bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Biological test methods for stents: cellular responses to microstructured biomaterials
Authors: Klußmann-Fricke Bastian-Jesper , Stahnke Thomas , Siewert Stefan , Reske Thomas , Bohne Eric , Schmitz Klaus-Peter , Khaimov Valeria
Published: September 2022

One of the greatest challenges in the development of novel implants is to find materials that optimally interact with the tissue and support the function of the implant over a long period of time. Especially considering the fact that biomaterials are used in multiple applications in modern implants, a better understanding of the physiology of the tissue in contact with the material becomes more and more important. To better understand the cellular responses to biomaterials, it is furthermore necessary that the models used reflect the physiological conditions at the implant site. However, in most cases, immortalized cell lines instead of tissue-specific primary cells are used to study the biocompatibility of implant materials. When interpreting these results, it is important to consider that cell lines differ significantly from primary cells found in their native environment. In this study, we examined the morphological differences between a cell line and primary cells upon contact with various implant structures resembling implant prototypes. Using a mouse fibroblast cell line in comparison with primary porcine fibroblasts, we discuss the results with respect to the use of cell lines for biocompatibility testing of biomaterials. Our results suggest that to better estimate meaningful results regarding the compatibility of implant structures, key control experiments should always be performed with specific primary cells.
Biomechanical Characterization of Human Corneal Lenticules
Authors: Nambiar Malavika , Liechti Layko , Studer Harald , Sinha Roy Abhijit , Seiler Theo G. , Büchler Philippe
Published: September 2022

In surgical refractive interventions over-correction or under-correction still occur in 10-15 % of cases. Improved outcomes could be achieved by incorporating patient-specific corneal biomechanics into surgical planning. As a first step, this study mechanically characterizes and numerically simulates corneal lenticules harvested during a refractive intervention called Corneal Lenticule Extraction for Advanced Refractive Correction (CLEAR). These human corneal lenticules were mechanically tested in uniaxial extension in nasal-temporal and 45 deg orientations. An HGO material model that accounts for the unique collagen arrangement of the human cornea was developed and used to identify the material parameters using a finite element model of the experimental setup. The material parameters that best represent the experimental force/displacement were obtained by parameter estimation using Bayesian optimization. The uniaxial experiments performed on 3 patients did not show distinctive differences in orientation. The estimated material parameters fit well with the experimental data, representing a promising material model. In the future, Brillouin measurements will be performed on the CLEAR patients before lenticule extraction so that material parameters can be estimated in vivo, providing the surgeon with a patient specific-surgical planning tool.
Radial compliance of porcine coronary arteries ex vivo under pulsatile flow – perspectives for stent biomechanics
Authors: Brandt-Wunderlich Christoph , Kosche Florence , Schmidt Wolfram , Grabow Niels , Stiehm Michael , Schmitz Klaus-Peter , Siewert Stefan
Published: September 2022

Besides visual assessment of the intra-vascular appearance, intravascular optical coherence tomography (IVOCT) enables precise diameter measurements within the coronary arteries. The current study presents an upgraded test setup allowing the investigation of the elastic properties of porcine coronary arteries ex vivounder pulsatile flow conditions. IV-OCT imaging was performed within the left circumflex artery of a porcine heart applying a normotensive and a hypertensive pressure regime at different pulse rates. Radial compliance was derived from the luminal diameter as well as intra-arterial pressure measurements. Test results show a significant reduction of radial compliance under pulsatile conditions, when compared to reference measurements under steady flow. The mean radial compliance decreased with increasing pulse rate, which can be attributed to the viscoelastic properties of the arterial wall.
Hemoglobin ratio as a forgotten parameter for automatic feedback control systems in preterm neonates
Authors: Tejkl Leos , Kudrna Petr , Rafl Jakub
Published: September 2022

This paper deals with the analysis of the relationship between fetal hemoglobin (HbF) and adult hemoglobin (HbA) in preterm infants as a function of the gestational week and newborn weight based on the available literature. The role of other parameters on the shift and shape of the OHDC curve is also discussed. The function could be useful when dynamic development of OHDC in a neonate occurs in emergencies such as blood transfusions. The main idea is to incorporate the dynamic evolution of the hemoglobin conversion as a mathematical function into existing models of oxygenation in preterm neonates or into automatic feedback control algorithms of oxygenation. This could help further individualize and optimize the oxygenation settings of preterm neonates.
KTeXpand – a novel microfluidic device for advanced cell based cross matching
Authors: Schneider Daniel , Behrens Stephan , Philipp Jürgen , Eitler Jiri , Stumpf Julian , Tonn Torsten , Sonntag Frank , Hugo Christian , Schmieder Florian
Published: September 2022

Antibody-mediated rejection after kidney transplantation is a major limitation for long-term survival of donated kidneys within the recipient allograft. With the existing HLA cross-matching test only complement activating donor specific antibodies are evaluated. Other measurements are more sensitive, but cannot assert the clinical relevance of the donor specific antibodies. Thus, novel methods that address the more complex nature of cellular interactions with serum components are needed to improve antibody-mediated rejection prediction. Recent studies suggest, that the interaction of natural killer cells of the recipient with endothelial cells of the donor is of major interest. Here we present a microfluidic cell culture device and a corresponding assay to test for the relevance of natural killer cell activated antibody-mediated rejection in vitro. Therefore, a protocol to co-cultivate both cell types and track natural killer cell activated killing within a fluorescence-based assay was established. To automate this approach, the prototype of a well plate sized microfluidic device was developed, that enables staining of the two cell types and repeatable and timedependent co-cultivation of the cells with serum. This automated approach enables further evaluation of the clinical relevance of the established assay paving the way to additional information on HLA cross-matching that helps to quickly estimate the probability of Antibody-mediated rejection and the clinical relevance of donor specific antibodies.
Development of an EMG-based Elbow- Exoskeleton with Twisted String Actuation
Authors: Weymann Sylvia , Pretty Chris G. , Pott Peter P.
Published: September 2022

This paper presents an exoskeleton for upper extremity rehabilitation of stroke patients. In order to make rehabilitation widely available, the goal is an inexpensive, portable, and easy-to-use therapy for paralysis of the arm. The exoskeleton is actuated by twisted string actuators (TSA). To reduce the length of the TSA a motor with hollow shaft was chosen, as this allows the string to run through the motor. The control of the exoskeleton is designed for predefined elbow flexion exercises. The start of the movement is triggered by a threshold value in the sEMG of the m. biceps brachii. To evaluate the controller, the exoskeleton performed a flexion movement (5° to 115°) in 2 s and then an extension back to 5° in the same time after a 1 s wait. To simulate different force requirements, additional weights up to 1500 g were attached. During both, the flexion and extension movement, that angle tracking error was sufficiently small and the steady state error was zero. The angular velocity of the elbow joint showed pronounced oscillations with increasing weights. The results show that TSAs can be used to actuate elbow exoskeletons. Thus lightweight, ergonomic, simple and small rehabilitation devices can now be built on this basis. The elasticity of the system must be considered in future work. sEMG must be further implemented to control more sophisticated functions of the rehabilitation device.
Femtosecond laser manufacturing technology for microstents as innovative medical devices to treat open-angle glaucoma
Authors: Siewert Stefan , Bohne Eric , Grossmann Swen , Schmidt Wolfram , Grabow Niels , Stahnke Thomas , Guthoff Rudolf , Stiehm Michael , Schmitz Klaus-Peter
Published: September 2022

The increasing trend of minimally invasive therapy methods for widespread diseases in the cardiovascular system, in the field of ophthalmology, ear, nose, and throat medicine, or gynecology, leads to an extensive demand for innovative microdevice manufacturing technologies. Femtosecond (fs)-laser technology offers a wide range of applications in the field of cutting, milling, and surface structuring on the micro- and nanometer scale. Ophthalmic devices for glaucoma therapy have dimensions in the submillimeter range. Irrespective of this, there are high demands on the safety and efficacy of these implants. Within the current study, fs-laser-based manufacturing technologies for functional elements of a novel microstent for glaucoma therapy were developed, considering potential industrial scalability. We successfully developed a mounting mechanism for quick and reproducible manufacturing of a micromechanical valve mechanism for safe regulation of intraocular pressure. Furthermore, we successfully developed a fs-laser-based process for manufacturing grooves as part of a fixation mechanism for a stable device positioning inside the eye. The results show that fs-laser manufacturing represents a promising technology for manufacturers of medical microdevices, such as ophthalmic microstents.
Design considerations and applications of a biomedical test bench development kit
Authors: Tautorat Carsten , Kamke Frank , Lebahn Kerstin , Grabow Niels , Schmidt Wolfram
Published: September 2022

Applications and requirements for biomedical test benches are often quite different, but there is always a need to monitor and usually to control processes. Commercially available development systems can be used to build simple laboratory setups up to industrial systems but are limited with respect to high costs and information for required validation. A test bench development kit is presented which ensures high compatibility for prospective developments, adaptations and embedding of sensors and actuators. The development kit is based on a printed circuit board built around the singleboard computer Raspberry PI. Supporting circuitry for power control, logics and special functions are implemented. Several types of peripheral devices can be connected via two serial bus standards (I2C, or RS-485). Current applications demonstrate the achieved level of automation and process control.
Neonatal seizure detection algorithms: The effect of channel count
Authors: Borovac Ana , Runarsson Thomas Philip , Thorvardsson Gardar , Gudmundsson Steinn
Published: September 2022

The number of electrodes used to acquire neonatal EEG signals varies between institutions. Therefore, tools for automatic EEG analysis, such as neonatal seizure detection algorithms, need to be able to handle different electrode montages in order to find widespread use. The aim of this study was to analyse the effect of montage on neonatal seizure detector performance. A full 18-channel montage was compared to reduced 3- and 8-channel montages using a convolutional neural network for seizure detection. Sensitivity decreased by 10 - 18 % for the reduced montages while specificity was mostly unaffected. Electrode artefacts and artefacts associated with biological rhythms caused incorrect classification of nonseizure activity in some cases, but these artefacts were filtered out in the 3-channel montage. Other types of artefacts had little effect. Reduced montages result in some reduction in classifier accuracy, but the performance may still be acceptable. Recording artefacts had a limited effect on detection accuracy.
Experiences of intercultural teaching activities in the field of eHealth
Authors: Nemec Iris , Malásková Michaela , Pavão João , Pereira Luis , Frohner Matthias
Published: September 2022

The funded research Project HealthCONNECT implements measure to promote the term eHealth in teaching and means to ease the exchange of lecturers and students to perceive different views of this topic. This report introduces the activities that have been implemented, stresses challenges that were observed and derives suggestions how to establish a co-operation between different institutes of higher education. This includes the mutual participation and inclusion of lecturers in teaching and evaluation activities; spanning from assessing students’ projects till chairing master examinations. The co-operative organization and hosting of eHealth Summer Schools is another mean to share knowledge in the domain of eHealth with students and colleagues abroad. Such activities require a stable co-operation between the involved institutions that only can be build upon a trustworthy relationship between the lecturers as they are paving the way.
Microstent for minimally invasive treatment of Fallopian tube occlusions – porcine implantation ex vivo
Authors: Dierke Ariane , Klußmann-Fricke Bastian-Jesper , Rosam Paula , Brandt-Wunderlich Christoph , Knorre Luise , Stiehm Michael , Bock Andrea , Grabow Niels , Wree Andreas , Zygmunt Marek , Schmitz Klaus-Peter , Siewert Stefan
Published: September 2022

Involuntary female infertility represents a sensitive issue, which is frequently caused by an impaired patency of the Fallopian tube. Current treatment options, such as in vitro fertilisation (IVF) or tubal reconstruction, are related to high costs or surgical risks. Therefore, a need for an alternative highly safe and effective minimally invasive therapy option is assumed. The current work presents a proof-of-concept for a novel microstent in combination with a delivery system for treatment of proximal Fallopian tube occlusions. For this purpose, a microstent prototype was implanted into a porcine Fallopian tube ex vivo using the presented delivery system. The results of the procedure were analyzed using a micro-computed tomography (μ-CT). Based on the μ-CT imaging, critical parameters of the microstent, such as radial patency, were assessed. The microstent implantation leads to an increased opening area of the Fallopian tube. Additionally, the microstent does not impair the anatomical shape of the tube epithelium and adapts well to the anatomical path. In further studies, the functionality of the Fallopian tube will be examined after microstent implantation in vivo.
Neural Network Classification of Surgical Tools in Gynecological Videos
Authors: Abdulbaki Alshirbaji Tamer , Aldeen Jalal Nour , Docherty Paul D. , Neumuth Thomas , Moeller Knut
Published: September 2022

Automated surgical tool classification will improve the workflow of surgery. Previous research tackled this task mainly in cholecystectomy procedures due to availability of a relatively large and labelled set (Cholec80 dataset). However, the complexity of the procedure type has an impact on the robustness of the deep learning approaches. Therefore, the classification capability of CNNs on data of more complex procedures with many surgical tools was investigated. In this work, laparoscopic videos of 14 gynaecological procedures were recorded and labelled for surgical tool presence. Then, the DenseNet-121 model was trained to identify surgical tools according to functionality. Experimental results imply high classification performance for some surgical tools. The mean average precision over all the tools was 67%. This study is an initial benchmark for detecting surgical tools in realistic settings.
Computation of flow through TAVI device by means of physics informed neural networks
Authors: Oldenburg Jan , Borowski Finja , Schmitz Klaus-Peter , Stiehm Michael
Published: September 2022

Cardiovascular diseases are among the most common diseases with high mortality, including aortic valve stenosis and insufficiency. Minimally invasive implantation of transcatheter aortic valve prosthesis (TAVI) has become the standard procedure for patients with increased risk for open surgery. It is commonly accepted that the long-term outcome of aortic valve replacement depends on hemodynamic performance. This motivates the analysis of the velocity field in the vicinity of the TAVI. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) methods have been established in the past, but show limitations in terms of computational effort when rapid design optimization or patient-specific decision making in real time is required. In this study we show the usage of PINNs for predicting fluid flow through a TAVI device. We also show a method of enforcing boundary conditions for this specific problem. Due to the physics involved in the training process, this principle does in theory not require additional training data. To validate the method, we performed CFD simulations that solved the Navier-Stokes equations be means of finite volume methods. Besides the good estimation of the main flow components, discrepancies between CFD and PINN results are present. Nevertheless, the flow structures have certain similarities in the coarse spatial localization of the vortex patterns occurring in flow around the TAVI device.
Development of a test rig for the diagnosis of arthritic knee joint defects in the case of lower extremity amputees in orthopaedic technology
Authors: Subke Jörg , Stelz Joshua , Schneider Benedict , Schwalbe Hans-Joachim , Wolf Udo
Published: September 2022

If the alignment of a leg prosthesis is inadequate there will be the danger of arthritic defects occurring in the preserved knee joint. Acoustic-kinetic joint analysis in orthopaedic technology allows monitoring of the knee joint of an amputee after the alignment of a leg prosthesis and to recognize early joint defects resulting in adaptation of the alignment of the prothesis. A test rig was developed which includes acoustic emission analysis of the knee, video-based gait analysis, ground reaction force measurement and the measurement of the holding forces of the hands. During the examination a subject must do 3 one-legged knee bends during 10 sec with the preserved leg. To support the subject two grab handles were fixed with force sensors to a frame. A series of 6 measurements were recorded with breaks of 2 min. The recorded forces of the leg show a double hump pattern during the knee bend. The rising edge of the flexion phase was not uniform. The forces show no conclusive uniform pattern. The fitness of the probands acts as an indicator for the pattern of the force signals. The signals of the measurements show the necessity of the support for both hands to execute a one-legged knee bend. The understanding of the 3 measured forces is important for the arthritic diagnosis of the knee joint.
On model-based hyperspectral imaging
Authors: Papke Kai , Hornberger Christoph
Published: September 2022

Several contributions are presented to aid the analysis of hyperspectral images by utilizing appropriate optical models. The algorithms are described by means of the perfusion of human skin and a corresponding two-layer tissue model. The particular role of the mean photon path length within the medium is discussed and two approaches to solve the inverse problem, i.e., the derivision of perfusion parameters from given spectra, are outlined.
Intelligent Garment based ECG Monitoring with AI support for Elderly
Authors: Linti Carsten , Blocher Sandra , Downes Robert , Bandte Martina
Published: September 2022

Smart underwear was designed to meet the demands of elderly people be monitored in outpatient environments. Especially the demands of women have been addressed, who have heart failure but who still want to live in their home. The smart bra comprises textile electrodes and an ECG event recorder. The recorder transmits the data to the doctor only if artificial intelligence (AI) has discovered critical events in ECG signals. An implemented convolutional neural network, which uses the wavelet transformation of the ECG as input and to determine an interference index for this ECG signal is implemented. The smart bra can be part of new remote monitoring services such as e-consultation or as a new home-based follow-up to ensure seamless patient care after hospital or rehabilitation stays. Healthcare personnel has better access to the patient´s digital ECG data without direct consultation, independently of where the patient lives and the patient can feel safer.
How Does Subsidiary Autonomy Influence Performance in the Emerging Economy: Different Moderating Effects of Subsidiary Entrepreneurship
Authors: Tsai Chengan
Published: September 2022

Previous research has confirmed the overall positive relationship between subsidiary autonomy and performance. However, given the lack of consensus regarding the effect of subsidiary autonomy on performance, contingency is required to understand complex linkages and possible causality in both developed and emerging economies. This study adopts the agency theory and entrepreneurship to address the interplay among subsidiary autonomy, entrepreneurship, and performance in the emerging economy of China. The empirical results indicate that renewal entrepreneurship has a positive moderating effect and venturing entrepreneurship has an inverted U-shaped moderating effect on the positive relationship between subsidiary autonomy and performance. This study extends the research context and contributes to the literature on agency theory and entrepreneurship in the multinational corporation.
Homogeneous four-manifolds with half-harmonic Weyl curvature tensor
Authors: Calviño-Louzao Esteban , Ferreiro-Subrido María , Garcia-Rio Eduardo , Vázquez-Lorenzo Ramon
Published: September 2022

We show that a four-dimensional homogeneous manifold with half-harmonic Weyl curvature tensor is symmetric or homothetic either to the only nonsymmetric anti-self-dual homogeneous manifold or to the 3-symmetric space.
WAYS
Authors: Simons Peter M.
Published: September 2022

ABSTRACT
There is more than one way to kill a cat. What are ways? Very little has been written about them in general, but they appear at crucial places in many philosophical discussions. Clarity over the ontology of ways could help in several areas of philosophy. After indicating where ways have been mentioned, I discuss briefly the corresponding linguistic feature, adverbs of manner, before outlining three theories: a Platonistic one making ways a complex kind of function, a Davidsonian one in which ways are (mainly) properties of events, and finally the theory I prefer, a particularist one based on the concept of a higher-order trope. The latter is connected with the theory of truth-makers and avoids ontological commitment to corresponding general objects
GRENZEN VON ETHIKCODIZES
Authors: Weber Karsten
Published: September 2022

Technology penetrates into all areas of our everyday and individual life and changes it in a considerable speed. This applies particularly to developments of information and communication technology since this technology shows its effects not only at our workplaces but transforms and sometimes determines the social behavior of people. Unfortunately, development and use of technology certainly doesn't go hand into hand with the acceptance of responsibility for consequences of effects of developing and using technology. Instead, the opposite behavior is quite common. If this process of the rejection of responsibility shall be stopped, the sensibility of developers and users of technology for consequences of their own behavior have to be aroused and strengthened. In the following text at first I will describe some reasons to formulate ethical guidelines. After this, with the example of the ethical guidelines of the German Gesellschaft für Informatik e. V. (GI), I will discuss, whether such ethical guidelines are ethical in the strict sense of the word and whether they actually can be a contribution to accomplish the striven aim of assignment of responsibility for the results of developing and using technolog
Sufficient Conditions, Conditional Logic, and Transitivity
Authors: Levin Yakir
Published: September 2022

In a series of publications E.J. Lowe has advocated an attractive alternative to the orthodox view about conditionals embodied in the Stalnaker-Lewis approach. One alleged advantage of Lowe’s approach over its rival is that it offers the prospect of a simpler conditional logic. Another related advantage is that it appears to treat inference by transitivity more plausibly than does the Stalnaker-Lewis approach. One central goal of this paper is to call into question Lowe’s success in providing an account that is better than the Stalnaker-Lewis account in these respects. As part of this, I develop a Loweian-inspired account of sufficient condition sentences such as ‘Harry’s eating this apple is a sufficient condition for his getting sick’, which is another central goal of the paper.
Branching versus Divergent Possible Worlds
Authors: Jiří Beńovský
Published: September 2022

David Lewis’ modal counterpart theory falls prey to the famous Saul Kripke’s objection, and this is mostly due to his ‘static’ ontology (divergence) of possible worlds. This paper examines a genuinely realist but different, branching ontology of possible worlds and a new definition of the counterpart relation, which attempts to provide us with a better account of de remodality, and to meet satisfactorily Kripke’s claim, while being also ontologically more ‘parsimonious’.
The Case for Hyper-Libertarianism
Authors: Harrison Gerald
Published: September 2022

The hyper libertarian is compatibilist about control, but incompatibilist about free will. This paper argues that such a position has more to recommend it than either compati- bilism or traditional libertarianism. It com- bines what is strongest about both positions, without encountering their principle weak- nesses. Furthermore it has the resources to help render intelligible the reality of moral luck
Are “Attributive” Uses of Definite Descriptions Really Attributive?
Authors: Boğaziçi İlhan İnan
Published: September 2022

In this essay I argue that given Donnellan’s formulation of the attributive uses of definite descriptions, as well as Kripke’s [6] and Salmon’s [10] generalized accounts, most uses of definite descriptions that are taken to be attributive turn out not to be so. In building up to my main thesis, I first consider certain problematic cases of uses of definite descriptions that do not neatly fit into any category. I then argue that, in general, a complete definite description we use is complex, in which there is an embedded singular term that is used referentially. From this I conclude that an attributive use of a definite description is an extremely rare linguistic phenomenon, much less frequent than what Donnellan, Kripke, and Salmon have presupposed; so much so that the standard examples given by Donnellan of the attributive use of definite descriptions do not qualify as attributive
Weltanschauungsanalyse und Robert Musils Der Mann ohne Eigenschaften
Authors: Schurz Gerhard
Published: September 2022

In this paper I develop a theory of Weltanschauungen (world- views). A judgment belongs to a Weltanschauung if it represents reality simultaneously in three dimensions: the descriptive- cognitive dimension (true/false), the ethical-practical dimension (right/wrong), and the esthetic-emotive dimension (beautiful/ugly). It is a crucial anthropological function of Weltanschauungen that they coordinate human perception and action in all these three dimensions (this idea goes to Ernst Topitsch). Different Weltanschauungen differ from each other in the weight of importance which they attach to each of these three dimensions. Therefore I suggest to classify Weltanschauungen according to their position within a triangle, the so-called Weltanschauungsdreieck, whose vertices represent these three dimensions. In sections 1-3 my analysis of Weltanschauungen is based on general epistemological and anthropological reections, drawing on the philosophical and scientific literature. My sections 4-6 make use of Robert Musil's impressing novel \The man without qualities", in which Musil explores Weltanschauungen by literary methods: at hand of the major figures of his novel he brings Weltanschauungen into being, lets them develop, reconstructs them, parodises them and finally deconstructs them. In the final section I show how a variety of typical bipolarities of Weltanschauungen (such rational vs. intuitive, passive versus active, etc.) can be analyzed within the Weltanschauungsdreieck.
Attributive" Uses of Definite Descriptions Are Always Attributive
Authors: Agbaba Krešimir
Published: September 2022

The scope of this short paper is to show that the examples Ilhan Inan uses to undermine Donnellan's distinction (primarily, the attributive uses of definite descriptions in general) fall short on

account of wrong interpretation those examples were provided with in his paper. Whilst Ilhan Inan showed how complex definite descriptions (having an embedded referential term) may cause doubts as to which category they should be put in, these referring terms only play a secondary role. I argue that all of his three key examples are, in fact, sheer attributive uses of definite descriptions and have to be taken as such, which seriously diminishes the pedestal Inan places his argument on
How Often Do We Use a Definite Description to Talk About its Semantic Referent?
Authors: İnan İlhan
Published: September 2022

In this paper I respond to the objections put forth by Krešimir Agbaba (this volume: Kriterion (2009) 22: 1-6) against my earlier paper (Kriterion (2006) 20: 7-13) in which I argue that given Donnellan's formulation|as well as Kripke's and Salmon's generalized accounts|an attributive use of a definite description is a very rare linguistic phenomenon
Ein Vergleich dreier aussagenlogischer Semantiken
Authors: Zimmermann Alexander
Published: September 2022

In this article we compare three different semantic theories for a propositional language, namely a valuation-semantic, a truth-set- semantic and a modal-set-semantic theory. We prove step by step that these semantic theories are mutually equivalent
Through a glass darkly: on the enigmatic nature of science
Authors: Mittelstrass Jürgen
Published: September 2022

The following article consists of a few short remarks on the inevitable incomprehensibility of science on the one hand and, in order to overcome this incomprehensibility, on common structures between science and the life-world on the other
A Goldman / Chisholm View of Property-Exemplifications
Authors: Botting David
Published: September 2022

I believe that a radically fine-grained property-exemplification theory is the right approach to the metaphysics of events. In this paper I will not be arguing for this detail but will be more concerned with issues over the internal consistency of the property-exemplification theory; in particular, I want to resolve issues about the individuation of property-tokens.
Theorie der Konsequenzoperationen und Grundbegriffe der Logik
Authors: Wallmann Christian
Published: September 2022

We give an elementary introduction into the theory of consequence operations. We proof some elementary results concerning basic notions of logic like tautology, consistency, independence and completeness. We show in particular that every finite axiomatizable set is independent axiomatizable and that every consistent set has relative to a finitary consequence operation a maximal consistent extension. Finally we provide an abstract semantics for consequence operations
The Folk Psychology of Free Will: An Argument Against Compatibilism
Authors: Caruso Gregg D.
Published: September 2022

This paper presents existing results and experimental evidence in social psychology to argue against the compatibilist thesis that our folk-psychological notions of freedom and moral responsibility are completely consistent with the acceptance of determinism. In section 1, I spell out the compatibilist position and briefly discuss the standard incompatibilist argument-the so-called consequence argument. In section 2, I take a closer look at the folk psychology of free will and argue that, contra the compatibilist, recent empirical research by Shaun Nichols, Joshua Knobe and others,

reveals that our folk-psychological intuitions are essentially incompatibilist and libertarian in nature. I conclude in section 3 by examining the phenomenology of agentive experience and argue

that it further undermines the compatibilist thesis.
Gaunilo referiert Anselm. Aus dem Tagesgeschäft des Rekonstrukteurs
Authors: Siegwart Geo
Published: September 2022

The monk Gaunilo opens the vigorous disputation with Anselm by describing the infamous proof in the second chapter of the Proslogion. The following paper offers a detailed logical reconstruction of Gaunilo’s account of Anselm’s argument, thus making explicit the reasoning of Anselm in the view of Gaunilo. It will serve two purposes. Firstly it provides an easily understood example for the use of logic to interpret a nontrivial philosophical text. Secondly it reveals the reasons and the concepts involved in the argument, thereby indicating further argumentative and semantic tasks
Practical Knowledge and Fallibility – Some Pitfalls
Authors: Mürbe Ulrike
Published: September 2022

The following considerations deal with a suggestion on how to conceive of knowledge of one’s own intentional doings as a kind of knowledge that is somehow infallible. The proposal discussed in this paper holds that there is no way to get the content of one’s own practical knowledge claim wrong but that we might err in ascribing practical knowledge to ourselves. The upshot of my argumentation will be the following: if we assert that conjunction, that is, if we adhere to the subject-content-disanalogy, as I will name it, we are faced with a dilemma. Therefore, it seems, the subject-content-disanalogy needs to be rejected. But, as will show up, rejecting it comes at high costs, too: to reject the subjectcontent- disanalogy forces us to equally reject at least one basal action theoretical insight we aim at accounting for
The Wishful Thinking Problem for Non-cognitivism: Does It Really Make Sense?
Authors: Guan Chengying
Published: September 2022

This paper concerns the Wishful Thinking Problem for non-cognitivism, which has recently been raised by Cian Dorr. Contrary to Dorr’s claim that the Wishful Thinking Problem is a new crucial objection to non-cognitivism in addition to the well-known Frege- Geach Problem, I argue that recent research has shown that the Wishful Thinking Problem is not independent of the Frege-Geach Problem and therefore it is not lethal to non-cognitivism. However, the Wishful Thinking Problem is still a problem for noncognitivism, for it reveals that the Frege-Geach Problem may be even more troublesome than non-cognitivists originally thought
Handlungstheoretischer Interventionismus und Modelle
Authors: Kremling Alexander
Published: September 2022

The “model argument” against action-theories of causation is a reply to a strategy for avoiding the “argument of unmanipulable causes”. The critics follow the action-theorists in a certain shift of topic - leaving the explication debate towards one of justified assertion of causal claims - and end up at a wrong position concerning the role of practical knowledge for justifying causal claims about events that are not under technical control. Following them the justification would take the form of “analogy arguments“, which can not guarantee the truth of the conclusion in a non-circular way. Contrary to their position I present a reconstruction of causal inference in which practical knowledge about manipulation does play the role of a necessary condition for justifiying causal claims about unmanipulable relations
Self-Consciousness in Animals: Advantages and Problems of a Multipronged Approach
Authors: Wüstholz Florian Leonhard
Published: September 2022

Self-consciousness in non-human animals is a complex phenomenon which raises both conceptual and methodological problems. First, what do we mean by the concept of ‘self-consciousness’? Secondly, what is the best experimental approach to self-consciousness? This paper gives a short overview of the concept of self-consciousness in section 1. We can understand the concept of self-consciousness as capturing the ability of subjects to consciously think about themselves as themselves. If this is accurate, then it is prudent to look at a broad bundle of abilities which are related to this ability. The paper then focuses on advantages and problems of the multipronged approach, a kind of empirical approach which uses several different test criteria to determine whether a subject is self-conscious or not. Section 2 briefly contrasts this kind of approach with other possibilities. The main disparity is to singlepronged approaches, which have been discussed and dismissed in greater detail elsewhere [34]. Section 3 discusses the advantages of a multipronged approach, whereas section 4 is dedicated to the discussion of some of its problems
The Ideal Observer Theory and Motivational Internalism
Authors: Rönnedal Daniel
Published: September 2022

In this paper I show that one version of motivational internalism follows from the so-called ideal observer theory. Let us call the version of the ideal observer theory used in this essay (IOT). According to (IOT), it is necessarily the case that it ought to be that A if and only if every ideal observer wants it to be the case that A. We shall call the version of motivational internalism that follows from (IOT) (moral) conditional belief motivational internalism (CBMI). According to (CBMI), it is necessarily the case that, for every x: if x were an ideal observer, it would be the case that x believes that it ought to be that A only if x wants it to be the case that A. Given that it is necessarily true that no ideal observer has any false beliefs, (IOT) entails (CBMI). Or, so I shall argue
Metaontological De ationism in the Aftermath of the Quine-Carnap Debate
Authors: Egeland Harouny Jonathan
Published: September 2022

With metaphysical philosophy gaining prominence in the af- termath of the Quine-Carnap debate, not only has it become assumed that the Quinean critique leaves ontological pluralism behind as an untenable approach, but also that the same is true of deationism more generally. Building on Quine's criticisms against the analytic-synthetic distinction and the notion of quantifier variance, contemporary metaphysicians like van Inwagen and Sider continue to argue for the untenability of deflationary approaches to metaontology. In this paper I will argue that Quine's criticisms do not provide sufficient grounds for revitalizing metaphysics, as the aforementioned metaphysicians conceive

them as doing, and that they also don't eliminate all hope for Carnapian pluralism. Furthermore, Carnap's initial position may even yield the most promising route for the pluralistically inclined. Moreover, pluralism is often conceived as being equivalent with the narrower notion of quantifier variance, often associated with

Hirsch and Putnam. As this notion often is attributed not only to Carnap and other pluralists, but also is taken to be an essential feature of deationism, explicating how their merits in fact don't necessarily coincide with those of quantifier variance will clarify matters. I will conclude by noting how neither pluralism nor

deationism is committed to quantifier variance, and thus how arguments against the latter don't entail a refutation of the former.
The Collectivity of Blaming
Authors: Botting David
Published: September 2022

In this paper I want to argue that acts of blame are performed by collectives, and not by any collective but only by collectives that satisfy certain conditions { broadly those that, by collectivizing reason, can be held to be autonomous subjects to which it makes sense to attribute attitudes, including participant reactive attitudes such as resentment. The actors involved must also be related to the collective in particular ways in order to hold and be held responsible, but they need not have the same attitudes as the collective. This implies both that our attributions of moral responsibility to an agent does not depend only on facts about the agent but also on facts about us, and that the reasons for which we hold responsible and by which we justify our moral practices, and which the agent can likewise appeal to in an attempt to avoid being held responsible, depend on the collective involved and its substantive ethical precepts. The answer to whether an agent is responsible, or is an appropriate object of a reactive attitude, is not to be settled purely by philosophical analysis, and even the kind of naturalistic description of the pattern of our reactive attitudes that [22] suggests in \Freedom and Resentment" will only go part of the way { the excuses and exemptions are things we might say in a dialogue where reasons are exchanged, but each collective has some leeway over what substantive reasons count as grounds of an excuse or exemption.
The Value Problem in Allen's Non-Adaptive Understanding of Knowledge
Authors: Hepçağlayan Cansu
Published: September 2022

In this paper I argue that Barry Allen's non-adaptive theory of knowledge as introduced in Knowledge and Civilization fails to assign a proper value to knowledge. In defending this view, I first briefly spell out Allen's evolutionary standpoint by contrasting it with classical pragmatism's adaptive perspective and then contend that his view is ultimately unable to offer a practical reason for the preferability of knowledge from the standpoint of actual cognitive agents.
Deploying Racist Soldiers: A critical take on the `right intention' requirement of Just War Theory
Authors: Wood Nathan G.
Published: September 2022

In a recent article Duncan Purves, Ryan Jenkins, and B.J. Strawser argue that in order for a decision in war to be just, or indeed the decision to resort to war to be just, it must be the case that the decision is made for the right reasons. Furthermore, they argue that this requirement holds regardless of how much good is produced by said action. In this essay I argue that their argument is awed, in that it mistakes what makes an agent morally good for what makes an act morally good. I argue that the main thrust of Purves et al.'s argument in fact undermines the conclusion they wish to draw, and that the reasons for one's action do not make an in principle difference to the morality of actions in war. I further argue that this position undermines the traditional ad bellum just war constraint of right intention, and that the morality of actions in war is, at core, only concerned with outcomes. I conclude by clarifying that one's reasons for action do in fact matter when deciding to enter war or kill in war, but only because one's reasons significantly impact the way in which one acts. The purpose of this paper is to clear the theoretical space by showing why intentions/reasons do not in principle matter when assessing the morality of war (or killing), but this should not be taken as an argument that we should ignore intentions/reasons altogether
Procreative Beneficence and Genetic Enhancement
Authors: Veit Walter
Published: September 2022

Imagine a world where everyone is healthy, intelligent, long living and happy. Intuitively this seems wonderful albeit unrealistic. However, recent scientific breakthroughs in genetic engineering, namely CRISPR/Cas bring the question into public discourse, how the genetic enhancement of humans should be evaluated morally. In 2001, when preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) and in vitro fertilisation (IVF), enabled parents to select between multiple embryos, Julian Savulescu introduced the principle of procreative beneficence (PPB), stating that parents have the obligations to choose the child that is expected to have the best life. In this paper I argue that accepting the PPB and the consequentialist principle (CP) that two acts with the same consequences are morally on par, commits one to accepting the parental obligation of genetically enhancing one's children
Induction by Direct Inference Meets the Goodman Problem
Authors: Thorn Paul D.
Published: September 2022

I here aim to show that a particular approach to the problem of induction, which I will call "induction by direct inference", comfortably handles Goodman's problem of induction. I begin the article by describing induction by direct inference. After introducing induction by direct inference, I briefly introduce the Goodman problem, and explain why it is, prima facie, an obstacle to the proposed approach. I then show how one may address the Goodman problem, assuming one adopts induction by direct inference as an approach to the problem of induction. In particular, I show that a relatively standard treatment of what some have called the \Reference Class Problem" addresses the Goodman Problem. Indeed, plausible and relatively standard principles of direct inference yield the conclusion that the Goodman inference (involving the grue predicate) is defeated, so it is unnecessary to invoke considerations of `projectibility' in order to address the Goodman problem. I conclude the article by discussing the generality of the proposed approach, in dealing with variants of Goodman's example.
The Limits of Stanley and Williamson's Attack on Ryle's View About Know-How
Authors: Espejo-Serna Juan Camilo
Published: September 2022

The purpose of this paper is to discuss Stanley and Williamson's take on Ryle's argument against know-how being know-that. For this, I provide an initial consideration of the possibility of isolating Ryle's argument from his overall philosophical outlook and Stanley and Williamson's purpose in their discussion of Ryle. I then examine in detail Stanley and Williamson's reconstruction of Ryle's argument with the specific aim of showing where they have introduced extraneous elements: I examine what they take to best additional assumptions needed for the argument to be valid and how they construct the premises in order to attempt to show that Ryle's argument is not sound. I end the paper showing the limits of Stanley and Williamson's attack, suggesting how the extraneous elements Stanley and Williamson introduce already bias the discussion against Ryle. The main aim is not to defend a form of Ryle's regress but rather advocate the need for a deeper discussion of Ryle's views of mind and action when discussing his views on know-how.
Creative Abduction, Factor Analysis, and the Causes of Liberal Democracy
Authors: Glymour Clark
Published: September 2022

The ultimate focus of the current essay is on methods of "creative abduction" that have some guarantees as reliable guides to the truth, and those that do not. Emphasizing work by Richard Englehart using data from the World Values Survey, Gerhard Schurz has analyzed literature surrounding Samuel Huntington's well-known claims that civilization is divided into eight contending traditions, some of which resist "modernization" - democracy, civil rights, equality of rights of women and minorities, secularism. Schurz suggests an evolutionary model of modernization and identifies opposing social forces. In a later essay, citing Englehart's work as an example, Schurz identifies factor analysis as an example of "creative abduction". The theories of Englehart and his collaborators are reviewed again in the current essay. Published simulations and standard statistical desiderata for causal inference show the methods Englehart used, factor analysis in particular, are not guides to truth for the kind of data Schurz recognizes as common in political science. Recent work in statistics, philosophy and computer science that makes advances towards such methods is briefly reviewed