“私人语言论证”论证了什么?——维特根斯坦私人语言论证的一种简明解析

维特根斯坦在《哲学研究》第243节中首先设想了一种私人语言,并在随后的几节里,给出了一种独特的"私人语言论证"。这个论证历来被认为是维特根斯坦语言哲学中的要点和难点。对此论述很多。本文则基于对文本的解读,尝试给出一种关于维特根斯坦"私人语言论证"的简明解析,其要点有三:(1)首先划分出"私人语言"的两个要素,其次归纳出"私人语言论证"中的六种主要论证方式,最终得出:私人语言论证的关键在于对标准的探讨;(2)通过区分两种言语使用模式,表明私人语言论证揭示出了一种虚幻的言语使用模式——言语描述感觉模式;(3)通过对"因此"一词的考察,具体分析了维特根斯坦的论证策略,并给出了私人语言论证结构的两种相关解释。     

Non-Monotonic Set Theory as a Pragmatic Foundation of Mathematics

In this paper I propose a new approach to the foundation of mathematics: non-monotonic set theory. I present two completely different methods to develop set theories based on adaptive logics. For both theories there is a finitistic non-triviality proof and both theories contain (a subtle version of) the comprehension axiom schema. The first theory contains only a maximal selection of instances of the comprehension schema that do not lead to inconsistencies. The second allows for all the instances, also the inconsistent ones, but restricts the conclusions one can draw from them in order to avoid triviality. The theories have enough expressive power to form a justification/explication for most of the established results of classical mathematics. They are therefore not limited by Gödel’s incompleteness theorems. This remarkable result is possible because of the non-recursive character of the final proofs of theorems of non-monotonic theories. I shall argue that, precisely because of the computational complexity of these final proofs, we cannot claim that non-monotonic theories are ideal foundations for mathematics. Nevertheless, thanks to their strength, first order language and the recursive dynamic (defeasible) proofs of theorems of the theory, the non-monotonic theories form (what I call) interesting pragmatic foundations.     

Matter in Z3

In this paper, I will discuss a certain conception of matter that Aristotle introduces in Metaphysics Z3. It is often assumed that Aristotle came to distinguish between matter and form only in his physical writings, and that this lead to a conflict with the doctrine of primary substances in the Categories that he tries to resolve in Z3. I will argue that there is no such conflict. In Z3, Aristotle seems to suggest that matter is what is left over when we strip a thing of all its properties. I take it that he does not want us to strip away these properties by physical means or in our imagination. Rather, we are asked to strip a referring noun phrase of all its predicative parts. We are thus not supposed to be able to refer to something that has no qualities whatsoever, but to construct a phrase that refers to something that has properties without referring to its having them, and without implying which properties it has. The idea that there might be a way of referring to something definite without mentioning any of its qualities is platonic and it still underlies modern predicate logic. In Z3, Aristotle argues against this conception and thus against the basic idea of predicate logic. According to him, matter is at best an inseparable aspect of a primary substance, which substance is best referred to as a compound τóδε τι (“this such”). Matter is what the τóδε refers to as part of this phrase. But it cannot exist in separation from form, and we cannot refer to it by a separated term, without also referring to the substantial form of the substance of which it is an aspect.     

经济学术语模糊性下的翻译对策

模糊性是自然语言的一大本质特性，即使是需要精确意义的经济学术语，模糊表达依然存在。虽然人类的思维共性可以使操不同语言的人们理解诸多具有模糊性的概念，但由于思维方式和语言习惯的不同，在英汉转换中术语的模糊性可能会影响正确的理解。本文认为无论是以模糊译模糊，或变模糊为清晰，只要能使译文更符合汉语术语的规范，为目的语读者可接受，便是可行的翻译策略。     

A Realistic Look at Putnam's Argument Against Realism

Putnam's ``model-theoretic' argument against metaphysical realism presupposes that an ideal scientific theory is expressible in a first order language. The central aim of this paper is to show that Putnam's ``first orderization' of science, although unchallenged by numerous critics, makes his argument unsound even for adequate theories, never mind an ideal one. To this end, I will argue that quantitative theories, which dominate the natural sciences, can be adequately interpreted and evaluated only with the help of so-called theories of measurement whose epistemological and methodological purpose is to justify systematic assignments of quantitative values to objects in the world. And, in order to fulfill this purpose, theories of measurement must have an essentially higher order logical structure. As a result, Putnam's argument fails because much of science turns out to rest on essentially higher order theoretical assumptions about the world.     

The Unexpected Applicability of Paraconsistent Logic: A Chomskyan Route to Dialetheism

Paraconsistent logics are characterized by rejection of ex falso quodlibet, the principle of explosion, which states that from a contradiction, anything can be derived. Strikingly these logics have found a wide range of application, despite the misgivings of philosophers as prominent as Lewis and Putnam. Such applications, I will argue, are of significant philosophical interest. They suggest ways to employ these logics in philosophical and scientific theories. To this end I will sketch out a ‘naturalized semantic dialetheism’ following Priest’s early suggestion that the principles governing human natural language may well be inconsistent. There will be a significant deviation from Priest’s work, namely, the assumption of a broadly Chomskyan picture of semantics. This allows us to explain natural language inconsistency tolerance without commitment to contentious views in formal logic.     

Theories,theoretical models,truth

This paper was written with two aims in mind. A large part of it is just an exposition of Tarski's theory of truth. Philosophers do not agree on how Tarski's theory is related to their investigations. Some of them doubt whether that theory has any relevance to philosophical issues and in particular whether it can be applied in dealing with the problems of philosophy (theory) of science.In this paper I argue that Tarski's chief concern was the following question. Suppose a language L belongs to the class of languages for which, in full accordance with some formal conditions set in advance, we are able to define the class of all the semantic interpretations the language may acquire. Every interpretation of L can be viewed as a certain structure to which the expressions of the language may refer. Suppose that a specific interpretation of the language L was singled out as the intended one. Suppose, moreover, that the intended interpretation can be characterized in a metalanguage L ⁺. If the above assumptions are satisfied, can the notion of truth for L be defined in the metalanguage L ⁺ and, if it can, how can this be done?     

Micro Situations and Macro Structures: Natural-Language Communication and Context

This contribution investigates the role ofcontext in natural-language communication bydifferentiating between linguistic andsociocultural contexts. It is firmly anchoredto a dialogue framework and based on arelational conception of context as astructured and interactionally organisedphenomenon. However, context is not onlyexamined from this bottom-up or microperspective, but also from a top-down or macroviewpoint as pre- and co-supposed socioculturalcontext. Here, context is not solely seen as aninteractionally organised phenomenon, butrather as a sociocultural apparatus whichstrongly influences the interpretation of microsituations.The section, micro building blocks andlocal meaning, argues for a sociopragmaticapproach to natural-language communication thusaccommodating both speech act theory andconversation analysis. It examines the questionof how linguistic and sociocultural contextsare accommodated by the micro building blocksof speech act and turn, and speaker and hearer.The results obtained are systematised in thesection, micro meets macro, and adaptedto the requirements of the dialogue act ofa plus/minus-validity claimbased on thecontextualisation of Jürgen Habermas'sconception of ratification of validityclaimadopted from this theory ofcommunicative action(1987). The definition ofa plus/minus-validity claim is furthersupplemented by the Gricean CooperativePrinciple, the ethnomethodological premise ofaccountability of social action, theconversation-analytic notion of sequentialorganisation and the interpersonal concepts offace and participation format. Validity claimsare discussed from both bottom-up and top-downperspectives stressing the dynamics of contextwith regard to both process and product, andselection and construction.In conclusion, the relational status of contextrequires an interactive frame of referenceaccounting for context, contextualisation,decontextualisation and recontextualisation.     

On Spatial and Temporal ex mensura Boundaries

In this paper we will propose an empirical analysis of spatial and temporal boundaries. Unlike other proposals, which deal mainly with the commonsense level of the subject, we will ground our explication on well-established scientific practice and language. In this way we show how to reconsider in an innovative way questions such as the distinction between the bona fide boundaries and the fiat boundaries, the thickness and the ownership of the boundaries. At the same time we propose a division between ex mensura boundaries and qui vulgo dicuntur boundaries. What is it, therefore, that divides the atmosphere from the water? [Leonardo da Vinci, Notebooks]      

Axiomatization and Models of Scientific Theories

In this paper we discuss two approaches to the axiomatization of scientific theories in the context of the so called semantic approach, according to which (roughly) a theory can be seen as a class of models. The two approaches are associated respectively to Suppes’ and to da Costa and Chuaqui’s works. We argue that theories can be developed both in a way more akin to the usual mathematical practice (Suppes), in an informal set theoretical environment, writing the set theoretical predicate in the language of set theory itself or, more rigorously (da Costa and Chuaqui), by employing formal languages that help us in writing the postulates to define a class of structures. Both approaches are called internal, for we work within a mathematical framework, here taken to be first-order ZFC. We contrast these approaches with an external one, here discussed briefly. We argue that each one has its strong and weak points, whose discussion is relevant for the philosophical foundations of science.     

The Argument(s) for Universal Gravitation

In this paper an analysis of Newton’s argument for universal gravitation is provided. In the past, the complexity of the argument has not been fully appreciated. Recent authors like George E. Smith and William L. Harper have done a far better job. Nevertheless, a thorough account of the argument is still lacking. Both authors seem to stress the importance of only one methodological component. Smith stresses the procedure of approximative deductions backed-up by the laws of motion. Harper stresses “systematic dependencies” between theoretical parameters and phenomena. I will argue that Newton used a variety of different inferential strategies: causal parsimony considerations, deductions, demonstrative inductions, abductions and thought-experiments. Each of these strategies is part of Newton’s famous argument.     

The Differential Method and the Causal Incompleteness of Programming Theory in Molecular Biology

The “DNA is a program” metaphor is still widely used in Molecular Biology and its popularization. There are good historical reasons for the use of such a metaphor or theoretical model. Yet we argue that both the metaphor and the model are essentially inadequate also from the point of view of Physics and Computer Science. Relevant work has already been done, in Biology, criticizing the programming paradigm. We will refer to empirical evidence and theoretical writings in Biology, although our arguments will be mostly based on a comparison with the use of differential methods (in Molecular Biology: a mutation or alike is observed or induced and its phenotypic consequences are observed) as applied in Computer Science and in Physics, where this fundamental tool for empirical investigation originated and acquired a well-justified status. In particular, as we will argue, the programming paradigm is not theoretically sound as a causal(as in Physics) or deductive(as in Programming) framework for relating the genome to the phenotype, in contrast to the physicalist and computational grounds that this paradigm claims to propose.

索引词研究的逻辑哲学意蕴及其启示

与一般的语词和语句不同,索引词有特殊的内涵和外延,含有索引词之句子的真假与特定的语境相关;在一门语言中,索引词既不能被完全取代、也不能被全部消除。从逻辑哲学的角度研究索引词,不仅可以丰富传统的意义理论和指称理论,拓宽语言逻辑的研究范围,而且有助于解决语用悖论。     

Variation in the Contextuality of Language: An Empirical Measure

The context of a linguisticexpression is defined as everything outside theexpression itself that is necessary forunambiguous interpretation of the expression.As meaning can be conveyed either by theimplicit, shared context or by the explicitform of the expression, the degree ofcontext-dependence or ``contextuality' ofcommunication will vary, depending on thesituation and preferences of the languageproducer. An empirical measure of thisvariation is proposed, the ``formality' or``F-score', based on the frequencies ofdifferent word classes. Nouns, adjectives,articles and prepositions are more frequent inlow-context or ``formal' types of expression;pronouns, adverbs, verbs and interjections aremore frequent in high-context styles. Thismeasure adequately distinguishes differentgenres of language production using data forDutch, French, Italian, and English. Factoranalyses applied to data in 7 differentlanguages produce a similar factor as the mostimportant one. Both the data and thetheoretical model suggest that contextualitydecreases when unambiguous understandingbecomes more important or more difficult toachieve, when the separation in space, time orbackground between the interlocutors increases,and when the speaker is male, introvertedand/or academically educated.     

A Context-Based Computational Model of Language Acquisition by Infants and Children

This research attempts to understand howchildren learn to use language. Instead ofusing syntax-based grammar rules to model thedifferences between children's language andadult language, as has been done in the past, anew model is proposed. In the new researchmodel, children acquire language by listeningto the examples of speech that they hear intheir environment and subsequently use thespeech examples that have been previously heardin similar contextual situations. A computermodel is generated to simulate this new modelof language acquisition. The MALL computerprogram will listen to examples of humanspeech, as would occur around a child, and thentry to use these examples in new situationsthat are similar to the contextual situationsin which the language examples were heard. This will provide a better understanding of howchildren learn to use language and howeducators can assist or improve the languagelearning process by providing required examplesof speech or by helping children to develop abetter understanding of similarities betweenvarious contexts.     

对量化问题的哲学实验研究

在量化问题上,传统逻辑和现代逻辑的对当方阵大相径庭,且各有局限。哲学实验结果显示:(1)自然语言中A、I命题都允许主项为实体性存在、观念性存在,不接受自相矛盾的主项;(2)各语境下自然语言的A、I命题在主项存在方面高度相似,表明A命题预设了主项存在;(3)不同语境下对A、I命题的否定接受了不同的预设,表明了否定包含预设、且预设具有层次性。基于实验结果的"分层量化"方案,把A命题的主项存在预设形式化为公式的一部分;把不同语境下否定的预设形式化为独立的前提,据此分层建立了否定时预设个体存在(■x)、预设主项存在(■xSx)、预设主项为全域(■xSx)的对当方阵,三者具有内在一致性。新方案似可较为系统地消解量化问题的困境。     

普遍语法与语言范式——从哲学、心理学到生物学的历程

普遍语法思想具有悠久的认识论渊源。乔姆斯基认为普遍语法是人脑初始状态与生俱来的生物属性,语言研究最终会同主流的自然科学统一融合。本文扼要论述了普遍语法从哲学、心理学到生物遗传与进化三个主要的发展阶段。作者指出普遍语法不仅改变了传统语言研究的范式,其自身也经历了多个范式的转变,当前提出的“唯递归性假设”就是普遍语法在生物遗传与进化研究基础之上的最新进展。     

Einstein's Revolution: A Case Study in Communicative Rationality

The aim of the paper is to demonstratethat Special Relativity and the Early Quantum Theory were created within the same programme of statisticalmechanics, thermodynamics and maxwellianelectrodynamics reconciliation. I shall try to explainwhy classical mechanics and classicalelectrodynamics were ``refuted' almost simultaneouslyor, in more suitable terms for the present congress,why did the quantum revolution and the relativisticone both took place at the beginning of the 20-thcentury. I shall argue that the quantum andrelativistic revolutions were simultaneous since theyhad a common origin -- the clash between thefundamental theories of the second half of the 19-thcentury that constituted the ``body' of ClassicalPhysics. The revolution's most dramatic pointwas Einstein's 1905 photon paper that laid thefoundations of both Special Relativity and OldQuantum Theory. Hence the dialectic of the oldtheories is crucial for theory change. Modern physicsbegan with Einstein's reconciliation ofelectrodynamics, mechanics and thermodynamics in 1905and his unification of Special Relativity andNewtonian Theory of Gravity. Or, in a more generalsocial context: progressive scientific change can bedescribed not in Weberian terms of zweckrationalaction forcing out all the other forms of action onlybut in terms of Habermas's communicative rationalityencouraging the establishment of mutual understandingbetween the various scientific communities also.Einstein's programme constituted a progressive stepwith respect to its rivals not because it couldexplain more ``facts' or was more ``mathematical'. Itwas better than its rivals because it constituted abasis of communication and interpenetration betweenthree main paradigms of 19-th century physics. Ofcourse in the long run it resulted in empiricalsuccesses.     

社会技术在马克思技术哲学中的地位

技术哲学与普遍哲学之间存在着内在的逻辑一致性,通过普遍哲学的观念可以有效地理解技术概念.对于马克思也是如此.当前马克思技术哲学的工程主义、批判主义的叙事方式都将这种性质给予了展示.这些叙事方式将技术给予了自然主义的理解,即自然技术的概念.这是"人与自然"、"物质资料的生产"概念推演的必然结果.但是,在马克思普遍哲学中还包含着具有同样地位的概念:"人与人"、"人自身的产生"的概念.建立在这个概念之上的技术应该是社会性的,它所包含的可能性并没有被注意到."社会技术"原则的提出力图揭示出这种可能性,体现出二者之间的内在的逻辑一致性.