Thoughtful things : an investigation in the descriptive epistemology of artifacts

340 Pages·2017·1.3 MB·English

by  Giacomo Romano

Thoughtful things : an investigation in the descriptive
epistemology of artifacts
Citation for published version (APA):
Romano, G. (2009). Thoughtful things : an investigation in the descriptive epistemology of artifacts. [Phd Thesis
1 (Research TU/e / Graduation TU/e), Industrial Engineering and Innovation Sciences]. Technische Universiteit
Eindhoven. https://doi.org/10.6100/IR656185
DOI:
10.6100/IR656185
Document status and date:
Published: 01/01/2009
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Download date: 13. Mar. 2023
Thoughtful Things
An investigation
in the descriptive epistemology of artifacts

PROEFSCHRIFT

ter verkrijging van de graad van doctor
aan de Technische Universiteit Eindhoven,
op gezag van de rector magnificus, prof.dr.ir. C.J. van Duijn,
voor een commissie aangewezen door het College voor Promoties
in het openbaar te verdedigen
op woensdag 23 december 2009 om 16.00 uur

door

Giacomo Romano

geboren te Siena, Italië
Dit proefschrift is goedgekeurd door de promotor:

prof.dr.ir. A.W.M. Meijers

Copromotoren:
dr. W.N. Houkes
en
prof.dr. M.J. de Vries

Samenstelling promotiecommissie

rector magnificus, voorzitter
prof.dr.ir. A.W.M. Meijers, Technische Universiteit Eindhoven, promotor
dr. W.N. Houkes, Technische Universiteit Eindhoven, co-promotor
prof.dr. M.J. de Vries, Technische Universiteit Eindhoven en Delft, co-promotor
prof. S. Nannini, University of Siena, Siena, Italy
dr. W.F.G. Haselager, University of Nijmegen, NICI
dr. W. A. IJsselsteijn, Technische Universiteit Eindhoven

Research for this thesis was made possible by the Netherlands Organization for
Scientific Research (NWO).

© Giacomo Romano, 2009
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without prior permission in writing
of the publisher.

Romano, G.
Thoughtful Things. An Investigation in the Descriptive Epistemology of Artifacts
Via delle Porte Nuove 62, Firenze 50144, Italy
Email: [email protected]
ISBN: 978-90-386-2108-1
ISSN: 1574-941X

... alla mia mamma
(... to my mother)
(... voor mijn moeder)

Contents
Acknowledgments 11

1 Introduction: artifacts and the philosophy of technology 15

1.1 Philosophy of technology and a peculiar epistemology of artifacts 15
1.2 Scope of this investigation 20
1.3 Status of this investigation: its approach, style and methodology 29
1.4 Structure of the present essay and an outline of its chapters 32

2 Skepticism and confidence about artifacts 43

2.1 The trial against artifacts 45
2.2 A first reply to Sperber’s skepticism: building on artifactual
prototypicality 50
2.3 Artifactual prototypicality and conceptual pluralism about “artifact” 55
2.4 “Artifact” as cue of a cultural and cognitive universal 65

3 From the metaphysics to the descriptive epistemology of artifacts 75

3.1 A preamble about analytic metaphysics 76
3.2 Artifacts and analytic ontology 82
3.3 Functions and the metaphysics of artifacts 97
3.4 A shift to the descriptive epistemology of artifacts 106

4 Perceiving artifacts 115

4.1 The perception of objects (and artifacts) from scratch 117
4.2 Brain scanning, semantic deficits, and basic artifact recognition 122
4.3 “Artifact” as a semantic category in the brain 128
4.4 Vagueness of ‘category-specificity’ in the brain 137