Giulio Preti (1911-1972) was the most eminent Italian representative of European critical rationalism. Engaged in a continuous critical dialogue with the epistemological debate stemming from logical empiricism, Preti occupied a unique position internationally. The 'Philosophical Essays' are his ultimate expression of the practice of philosophy as a Socratic exercise of freedom and social responsibility. Fabio Minazzi is Professor of Theoretical Philosophy at the Universit� degli Studi dell'Insubria, director of the Centro Internazionale Insubrico and a member of the Acad�mie Internationale de Philosophie des Sciences. He is a specialist in the European tradition of critical rationalism… and has published on Galileo, Kant, Popper and Geymonat among others. His publications include over eighty authored or edited volumes and over 300 academic papers.