with the belief that you do. Reconciliation of the divine-human relationship is linked in the Christian tradition to the notion of salvation. This essay concentrates on the uses to which the concept of reconciliation has...
|
|
Upanisads
from Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy
(2015-5-12 10:08)
|
The Upaniads The Upaniads are ancient texts from India that were composed orally in Sanskrit between about 700 B.C.E. and 300 B.C.E. There are thirteen major Upaniads, many of which were likely composed by multiple authors and are comprised of a variety of styles. As part of a larger group of texts, known as the … Continue reading Upanisads →
|
|
Henry Sidgwick
from Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
(2015-5-9 11:04)
|
[Revised entry by Barton Schultz on May 8, 2015.
Changes to: Main text, Bibliography]
Henry Sidgwick was one of the most influential ethical philosophers of the Victorian era, and his work continues to exert a powerful influence on Anglo-American ethical and political theory. His masterpiece, The Methods of Ethics (1907), was first published in 1874 and in many ways marked the culmination of the classical utilitarian tradition - the tradition of Jeremy Bentham and James and John Stuart Mill - with its emphasis on "the greatest happiness...
|
|
Totalitarianism
from Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy
(2015-5-7 15:26)
|
Totalitarianism Totalitarianism is best understood as any system of political ideas that is both thoroughly dictatorial and utopian. It is an ideal type of governing notion, and as such, it cannot be realised perfectly. Faced with the brutal reality of paradigmatic cases like Stalin’s USSR and Nazi Germany, philosophers, political theorists and social scientists have … Continue reading Totalitarianism →
|
|
The Identity Theory of Truth
from Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
(2015-5-2 8:26)
|
[Revised entry by Richard Gaskin on May 1, 2015.
Changes to: 0]
[Editor's Note: The following new entry by Richard Gaskin replaces the former entry on this topic by the previous authors.] The identity theory of truth was influential in the formative years of modern analytic philosophy, and has come to prominence again...
|
|
Aristotle's Logic
from Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
(2015-4-30 14:26)
|
[Revised entry by Robin Smith on April 29, 2015.
Changes to: Main text, Bibliography]
Aristotle's logic, especially his theory of the syllogism, has had an unparalleled influence on the history of Western thought. It did not always hold this position: in the Hellenistic period, Stoic logic, and in particular the work of Chrysippus, took pride of place. However, in later antiquity, following the work of Aristotelian Commentators, Aristotle's logic became dominant, and Aristotelian logic was what was transmitted to the Arabic and the Latin medieval traditions, while the...
|
|
Science and Chinese Philosophy
from Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
(2015-4-29 14:55)
|
[New Entry by Lisa Raphals on April 28, 2015.]
At first glance, there may appear to be little connection between Chinese philosophy and science. Stereotypes of Chinese philosophy as consisting almost entirely of Confucianism and claims that Confucians were not interested in science add to this perception. For example, in a recent correspondence in the journal...
|
|
Chinese Philosophy and Chinese Medicine
from Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
(2015-4-29 14:44)
|
[New Entry by Lisa Raphals on April 28, 2015.]
According to Zhang Xichun張錫純 (1860 - 1933), one of the leading reformers of Chinese medicine in the early twentieth century: Many recent medical journal reports take the view that [traditional Chinese] philosophy holds back the progress of medicine, but their...
|
|
Social Epistemology
from Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
(2015-4-29 14:26)
|
[Revised entry by Alvin Goldman and Thomas Blanchard on April 28, 2015.
Changes to: Main text, Bibliography, notes.html]
Until recently, epistemology - the study of knowledge and justified belief - was heavily individualistic in focus. The emphasis was on evaluating doxastic attitudes (beliefs and disbeliefs) of individuals in abstraction from their social environment. The result is a distorted picture of the human epistemic situation, which is largely shaped by social relationships and institutions. Social epistemology seeks to redress this imbalance by investigating the epistemic effects of social interactions and social systems. After reviewing the history of the field in section 1, we provide a...
|
