606 research outputs found
Philosophy of Blockchain Technology - Ontologies
About the necessity and usefulness of developing a philosophy specific to the blockchain technology, emphasizing on the ontological aspects. After an Introduction that highlights the main philosophical directions for this emerging technology, in Blockchain Technology I explain the way the blockchain works, discussing ontological development directions of this technology in Designing and Modeling. The next section is dedicated to the main application of blockchain technology, Bitcoin, with the social implications of this cryptocurrency. There follows a section of Philosophy in which I identify the blockchain technology with the concept of heterotopia developed by Michel Foucault and I interpret it in the light of the notational technology developed by Nelson Goodman as a notational system. In the Ontology section, I present two developmental paths that I consider important: Narrative Ontology, based on the idea of order and structure of history transmitted through Paul Ricoeur's narrative history, and the Enterprise Ontology system based on concepts and models of an enterprise, specific to the semantic web, and which I consider to be the most well developed and which will probably become the formal ontological system, at least in terms of the economic and legal aspects of blockchain technology. In Conclusions I am talking about the future directions of developing the blockchain technology philosophy in general as an explanatory and robust theory from a phenomenologically consistent point of view, which allows testability and ontologies in particular, arguing for the need of a global adoption of an ontological system for develop cross-cutting solutions and to make this technology profitable.
CONTENTS:
Abstract
Introducere
Tehnologia blockchain
- Proiectare
- Modele
Bitcoin
Filosofia
Ontologii
- Ontologii narative
- Ontologii de intreprindere
Concluzii
Note
Bibliografie
DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.24510.3360
Contested modelling
We suggest that the role and function of expert computational modelling in real-world decision-making needs scrutiny and practices need to change. We discuss some empirical and theory-based improvements to the coupling of the modelling process and the real world, including social and behavioural processes, which we have expressed as a set of questions that we believe need to be answered by all projects engaged in such modelling. These are based on a systems analysis of four research initiatives, covering different scales and timeframes, and addressing the complexity of intervention in a sustainability context. Our proposed improvements require new approaches for analysing the relationship between a project’s models and its publics. They reflect what we believe is a necessary and beneficial dialogue between the realms of expert scientific modelling and systems thinking. This paper is an attempt to start that process, itself reflecting a robust dialogue between two practitioners sat within differing traditions, puzzling how to integrate perspectives and achieve wider participation in researching this problem space. 
A Morphology of Theories of Emergence
“Emergence” – the notion of novel, unpredictable and irreducible properties developing out of complex organisational entities – is itself a complex, multi-dimensional concept. To date there is no single, generally agreed upon “theory of emergence”, but instead a number of different approaches and perspectives. Neither is there a common conceptual or meta-theoretical framework by which to systematically identify, exemplify and compare different “theories”. Building upon earlier work done by sociologist Kenneth Bailey, this article presents a method for creating such a framework, and outlines the conditions for a collaborative effort in order to carry out such a task. A brief historical and theoretical background is given both to the concept of “emergence” and to the non-quantified modelling method General Morphological Analysis (GMA)
Psychophysicality: rethinking the physicalist foundations of the mind/body problem
In this thesis, I shall examine the question of physicalism through two papers criticising the formulation of the doctrine. In the first chapter, I discuss Tim Carne's and D.H. Mellor's influential (1990) There Is No Question of Physicalism, in which they argue that there are no real criteria by which the science of psychology can be separated from the paradigmatically physical sciences, and so no principled reason to suppose that the predicates of pyschology do not describe real elements of the world's ontology whereas those of physics do. I shall explain why I find their arguments unconvincing, and to show how some of the reasons they consider not to support the noncontinuity of psychology with physics actually can support the distinction.
Crane and Mellor take physicalism to be an epistemological doctrine, according to which the empirical world "contains just what a true and complete physical science would say it contains". Physicalism can, however, be taken as a metaphysical doctrine, and indeed I think that many modern physicalists do take it this way. In his (1998) What Are Physical Properties?, Chris Daly argues that no principled distinction can be drawn between physical and nonphysical properties, and that therefore any metaphysical programme which assumes such a distinction is misguided. I shall agree with much of his reasoning, but not with his 'downbeat' conclusion: while I agree that there are serious difficulties involved in setting constraints on the bounds of the physical, I think that enough can positively be said to make physicalism a meaningful position. Between the two papers, a fairly broad survey of some recent accounts of physicalism is made and these two distinct avenues explored: physicalism construed as a doctrine about science, and physicalism as a doctrine attempting to limit the contents of the world a priori through a definition of what it is to be a physical properties. All in all, I think that there is much to learn from these two papers, but not all of it is as negative, conclusive, or 'downbeat' as their authors might have intended. Rather, I think that some new directions are indicated by the failure of some of the avenues they explore
Critical Comments on the Sensorimotor Approach to Consciousness
Cognitive neuroscience and contemporary physicalist philosophies of mind typically hold the view that minds somehow reduce to brain activity. This is achieved through representations that evolved to map reality and are subjected to computational activity. The received view has been criticized mostly through thought experiments that rely on the notion of qualia, but philosopher Alva NoEB; follows a different approach, called the 201C;sensorimotor theory201D;. Unlike the orthodoxy, NoEB; argues that our minds are not inside our bodies; they are better seen as a dynamic process of embodied cognition. This means mental activity emerges from our engagement with the world around us. NoEB;2019;s thesis is grounded on original arguments that are both empirical and philosophical in nature
Emergence in marketing: an institutional and ecosystem framework
Many core marketing concepts (e.g., markets, relationships, customer experience, brand meaning, value) concern phenomena
that are difficult to understand using linear and dyadic approaches, because they are emergent. That is, they arise, often
unpredictably, from interactions within complex and dynamic contexts. This paper contributes to the marketing discipline
through an explication of the concept of emergence as it applies to marketing theory. We accomplish this by first drawing on
the existing literature on emergence in philosophy, sociology, and the theory of complex adaptive systems, and then link and
extend this understanding to marketing using the theoretical framework of service-dominant (S-D) logic, particularly as enhanced
by its service-ecosystems and institutionalization perspectives. Our work recognizes both emergence and institutionalization as
integral or interrelated processes in the creation, maintenance, and disruption of markets and marketing phenomena. We conclude
by discussing implications for marketing research and practice
Extending the Extended Mind: The Case for Extended Affectivity
This is the final version of the article. Available from Springer Verlag via the DOI in this recordThere is another ORE record for this publication: http://hdl.handle.net/10871/32049The thesis of the extended mind (ExM) holds that the material underpinnings of an individual’s mental states and processes need not be restricted to those contained within biological boundaries: when conditions are right, material artefacts can be incorporated by the thinking subject in such a way as to become a component of her extended mind. Up to this point, the focus of this approach has been on phenomena of a distinctively cognitive nature, such as states of dispositional belief, and processes of planning and calculation. In this paper, we aim to expand the scope of ExM by considering the case for extended affectivity. We begin by clarifying the central commitments of ExM, before investigating its applicability to a range of affective phenomena, both dispositional and occurrent. We argue that proponents of ExM should also accept that the vehicles of emotions, moods, sentiments, temperaments, and character traits can extend beyond skull and skin.European Research Council under the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007–2013
Free Will of an Ontologically Open Mind
The problem of free will has persistently resisted a solution throughout centuries. There is reason to believe that new elements need to be introduced into the analysis in order to make progress. In the present physicalist approach, these elements are emergence and information theory in relation to universal limits set by quantum physics. Furthermore the common, but vague, characterization of free will as "being able to act differently" is, in the spirit of Carnap, rephrased into an explicatum more suitable for formal analysis. It is argued that the mind is an ontologically open system; a causal high-level system, the future of which cannot be reduced to the states of its associated low-level neural systems, not even if it is rendered physically closed. A positive answer to the question of free will is subsequently outlined
Bewusstsein, minimales Selbst und Gehirn
This paper explores the possibility of a neuroscientific explanation of consciousness, and what such an explanation might look like. More specifically, I will be concerned with the claim that for any given experience there is neural representational system that constitutes the minimal supervenience base of that experience. I will call this hypothesis the minimal supervenience thesis. I argue that the minimal supervenience thesis is subject to two readings, which I call the localist and holist readings. Localist theories seek to identify the minimal supervenience base for specific experiences. They sideline questions about the nature of creature consciousness, treating the neural basis of creature consciousness as merely a causally necessary background condition for a particular conscious experience. Holists on the other hand prioritise creature consciousness and argue that we can only account for particular states of consciousness in the context of an account of creature consciousness. I argue that any scientific explanation of consciousness must account for what I will call a minimal sense of self that is intrinsic to every conscious state. Holist theories are best able to accommodate this feature. I end by arguing that the Dynamic Sensorimotor (DSM) account of consciousness can be combined with a holist account of the neural basis of consciousness. Such a combination of views corrects for the opposition to the minimal supervenience thesis found in some prominent defenders of the DSM account (e.g. Alva Noë and Evan Thompson). It also provides a framework for developing a neuroscientific account of the minimal sense of self.L’article cherche à savoir si une explication neuroscientifique de la conscience est possible et à quoi elle pourrait ressembler. Plus particulièrement, je me pencherai sur l’affirmation qu’à chaque expérience donnée correspond un système de représentation neural qui constitue la base de survenance minimale de cette expérience. J’appellerai cette hypothèse « la thèse de survenance (supervenience) minimale ». Je soutiens que cette thèse peut se lire de deux façons que je nommerai lectures localiste et holiste. Les théories localistes cherchent à définir quelle est la base de survenance minimale des expériences particulières. Elles laissent de côté les questions sur la nature de la conscience des êtres et considèrent la base neurale de leur conscience comme une condition causale circonstancielle nécessaire à l’expérience d’une conscience particulière. Les holistes, d’autre part, donnent la priorité à la conscience des êtres et affirment que nous pouvons rendre compte des états de conscience particuliers seulement dans un contexte d’explication de la conscience des êtres. J’affirme que toute explication scientifique de la conscience doit rendre compte de ce que j’appellerai « une sensation minimale de soi »,
intrinsèque à tout état conscient. Les théories holistes sont les plus aptes à tenir compte de cet aspect. Enfin, j’affirme que l’explication sensori-motrice dynamique de la conscience peut se combiner avec une approche holiste de la base neurale de la conscience. Une telle combinaison d’approches compense l’opposition à la thèse de survenance minimale de certains défenseurs de l’explication sensori motrice dynamique distingués (ex. Alva Noë et Evan Thompson). Elle offre également un cadre de développement pour une explication neuroscientifique de la sensation minimale de soi.Dieser Artikel macht von der Möglichkeit Gebrauch, das Phänomen des Bewusstseins neurowissenschaftlich zu erklären, und geht der Frage nach, wie eine solche Erklärung wohl auszusehen hätte. Der Verfasser widmet sich konkret der These, dass jeder Erfahrung ein repräsentatives neurales System zugrunde liegt, das als Supervenienzgrundlage dieser Erfahrung dient. Diese Hypothese wird im weiteren Verlauf als minimale Supervenienz-These bezeichnet. Nach Meinung des Autors kann diese These auf zweierlei Weisen verstanden werden; dementsprechend ist von einer lokalistischen und einer holistischen Lesart die Rede. Lokalistische Theorien versuchen, die minimale Supervenienzgrundlage einer spezifischen Erfahrung zu ermitteln, während sie Fragen über die Natur des Bewusstseins von Lebewesen beiseite lassen und die Neuralbasis des Bewusstseins lediglich als kausal-notwendige Hintergrundvoraussetzung für eine partikuläre Bewusstseinserfahrung werten. Holisten hingegen räumen dem Bewusstsein von Lebewesen Vorrang ein und behaupten, dass partikuläre Bewusstseinszustände nur im Rahmen von Deutungen ebendieses Bewusstseins erklärt werden können. Nach Meinung des Autors muss jegliche wissenschaftliche Deutung des Bewusstseins jenem Faktor Rechnung tragen, den er als minimale Wahrnehmung des Selbst bezeichnet und das jedem Bewusstseinszustand intrinsisch ist. Holistische Theorien sind am besten geeignet, diesen Umstand zu verändern. Der Artikel schließt mit der These, dass die sog. Dynamisch-Sensomotorische (DSM) Deutung des Bewusstseins mit der holistischen Erklärung der Neuralbasis des Bewusstseins kombiniert werden kann. Eine solchermaßen kombinierte Sichtweise korrigiert den Widerspruch bezüglich der These von der minimalen Supervenienz, die bei einigen prominenten Befürwortern der DSM These (z.B. Alva Noë und Evan Thompson) zu finden ist. Sie ermöglicht ebenfalls einen Rahmen für die Entwicklung einer neurowissenschaftlichen Deutung der These von der minimalen Wahrnehmung des Selbst
- …