Volume 72 (2017), 4

The paper deals with Newton’s eight definitions from his Principia making them a subject of logical-semantic and epistemological analyses. First, it lists these definitions and then presents two views on the nature of definition, as given in recent scholarly works. These views are applied to Newton’s definitions. Resulting from this application is the conclusion… Read more

The paper shows different approaches to creativity, i.e. emergence of new meanings, in Merleau-Ponty and Patočka. The comparison is based mainly on Merleau-Ponty’s lectures L’institution dans l’histoire personnelle et publique (1954/55) and Patočka’s project Negative Platonism (1953). Despite some similarities evident in the key concepts “institution” and “… Read more

Philosophy and visual arts seemed to agree: from an intelligible point of view, colours are submitted to the light despite the sensible fact that no light is visible without colour. Colour is submitted to the drawing as secondary qualities are to primary ones; colours are unable to create forms or figures. When Newton discovered that white differs from other… Read more

The work of A.-T. Tymieniecka (1923 – 2014), an American philosopher coming from Polish lineage, has become a subject of still growing interest after her death. The focus of the article is on several key concepts of her Logos and Life (1988 – 2000; 4 vls.), concerning creativity and production. On one side, Tymieniecka exploits Husserl’s fiat of consciousness (… Read more

In our country the economy of research has been overlooked in the methodology of science until now. In our article we offer an analysis of Ch. S. Peirce’s ideas on this topic. The problems of choosing hypotheses and research projects support play an important role in contemporary science. In our opinion, Peirce’s ideas on economy of research make an essential… Read more

The essay shows that some political views from the times of Athenian democracy are acceptable even today. Although the essence of democracy has changed, its long journey has now entered a dead end street. Liberal democracy, coupled with globalization and the neo-liberal principles of market economy, is now in crisis that needs to be resolved. Maintaining its… Read more

The article deals primarily with the Wittgensteinian contributions to metaphilosophy as rendered in the book Metaphilosophical investigations (T. Čana – D. Kamhal – R. Maco 2015). It focuses on the language and methods of the metaphilosophical elucidations and, in some cases, puts these elucidations under criticism for an incorrect usage of the key concepts.… Read more

The students’ argument against the possibility of a surprise exam assumes that the following combination would not occur: the teacher decides to give the exam on a certain day; the teacher believes that the exam would be a surprise on that day; but, actually, the exam would not be a surprise on that day. I give a reason to reject this assumption, and I point out… Read more