Epicurus\u27 Scientific Method

I argued that Epicurus sought to infer all truths about what cannot be perceived (what is non-apparent , adêlon) by using what is perceived (the phenomena ) as signs of what is non-apparent. This is an empirical method, based on the claim that sensory perception shows what is true. In the case of his basic physical doctrines, Epicurus argued by a reductio ad absurdum that if the negation of the doctrine were true, there would be a conflict with what we perceive. This applies to Epicurus\u27 first two doctrines, that nothing come to be from non-being and that nothing is destroyed into nonbeing , as much as to succeeding doctrines. Contrary to the usual view (which goes back to Aristotle), Epicurus did not take over these claims from Parmenides. Instead, he proved them by opposing Parmenides\u27 conceptualism with the empirical claim that the phenomena are true. I suggest that Epicurus derived this method from the early atomists

Myth and Philosophy in Cleanthes’ <i>Hymn to Zeus</i>

The poem's apparent dichotomy between a traditional and a philosophical view of Zeus is resolved by the Stoic idea that Zeus orders opposing forces and makes possible the ethical bettering of humans.</span

Que reste-t-il de l’éducation classique ?

L’Histoire de l'éducation dans l’Antiquité, qu'Henri-Irénée Marrou (1904-1977) publie en 1948 aux éditions du Seuil alors naissantes, est une œuvre de science et d'engagement. Œuvre de science écrite par un historien spécialiste de saint Augustin qui livre là sa première grande synthèse, couvrant plus de treize siècles d’histoire, depuis Homère jusqu'aux "préludes à la renaissance carolingienne". Œuvre lue et méditée, dans ses éditions successives, par nombre d’étudiants, d'enseignants, de femmes et d'hommes "de culture. Œuvre d'engagement aussi, car le livre ne peut être dissocié de son contexte d'élaboration et de maturation, pendant les années 1940-1945, lorsque Marrou, professeur à la Faculté des Lettres de Lyon, participe avec ses étudiants au mouvement de la Résistance. Le livre ici proposé a pour visée principale d'analyser ces deux dimensions de l'Histoire de l'éducation dans l’Antiquité et leurs interférences. Les traditions éducatives de l’Antiquité classique, grecque et romaine, reconstituées avec érudition par l'historien Marrou, tiennent aussi lieu, pour l’homme engagé, de plus sûr rempart contre toutes les formes de barbarie, dont le présent, dans l'Italie et l'Allemagne des années 1920 et 1930 (Marrou vécut à Rome et à Naples à ce moment) lui offrent deux illustrations extrêmes. Chacune des relectures s'efforce donc de préciser comment Marrou aborde les thèmes propres à l'historien des sociétés anciennes en fonction de l'urgence du très contemporain. Puis leurs auteurs analysent ce que les renouvellements de la recherche, depuis plus de cinquante ans, ont apporté, infléchi, rectifié parfois, à partir des ressources croisées de la philologie et de l’histoire dans ses différentes approches : histoire culturelle, histoire de l'éducation, histoire littéraire, anthropologie historique..

Ramucirumab with cisplatin and fluoropyrimidine as first-line therapy in patients with metastatic gastric or junctional adenocarcinoma (RAINFALL): a double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled, phase 3 trial

BACKGROUND: VEGF and VEGF receptor 2 (VEGFR-2)-mediated signalling and angiogenesis can contribute to the pathogenesis and progression of gastric cancer. We aimed to assess whether the addition of ramucirumab, a VEGFR-2 antagonist monoclonal antibody, to first-line chemotherapy improves outcomes in patients with metastatic gastric or gastro-oesophageal junction adenocarcinoma. METHODS: For this double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled, phase 3 trial done at 126 centres in 20 countries, we recruited patients aged 18 years or older with metastatic, HER2-negative gastric or gastro-oesophageal junction adenocarcinoma, an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status of 0 or 1, and adequate organ function. Eligible patients were randomly assigned (1:1) with an interactive web response system to receive cisplatin (80 mg/m2, on the first day) plus capecitabine (1000 mg/m2, twice daily for 14 days), every 21 days, and either ramucirumab (8 mg/kg) or placebo on days 1 and 8, every 21 days. 5-Fluorouracil (800 mg/m2 intravenous infusion on days 1-5) was permitted in patients unable to take capecitabine. The primary endpoint was investigator-assessed progression-free survival, analysed by intention to treat in the first 508 patients. We did a sensitivity analysis of the primary endpoint, including a central review of CT scans. Overall survival was a key secondary endpoint. This study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02314117. FINDINGS: Between Jan 28, 2015, and Sept 16, 2016, 645 patients were randomly assigned to receive ramucirumab plus fluoropyrimidine and cisplatin (n=326) or placebo plus fluoropyrimidine and cisplatin (n=319). Investigator-assessed progression-free survival was significantly longer in the ramucirumab group than the placebo group (hazard ratio [HR] 0·753, 95% CI 0·607-0·935, p=0·0106; median progression-free survival 5·7 months [5·5-6·5] vs 5·4 months [4·5-5·7]). A sensitivity analysis based on central independent review of the radiological images did not corroborate the investigator-assessed difference in progression-free survival (HR 0·961, 95% CI 0·768-1·203, p=0·74). There was no difference in overall survival between groups (0·962, 0·801-1·156, p=0·6757; median overall survival 11·2 months [9·9-11·9] in the ramucirumab group vs 10·7 months [9·5-11·9] in the placebo group). The most common grade 3-4 adverse events were neutropenia (85 [26%] of 323 patients in the ramucirumab group vs 85 [27%] of 315 in the placebo group), anaemia (39 [12%] vs 44 [14%]), and hypertension (32 [10%] vs 5 [2%]). The incidence of any-grade serious adverse events was 160 (50%) of 323 patients in the ramucirumab group and 149 (47%) of 315 patients in the placebo group. The most common serious adverse events were vomiting (14 [4%] in the ramucirumab group vs 21 [7%] in the placebo group) and diarrhoea (11 [3%] vs 19 [6%]). There were seven deaths in each group, either during study treatment or within 30 days of discontinuing study treatment, which were the result of treatment-related adverse events. In the ramucirumab group, these adverse events were acute kidney injury, cardiac arrest, gastric haemorrhage, peritonitis, pneumothorax, septic shock, and sudden death (n=1 of each). In the placebo group, these adverse events were cerebrovascular accident (n=1), multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (n=2), pulmonary embolism (n=2), sepsis (n=1), and small intestine perforation (n=1). INTERPRETATION: Although the primary analysis for progression-free survival was statistically significant, this outcome was not confirmed in a sensitivity analysis of progression-free survival by central independent review, and did not improve overall survival. Therefore, the addition of ramucirumab to cisplatin plus fluoropyrimidine chemotherapy is not recommended as first-line treatment for this patient population. FUNDING: Eli Lilly and Company.status: publishe