Argumenta – Journal of Analytic Philosophy

The ability to socialize in early life depends on developing commonalities with others. But what exactly constitutes the “sense of us” or the “we-perspective”? The interaction theory (IT) offers an attractive alternative to mindreading theories, such as theory-theory (TT) and simulation theory (ST), by presenting a further development of enactivism. During embodied interactions, individuals “directly” and “smartly” perceive the mental states of others. Despite the intuitive appeal of direct acquaintance with others’ mental states, IT relies on crude metaphors. We aim to retain IT’s core intuition—the embodied, embedded, enactive, and…

Life extension, the pursuit of prolonging human life through scientific and technological advancements, has become an increasingly relevant topic as biomedical innovation accelerates. With the possibility of extending human lifespan becoming more attainable, important ethical, social, and philosophical questions arise. Should we intervene to extend life, and if so, what are the moral consequences? After highlighting some of the most promising life extension techniques currently available, this article explores the complexity of such a prospect, offering insights from a range of ethical perspectives on the implications of life extension and…

The topic of the relationship between transhumanism and posthumanism is one that has received very little attention over the years. These two quickly growing schools of thought display a rather odd combination of similarities and differences that can make them appear both as completely independent and unrelated, or as heavily connected variations of the same idea. However, only a few attempts have been made at examining how they really correlate to each other. As such, in this article I will attempt to provide an analysis of both transhumanism and posthumanism,…

One of the primary objections to the biological approach revolves around what is known as the transplant intuition. That is, the allegedly widely shared intuition that if we had our cerebrum transplanted into a different body, we would be transferred to that body along with our cerebrum. Drawing upon our understanding of brain death, this paper argues that either (1) the transplant intuition should be rejected, and the biological approach has the advantage of being consistent with that rejection; or (2) the psychological approach, the biological approach’s main rival, cannot…

This paper explores the structural, ethical, and regulatory impediments to effective privacy protection in the healthcare sector, conceptualised as the “triangle of death for medical data privacy.” The triangle comprises three mutually reinforcing elements: (1) the irresistible convenience of insecure digital tools for healthcare professionals; (2) the underdeveloped privacy risk perception among patients; and (3) an accountability vacuum in regulatory enforcement. While European laws like the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) are in place, real-world practices, especially the use of WhatsApp by clinical staff, illustrate the systemic failure to protect…

Considerable interest has been recently devoted to analyzing picture perception and its differences from vis-à-vis perception. However, an exhaustive theory of picture perception requires explaining the difference between these two perceptual states and the one we are in when facing pictorial illusions like trompe l’oeils, which foster the impression of being in front of a real object available for interaction. One standard story is that these illusions prevent the viewer from perceiving the surface, which is instead possible with usual pictures, this causing the pictorial space to be perceived as…

McGee notably provided a putative counterexample to Modus Ponens. McGee’s puzzle is based on a scenario involving three candidates running for president in the 1980 United States elections. We will present a slightly modified version of McGee’s election scenario, in which the probability of one of the candidates (i.e., Ronald Reagan) winning is reduced to a conveniently low value. As we will see, two ways out of the puzzle, suggested by Fulda and Paoli respectively, do not survive this minor change in the scenario. In addition, we will point to…

This paper presents a conceptual analysis of Wittgenstein’s use of the notions of habit and custom. References to habit and custom abound in Wittgenstein’s writings already from the 1930s, but no particular focus has been placed on his actual use of these notions. The aim of the paper is to provide a preliminary conceptual tool useful for developing a fruitful engagement between Wittgenstein’s “post-tractarian” philosophy and contributions to the philosophy of habit. To do this, I will first trace relevant occurrences in Wittgenstein’s writings. Secondly, I will map the use…

Wittgenstein famously asked: What is left when we subtract the fact that my arm rises from the fact that I raise it? Any adequate theory of action must clarify the difference between actions of this kind and mere bodily movements. Plausible answers since the 1950s have been broadly causal. The readiest answer—that causation by an intention is the missing element—is oversimple. Intentionality, however, may be crucial even if intentions alone cannot provide an answer. Elizabeth Anscombe apparently favored reasons for acting; but reasons in the abstract, say as true propositions,…