Episodic memory, the cotemporality problem, and common sense

Direct realists about episodic memory claim that a rememberer has direct contact with a past event. But how is it possible to be acquainted with an event that ceased to exist? That’s the so-called cotemporality problem. The standard solution, proposed by Sven Bernecker, is to distinguish between the occurrence of an event and the existence of an event: an event ceases to occur without ceasing to exist. That’s the eternalist solution for the cotemporality problem. Nevertheless, some philosophers of memory claim that the adoption of an eternalist metaphysics of time would be too high a metaphysical price to be paid to hold direct realist intuitions about memory. Although I agree with these critics, I will try to show two things. First, that this kind of “common sense argument” is far from decisive. Second, that Bernecker’s proposal remains the best solution to the cotemporality problem

Deductive Verification of Parallel Programs Using Why3

The Message Passing Interface specification (MPI) defines a portable message-passing API used to program parallel computers. MPI programs manifest a number of challenges on what concerns correctness: sent and expected values in communications may not match, resulting in incorrect computations possibly leading to crashes; and programs may deadlock resulting in wasted resources. Existing tools are not completely satisfactory: model-checking does not scale with the number of processes; testing techniques wastes resources and are highly dependent on the quality of the test set. As an alternative, we present a prototype for a type-based approach to programming and verifying MPI like programs against protocols. Protocols are written in a dependent type language designed so as to capture the most common primitives in MPI, incorporating, in addition, a form of primitive recursion and collective choice. Protocols are then translated into Why3, a deductive software verification tool. Source code, in turn, is written in WhyML, the language of the Why3 platform, and checked against the protocol. Programs that pass verification are guaranteed to be communication safe and free from deadlocks. We verified several parallel programs from textbooks using our approach, and report on the outcome.Comment: In Proceedings ICE 2015, arXiv:1508.0459

The geophagic nature of financial dominance in the Brazilian real estate market

Since the 1980s, following the re-concentration of economic activity in metropolitan regions, the urban real estate market in Brazil has been emerging as a sector that is capable of profitably absorbing the surplus produced in an economy that is facing a crisis. Initially, it is organized around the demand that is concentrated, in terms of space and sector, in the new business centralities. After the sector established a more dependent bond with the capital market, a relationship represented by a wave of Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) by major real estate companies, the effects of the North American mortgage crisis were not trivial. An important movement of capital flight took place in the Brazilian stock market from thenceforth. The largest public housing program in the history of the country, the Minha Casa Minha Vida (MCMV, ‘My Home My Life’) program, was launched during that period, less than a year after the 2008 crisis. The targeted production of real estate that followed had new characteristics in terms of geographic behavior and its relationship with land. This paper aims to shed light on some critical events that led to this scenario and discuss some aspects of this change that are essential for the real estate business to maintain its position as one of the most profitable and promising investments in Brazil. The geographical behavior of real estate investment, considering its tendency to expand and intensify, plays a decisive role in this context

PROVIDING OPTIMUM WOUND HEALING CONDITIONS DURING THE PROLIFERATIVE STAGE USING KERRAFIBRE

Abstract : In order to analyze the role of a new structured fibrous dressing in the proliferative stage of chronic wound healing in hard to heal wounds, a case study was performed on a stagnant venous ulcer, which remained non-healed in the past 7 months. All chronicity factors that could affect wound healing were excluded, including biofilm (with the use of polihexanide+betaine, Prontosan range), and compression therapy was provided. The results were very interesting with healing achieved in 7 weeks of treatment. Most of times it is not easy to find/select a dressing to promote granulation and epithelisation, once ideal cleaning/debridement and bioburden control are achieved. Some dressings do not provide a good healing rate, lead to bioburden elevation during time and recurrence in the use of antimicrobials. Other options to promote proliferation are very expensive and need a secondary dressing. Treatment with kerrafibre showned to be very cost effective. Its is also implicit the important role of advanced wound care centers versus conventional care.This case study was originally presented as a poster at Wounds UK 2014 Conference, at Harrogate, England, United Kingdom

Sobre algumas condições para a dúvida na Primeira Meditação de Descartes

Descartes propõe, como atitude àquele que pretende fazer ciência, colocar tudo em dúvida. Como veremos, tal proposta restringe-se ao plano ou domínio da investigação da verdade, o qual é distinto do plano ou domínio da conduta da vida. Tal restrição é fundamental para a própria possibilidade da dúvida metódica, e torna o método da dúvida um análogo das posições críticas usuais dos cientistas em relação aos discursos não justificados. Além de ser possibilitado pela restrição ao domínio da investigação científica, e ser um tipo de postura crítica, o método da dúvida mostra-se adequado para o debate com o tipo de oponente epistemológico que Descartes tinha em seu tempo

Qual a motivação para se defender uma teoria causal da memória?

Este texto tem como objetivo apresentar a principal motivação filosófica para se defender uma teoria causal da memória, que é explicar como pode um evento que se deu no passado estar relacionado a uma experiência mnêmica que se dá no presente. Para tanto, iniciaremos apresentando a noção de memória de maneira informal e geral, para depois apresentar elementos mais detalhados. Finalizamos apresentando uma teoria causal da memória que se beneficia da noção de veritação (truthmaking)

O acesso à participação de um aluno cego nas aulas de matemática

As interacções sociais desempenham um papel importante na construção do acesso às ferramentas culturais da Matemática, em especial no caso de alunos cegos (Batista, 2005; Ochaíta, 1993; Vygotsky, 1932/1978). Analisamos um episódio interactivo para apresentar três tipos de interacções sociais que emergiram da análise dos dados recolhidos num estudo de caso intrínseco de natureza qualitativa/interpretativa com um aluno cego do 12.o ano de escolaridade a frequentar a disciplina de Matemática-A, numa escola regular, revelando sucesso académico. A solicitação de feedback, o complemento de informação verbal e a informação gestual são três elementos que nos permitem caracterizar as interacções sociais entre a professora e este aluno, promovendo o acesso às ferramentas culturais da Matemática

Algumas observações introdutórias sobre o princípio de veritação

The truth-making principle is one of the main subjects in contemporary meta- physics, and this paper is an elementar exposition of the main issues of the on-going debate. I will proceed as follows. First, I will expose the basics, including the principle’s range, the main kinds of truth-making, the main interpretations of the principle, and some applications. Second, I will expose some technical issues about ontological commitment, reification, necessity, reality, and truth

Uma introdução atualizada a Leibniz

Book review: ANTOGNAZZA, M.R. 2016. Leibniz: A very short introduction. Oxford, Oxford University Press, 175 p