Upshot: In reading the commentaries, we were struck by the fact that all of them were in some capacity related to what we consider a core principle of radical constructivism - interaction. We characterize interaction from a radical constructivist perspective, and then discuss how the authors of the commentaries address one kind of interaction.

High-spin states have been studied in Pr-135(59), populated through the Cd-116(Na-23,4n) reaction at 115 MeV, using the Gammasphere gamma-ray spectrometer. The negative-parity yrast band has been significantly extended to spin similar to 45 (h) over bar and excitation energy 21.5 MeV, showing evidence for several rotational alignments. The positive-parity yrast band of Ce-135(58), populated through the p4n channel of this reaction, was also populated to spin similar to 38 (h) over bar and excitation energy 18 MeV. Cranking calculations indicate that (...) these nuclei are soft with respect to the triaxiality parameter gamma and that several competing nuclear shapes occur at high spin. (shrink)

Background: Health institutions can be considered as complex organizations because they need to be prepared to receive and satisfy patients. This clientele differs from other organizations because the use of hospital services is not a matter of choice. Another motive for this difference is that, most often, the patients do not determine what services and products they will use during their stay. Although they are the clients, usually, health professionals decide which service or product they will consume. Hence, nursing care (...) delivery based on competence, efficiency and ethics represents a challenge. Objective: This critical reflection is meant to draw attention to the relevance of the ethical aspects of nurses' actions involving patients' satisfaction with nursing care. Research design: This paper highlights the responsibility of nurses to develop ethical actions in their commitment to manage and provide care with quality, commitment and efficiency. Findings and discussion: Possibilities of actions needed emerged from this discussion, such as the provision of reliable and updated information to clients, respect for standards, routines of care, exams and others, as well as clients' education, in order to further their involvement and participation in decisions concerning the care planned for them. Conclusion: The adoption of this paradigm entails a change in the performance of nurses' management and care roles, which may have to observe attitudes previously disregarded in most services provided. (shrink)

The second and concluding volume of Adler's monumental eight-year project on freedom offers a comprehensive cataloguing of the controversies which surround the five main types of freedom identified in the first volume. One conclusion of the present work is that philosophers too rarely join issue on the most crucial problems at stake in the continuing debate on freedom. Though the main purpose of elucidation is admirably achieved, the book sometimes suffers from an overly conscious structuring. The scope, detail, and cross-indexing (...) of this volume make it an invaluable reference book for any philosopher concerned with the discussion of freedom.--E. S. C. (shrink)

This is a brief study which emphasizes Jasper's relations with other philosophers, especially Kant. It approaches Jasper's own philosophy from a perilously theistic angle, seeing many parallels in Bradley and Whitehead. Jasper's continuity with, rather than his break from, the Western rationalist tradition in philosophy is abundantly documented.—E. S. C.

Background: Providing nursing care for patients with end-stage renal disease entails dealing with existential issues which may sometimes lead not only to ethical problems but also conflicts within the team. A previous study shows that physicians felt irresolute, torn and unconfirmed when ethical dilemmas arose. Research question: This study, conducted in the same dialysis care unit, aimed to illuminate registered nurses’ experiences of being in ethically difficult situations that give rise to a troubled conscience. Research design: This study has a (...) phenomenological hermeneutic approach. Participants: Narrative interviews were carried out with 10 registered nurses working in dialysis care. Ethical considerations: The study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Faculty of Medicine, Umeå University. Results: One theme, ‘Calling for a deliberative dialogue’, and six sub-themes emerged: ‘Dealing with patients’ ambiguity’, ‘Responding to patients’ reluctance’, ‘Acting against patients’ will’, ‘Acting against one’s moral convictions’, ‘Lacking involvement with patients and relatives’ and ‘Being trapped in feelings of guilt’. Discussion: In ethically difficult situations, the registered nurses tried, but failed, to open up a dialogue with the physicians about ethical concerns and their uncertainty. They felt alone, uncertain and sometimes had to act against their conscience. Conclusion: In ethical dilemmas, personal and professional integrity is at stake. Mistrusting their own moral integrity may turn professionals from moral actors into victims of circumstances. To counteract such a risk, professionals and patients need to continuously deliberate on their feelings, views and experiences, in an atmosphere of togetherness and trust. (shrink)

A clarification of ambiguities in the notion of free decision. Concentrating on ordinary English usage, Ofstad distinguishes six senses of free decision. One of these, freedom as power, is exhaustively treated. A skillful attempt is made to relate the analyses of free decision, which form the bulk of the book, to the concepts of duty, responsibility, and the author's own ethical position. One helpful appendix lists and indexes all propositions concerning freedom of decision as it is analysed throughout the book. (...) --E. S. C. (shrink)

This is an exceptionally clear study of the time-theories of Bergson, St. Augustine, Heidegger, Buber, Schelling and Franz v. Baader, as well as an attempt to show the relationship between time, freedom and consciousness. Following Schelling and v. Baader, Kümmel views past, present and future as "powers" which only freeze into explicitly temporal dimensions upon reflection. Kümmel agrees with Heidegger that our attitude toward time is a revelation of our being-in-the-world, but he puts more emphasis on our relation to the (...) past than Heidegger ever did.—E. S. C. (shrink)

A somewhat hurried and one-sided account of ethical philosophy as practiced by Moore, Ross, Ewing, Ayer, Stevenson, Toulmin, Urmson, and Hare.--E. S. C.

A trenchantly-argued account of factors such as motives, desires, and volitions, as they enter into human action. Wittgensteinian in orientation and tone, the essay shows that such factors cannot be construed as private inner episodes or Humean causes, but only as logically connected with action in the interpersonal sphere. Thus the ordinary belief in free action which is also rational and moral is vindicated, though the question of precisely what kind of freedom is here involved is not explored.--E. S. C.

In this brilliant and baffling essay, Merleau-Ponty reaps a harvest of insights upon the basis of his previous penetrating studies of perception and language. Again we find massively argued denials of neat Cartesian distinctions, such as those supposed to hold between space, depth and color. Inspired by the author's intimate acquaintance with the modern art movement, and quoting frequently from its masters, the essay gives back to painting its own voice and autonomy. Much like the body itself, painting is held (...) to be our most direct and revealing access to the lived world—that is, to Being itself.—E. S. C. (shrink)

An examination of Sartre's literary style through an analysis of events, things, thoughts, and persons as these are realized in the major novels and plays. Jameson shows that Sartre's literary activity is not a mere front for his philosophy but constitutes a serious effort at evolving techniques capable of rendering an aesthetic whole out of the elements of the radically dualistic Sartrian universe. Jameson's own style, unfortunately, is somewhat opaque. --E. S. C.

An attempt to justify the view of God's love as ecstatic and metaphysically primary. There is great reliance on Aquinas and the Spanish philosophers Ortega y Gasset and Xavier Zubiri.--E. S. C.

A readable attempt to reconcile methods, materials, and results in the arts and sciences. The author stresses similarities, but does not overlook crucial differences, in key notions such as patterns of discovery and methods of formulation.--E. S. C.

A richly perceptive and highly readable essay, which develops the thesis that the most successful approach to the history of art is the notion of a sequence of forms, beginning with a "prime work" and being extended through replications. This concise yet far-ranging book illustrates the effectiveness of the sequential form of analysis by its reference to a wide array of examples drawn mostly from the history of painting and architecture. Along the way, many insights are suggested concerning the nature (...) of history, time, change, and duration.--E. S. C. (shrink)

These commemorative papers on different aspects of Dewey's philosophy vary in quality. The essay by Paul Henle on "Dewey's Views on Truth and Verification" is excellent; and Gardner Murphy's reflections on Dewey's psychology are noteworthy. --E. S. C.

This early study is a key work, along with several other preliminary essays, for understanding the genesis of Sartre's Being and Nothingness. Well translated and with an excellent introduction and notes, the book contains the critical thesis that former theories of the imagination confused perception with imagination, and that imagination was properly recognized first by Husserl and was subsequently further clarified by Sartre in his notion of the nihilating consciousness. --E. S. C.

Health equity is a global concern. Although health equity extends far beyond the equitable distribution of healthcare, equitable access to healthcare is essential to the achievement of health equity. In Canada, Indigenous Peoples experience inequities in health and healthcare access. Cultural safety and trauma‐ and violence‐informed care have been proposed as models of care to improve healthcare access, yet practitioners lack guidance on how to implement these models. In this paper, we build upon an existing framework of equity‐oriented care for (...) primary healthcare settings by proposing strategies to guide nurses in operationalizing cultural safety and trauma‐ and violence‐informed care into nursing practice at the individual level. This component is one strategy to redress inequitable access to care among Indigenous Peoples in Canada. We conceptualize barriers to accessing healthcare as intrapersonal, interpersonal, and structural. We then define three domains for nursing action: practicing reflexivity, prioritizing relationships, and considering the context. We have applied this expanded framework within the context of Indigenous Peoples in Canada as a way of illustrating specific concepts and focusing our argument; however, this framework is relevant to other groups experiencing marginalizing conditions and inequitable access to healthcare, and thus is applicable to many areas of nursing practice. (shrink)

To most people it seems obvious that there are major mental differences between ourselves and other species, but there is considerable debate over exactly how special our minds are, in what respects, and which were the critical evolutionary events that have shaped us. Some researchers claimlanguage as a solely human, even defining, attribute, while others claim that only humans are truly conscious. These questions have been explored mainly by archaeologists and anthropologists until recently, but this volume aims to show what (...) psychologists have to say on the evolution of mind. The book begins with a thorough overview of what is known of the non-primate mind and its evolution. Following this, an international range of experts discuss in temporal sequence the human mind at various stages of evolution, beginning with the pre-hominids of 20 million years ago and ending withcontemporary human behaviour. Accessible to students and researchers alike in psychology, anthropology, evolution, archaeology, and ethology, The Descent of Mind provides a range of provocative answers to the timeless question of what it means to be human. (shrink)

An adequate theory of rights ought to forbid the harming of animals to promote trivial interests of humans, as is often done in the animal-user industries. But what should the rights view say about situations in which harming some animals is necessary to prevent intolerable injustices to other animals? I develop an account of respectful treatment on which, under certain conditions, it’s justified to intentionally harm some individuals to prevent serious harm to others. This can be compatible with recognizing the (...) inherent value of the ones who are harmed. My theory has important implications for contemporary moral issues in nonhuman animal ethics, such as the development of cultured meat and animal research. (shrink)

These brief selections could use explanatory footnotes for frequently obscure passages. --E. S. C.

We present an experimental test of the validity of the Pauli Exclusion Principle for electrons based on the concept put forward a few years ago by Ramberg and Snow. In this experiment we perform a very accurate search of X-rays from the Pauli-forbidden atomic transitions of electrons in the already filled 1S shells of copper atoms. Although the experiment has a simple structure, it poses deep conceptual and interpretational problems. Here we describe the experimental method and recent experimental results, which (...) we interpret as an upper limit for the probability to violate the Pauli Exclusion Principle. We present also future plans to upgrade the experimental apparatus using Silicon Drift Detectors. (shrink)

The preparation of layers of amorphous Se by plasma-enhanced CVD using the hydride H2Se as precursor gas is described. Information concerning the structure of the films was obtained from Raman spectroscopy. The spectra of amorphous Se indicated that the dominant molecular structure is the eight-membered ring and/or a chain with Se8 molecular fragments. This material exhibited reversible photodarkening when illuminated at 77 K. In order to explain this phenomenon, we propose a mechanism which takes into account the role of the (...) lone-pair electron orbitals of Se in their contribution to structural ordering. Illumination can cause a distortion in the normal bonding direction between nearest-neighbour Se atoms and induce in this way intrinsic defect states located at the band edges. In the photo-darkened state, optical transition will occur between these defect states. (shrink)

Context: This paper outlines how radical constructivist theory has led to a particular methodological technique, developing second-order models of student thinking, that has helped mathematics educators to be more effective teachers of their students. Problem: The paper addresses the problem of how radical constructivist theory has been used to explain and engender more viable adaptations to the complexities of teaching and learning. Method: The paper presents empirical data from teaching experiments that illustrate the process of second-order model building. Results: The (...) result of the paper is an illustration of how second-order models are developed and how this process, as it progresses, supports teachers to be more effective. Implications: This paper has the implication that radical constructivism has the potential to impact practice. Key Words: Second-order model, radical constructivism, teaching, mathematics education. (shrink)

We present the idea of searching for X-rays as a signature of the mechanism inducing the spontaneous collapse of the wave function. Such a signal is predicted by the continuous spontaneous localization theories, which are solving the “measurement problem” by modifying the Schrödinger equation. We will show some encouraging preliminary results and discuss future plans and strategy.