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Interdisciplinary perspectives on the concepts of indeterminacy and indeterminability and the distinctions between the two.Formal thinking about certainty/uncertainty gained greater focus in scientific domains with the advent of particle physics and quantum mechanics. Concern with the exact predictability of events under guidance from scientific determinism led to speculation, then acknowledgement of quantum indeterminacy. But distinctions were made between what is physically indeterminate out there and what is indeterminable by human observation or in human action--over here, on the inside, right now. The implications of these insights into indeterminacy and indeterminabilities for practical and theoretical knowledge span physics, philosophy, ontology, causality, and the philosophy of mind. In this book, contributors from a range of disciplines consider the concept of indeterminacy and a few varieties of indeterminability, with attention to the distinctions between the two phenomena, appropriate approaches for examining both, and the differences vis-a-vis uncertainty, vagueness, and ambiguity.

Philosophy of nature --- Definition (Philosophy). --- Uncertainty. --- Definition (Philosophy) --- Uncertainty --- Reasoning --- Definability --- Definition (Logic) --- Undefinability --- Philosophy --- Semantics (Philosophy) --- SOCIAL SCIENCES/Political Science/Political & Social Theory

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A cross-disciplinary examination of democratization, as seen in different attempts at it across the globe.Democracy is not in steady state and democratizations are open-ended processes; they depend on structures and functions in systemic contexts that idiosyncratically evolve in tone, tenor, direction, and pace. They affect and are affected by scores of determinants, both perceived and hypothetical. In interlinked chapters that span a number of disciplines, this volume reexamines the basic traits, the comparable outcomes, and the self-defining dynamics of some of the more widely attempted versions of democracy across the world. It discusses some of the controversies that can speed up or slow democratizations (depending on systemic structures, functions, processes, and contexts at play inside, outside, and across political boundaries). The crucial question these chapters address is whether democratization is possible without an understanding of what is expected from a mode of citizenship inseparable from an ethic of freedom.

Democracy --- Democratization --- Comparative government. --- Comparative political systems --- Comparative politics --- Government, Comparative --- Political systems, Comparative --- Democratic consolidation --- Democratic transition --- Political science --- New democracies --- SOCIAL SCIENCES/Political Science/Political & Social Theory --- Comparative government

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New interdisciplinary perspectives on the theory and practice of freedom, with field-specific studies.Some philosophers conceive freedom as a state; others view it as an ideal. A songwriter sees it as a way of life: "Like a bird on a wire, like a drunk in a midnight choir, I have tried in my way to be free." The embattled statesman and the political idealist perceive causal links among personal freedoms, societal democracy, and global peace. In this cross-disciplinary volume, the contributors reassess and rephrase the conceptualizations and theorizations of freedom and their applicability to daily life. Framed by historical contexts, their field-specific studies help reconcile theory and practice. Their shared and unique ideational framework can be paraphrased in six words, a question mark, and a (muted) exclamation point: Freedom? Beware what you wish for (!).

Liberty --- Philosophy --- Religious aspects --- History --- Civil liberty --- Emancipation --- Freedom --- Liberation --- Personal liberty --- Democracy --- Natural law --- Political science --- Equality --- Libertarianism --- Social control --- SOCIAL SCIENCES/Political Science/Political & Social Theory --- Liberté --- Congresses. --- Congrès --- Aspect religieux --- Histoire