Should humans be seen as natural or cultural objects? In this volume a philospher and a psychologist discuss this question. Theres generally nothing new to the sciences dealing with human life; whats new is the debate going on between the natural and the cultural sciences about who is more responsible for human existence. The philospher Peter Janich is concerned with how humans are treated by science, and the psychologist Rolf Oerter with how the modern picture of humanity holds up in various different cultures. The contributions and discussions presented here deal with the following matters:-What do the natural and cultural sciences see when they study human life?-What is the relationship between culture and nature are they opposites or are they in fact the same thing?-Where did consciousness and the human mind originate?-What role does language play in understanding human cultures?

Dr. phil. Peter Janich ist emeritierter Professor für Philosophie der Philipps-Universität Marburg.