“The new Cagliostro”: Onofroff, Rubén Darío and his story "La esfinge"

The article retraces the career of the famous hypnotist Onofroff and particularly his visit to Buenos Aires, where his activity, in 1895, provoked many discussions and some public embarrassment. In this context Darío, using a pseudonym, published his crónica “La esfinge”. We reproduce “La esfinge”, transcribing the original text of La Nación, with annotations identifying the literary and theosophical sources Darío used when he wrote it.

David Hume and contractualism

David Hume belonged to the consecuencialist philosophical tendency, in which is included utilitarianism. This tendency was opposed to the normativism philosophy, in which is enrolled contractualism. This article analyzes the critique made by David Hume, from the utilitarianism perspective, against contractualism. The major philosophers of contractualism are Thomas Hobbes, John Locke and Jean Jacques Rousseau. Hume implemented three arguments in opposition to them: 1) historic: the social contract does not have any practical testing. Therefore it could not be presented as the foundation of the state; 2) philosophical: it is not the duty, but the interest that moves men to seek the formation of the political authority; 3) social: in the consciousness of the people, there is no trace of the social contract.Utilitarianism was one of the philosophical tendencies that finished the theoretical hegemony that contractualism had during the XVII and the XVIII centuries. Nonetheless from the historical and social point of view, the liberalization movements in many parts of the world, at that time, were inspired by contractualism. It means that from the theoretical point of view, utilitarianism, certainly, stressed the empirical origins of the state but not the rational justification of the political Authority. Hume was unable to understand the normative force that contractualism owns, which inspires human action.

Entre reglas y excepciones. Es decir, como legitimar las decisiones colectivas

El ensayo examina la cuestión de la aplicación de las reglas y de la capacidad real para tratar casos específicos, llegando a la conclusión de que es la excepción la que confirma la regla, a condición de que sea dialógicamente construida, para que sea interpretable y aplicable por parte de sus numerosos destinatarios en las políticas públicas más complejas y conflictuales, sobre todo a nivel local.

Le statuts y stématique du Genévrier oxycédre Junyperus oxycedrus L. (Cupressacées): une contribution d'ordre biochimique et biométrique

Dimensiosis des galbules et/ou teneur en prodelphinidine des aiguilles permettent trés généralement de déterminer les sous-espéces oxycedrus et macrocarpa, respectivement septentrionale-continentale et méridionale-insulaire, du Genévrier oxyeédre Juniperus oxycedrus L. Parcontre, la sous-espéce nord-africaine rufescens (en montagne) ne parah pas distinguable à ces titres de la sous-espéce type. Mais l’étude biochimique plus approfondie d’une (méta)population languedocienne montre l’existence d’un polymorphisme proanthocyanique indépendant de la taille des galbules. Les deux sous-espéces classiquement reconnues pourraient donc n’étre que les formes extremes, homozygotes pour le caractére chimique considéré, d’un méme génóme spécifique. Si les spécimens littoraux (Corse, Majorque, Maghreb) correspondent bien à la pleine expression (= prodelphinidine forte) de ce polymorphisme, certains échantillons «péri-littoraux» (Baléares et Languedoc) trahissent une introgression (actuelle ou ancienne) ayee appartion d’individus hétérozygotes, aux teneurs intermédiaires: des génes «macrocarpa» sont done bien presents au nord de la Méditerranée, méme si le phénoméne n’est pas morphologiquement décelable, et ne mérite pas d’étre formalisé en termes systématiques.

Place et rôle de Juniperus thurifera dans les structures de vegetation des Alpes du Sud

Les formations a genévrier thurifère des Alpes françcaises du sud, présentent un intérêt biogeographique et historique de première importance. Les auteurs étudient les structures de végétation que le genevrier organise dans les étages supraméditerranéen et montagnards.

Groupements arbustifs el mégaphorbiaies du haut Jura français. Quelques aspects particuliers

Tras las observaciones efectuadas durante la sesión de la Amical Internacional de Fitosociogía en la Jura franco-suiza, los autores exponen alganos datos complementarios sobre las comunidades megafórbicas jurasianas con Cicerbita alpina y Adenostyles alliaria y analizan desde un nuevo punto de vista, la comunidad arbustiva de Jun¡perus nana, Pinus uncinata, Sorbus chamaespilus, Laburnum alpinum.., que existen en los pisos subalpino y montano superior del Jura.

Short reflections on the history of African communication

This article aims to propose a chronological subdivision in the history of African communication. African communication today is one of the most important axes for implementing development strategies, sustaining education, health, and schooling programmes, and so on. However, many of these programmes fail due to a lack of or ineffective communication between international organisations, local elite and lay people. The reasons for this situation must be found in Africa’s history of communication, which has undergone radical transformations in its different phases. Using the functionalist analysis drawn up by Jakobson, this article proposes a new chronological subdivision of Africa’s history of communication, reflecting on the current contradictions in contemporary communication in Africa.

Hybrid philosophy and rational vitalism in Canguilhem and Ortega y Gasset

This paper explores the problem of the synthesis between vitalism and rationalism, in contemporary philosophy. With this aim, we compare the intellectual careers of Georges Canguilhem (1904-1995) and José Ortega y Gasset (1883-1955). We contrast their conceptions of philosophy as “hybrid” knowledge, closely related to science, as well as their points of view on Vitalism, anthropology, the technique and the perspectivism. To avoid that comparison is purely abstract and ahistorical, we use the method of the sociology of philosophy. This forces us to locate both paths in their respective philosophical fields and generational units, also according to his social background and professional career.