On Whitehead and Deleuze: The Process of Materiality

In his long career, Whitehead was, variously, a mathematician, speculative physicist, historian of science, philosopher of science, and philosopher in his own right. As such, he occupies a perhaps unique place within recent western thought. Not only did he advance scientific thought, he also developed a novel, systematic philosophical understanding of science based on a deep historical appreciation of both its theoretical premises and its practical procedures. Whitehead did not dismiss science, he did not see it as divorced from philosophy, nor did he accept the premises which, he maintained, still inform much of modern science. One of Whitehead’s great achievements, which will be taken up later in this paper, is his insistence that science, philosophy, the humanities, and social theory all require a renewed conception of nature (in the broadest sense of the word), one which goes beyond strict scientific limitations, beyond any form of biological essentialism or reliance upon some notion of the ultimate laws of physics or nature. Through his philosophy of organism, Whitehead aims to develop a concept of nature that is able to incorporate all existence, thereby bringing together the empirical, the material, the social, the aesthetic, and thinking beings

Language, Subjectivity and Individuality

It is clear that within Deleuze and Whitehead’s work, there is an important re- description of the time, place and status of all subjectivity, a subjectivity which is not limited to the ‘human’. Both writers provide compelling reasons as to why, and how, contemporary analyses should avoid positing the human person as either an object or a subject. Rather, ‘human’ individuality is to be envisaged as an aspect within the wider, processual effectivity whereby the virtual becomes actual (Deleuze), or the solidarity of the extensive continuum becomes actualized into individuality (Whitehead). It may appear that I am eliding or confusing the distinction between subjectivity and individuality here. However, one of the arguments that I wish to set out in this chapter is that the validity and complexity of such a distinction can be helpfully re-thought through a sustained engagement with the work of Whitehead and Deleuze

Do those diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease lose their souls? Whitehead and Stengers on persons, propositions and the soul

In this article, I use the work of Alfred North Whitehead and Isabelle Stengers to challenge the biomedical and commonsense view that those diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease suffer an irreparable and inevitable loss of self and that this loss is inextricably tied to a decline in linguistic capability which itself bears immediate witness to a deterioration in the brain. Through an analysis of Whitehead's (1933, 1938) provocative conceptualization of the soul, and Stengers' (2005) reading of this, I suggest that it is possible to dislocate language from its supposed position as that which produces and fully expresses human experience. This involves a challenge to the ‘linguistic turn’ as to be found in much contemporary social theory, philosophy and social psychology. The discussion of Whitehead's (and Stengers') ideas regarding the soul involves a reading of Whitehead's notions of ‘propositions’, ‘contrasts’ and the ‘social environment’. Through these analyses, I seek to relocate the problem of language and identity and its relation to Alzheimer's disease. I go beyond any reduction of the problem either to its social component, where the self is seen as a resolutely human ‘person’, or to its natural element, where Alzheimer's disease is seen solely as a problem located within the brain. Instead, I try to think the natural and social together. My aim is not to explain away the problem but to suggest a more productive way of thinking about those diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, and ourselves

Citizenship as Accumulated Racial Capital

Despite persistent racial and economic inequality, many believe the United States is becoming a post-racial and classless society where race and class analysis are anachronisms. This Essay will contest that claim by way of a critical reading of citizenship as reflected in American law and culture and demonstrate the continuing relevance of race theory and Marxian analysis, notwithstanding their somewhat uneasy relationship. It examines how law and culture construct and reflect, on the one hand, xenophobic and racist popular images of aliens—particularly refugees and undocumented aliens—and, on the other hand, enable and assure the accumulation of racial capital and value in the notion of deserving, legitimate, and racialized (white) citizenship

Total knee replacements: design and pre-clinical testing methods

Total knee replacement (TKR) is a common and successful treatment for severe osteoarthritis of the knee. However, a large minority of people remain dissatisfied after the operation, despite adequate pain relief. Over 50 designs of TKR are used in the UK each year, but differentiating between these devices in terms of patient function and making the right choice for each patient remains challenging. The aim of this research was to characterise designs of TKR in the laboratory, using pre-clinical testing methods, in order to better understand TKR function, and make suggestions for improved implant design and testing. Conventional, medial-pivot, guided-motion and bicruciate retaining (BCR) TKRs were tested. Standard ASTM test methods used for CE-marking purposes were demonstrated to differentiate between devices, but did not produce enough information to adequately understand how a new device will behave clinically, or what the potential benefits of a new device would be to patients. Guided-motion devices are meant to replicate normal knee motion, but there has been concern that they might cause too much rotation of the knee, leading to anterolateral knee pain. Results from cadaveric testing suggest that they do not adequately mimic normal knee motion and small design changes may have little impact on performance. A BCR TKR, designed to improve stability in the replaced knee joint, was also tested. Knee kinematics were measured for three design phases and surgical feasibility was also assessed for this more complicated procedure. BCR TKR was shown to lead to more normal levels of anteroposterior tibiofemoral laxity, compared to a conventional, anterior-cruciate-ligament-sacrificing TKR. Inherent variability between people’s anatomy and osteoarthritis pathology suggests there will never be a single, perfect, TKR, but more comprehensive pre-clinical testing could improve the regulatory approval process and inform better device selection, leading to improved patient outcomes.Open Acces

‘A matter of opinion’: British attempts to assess the attrition of German manpower, 1915–1917

Revisionist historians of the Western Front have demonstrated that Britain had no alternative but to wage a war of attrition to defeat Germany. However, the effort to assess this process has been neglected in the historiography. This article explores British attempts to gauge the success of their strategy of wearing down German manpower. Efforts in London proved unable to supply a convincing answer. Using General Headquarters’ dubious estimates from the front, Field Marshal Sir Douglas Haig argued that his strategy was working. Prime Minister David Lloyd George’s inability to confound these estimates shaped his decision to permit the Passchendaele offensive