Browsing by Subject "knowledge"

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3

Open Access
Cognitive individualism and the child as scientist program
(2011) Wringe, B.
In this paper, I examine the charge that Gopnik and Meltzoff's 'Child as Scientist' program, outlined and defended in their 1997 book Words, Thoughts and Theories is vitiated by a form of 'cognitive individualism' about science. Although this charge has often been leveled at Gopnik and Meltzoff's work, it has rarely been developed in any detail.I suggest that we should distinguish between two forms of cognitive individualism which I refer to as 'ontic' and 'epistemic' cognitive individualism (OCI and ECI respectively). I then argue - contra Ronald Giere - that Gopnik and Meltzoff's commitment to OCI is relatively unproblematic, since it is an easily detachable part of their view. By contrast, and despite their explicit discussion of the issue, their commitment to ECI is much more problematic.
Open Access
Reflections of an external world in the Ottoman mind : the production and transmission of knowledge in the 18th Ottoman society
(2011) Tekgül, Nil
This thesis attempts to investigate Ottoman “perception of knowledge”. The construction of collective perception of knowledge, various knowledge concepts, spaces for knowledge production, modes and channels of transmission are analyzed. It discusses the role of oral and written modes of transmission and claims that the loosening classical organizational structure of the Empire and the social transformation experienced in the 18th century, had an impact on the society’s perception of knowledge. It is assumed in this thesis that knowledge was being transmitted by three different layers of society, namely “high-ranking professionals”, “secondary professionals” and the “public”. The main argument of this thesis is being tested by the empirical data showing the professional status of knowledge transmitters, the books they owned, and the contents of the books which were classified with respect to the kind of knowledge they possessed. The empirical data used consists of 2 registers of kısmet-i askeriye, individual distinct records chosen from Ba!bakanlık Osmanlı Ar!ivi Ba! Muhasebe Kalemi dating the first half of 18th century, and one Üsküdar court record. This thesis carries the previous research done on “Ottoman book culture” one step further for a better and meaningful interpretation of the results, and views the role of books from the perspective of perception of knowledge. Thus, it also hopes to provide an insight to the question of “Why did printing come late to Ottoman world?” that has occupied the minds of Ottoman historians for half a century.
Open Access
Trade, growth, and environmental quality
(2009) Sirakaya, S.; Turnovsky, S.J.; Alemdar, N.M.
This paper examines linkages between international trade, environmental degradation, and economic growth in a dynamic North-South trade game. Using a neoclassical production function subject to an endogenously improving technology, North produces manufactured goods by employing labor, capital, and a natural resource that it imports from South. South extracts the resource using raw labor, in the process generating local pollution. We study optimal regional policies in the presence of local pollution and technology spillovers from North to South under both non-cooperative and cooperative modes of trade. Non-cooperative trade is inefficient due to stock externalities. Cooperative trade policies are efficient and yet do not benefit North. Both regions gain from improved productivity in North and faster knowledge diffusion to South regardless of the trading regime. © 2009 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2009 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.