605 research outputs found
Heautonomy: Schiller on freedom of the will
No full textIn his book "Schiller as Philosopher", Frederick Beiser laments that "contemporary Kant scholars have been intent on ignoring him. If they know anything at all about Schiller, it is only as the author of an epigram satirizing Kant". Therefore, Beiser calls us "to consider Schiller as a philosopher, to reconstruct and appraise the arguments of his philosophical writings" (Beiser, 2005, p. vii). In this paper, I shall argue that it is Schiller's conception of freedom of the will as "heautonomy" that stands behind his critique and modification of Kant's ethics. However, the systematic significance of Schiller's theory of freedom is not obvious. Its argumentative structure must first be reconstructed-as Beiser has demanded-because it is concealed by an esthetic discourse. A reconstruction of Schiller's theory of freedom shows that he contrasts his concept of heautonomy as individual self-determination with the Kantian concept of an autonomy or autocracy of reason by the universal moral law. Schiller's own philosophical contribution to the debate on freedom after Kant must therefore not be understood as a mere esthetic balancing and softening of Kant's ethical rigorism. Rather, it shows serious transformations of Kant's approach, which justifies understanding it as a critical step beyond Kant's theory of the autonomy of reason
Laser scanning notebook
No full textLaser Scanning Notebook is an outgrowth of research, lecture notes, publication and consultative service conducted by the author over an approximately 30-year period. Highly compacted, it merits prerequisite orientation to fundamentals in optics, electronics, mechanics, and physics
A Critical Review of Weltschmerz Pessimism in German Philosophy
No full textWeltschmerz’ Pessimism in German Philosophy by Ferdrick C. Beiser, is a study of the pessimism that dominated German philosophy in the second half of the nineteenth century. According to the author, Pessimism, broadly defined, is the doctrine that life is not worth living. This view was introduced into German philosophy by Schopenhauer, whose philosophy became very fashionable in the 1860s. Beiser examines the intense and long controversy that arose from Schopenhauer’s pessimism, which changed the agenda of philosophy in Germany away from the logic of the sciences and toward an examination of the value of life. He examines the major defenders of pessimism (Philipp Mainländer, Eduard von Hartmann, and Julius Bahnsen) and its chief critic, especially Eugen Dühring. In this paper, I introduce the book’s general approach, aim, and contents, mentioning its privileges as a history of philosophy of an almost forgotten controversy and some wishes about its shortcomings
Author response: Non‐alcoholic fatty liver disease, liver fibrosis score and cognitive function in middle‐aged adults: The Framingham study
No full text
P4‐467: The association between APOE‐e4 and mild cognitive impairment prevalence varies by method for defining cognitive impairment
No full textAuthor response: Prolonged sleep duration as a marker of early neurodegeneration predicting incident dementia
No full textAre Trends in Dementia Incidence Associated With Compression in Morbidity? Evidence From The Framingham Heart Study
No full textObjectives: Several epidemiological studies suggest declining trends in dementia over the last three decades with both decreasing age-specific prevalence and incidence. There is limited data on whether this delayed clinical onset is accompanied by a shorter postdiagnosis survival. Methods: A total of 5,205 participants from the Framingham Original and Offspring cohorts were studied. Four epochs were considered from 1977-1984 to 2004-2008. Gender and education adjusted 5-year mortality risks were estimated using delayed entry Cox models with the earliest epoch as reference category. Stratified analyses by sex, education, and age were undertaken. A nested case control study of 317 dementia cases and 317 controls matched on age, gender and epoch was initiated. Results: In the whole sample, 5-year mortality risk has decreased with time, it was 33% lower in the last epoch compared to the earliest. In the 317 persons who developed dementia, age at onset increased (1.5 years/epoch), and years alive with dementia decreased (1 year/epoch) over time. We observed however, a decreased adjusted relative mortality risk (by 18%) in persons with dementia in 1986-1991 compared to 1977-1983 and no significant change from then to the latest epoch. The nested case control study suggested in matched controls that 5-year mortality relative risk had increased by 60% in the last epoch compared to Epoch 1. Discussion: In the FHS, in the last 30 years, disease duration in persons with dementia has decreased. However, age-adjusted mortality risk has slightly decreased after 1977-1983. Consequences of such trends on dementia prevalence should be investigated
Cerebral microbleeds and risk of incident dementia: the Framingham Heart Study
No full textCerebral microbleeds (CMBs) are MRI markers attributed to the most common cerebral angiopathies in the elderly and in patients with dementia: hypertensive and cerebral amyloid angiopathy. CMB detection in asymptomatic persons may help identify those at risk for dementia and may influence preventive strategies and design of clinical trials testing treatments for dementia. We studied the association of CMB with risk of incident dementia in community dwelling individuals. A total of 1296 dementia-free Framingham Heart Study participants (mean age 72 years; 54% women) with available brain MRI and incident dementia data during a mean follow-up period of 6.7 years were included. Using Cox proportional hazards models, we related CMB presence to incident dementia. Multivariable models were adjusted for age, sex, APOE status, and education, with additional models adjusting for vascular risk factors and MRI markers of ischemic brain injury. CMBs were observed in 10.8% and incident dementia in 85 participants (6.6% over study period). Participants with any CMB had 1.74 times higher risk of dementia (hazard ratio [HR] 1.74, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.00-3.01), whereas those with deep and mixed CMB had a three-fold increased risk (HR 2.99, 95% CI 1.52-5.90). The associations were independent of vascular risk factors, and for deep and mixed CMB also independent of MRI markers of ischemia (HR 2.44, 95% CI 1.22-4.88). Purely lobar CMBs were not associated with incident dementia. Our findings support a role for hypertensive vasculopathy and the interplay of hypertensive and cerebral amyloid angiopathy in risk of dementia and suggest that CMB presence can identify individuals at risk of dementia
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