The article is dedicated to the anniversary of Boris Vasilyevich Markov, the famous philosopher of Saint Petersburg, Russia. The author of the article, basing on many years of personal experience and professional communication with the hero of the day, presents an expressive and holistic image of Markov as a person and as a philosopher according to his biography and creativity. An attempt is made to consider the complex philosophical evolution of Markov, which took place in key periods for Russian philosophy when Russian thought actively absorbed the key philosophical texts of the 20th century that had become available. Markov is distinguished by a unique ability to creatively rethink a variety of philosophical trends — classical philosophical schools, phenomenology, existentialism, hermeneutics, analytical philosophy, structuralism — actualizing their significance for modern philosophy and synthesizing their experience in their original understanding. The specificity of Markov’s oral and written language is distinguished by its expressiveness, brightness and aphorism. It is no coincidence that the philosophy of language had a great influence on his philosophical development, remaining as one of the main research topics throughout all his works. Touching upon some of the key books of Professor Markov, written by him at different times, the author strives to briefly mention and analyze the main features of his philosophical style, thinking, and worldview. Special attention is paid to philosophical anthropology, which is directly related to the philosophical activity of the hero of the day over the past few decades. In this regard, emphasis is given to Markov’s book “Mind and Heart”, which marked the beginning of the most productive period of his philosophical work, which is currently associated with the problems of visual anthropology of communication.
Authors:   Institute of Philosophy, Russian Academy of Sciences, Pruzhinin Boris I. 
Published: November 2021

The article examines the epistemological parameters of the phenomenon of expert examination as well as the social and cognitive features of using scientific knowledge to substantiate the objectivity of expert evaluations. Today, the scope of expert activities has significantly expanded. Accordingly, the number of studies, including philosophical ones, considering this phenomenon, in particular, has increased primarily in connection with the growth of its role in assessing the social-humanitarian risks associated with the introduction of scientific-technical advances. At the same time, attention is directed to the fact that it is precisely due to the significant expansion of the scope of expert activity that the nature of the expert examination itself is distorted — its dependence on social contexts is increasing, but its objectivity is lost. The article aims to clarify the reasons for the growth of this dependence in connection with the specificity of the epistemological parameters of knowledge, which is used as a scientific basis for expert evaluations. This aspect of expert examination, as a rule, falls out of sight of both its researchers and the experts themselves. Modern philosophers and methodologists of science state the direct dependence of expert examination on applied (i. e., limited to practical requests) developments, while, in the author’s opinion, the condition for the objectivity of expert opinions is the obligatory appeal of experts to fundamental science, motivated by the commitment to expand the sphere of holistic knowledge concerning the world. This condition is highlighted due to the epistemological perspective of comprehending expert evaluations, which makes it possible to include additional criteria for their objectivity in the sphere of the expert’s self-awareness. The actualization of such criteria, according to the author, is now becoming a prerequisite for an effective expert examination that maintains a high social status.