Chomskyan Arguments Against Truth-Conditional Semantics Based on Variability and Co-predication

In this paper I try to show that semantics can explain word-to-world relations and that sentences can have meanings that determine truth-conditions. Critics like Chomsky typically maintain that only speakers denote, i.e., only speakers, by using words in one way or another, represent entities or events in the world. However, according to their view, individual acts of denotations are not explained just by virtue of speakers’ semantic knowledge. Against this view, I will hold that, in the typical cases considered, semantic knowledge can account for the denotational uses of words of individual speakers

The role of substrate hydrogeology and surface hydrology in the construction of phreatomagmatic volcanoes on an active monogenetic field (Auckland, New Zealand) : a thesis presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Earth Science at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand

Material removed for copyright reasons (appendices B, D and E): Agustín-Flores, J., Németh K., Cronin, S., Lindsay, J., Kereszturi, G., Brand, B., & Smith, I.E.M. (2014). Phreatomagmatic eruptions through unconsolidated coastal plain sequences, Maungataketake, Auckland Volcanic Field (New Zealand). Journalof Volcanology and Geothermal Research, 180, 203-224. doi.org/10.1016/j.jvolgeores.2014.02.021 Agustín-Flores, J., Németh, K., Cronin, S., Lindsay, J., & Kereszturi, G. (2015). Shallow-seated explosions in the construction of the Motukorea tuff ring (Auckland, New Zealand): Evidence from lithic and sedimentary characteristics. Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research, 304, 272-286. doi.org/10.1016/j.jvolgeores.2015.09.013 Agustín-Flores, J., Németh, K., Cronin, S., Lindsay, J., & Kereszturi, G., 2015. Construction of the North Head (Maungauika) tuff cone: a product of Surtseyan volcanism, rare in the Auckland Volcanic Field, New Zealand. Bulletin of Volcanology, 77, 11. doi:10.1007/s00445-014-0892-9Phreatomagmatic activity is pervasive in the Auckland Volcanic Field (AVF) with more than two thirds of the erupted volcanoes showing this type of activity at different degrees, dominantly at the onset of their eruptive histories. In general, the volcanoes built in the northern AVF rest on Late Miocene Waitemata Group rocks (turbiditic siltstone and sandstone succession), whereas in the southern AVF the Waitemata rocks are overlain by tens of metres of Plio-Pleistocene, water-saturated sediments (Tauranga Group and Kaawa Formation). Identifying the control exerted by the type of substrate in the eruption dynamics of the phreatomagmatic phases of three volcanoes in the AVF is the objective of this study. The stratigraphic, sedimentary, and pyroclast characteristics of the phreatomagmatic sequences of Maungataketake, Motukorea, and North Head volcanoes, together with supplementary information on the geology and hydrogeology of the area, were investigated to solve the problem. Three phreatomagmatic eruptive scenarios were outlined. Scenario 1 (Maungataketake eruption) and Scenario 2 (Motukorea eruption) depict the formation of maar-diatreme volcanoes in the southern and northern AVF, respectively. The dominant presence of lithics from the upper part of the substrate in their tephra rings suggests the construction of their tephra rings from shallow-seated explosions. Due to the water-saturated sediments filling the diatreme in Scenario 1, the eruption appears to have remained relatively wet throughout. Conversely, the drier Waitemata rocks involved in Scenario 2 promoted a progressive drying of the eruption. Scenario 3 (North Head eruption) represents a Surtseyan eruption scenario in which the rising magma erupted to the shallow sea floor (a few metres-water depth), promoting rapid chilling and explosive fragmentation. This study shows that the characterization of lithics within the tephra ring and the geological and hydrogeological information provide valuable clues to envisage the degree of influence of the substrate in the phreatomagmatic eruption dynamics. Other studies in the AVF appear to confirm this view. It is proposed that any future phreatomagmatic eruption in the AVF will be strongly influenced by the substrate hydrogeology and geology, as well as the surface hydrological conditions

A Framework for Complexity Classes in Membrane Computing

The purpose of the present work is to give a general idea about the existing results and open problems concerning the study of complexity classes within the membrane computing framework. To this aim, membrane systems (seen as computing devices) are briefly introduced, providing the basic definition and summarizing the key ideas, trying to cover the various approaches that are under investigation in this area – of course, special attention is paid to the study of complexity classes. The paper concludes with some final remarks that hint the reasons why this field (as well as other unconventional models of computation) is attracting the attention of a growing community.Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia TIN2005-09345-C04-01Junta de Andalucía TIC-58

Chilean Monetary History, 1860-1925. An Overview

Editada en la Fundación Empresa PúblicaLa política monetaria ha sido uno de los tópicos menos comprendidos y más debatidos de la historia económica chilena. La aceptación incondicional de la convertibilidad ha alienado alos historiadores económicos de un debate más amplop respecto de los costes y beneficios de los regímenes cambiarios. Este ensayo estudia el proceso de creación de dinero en Chile y su relación con las regularizaciones al funcionamiento de los bancos. Dadas las características de la economía chlena, se concluye que la adopción del patrón oro no era posible y que los experimentos chilenos con la doctrina de los real bills permitió alcanzar cierta estabilidad financiera.Monetary policy has been one of the least understood and mucho debated topics in Chilean economic history. An ideological commitment to convertibility has alineated economic historian from the larger subjetc of costs and benefits of the exchange regime. This paper studies the process of money creation in Chile and its relationship with banking regulation. Given the characteristics of the Chilean economy, the author concludes that adherence to the gold standard was not possible and that Chilean naive experiments with the real bills doctrine provided the economy witj financial stability.Publicad

Phenomenal Contrast Arguments: What they Achieve

Phenomenal contrast arguments (PCAs) are normally employed as arguments showing that a certain mental feature contributes to (the phenomenal character of) experience, that certain contents are represented in experience and that kinds of sui generis phenomenologies such as cognitive phenomenology exist. In this paper we examine a neglected aspect of such arguments, i.e., the kind of mental episodes involved in them, and argue that this happens to be a crucial feature of the arguments. We use linguistic tools to determine the lexical aspect of verbs and verb phrases – the tests for a/telicity and for duration. We then suggest that all PCAs can show is the presence of a generic achievement-like phenomenology, especially in the cognitive domain, which contrasts with the role that PCAs are given in the literature