【Philosophy】African philosophy cannot be a thing
This essay unpacks several arguments about the metaphilosophic nature of African philosophy and charts a way through the problems these arguments enco... [more]
【Philosophy】Fusion Philosophy and Epistemic Injustice
I use the concept of epistemic injustice to think through the practice and methodology of comparative, or fusion, philosophy. I make two related claim... [more]
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History of science through Koyre's lenses
Alexandre Koyre was one of the most prominent historians of science of the twentieth century. The standard interpretation of Koyre is that he falls squarely within the internalist camp of historians of science-that he focuses on the history of the ideas t
Noble goals and challenging terrain: Organic and fair trade coffee movements in the global marketpla
Social relations associated with conventional agricultural exports find their origins in long term associations based on business, family, and class alliances. Working outside these boundaries presents a host of challenges, especially where small producer
How to take aim at the heart of the present and remain analytic
In his famous lecture on Kant's essay 'An Answer to the Question What is Enlightenment' Foucault distinguished between two traditions in modern philosophy coming out of Kant's work: 'an analytic of truth' and 'an ontology of present reality [actual
The creative dilemma: The influence of Schiller's aesthetics on the life and work of Otto Rank
The impact of philosophical wisdom on the pioneers of psychoanalytic work is presented in this article, in particular the influence of Schiller's aesthetics on the theoretical and clinical work of Otto Rank. The essay will compare and contrast Schiller'
Some thoughts about the hardest logic puzzle ever
'The Hardest Logic Puzzle Ever' was first described by the late George Boolos in the Spring 1996 issue of the Harvard Review of Philosophy. Although not dissimilar in appearance from many other simpler puzzles involving gods (or tribesmen) who always te
Fields and theology: A response to John Polkinghorne
In this statement, the author poses a number of questions that he believes John Polkinghorne left untouched in his response to Pannenberg's article God as Spirit-and Natural Science. These questions include the role of philosophy in the interaction betwe
Medicine and care of the sick in Utopia
These two excerpts from Utopia have the medical world as a common denominator: in one, Raphael tells us how medicine is, in Utopia, considered a branch of philosophy and a homage to the Creator; in the other, he describes the spacious hospitals where the
The pleasures of anticipation: Enriching intuitionistic logic
We explore a relation we call 'anticipation' between formulas, where A anticipates B (according to some logic) just in case B is a consequence (according to that logic, presumed to support some distinguished implicational connective -->) of the formula
Virtue ethics, the 'Analects', and the problem of commensurability (Structural similaritie
In support of the thesis that virtue ethics allows for a more comprehensive and consistent interpretation of the Analects than other possible models, the author uses a structural outline of a virtue ethic (derived from Alasdair MacIntyre's account of the
The reshaping of conventional farming: A North American perspective
Debates over the future of agriculture in North America establish a dialectical opposition between conventional, industrial agriculture and alternative, sustainable agriculture. This opposition has roots that extend back to the 18th century in the United
The 'Popperian programme' and mathematics. Part I: The fallibilist logic of mathematical d
Lakatos's Proofs and Refutations is usually understood as an attempt to apply Popper's methodology of science to mathematics. This view has been challenged because despite appearances the methodology expounded in it deviates considerably from what would
How rational can a polemic across the analytic-continental 'divide' be?
In spite of the widespread belief that there is (or at least there was) a clearcut and deep opposition between two forms of philosophizing vaguely characterized as 'continental' and 'analytic', it is not easy to find actual examples of debates between
Paul Tillich's realistic stance toward the vital trends of nature
Many scientists have argued forcefully for the pointlessness of nature, something that challenges any doctrine of Creation. However, apparent design and comprehensibility are also to be found in nature; it is ambivalent. This trait is nowhere more evident
The philosophical origins of Mitchell's chemiosmotic concepts - The personal factor in scientif
Mitchell's formulation of the chemiosmotic theory of oxidative phosphorylation in 1961 lacked any experimental support for its three central postulates. The path by which Mitchell reached this theory is explored. A major factor was the role of Mitchell'
Psychologism revisited in logic, metaphysics, and epistemology
Psychologism is a philosophical ideology that seeks to explain the principles of logic, metaphysics, and epistemology as psychological phenomena. Psychologism has been the storm center of concerted criticisms since the nineteenth century, and is thought b