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914The method of levels of abstractionMinds and Machines 18 (3). 2008.The use of “levels of abstraction” in philosophical analysis (levelism) has recently come under attack. In this paper, I argue that a refined version of epistemological levelism should be retained as a fundamental method, called the method of levels of abstraction. After a brief introduction, in section “Some Definitions and Preliminary Examples” the nature and applicability of the epistemological method of levels of abstraction is clarified. In section “A Classic Application of the Method ofion…Read more
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228The new ethical responsibilities of internet service providersPhilosophy and Technology 24 (4): 369-370. 2011.The exponential developments of internet services and resources have brought enormous benefits, but also enormous moral and ethical challenges. This paper introduces the contributions from a research workshop, tasked with defining new ethical responsibilities for Internet Service Providers (ISPs).
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218The logic of being informedLogique Et Analyse 49 (196): 433-460. 2006.One of the open problems in the philosophy of information is whether there is an information logic (IL), different from epistemic (EL) and doxastic logic (DL), which formalises the relation “a is informed that p” (Iap) satisfactorily. In this paper, the problem is solved by arguing that the axiom schemata of the normal modal logic (NML) KTB (also known as B or Br or Brouwer’s system) are well suited to formalise the relation of “being informed”. After having shown that IL can be constructed as a…Read more
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282The logic of design as a conceptual logic of informationMinds and Machines 27 (3): 495-519. 2017.In this article, I outline a logic of design of a system as a specific kind of conceptual logic of the design of the model of a system, that is, the blueprint that provides information about the system to be created. In section two, I introduce the method of levels of abstraction as a modelling tool borrowed from computer science. In section three, I use this method to clarify two main conceptual logics of information inherited from modernity: Kant’s transcendental logic of conditions of possibi…Read more
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549Trois leçons philosophiques de Turing et la philosophie de l’informationRue Descartes 87 (4): 157. 2015.Quand on se penche sur l’héritage philosophique de Turing, deux risques se posent. Le premier, c’est de le réduire à son test célèbre (Turing 1950). Ce qui a toutefois le mérite de la clarté. N’importe qui peut reconnaître la contribution en question et la situer dans le débat important sur la philosophie de l’intelligence artificielle. Le second risque est de le diluer dans un récit universel, faisant des idées deTuring les graines de tout ce que nous faisons et savons aujourd’hui. Ceci a l’ava…Read more
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221The latent nature of global information warfarePhilosophy and Technology 27 (3). 2014.Information has always been at the core of conflicts. When Napoleon planned to invade Italy, he duly upgraded the first telegraph network in the world, the French “semaphore”. He famously remarked that “an army marches on its stomach,” but he also knew that the same army acted on information. As Von Clausewitz once stated “by the word ‘information’ we denote all the knowledge which we have of the enemy and his country; therefore, in fact, the foundation of all our ideas of actions [in war].”I am…Read more
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210Turing’s imitation game: still an impossible challenge for all machines and some judgesMinds and Machines 19 (1). 2009.An Evaluation of the 2008 Loebner Contest.
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133The human projectThe Philosophers' Magazine 66 20-22. 2014.This article explores what technological unemployment might mean.
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353Turing’s imitation game: still an impossible challenge for all machines and some judges––an evaluation of the 2008 Loebner contest (review)Minds and Machines 19 (1): 145-150. 2009.An evaluation of the 2008 Loebner contest.
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787The informational nature of personal identityMinds and Machines 21 (4): 549-566. 2011.In this paper, I present an informational approach to the nature of personal identity. In “Plato and the problem of the chariot”, I use Plato’s famous metaphor of the chariot to introduce a specific problem regarding the nature of the self as an informational multiagent system: what keeps the self together as a whole and coherent unity? In “Egology and its two branches” and “Egology as synchronic individualisation”, I outline two branches of the theory of the self: one concerning the individuali…Read more
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102Technology’s in-betweenessPhilosophy and Technology 26 (2). 2013.One of the most obvious features that characterises any technology is its in-betweeness—comprising technologies that stand in-between human users and natural affordances (natural objects, processes, or phenomena). This paper analyses technologies on the basis of their first- second- or third-order nature, and discusses how Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) are creating a new externality.
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101Telepresence: from epistemic failure to successful observabilityIn L. Magnani & R. Dossena (eds.), Computing, Philosophy and Cognition, . 2005.
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112The grafted branches of the sceptical tree. "Noli altum sapere" and Henri Estienne's latin edition of Sexti Empirici Pyrrhoniarum Hypotyposeon libri IIINouvelles de la République des Lettres 1. 1992.The Latin translation of Sextus Empiricus’ ‘Outlines of Pyrrhonism’, published by Henri Estienne in 1562, are amongst the most influential texts in the history of scepticism. And yet, we still lack a complete and detailed study of their reception in modern times. Through investigation of the emblem on the frontispiece of the book, this paper argues that Estienne’s motivations for the publication should be interpreted as essentially anti-dogmatic and humanistic in nature.
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265The diffusion of sextus empiricus's works in the renaissanceJournal of the History of Ideas 56 (1): 63-85. 1995.This paper discusses the influence of Sextus Empiricus' works on Renaissance culture and the recovery of Pyrrhonism during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. It investigates what primary and secondary sources were available at the time, and who knew and made use of such sources. The article concludes that the dearth of Pyrrhonic arguments in Renaissance literature was due to the prevailing and incompatible culture of humanism rather than to a lack of interest in Sextus Empiricus’ works durin…Read more
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607The construction of personal identities onlineMinds and Machines 21 (4): 477-479. 2011.Information and communication technologies (ICTs) are building a new habitat (infosphere) in which future generations, living in advanced information societies, will spend an increasing amount of time. This paper introduces a series of articles that explore what constitutes a personal identity online (PIO) and how, as well as to what extent, individuals can learn to create, manage and perceive their PIOs in order to facilitate a healthy and rewarding online experience (onlife).
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111The Cambridge handbook of information and computer ethics (edited book)Cambridge University Press. 2010.Information and Communication Technologies have profoundly changed many aspects of life, including the nature of entertainment, work, communication, education, healthcare, industrial production and business, social relations and conflicts. They have had a radical and widespread impact on our moral lives and hence on contemporary ethical debates. The Cambridge Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics, first published in 2010, provides an ambitious and authoritative introduction to the field, w…Read more
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273The anti-counterfeiting trade agreement: the ethical analysis of a failure, and its lessonsEthics and Information Technology 17 (2): 165-173. 2015.The anti-counterfeiting trade agreement was originally meant to harmonise and enforce intellectual property rights provisions in existing trade agreements within a wider group of countries. This was commendable in itself, so ACTA’s failure was all the more disappointing. In this article, I wish to contribute to the post-ACTA debate by proposing a specific analysis of the ethical reasons why ACTA failed, and what we can learn from them. I argue that five kinds of objections—namely, secret negotia…Read more
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490Ética de la información: su naturaleza y alcanceIsegoría 34. 2006.En los últimos años la «Ética de la Información» ha llegado a tener sentidos distintos para los distintos investigadores que trabajan en una amplia variedad de disciplinas. Esta situación es lamentable, ya que ha producido cierta confusión sobre la naturaleza específica y el alcance de la EI. En el presente artículo se defiende una Ética de la Información que sostiene que el comportamiento y el estatus de los objetos informacionales qua objetos informacionales puede tener un significado moral qu…Read more
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324Toleration and the design of normsScience and Engineering Ethics 21 (5): 1095-1123. 2015.One of the pressing challenges we face today—in a post-Westphalian order and post-Bretton Woods world —is how to design the right kind of MAS that can take full advantage of the socio-economic and political progress made so far, while dealing successfully with the new global challenges that are undermining the best legacy of that very progress. This is the topic of the article. In it, I argue that in order to design the right kind of MAS, we need to design the right kind of norms that constitute…Read more
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210Technoscience and ethics foresightPhilosophy and Technology 27 (4): 499-501. 2014.In October 2014, a European Commission conference discussed SETI (Science, Engineering, Technology and Industry) achievements and their potential future impact on the economy and individuals’ well-being. This article highlights and discusses three of the salient features to emerge from the conference: the connection between science and technology, the issue of data privacy, and the need to develop ethical foresight.
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312Soft ethics: its application to the General Data Protection Regulation and its dual advantagePhilosophy and Technology 31 (1): 163-167. 2018.In previous works (Floridi 2018) I introduced the distinction between hard ethics (which may broadly be described as what is morally right and wrong independently of whether something is legal or illegal), and soft or post-compliance ethics (which focuses on what ought to be done over and above existing legislation). This paper analyses the applicability of soft ethics to the General Data Protection Regulation and advances the theory that soft ethics has a dual advantage—as both an opportunity s…Read more
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271Semantic capital: its nature, value, and curationPhilosophy and Technology 31 (4): 481-497. 2018.There is a wealth of resources— ideas, insights, discoveries, inventions, traditions, cultures, languages, arts, religions, sciences, narratives, stories, poems, customs and norms, music and songs, games and personal experiences, and advertisements—that we produce, curate, consume, transmit, and inherit as humans. This wealth, which I define as semantic capital, gives meaning to, and makes sense of, our own existence and the world surrounding us. It defines who we are and enables humans to devel…Read more
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392Semantic information and the correctness theory of truthErkenntnis 74 (2). 2011.Semantic information is usually supposed to satisfy the veridicality thesis: p qualifies as semantic information only if p is true. However, what it means for semantic information to be true is often left implicit, with correspondentist interpretations representing the most popular, default option. The article develops an alternative approach, namely a correctness theory of truth (CTT) for semantic information. This is meant as a contribution not only to the philosophy of information but also to…Read more
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483Semantic information and the network theory of accountSynthese 184 (3): 431-454. 2012.The article addresses the problem of how semantic information can be upgraded to knowledge. The introductory section explains the technical terminology and the relevant background. Section 2 argues that, for semantic information to be upgraded to knowledge, it is necessary and sufficient to be embedded in a network of questions and answers that correctly accounts for it. Section 3 shows that an information flow network of type A fulfils such a requirement, by warranting that the erotetic deficit…Read more
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68Sextus Empiricus: the transmission and recovery of pyrrhonismOxford University Press. 2002.The subject is Sextus Empiricus, one the chief sources of information on ancient philosophy and one of the most influential authors in the history of skepticism. Sextus' works have had an extraordinary influence on western philosophy, and this book provides the first exhaustive and detailed study of their recovery, transmission, and intellectual influence through Late Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and the Renaissance. This study deals with Sextus' biography, as well as the history of the availabil…Read more
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