This paper investigates the possibiity of developing a fully micro realistic version of elementary quantum mechanics. I argue that it is highly desirable to develop such a version of quantum mechanics, and that the failure of all current versions and interpretations of quantum mechanics to constitute micro realistic theories is at the root of many of the interpretative problems associated with quantum mechanics, in particular the problem of measurement. I put forward a propensity micro realistic version of (...) quantum mechanics, and suggest how it might be possible to discriminate, on expermental grounds, between this theory and other versions of quantum mechanics. (shrink)

In this paper, possible objections to the propensity microrealistic version of quantum mechanics proposed in Part I are answered. This version of quantum mechanics is compared with the statistical, particle microrealistic viewpoint, and a crucial experiment is proposed designed to distinguish between these to microrealistic versions of quantum mechanics.

The current assessment of behaviors in the inventories to diagnose autism spectrum disorders (ASD) focus on observation and discrete categorizations. Behaviors require movements, yet measurements of physical movements are seldom included. Their inclusion however, could provide an objective characterization of behavior to help unveil interactions between the peripheral and the central nervous systems. Such interactions are critical for the development and maintenance of spontaneous autonomy, self-regulation and voluntary control. At present, current approaches cannot deal with the heterogeneous, dynamic and stochastic (...) nature of development. Accordingly, they leave no avenues for real-time or longitudinal assessments of change in a coping system continuously adapting and developing compensatory mechanisms. We offer a new unifying statistical framework to reveal re-afferent kinesthetic features of the individual with ASD. The new methodology is based on the non-stationary stochastic patterns of minute fluctuations (micro-movements) inherent to our natural actions. Such patterns of behavioral variability provide re-entrant sensory feedback contributing to the autonomous regulation and coordination of the motor output. From an early age, this feedback supports centrally driven volitional control and fluid, flexible transitions between intentional and spontaneous behaviors. We show that in ASD there is a disruption in the maturation of this form of proprioception. Despite this disturbance, each individual has unique adaptive compensatory capabilities that we can unveil and exploit to evoke faster and more accurate decisions. Measuring the kinesthetic re-afference in tandem with stimuli variations we can detect changes in their micro-movements indicative of a more predictive and reliable kinesthetic percept. Our methods address the heterogeneity of ASD with a personalized approach grounded in the inherent sensory-motor abilities that the individual has already developed. (shrink)

Latent heat thermal energy storage technique has demonstrate to be a better engineering option mainly due to its benefit of supplying higher energy storage density in a smaller temperature difference between retrieval and storage. For this purpose, a micro electro-mechanical system, MEMS-based heat exchanger with microencapsulated PCM (MEPCM) slurry as cold fluid, has been simulated three dimensionally. This work investigates the influence of using MEPCM-slurry on the temperature of the cold and hot fluids. The MEPCM and water properties have (...) been considered temperature dependent. MEPCM-slurry is used with different volume fractions. The result shows that using MEPCM with 25% volume fraction leads to the improvement in fluids temperatures, that is, for hot fluid the rate of temperature reduction increases up to 23.5% and for cold fluid the rate of temperature rise decreases to 9%, compared to using only water in the MEMS. (shrink)

The text is a continuation of the article of the same name published in the previous issue of Philosophical Alternatives. The philosophical interpretations of the Kochen- Specker theorem (1967) are considered. Einstein's principle regarding the,consubstantiality of inertia and gravity" (1918) allows of a parallel between descriptions of a physical micro-entity in relation to the macro-apparatus on the one hand, and of physical macro-entities in relation to the astronomical mega-entities on the other. The Bohmian interpretation ( 1952) of quantum mechanics (...) proposes that all quantum systems be interpreted as dissipative ones and that the theorem be thus derstood. The conclusion is that the continual representation, by force or (gravitational) field between parts interacting by means of it, of a system is equivalent to their mutual entanglement if representation is discrete. Gravity (force field) and entanglement are two different, correspondingly continual and discrete, images of a single common essence. General relativity can be interpreted as a superluminal generalization of special relativity. The postulate exists of an alleged obligatory difference between a model and reality in science and philosophy. It can also be deduced by interpreting a corollary of the heorem. On the other hand, quantum mechanics, on the basis of this theorem and of V on Neumann's (1932), introduces the option that a model be entirely identified as the modeled reality and, therefore, that absolutely reality be recognized: this is a non-standard hypothesis in the epistemology of science. Thus, the true reality begins to be understood mathematically, i.e. in a Pythagorean manner, for its identification with its mathematical model. A few linked problems are highlighted: the role of the axiom of choice forcorrectly interpreting the theorem; whether the theorem can be considered an axiom; whether the theorem can be considered equivalent to the negation of the axiom. (shrink)

Maxwell’s Demon is a thought experiment devised by J. C. Maxwell in 1867 in order to show that the Second Law of thermodynamics is not universal, since it has a counter-example. Since the Second Law is taken by many to provide an arrow of time, the threat to its universality threatens the account of temporal directionality as well. Various attempts to “exorcise” the Demon, by proving that it is impossible for one reason or another, have been made throughout the years, (...) but none of them were successful. We have shown (in a number of publications) by a general state-space argument that Maxwell’s Demon is compatible with classical mechanics, and that the most recent solutions, based on Landauer’s thesis, are not general. In this paper we demonstrate that Maxwell’s Demon is also compatible with quantum mechanics. We do so by analyzing a particular (but highly idealized) experimental setup and proving that it violates the Second Law. Our discussion is in the framework of standard quantum mechanics; we give two separate arguments in the framework of quantum mechanics with and without the projection postulate. We address in our analysis the connection between measurement and erasure interactions and we show how these notions are applicable in the microscopic quantum mechanical structure. We discuss what might be the quantum mechanical counterpart of the classical notion of “macrostates”, thus explaining why our Quantum Demon setup works not only at the micro level but also at the macro level, properly understood. One implication of our analysis is that the Second Law cannot provide a universal lawlike basis for an account of the arrow of time; this account has to be sought elsewhere. (shrink)

This thesis develops a detailed account of the emergence of for all practical purposes continuous, quasi-classical world histories from the discontinuous, stochastic micro dynamics of Minimal Bohmian Mechanics (MBM). MBM is a non-relativistic quantum theory. It results from excising the guiding equation from standard Bohmian Mechanics (BM) and reinterpreting the quantum equilibrium hypothesis as a stochastic guidance law for the random actualization of configurations of Bohmian particles. On MBM, there are no continuous trajectories linking up individual configurations. Instead, individual (...) configurations are actualized independently of each other, carving out the decoherence-induced branching structure of the universal wave function. Yet, by contrast to the Everett interpretation, branches of the universal wave function are not actualized in parallel, i.e. all at the same time. Rather, world branches, on MBM, are actualized sequentially. -/- For an introduction to MBM, the transition from BM to MBM is described, and their empirical equivalence is established. I present the conditions under which MBM can be classified as a primitive ontology (PO) theory, regarded as crucial for the acceptance of a theory as Bohmian by many proponents of BM. While rendering MBM compatible with the PO approach, it must not fall prey to the problem of communication, arising from the two-space reading of BM. -/- The issue of temporal solipsism, identified by Bell as a serious problem for his “Everett (?) theory” – the historic predecessor of MBM – is discussed. I argue that Barbour’s time capsule approach does not provide a satisfactory solution. In particular, his adopting a more than minimal psychophysical parallelism between brain processes and experience of macroscopic change is argued to be reasonable in light of our current best neuroscience, yet problematic for theories relying solely on time capsules, understood as highly structured, individual, internally static configurations. As a solution, I introduce worlds, and world histories, as key concepts in providing a link between MBM’s micro dynamics and macroscopic phenomena. Worlds, other than time capsules, are coarse-grained regions in phase- or configuration space, defined as sets of possible micro states satisfying a relation of sufficient similarity from a macroscopic perspective, with respect to a given micro state. Hence, worlds may overlap. -/- I argue that worlds thus construed are a reasonable option for replacing the disjoint macro regions of phase space, resulting from the usual way of partitioning phase space in the standard framework of Boltzmannian statistical mechanics. This move solves the issue of discontinuous change of macro variables upon the micro state crossing the boundary between different macro regions. -/- I adapt this move for MBM’s discontinuous micro dynamics in configuration space. Issues revolving around the microscopic-macroscopic distinction, particle identity, impenetrability and haecceity in light of the desideratum of particle number conservation, etc., are discussed. I provide a detailed explanation of how overlapping worlds in MBM form world histories, thereby linking up macroscopically distinct worlds. Thus, the problem of temporal solipsism is resolved in a way that is compatible with a more than minimal psychophysical parallelism. (shrink)

This paper connects the hard problem of consciousness to the interpretation of quantum mechanics. It shows that constitutive Russellian pan(proto)psychism (CRP) is compatible with Everett’s relative-state (RS) interpretation. Despite targeting different problems, CRP and RS are related, for they both establish symmetry between micro- and macrosystems, and both call for a deflationary account of Subject. The paper starts from formal arguments that demonstrate the incompatibility of CRP with alternative interpretations of quantum mechanics, followed by showing that RS entails Russellian (...) pan(proto)psychism. Therefore, CRP and RS are mutually supportive. It then provides a unified ontological picture by combining CRP and RS. The challenge faced by CRP, the combination problem, can be resolved by adopting a RS version of quantum mechanics. Technically, this is achieved by a co-consciousness relation capable of explaining the difference between first-person and third-person perspectives. The hierarchical structure of the relation removes any concern on the structural mismatch between the physical and the phenomenal. (shrink)

During the 1630s Descartes recognized that he could not expect all legitimate claims in natural science to meet the standard of absolute certainty. The realization resulted from a change in his physics, which itself arose not through methodological reflections, but through developments in his substantive metaphysical doctrines. Descartes discovered the metaphysical foundations of his physics in 1629-30; as a consequence, the style of explanation employed in his physical writings changed. His early methodological conceptions, as preserved in the Rules and sketched (...) in Part Two of the Discourse, pertained primarily to his early work in optics. By the early 1630s, Descartes was concerned with new methodological problems pertaining to the postulation of micro-mechanisms. Recognition of the need to employ a method of hypothesis led him to lower the standard of certainty required of particular explanations in his mature physics. (shrink)

Descartes was both metaphysician and natural philosopher. He used his metaphysics to ground portions of his physics. However, as should be a commonplace but is not, he did not think he could spin all of his physics out of his metaphysics a priori, and in fact he both emphasized the need for appeals to experience in his methodological remarks on philosophizing about nature and constantly appealed to experience in describing his own philosophy of nature. During the 1630s, he offered empirical (...) support for the basic principles of his natural philosophy, while also promising to provide a metaphysical justification. He offered the metaphysical justification in the Meditations and Principles. and claimed absolute certainty for it. At the same time, he recognized that the particular postulated mechanisms of his natural philosophy did not reach that standard of certainty. These mechanisms were supported by empirical testing or confirming of causes through observed effects. (shrink)

This chapter introduces the main research schools and paradigms along which the field of evolutionary biology has been developing. Evolutionary thinking was originally founded upon the Neo-Darwinian paradigm that combines the teachings of traditional Darwinism with those of the Modern Synthesis. The Neo-Darwinian paradigm has since further diversified into the Micro-, Meso-, and Macroevolutionary schools, and it has also started to integrate the school of Ecology. Together, these schools establish the paradigm called Ecological Evolutionary Developmental Biology (Eco-Evo-Devo). A final (...) school studies Reticulate Evolution as it occurs by means of symbiosis, symbiogenesis, lateral gene transfer, infective heredity, and hybridization. This chapter reviews the major tenets and points of differentiation that exist between these distinct evolution schools. The chapter ends by looking into how evolution can be defined and how distinct units, levels, and mechanisms underlie theorizing on evolutionary hierarchies and evolutionary causation. The following chapter examines how the different evolution schools are implemented into the symbolic sciences. (shrink)

Among all non conventional micro machining, electrochemical discharge machining ECDM is having high quality of material removal rate with zero residual stress. This machining has been accepted as a highly modern technology in micromachining. In this paper an effort has been done on micro drilling of glass using electrochemical discharge machining ECDM . A fixed tool and a step down transformer have been used to support the steady machining to increase the accuracy of work piece. The input parameters (...) used in this experiment are voltage, concentration of electrolyte, enter electrode gap and ratio of area of electrode. MRR has been investigated over the input parameters. Feed rate and electrolyte temperature has been made constant of 3µm sec and 30°c respectively. Taguchi method is used to optimize the effect of the process parameters on MRR. The signal to noise S N ratio and the ANOVA analysis are employed to find the contributions of input parameters. Vikrant Sharma | Sunil Kumar "Experimental research to Optimize Process Parameters in Machining of Non Conducting Material with hybrid non conconventional machining" Published in International Journal of Trend in Scientific Research and Development (ijtsrd), ISSN: 2456-6470, Volume-1 | Issue-4 , June 2017. (shrink)

In quantum mechanics, the term “creativity” is amplified, since natural events form the constant transition from possibility to reality, according to the ontological probabilism of the Schrödinger equation. The completion of the quantum theory through the concept of the Grand Unified Theories, and especially through the yet incomplete superstring theory, reveals that at the micro level of creation of sub-atomic particles or space, motion literally comes prior to Being and objects are forms of a motion which suggests a constant (...) transition from possibility to reality. In non – linear physics of complex systems, the term “creativity” does not simply correspond to the initial emergence of the universe (big bang) or to the sub-atomic scale processes described by quantum mechanics, the Grand Unified Theories and the superstring theory, but is expanded to all aspects of nature: i.e. physical - chemical, ecological, psychological – mental aspect. So, through the non – linear physics theory, macroscopically viewed beings are constructed, holistic forms of motion, in order for the whole to gain a non reducible (therefore the whole is constantly being produced) ontological meaning which characterizes the operation of the part. Combining the theories of quantum mechanics and relativity, it could be stated that modern physics abolishes the customary perception concerning the natural phenomena, which were concerned as a constant transformation of a fundamental substance. On the contrary, the contemporary description of the natural world by physics and mathematics corresponds to Morphodynamics, i.e. the description of the world as creation of all cosmic shapes from a zero point, on all cosmic levels. From this point of view, zero is understood as the absence of shape, while the notion of an unshaped eternal substance is weakened and does not seem to be able to be justified by the evolution of scientific thought. The “beings” and their “substance” are assimilated to forms of movement that have already been created or that are being created, and constitute motion inside motion. (shrink)

In Brazil, the social demand for veterinary expertise is growing. However, there is still a shortage of professionals trained in this area to apply specific knowledge to each case. Studies and research into forensic veterinary medicine are necessary for veterinary experts to assist in investigations and legal proceedings. Veterinary medicine has subjects on its curriculum that cover the knowledge needed to apply in the fields of animal health, public health and the environment. The interaction between human and veterinary medicine, as (...) well as other areas of health, is of great importance in the prevention and control of various diseases, both in animals and humans. Some cases of infectious bovine abortion have a major impact not only on cattle farming and animal health, but also on public and environmental health. The concept of "One Health" integrates human medicine and health professionals. In this context, knowledge of infectious abortive diseases that affect animal, human and environmental health is fundamental. Cattle are affected by specific infectious abortive diseases, caused by pathogens with different forms of presentation and transmission mechanisms. These include brucellosis, leptospirosis and listeriosis, which are potentially zoonotic diseases. Controlling these diseases can contribute to effective public health actions and reduce global health risks. In order to establish the diagnosis of these diseases, it is essential to properly collect specimens from live or dead animals under biosafety and biosecurity conditions, following the chain of custody for each case. These procedures allow for greater success in diagnosing the suspected agent and facilitate the investigation of other causes. Animal health standards for the prophylaxis and control of these diseases are established by specific legislation, including those of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply (MALS). This literature review was based on current knowledge on the Pubmed platform, Google Scholar, articles and textbooks. The aim of this article is to identify, understand and discuss the main infectious abortive diseases of cattle in the legal and forensic context, which have an impact on cattle farming, animal health, food safety, public and environmental health. -/- Referências bibliográficas Abdullah, N. M., Mohammad, W. M. Z. W., Shafei, M. N., Sukeri, S., Idris, Z., Arifin, W. N., Nozmi, N., Saudi, S. N. S., Samsudin, S., & Zainudin, A.-W. (2019). Leptospirosis and its prevention: knowledge, attitude and practice of urban community in Selangor, Malaysia. BMC Public Health, 19(1), 1–8. Agrimani, D. S. R., Rui, B. R., Cruz, I. V, Romano, R. M., & Lopes, H. C. (2011). Retenção de Placenta em Vacas e Éguas: Revisão de Literatura. Revista Científica Eletrônica de Medicina Veterinária, 9(16), 1–12. Albuquerque, F. R. G., Dessanti, G. A., Neto, J. A. A., Marinho, M. R., & Barros, R. B. P. (2018). Os efeitos e consequências da leptospirose na gestação. Cadernos da Medicina-UNIFESO, 1(1), 75–82. Alencar, Á. G. (2001). Do conceito estratégico de segurança alimentar ao plano de ação da FAO para combater a fome. Revista Brasileira de Política Internacional, 44(1), 137–144. Almeida, Í. C., Sena, L. M., Maretto, V., & Martins, C. B. (2019). Aspectos relacionados a retenção de placenta em vacas. PUBVET, 13(1), 1–7. Amaral, J. B., & Tremori, T. M. (2022). Exame de corpo de delito nas perícias de bem-estar em bovinos leiteiros: Revisão. PUBVET, 16(4), 1–14. Amaral, J. B., Tremori, T. M., Silva, W. L., & Reis, H. M. G. (2023). Perícias legal e forense no laboratório veterinário: Revisão. PUBVET, 17(7), e1420. Amaral, J. B., Trevisan, G., Tremori, T. M., & Guerra, S. T. (2018). Fundamentos e aplicações da medicina veterinária forense no bem-estar de bovinos leiteiros: Revisão. PUBVET, 12(2), 1–13. Antoniassi, N. A. B., Santos, A. S., Oliveira, E. C., Pescador, C. A., & Driemeier, D. (2007). Diagnóstico das causas infecciosas de aborto em bovinos. Biológico, 69(2), 69–72. Assis, A. C. S. G., & Braga, R. S. (2020). Responsabilidade técnicas na medicina veterinária. Medvep. Autran, A., Alencar, R., & Viana, R. B. (2017). Cinco liberdades. PETVet Radar, 1(3), 1–2. Barancelli, G. V., Silva-Cruz, J. V., Porto, E., & Oliveira, C. A. F. (2011). Listeria monocytogenes: ocorrência em produtos lácteos e suas implicações em saúde pública. Arquivos Do Instituto Biológico, 78, 155–168. Barbosa, G., Baptista, R. F., Naame, G., & Batalha, F. (2023). Principais irregularidades identificadas pela vigilância sanitária em açougues localizados no município de Nilópolis, Rio de Janeiro. PUBVET, 17(3), 1–9. Basso, D. P., Balzan, V. Z., Schrenk, R. D., Santos, J. L. L., & Cardoso, J. S. (2022). Suspeita de infecção por Rhodococcus equi em pônei neonato: relato de caso. Salão Do Conhecimento, 8(8). BRASIL (1968). Lei Federal nº 5.550, de 28 de dezembro de 1968. Dispõe sobre o exercício da profissão de Médico Veterinário e cria os Conselhos Federal e Regionais de Medicina Veterinária. Diário Oficial da União, Brasília, DF, 29 dez. 1968. BRASIL (1990). Lei Federal nº 8.080, de 19 de setembro de 1990. Dispõe sobre as condições para a promoção, proteção e recuperação da saúde, a organização e o funcionamento dos serviços correspondentes e dá outras providências. Diário Oficial da União, Brasília, DF, 20 set. 1990. BRASIL (1998). Lei Federal nº 9.605, de 12 de fevereiro de 1998. Dispõe sobre as sanções penais e administrativas derivadas de condutas e atividades lesivas ao meio ambiente, e dá outras providências. Diário Oficial da União, Brasília, DF, 13 fev. 1998. BRASIL (1998). Ministério da Saúde, Conselho Nacional de Saúde, Resolução 287, de 8 de outubro de 1998. Dispõe sobre o Plenário do Conselho Nacional de Saúde em reunião nos dias 7 e 8 de 1998. BRASIL (2017). Decreto Federal nº 9.013, de 29 de março de 2017. Estabelece normas para a inspeção técnica e fiscalização sanitária de animais vivos, produtos e subprodutos de origem animal. Diário Oficial da União, Brasília, DF, 30 mar. 2017. BRASIL (2006). Ministério da Agricultura, Pecuária e Abastecimento. Instrução Normativa MAPA nº 65, de 3 de novembro de 2006. Estabelece padrões para garantir a qualidade do sêmen utilizado na reprodução bovina. Diário Oficial da União, Brasília, DF, 6 nov. 2006. BRASIL (2013). Ministério da Agricultura, Pecuária e Abastecimento. Instrução Normativa MAPA nº 50, de 21 de novembro de 2013. Estabelece diretrizes para a coleta de materiais biológicos destinados a exames laboratoriais em animais terrestres. Diário Oficial da União, Brasília, DF, 22 nov. 2013. BRASIL (2017). Ministério da Agricultura, Pecuária e Abastecimento. Instrução Normativa MAPA nº 44, de 20 de setembro de 2017. Estabelece medidas para o controle e erradicação da leptospirose bovina. Diário Oficial da União, Brasília, DF, 21 set. 2017. BRASIL (2018). Ministério da Agricultura, Pecuária e Abastecimento. Portaria MAPA nº 1.138, de 8 de junho de 2018. Normas para a prevenção, controle e erradicação da brucelose e da tuberculose animal. Diário Oficial da União, Brasília, DF, 11 jun. 2018. BRASIL (2017). Instrução normativa nº 10, de 3 de março de 2017. Brasília, Distrito Federal: Diário Oficial da União. 2017. Carvalho, R. F. B., Santos, H. P., Mathias, L. A., Pereira, H. M., Paixão, A. P., Costa Filho, V. M., & Alves, L. M. C. (2016). Frequência de brucelose bovina em rebanhos leiteiros e em seres humanos na região central do estado do Maranhão, Brasil. Arquivos do Instituto Biológico, 83, e1042014. Castro, J. R., Salaberry, S. R. S., Cardoso Neto, A. B., Ávila, D. F., Souza, M. A., & Lima-Ribeiro, A. M. C. (2010). Leptospirose canina-Revisão de literatura. PUBVET, 4, Art-917. Castro, J. R., Salaberry, S. R. S., Ribeiro, V. C., Souza, M. A., & Lima-Ribeiro, A. M. C. (2010). Brucelose canina-Revisão de literatura. PUBVET, 4(41), Art-981. CFMV. (2017). Código de ética do médico veterinário. Diário Oficial da União. Chaiblich, J. V., Lima, M. L. S., Oliveira, R. F., Monken, M., & Penna, M. L. F. (2017). Estudo espacial de riscos à leptospirose no município do Rio de Janeiro (RJ). Saúde em Debate, 41, 225–240. Coiro, C. J., Langoni, H., Silva, R. C., & Ullmann, L. S. (2011). Fatores de risco para leptospirose, leishmaniose, neosporose e toxoplasmose em cães domiciliados e peridomíciliados em Botucatu-SP. Veterinária e Zootecnia, 18(3), 393–407. Correa Júnior, F. F., & Silva, J. R. G. (2021). Responsabilidade técnica de animais de produção na área de produção animal – Confinamento de bovinos. In A. C. S. G. Assis & R. S. Braga (Eds.), Responsabilidade técnico na medicina veterinária. MED VET Livros. Corrêa, S. H. R., Vasconcelos, S. A., Teixeira, A. A., Dias, R. A., Guimarães, M. A. B., & Ferreira Neto, J. S. (2000). Epidemiologia da leptospirose em animais silvestres na Fundação Parque Zoológico de São Paulo. Brazilian Journal of Veterinary and Animal Science, 41(3), 189–193. Costa, M. (2001). Brucelose bovina e equina. In F. Riet-Correa, A. L. Schild, & R. A. A. Lemos (Eds.), Doenças de ruminantes e equinos (pp. 187–197). Varela Editora e Livraria Ltda. Cruz, C. D., Martinez, M. B., & Destro, M. T. (2008). Listeria monocytogenes: Um agente infeccioso ainda pouco conhecido no Brasil. Alimentos e Nutrição, 19, 195–206. Dallari Júnior, J. A. (2021). Direito médico veterinário. Editora Recanto. DA SILVA, Emanuel Isaque Cordeiro. Relação e Efeitos Bioquímico-nutricionais Sobre a Retenção de Placenta em Vacas. 2020. Dias, F. E. F., Aoki, S. M., Mesquita, L. G., Nunes, C. M., & Garcia, J. F. (2006). Detecção de Leptospira pomona em sêmen bovino por eletroforese capilar fluorescente. Brazilian Journal of Veterinary Research and Animal Science, 43(3), 394–399. Donate, B. R. S., Prado, L. B., Espinoza, L. H. C., Fernandes, M. C., Pedrão, M. B. M., & Santos, E. W. C. O. (2022). Conhecimento da população brasileira quanto à leptospirose, sua profilaxia e transmissão. PUBVET, 16(5), 1–8. Esteves, S. B., Santos, C. M., Silva, B. C. S., Salgado, F. F., Guilloux, A. G. A., Cortez, A., Lucco, R. C., & Miotto, B. A. (2023). Time for change? A systematic review with meta-analysis of leptospires infecting dogs to assess vaccine compatibility in Brazil. Preventive Veterinary Medicine, 105869. Ferreira Júnior, J. A., Nascimento, K. A., & Miguel, M. P. (2015). Aborto e morte neonatal por Listeria monocytogenes em ruminantes. Revista de Literatura: Clínica e Cirurgia de Grandes Animais, 14, 85–89. Ferreira, V., Wiedmann, M., Teixeira, P., & Stasiewicz, M. J. (2014). Listeria monocytogenes persistence in food-associated environments: epidemiology, strain characteristics, and implications for public health. Journal of Food Protection, 77(1), 150–170. Fogaça, D. C., Dutra, H., & Oliveira, C. H. (2018). Leptospirose em propriedade rural com histórico de aborto em vacas leiteiras no município de Trindade, Estado de Goiás: Relato de Caso. Enciclopédia Biosfera, 15(27), 108–120. França, C. R., Silva, I. L. N., Costa, W. A., Ferreira, V. L., Castro, L. L., & Toniolli, R. (2023). Aborto em bovinos e bubalinos: Causas específicas e inespecíficas. Ciência Animal, 33(1), 114–128. Freitas, J. A., Galindo, G. A. R., Santos, E. J. C., Sarraf, K. A., & Oliveira, J. P. (2001). Risco de brucelose zoonótica associado a suínos de abate clandestino. Revista de Saúde Pública, 35(1), 101– 102. Genovez, M. E. (2014). Brucelose humana reemerge como preocupante doença ocupacional. Boletim APAMVET, 5(5), 15–19. Genovez, M. E. (2016). Leptospirose em animais de produção. In J. Megid, M. G. Ribeiro, & A. C. Paes (Eds.), Doenças Infecciosas em Animais de Produção e de Companhia (pp. 378–386). Roca, Brasil. Genovez, M. E., & Pituco, E. M. (2020). Causas infecciosas de mortalidade embrionária e fetal em bovinos. In J. Megid, M. G. Ribeiro, & A. C. Paes (Eds.), Doenças infecciosas em animais de produção e de companhia. Roca Ltda. Gombas, D. E., Chen, Y., Clavero, R. S., & Scott, V. N. (2003). Survey of Listeria monocytogenes in ready-to-eat foods. Journal of Food Protection, 66(4), 559–569. Gonçalves, R. C., Faleiro, J. H., Santos, M. N. G., Carvalho, S. A., & Malafaia, G. (2016). Micro- organismos emergentes de importância em alimentos: Uma revisão de literatura. Revista de Saúde e Biologia, 11, 71–83. Kahn, L. H. (2017). Perspective: The one-health way. Nature, 543(7647), S47–S47. Kells, J., & Gilmour, A. (2004). Incidence of Listeria monocytogenes in two milk processing environments, and assessment of Listeria monocytogenes blood agar for isolation. International Journal of Food Microbiology, 91(2), 167–174. Krauzer, A. S., Acher, D. P. F., Oliveira, K. D., Gabriel, J., & Berto, V. (2022). Avaliação do conhecimento dos proprietários e vacinação contra às doenças reprodutivas em bovinos das propriedades na linha Cocal-Rondônia. Revista Ibero-Americana de Humanidades, Ciências e Educação, 8(10), 1893–1902. Kuibida, K. V., & Borges, C. M. N. (2021). Responsabilidade técnica na área de produção animal: confinamento de bovino. Medvep, 179–201. Langoni, H. (1999). Leptospirose: aspectos de saúde animal e de saúde pública. Revista de Educação Continuada Em Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia Do CRMV-SP, 2(1), 52–58. Larson, C. R., Dennis, M., Nair, R. V, Llanes, A., Peda, A., Welcome, S., & Rajeev, S. (2017). Isolation and characterization of Leptospira interrogans serovar Copenhageni from a dog from Saint Kitts. JMM Case Reports, 4(10), e005120. Lawinsky, M. L. J., Ohara, P. M., Elkhoury, M. R., Faria, N. C., & Cavalcante, K. R. L. J. (2010). Estado da arte da brucelose em humanos. Revista Pan-Amazônica de Saúde, 1(4), 75–84. Leitão, M. V. N., & Cantarino, L. (2021). Hospital escola de grandes animais: Papel na vigilância de zoonoses de importância em saúde pública. PUBVET, 15(7), 1–6. Lima, N. T. S., Araújo, L. R. T., Araújo, B. V. S., Batista, V. H. T., Veloso, L. S., & Leite, A. I. (2020). A Saúde Única na perspectiva da educação popular em saúde. Research, Society and Development, 9(10), e8839109314. Llano, H. A. B. (2013). Revisão e situação atual da brucelose e leptospirose em bovinos no Brasil e na Colômbia. Seminário Apresentado Junto à Disciplina Seminários Aplicados Do Programa de Pós- Graduação Em Ciência Animal Da Escola de Veterinária e Zootecnia da Universidade Federal de Goiás, Goiânia. Loureiro, A. P., & Lilenbaum, W. (2020). Genital bovine leptospirosis: A new look for an old disease. Theriogenology, 141, 41–47. Macedo, I., Homem, J. S., & Carlot, P. A. (2021). A importância da brucelose bovina na saúde pública - Revisão Bibliográfica. Anais Congrega MIC, 17, 7–10. Machado, G. B., Neto, A. C. S., Dewes, C., Fortes, T. P., Pacheco, P. S., Freitas, L. S., Felix, S. R., & Silva, É. F. (2017). Leptospirose Humana: uma revisão sobre a doença e os fatores de risco associados à zona rural. Science And Animal Health, 5(3), 238–250. Maia, A. K., & Pagotto, R. F. (2018). Atuação do médico veterinário na área forense. In G. C. M. Garcia, Y. S. Gonçalves, K. A. Rosa, & L. R. Wolf (Eds.), Tópicos em medicina veterinária legal. Universidade Federal do Paraná, UFPR. Massad, M. R. R., & Massad, J. M. (2017). Responsabilidade profissional. In R. A. Tostes, S. T. J. Reis, & V. V Castilho (Eds.), Tratado de Medicina Veterinária Legal. Medvep. Medeiros, M. I. M., & Oliveira, H. F. (2021). Responsabilidade técnica na área ambiental. In A. C. S. G. Assis & R. S. Braga (Eds.), Responsabilidade técnico na medicina veterinária. MED VET Livros. Megid, J., Ribeiro, M. G., & Paes, A. C. (2016). Doenças infecciosas em animais de produção e de companhia. Guanabara, Koogan. Meirelles-Bartoli, R. B., Sousa, D. B., & Mathias, L. A. (2014). Aspectos da brucelose na saúde pública veterinária. PUBVET, 8, 1136–1282. Mesquita, M. O., Trevilato, G. C., Saraiva, L. H., Schons, M. S., & Garcia, M. I. F. (2016). Material de educação ambiental como estratégia de prevenção da leptospirose para uma comunidade urbana reassentada. Cadernos Saúde Coletiva, 24(1), 77–83. Mineiro, A. L. B. B., Bezerra, E. E. A., Vasconcellos, S. A., Costa, F. A. L., & Macedo, N. A. (2007). Infecção por leptospira em bovinos e sua associação com transtornos reprodutivos e condições climáticas. Arquivo Brasileiro de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia, 59, 1103–1109. Miranda, M. (2018). A contribuição do médico veterinário a saúde única-one health. Psicologia e Saúde em Debate, 4(Suppl1), 34. Mohammed, H. O., Atwill, E., Dunbar, L., Ward, T., McDonough, P., Gonzalez, R., & Stipetic, K. (2010). The risk of Listeria monocytogenes infection in beef cattle operations. Journal of Applied Microbiology, 108(1), 349–356. Nardi Júnior, G., Ribeiro, M. G., Monteiro, F. M., Jesus, T. L., & Vieira, R. M. (2012). Brucelose em touros: Uma visão da doença no Brasil com ênfase ao diagnóstico e sua importância ao agronegócio. Tekhne e Logos, 3(3), 33–53. Nascimento, A. J. S., & Nardi Júnior, G. (2022). Programa de controle e erradicação da brucelose e tuberculose animal. Tekhne e Logos, 13(2), 34–43. Nascimento, R. A. P. (2017). Gestão de laboratórios oficiais de defesa agropecuária. Universidade de Brasília. Nobre, M. M., Azevedo, R. A., Campos, E. F., Lage, C. F. A., Glória, J. R., Saturnino, H. M., & Coelho, S. G. (2018). Impacto econômico da retenção de placenta em vacas leiteiras. Pesquisa Veterinária Brasileira, 38(3), 450–455. NUTRICIONAL. (2011). Plano Nacional de Segurança Alimentar e Nutricional: 2012/2015. Ministério da Agricultura. Oliveira, S. V., Arsky, M. L. N. S., & Caldas, E. P. (2013). Reservatórios animais da leptospirose: Uma revisão bibliográfica. Saúde (Santa Maria), 39(1), 9–20. Oliveira-Neto, R. R., Souza, V. F., Carvalho, P. F. G., & Frias, D. F. R. (2018). Nível de conhecimento de tutores de cães e gatos sobre zoonoses. Revista de Salud Pública, 20, 198–203. Ortigoza, S., & José, M. (2018). Aborto bovino: Revisión de sus factores etiológicos. In Universidad Cooperativa de Colombia (pp. 1–22). Universidad Cooperativa de Colombia, Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud. Pellegrin, A. O., Guimaraes, P. H. S., Sereno, J. R. B., Figueiredo, J. P., Lage, A. P., Moreira, E. C., & Leite, R. C. (1999). Prevalência da leptospirose em bovinos do Pantanal Mato-Grossense. Corumbá: Embrapa Pantanal, 1999. Pereira, P. A. C., Ferreira, A. M., & Carvalho, L. B. (2009). Perfil sorológico das leptospiroses em rebanhos bovinos leiteiros da região do Vale do Parnaíba-SP. Revista Brasileira de Reprodução Animal, 28(3), 174–176. Pfuetzenreiter, M. R., Zylbersztajn, A., & Avila-Pires, F. D. (2004). Evolução histórica da medicina veterinária preventiva e saúde pública. Ciência Rural, 34(5), 1661–1668. Pinillos, R. G. (2018). One welfare: A framework to improve animal welfare and human well-being. Cabi. Poester, F. P., Goncalves, V. S. P., & Lage, A. P. (2002). Brucellosis in Brazil. Veterinary Microbiology, 90(1–4), 55–62. Porto, Y. F., Pinto Neto, A., Bernardi, F., Possa, M. G., Mota, M. F., Martinez, A. C., Merlini, L. S., & Berber, R. C. (2018). Occurrence of brucellosis, leptospirosis and neosporosis in cows with retained placenta in Southwest Paraná, Brazil. Pesquisa Veterinária Brasileira, 38(8), 1537–1542. Radostits, O. M., Gay, C. C., Blood, D. C., Hinchcliff, K. W., & McKenzie, R. A. (2010). Clínica Veterinária: um tratado de doenças dos bovinos, ovinos, suínos, caprinos e eqüinos (Vol. 1). Guanabara Koogan. Ramos, T. M. V., Balassiano, I. T., Silva, T. S. M., & Nogueira, J. M. R. (2022). Leptospirose: Características da enfermidade em humanos e principais técnicas de diagnóstico laboratorial. Revista Brasileira de Análises Clínicas, 53(3), 211–218. Ribeiro, A. C. A., Araújo, R. V., Rosa, A. S. M., Silva, P. N., Moraes, S. C., & Katagiri, S. (2020). Zoonoses e educação em saúde: Conhecer, compartilhar e multiplicar. Brazilian Journal of Health Review, 3(5), 12785–12801. Rocha, C. F., Mol, J. P. S., Garcia, L. N. N., Costa, L. F., Santos, R. L., & Paixão, T. A. (2017). Comparative experimental infection of Listeria monocytogenes and Listeria ivanovii in bovine trophoblasts. Plos One, 12, 1–13. Rocha, N. S. (2017). Corpo de delito e processos por erro médico veterinário. In R. A. Tostes, S. T. J. Reis, & V. V Castilho (Eds.), Tratado de medicina veterinária legal. Medvep. Rossi, M., Paiva, A., Tornese, M., Chianelli, S., & Troncoso, A. (2008). Brotes de infección por Listeria monocytogenes: Una revisión de las vias que llevan a su aparición. Revista Ciencia y Tecnologia, Escuela de Postgrado, 25, 328–335. Sá, M. I., & Ferreira, C. (2007). Importância das zoonoses na segurança alimentar. Infoqualidade, 11, 14–17. Sakate, R. I., Aragon, L. C., Raghiante, F., Landgraf, M., Franco, B. D. G. M., & Destro, M. T. (2003). Quantificação de Listeria monocytogenes em salames fatiados embalados a vácuo. Archivos Latinoamericanos de Nutrición, 53, 1–5. Salmanov, A. G., Kotsyumbas, I. Y. А., & Trokhymchuk, V. V. (2018). One World — One Health. International Journal of Antibiotics and Probiotics, 2(1), 8–17. Santana, L., Novelli, M., Vidal, A., Pereira, S., Gasparinni, L., Alvarenga, A. M. O., & Motta, O. J. R. (2020). Brucelose: atualização para a prática clínica. Saúde Dinâmica, 5(3), 1–14. Santos-Filho, A. M. P., & Mayrink, R. R. (2017). Medicina Veterinária Forense. In J. A. Velho, G. C. Geiser, & A. Espíndula. (Eds.), Ciências Forenses, uma introdução às principais áreas da criminalística moderna. Millennium. Schmitt, C. I., Krug, F. D. M., Cereser, N. D., & Pinto, F. R. (2017). Brucelose: uma questão de saúde pública. REDVET. Revista Electrónica de Veterinária, 18(9), 1–17. Silva, H. R., Gianoglou, F. M., Campos, M. F., Graciano, E. M. A., & Toledo, R. C. C. (2016). Listeriose: Uma doença de origem alimentar pouco conhecida no Brasil. Higiene Alimentar, 30, 17– 20. Simões, L. S., Sasahara, T. H. C., Favaron, P. O., & Miglino, M. A. (2016). Leptospirose–Revisão. PUBVET, 10, 111–189. Slowinski, K., Tremori, T. M., Massad, M. R. R., Tasaka, A. C., & Rocha, N. S. (2016). Responsabilidade ética e civil do médico-veterinário no ambiente hospitalar. Revista de Educação Continuada em Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia Do CRMV-SP, 14(2), 30–37. Snak, A., & Osaki, S. C. (2019). Uma revisão sobre três importantes agentes causadores de aborto em bovinos: Neospora caninum, Leptospira sp. e Trypanosoma vivax. Revista de Ciência Veterinária e Saúde Pública, 6(1), 160–195. Sobrinho, O. P. L., Véras, G. M. C., Silva, L. F. B., Oliveira, L. S., Xavier, R. S., Alvim, J. F., Costa, D. A. S., Pereira, Á. I. S., Carlos, M. A. S., Cantanhede, E. K. P., & Santos, M. L. C. (2018). Brucelose bovina: Situação epidemiológica em rebanhos no município de Codó-MA. PUBVET, 12(12), 1–4. Souza, A. O. (2010). Listeriose na gravidez. Revista Médica de Minas Gerais, 20, 433–434. Suárez, Á. C. A., & Parra, C. A. B. (2017). Actualización de la leptospirosis bovina en Colombia. Conexión Agropecuaria JDC, 7(1), 57–77. Tonin, A. A., Azevedo, M. I., Escobar, T. P., Casassola, I., Santos, L. G., Cocco, M., Martins, J. L. R., Schaefe, P. C., & Badke, M. R. T. (2010). Leptospirose bovina: aumento na incidência da Leptospira interrogans sorovar butembo no rebanho do Estado de Santa Catarina, Brasil. Acta Veterinaria Brasilica, 4(4), 294–297. Topazio, J., Tonin, A. A., Machado, G., Noll, J. C. G., Ribeiro, A., Moura, A. B., Carmo, G. M., Grosskopf, H. M., Martins, J. L. R., & Badke, M. R. T. (2015). Antibodies to Leptospira interrogans in goats and risk factors of the disease in Santa Catarina (West side), Brazil. Research in Veterinary Science, 99, 53–57. Tremori, T. M., & Rocha, N. S. (2013). Exame do corpo de delito na Perícia Veterinária (ensaio). Revista de Educação Continuada em Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia do CRMV-SP, 11(3), 30–35. Urzêda, M., Ribeiro, P. G. M., Nascente, E. P., Espíndola, W. R., Teodoro, J. V. S., Gonçalves, G. B., Carneiro, Y. F., & Souza, W. J. (2020). Soroprevalência de leptospirose em fêmeas bovinas na microrregião do Vale Do Rio Dos Bois, Goiás, Brasil. Brazilian Journal of Development, 6(9), 69614–69622. Vallim, D. C., Barroso Hofer, C., Lisbôa, R. de C., Barbosa, A. V., Rusak, L. A., Reis, C. M. F., & Hofer, E. (2015). Twenty years of Listeria in Brazil: Occurrence of Listeria species and Listeria monocytogenes serovars in food samples in Brazil between 1990 and 2012. BioMed Research International, 2015. Vasconcelos, C. H., Fonseca, F. R., Lise, M. L. Z., & Arsky, M. (2012). Fatores ambientais e socioeconômicos relacionados à distribuição de casos de leptospirose no Estado de Pernambuco, Brasil, 2001-2009. Caderno de Saúde Coletiva, 20(1), 49–56. Viana, K. F., & Zanini, M. S. (2009). Perfil de produtores frente à vacinação contra doenças infecciosas abortivas em rebanhos bovinos do município de Alegre/ES. Archives of Veterinary Science, 14(2), 103–108. Vitas, A. I., & Garcia-Jalon, V. A. E. I. (2004). Occurrence of Listeria monocytogenes in fresh and processed foods in Navarra (Spain). International Journal of Food Microbiology, 90(3), 349–356. (shrink)

The purpose of this paper is to show how micro-argumentation mechanisms of presumptive reasoning and reasoning from best explanation can be used for explaining some cases of presupposition cancellation. It will be shown how the relationship between presupposition triggers and pragmatic presuppositions can be analyzed in terms of presumptive and non-presumptive polyphonic articulation of an utterance, resulting in different types of commitments for the interlocutors. This approach is grounded on the two interconnected notions of presumptions and commitments. In (...) some complex cases of presupposition “suspension,” the speaker presumes the hearer’s acceptance of and commitment to propositions that cannot be presumed as such, namely that do not belong to the common ground, or that have been explicitly rejected as being commonly shared. This phenomenon triggers a complex type of reasoning that can be represented as an abductive pattern, grounded on hierarchies of presumptions and aimed at providing an interpretation that solves this conflict of presumptions. Several cases of suspension of presupposition will be investigated as resulting from non-presumptive polyphonic articulations, in which different voices responsible for distinct commitments are distinguished. By indirectly reporting an element of discourse, the speaker can refuse to take responsibility for the presupposed proposition, and correct the commitments that may result for him. This polyphonic treatment of utterances shows how and why a presupposition is suspended, and identifies the conflicting presumptions that can be further solved through reasoning from best explanation. This reasoning can result in a different reconstruction of the developed logical form of utterance or of its illocutionary force. (shrink)

Opening a revolutionary new era in the unification of physics, by a breakthrough understanding of space, time, particles, and cosmology… For more than a century now, physicists have been attempting to unify the whole of physics and in so doing, gain a greater understanding of our cosmos. In Microbits: A New Unified Physics, scientific philosophers M. Muslim and Nadeem Haque, describe in detail, a compelling new view of physics that unites both the micro and the macro domains of matter (...) and energy. Specifically, they deconstruct Einsteinian Special and General Relativity and aspects of Quantum Mechanics, discussing their epistemological and empirical problems by their own original analyses, as well as the crucial but neglected works of prominent, astute and intellectually fearless critics of relativity and current interpretation of Quantum Mechanics such as Professors: Thomas E. Phipps, Bo Lehnert, Herbert E. Ives, Louis De Broglie, David Bohm, Jean-Pierre Vigier, Paul Marmet, Herbert Dingle, Stephan Gift, and G. Burniston Brown. Muslim and Haque establish an understanding of the fundamental physical phenomena in our universe, based on absolute space and what they term the ‘microbit’, the smallest type of particle next to absolute nothingness, from which all matter is comprised, and likewise, all forces. In doing so, in one master-stroke, they eliminate the traditional gulf between what they consider as being the partial/faulty theories of Quantum Mechanics and Einsteinian Relativity. They extend ‘Newton’s laws’ by two more ‘laws’, that remarkably unify the whole of physics. This fresh new perspective, whose time is long overdue, makes a plethora of new predictions that are now surfacing as possibilities in experiments published by leading scientific journals. Microbits: A New Unified Physics, thus calls for a radical shift in our way of looking at the cosmos, based on evidence, consistency, causation and determinism, leading to both wider and deeper implications for humanity. Publishers ISBN: 978-0-9699605-7-7. (shrink)

This paper tries to get a grip on two seemingly conflicting intuitions about reductionism in quantum mechanics. On the one hand it is received wisdom that quantum mechanics puts an end to ‘reductionism’. Quantum-entanglement is responsible for such features of quantum mechanics as holism, the failure of supervenience and emergence. While I agree with these claims I will argue that it is only part of the story. Quantum mechanics provides us with thorough-going reductionist explanations. I will distinguish two kinds of (...) micro-explanation (or micro-‘reduction’). I will argue that even though quantum-entanglement provides an example for the failure of one kind of micro-explanation it does not affect the other. Contrary to a recent paper by Kronz and Tiehen I claim that the explanation of the dynamics of quantum mechanical systems is just as reductionist as it used to be in classical mechanics. (shrink)

It is well-known that the entangled quantum state of a composite object cannot be reduced to the states of its parts. This quantum holism provides a peculiar challenge to formulate an appropriate mereological model: When a system is in an entangled state, which objects are there on the micro and macro level, and which of the objects carries which properties? This paper chooses a modeling approach to answer these questions: It proceeds from a systematic overview of consistent mereological models (...) for entangled systems and discusses which of them is compatible with the quantum mechanical evidence (where quantum states are understood realistically). It reveals that entangled quantum systems neither describe undivided wholes nor objects that stand in irreducible relations. The appropriate model assumes that the entangled property is an irreducible non-relational plural property carried collectively by the micro objects, while there is no macro object. In this sense, quantum holism is an instance of property holism, not of object holism. (shrink)

ABSTRACT The individual-community relationship has always been one of the most fundamental topics of social sciences. In sociology, this is known as the micro-macro relationship while in economics it refers to the processes, through which, individual actions lead to macroeconomic phenomena. Based on philosophical discourse and systems theory, many sociologists even use the term "emergence" in their understanding of micro-macro relationship, which refers to collective phenomena that are created by the cooperation of individuals, but cannot be reduced to (...) individual actions. "Emergence" theories attempt to explain the nature of society as a complex system by examining how individuals and their relationships lead to the creation of integrated and macro-social phenomena such as markets, educational systems, cultural beliefs, and shared social practices. As a prelude to activity, every researcher has to answer the question from the methodological point of view, how is it possible to study the behavior of social groups and how can we gain knowledge about the laws related to social groups? Anyone who deals with humanities and social sciences or any reality and phenomenon that affects human beings, inevitably deals with the reality that is emerging. In fact, emergence occurs when one level of reality emerges radically from another level. Examples of emergent levels of reality include how the mind emerges from the body; or the way society emerges from human beings. Therefore, when there is an emerging factor, different scientific disciplines should be used, because it is inevitable to talk about social affairs, psychology and neurobiology, as well as physical and even chemical. -/- INTRODUCTION Since its beginning in the 19th century, sociology has faced the fundamental question of what a social phenomena stands for? At a glance, sociologists deal with the study of social groups, collective behavior, institutions, social structures, social networks, and social dynamics, and ultimately all such phenomena are composed of individuals. Therefore, social phenomena seem to have no independent ontological status, and in this case, sociology is ultimately about reducible individuals. Different approaches about the micro-macro relationship, using the concept of "emergence", argue that although collective phenomena are created by individuals, they cannot be reduced to individual action. The term "emergence" is used to distinguish "emergent results" from " Procedural results". Results are called Procedural that can only be calculated by adding or subtracting the causes that act together. On the contrary, they are emergent outcomes that are qualitatively novel compared to the causes from which they originate. An example of such emergent results is mental characteristics that emerge from neural processes, but are not considered among the characteristics of neural processes of components - which are their origin. Philosophical debates about emergentism and reductionism focus on the mind-brain relationship, but as many philosophers have noted, they can be generalized to apply to any hierarchical set of features. The cognitive revolution reactivated a 19th century controversy between theorists of Identity and dualism. The theorists of Identity believe in reductionist materialism and elimination of metaphysics, according to which the mind is nothing more than the biological, while the dualists believe that the mind and the brain are distinct from each other. Emergence has been considered as a third way between the theories of Identity and dualism. -/- METHODOLOGY Interdisciplinarity Is fundamentally indicated by the dominance of open systems as well as social and emerging systems at different levels. Therefore, as long as we are facing a new emergentism, there will necessarily be different fields and an interdisciplinary method. The commonality of social sciences and cognitive sciences on the issue of emergence provides the possibility of interaction and exchange of concepts between these two for deeper research. Therefore, in this research, apart from the concepts of Subvenience and downward causation, we have used multiple realization and wildly disjunctive, which are used to explain the emerging concept in cognitive sciences, including neurobiology, psychology, and philosophy. For analytical and interdisciplinary approaches, after examining the concepts of subvenience, and wildly disjunctive, Individualistic and collectivist emergentism have been reviewed. And then their adequacy is criticized and evaluated in meeting strong emergence conditions. -/- FINDINGS Philosophers of the mind have been able to define the conditions of irreducibility and downward causation, which are essential for strong emergence, by using the principle of subvenience with the help of multiple realization and wildly disjunctive principles. Therefore, by definition, emergentist individualism suffers from the problem of how to explain downward causality and irreducibility, and emergentist collectivism faces the challenge of reification. The analysis of the challenges facing the two methodological approaches of individualism and collectivism leads us to three unresolved issues about the emerging phenomenon, which are realism, downward causality, and mechanism. Despite the differences in the stances of these two approaches regarding the aforementioned triple problems, individualists and collectivists both agree that some social characteristics are reducible; and some others are irreducible due to their complexity, the determination of which, depends on the case study of the mechanism of emergence of each social characteristic. -/- CONCLUSION An emergence that is consistent with reductionism is called a weak emergence. And strong emergence includes the principle of irreducibility and downward causality. According to strong emergence, the characteristics of social phenomena have downward causal power, which cannot be reduced to the causal forces. The principle of subvenience, together with multiple realization and wildly disjunctive, can provide the conditions of irreducibility and downward causality, which are essential conditions of strong emergence. Based on the philosophical analysis of two methodological approaches, individualist and collectivist, it can be concluded that emergentist individualism suffers from the problem of how to explain downward causality and irreducibility, and reification collectivism faces the challenge of reification. The analysis of the problems faced by these two approaches leads us to three unresolved issues, which are realism, downward causality, and mechanism. individualist emergentists acknowledge the existence of emergent social characteristics, but despite this, they believe that these characteristics are not real but merely analytical constructs that require explanation based on individuals and their mutual actions. But collectivists argue that emergentism yields a categorical ontology and supports social realism. They accept the dependence of social characteristics on individuals, but claim that social entities and structures are ontologically independent. Individualists and collectivists both agree that some social characteristics are reducible; and others are irreducible due to their complexity; and the only way to recognize this is to engage in empirical studies of the mechanisms and temporal processes of "emergence" that create social characteristics. -/- NOVELTY The newness of this compact article is as follows: a) Presenting an interdisciplinary approach using the analysis of philosophy of cognitive sciences, including the philosophy of mind, neurobiology and psychology to formulate the issue of social emergence; b) Criticizing individualist and collectivist methodological approaches to the issue of social emergence and explaining the sufficiency and shortcomings of both in providing weak and strong emerging conditions; c) Explaining and categorizing the challenges facing methodological approaches in explaining the phenomenon of social emergence, in three categories: realism, downward causality, and mechanism. BIBLIOGRAPHY Beckermann, A., Flohr, H., & Kim, J. (eds.) (1992). Emergence or reduction? Essays on the prospects of nonreductive physicalism. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter. Bhaskar, R. (1979). The possibility of Naturalism. New York: Routledge. Bhaskar, R., Danermark, B. & Price, L. (2018). Interdisciplinarity and wellbeing: A critical realist general theory of interdisciplinarity. London and New York: Routledge. Blau, P.M. (1981). Introduction: diverse views of social structure and their common denominator. In Blau, P.M. & Merton, R.K. (eds.), Continuity in Structural Inquiry (pp. 1–23). Beverly Hills: Sage. Blau, P.M. (1987). Microprocess and macrostructure. In K.S. Cook (ed.), Social Exchange Theory (pp. 83–100). Newbury Park, CA: Sage. Brooks, R.A., & Maes, P. (eds). (1994). Artificial life IV; proceedings of the Fourth International Workshop on the Synthesis and Simulation of Living Systems. Cambridge, Mass: MIT Press. Clark, A. (1997). Being there: Putting brain, body, and world together again. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press. Coleman, J. S. (1987). Microfoundations and macrosocial behavior. In: J. C. Alexander, B. Giesen, R. Munch, & Neil J. Smelser (Eds.). The Micro-Macro Link (pp. 153–73). Berkeley: University of California. Coleman, J. S. (1990). Foundations of social theory. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Elster, J. (1985). Making sense of Marx. New York: Cambridge University Press. Fodor, J.A. (1974). Special sciences (Or: The disunity of science as a working hypothesis). Synthese, 28(2), 97–115. Fodor, J.A. (1989). Making mind matter more. Philosophical Topics, 17, 59-79. Giddens, A. (1984). The constitution of society: Outline of the theory of structuration. Berkeley: University of California Press. Hempel, C.G. (1965). Aspects of scientific explanation and other essays in the philosophy of science. New York: The Free Press. Horgan, T. (1993). From supervenience to superdupervenience: meeting the demands of a material world. Mind, 102, 555-586. Humphreys, P. (1997). How properties emerge”. Philosophy of Science, 64, 1-17. Kim, J. (1999). Making sense of emergence. Philosophical Studies, 95, 3–36. Kincaid, H. (1997). Individualism and the unity of science. New York: Rowman & Littlefield. Lewis, D.K. (1986). The plurality of worlds. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Nigel, G., & Conte, R. (eds.) (1995). Artificial societies; The computer simulation of social life. London: UCL Press. O’Connor, T. (1994). Emergent properties. American Philosophical Quarterly, 31, 91-104. Popper, K.R. (1968). Conjectures and refutations: The Growth of Scientific Knowledge. New York: Harper & Row. Sawyer, R. K. (2001). Emergence in sociology: contemporary philosophy of mind and some implications for sociological theory. American Journal of Sociology, 107, 551-585. Sawyer, R. K. (2004). The mechanisms of emergence. Philosophy of the Social Sciences, 34, 260–282. Sawyer, R. K. (2005). Social emergence: societies as complex systems. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Sawyer, R.K. (2003). Nonreductive individualism: Part 2, Social causation. Philosophy of the Social Sciences, 33, 203–224. Winch, P. (1993). The idea of a social science and its relation to philosophy‭ (SAMT, Trans.). Tehran, Iran: SAMT. (shrink)

I shall argue that when Hume refers to the laws of dynamics, he tacitly assumes a mechanism. Nevertheless, he remains agnostic on whether the hidden micro-constitution of bodies is machinelike. Hence this article comes to the following conclusion. Hume is not a full-blown mechanical philosopher. Still his position on dynamic laws and his concept of causation instantiate a tacitly mechanical understanding of the interactions of bodies.

Schröedinger’s question “what is life?” was a real challenge for the scientific community and this still remains as an opened question, because in spite of the important advances in various scientific branches like philosophy, biology, chemistry and physics,, each of them assesses life from its particular point of view to explain the life’ characteristic features, so not a coherent and well structured general model of life was reported. In this paper life is approached from informational perspective, starting from earlier Draganeacu's (...) philosophic concepts, showing that actually life is structured by matter and information. Therefore, it is analyzed carbon-matter properties on the basis of which the living structures are composed, giving rise not only of a considerable number of carbon-based compounds, but serving now beside silicon, as an useful material for micro/nanostructure applications. Such specific properties refers to the high ability of carbon to associate/dissociate in chemical reactions regulated/facilitated by informational (Bit unit) YES/NO bistable mechanisms to form macro/small molecules with complementary properties, reactive info-functional pathways of transduction, relaying, amplification, integration, spreading, modulation, activation and positive/negative feedback reactions, like in the informational microelectronic/microsystems circuits. It is argued that the negentropy invoked earlier in Schrödinger's analysis is a consequence of informational-assisted structuration/organization of the cell and human organism. From the analysis of inter/intra-communication mechanisms in the cell and comparing with the outcomes described by the Informational Model of Human Body, it is deduced that, the living organisms operate on the basis of three main streaming circuits assuring the living functions: (1) the metabolic matter-related circuit; (2) the operative informational circuit; (3) the epigenetic informational circuit for the gradual integration of information in the central informational structure – DNA. It is founded on these bases the Informational Model of the Living Structures, and the Informational System of the Living Structures (ISLS), with similar functions on the entire living scale size, from unitary to multicellular living structures, composed by seven informational systems, namely [CASI (center of acquisition and storing of information), CDC (center of decision and command), IRSS (info-reactive sentient system), MIS (maintenance info-system), GTS (genetic transmission system), IGG (info-genetic generator) and IC (info-connection)]ISLS, and are identified the specific functions of each of them. The living structures operate thus like self-“polarized" bipolar info-matter informational devices by means of the stand-by metabolic matter-related circuit, and react/respond to the external/internal informational stimuli, which modulate their functionality, returning an external reaction signal (“attitude"), for adaptation and survival. (shrink)

This thesis contributes to a better conceptual understanding of how self-organized control works. I begin by analyzing the control problem and its solution space. I argue that the two prominent solutions offered by classical cognitive science (centralized control with rich commands, e.g., the Fodorian central systems) and embodied cognitive science (distributed control with simple commands, such as the subsumption architecture by Rodney Brooks) are merely two positions in a two-dimensional solution space. I outline two alternative positions: one is distributed control (...) with rich commands, defended by proponents of massive modularity hypothesis; the other is centralized control with simple commands. My goal is to develop a hybrid account that combines aspects of the second alternative position and that of the embodied cognitive science (i.e., centralized and distributed controls with simple commands). Before developing my account, I discuss the virtues and challenges of the first three. This discussion results in a set of criteria for successful neural control mechanisms. Then, I develop my account through analyzing neuroscientific models of decision-making and control with the theoretical lenses provided by formal decision and social choice theories. I contend that neural processes can be productively modeled as a collective of agents, and neural self-organization is analogous to democratic self-governance. In particular, I show that the basal ganglia, a set of subcortical structures, contribute to the production of coherent and intelligent behaviors through implementing “democratic" procedures. Unlike the Fodorian central system—which is a micro-managing “neural commander-in-chief”—the basal ganglia are a “central election commission.” They delegate control of habitual behaviors to other distributed control mechanisms. Yet, when novel problems arise, they engage and determine the result on the basis of simple information (the votes) from across the system with the principles of neurodemocracy, and control with simple commands of inhibition and disinhibition. By actively managing and taking advantage of the wisdom-of-the-crowd effect, these democratic processes enhance the intelligence and coherence of the mind’s final "collective" decisions. I end by defending this account from both philosophical and empirical criticisms and showing that it meets the criteria for successful solution. (shrink)

After years in distance learning, grade school teachers are now facing the threat of declining reading comprehension among elementary pupils in post-pandemic settings. Teachers observed a spike in the number of non-readers and frustrated readers in intermediate grade levels. Teachers expressed concerns about the state of the education system in the aftermath of the pandemic. The purpose of this exploratory study was to establish an understanding of the challenges and mechanisms of macro- and micro-management strategies of grade school (...) institutions. There were six teachers and six reading coordinators who participated in the study. The findings suggested that while reading comprehension was a problem before the pandemic, teachers realized a surge in the number of non-readers after opening back to face-to-face classes. This was an unanticipated phenomenon that called the academic institutions to respond immediately. Significant mechanisms of reading comprehension programs were profiling, initial detection, policy-based initiatives, and institution-based design. Collaborative and collective responsibility represented macro-management practices, while initiative and responsiveness reflected micromanagement practices. These practices and strategies provided conceptual and phenomenological underpinnings relevant to early-education reading comprehension. (shrink)

The conventional claims and concepts of 5* - 8* are a hang-over from the classical theory of thermodynamics – i.e. thermodynamics based on a fully deterministic micro-theory, developed in the time of Boltzmann, Loschmidt and Gibbs in the late C19th. The classical theory has well-known ‘reversibility paradoxes’ when applied to the universe as a whole. But the introduction of intrinsic probabilities in quantum mechanics, and its consequent time asymmetry, fundamentally changes the picture.

The violation of Bell inequalities by quantum physical experiments disproves all relativistic micro causal, classically real models, short Local Realistic Models (LRM). Non-locality, the infamous “spooky interaction at a distance” (A. Einstein), is already sufficiently ‘unreal’ to motivate modifying the “realistic” in “local realistic”. This has led to many worlds and finally many minds interpretations. We introduce a simple many world model that resolves the Einstein Podolsky Rosen paradox. The model starts out as a classical LRM, thus clarifying that (...) the many worlds concept alone does not imply quantum physics. Some of the desired ‘non-locality’, e.g. anti-correlation at equal measurement angles, is already present, but Bell’s inequality can of course not be violated. A single and natural step turns this LRM into a quantum model predicting the correct probabilities. Intriguingly, the crucial step does obviously not modify locality but instead reality: What before could have still been a direct realism turns into modal realism. This supports the trend away from the focus on non-locality in quantum mechanics towards a mature structural realism that preserves micro causality. (shrink)

Commensal and pathogenic organisms employ camouflage and mimicry to mediate mutualistic interactions and predator escape. However, the immune mechanisms accounting for the establishment and maintenance of symbiotic bacterial populations are poorly understood. A promising hypothesis suggests that molecular mimicry, a condition in which different organisms share common antigens, is a mechanism of establishing tolerance between commensals and their hosts. On this view, certain bacteria may mimic the structural features of some of their host’s T-cell receptors (TCRs), namely those that (...) survive thymic selection due to their lack of complementarity to self-antigens. With such “holoimmunity” the mimicking micro-organisms avoid immune recognition as the copied TCRs become mirror images of an extended super-organismal self, consisting of symbiotic and host antigens. Accordingly, analysis of genomic and metagenomic data suggests a tripartite mimicry between TCRs, self-antigens, and commensal antigens that would serve as the basis for immune tolerance between these populations. And conversely, in an autoimmune scenario, both symbiotic microbes and the mimicked host tissue would be targeted for immune destruction. (shrink)

In a world of partially overlapping and partially conflicting interests there is good reason to doubt that self-seeking behaviour at the micro-level will spontaneously lead to desirable social outcomes at the macro-level. Nevertheless, some sophisticated economic writers advocating a laissez-faire policy prescription have proposed various 'invisible hand' mechanisms which can supposedly be relied upon to 'educe good from ill'. Smith defended the 'simple system of natural liberty' as giving the greatest scope to the unfolding of God's will and (...) the working out of 'natural' providential processes free of interference by 'artificial' state intervention - the expression not of divine order but of fallible human reason. Hayek, adopting a similar policy stance, based it in an evolutionary process in which those institutional forms best adapted to reconciling individual interests would, he believed, spontaneously be selected for in the inter-group struggle for survival. Keynes shares the holistic approach of Smith and Hayek, but without their reliance on invisible hand mechanisms. If spontaneous processes cannot be relied upon to generate desirable social outcomes then we have to take responsibility for achieving this ourselves by establishing the appropriate institutional framework. Keynes takes a historical view of the role of capitalism and analyses its pathology as rooted in what we would now refer to as a multi-player prisoners' dilemma. The paper draws out the significance of his methodological standpoint here. Keynes's policy standpoint assigns a critical role to his own class, the 'educated bourgeoisie' in the reform process he maps out. A distinction, but also an intimate connection, is highlighted between, on the one hand, micro-level individualism (the 'Manchester System, and, on the other, the macro-level collective action ('planning') required to preserve it. Finally Keynes is considered in relation to the themes of laissez-faire, holism, reductionism, providentialism and the invisible hand. (shrink)

This thesis argues for the fundamental importance of the opposition between holistic and reductionistic world-views in economics. Both reductionism and holism may nevertheless underpin laissez-faire policy prescriptions. Scrutiny of the nature of the articulation between micro and macro levels in the writings of economists suggests that invisible hand theories play a key role in reconciling reductionist policy prescriptions with a holistic world. An examination of the prisoners' dilemma in game theory and Arrow's impossibility theorem in social choice theory sets (...) the scene. The prisoners' dilemma epitomises the collective irrationality coordination problems lead to. The source of the dilemma is identified as the combination of interdependence in content and independence in form of the decision making process. Arrovian impossibility has been perceived as challenging traditional views of the relationship between micro and macro levels in economics. Conservative arguments against the possibility in principle of a social welfare function are criticised here as depending on an illicit dualism. The thesis then reviews the standpoints of Smith, Hayek and Keynes. For Smith, the social desirability of individual self-seeking activity is ensured by the 'invisible hand' of a god who has moulded us so to behave, that the quantity of happiness in the world is always maximised. Hayek seeks to re-establish the invisible hand in a secular age, replacing the agency of a deity with an evolutionary mechanism. Hayek's evolutionary theory, criticised here as being based on the exploded notion of group selection, cannot underpin the desirability of spontaneous outcomes. I conclude by arguing that Keynes shares the holistic approach of Smith and Hayek, but without their reliance on invisible hand mechanisms. If spontaneous processes cannot be relied upon to generate desirable social outcomes then we have to take responsibility for achieving this ourselves by establishing the appropriate institutional framework to eliminate macroeconomic prisoners' dilemmas. (shrink)

Why are some people capable of sympathizing with and/or committing acts of political violence, such as attacks aimed at innocent targets? Attempts to construct terrorist profiles based on individual and situational factors, such as clinical, psychological, ethnic, and socio-demographic variables, have largely failed. Although individual and situational factors must be at work, it is clear that they alone cannot explain how certain individuals are radicalized. In this paper, we propose that a comprehensive understanding of radicalization and of how it may (...) lead to political violence requires the integration of information across multiple levels of analysis and interdisciplinary perspectives from evolutionary theory, social, personality and cognitive psychology, political science and neuroscience. Characterization of the structural-functional relationships between neural mechanisms and the cognitive and affective psychological processes that underpin group dynamics, interpersonal processes, values and narratives, as well as micro-sociological processes may reveal latent drivers of radicalization and explain why some people turn to extreme political violence. These drivers may not be observable within a single individual level of scientific enquiry. The integrative, multilevel approach that characterizes social neuroscience has the potential to provide theoretical and empirical clarity regarding the antecedents of radicalization and support for extreme violence. (shrink)

This chapter aims to direct attention to the political dimension of the social media age. Although current events like the Cambridge Analytica data breach managed to raise awareness for the issue, the systematically organized and orchestrated mechanisms at play still remain oblivious to most. Next to dangerous monopoly-tendencies among the powerful players on the market, reliance on automated algorithms in dealing with content seems to enable large-scale manipulation that is applied for economical and political purposes alike. The successful replacement (...) of traditional parties by movements based on personality cults around marketable young faces like Emmanuel Macron or Austria’s Sebastian Kurz is strongly linked to products and services offered by an industry that simply provides likes and followers for cash. Inspired by Trump’s monopolization of the Twitter-channel, these new political acteurs use the potential of social media for effective message control, allowing them to avoid confrontations with professional journalists. In addition, an extremely active minority of organized agitators relies on the viral potential of the web to strongly influence and dictate public discourse – suggesting a shift from the Spiral of Silence to the dangerous illusion of a Nexus of Noise. (shrink)

The article aims to substantiate the philosophy of synthesis, which is built on the basis of analysis, but gives it a constructive direction. The turning point from analysis to synthesis is the problematization of the elements identified in the analysis, their criticism, replacement, or rearrangement, leading to the construction of alternative concepts and propositions that expand the field of the thinkable and innovate the categorical apparatus of philosophy. This article provides examples of philosophical synthesis at different levels: alternative terms and (...) concepts (“infinition”), postulates (the “diamond rule” in ethics), and disciplines (“horrology” as the study of the self-destructive mechanisms of civilization). Next, we consider the transition from the philosophy of synthesis to the synthesis of philosophy itself with contemporary scientific and technical practices. Technology of the 21st century is no longer instrumental/utilitarian, but a fundamental technology ("onto–technology"), which, thanks to science’s penetration into the micro- and macrocosm, can change the foundational parameters of being, thereby acquiring a philosophical dimension. Accordingly, philosophy as a study of the most general principles of the universe becomes a practical requirement in any “world-forming,” synthesizing acts of technology, including the design of computer games and multi-populated virtual worlds (e.g., “Second Life”), that involve a new ontology, logic, ethics, and axiology. The vocation of philosophy in the 21st century is not just to comprehend our unique world, but to lay the foundations for new world-forming practices, to initiate and design the ontology of possible worlds, and to pave the way for alternative forms of synthetic life and artificial intelligence. Contrary to Hegel, philosophy is no longer the “owl of Minerva” taking flight at dusk, but a skylark proclaiming the dawn of a new creative day. -/- . (shrink)

Tantra means knowledge of methodical and mechanical investigational-technique through which we develop our consciousness and faculties of consciousness. It is also a process through which we can able to be realized our inherent spiritual powers. The term “Tantra” has been derived from the Sanskrit term “Tan” which means to “Magnify” or to “Outspread”. People use Tantra in a very mechanical way to transform their personality from animalhood to divinity. Basically, in the school of Buddhism, Tantra has developed a system of (...) thought which makes us see the universe as if it were within ourselves, and ourselves as if we were within the universe. In addition, we can argue that the forces governing the cosmos on the macro-level are believed to govern the individual in the micro-level. According to Tantra, there is a pyramid among individual being and universal being rather both sides are same. Thus all that exists in the universe must also exist in the individual body. It means we are all one under the umbrella of the sky. According to Buddhism, Tantra is the best way to salvation. Because, through the mechanism of Tantra, people can overcome to ignorance and affection towards the material world and can achieve wisdom. (shrink)

This study contributes to the micro-credit literature by addressing the lack of philosophical dialogue concerning the issue of trust between micro-credit NGOs and rural poor women. The study demonstrates that one of the root causes of NGOs’ contested roles in Bangladesh is the norm that they use (i.e., trust) to rationalize their micro-credit activities. I argue that Bangladeshi micro-credit NGOs’ trust in poor village women is not genuine because they resort to group responsibility sustained through aggressive (...) surveillance. I maintain so by drawing on a trust-based theoretical framework that uses various philosophical insights. Drawing on the same conceptual framework, I also contend, somewhat softening the previous claim, that if micro-credit trust is trust at all, it is at most strategic, not generalized. For being strategic, it has many undermining effects on local social solidarity norms, rendering Bangladeshi micro-credit NGOs and strategic trust an odd couple with no moral compass. To bring forth the moral impetus in micro-credit activities, I lay out some recommendations intended for organizations, managers, and policymakers, consistent with normative corporate social responsibility initiatives. However, further studies can be initiated based on this paper, suggesting its importance for future research. (shrink)

This article analyses the phenomenon of ‘micro-domination’, in which a series of dominated choices are individually inconsequential for a person’s freedom but collectively consequential. Where the choices concerned are objectively inconsequential, micro- domination poses a problem for ‘objective threshold’ accounts of domination which either prioritise particularly bad forms of domination or exclude powers that do not risk causing serious harm to their victims. Where the choices concerned are subjectively inconsequential to the victim, micro-domination poses a problem for (...) the common republican strategy of creating arenas of contestation for victims of domination, which rely on victims objecting strongly enough to a dominating relationship to sound the alarm. This kind of invigilation may systematically fail victims of micro-domination. Throughout the article, I suggest some ways of better accounting for and responding to cases of micro-domination. (shrink)

For many old and new mechanists, Mechanism is both a metaphysical position and a thesis about scientific methodology. In this paper we discuss the relation between the metaphysics of mechanisms and the role of mechanical explanation in the practice of science, by presenting and comparing the key tenets of Old and New Mechanism. First, by focusing on the case of gravity, we show how the metaphysics of Old Mechanism constrained scientific explanation, and discuss Newton’s critique of Old Mechanism. Second, (...) we examine the current mechanistic metaphysics, arguing that it is not warranted by the use of the concept of mechanism in scientific practice, and motivate a thin conception of mechanism (the truly minimal view), according to which mechanisms are causal pathways for a certain effect or phenomenon. Finally, we draw analogies between Newton’s critique of Old Mechanism and our thesis that the metaphysical commitments of New Mechanism are not necessary in order to illuminate scientific practice. (shrink)

This chapter will review selected aspects of the terrain of discussions about probabilities in statistical mechanics (with no pretensions to exhaustiveness, though the major issues will be touched upon), and will argue for a number of claims. None of the claims to be defended is entirely original, but all deserve emphasis. The first, and least controversial, is that probabilistic notions are needed to make sense of statistical mechanics. The reason for this is the same reason that convinced Maxwell, Gibbs, and (...) Boltzmann that probabilities would be needed, namely, that the second law of thermodynamics, which in its original formulation says that certain processes are impossible, must, on the kinetic theory, be replaced by a weaker formulation according to which what the original version deems impossible is merely improbable. Second is that we ought not take the standard measures invoked in equilibrium statistical mechanics as giving, in any sense, the correct probabilities about microstates of the system. We can settle for a much weaker claim: that the probabilities for outcomes of experiments yielded by the standard distributions are effectively the same as those yielded by any distribution that we should take as a representing probabilities over microstates. Lastly, (and most controversially): in asking about the status of probabilities in statistical mechanics, the familiar dichotomy between epistemic probabilities (credences, or degrees of belief) and ontic (physical) probabilities is insufficient; the concept of probability that is best suited to the needs of statistical mechanics is one that combines epistemic and physical considerations. (shrink)

This chapter is about micro-inequities and their connection to the problem of implicit bias. It begins by defining micro-inequities, goes on to discuss what makes them wrong and what solutions might be appropriate given the institutional context in which they occur.

This work presents a novel formulation of quantum mechanics as the solution to an entropy maximization problem constrained by empirical measurement outcomes. By treating the complete set of possible measurement outcomes as an optimization constraint, our entropy maximization problem derives the axioms of quantum mechanics as theorems, demonstrating that the theory's mathematical structure is the least biased probability measure consistent with the observed data. This approach reduces the foundation of quantum mechanics to a single axiom, the measurement constraint, from which (...) the full theory emerges through entropy maximization. In contrast to the conventional axiomatic approach, the framework grounds the axioms directly in empirical data, substantially restricting the interpretational landscape ruling out interpretations inconsistent with this empirical foundation. (shrink)

In this essay, we draw on John Haugeland’s work in order to argue that Burge is wrong to think that exercises of perceptual constancy mechanisms suffice for perceptual representation. Although Haugeland did not live to read or respond to Burge’s Origins of Objectivity, we think that his work contains resources that can be developed into a critique of the very foundation of Burge’s approach. Specifically, we identify two related problems for Burge. First, if (what Burge calls) mere sensory responses (...) are not representational, then neither are exercises of constancy mechanisms, since the differences between them do not suffice to imply that one is representational and the other is not. Second, taken by themselves, exercises of constancy mechanisms are only derivatively representational, so merely understanding how they work is not sufficient for understanding what is required for something, in itself, to be representational (and thereby provide a full solution to the problem of perceptual representation). (shrink)

It is tempting to always try to distinguish convincing from poor literary imitation by micro-analysis. The analysis observes various patterns of word and punctuation use in the original and compares those with the imitation. I argue that no such sophistication is needed when faced with Max Beerbohm’s imitation of Joseph Conrad.

This chapter draws an analogy between computing mechanisms and autopoietic systems, focusing on the non-representational status of both kinds of system (computational and autopoietic). It will be argued that the role played by input and output components in a computing mechanism closely resembles the relationship between an autopoietic system and its environment, and in this sense differs from the classical understanding of inputs and outputs. The analogy helps to make sense of why we should think of computing mechanisms (...) as non-representational, and might also facilitate reconciliation between computational and autopoietic/enactive approaches to the study of cognition. (shrink)

According to new mechanists, mechanisms explain how specific biological phenomena are produced. New mechanists have had little to say about how mechanisms relate to the organism in which they reside. A key feature of organisms, emphasized by the autonomy tradition, is that organisms maintain themselves. To do this, they rely on mechanisms. But mechanisms must be controlled so that they produce the phenomena for which they are responsible when and in the manner needed by the organism. (...) To account for how they are controlled, we characterize mechanisms as sets of constraints on the flow of free energy. Some constraints are flexible and can be acted on by other mechanisms, control mechanisms, that utilize information procured from the organism and its environment to alter the flexible constraints in other mechanisms so that they produce phenomena appropriate to the circumstances. We further show that control mechanisms in living organisms are organized heterarchically—control is carried out primarily by local controllers that integrate information they acquire as well as that which they procure from other control mechanisms. The result is not a hierarchy of control but an integrated network of control mechanisms that has been crafted over the course of evolution. (shrink)

I maintain that quantum mechanics is fundamentally about a system of N particles evolving in three-dimensional space, not the wave function evolving in 3N-dimensional space.

Even though the evidence‐based medicine movement (EBM) labels mechanisms a low quality form of evidence, consideration of the mechanisms on which medicine relies, and the distinct roles that mechanisms might play in clinical practice, offers a number of insights into EBM itself. In this paper, I examine the connections between EBM and mechanisms from several angles. I diagnose what went wrong in two examples where mechanistic reasoning failed to generate accurate predictions for how a dysfunctional mechanism (...) would respond to intervention. I then use these examples to explain why we should expect this kind of mechanistic reasoning to fail in systematic ways, by situating these failures in terms of evolved complexity of the causal system(s) in question. I argue that there is still a different role in which mechanisms continue to figure as evidence in EBM: namely, in guiding the application of population‐level recommendations to individual patients. Thus, even though the evidence‐based movement rejects one role in which mechanistic reasoning serves as evidence, there are other evidentiary roles for mechanistic reasoning. This renders plausible the claims of some critics of evidencebased medicine who point to the ineliminable role of clinical experience. Clearly specifying the ways in which mechanisms and mechanistic reasoning can be involved in clinical practice frames the discussion about EBM and clinical experience in more fruitful terms. (shrink)

This paper will examine the nature of mechanisms and the distinction between the relevant and irrelevant parts involved in a mechanism’s operation. I first consider Craver’s account of this distinction in his book on the nature of mechanisms, and explain some problems. I then offer a novel account of the distinction that appeals to some resources from Mackie’s theory of causation. I end by explaining how this account enables us to better understand what mechanisms are and their (...) various features. (shrink)

Living organisms act as integrated wholes to maintain themselves. Individual actions can each be explained by characterizing the mechanisms that perform the activity. But these alone do not explain how various activities are coordinated and performed versatilely. We argue that this depends on a specific type of mechanism, a control mechanism. We develop an account of control by examining several extensively studied control mechanisms operative in the bacterium E. coli. On our analysis, what distinguishes a control mechanism from (...) other mechanisms is that it relies on measuring one or more variables, which results in setting constraints in the control mechanism that determine its action on flexible constraints in other mechanisms. In the most basic arrangement, the measurement process directly determines the action of the control mechanism, but in more complex arrangements signals mediate between measurements and effectors. This opens the possibility of multiple responses to the same measurement and responses based on multiple measurements. It also allows crosstalk, resulting in networks of control mechanisms. Such networks integrate the behaviors of the organism but also present a challenge in tailoring responses to particular measurements. We discuss how integrated activity can still result in differential, versatile, responses. (shrink)

In a quantum universe with a strong arrow of time, we postulate a low-entropy boundary condition to account for the temporal asymmetry. In this paper, I show that the Past Hypothesis also contains enough information to simplify the quantum ontology and define a unique initial condition in such a world. First, I introduce Density Matrix Realism, the thesis that the quantum universe is described by a fundamental density matrix that represents something objective. This stands in sharp contrast to Wave Function (...) Realism, the thesis that the quantum universe is described by a wave function that represents something objective. Second, I suggest that the Past Hypothesis is sufficient to determine a unique and simple density matrix. This is achieved by what I call the Initial Projection Hypothesis: the initial density matrix of the universe is the normalized projection onto the special low-dimensional Hilbert space. Third, because the initial quantum state is unique and simple, we have a strong case for the \emph{Nomological Thesis}: the initial quantum state of the universe is on a par with laws of nature. This new package of ideas has several interesting implications, including on the harmony between statistical mechanics and quantum mechanics, the dynamic unity of the universe and the subsystems, and the alleged conflict between Humean supervenience and quantum entanglement. (shrink)

Gender issues are well-researched in the general management literature, particular in studies on new ventures. Unfortunately, gender issues have been largely ignored in the dynamic capabilities literature. We address this gap by analyzing the effects of gender diversity on dynamic capabilities among micro firms. We consider the gender of managers and personnel in 124 Ukrainian tourism micro firms. We examine how a manager’s gender affects the firm’s sensing capacities and investigate how it moderates team gender diversity’s impact on (...) sensing capacities. We also investigate how personnel composition impacts seizing and reconfiguration capacities. We find that female managers have several shortcomings concerning a firm’s sensing capacity but that personnel gender diversity increases this capacity. Team gender diversity has positive effects on a firm’s seizing and reconfiguration abilities. Our study advances research on gender diversity and its impact on firm capabilities and illustrates its relevance for staffing practices in micro firms. (shrink)

Gender issues are well-researched in the general management literature, particular in studies on new ventures. Unfortunately, gender issues have been largely ignored in the dynamic capabilities literature. We address this gap by analyzing the effects of gender diversity on dynamic capabilities among micro firms. We consider the gender of managers and personnel in 124 Ukrainian tourism micro firms. We examine how a manager’s gender affects the firm’s sensing capacities and investigate how it moderates team gender diversity’s impact on (...) sensing capacities. We also investigate how personnel composition impacts seizing and reconfiguration capacities. We find that female managers have several shortcomings concerning a firm’s sensing capacity but that personnel gender diversity increases this capacity. Team gender diversity has positive effects on a firm’s seizing and reconfiguration abilities. Our study advances research on gender diversity and its impact on firm capabilities and illustrates its relevance for staffing practices in micro firms. (shrink)