Psychological Eudaimonism and Interpretation in Greek Ethics

Plato extends a bold, confident, and surprising empirical challenge. It is implicitly a claim about the psychological — more specifically motivational — economies of human beings, asserting that within each such economy there is a desire to live well. Call this claim ‘psychological eudaimonism’ (‘PE’). Further, the context makes clear that Plato thinks that this desire dominates in those who have it. In other words, the desire to live well can reliably be counted on (when accompanied with correct beliefs about the role of morality or virtue in living well) to move people be virtuous. As we will argue, this general claim appears in not only Plato but Aristotle and the Stoics as well. But it is one we might wonder about, in three ways. First, we might wonder about its warrant. After all, the claim is universal in scope; yet it is about a highly contingent fact about the motivational propensities of individual human organisms, and there is abundant variability in the individual forms human nature takes. What grounds could the ancients have for their confidence that there are no outliers (assuming, as we do, that they do not merely misspeak in framing general claims as universal ones)? Second, we might wonder about its truth. For were it true, it would entail something remarkable about the nature of rationality that we (post-)moderns would be wise to heed. And third, we might wonder about its relationship with normative eudaimonism. By ‘normative eudaimonism’ (‘NE’) we mean the claim that we have conclusive reason to act in ways that conduce to our own eudaimonia. As we will show, the key to these three questions is the first. If we consider what justification the ancients have for their claim, we can see why that claim must be true. Moreover, as we will also show, it must be true because of the nature of practical rationality as the ancients understood it — that is, in terms of normative eudaimonism. We will show this by marshalling unexpected resources: Donald Davidson’s work in understanding how we interpret others and in so doing make sense of them as rational beings. If we couple Davidson’s account of interpretation with the eudaimonist structure of practical rationality essential to these ancient ethical theories, psychological eudaimonism is a consequence. The paper proceeds as follows. In Section I, we lay out the textual basis for ascribing PE to Plato, Aristotle, and the Stoics. In Section II, we introduce Davidson’s account of interpretation. This allows us to appropriate that account in Section III to the particular purposes of normative eudaimonism, to support the claim that we must ascribe the desire to live well to those whom we would see as rational. Finally, in Section IV we consider challenges to this strategy

McTaggart on time

Contemporary discussions on the nature of time begin with McTaggart, who introduces the distinction between what he takes to be the only two possible realist theories of time: the A-theory, maintaining that past, present, and future are absolute; and the B-theory, maintaining that they are relative. McTaggart argues against both theories to conclude that time is not real. In this paper, I reconstruct his argument against the A-theory. Then, I show that this argument is flawed. Finally, I draw a lesson for those engaged in contemporary discussions on the nature of time

Political Myths in Plato and Asimov

Works of science fiction tend to describe hypothetical futures, or counterfactual pasts or presents, to entertain their readers. Philosophical thought experiments tend to describe counterfactual situations to test their readers’ philosophical intuitions. Indeed, works of science fiction can sometimes be read as containing thought experiments. I compare one especially famous thought experiment from Plato’s Republic with what I read as two thought experiments from Isaac Asimov’s Foundation Trilogy. All three thought experiments concern myths used in political contexts, and comparing them permits me to analyze the morality of political mythologizing

Nitrene Transfer Catalyzed by a Non-Heme Iron Enzyme and Enhanced by Non-Native Small-Molecule Cofactors

Transition-metal catalysis is a powerful tool for the construction of chemical bonds. Here we show that a non-heme iron enzyme can catalyze olefin aziridination and nitrene C–H insertion, and that these activities can be improved by directed evolution. The non-heme iron center allows for facile modification of the primary coordination sphere by addition of metal-coordinating molecules, enabling control over enzyme activity and selectivity using small molecules

Nitrene Transfer Catalyzed by a Non-Heme Iron Enzyme and Enhanced by Non-Native Small-Molecule Cofactors

Transition-metal catalysis is a powerful tool for the construction of chemical bonds. Here we show that a non-heme iron enzyme can catalyze olefin aziridination and nitrene C–H insertion, and that these activities can be improved by directed evolution. The non-heme iron center allows for facile modification of the primary coordination sphere by addition of metal-coordinating molecules, enabling control over enzyme activity and selectivity using small molecules

Nitrene Transfer Catalyzed by a Non-Heme Iron Enzyme and Enhanced by Non-Native Small-Molecule Ligands

Transition-metal catalysis is a powerful tool for the construction of chemical bonds. Here we show that Pseudomonas savastanoi ethylene-forming enzyme, a non-heme iron enzyme, can catalyze olefin aziridination and nitrene C–H insertion, and that these activities can be improved by directed evolution. The non-heme iron center allows for facile modification of the primary coordination sphere by addition of metal-coordinating molecules, enabling control over enzyme activity and selectivity using small molecules

NMR Chemical Shifts of Trace Impurities: Common Laboratory Solvents, Organics, and Gases in Deuterated Solvents Relevant to the Organometallic Chemist

Tables of ^1H and ^(13)C NMR chemical shifts have been compiled for common organic compounds often used as reagents or found as products or contaminants in deuterated organic solvents. Building upon the work of Gottlieb, Kotlyar, and Nudelman in the Journal of Organic Chemistry, signals for common impurities are now reported in additional NMR solvents (tetrahydrofuran-d_8, toluene-d_8, dichloromethane-d_2, chlorobenzene-d_5, and 2,2,2-trifluoroethanol-d_3) which are frequently used in organometallic laboratories. Chemical shifts for other organics which are often used as reagents or internal standards or are found as products in organometallic chemistry are also reported for all the listed solvents

Herpes Zoster and Cardiovascular Events in Adults: A Systematic Review

Background: Stroke and myocardial infarction have been reported to occur after the development of herpes zoster (shingles), a common and preventable disease. Purpose: To evaluate literature describing the association between herpes zoster and its subtypes with the occurrence of cardiovascular events. Data Sources: PubMed, SCOPUS (Embase), OAIster, Google Scholar (searched in January 2016) Study Selection: Studies published up to January 2016 examining the association between herpes zoster or subtype of herpes zoster with the occurrence of cardiovascular events, including stroke, transient ischemic attack, or an acute coronary event, were selected. Case reports, case studies, and studies of non-general adult populations were excluded. Data Extraction: Data from studies meeting criteria were abstracted on a standardized form, and evaluated following modified set of standard guidelines. Data Synthesis: Nine published articles, with study populations ranging from 2,632 to 4,620,980 patients, met our pre-defined eligibility criteria. Eight studies found at least one positive association between herpes zoster type unspecified and subsequent stroke, transient ischemic attack, or an acute coronary event. Five studies found positive associations between herpes zoster ophthalmicus and stroke or myocardial infarction. Subgroup analyses from three studies were inconsistent regarding the association of cardiovascular events with receipt of antiviral therapy for herpes zoster. Limitations: Excludes non-English publications and non-published evidence. Conclusions: A small number of studies showed greater risks of stroke, transient ischemic attack, and acute cardiac events following the development of herpes zoster and herpes zoster ophthalmicus. Further prospective studies should develop strategies to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease among patients with herpes zoster