The Lucas-Penrose Argument about Gödel’s Theorem In 1961, J.R. Lucas published “Minds, Machines and Gödel,” in which he formulated a controversial anti-mechanism argument. The argument claims that Gödel’s first incompleteness theorem shows that the human mind is not a Turing machine, c'est, a computer. The argument has generated a great deal of discussion since then. The influential Computational Theory of Mind, which claims that the

Aristote: Motion Aristotle’s account of motion and its place in nature can be found in the Physics. By motion, Aristote (384-322 avant notre ère) understands any kind of change. He defines motion as the actuality of a potentiality. Initialement, Aristotle’s definition seems to involve a contradiction. Toutefois, commentators on the works of Aristotle, such as St. Thomas d'Aquin, maintain that this is the only way to define motion. In order

Artistic Medium Artistic medium is an art critical concept that first arose in 18th century European discourse about art. Medium analysis has historically attempted to identify that out of which works of art and, more generally, art forms are created, in order to better articulate norms or standards by which works of art and art forms can be evaluated. Since the 19th century, medium analysis has

Locke: Ethics The major writings of John Locke (1632–1704) are among the most important texts for understanding some of the central currents in epistemology, métaphysique, politique, religion, and pedagogy in the late 17th and early 18th century in Western Europe. His magnum opus, An Essay Concerning Human Understanding (1689) is the undeniable starting point for the study of empiricism in the early modern period. Locke’s

Paraconsistent Logic A paraconsistent logic is a way to reason about inconsistent information without lapsing into absurdity. In a non-paraconsistent logic, inconsistency explodes in the sense that if a contradiction obtains, then everything (everything!) else obtains, aussi. Someone reasoning with a paraconsistent logic can begin with inconsistent premises—say, a moral dilemma, a Kantian antinomy, or a semantic paradox—and still reach sensible conclusions, without completely exploding

Mou Zongsan (Mou Tsung-san) (1909—1995) Mou Zongsan (Mou Tsung-san) is a sophisticated and systematic example of a modern Chinese philosopher. A Chinese nationalist, he aimed to reinvigorate traditional Chinese philosophy through an encounter with Western (and especially German) philosophy and to restore it to a position of prestige in the world. En particulier, he engaged closely with Immanuel Kant’s three Critiques and attempted to show, pace