Ideas and Ideals

The article analyses both the book of American philosopher ChristophCox “Sonic Flux: Sound, Art and Metaphysics” and a wide range of criti­cal publications dedicated to this book. The project “Sonic Flux” belongs tosonic materialism (a branch of “New Materialism’) also known as “Deleuziansound studies”. For Cox this means a development of “immanent metaphys­ics” launched by G. Deleuze. But while continuing the project of Deleuze,Cox inherits his predicaments. Their range is as broad as the specter of Cox’ssources covering philosophy, arts, theory of perception. Debates around theproject “Sonic Flux” highlighted such problems as the way Cox understandsmaterialism and how he understands access to reality. Cox’s correlation of fi­nite and infinite; particularity and universality, and anti-historicism are highlyproblematic for critics. Since Cox claims to develop a theory of sound art weassess his ideas from this perspective. This allows us to focus on modernism,anonymity and anti-humanism, central to Cox’s project but not to its criti­cism. A less important aspect – resentiment in Cox’s style – turned out to behelpful in drawing conclusions that the whole project “Sonic Flux” is builtupon a range of assumptions. Cox himself names some of them while weindicated some others.

The main conclusion of the article is the idea that the project “Sonic Flux” cannot provide an adequate theory of sound art nor contribute to sound stud­ies because it is too embedded in the worst kind of modernism and structural­ism. Such important notions of sonic materialism as autonomy and anonymity of sounds perfectly fit the tradition of Modernism while being completely alien to the sound studies.

Since the time of Galileo and Newton, physics has been engineered as a mathematical discipline, seeking its axioms, laws of nature, by means of specially organized experiments. The motivation of specifi cally this mode of cognizing nature was explored in the fi rst paper of this series, in which Christian Platonism and the Pythagorean crede of the founding fathers of modernity’s physics were discussed. The present article aims to lay out the cognitive strategy of physics as revealed by refl ecting upon its seminal discoveries. One central inquiry concerning physics is how exactly it has mined its axioms. Merely pointing to experimentation is insuffi cient. Experiments are conceived and executed as verifi cation of an already-formulated hypothesis, without which it would be indeterminate what should be observed and what there is to do with those observations. A hypothesis for a law is not derived from an experiment; on the contrary, it defi nes the experiment in order to be rigorously scrutinized by it.

The objective of this article is to demonstrate on facts that the strategy for hypothesizing physical laws has invariably emanated from the same wellspring as the originating metaphysical credo. This Pythagorean strategy is founded on the belief in mathematical elegance, high precision, and the universality of the sought-after axioms of matter. The quest for hypotheses went along the pathways of universal mathematical symmetries, equivalencies, invariances, correspondences, and analogies–complex enough to account for a plethora of relevant phenomena, yet simple enough to facilitate scientifi c discovery.

We are not the fi rst to propound this Pythagorean understanding of physics. This concept, as well as the term ‘Pythagorean strategy,’ was a quarter-century ago formulated and developed by the American-Israeli philosopher Mark Steiner (1942–2020) in his monograph, “The Applicability of Mathematics as a Philosophical Problem.” The present article serves as a free contemplation in the footsteps of that brilliant and still largely unparalleled tome.

This article is first in a series of publications on the problem of a special character of fundamental physical laws, which combine two opposite qualities: they are complex enough to allow fine-tuning to life,  yet simple enough to be discoverable by emerging intelligent life. In other words, the laws permit the emergence of not just living beings, but those capable of discovering these very laws. How could this be possible?

Known laws can be looked at from both logical, objective, and historical, subjective, perspectives. On the one hand – the logical – the successes achieved by physics testify to the adequacy of physical theories, to their conformity to the fabric of the Universe itself. This conformity is fundamentally different from fitting complex formulas to facts, like those implemented by the algorithms of Ptolemy, Copernicus or artificial intelligence. Fits describe only what is already embedded in them, whereas physical theories allow to predict phenomena that have never been observed, often unbeknownst  even to the authors of those theories. This predictive power  stems from the same qualities  as the ability to unambiguously falsify physical theories: the simplicity, universality, precision, and completeness of their mathematical principles. In addition to these qualities, and in addition to the fact that the fundamental physical laws possess numerous symmetries, invariants, and equivalences, they also permit that constructive richness of stable material configurations, that is chemistry, which is a necessary condition of life as we know it. Research of recent decades shows how finely tuned the physical constants are to meet this requirement: even small changes in their values would make chemistry impossible.  What is the reason for these amazing Pythagorean qualities of the Universe? Purposeful design of this rational elegance of nature, that is, the intelligent design of the Universe, appears to be the only passable answer to this question, as we intend to demonstrate in this series of publications.

On the other hand, the history of science testifies that the belief in the mathematical perfection of nature’s arrangement lies at the origin of modern physics, indicating both the possibility and, without exaggeration, the sacredness of cognition of the Universe. This belief is clearly visible in the worldview of the founders of mathematical physics, as a special, emotionally intense Pythagorean credo, a variant of Christian Platonism. The initial presumption of perfect design may not be recognized by the masses of scientists and philosophers who came later, and it may even be rejected by them verbally, but this does not cancel its status as the foundation of physics: there has been and is no other answer to the question of why the understanding of the Universe is possible and important for humanity.

The justification of the assumption of intelligent design as the cause of such specific laws of nature, on the one hand, and, on the other hand,  discerning and contemplating the meaning of the Pythagorean credo by granting it the status of a metaphysical working hypothesis, together form a dual objective-subjective logical structure, which the authors designate as the Pythagorean argument, as presented in this article.

This article examines unfulfilled identity, which is expressed in the subject’s inability to actualize his or her identity due to internal complexes or social pressures. First, the main types of mistakes that can lead to erroneous actions and processes are highlighted. These processes, form an unfulfilled identity. The first type of mistake is the misunderstanding of one’s own natural state and social expectations. In this case, the subject cannot relate his or her abilities, characteristics and functional properties to reality. As a result, there is a tendency to form only the apparent integrity of an identity that can easily collapse. As a result, the subject is unable to be fully established as a person. This kind of identity has been called a ‘failed’ identity. The second mistake is to shift perception to external factors, disregarding internal experiences and attitudes. Thus, one’s interests, needs, and desires are replaced by others that are taken from the environment. A substituted identity is formed, which also does not have the property of completeness because of the lack of systemic connections between the personality and reality. Such an identity is called ‘substituted’. The author discusses the main reasons for the formation of an unfulfilled identity. The reasons are divided into different systems: global, local-social and individual. Thus, the first cause is identified as globalization. Its influence covers all subsequent systems. Globalization leads to the blurring of norms, differentiation and separation of values and attitudes. The processes of upbringing within different social institutions are included in the local-social system. The author outlines the main problems of upbringing and growing up, which affect the formation of identity. Subjective distortions are on the next level, complexes and mistakes that lead to unfulfillment. They include the inability to concentrate and accept the consequences of choices, associated with a lack of responsibility; denial of biological determinants and the narrative of one’s own existence, a lack of life resources.

The world’s oldest 3x3 magic square, discovered/invented in Ancient China and now known as Luoshu 洛書/ ‘Document [from the River] Luo’, was endowed by Chinese tradition with unprecedented dignity and placed at the very heart of Chinese thought. The bewitching geometric-numerical imagery of Luoshu, open to a great many different visions, when reading-interpretation becomes the final moment of the very act of perception, turns this Chinese mandala into a real eye trap. With its disturbing persistence, it resembles the magically attractive ‘Zahir’ from Borges’ short story of the same name.

   Among the most diverse ritual and ideological instrumentalizations of the Luoshu magic square (from the sacred emblem of cosmic harmony to the requisite of a geomancer), the mobilization of this esoteric figure for the arithmetization of the cornerstone of all Chinese philosophy, the fundamentally non-verbalizable Tao, is dominant. The coding of the dao by the number 15 is reinforced by its spatialization, so that the entire “Document [from the river] Lo” appears as a map of the various trajectories of the Tao within this nine-field square. Moreover, the coincidence (in number 15) of differently composed sums appears as an inscrutable variety of paths leading to the same goal - the final implementation of Tao.

     By virtue of the validity of the equality 15 =mod10 5 the magic sum of the Luoshu square (Const₁₅) immutably, although covertly (in the form of a number 5), centers the entire Luoshu configuration. This secrecy of the magical constant (the latter is absent in the entire observable space of the “Document [from the river] Lo”) refers to the hidden “back-side” of Luoshu numbers, represented by the number 10 (in its role as a modulus of comparison in the arithmetic of residues modulo 10).

      Judging by the directly visible, so to speak, ‘front’ part of the magic square of order 3, it is allowed to count only up to nine in it. But the already absent-present magic sum (number 15), breaking the seemingly inescapable circle of arithmetic of residues, brings to light the comparison module (number 10) as Luosh’s hidden ‘truth’, which alone gives meaning to the entire nine-cell construction. Awareness of this truth is the first step in the transition to the ‘register of truth’ of this extraordinary gestalt. The subsequent connection to it of problems focused by the Pythagorean theorem radically expands Luoshu’s ‘register of truth’.

      The geometrized arithmetic of the Luoshu magic square, which is a unique spatial-numerical fixation of the seemingly fundamentally non-objectivable Tao (i.e., combining the apparently incompatible) marks the possibility of a paradoxical union of Heraclitus with Pythagoras, successfully realized by the Chinese tradition.

The article discusses the current situation in mathematics, which is interpreted as a crisis. The problems that allow making such a conclusion are considered: the question of the scientific status of mathematics, the possibility of its substantiation, the mental or experimental nature of mathematics, the time of its formation. The author presents the results of the genesis of geometry, the generalization of which makes it possible to assert that mathematics, on the one hand, can be considered a kind of empirical science, on the other, a constructive scientific discipline, in which more complex ideal objects are created on the basis of initial ideal objects and knowledge. Two different understandings of the foundations of mathematics are considered - general scientific and David Hilbert’s, as well as what paradoxes are in science and how they are removed. The author is inclined to believe that antinomies in mathematics cannot be eliminated once and for all, their source is attributing inconsistent characteristics to objects of mathematics, which is due to the very structure of mathematics. The fact is that the construction of ideal objects of mathematics proceeds under the influence of at least four areas: the empirical area, describing which mathematicians create initial ideal objects and knowledge; areas of design based on the original more complex ideal objects; areas of geometric theorem proofs; area of ​​construction of the theory of geometry. In addition, here it is necessary to add the concept of the foundation of mathematics by D. Hilbert, and also take into account that there are different concepts of the foundation of mathematics. At the end of the article, the features of the current crisis in mathematics and the possible direction of its resolution are discussed.

In the system of classical arts, music has always been perceived as a human actional breakthrough to understanding the Universe. The musical language, considered as a cultural universal, is the basis of intuitive cognition, a felt view of the axiological unity of Truth, Goodness and Beauty. The article offers an analysis of the formation of the main philosophical theories of the ontological nature of musical creativity in their historical continuity.

In the history of ideas, the phenomenon of musical creativity has been perceived as a special kind of revelation. This reveals the obvious importance of the aesthetic approach in understanding the transcendental world; the objectified connection of man with ontological processes. Modern theories of universal evolutionism represent the development of the Universe as a single system based on the unity of its laws. It is in our time that comprehension of the essence of musical creativity opens a fundamentally new page in the philosophical understanding of the centuries-old history of music. The key point is the idea of the Μελῳδός aspiration to the Λόγος, the tendency to move from particular theoretical constructions and critical assessments to considering the phenomenological foundations of music, fundamentally presented, in particular, in the works of A. Losev and T. Adorno.

In the XX century, there was an obvious surge in the formulation of generalizing musicological concepts, and it was in the XX century that the philosophy of music received qualitatively new worldview foundations for its comprehensive interpretation. In this respect, the study of the epistemological nature of musical creativity has reached, it would seem, its peak.

However, comprehension of the investigated theories allows us to draw conclusions only about the possible approximation of a true understanding of the essence of musical creativity as a special cognitive practice. This turns out to be possible on the methodological basis of cumulative generalization, taking into account the religious, aesthetic, cultural, psychological, educational and other approaches in comprehending the value of the “world of sound”.

The subject of the article is the problem of the ontological boundary of religious extremism as a socio-cultural phenomenon. The methodological basis of the research is the non-classical linguistic semantics of Frege – Russell. Within its framework, meaning, concept and sign are distinguished for the subject of thought. This methodology complements the predominance of the activity approach in the research of religious extremism. Such methodological unilateralism creates the illusion of the scholastic nature of the investigated problem, when the scientific result is expected to comment, clarify and systematize the known knowledge about religious extremism. As a result, religious extremism is considered metaphysically as an unchanging phenomenon that has no spatial and temporal boundaries. This research was conducted in two stages. The first one highlights the essential signs of religious extremism. The traditional triad of signs “subjects, sphere of activity, implementation methods” is supplemented by the fourth: “the purpose of activity”. Based on the analysis, religious extremism is defined as extreme actions of religious elements in the political life of society, aimed against the structural elements and ideology of secular society. The article rejects the provisions on uncritical identification with religious extremism of the following social phenomena: violation of national legislation on freedom of conscience and religious associations; religious fanaticism; religious sectarianism; nationalism. At the second stage of the research, the spatial and temporal boundaries of religious extremism are comprehended. Spatially religious extremism is typical for both post-industrial and traditional societies of the second half of the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. The article puts forward historical-religious arguments and an argument against the thesis of the timeless nature of the existence of religious extremism. Based on the formation of a secular society on the economic basis of an industrial society since the second half of the XIX century, four factors of the emergence of religious extremism have been identified: secularization of public consciousness; desacralization of power; inversion of violence; limited support. As a result of the conducted research, the metaphysical consideration of religious extremism as an unchangeable phenomenon has been overcome and its conceptual understanding has been deepened.

Philosophy of love as a subfield of moral philosophy and history of philosophy questions the very foundations of how people love each other. Within the philosophical debate, not only the sources of love but forms and types are questioned. Does the source of love correspond to a concrete form of love? What is the difference between parental love and friendship love? What is the main difference between romantic love and the abovementioned? A philosopher from Chicago, Raja Halwani made a methodological and pithy impact in the debate. On the one hand, his main achievement in the recent debates is the distinction between two kinds of love: romantic love 1 and romantic love 2. Halwani notes that the main disagreement among philosophers stems from the fact that philosophers usually don’t see this difference. And if philosophers would keep this difference in mind, it would clarify our debates. On the other hand, professor Halwani doesn’t propose a conceptual novelty but interestingly refines the current debates on love’s aspects. These debates are debates concerning the main characteristics of love and how we can defend these characteristics. Halwani clarifies the central concepts of romantic love such as “constancy”, “exclusivity”, “uniqueness”, “irreplaceability”. The philosopher devoted special attention to reflections upon how exactly we can apply existing moral theories to love. At the end of the article, an attempt is made to compound many of Halwani’s statements about RL1 and RL2 in a unified table.

The article brings the analysis of Bacons’ ideas on war and political violence in general. Military activities of a state and military foundations of statecraft were of a particular interest for Bacon both from legal & bureaucratic and philosophical perspective. Both perspectives merged in his writings on colonization of Virginia and Ireland, military affairs with Spain, legal issues of union of England and Scotland and on the principles of policy-making. Bacon believed violence – organized, well-armed and successful – was a mighty factor uniting communities into a state. No one state in the world had been able to emerge without an oppression of the ruled by those who rule. The later stages of a state-building required something except mere force – a set of common habits and laws and a consent to be governed as well. The pursuit of common interest requires nowadays the use of an armed force. The reason for it is the contest between the rival states. The balance of powers, the colonial policy, the control of lands and populations are never available for a state lacking military power. Although a successful colonization, a proper use of lands and an effective government could never be achieved by such a means. These goals require a legitimate rule based upon a common consent, a respect for the law and a peaceful labor. A conquered population should be naturalized rather than forced to recognize a new government. A wise ruler will use armed force moderately even for such purposes like suppression of seditions and wrong religions. Analyzing war from a pragmatic, Machiavellian perspective, Bacon had escaped the aestheticisation of martial virtue and art of waging wars typical for Machiavelli.