Aristotelian Train of Thought in BioCosmology

Stephen M. Modell

E-LOGOS, 2009, vol. 2009, issue 1, 16 pages

Abstract: Konstantin Khroutski envisions a new medical era or episteme in which health care will be devoted to the realization of each patient's whole-person needs, from biological to social, ultimately leading to their actualization as a human being. Commentator Anna Makolkin has pointed out that the transformation in medical culture is best addressed through an examination of the Greek concept of nous - mind and intellect. Aristotle's train of thought in his Physics, Metaphysics, and Generation of Animals, especially his analysis of the active and passive intellect, sheds light on the shifting modes of medical reasoning. Philosopher-physician Maimonides' medical writings also serve as exemplars of the flow of medical thought between organismic (humoral) and scientific traditions, leading to Khroutski's greater synthesis. The issue of a "Basic Cosmist Functionality" at the core of each person's state of health is addressed, drawing on three models - eventual, incremental, and teleologic. Aristotle's notions of cause and teleology suggest that a full model of health functionality will take into account momentary physiologic processes and include a teleologic element based on the individual's genotype and biotype. The paper concludes with an attempt to explain the notion of "cosmist functionality" held by Khroutski in terms of the omnipresent operation of the genome as well as the convergent nature of time for highly organized physical systems. The type of nous displayed by convergent natural processes is different, in terms of the incorporation of reflective consciousness, from human thought.

Keywords: medical history; Greek philosophy; Aristotle; Maimonides; health; function; causality; teleology; gene (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2009
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