Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 1986. / Vita. Bibliography: leaves [189]-207.

Les théâtres de machines, ces livres montrant en séries des treuils, des grues, des pompes et des moulins. ont été largement sous-estimés par l'historiographie. Pourtant ils influencèrent la conception de machines jusqu'au XIXe siècle. Cette thèse analyse les évolutions du genre et de sa réception dans les divers pays d'Europe entre XVIe et XVIIIe siècle. Cette histoire met à jour la lente construction d'une pensée européenne sur les machines, une pensée conceptuelle à la fois technique et sociétale. Artifice du génie humain, la machine suscite fantasmes, craintes et espoirs, ce qui incite les auteurs à développer une pédagogique neuve. Au cœur de ces problématiques: une tension entre la complexité des machines et un savoir mécanique incomplet, entre matérialité et théorie, entre montrer et rendre compte, entre voir et concevoir la machine dans sa matérialité et ses enjeux. / Theaters of machines »books showing sets of windlasses, cranes, pumps and mills-- have been underestimated to a large extent by historiography. Yet, they have influenced the conception of machines up to the 19th century. This thesis analyses the evolution of this category of books and its reception in various European countries between the 16th and 18th centuries. This work presents the development of a European conception of machines that is both technical as well as social. Artifices of human ingenuity, machines generate fantasies, fears and hopes, prompting the authors to develop a new course of teaching. At the heart of these issues lies a tension between the complexity of the machinery and an incomplete mechanical knowledge, between materiality and theory, between presenting and reporting, between seeing and designing the machine within its materiality and challenges.

M.A. (Philosophy) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine whether or not new and significant developments for the Hindu and Jewish faiths, and the relationship that exists between them, can be demonstrated from the results of the Hindu-Jewish Leadership Summits of 2007 and 2008 in Delhi and Jerusalem. I argue that new and significant developments can be observed with this Hindu-Jewish encounter with regards to official rulings of Halacha (Jewish law), proper understandings of sacred symbols of Hinduism, and even improved Islamic-Jewish relations. After analyzing the approaches, themes, and unique framework found within this encounter, it is clear that the Hindu-Jewish leadership summits mark new and significant developments in inter-religious dialogue between the two traditions, culminating in the redefinition of Hinduism as a monotheistic religion.

Interpretationism about the mind claims that we can gain a philosophical understanding of the nature of thought by considering how we interpret the thoughts of others. My thesis aims to develop a version of this theory which is plausible in the sense that: (1) it has the potential to retain certain advantages attaching to theories of mind which focus on the behaviour, rather than the internal make-up of candidate thinkers; (2) it can fend off certain apparent counterexamples. The thesis is split into four parts. Part I explains why one might want to answer ‘No’ to the question ‘Are there particular sorts of internal organisation which a being must have in order to count as a thinker?’ It then introduces interpretationism as a position which will allow us to answer ‘No’ to this question. My version of interpretationism claims that a being has a thought iff it is interpretable as having that thought, and that all thinkers are rational. Both claims face several apparently obvious counter-examples. Parts II and III address these counterexamples by developing the crucial notions of interpretability and rationality. Part II starts by considering the problem of seemingly hidden thoughts which occur during dreams, and uses this to develop an account according to which a subject is interpretable as having a thought if either a) there is sufficient evidence concerning the thought in the subject’s actual situation and actions, or b) there would be sufficient evidence in at least one suitable counterfactual situation. I consider and reject an objection that this understanding of interpretability is incompatible with a commitment to the holism of interpretation, and then show how it can be used to address further proposed counter-examples, such as cases involving deception or paralysed thinkers. However, I agree with Block (1981) and Peacocke (1983) that their string-searching machine and Martian marionette must be counted as thinkers by this account. I argue that these are not counterexamples to the theory, however, because the intuitions against counting such beings as thinkers can be discredited. Part III uses considerations about human limitations and propensities towards reasoning errors to argue that the interpretationist cannot adopt a deontological understanding of rationality that seems prevalent in the literature, nor a purely consequentialist account of rationality. I explain how Cherniak’s (1986) conception of minimal rationality may be adapted for the interpretationist’s purposes. I then consider and reject the idea that the emphasis on the rationality of thinkers will leave us unable to fit paradigmatically non-rational thoughts and thought processes (dream thoughts, imaginings and association) into our account. Part IV shows why interpretationism so developed is well placed to retain the advantages of a theory of mind which focuses on behaviour, and outlines potential avenues for further research.

The objective of this thesis is to create a spatial representation of a bipolar episode. The role of this concept is to investigate the nature of spaces and their relations with dissimilar spaces, resembling a first-hand account of spasmodic incidents experienced by a person with this manic depressive illness. The site is located in an abandoned mine as to represent a feeling of isolation, such as experience by a bipolar individual during an episode of depression. The existing infrastructure incorporated with the new formal experience is to be used in understanding the two poles of bipolar disorder and exploiting those values to create a unified space. The design will be used to spatially organize a chaotic experience to bring awareness of mental illnesses. "Bipolar disorder, also known as manic depressive illness, is a brain disorder that is a roller-coaster in mood, energy levels, and the ability to carry out day-to-day tasks. People with bipolar disorder experience periods of unusually intense emotion, cha es in sleep patterns and unusual behaviors. These distinct periods are called 'mood episodes,' either associated with mania or depression. Mood episodes are drastically different from the moods and behaviors that are typical for the average person."1 During mania, euphoria or irritability are manifested through symptoms such as: destructibility, insomnia, grandiosity, flight of irrational and high speed thought. Depression is characterized by feelings of exhaustion, self hatred, and suicidal thoughts. Mood episodes can include both manic and depressive symptoms, which is referred to as a mixed state can cycle rapidly between mania and depression phases, from three to four times a year to several times during a single day. Sometimes, a person with severe episodes of mania or depression also have psychotic symptoms, such as hallucinations or delusions. The psychotic symptoms tend to match the person's extreme mood. "Abnormalities in the prefrontal cortex result in a cognitive disconnect in planning, working memory, problem solving and temporal sequencing of information. Disrupted organization and execution of plans occur when there is damage to this region of the brain."2 The physical movement experienced by a bipolar individual across space can generate temporal illusions of reality. The distance between spaces and experience becomes a subjective experience. Space can be experienced as a relative location of objects of places, as the distance and expanse that separate or link place. The organization of space is dependent upon not only sight but psychological responses to reality. By shifting from one place to another, a person acquires a sense of direction. Forward, backward, and sideways are experientially differentiated, that is known subconsciously in perspicacity. / 0 / SPK / specialcollections@tulane.edu

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This thesis critically examines the cases of Vatican intervention with the Leadership Conference for Women Religious (LCWR) and Charles Curran to explore the question of whether legitimate dissent is possible as an act of conscience. The Doctrinal Assessment of the Leadership Conference for Women Religious released by the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith, as well as the exchange between Sr. Pat Farrell, then-president of the LCWR, and Bishop Blair, the one who conducted the investigation on the LCWR, on “Fresh Air,” a radio show on National Public Radio raise questions about how the Church is to understand truth, obedience, and conscience. This event also raises questions about why this controversy occurs at this point in history. To critically examine the differing perspectives of dissent and conscience, I analyze the case of Charles Curran, a Catholic priest and former professor at Catholic University of America, to exlore how dissent might be understood to be an act of a holistic conscience – one that takes seriously the subjective/ affective elements of human experience as well as the objective pole of morality. By applying the insights of the Curran case analogously to the LCWR case, with the help of Robert K. Vischer’s articulation of the relational dimension of conscience, this thesis articulates how the Church might understand its role in being a venue for consciences to thrive while preserving its claim of authentic teaching authority.

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