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Postbiological Evolution
Postbiological evolution is a form of evolution which has transitioned from a biological paradigm, driven by the propagation of genes, to a nonbiological (e.g., cultural or technological) paradigm, presumably driven by some alternative replicator (e.g., memes or temes), and potentially resulting in the extinction, obsolescence, or trophic reorganization of the former. Researchers anticipating a postbiological universe tend to describe this transition as marked by the maturation and potential convergence of high technologies, such as artificial intelligence or nanotechnology.
  • 2.2K
  • 25 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Polanyi’s Paradox
Polanyi's paradox, named in honour of the British-Hungarian philosopher Michael Polanyi, is the theory that human knowledge of how the world functions and capability are, to a large extent, beyond our explicit understanding. The theory was articulated by Michael Polanyi in his book The Tacit Dimension in 1966, but it was economist David Autor that named it as Polanyi's paradox in his 2014 research paper on “Polanyi's Paradox and the Shape of Employment Growth”. Summarised in the slogan "We can know more than we can tell", Polanyi's paradox is mainly to explain the cognitive phenomenon that there exist many tasks which we, human beings, understand intuitively how to perform but cannot verbalize the rules or procedures behind it. This "self-ignorance" is common to many human activities, from driving a car in traffic to face recognition. As Polanyi argues, humans are relying on their tacit knowledge, which is difficult to adequately express by verbal means, when engaging these tasks. Polanyi's paradox has been widely considered a major obstacle in the fields of AI and automation, since the absence of consciously accessible knowledge creates tremendous difficulty in programming.
  • 4.0K
  • 02 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Physical Law
A physical law or a law of physics is a statement "inferred from particular facts, applicable to a defined group or class of phenomena, and expressible by the statement that a particular phenomenon always occurs if certain conditions be present." Physical laws are typically conclusions based on repeated scientific experiments and observations over many years and which have become accepted universally within the scientific community. The production of a summary description of our environment in the form of such laws is a fundamental aim of science. These terms are not used the same way by all authors. The distinction between natural law in the political-legal sense and law of nature or physical law in the scientific sense is a modern one, both concepts being equally derived from physis, the Greek word (translated into Latin as natura) for nature.
  • 12.3K
  • 01 Dec 2022
Topic Review
Physical Body
In physics, a physical body or physical object (or simply a body or object) is an identifiable collection of matter, which may be constrained by an identifiable boundary, and may move as a unit by translation or rotation, in 3-dimensional space. In common usage, an object is a collection of matter within a defined contiguous boundary in 3-dimensional space. The boundary must be defined and identified by the properties of the material. The boundary may change over time. The boundary is usually the visible or tangible surface of the object. The matter in the object is constrained (to a greater or lesser degree) to move as one object. The boundary may move in space relative to other objects that it is not attached to (through translation and rotation). An object's boundary may also deform and change over time in other ways. Also in common usage, an object is not constrained to consist of the same collection of matter. Atoms or parts of an object may change over time. An object is defined by the simplest representation of the boundary consistent with the observations. However the laws of Physics only apply directly to objects that consist of the same collection of matter. Each object has a unique identity, independent of any other properties. Two objects may be identical, in all properties except position, but still remain distinguishable. In most cases the boundaries of two objects may not overlap at any point in time. The property of identity allows objects to be counted. Examples of models of physical bodies include, but are not limited to a particle, several interacting smaller bodies (particles or other), and continuous media. The common conception of physical objects includes that they have extension in the physical world, although there do exist theories of quantum physics and cosmology which may challenge this. In modern physics, "extension" is understood in terms of the spacetime: roughly speaking, it means that for a given moment of time the body has some location in the space, although not necessarily a point. A physical body as a whole is assumed to have such quantitative properties as mass, momentum, electric charge, other conserving quantities, and possibly other quantities. A body with known composition and described in an adequate physical theory is an example of physical system.
  • 3.4K
  • 12 Dec 2022
Topic Review
Philosophy of Technology
The philosophy of technology is a sub-field of philosophy that studies the nature of technology and its social effects. Philosophical discussion of questions relating to technology (or its Greek ancestor techne) dates back to the very dawn of Western philosophy. The phrase "philosophy of technology" was first used in the late 19th century by German-born philosopher and geographer Ernst Kapp, who published a book titled Elements of a Philosophy of Technology (German title: Grundlinien einer Philosophie der Technik).
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  • 14 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Philosophy of Experience
The Upanishadic philosophy of experience expounded by Gaudapada is based on the cryptic references made by the sage of the Mandukya Upanishad to the experience of the individual self of its own apparent manifestations in the three fundamental states of consciousness, and to the Fourth known as Turiya. Turiya is identified with “that goal which all the Vedas declare” - सर्वे वेदा यत् पदमानन्ति (Katha Upanishad I.ii.15), and whose characteristics are not dissimilar to those of the non-dual Brahman (Mandukya Upanishad 7).
  • 332
  • 25 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Philosophy of Baruch Spinoza
Baruch Spinoza's philosophy encompasses nearly every area of philosophical discourse, including metaphysics, epistemology, political philosophy, ethics, philosophy of mind, and philosophy of science. It earned Spinoza an enduring reputation as one of the most important and original thinkers of the seventeenth century. Samuel Shirley, who translated Spinoza's complete works into English, summed up the significance of Spinoza's philosophy as follows: Spinoza's philosophy is largely contained in two books: the Theologico-Political Treatise, and the Ethics. The former was published during his lifetime, but the latter, which contains the entirety of his philosophical system in its most rigorous form, was not published until after his death in 1677. The rest of the writings we have from Spinoza are either earlier, or incomplete, works expressing thoughts that were crystallized in the two aforementioned books (e.g., the Short Treatise and the Treatise on the Emendation of the Intellect), or else they are not directly concerned with Spinoza's own philosophy (e.g., The Principles of Cartesian Philosophy and The Hebrew Grammar). He also left behind many letters that help to illuminate his ideas and provide some insight into what may have been motivating his views.
  • 1.2K
  • 24 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Philosophical Reflections in the Naisadhacarita
Philosophical Reflections in the Naisadhacarita is the doctoral (Ph.D.) thesis of Harekrishna Meher done in Banaras Hindu University in 1981. It discusses philosophical ideas as reflected in the Sanskrit Mahakavya ‘Naisadhacaritam’ authored by the distinguished poet Sriharsa (12th century). This book (ISBN:9788185094212), first published in 1989 by Punthi Pustak Calcutta, is circulated worldwide. Naisadhacarita Mahakavya of poet Sriharsa enjoys a prominent position among the five great epics of Sanskrit literature. Also known as ‘Naishadha’ or ‘Naishadhiya’, this epic contains twenty-two cantos completed with 2827 verses. Its main theme is the story of love between Nala, the King of Nisadha country and Damayanti, the Princess of Vidarbha. The story of Nala and Damayanti is found in the Mahabharata of Vyasa and Kathasaritsagara of Somadeva. The episode of the epic has been taken from the Mahabharata. Poet Sriharsa has remodelled the story and has added the sentiment of love to it. 
  • 716
  • 10 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Philo
Philo of Alexandria (/ˈfaɪloʊ/; Ancient Greek:; Hebrew: יְדִידְיָה הַכֹּהֵן‎, romanized: Yedidia (Jedediah) HaCohen; c. 20 BCE – c. 50 CE), also called Philo Judaeus, was a Hellenistic Jewish philosopher who lived in Alexandria, in the Roman province of Egypt. Philo used philosophical allegory to harmonize Jewish scripture, mainly the Torah, with Greek philosophy. His method followed the practices of both Jewish exegesis and Stoic philosophy. His allegorical exegesis was important for some Christian Church Fathers, but he had very little reception history within the Rabbinic Judaism. He adopted allegorical instead of literal interpretations of the Hebrew Bible. Some scholars hold that his concept of the Logos as God's creative principle influenced early Christology. Other scholars deny direct influence but say that Philo and Early Christianity borrow from a common source. The only event in Philo's life that can be decisively dated is his participation in the embassy to Rome in 40 CE. He represented the Alexandrian Jews in a delegation to the Roman Emperor Gaius (Caligula) following civil strife between the Alexandrian Jewish and Greek communities. The story of this event, and a few other biographical details, are found in Josephus and in Philo's own works, especially in Legatio ad Gaium (Embassy to Gaius) of which only two of the original five volumes survive. The thought of Philo was largely inspired by Aristobulus of Paneas and the Alexandrian School, concerning his work "Wisdom of Solomon" and the occupations of the Therapeutæ and the Essenes.
  • 1.2K
  • 04 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Philistinism
In the fields of philosophy and æsthetics, the derogatory term philistinism describes “the manners, habits, and character, or mode of thinking of a philistine”, manifested as an anti-intellectual social attitude that undervalues and despises art and beauty, intellect and spirituality. A philistine person is a man or woman of smugly narrow mind and of conventional morality whose materialistic views and tastes indicate a lack of and an indifference to cultural and æsthetic values. Since the 19th century, the contemporary denotation of philistinism, as the behaviour of "ignorant, ill-behaved persons lacking in culture or artistic appreciation, and only concerned with materialistic values" derives from Matthew Arnold's adaptation to English of the German word Philister, as applied by university students in their antagonistic relations with the townspeople of Jena, Germany, where, in 1689, a row resulted in several deaths. In the aftermath, the university cleric addressed the town-vs-gown matter with an admonishing sermon "The Philistines Be Upon Thee", drawn from the Book of Judges (Chapt. 16, 'Samson vs the Philistines'), of the Tanakh and of the Christian Old Testament. In Word Research and Word History, the philologist Friedrich Kluge said that the word philistine originally had a positive meaning that identified a tall and strong man, such as Goliath; later the meaning changed to identify the "guards of the city".
  • 8.5K
  • 22 Nov 2022
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