Thomas Aquinas’s Understanding of Faith & Reason: Jacques Maritain and Norman Geisler in Dialogue

This article examines the thoughts and works of Catholic philosopher Jacques Maritain and evangelical philosopher Norman Geisler in light of their understanding of Thomas Aquinas’s view of faith and reason

Neurolinguistic aspects of attrition

International audienceThe aim of this paper is to provide the reader with a general overview of the field of attrition. Having situated this relatively new research domain with respect to related fields and approaches, a brief summary of the most important research questions and preliminary findings is given. The discussion then focuses on two issues that are of particular interest with respect to neurolinguistics: the role of the subject's age and of the influence of L2. Concerning the former, a summary of research on the critical period hypothesis is given and discussed in the light of findings from attrition research. Another issue concerns the principal mechanisms involved in L1 attrition, i.e. whether attrition occurs because of lack of L1 use or because of its replacement by the competing L2 structures. Research issues of such scope need integrative approaches and greatly benefit from comparisons with related fields such as normal aging, acquisition and aphasia

First Language Attrition as a Function of Age at Onset of Bilingualism: First Language Attainment of Turkish–English Bilinguals in the United Kingdom

This investigation aimed to provide insights into the controversial debate on the role that age at onset of bilingualism plays in human language capacity with a focus on what it entails for first language (L1) attrition. L1 performance of Turkish immigrants (n = 57) in the United Kingdom with age at onset ranging between 7 and 34 years was compared to that of Turkish monolingual controls (n = 29) across two linguistic properties: structural complexity and accent. Findings generally showed that although the immigrants achieved nativelike proficiency with respect to the overall structural complexity of their L1, this was not the case for accent as those with an earlier age of onset were less likely to sound like native Turkish speakers. We discuss these findings in relation to two competing theoretical models of age effects and suggest that attrition data need to be better accommodated within these models. Open Practices: This article has been awarded an Open Materials badge. All materials are publicly accessible via the IRIS Repository at https://www.iris-database.org. Learn more about the Open Practices badges from the Center for Open Science: https://osf.io/tvyxz/wiki

Effects of interpersonal violence-related post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) on mother and child diurnal cortisol rhythm and cortisol reactivity to a laboratory stressor involving separation

Women who have experienced interpersonal violence (IPV) are at a higher risk to develop posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), with dysregulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and impaired social behavior. Previously, we had reported impaired maternal sensitivity and increased difficulty in identifying emotions (i.e. alexithymia) among IPV-PTSD mothers. One of the aims of the present study was to examine maternal IPV-PTSD salivary cortisol levels diurnally and reactive to their child’s distress in relation to maternal alexithymia. Given that mother-child interaction during infancy and early childhood has important long-term consequences on the stress response system, toddlers’ cortisol levels were assessed during the day and in response to a laboratory stressor. Mothers collected their own and their 12-48 month-old toddlers’ salivary samples at home three times: 30 min after waking up, between 2-3 pm and at bedtime. Moreover, mother-child dyads articipated in a 120-min laboratory session, consisting of 3 phases: baseline, stress situation (involving mother-child separation and exposure to novelty) and a 60-min regulation phase. Compared to non-PTSD controls, IPV-PTSD mothers -but not their toddlers-, had lower morning cortisol and higher bedtime cortisol levels. As expected, IPV-PTSD mothers and their children showed blunted cortisol reactivity to the laboratory stressor. Maternal cortisol levels were negatively correlated to difficulty in identifying emotions. Our data highlights PTSDIPV-related alterations in the HPA system and its relevance to maternal behavior. Toddlers of IPV-PTSD mothers also showed an altered pattern of cortisol reactivity to stress that potentially may predispose them to later psychological disorders

JOHN PHILOPONUS CONTRA ARISTOTLE : The Emergence of Consciousness in Light of Contemporary Cosmology and Philosophy

The objective of this paper is to examine the thought of John Philoponus contra Aristotle, as it pertains to consciousness and its emergence, in light of both contemporary cosmology and philosophy. It will be argued that in an eternal universe the emergence of consciousness is an impossibility. The inspiration for this line of reasoning is found in Philoponus’ sixth century arguments against Aristotle on the eternity of the world. It will be shown that much of Philoponus’ argumentation is corroborated by contemporary cosmology and philosophy.L’objectif de cet article est d’examiner la pensée de Jean Philopon à l’encontre d’Aristote en ce qui concerne la conscience et son émergence à la lumière de la cosmologie et de la philosophie contemporaines. On soutiendra que dans un univers éternel, l’émergence de la conscience est une impossibilité. Ce raisonnement s’inspire des arguments avancés par Philopon au vie siècle contre Aristote sur l’éternité du monde. Il sera démontré qu’une grande partie de l’argumentation de Philopon est corroborée par la cosmologie et la philosophie contemporaines

On the Origin of Consciousness: An Exploration through the lens of the Christian Conception of God and Creation

Have you ever thought about how self-consciousness (self-awareness) originated in the universe? Understanding consciousness is one of the toughest "nuts to crack." In recent years, scientists and philosophers have attempted to provide an answer to this mystery. The reason for this is simply because it cannot be confined to solely a materialistic interpretation of the world. Some scientific materialists have suggested that consciousness is merely an illusion in order to insulate their worldviews. Yet, consciousness is the most fundamental thing we know, even more so than the external world since we require it to perceive or think about anything. Without it, reasoning would be impossible. Dr. Scott Ventureyra, in this ground-breaking book, explores the idea of the Christian God and Creation in order to tackle this most difficult question. He demonstrates that theology has something significant to offer in reflection of how consciousness originated in the universe. He also makes a modest claim that the Christian conception of God and Creation provide a plausible account for the origin of self-consciousness. He integrates philosophy, theology, and science in an innovative way to embark on this exploration

Making Sense of Nonsense: Navigating Through the West's Current Quagmire

In recent years, there has been a concerted attack on many of the precepts of Western civilization relating to the concept of God, truth, Christianity, morality, sex, the family, and even modern science, especially biology. The concern of this volume is to explore these and other attacks through the tools of philosophy, theology, science, and intuition. It seeks to bring clarity to the ongoing struggle of Western civilization to preserve its values and traditions. The West is crumbling at an accelerated rate. The unfolding erasure of history, objective morality, and truth has paved the way for our current predicament. We are now standing at the precipice of the future of human civilization. The attacks on the human person are unrelenting, malicious, multifaceted, and wide-ranging in their scope and breadth, from the time prior to birth until the moment of death. If you are granted the “right” to live, then you must be prepared for unending assaults on your, mind, body, and soul. Nevertheless, the spirit of man and the greatness of God are infinitely greater than any of these assaults. It is by making sense of nonsense that humanity will be able to navigate out of the West’s current quagmire