FOLLOW THESE 10 POINTS BEFORE YOU SUMBIT YOUR FINAL DRAFTS TO ME

take a moment to look at your draft and see if you are missing any of these points. if so, FIX IT ASAP!

1. look at the first two thesis and counter paragraphs. make sure you have at least four sentences. two declarative sentences for point 1 and point 2 and two explanatory sentences following each point. if you don't have that FIX IT. make sure the explanatory sentences are not begging the question on the first sentences.

2. check that thesis paragraphs 3rd and 5th open up with the exactly what you're saying in points 1 and 2, VERBATIM! the same goes for the counter 4th  and 6th paragraphs.

3. check that the ratio of argument/quote is 70%/30%. I fail a paragraph that has more quote than argument. PARAPHRASE THE QUOTE IN YOUR WORDS!   

4. go over the draft, if you find ANY FACTOID in your draft NOT SOURCED with an in-text citation, FIX IT. all factoids must be properly outsourced!

5. make sure you have a dedicated bibliography with at least four different sources. if internet source, please provide last day of revision in parenthesis.

6.  CHECK PARAGRAPH 7. DID IT WIN THE ARGUMENT AGAINST THE COUNTER'S LAST POINT ON PARAGRAPH 6? THIS IS AN IMPORTANT POINT SINCE IT WINS THE PAPER FOR THE THESIS.

7. observe all the proper formal requirements. STAPLED DRAFTS, I take points if you don't. New Roman p. 12, name, class up, left hand side. title bold.

8. look at the counter paragraphs, are they thinner than your thesis paragraphs. GO FIX IT! ADD MORE MEANINGFUL MATERIAL SO BOTH THESIS AND COUNTER PARAGRAPHS ARE COMPARABLE. 

9. COLLOQUIALISMS, SLANG, FLORID SENTENCES, ARE ALL SIGNS OF POOR RESEARCH! BE CLEAR! 

9. CHECK FOR GRAMMAR AND SPELLING BEFORE YOU SUBMIT YOUR DRAFT TO ME.

10. read the draft OUTLOUD TO YOUR FRIENDS! 

 GOOD LUCK!

topics for the final exam (regular phi2010 classes)

click here for the anthropological/evolutionary argument for religion,
click here for my notes on mysticism,
click here for shamanism and religion,
click here for faith vs. reason,
click here for proofs for the existence of God,
click here for my lecture on theodicies (good and evil),

facts and america

click here for more information,

for the disaffected, exasperated and dissapointed

here is a good piece of advice from a radical anarchist,

political philosophy

click here for more information,

kant's second formulation

click here for more information,

my notes to kantian ethics

click here for more information,

FINAL EXAMS SCHEDULE

MWF 10 am class: DEC 19
MWF 11 am class: DEC 21
TR 9:50am class:  DEC 18
TR 11:15am class: DEC 20
T 5:40pm class:     DEC 18

act and rule utilitarianism

click here for more information,

ethical egoism (pros and cons)

click here for more information,

SECOND DRAFT IN CLASS PEER REVIEW

for more information click here,

boyfriend and grilfriend discuss moral norms

this is fun, click here for more information,

section 5.1 objectivism, subjectivism and relativism

click here for more information,

phi 2604 fall 2019 (final paper samples)

sample #1

sample #2

sample #3

shamanism & religion

why is the shaman so important?

the shaman brings three fundamental things to the group: healing, meaning & divination.

1. shamanism originated prior to the great human diaspora some 80,000 years ago and has been preserved since. shamanistic practices keep coming back countless times in premodern human cultures.

2. early homo sapiens does not differentiate between the material and mental. early homo sapiens was ANIMISTIC in its interpretation of reality. that is, to say, all objects, places and creatures possess a distinct spiritual essence. everything IS CONNECTED! 

3. the shaman is the interface between the spiritual and the material world.

shamanism works both mentally and physically as a source of meaning for the tribe. shamans are the early prophets, providing cohesion through spiritual awareness. 

shamans are the early doctors, early botanists, gathering medicinal knowledge and healing practices by natural selection. the shaman is the group's shrink! they knew the soil medicinal properties (what today is known as fangotherapy, i.e., clay, peat and mud), which are known to help neurological, rheumatological, cardiovascular, gynecological, inflammatory and menstrual cycle disorders.

WE NEED MEANING AND WE GIVE MEANING, but anthropologically speaking, OUR MEANINGS TEND TO CONVERGE!

WHY? one hypothesis proposed by Karl Jung is that culture's archetypes are innate, universal prototypes for concepts to interpret observations of the world.

MEANING is part epistemic, part psychological, part magic (magic in the sense of preternatural). WE INVEST the world with meaning as a way of creating and reshaping our milieu. 

4. shamans's job is to offer redemption. it means forgiveness and hope. why? we need to channel our destructive energy and the shaman and the elders are the right conduit.

5. one last point: the shaman is always in tension with the elders. the two have different interests: elders are conservative, they seek stability. the shaman is a healer/seer.

final paper (monday 5:40pm class) fall 2019

dear class: this paper takes the form of how phi 2604 has changed me

1. pick a chapter or topic you really like. it could be from anything we've discussed in class.
2. this is a personal exercise in the sense that this is you and philosophy.
3. bring your own personal history here: what this topic means for you, how has it made you think and changed your thinking, or even how much you disagreed only to agree with it later.
4. once you have gathered all this information, write a two moment description with you as the protagonist.

click here for samples of phi 2604 drafts,

this paper is due the date of the final exam, we'll talk next week about the format of it as well as refine ideas. Ok?     

Math haters, rewire your brains!

Click here for more information,

what is character?

according to Aristotle, character is what you do. 

on the other hand, character is a process which emerges from the different notes of your personality. the sum of these behavioral notes are evaluated by witnesses in response to a diversity of relevant note-eliciting conditions.

1. it's clear that character happens in time. thus,

2.  you (the subject) cannot fully grasp your character, only behavioral notes apprehended by witness' testimonies of your character.

3. the person grasping these notes is a witness. you (the subject) and your witness belong in a context.

4. since contexts always change, different witnesses obtain different character notes.

Remember:

A person's character consists of traits (notes) in response to external stimuli. These notes are:

1- public, objective,
2- negotiable, based on stimulus response.
3- your character is different to different witnesses because of the specific contexts causing the different notes.
4- character may change, but since it reflects behavioral attitudes it changes very slowly.

SEEK TRANQUILITY

Z generation people are super angsty these days:

fear of uncertainty,
of war,
of climate change,
of economic crisis,
of being being stereotyped,
of your girlfriend (boyfriend) cheating,
of taking risks,

chances are you're a victim of CONFIRMATION BIAS. it happens this way: 1. you already presume there's pending doom. then, 2. you watch the news or talk to other millennials and 3. BINGO! your worst fears are confirmed!

heed the skeptic's advice: ATARAXIA. practice it and your preoccupations will vanish.

why is INNER PEACE so important? because you have more time and energy to focus on things that really matter TO YOU.

iF YOU'VE ALREADY HAD A MAKEUP IN MY OFFICE, DO NOT MISS THIS TEST

be advised that if you have had a makeup in my office and you happen to miss your test this week YOU WON'T BE GIVEN A CHANCE FOR A MAKEUP AND AUTOMATICALLY FAIL THE CLASS. this point is irrevocable!!

Aristotle's virtue morality

The main attraction of Aristotle’s ethics is the way it encourages human flourishing. 

Aristotle’s ethics is largely concerned with what promotes human flourishing and leads to a fuller and happier human life. 

The Greek word for happiness is eudaimonia, which can be translated as ‘‘flourishing’’ or ‘‘well-being.’’

Virtues are excellences of character that promote human flourishing. 
Vices are those weaknesses of character that impede flourishing.

Aristotle tells us that virtue is a disposition or habit. We are not born with virtues. They are not natural or inborn. Virtues are acquired through practice. 

A virtue is an admirable human quality, marked by a disposition to behave in certain ways in certain circumstances. 

Acting, feeling: Virtue is an admirable human quality. Yet, virtue is not simply a matter of acting in a particular way; it is also a question of feeling in certain ways. Virtue includes emotion as well as action. The compassionate person not only acts in certain ways that help alleviate the suffering of others but also has certain kinds of feelings toward their suffering. 

Intellectual and moral virtues: Intellectual virtues are dispositions, such as wisdom and understanding, which help discover truth. Moral virtues are dispositions such as courage, temperance, friendliness, justice, etc.

Intellectual virtues can be thought, moral virtues ARE NOT TAUGHT, they need to be practiced. They help us avoid moral problems but more importantly, they help our moral balance (since generally a poor action is a manifestation of defect or excess).

The highest good, the highest aim of all human practical thinking, is eudaimonia. This is what makes a virtuous character possible. Aristotle describes a sequence of necessary steps: 

1- Righteous actions (under the influence of teachers) allow the development of the right habits. see that a habit is the repetition of an action. 
2- Right habits allow the development of a good character in which the habits are automatic, and this in turn gives a chance of achieving eudaimonia. 

once again: one cannot have good character without good habits. to have good habits one has to repeat individual actions until they become automatic. ONLY THEN ONE CAN FEEL THE HABIT.


Theory of the GOLDEN MEAN (between excess and defect)

                                         defect          golden mean        excess 
fear and confidence     cowardice           courage            rashness
engagement                  apathy                gentleness        short temper
handling wealth            stinginess           generosity         extravagance
social conduct               grouchiness        friendly            flattery
conversation                 boorish                witty                 buffoonery
honesty                       self deprecation   truthfulness         boastful
self-expression              insensibility     self-control         debauchery

click here for my notes on character.

different types of causation (plus correlation not leading to causation)

Let's start with different possibilities of causation:

*A causes B (direct causation). 

The pool stick striking the billiard ball causing it to jump. 

*B causes A (reverse causation). 

The correlation between recreational drug use and psychiatric disorders. Perhaps the drugs cause the disorders, or else, people use drugs to self medicate for preexisting conditions, which brings causes the disorder. 

Children that watch a lot of TV are the most violent. Clearly, TV makes children more violent. 

This could easily be the other way round; that is, violent children like watching more TV than less violent ones!       

*A and B are consequences of a common cause, but do not cause each other. 

Example (from psychology): The relationship between anxiety and shyness shows a statistical value (strength of correlation) of +.59. Therefore, it may be concluded that shyness, causally speaking, influences anxiety.

Yet, there is a catch, the so-called "self-consciousness score", with a sharper correlation (+.73) where  shyness brings up a possible "third variable" known as "self-consciousness". So now we have shyness, anxiety and self-consciousness together. When three such closely related measures are found, it suggests that each may be a cluster of correlated values each influencing one another to some extent. 

So, the first conclusion above (in gray) is false.

*A and B both cause C, 

In the case of COVID 19, a person with a preexisting condition. John gets Covid, but he's 76 years old, and has a heart condition. 

Is COVID a direct cause of death? 

Before we answer let's keep in mind these 4 conditions: 

1. COVID must precede John's death (IT DOES), 

2. It's nearly impossible for COVID being there and John not dying (FALSE, John could survive the COVID and his existing heart failure and not die). At this point the answer is already NO, because we need the four conditions together, but revise the last two:

3. the cause must make a difference (IT DOES to some extent). 

4. there is no common cause (AND HERE THERE IS: the heart condition!). 

So, this shows clearly that COVID IS CANNOT BE THE DIRECT CAUSE OF DEATH.

 

*A causes B and B causes A (bidirectional or cyclic causation). 

In predator-prey relationship, predator numbers affect prey numbers, but prey numbers (i.e. food supply of predators) also affect predator numbers.

*A causes C which causes B (indirect causation); 

Ishmael hits Ahab with his car. Ahab is rushed to the hospital and is sent into surgery. During the course of the operation, the surgeon is careless and causes Ahab more injuries. 

*There is no connection between A and B (the correlation is a coincidence). 

See the two curves in the chart above (consumption of margarine and the divorce rate in Maine over 10-year period). As if Americans' fondness for margarine correlated with the divorce rate in Maine. This is an instance of two unrelated data sets showing a coincidental pattern.

* Confounding (in statistics:  A situation where one or more unrecognized variables (conditions or events) were responsible for some effect. This could give the faulty impression that the effect was due to something else. Confounding often occurs when researchers did not “control” for the possibility that other variables were or could be at work. 

Example:  The estimated risk ratio for CVD (cardiovascular diseases) in obese as compared to non-obese persons is RR = 0.153/0.86 = 1.79, suggesting that obese persons are 1.79 times as likely to develop CVD compared to non-obese persons. 

However, it is well known that the risk of CVD also increases with age. Could any (or all) of the apparent association between obesity and incident CVD be attributable to age? If the obese group in our sample is older than the non-obese group, then all or part of the increased CVD risk in obese persons could possibly due to the increase in age rather than their obesity. If age is another risk factor for CVD, and if obese and non-obese persons differ in age, then our estimate of the association between obesity and CVD will be overestimated, because of the additional burden of being older. Thus, age meets the definition of a confounder (i.e., it is associated with the primary risk factor(obesity) and the outcome (CVD). In fact, in this data set, subjects who were 50+ were more likely to be obese (200/400 = 0.500) as compared to subjects younger than (100/600=0.167), as demonstrated by the table below.   

Correlation: A mutual relationship or connection between two variables. When there is a positive correlation, an increase in one variable is associated with an increase in the other. (For instance, scientists might correlate an increase in time spent watching TV with an increase in risk of obesity.) Where there is an inverse correlation, an increase in one value is associated with a decrease in the other. (Scientists might correlate an increase in TV watching with a decrease in time spent exercising each week.) A correlation between two variables does not necessarily mean one is causing the other. is not sufficient for causation.

The identity of history

click here for more information,

Personal identity, Sartre's lemma, narrative and moral responsibility (Section 4.3)

What really is personal identity? Sartre's lemma.

Narrative and personal identity.

Character, personal identity and moral responsibility.

Section 4.1 and Section 4.2 (with diagrams)

click here for more information, 

homo economicus from political economy to anthropology to game theory

Political economy is concerned with man solely as a being who desires to possess wealth, and who is capable of judging the comparative efficacy of means for obtaining that end.-- John Stuart Mill. The Investigation of Political Economy.

Bartering:

Bartering is a form of exchange. Exchange is to technology as sex is to evolution. It stimulates novelty.

Bartering begins in the late paleolithic, about 50,000 years ago. It happens by necessity out of the division of labor, already in the neolithic, when individuals begin to specialize in specific crafts and hence depend on others for subsistence goods. Specialization depends on trade, but it becomes hindered by the double coincidence of wants (each participant must want what the other has). To supersede this tension, money (as exchange value) appears.  

Money, as a universal standard of exchange, allows each half of the transaction to be separated.

Game theory:

Homo economicus is a rational maximizer of utility (as consumer and as producer). The idea is to think of social interactions as an open field of outcomes, from which they choose that course of action which will result in the best possible result.

Very quickly Homo economicus learns that they cannot succeed unless they MAXIMIZE THE FIELD WITH INVESTMENTS TOWARD FUTURE PROFIT. This is beautifully presented in old saying:

YOU REAP WHAT YOU SOW.

1. Homo economicus realizes that exchange keeps society together, founded on a basic disposition called HUMAN INTEREST. Humans want to have, to prosper, to enjoy, TO BE HAPPY.
2. Thus, my utility is linked to the perceived utility of others in this order: 1. my wife, my children, my friends, my people.

So, homo economicus is compatible with homo reciprocans (which emphasizes human cooperation).
there is no HOMO RECIPROCANS WITHOUT HOMO ECONOMICUS.
 
Value/Exchange:

There is no homo economicus without exchange, & that exchange is called MONEY.

MONEY IS A FORM OF COMMUNICATION. As such it has stood the test of millennia transcending borders and barriers. MONEY is the very foundation of society because this is what makes societies run.

When we cooperate, we are doing work, i.e., producing value and in all our contributions and interactions, we have exchanges of this value.

As societies increases in complexity, value continues to abstract in order to lower the "friction of exchange." VALUE IS INTER SUBJECTIVE and come in many forms, but MONEY is an objective tool that gives us an opportunity to represent/quantify it.

From spices, cattle, sugar, salt, etc, we move to initial abstractions like shells, to better abstractions, like metals, such as bronze, then silver then gold. About 3000–5000 yrs ago, we enter a period of stage 2, abstractions, where TRUST is introduced (homo economicus had incrementally learned and internalized to keep their promises) to help facilitate better transactions and exchange.

Now coins are created with the stamp of approval of the sovereign. This model developed very slowly over millennia: multiple barter, gold, hyper inflationary coinage, until the next major abstraction; i.e, paper or promissory notes. It was developed by the Florentine banking families during the Renaissance (it was easier to carry a note that promised the redemption of an amount of gold, than having to carry the gold around).

Anthropology:

Without trade, innovation just does not happen. Exchange is to technology as sex is to evolution. It stimulates novelty. The remarkable thing about the moderns of west Asia is not so much the diversity of artifacts as the continual innovation. There is more invention between 80,000 and 20,000 years ago than there had been in the previous million. By today’s standards, it was very slow, but by the standards of Homo erectus it was lightning-fast. And the next ten millennia would see still more innovations: fish hooks, all sorts of implements, domesticated wolves, wheat, figs, sheep, money.

are elephants persons?

click here for more information,

why anomaly detection/suspension?

a graph or a Wiener process in 3D

In epistemology:

* Suspension of judgment is used in civil law to indicate a court's decision to nullify a civil judgment.

* Suspension of judgment is a cornerstone of standard research methodology. Much of the scientific method is designed to encourage the suspension of judgments until observations can be made, tested, and verified through peer review.

* Cartesian Suspension of judgment is used in philosophy in order to gain a solid foundation when building one's system of knowledge.

* Suspension in Positivism: It's the suspensions of "final answers" in scientific research. The idea that all human knowledge keeps approaching a limit without ever reaching it.

Formula for stochastic processes:

philosophy paper, second assignment

click here for more information....

chapter 3, ethics lecures

Ethics is the study of moral norms.

Moral norms are based on human actions (or behaviors) of fundamental consequence for human welfare. And here we make a distinction between morality and etiquette. Etiquette is quasi-moral. Ex: An old lady standing in a full bus is given a seat by a young man (or a young woman). In the elevator, a mature man holds the door for the women and children and younger men.

In Ethics we make moral judgments, for example: "slavery is wrong". These judgments come from moral norms and facts. So, 

moral judgments ~ moral norms + "moral facts"

Cultural relativism: The doctrine that what makes an action right is that it's approved by that culture. Counterarguments: 1- The impossibility for moral disagreements and 2- Cultures are not that different at a deeper level. One can point to differences between "deep" values (moral values, i.e., human behavior of fundamental consequence for human welfare) and "superficial" values (domestic habits, etiquette, fashion, etc) other cultural values to the effect that most cultures seem to share the same deep moral values.

Logical Structure of Moral Arguments: mj ≈ mn + "facts" (this is not a formula, just an approximation). 

Moral facts are "soft."  It means a belief held by factual evidence (for example, child abuse is wrong because of the facts we know about psychology, human rights, child development, etc).

Are there universal moral principles? YES. 

We could point to at least two: 1- Principle of mercy (Unnecessary suffering is wrong) 2- Principle of justice (Treat equals equally).


1. Difference between Consequentialist theories and Formalist theories.

Consequentialism is the theory that judges the rightness or wrongness of an action in terms of its consequences. 

Formalism is the theory that judges the rightness or wrongness of an action in terms of the action's form (i.e., "killing is wrong": the formalist believes that moral actions are objective).

 2. Intrinsic value (value for its own sake; personhood is an essential value: a-reason, b-autonomy, c-sentience, d-freedom).

Instrumental values (value for the sake of something else), for example, being a clean person.

3. Hedonism: What makes an action right is that it maximizes pleasure and minimizes pain. 

Click here for my lecture on hedonism. 

4. Ethical egoism: What makes an action right is that it promotes one's best interest. This is equivalent to a calculus of prudence. 

Click here for my notes on Ethical Egoism.

Psychological Egoism: We are all egoists. 

No matter how we try to present rebuttals to egoism, the truth is that we are always deep down motivated by what we perceive to be in our own self-interest. 

Psychological egoism is attributed to Thomas Hobbes (1651) and Jeremy Bentham (1781). Psychological egoism can be seen as a background assumption of several other disciplines, such as psychology and economics. Recently, some biologists have suggested that the thesis can be supported or rejected directly based on evolutionary theory or work in sociobiology.

Example: Suppose, that Pam saves Jim from a burning office building. What ultimately motivated her to do this?  The altruist claims that Pam's risking her life in the process, shows she did it for Jim's sake. But the psychological egoist holds that Pam’s apparently altruistic act is ultimately motivated by the goal to benefit herself, whether she is aware of this or not. Pam might have wanted to gain a good feeling from being a hero, or to avoid the backlash that would follow had she not helped Jim. 

 4. Act Utilitarianism (or Traditional utilitarianism): 

What makes an action right is that it maximizes happiness everyone considered (remember this is only a particular milieu: family, class, Miami, Florida, the USA). 

C/A (a) McCloskey’s informant (problems with rights) (b) Brandt’s Heir (problems with duties), (c) Goodwin's Fire Rescue (problems with duties), (e) Ross Unhappy promise (problems with duties) (6) Ewing's Utilitarian torture (problems with justice).

Click here for my notes on utilitarianism

Moral Traditionalism: an act is right if it's supported by my traditions.

 

Click here for my notes on moral traditionalism.

 

5. KANT'S FORMALISM

Formalism is the theory that an action is right because of the action's form. For example, "killing is wrong." 

"Why wrong?" You may ask. Well, because of the form of the action. What form? 

What makes the action wrong is the action itself. 

KANT'S CATEGORICAL IMPERATIVE

What makes an action right is that everyone can act on it (which yields universalizability), and you'd have everyone acting on it. 

This means: Do unto others as you would have others do unto you.

What are duties? Obligations one has by one's embeddedness in society. There are two kinds: 

Perfect duty: A duty that must always be performed no matter what. 

Imperfect duty: They are left to our choice. For example: Personal hygiene. 

Click here for my notes on Kantian ethics.

KANT'S SECOND FORMULATION 

TREAT PEOPLE AS ENDS, NEVER MERELY AS MEANS TO AN END. 

Counterargument: The problem with Kantian theory is the problem of exceptions to the rule. Should I keep a promise even if it puts someone's life in danger? Then, sometimes, we have to treat people as means to ends.

Here are my notes on Kant's second formulation.

6. Aristotle's virtue morality, the study of character.

Click here for my notes on Aristotle's virtue morality.

new review sessions for exam #2!

Thomas Jauregui and Sebastian Garcia from (MWF 11am class) are offering a review session this Wednesday (the 24th) at 12 noon and Thursday (the 25th) at 1:30 @ the Wolfson Library. More details to follow. All classes are invited!

UPDATE: Shannon Larson and Brian Gracia (from T,R 11:15am) are joining forces tomorrow Wednesday (the 24th), at 12pm, at the Wolfson Library.  

it's time for the philosophy paper's first draft!

You already constructed four paragraphs. ALL YOU NEED TO DO NOW IS TO ADD 3 MORE + A CONCLUSION.  
___________________

Here is a paper sample. These two thesis and counter paragraphs are the most important. Please, follow this sample. See how her draft has a short clear thesis divided into three points,  yours is only two points: first point, explanation, second point, explanation, 

Next, comes the counter paragraph. Do the same thing. The paragraph starts with "prohibitionists disagree," so the reader clearly understand "who is talking." Same strategy. 1st point, explanation. second point, explanation and so on... 

see the body of both paragraphs above, she discusses and includes sources (with in-text citations).

Don't forget to include your bibliography (we're following MLA protocol).

Here you have 3 different conclusion samples, taken from recent philosophy papers. 

epistemology's main characters

Here's an interesting video.

belief: a mental state of acceptance. 

suspension of belief: You neither accept nor reject a belief (the skeptic's position)

justification: the reasons for believing (not all reasons for believing are necessarily reasonable; we'll talk about that).

explanation: Explaining means describing what IS. 

truth: truth is a fact. a fact IS (you don't need to prove it). 

Examples: "1+1=2," a mathematical fact; "H20 is water," a chemical fact; "slavery is wrong," a moral fact, 

What do we do if we don't have the facts? We look for alternative definitions. 

pragmatic definition of truth: Truth is what best does the job at hand. meaning if it works, it's likely true. 

coherence definition of truth: Truth is what coheres with the rest of our knowledge.

Why is H304 a good class? 

Justification: H304's room is inviting, the professor is animated, and the class is well-behaved.

Explanation: H304 is a good glass because the room has six windows providing good lighting, and the furniture is comfortable and spaciously ordered.   

lessons in emergence (section 2.5)

wolves changing rivers...

this is a cute one! (stupid things become smart together)

sorry, we don't do much, entropy does it for us, (learn this lesson for politics)

how stars are born,

emergentism in the philosophy of mind (obliged reading)

read p. 150 of chapter 2, to get an idea of emergence. then, you can understand the statement: the mind is an emergent property of the brain.

List of student assistants (SAs) for all Phi 2010 classes: THANKS!

MWF 10am
Christelle Cyprian
Nikita Mikhaylov
Pabel Torres

MWF 11am
Sebastian Garcia
Thomas Jauregui
Kristen Venuto

TR 9:50am
Alexanda Kremer
Shirley Kedo
Fernando Bravo
Nneka Ekwensi

TR 11:l5am

Shannon Larson
Andres Gracia

T 5:40 pm
Ilan Bitoun

how to conquer your math phobia!

We're going to conquer MATH ^PHOBIA^. 

Remember matphobia is a behavior. You do it, it's in your mind.  Why? You're afraid. 

What to do? You have to develop a counter disposition that ends up winning. A new math disposition. And it requires that you re-wire your math-rejecting brain into a math-proficient brain.

First: Get yourself a decent tutor. Do you have to pay? It's worth it

 
HOW TO DEVELOP A MATH-PROFICIENT BRAIN

1. Work always from the easy to the difficult. Never jump to a new topic without understanding the previous one.  Math understanding is cumulative. 

2. If you don't get it, take a break. Start all over. Don't ever throw the towel.
3. Do math little by little. DON'T RUSH. 
4. Practice makes perfect. Move from easy to medium to difficult. Work, work, work. 

5. Develop a relationship with your math teacher. Go to her office. Show her that you want to grow your skills. Ask her questions (teachers love a committed student). 

Identify your math weaknesses: Fractions? algebra? analytic geometry? trigonometry? Revise your knowledge. Take it from the beginning. Word problems? Take it from the easy to the difficult. Don't quit.

Here is a good link to improve your math skills,

This is a pretty good video.

college achievement in math and science for latinos & blacks

Dear class, thanks for an interesting class discussion. Remember, the points we discussed pertain a specific position known as Hard Determinism. What's at stake here is free will. Hard Determinism declares that what people do is caused by previous entrenched dispositions (i.e., cultural, social, psychological, etc).

click here for the study of the graph (above),

Academic preparation and racial disparities in K-12 education clearly play a role in who graduates from college. Also the report argues "lack of resources at open-access colleges is one of the main causes of high dropout rates…among less advantaged students, including less advantaged Latino students" (according to the link above).

click here for more information,

Of the total population of students who passed Algebra I in Grade 8 (2015-1016), 64% were white, 17% were Latino, 9% were black (according to the link above).

declining numbers of blacks in math and science,

Black people are 12% US population and 11% of all students beyond high school. In 2009, they received just 7% percent of all STEM bachelor's degrees, 4% percent of master's degrees, and 2% percent of PhDs, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. From community college through PhD level, the percentage of STEM degrees received by blacks in 2009 was 7.5 percent, down from 8.1 percent in 200 (according to the link above).

what is a synapse? (the most basic brain state)

click here for more information.

homework, chapter 5

1. what is the problem of free will,
2. define hard determinism.
3. what is compatibilism? explain traditional compatibilism.
4. what is libertarianism?
5. what is sartre's "profound freedom"?

chapter 6 summary (monday 5:40pm class)

a brief history of epistemology, 
epistemology's main characters, 
homework for chapter 6,  (based on my notes)

what is the mind? finally!

Functionalism: MS ↔ FS When two things perform the same function, they are said to have the same “causal role.” Functionalism claims that THE MIND IS WHAT THE BRAIN DOES.

If a robot and a human can perform the same task (same causal role), they are said to be in the same state of mind. Something else about functionalism is that mental states can cause other mental states, i.e., if you see your boyfriend cheating (input), the following mental states may occur (outputs): 1- shock, 2- jealousy, 3- bitterness, (even vengeance).

Counterexamples to Functionalism:   

Putnam's inverted spectrum case:  Imagine an individual is born with an inverted color spectrum. What is red she sees green and vice-versa. Then she learns how to tell the difference. She grows up and gets her driver's license. If you asked her: “What color is the top light of the traffic light? She would say RED (she sees it GREEN). Her visual experience (the qualitative content - the feel IS VERY DIFFERENT FROM THE REST OF US). This proves that not every time we are in a functional state (STOPPING AT A RED LIGHT) we are in the same MENTAL STATE. 

Lewis' mad man experiment: A person feels a headache but instead of going "ouch" (the function of pain) he studies calculus. Here he's in the same mental state normal people are, but in a different functional state. This proves one can be in a mental state and not in the same functional state.


TURING TEST FOR INTELLIGENCE: Imitation game. There is a man (A) and a woman (B) and an interrogator (C) who may be of either sex. → The object of the game is for the interrogator to determine which of the two is the man and which is the woman. → It is A’s object in the game to try to cause C to make the wrong identification. The object for the game of B is to help the interrogator.
For Turing there’s nothing more to being intelligent than being able to use language as we do. WHICH MEANS… If a computer is able to do this, then it is smart.

WHAT DO WE LEARN? MENTAL STATES ARE NOT REDUCIBLE TO BEHAVIORAL STATES, TO BRAIN STATES, TO FUNCTIONAL STATES. MENTAL STATES ARE IRREDUCIBLE. WE CALL PROPERTY OF MENTAL STATES A PRIMITIVE PROPERTY.
 
INTENTIONALITY IS A PRIMITIVE PROPERTY, it's the “ABOUTNESS” of a thought. Without intentionality our life would be completely mechanical. 

A SYNONYM FOR INTENTIONALITY IS QUALIA, i.e., the unique private subjectifve "feel" of our mental states. 

here's my analysis of the mind as SYSTEMIC PROPERTY OF THE BRAIN. 

this is a sketch of a systemic model for the mind (going up emergence, going down supervinience)

emergent property → is a property which is caused by things that lack that property & interact in certain ways. IN SISTEMS THE WHOLE IS BIGGER THAN THE PARTS. The emergent property arises when all parts are put together. ● The mind is emergent upon and caused by brain activity. EX: Love at first sight. ● Life is an emergent property. ● HURRICANES (wind-rain-destruction) ← ALL of these variables MUST happen in order for the emergent property to arise.

click here for examples of emergent properties,

Downward causation → Downward causation is used to explain the effect of the environment on biological evolution. It suggests the causal relationship between the HIGHER levels of a system to LOWER levels of that system. For example: mental events causes physical events. There is a two-way interaction between consciousness and the brain: Consciousness determines the succession of nerve impulses, and nerve impulses determine the content of consciousness.

click here for a better understanding of the brain-systemic-model for the mind,

section 2.5 (what is the mind?)

click here for more information.

chapter 1 summary (monday 5:40pm class)

click here, homework chapter 1 
click here, fallacies,
click here, deductive and inductive arguments
click here, necessary and sufficient conditions,
click here, the presocratics,
click here, branches of philosophy,
click here, (office hours)

homework, chapter 1 (monday 5:40pm class)

click here for more information,

homework, chapter 1 (monday 5:40pm class)

1. what is the philosophical method?
2. what does Socrates mean by "examined" life?
3. a) what's a premise? b) what's a conclusion? c) what's an argument?
4. when is an argument deductive?
5. what's an inductive argument?
6. when is a deductive argument valid?
7. when is an inductive argument strong?
8. revise the points on pages 30-32
9. what's a fallacy? 

Here is the latest as per our Philosophy Club

Malena Arriola, president,
Rachel Apply, vice president, 
Ariel Trawick, treasurer, 
Anna Righini, secretary,  
Sophie Leutenegger, event planner,

philosophy paper sample (first assignment, due in a week)

click here for more information for your philosophy paper sample.

topics for your philosophy paper

click here for the topics of your philosophy paper.

my legend for the revision of your first assignment

our ideas about the world need to be informed by FACTS about the world (10 much discussed points)

our views of the world need to be informed. to be informed one has to inform one's views from all angles. statistics help. there are armies of experts tabulating information. now, reliability in statistics, like in any other factual endeavor is a matter of sedimentation (i.e., obtaining information that validates the result over time). so, here are 10 random samples:

1. in the discussion of marijuana, my students are generally pro legalization. are they aware that the marijuana today is quite different from the "pot" of the flower generation? here is the study. 

2. in the discussion about family roles of men & women, one needs to know how society presents itself. this study will surprise you. 

3. 43% of women leave the workforce after having children. that's the number, now, let's not jump into conclusions.

4. take the pareto distribution rule to explain why 20% of the population basically is basically richer than the remaining 80% (no matter what you try to do to change it).

5. latino college students are falling behind whites and blacks,

6. i'm not kidding when i say absenteeism and academic productivity are directly proportional?

7. millennials are reading more than the previous generation: GOOD,

8. as per our political inclinations... (read carefully),

9.  minorities resent one another as much as they do whites (1996 poll), 

10. as per immigration (80% close the border, 70% end chain migration),

a brief history of epistemology

click here for more information.

Whatever happens is perfect

dead British soldiers at the battle of Fromelles, 1916

you've heard me saying "whatever happens is perfect". here's why:

* in actuality (as something happens) global cause and effect cannot be undone.
* in actuality (as something occurs) global agent decisions cannot be undone.
* once something happens there are sufficient reasons for it to happen. 

a) as per history:

* history is one big glunk (the whole history is one big history of little histories), 

yet,
* history is not the summation of all events (since not all events are, or will be recorded in history), 
* history is not in time, since time is not a bucket/container of anything, 

rather,
* time is a mode of being of reality: time is the becoming of reality. 

as a result,
* from the future we cannot cherry-pick globally (while ignoring local regions),

b) as per necessity:

* whatever happens necessarily happens (otherwise SOMETHING ELSE would happen),
* what happens supervenes on the agents contributing the diverse processes including the agents themselves,

c) we get a distorted view of the past through PRESENTISM:

* presentism is the distortion that the present is normatively better than the past,
* the past cannot be retrofitted into a principle of satisfaction: it is what it is,
* the past can only be understood as IT WAS, not as a subjunctive modality ("it should've been" this or that). 
* to understand the past ONE HAS TO GO TO THE PAST, rather than bring the past to the present.

thanks,

Topics for final exam (monday 5:40pm class) fall 2019

click here for the anthropological/evolutionary argument for religion,
click here for my notes on mysticism,
click here for shamanism and religion,
click here for faith vs. reason,
click here for proofs for the existence of God and Plantinga's theodicy,
click here for the final paper criteria and specifications, 

via Ariel (from MWF 11am class) a nice video of professor Brian Greene explaining string theory (4 those who have decided to take physics w/o calculus next semester)

click here for the TED talk,

famous mind experiments!

click here for more information,

Scientific Theories, Laws and Criteria of Adequacy

A scientific theory is a system of explanations of aspects of the natural world whose parts should have been tested and verified in accordance with the scientific method, using accepted protocols of observation, measurement, and evaluation results. Where possible, theories are tested under controlled conditions in an experiment. Here are some examples:

* cell theory, (Biology)
* atomic theory, (Physics)
* Big Bang theory, (Physics)
* Plate tectonics, (Geology)

Are theories revised? YES. All the time. As new discoveries are made, the theory needs to be tweaked and revised. The reason is that theories have many different parts and the parts are put together by inferential conclusions.

The distinction between scientific theory & scientific law 

Scientific laws and scientific theories are produced from the scientific method through the formation and testing of hypotheses, in order to predict the natural world. Both are typically well-supported by observations and/or experimental evidence. Scientific laws are descriptive accounts of how nature will behave under certain conditions. Scientific theories are broader in scope, and give overarching explanations of how nature works and why it exhibits certain characteristics.

So, for example, Newton's Second Law, F = ma is a formula.

(It states that the acceleration of an object as produced by a force is directly proportional to the magnitude of the force, in the same direction as the force, and inversely proportional to the mass of the object).

This formula belongs in a body of theories known as Classical Mechanics. Classical mechanics, is a branch of Physics that describes the motion of macroscopic objects, from projectiles to parts of machinery, and astronomical objects, such as spacecraft, planets, stars and galaxies.

Whereas laws should obtain all the time, theories incorporate laws with the purpose of explaining more general phenomena. They both explain, but laws are simpler.

____________

We need good explanations. In order to achieve this, we need to create a criteria of adequacy. Here are five points:

● Simplicity → Quality of relying on only a small number of assumptions (less is more).
● Scope → The amount of diverse phenomena (more is more).
● Consistency/Coherence → Lack of contradictions. (especially internal contradictions)
● Fruitfulness → The number of new facts predicted or problems solved (ability to make predictions).
● Conservatism → Quality of fitting well with existing theories (previous conclusions).

some words of advice

click here to find out.

branches of philosophy

Philosophy: according to Socrates it is the pursuit of truth. There is only ONE truth. 

Metaphysics: which deals with the fundamental questions of reality.
Epistemology: which deals with our concept of knowledge, how we learn and what we can know. Logic: which studies correct reasoning, the rules of valid reasoning and argumentation.
Axiology: study of value, with two sub-branches:
Ethics: or moral philosophy, which is concerned with human values and how individuals should act. Aesthetics: deals with notions of "taste," beauty/ugly, good/bad, and the philosophy of art.

______

The Socratic Method: 

Philosophy is founded in the Socratic Method. The method consists in the pursuit of truth through a question-answer dialogue where propositions are methodically scrutinized in order to uncover the truth.

"i'm bored"... remember curiosity and perseverance?

check this article, now you go into the world and give advice to people,

the point I want to make to you is that variables are constantly exchanged all across our psycho-social axes. curiosity and perseverance are essential for self-control, which is essential for anger and weight control! 

blacks and latinos underrepresented in STEM careers

click here for more information,

Final exam Summer A & Summer B

Find your review here.

Click here for the link to your book.

Topics for exam #2 SUMMER B (miniterm)

Click here for topics to exam #2.

Click here for your textbook website.

 you should bring your own scantrons: #888-P or #882-E

Topics for Exam #3, SUMMER A (revised after our class)

Topics for review for Exam #3 on Chapter 4 are here.

Here is the link to your textbook. Do the tests for chapter 4.

If you have any questions, post them in this post. I'll try to get to them ASAP.

Why being a woman is more than being a woman (Summer A)

I wrote this post in my personal blog m.bourbaki thinking of you guys. You're more than welcome to leave a comment, in agreement or disagreement (leave your comment at the  m.bourbaki site).

Plagiarism & how to fight it (read carefully)

In order to finish your assignment quickly, you may feel tempted to just copy and paste info. It's so obvious; just underline the paragraph, copy and paste it. DON'T!

I will detect the copy and edited text and send it back immediately along with a warning. Save yourself the embarrassment.

How do I know it's not yours? It's a matter of style. Your writing (as good or bad as it may be) has a specific flavor. Writing reflects the way you think and talk, which is a well-known aspect of how syntax relates to semantics.  When one inserts notes and paragraphs here and there, even a not-so-clever writer is able to detect the disparateness within the whole thing. There is a new field of semiotics in plagiarism. 😂 

What is plagiarism? Using ideas, words, or a product without crediting the original source.
Passing off someone else's ideas, words, or product as your own.
Presenting as a new idea or product created by someone else.

More bluntly? Plagiarism is conceptual theft and goes against the US Copyright law and the USFSP Code of Conduct.

How can you avoid plagiarism? Just cite where you got your information.

As you research, keep track of the books, articles, and other resources you consult WHILE you do your research. This will save you time from having to track down where you originally found your information for your Reference List. For each source, keep a list of the following information:

For a Book
Author, Book Title, Place of Publication, Publisher, and Date of Publication 

For an Article
Author, Article Title, Journal Title, Volume Number, Issue Number, Page Numbers, Year of Publication, and the date of when you viewed the article

For a Webpage
Author, Web Page Title, the URL (website address), and the Date (when you viewed the webpage).