Towards a Formal Ontology of Information Selected Ideas of Krzysztof Turek

There are many ontologies of the world or of specific phenomena such as time, matter, space, and quantum mechanics1. However, ontologies of information are rather rare. One of the reasons behind this is that information is most frequently associated with communication and computing, and not with ‘the furniture of the world’. But what would be the nature of an ontology of information? For it to be of significant import it should be amenable to formalization in a logico-grammatical formalism. A candidate ontology satisfying such a requirement can be found in some of the ideas of K. Turek, presented in this paper. Turek outlines the ontology of information conceived of as a part of nature, and provides the ‘missing link’ to the Z axiomatic set theory, offering a proposal for developing a formal ontology of information both in its philosophical and logico-grammatical representation

Minimal Information Structural Realism

This paper presents Minimal Information Structural Realism (MISR). MISR claims that information (signified by I) is an ontologically and epistemologically objective physical entity1 (signified by R) and is perceived as, but not identical to, organization, form, or structure of nature (signified by S). There is a relatively significant body of literature claiming that the essential, if not fundamental, element of nature is information. Authors differ on the precise description of information conceived this way. However, they do agree that it would be a forming element in nature, a factor responsible for patterns observed in reality, apprehended through order, organization or structures. To express the fundamental ontological role of information in nature, a new kind of structural realism, or rather information structural realism (ISR), is needed. This paper is proposing exactly this in the form of minimal information structural realism (MISR). The basic claim of MISR is that information is a foundation of reality and it is perceived or apprehended through patterns or structures. This claim embodies basic intuitions regarding the role of information in nature. MISR is not associated with the structural realism SR of the ontic or epistemic kinds, and is only remotely related to the concept of information structural realism (ISR) defined by Floridi

Ethics in autonomous robots as philosophy in silico: The study case of phronetic machine ethics

The paper explores the application of computing science to the modeling of the ethical concepts. The modeling in computers is denoted as in silico modeling. The in silico method has found applications in biology, chemistry, cosmology, sociology among others. The applications of in silico modeling to philosophical problems (like ethics) are rather infrequent. Yet, the approach discussed in the paper holds the promise of not only facilitating the development of ethical robotics but it also may provide the insights into the philosophical problems themselves (by explicating their implicit structures). The paper provides also a brief overview of the concept of modeling in silico in historical and current contextsW artykule przestawiono zastosowanie narzędzi informatycznych do modelowania koncepcji etycznych. Komputerowe modelowanie nazywane jest modelowaniem in silico. Metody tego typu mają zastosowania m.in. w biologii, chemii, kosmologii, socjologii. Rzadko jednak stosuje się to podejście do modelowania problemów filozoficznych (jak etyka). Obecnie wydaje się ono obiecujące nie tylko dla uproszczenia rozwoju etycznych robotów, ale i dla głębszego wglądu w istotę filozoficznych problemów uwikłanych w kwestie związane z etyką maszyn (poprzez ukazanie ich wewnętrznej struktury). Artykuł ukazuje również zwięzły przegląd koncepcji modelowania w kontekście historycznym, jak i we współczesnym

To be or not to be Yuval Noah Harari's Homo Deus

Book review: Homo Deus. A Brief History of Tomorrow. Yuval Noah Harari. Vintage, UK. 2017. p. 512

The Daniel Dennett’s New Mind: Darwin, Turing but no Bach

Book review: Daniel C. Dennett, From Bacteria to Bach and Back. The evolution of mind, Penguin Random House, UK 2017, pp. 467

Recenzja „Seven brief lessons in physics”

Zajmował się informatyką i telekomunikacją przez 30 lat. Obecnie koncentruje się na filozofii informatyki i w ramach pracy doktorskiej z filozofii na zagadnieniu istoty informacji. Doktorat uzyskał na Uniwersytecie w Londynie na podstawie dysertacji o przestrzennych algorytmach genetycznych. Opublikował kilka książek na temat sztucznej inteligencji, telekomunikacji i filozofii Tao

The Internet as an Epistemic Agent (EA)

We argue that the Internet is, and is acting as, an EA because it shapes our belief systems, our worldviews. We explain key concepts for this discussion and provide illustrative examples to support our claims. Furthermore, we explain why recognising the Internet as an EA is important for Internet users and society in general. We discuss several ways in which the Internet influences the choices, beliefs, and attitudes of its users, and we compare this effect with those of psychological conditioning and brainwashing techniques. Finally, we present examples where the Internet’s epistemic agency acts at scale, affecting large portions of society rather than individuals

Stanisław Lem’s Visions of a Technological Future: Toward Philosophy in Technology

Stanisław Lem is mostly known as a sci-fi writer and not widely perceived as a visionary of the cyber age, despite the fact that he foresaw the future of information technology better than most scientific experts. Indeed, his visions of future information-based societies have proved to be remarkably accurate. Lem’s stories fuse together elements of fantasy, philosophy, and science, but what we can really learn from them is the nature of humanity, technology, and philosophy, as well as the values of technological prophecies. Moreover, Lem gave birth to, without naming it as such, the concept of philosophy in technology, which is a perspective on technology and philosophy that explores the deep implicit philosophical foundations of technology and humanity

Editorial note

This special edition of Philosophical Problems in Science (Zagadnienia Filozoficzne w Nauce or ZFN) focuses on concepts of information and computing. On reading this issue, you may be surprised by the absence of traditional perspectives and themes that one would usually expect from such collections, but this apparent oversight is deliberate. The eight papers collected in this special edition of ZFN bring together perspectives that aim to inspire readers rather than confirm concepts that have already been researched. The main motivation behind this collection is a desire to explore the philosophical dimensions of computing and information sciences. Thus, for anyone looking for new ideas related to the philosophy of computing and information and wondering what is on the horizon, this special edition of ZFN may be the place to start