• Главная страница
• Новости
• Библиотека
• Контакты
• Архив
• English

English

THE RUSSIAN PHILOSOPHICAL GAZETTE

April 2008 – No 4

FEATURES

Post-Secular Society – What is it?

One of the most prominent thinkers of our time German philosopher Jurgen Habermas  was born in Dusseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia, on June 18, 1929. He studied philosophy at the universities of Gottingen, Zurich , and Bonn. In 1954 he earned a doctorate in philosophy with a dissertation on Schellings’ philosophy.

From 1956 to 1959, he studied philosophy and sociology at the Institute for Social Research in Frankfurt am Main, and from 1080 to 1983 he served as its director.

He accepted the position of Director of the Max Planck Institute in Starnberg in 1971, and worked there until 1983 two years after the publication of his magnum opus, The Theory of Communicative Action. He then returned to his chair at Frankfurt University and the directorship of the Institute for Social Research. Since retiring from Frankfurt in 1993, Habermas has continued to publish extensively. In 1986, he received the Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Prize of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, which is the highest honour awarded in German research. He is also a Permanent Visiting Professor at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, and "Theodor Heuss Professor" at The New School, New York.

Jurgen Habermas  was kind enough to send us this article which we are very happy to place on the front page. Because of its topicality - the relations between secular and religious in modern society – the article is extremely interesting. Read it and see for yourself. For example, according to Habermas, “a constitutional state can guarantee its citizens freedom of faith only on condition that they will not confine themselves in the integral worlds of their religious communities living in isolation from one another”. Well, what will you say to this?

BY JURGEN HABERMAS

Read the article in Russian

Justice is More Than a Good Tax Policy

If you want to get some insights into the British tax system and its efficiency, you should really take your time and read this article. You will also find answers to such questions as why those who do not want to pay their taxes eventually rob themselves, why there is no single tax system in the world and whether or not Shakespeare paid taxes. The article is full of comparisons and conclusions of great interest. The author also explains why it is not possible just to import an effective tax system without considering many factors that might affect the life of ordinary citizens.

BY EVGENY POLUEKTOV

Read the article in Russian

English

The Impracticable, the Amusing and the Light-hearted

This is in fact the introduction of Russian readers to the so called Ig Nobel Prizes that are a parody of the Nobel Prizes and are given each year in early October — around the time the recipients of the genuine Nobel Prizes are announced — for ten achievements that "first make people laugh, and then make them think." Organized by the scientific humor magazine Annals of Improbable Research (AIR), they are presented by a group that includes genuine Nobel Laureates at a ceremony at Harvard University's Sanders Theater.

The first Ig Nobels were awarded in 1991. Ten prizes are awarded each year in many categories, including the Nobel Prize categories of physics, chemistry, medicine, literature, and peace, but also other categories such as public health, engineering, biology, and interdisciplinary research. Awards go to those who make the most useless scientific achievements or statements such as that black holes fulfill all the technical requirements to be the location of Hell, for example.

BY YULIA NIKOLAEVA

Read the article in Russian

Is Russia any Better than Pakistan?

According to the author, even a superficial analysis of Russia’s political development over the past ten years shows its deviation from the path followed by Western states, East Europe and even Ukraine. Where shall we place Russia politically? Today it seems to be closer to such countries as Pakistan, Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar and Egypt, or perhaps it has more in common with India and Turkey, doesn’t it? Read the article if you want to know an unbiased opinion why democratic principles do not work efficiently in Russia.

BY LEONID PETRYAKOV

Read the article in Russian

Can There Be a Synthesis of Eclectic Philosophy?

There is an uncomfortable contradiction in contemporary science – on the one hand, the rationale of some universally recognized scientific theories may not be sufficiently conclusive or logical from a panhuman philosophical perspective, but on the other hand, a layman or a philosopher cannot couch his doubts into scientific terms. This is why very few philosophers dare to speak out their criticism of natural science theories. Moreover so whenever they dare do so, they very often become a laughing-stock because of their incompetence. The situation is different where critique first comes from specialists. Then philosophers can well join the line and set forth their reasons. 

BY ALEKSANDR MALYSHEV

Read the article in Russian

“Whys” Around Raphael Santi are Yet to be Answered

The inscription in his marble sarcophagus reads: "Here lies that famous Raphael by whom Nature feared to be outdone while he lived, and when he died, feared herself to die." These words are about a mortal… Of what magnitude must have been that man if his greatness earned the comparison with that of Mother-Nature? The article sheds light on some interesting facts and mysteries around the genius of Raphael.

BY NATALIYA LOGINOVA

Read the article in Russian

Don’t Cheat Even if it is Lucrative

This interview with Yuri Gorny is another eye-opener in our series of exposures of pseudoscientific phenomena that at first glance do seem quite extraordinary. Yuri Gorny is very well known in Russia as a person of extra sensual abilities. He can drive blindfold, memorize extremely long strings of numbers, repeat everything Hudini was capable of and do many other incredible things. Sorry, guys, but he says there are no such things as levitation, telekinesis or telepathy. But surely, it’s best to know the truth no matter how sour it is.

INTERVIEW BY SERGEI SHARAKSHANE

Read the article in Russian