Bertrand Russell (The analysis of matter. Routledge, London, 1927) defended a form of structuralism according to which all we can know about the world is structure. In response, Max Newman (Mind 37:137–148, 1928) raised a formidable challenge that threatens to turn structuralism into something trivial: as long as there are enough objects in the relevant domain, one can always obtain a structure...

This paper introduces the notion of objection-based causal networks. which resemble probabilistic causal networks ex­ cept that tht:>y are quant.ified using ob­ jections. An objection is a logical sen­ tence and denotes a condition under which a causal dependency does not exist. Objection-based causal net.works enjoy al­ most all the properties that make proba­ bilistic causal networks popular,...

In this paper I attempt to address a serious criticism of the “Anthropic Landscape” and “Discretuum” approach to cosmology, leveled by Banks, Dine and Gorbatov. I argue that in this new and unfamiliar setting, the gauge Hierarchy may not favor low energy supersymmetry. 1 The Banks Dine Gorbatov Argument Let’s begin by reviewing a successful use of the anthropic principle. In 1987 Steven Weinber...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Conscientious refusal among physicians to provide medical care is known to exist. The prevalence of conscientious refusal in residents and behaviors surrounding moral objections is largely unknown. The purpose of this study was to identify the prevalence of moral objections among family medicine residents and faculty members and to identify beliefs and actions surround...

In a recent study of astrophysical “fine-tunings” (or “coincidences”), Robert Klee critically assesses the support that such astrophysical evidence might be thought to lend to the design argument (i.e., the argument that our universe has been designed by some deity). Klee argues that a proper assessment indicates that the universe is not as “fine-tuned” as advertised by proponents of the design...