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This book reflects on the significant and highly original scientific contributions of Hans Primas. A professor of chemistry at ETH Zurich from 1962 to 1995, Primas continued his research activities until his death in 2014. Over these 50 years and more, he worked on the foundations of nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, contributed to a number of significant issues in theoretical chemistry, helped to clarify central topics in quantum theory and the philosophy of physics, suggested innovative ways of addressing interlevel relations in the philosophy of science, and introduced cutting-edge approaches in the flourishing young field of scientific studies of consciousness. His work in these areas of research and its continuing impact is described by noted experts, colleagues, and collaborators of Primas. All authors contextualize their contributions to facilitate the mutual dialog between these fields.
This book presents the current state of the art in Social Ecology as practiced by the Vienna School of Social Ecology, globally one of the main research groups in this field. As a significant contribution to the growing literature on interdisciplinary sustainability studies, the book introduces the purpose and nature of Social Ecology and then places the “Vienna School” within the broader context of socioecological and other interdisciplinary environmental approaches. The conceptual and methodological foundations of Social Ecology are discussed in detail, allowing the reader to obtain a broad overview of current socioecological thinking. Issues covered include socio-metabolic transitions...
Ruthenberg highlights the unique aspects of chemistry, specifically its metachemical fundamentals, which have been largely overlooked in current philosophies of science. Conventional metaphysics, derived from or focused on theoretical physics, is inadequate when applied to chemistry. The author examines and integrates historical and philosophical perspectives on important aspects of chemistry, including affinity, compositionism, emergence, synthesis/analysis, atomism/non-atomism, chemical species, chemical bond, chemical concepts, plurality, temporality/potentiality, reactivity, and underdetermination. To accomplish this, he draws on the works of notable chemists such as František Wald, Wilhelm Ostwald, Friedrich Paneth, and Hans Primas, who have contributed to the philosophical understanding of chemistry. The central conclusion of this study aligns with Immanuel Kant's viewpoint: Chemistry is a systematic art.
One of the major challenges of our time is the management of risks emanating from modern technologies. Yet as diverse as these technologies are, ranging from nuclear power generation over genetically modified organisms to nanotechnology and many more, as different are the risk management and regulation strategies offered to cope with their potential risks. This book is therefore dedicated to one of these strategies, the Precautionary Principle. The book offers a general model for the implementation of the Precautionary Principle for risk regulation. At the same time, the book integrates various scientific approaches towards the Precautionary Principle, such as the social sciences, natural sciences and law.
INSTEAD OF A "FESTSCHRIFT" In June 1998 Hans Primas turned 70 years old. Although he himself is not fond of jubilees and although he likes to play the decimal system of numbers down as contingent, this is nevertheless a suitable occasion to reflect on the professional work of one of the rare distinguished contempo rary scientists who attach equal importance to experimental and theoretical and conceptual lines of research. Hans Primas' interests have covered an enormous range: methods and instruments for nuclear magnetic resonance, theoretical chemistry, C* - and W* -algebraic formulations of quantum me chanics, the measurement problem and its various implications, holism and realism in quant...
The purpose of this book is to provide a deeper insight into the modern theories of molecular matter. It incorporates the most important developments which have taken place during the last decades and reflects the modern trend to abstraction. At the present state of the art we have acquired a fairly good knowledge of "how to. compute" small molecules us ing the methods of quantum chemistry. Yet, in spite of many statements to the contrary and many superficial discussions, the theoretical basis of chemistry and biology is not safely in our hands. It is all but impossible to summarize the modern developments of the theory of matter in nontechnical language. But I hope that I can give some feel...
The Advanced Study Institute on "Quantum Dynamics of Molecules: The New Experimental Challenge to Theorists," which was sponsored by the Scientific Affairs Division of NATO, was held at Trinity Hall, Ca~bridge, England from September 15th till September 29th, 1979. In all, a total of 79 lecturers and students attended the meeting: they had diverse backgrounds in chemistry, physics and mathematics. In my proposal to NATO requesting financial support for an Advanced Study Institute, I suggested that molecular physics was facing a qualitatively new experimental situation in which the exploration of previously inaccessible dynamical phenomena would become of increasing importance. At the same ti...
The field of premodern environmental history (the study of the complex and ever-changing interrelationship between human beings and the world around them prior to the Industrial Revolution) has grown vigorously over the past two decades, in no small part due to the energy and expertise of Richard C. Hoffmann (York University, Canada). In this collection, historians of medieval and early modern Europe and social scientists with a sensitivity to the use of historical information present their current research in honor of Richard C. Hoffmann's retirement from teaching. The result is a panoramic and dynamic view of the state of the field of premodern environmental history by leading practitioners. The papers are organized under the broad themes of "Premodern People and the Natural World" and "Aquatic Ecosystems and Human Economies". Contributors are Richard W. Unger, Paolo Squatriti, William Chester Jordan, Petra J.E.M. van Dam, Verena Winiwarter, Maryanne Kowaleski, Constance H. Berman, Pierre Claude Reynard, Wim Van Neer, and Anton Ervynck.
SOIL: beneath our feet / food and fiber / ashes to ashes, dust to dust / dirt!Soil has been called the final frontier of environmental research. The critical role of soil in biogeochemical processes is tied to its properties and place—porous, structured, and spatially variable, it serves as a conduit, buffer, and transformer of water, solutes and gases. Yet what is complex, life-giving, and sacred to some, is ordinary, even ugly, to others. This is the enigma that is soil. Soil and Culture explores the perception of soil in ancient, traditional, and modern societies. It looks at the visual arts (painting, textiles, sculpture, architecture, film, comics and stamps), prose & poetry, religion...