New challenges in the development of teaching methods lead to a large number of new tools, methods, and approaches to teaching. The structure and functions of a class as a basic social group in education is being radically transformed, becoming more and more virtual especially in COVID-19/post-covid period. In this regard, this study proposes a model that generalizes the existing trends in changing forms of education towards its digitalization, virtualization and mobility to increase the effectiveness of pedagogical practice. The model (...) is based on Pierre Bourdieu’s model of a social field, which has proven its effectiveness in pedagogy. The study considers the communicative space of the class as an integral structure aimed at the optimal academic, social and moral development of the participants. Considering a physical and communicational expanse of class as a social field that describes the field of cognitive, social, and psychological interaction between participants in the educational process, the study tries to establish its structure, stages of formation and suggests considering examples of partial successful application of similar models in other studies. The proposed model acts as a generalization, combining models and approaches previously used on the basis of the social field theory. The practical application of this model will make possible the classroom learning process more effective in both online and off-line implication and social interaction less conflict and stable. (shrink)

The proposal made 50 years ago by Schulman :1558–1569, 1968), Laidlaw and Morette-DeWitt :1375–1378, 1971) and Dowker to decompose the propagator according to the homotopy classes of paths was a major breakthrough: it showed how Feynman functional integrals opened a direct window on quantum properties of topological origin in the configuration space. This paper casts a critical look at the arguments brought by this series of papers and its numerous followers in an attempt to clarify the reason why the (...) emergence of the unitary linear representation of the first homotopy group is not only sufficient but also necessary. (shrink)

Although the path-integral formalism is known to be equivalent to conventional quantum mechanics, it is not generally obvious how to implement path-based calculations for multi-qubit entangled states. Whether one takes the formal view of entangled states as entities in a high-dimensional Hilbert space, or the intuitive view of these states as a connection between distant spatial configurations, it may not even be obvious that a path-based calculation can be achieved using only paths in ordinary space and time. Previous (...) work has shown how to do this for certain special states; this paper extends those results to all pure two-qubit states, where each qubit can be measured in an arbitrary basis. Certain three-qubit states are also developed, and path integrals again reproduce the usual correlations. These results should allow for a substantial amount of conventional quantum analysis to be translated over into a path-integral perspective, simplifying certain calculations, and more generally informing research in quantum foundations. (shrink)

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:Reviewed by:Path of No Path: Contemporary Studies in Pure Land Buddhism Honoring Roger CorlessJeff WilsonPath of No Path: Contemporary Studies in Pure Land Buddhism Honoring Roger Corless. Edited by Richard K. Payne. Berkeley, CA: Institute of Buddhist Studies and Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, 2009. 290 pp.Roger Corless (1938–2007)—Catholic devotee, Tibetan Buddhist meditator, Pure Land interpreter, and renowned professor of religious studies—was a frequent contributor to the (...) dialogue between Christians and Buddhists in the West, including through the auspices of the Society for Buddhist-Christian Studies. Although he passed away in 2007, his spirit continues to enrich this historic encounter, including through several major posthumous works. Path of No Path is the first of three such works planned for release by the Institute of Buddhist Studies, a seminary and graduate studies institution associated with Jōdo Shinshū, the largest form of Pure Land Buddhism in Japan. Originally intended as a festschrift, the book unfortunately had to become a memorial volume. In addition to some laudatory material reflecting on Corless’s life, it contains articles by ten scholars focusing on the Pure Land tradition of Buddhism, broken into three categories of practice, transmission, and interpretation. Many contributors, such as Ruben Habito and Al Bloom, will be familiar to readers of Buddhist-Christian Studies.Edited anthologies are always a mixed bag, but happily Path of No Path holds together well and offers many interesting essays for scholars interested in this field, although at times the connection to Corless’s own work seems a bit forced. Alternately, we might view those essays with relatively tenuous connections to Corless’s work as representing the sort of playfulness that Corless famously displayed in his writings and speaking appearances. A good example of this is the first essay, by Harvey [End Page 225] Aronson, on Vajrasattva meditation. Vajrasattva, a major figure in Vajrayāna Buddhism, is not traditionally associated with the Pure Land tradition. Yet Aronson begins by putting a Jōdo Shinshū framework around his subsequent article, which deals with meditative visualizations as healing techniques. Like Corless frequently did, Aronson looks for connections between seemingly disparate cultures and religions. In the process, he offers some insightful comments on how Asian and Western practitioners approach healing within a Buddhist context. For example, he finds that the Westerners are far more heavily psychological in their orientation, and tend to react negatively to situations of obligation and responsibility to others that are comfortable to Asian participants.The second essay’s relationship to Corless is much more organic, as it deals with Chinese Pure Land Buddhism, a subject that he published important works on. This essay, by Charles Orzech, analyzes the Rites for Contemplation of and Offerings to Amitāyus Tathāgata (Wuliangshou rulai guanxing gongyang yigui), an esoteric text based in part on the famous Scripture on Contemplation of the Buddha of Limitless Life (Fo shuo guan wuliangshoufo ling). Orzech skillfully demonstrates how the Rites reframed the Scripture on Contemplation in a tantric context, contributing to the ongoing esotericization of Chinese Buddhism in the Tang period (618–907).James Sanford’s contribution also relates to both tantric and Pure Land forms of Buddhism. Sanford offers a translation of and commentary on the Guide to the Eighty Thousand Dharma Principles (Hōri hachiman chō). This is a short apocryphal text purporting to reveal secret teachings passed on from Jōdo Shinshū founder Shinran (1173–1263) to his grandson Nyoshin. These secret Jōdo Shinshū lineages are an important historical phenomenon that have not been given nearly enough attention, in part because they are actively disapproved of by the orthodox, nonesoteric schools of Jōdo Shinshū (and indeed orthodox Shinshū has at times persecuted these minority traditions). Sanford’s introduction, translation, and commentary therefore provide a major service to scholars of Japanese religion.Gordon Bermant’s entry is short but nonetheless contains some pithy observations on the role of “practice” in American Jōdo Shinshū, a subject that Corless himself wrote about numerous times. Traditionally Jōdo Shinshū is often understood not to include any sort of formal practice—religious practices, in fact, are seen as evidence of egoism or lack... (shrink)

This paper presents an integrated approach to plan smooth path for robots docking in unknown environments with obstacles. To determine the smooth collision-free path in obstacle environment, a tree structure with heuristic expanding strategy is designed as the foundation of path planning in this approach. The tree employs 3D Dubins curves as its branches and foundation for path feasibility evaluation. For the efficiency of the tree expanding in obstacle environment, intermediate nodes and collision-free branches are determined inspired by the elastic (...) band theory. A feasible path is chosen as the shortest series of branches that connects to the docking station after the sufficient expansion of the tree. Simulation results are presented to show the validity and feasibility of the proposed approach. (shrink)

In this paper, we consider choice functions that are unanimous, anonymous, symmetric, and group strategy-proof and consider domains that are single-peaked on some tree. We prove the following three results in this setting. First, there exists a unanimous, anonymous, symmetric, and group strategy-proof choice function on a path-connected domain if and only if the domain is single-peaked on a tree and the number of agents is odd. Second, a choice function is unanimous, anonymous, symmetric, and group strategy-proof on a single-peaked (...) domain on a tree if and only if it is the pairwise majority rule and the number of agents is odd. Third, there exists a unanimous, anonymous, symmetric, and strategy-proof choice function on a strongly path-connected domain if and only if the domain is single-peaked on a tree and the number of agents is odd. As a corollary of these results, we obtain that there exists no unanimous, anonymous, symmetric, and group strategy-proof choice function on a path-connected domain if the number of agents is even. (shrink)

The action for a massive particle in special relativity can be expressed as the invariant proper length between the end points. In principle, one should be able to construct the quantum theory for such a system by the path integral approach using this action. On the other hand, it is well known that the dynamics of a free, relativistic, spinless massive particle is best described by a scalar field which is equivalent to an infinite number of harmonic oscillators. We clarify (...) the connection between these two—apparently dissimilar—approaches by obtaining the Green function for the system of oscillators from that of the relativistic particle. This is achieved through defining the path integral for a relativistic particle rigorously by two separate approaches. This analysis also shows a connection between square root Lagrangians and the system of harmonic oscillators which is likely to be of value in more general context. (shrink)

A connected graph is called Hamilton-connected if there exists a Hamiltonian path between any pair of its vertices. Determining whether a graph is Hamilton-connected is an NP-complete problem. Hamiltonian and Hamilton-connected graphs have diverse applications in computer science and electrical engineering. The detour index of a graph is defined to be the sum of lengths of detours between all the unordered pairs of vertices. The detour index has diverse applications in chemistry. Computing the detour index for a graph is also (...) an NP-complete problem. In this paper, we study the Hamilton-connectivity of convex polytopes. We construct three infinite families of convex polytopes and show that they are Hamilton-connected. An infinite family of non-Hamilton-connected convex polytopes is also constructed, which, in turn, shows that not all convex polytopes are Hamilton-connected. By using Hamilton connectivity of these families of graphs, we compute exact analytical formulas of their detour index. (shrink)

In recent years there have been growing calls for forging greater connections between education and cognitive neuroscience. As a consequence great hopes for the application of empirical research on the human brain to educational problems have been raised. In this article we contend that the expectation that results from cognitive neuroscience research will have a direct and immediate impact on educational practice are shortsighted and unrealistic. Instead, we argue that an infrastructure needs to be created, principally through interdisciplinary training, funding (...) and research programs that allow for bidirectional collaborations between cognitive neuroscientists, educators and educational researchers to grow. We outline several pathways for scaffolding such a basis for the emerging field of ‘Mind, Brain and Education’ to flourish as well as the obstacles that are likely to be encountered along the path. (shrink)

In the Paths of Our Fathers provides a sampler of the Lubavitcher Rebbe's unique approach to Pirkei Avot. It shows the connections to points of Jewish law and reveals the influence of Jewish mystical teachings in these sayings. The Rebbe's emphasis, as always, is upon how their wisdom can be applied in real life for the sake of personal growth and spiritual understandings.

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:Philosophy, Psychiatry, & Psychology 9.1 (2002) 65-72 [Access article in PDF] Multiple Paths to Delusion Philip Gerrans Response to Phillips JAMES PHILLIPS COMMENTS are summarized in four recommendations. Clarify the Relationship of the Cognitive Model to its Neuroscientific Base The cognitive approach postulates a cognitive entity whose information-processing properties explain a symptom or unify a set of symptoms. The key idea is that we can use a model (...) of normal cognitive functioning to explain a disorder in terms of failure of a component of the model. In the case under discussion, the symptom is the loss of affect, which is part of the clinical profile of both the Capgras and Cotard delusions. The body of neuropsychological data concerning links between recognitional and affective processes extends back at least to Charcot's patient M. X. whose affective responses to familiar situations were lost, together with his visual episodic memory. M. X described his phenomenology this way: A remarkable consequence of this loss of mental ability is, as I have said, the change in my personality and impressions. I am much less affected by sorrow or grief. I can tell you that, after losing one of my relatives with whom I was very close, I experienced a much less intense grief than if I had still been able to image the features of that relative, the stages of the illness he went through, or especially if I had been able to picture to myself [voir interieurement] the outward effect of this untimely death on the members of my family. (Young and van de Wal 1996) (It is interesting to note that M. X. retained insight into his condition and explained it in a lucid, rational way rather than forming a delusional belief. Initial evidence for a two-stage theory, one might have thought).Given convergent evidence that the limbic system is the basis of affective states, the hypothesis that the delusions under discussion are rationalizations of unusual affective experiences consequent on abnormal limbic function or loss of connection between limbic and other functions is an inference to the best explanation. The Young-Ellis model is a cognitive model that describes cognitive function at what Dennett calls the design level, intermediate between what Marr called the computational level and level of representation and algorithm. As such it implies only that the boxes and arrows are implemented neurally, but endorses no hypotheses about the nature of that implementation.It is correct of Phillips to observe that the crucial inference about the link between affective and cognitive function is grounded in a background theory of the relationship between cognitive models, clinical symptoms, and neurobiology. If Phillips' complaint is that the model cannot be sheeted home to a neurobiological substrate, [End Page 65] this is true. Implementation theories are thin on the ground in cognitive science because they would require a theory of biological computation that, despite partisan claims, is elusive. Nonetheless, information-processing models and partial implementation theories for specific functions such as perception, language, face recognition, and the affective systems do exist. The allusion to cognitive structure remains sound as long as it accounts for observable clinical and experimental data and makes verifiable predictions.The fact that the Young-Ellis model of face recognition can account for both normal function and a variety of forms of prosopagnosia together (under assumptions about the relation between belief and experience) with delusions of misidentification counts in its favor (Ellis 1998).Phillips objection to cognitive theories is stronger when we turn to models of belief and rationality. In the case of functions such as face recognition or language, there is a variety of convergent evidence, especially from deficit studies, to support a model of normal cognitive function. For example, we know that face recognition activates schemas concerning orientation, features, emotions, and gender because these components can be selectively damaged (Young 1998). However, we lack a model of normal human reasoning other than "folk theory" of belief-desire psychology. Cognitive theories of belief formation are often forced to use models derived from philosophy such as logic, probability theory, or decision theory, which are amenable to... (shrink)

Purpose: This paper intends to connect ideas from the radical constructivist approach to cognition and learning to ideas from the constraint-theoretic approach to social policy formulation. It then extends these ideas to a dialogic approach to social transformation and design. Method: After demonstrating a correspondence between von Glasersfeld's fit/match distinction and my constraint-oriented/goal-oriented distinction with respect to policy formulation, the paper evaluates the basic assumptions of radical constructivism and builds from them a framework for thinking and talking about a desirable (...) society and ways to participate in its realization. Findings: The ideas of von Glasersfeld's radical constructivism contribute significantly to the development of a conceptual base for applied research on social activism by raising new questions and stimulating new thinking. Practical implications: Social activism in everyday affairs can be a way of living in the "world." Conclusion: The work and thought of Ernst von Glasersfeld opens a path toward a rich array of concepts and ideas with the potential to inform efforts in a wide variety of human endeavors. (shrink)

Osvald Demuth studied constructive analysis from the viewpoint of the Russian school of constructive mathematics. In the course of his work he introduced various notions of effective null set which, when phrased in classical language, yield a number of major algorithmic randomness notions. In addition, he proved several results connecting constructive analysis and randomness that were rediscovered only much later.In this paper, we trace the path that took Demuth from his constructivist roots to his deep and innovative work on the (...) interactions between constructive analysis, algorithmic randomness, and computability theory. We will focus specifically on Demuth’s work on the differentiability of Markov computable functions and his study of constructive versions of the Denjoy alternative, Demuth’s independent discovery of the main notions of algorithmic randomness, as well as the development of Demuth randomness, and the interactions of truth-table reducibility, algorithmic randomness, and semigenericity in Demuth’s work. (shrink)

As with so many mystics, Alexis karpouzos intuitively know the oneness of cosmic creation and historic humanity as part of all that is and all there isn't. So, the originality of Alexis Karpouzos thought is that it crosses the most diverse fields, the most opposing philosophies, to unite them into an often contradictory and broken whole. Marx and Heidegger, Nietzsche, Freud and Heraclitus, poets and political theorists all come together in the same distance and the same unusual proximity. Alexis karpouzos (...) use Pre-Socratics philosophy and generally the ancient Greek philosophy, as well as the pre-philosophical thinking of The Upanishads, the Vedas and Buddhism in India, of Lao Tzu, of Zen Buddhism and the Taoist tradition in China, of the Arab mystics and poets, with their metaphysical religiosity as the metaphysical basis for the interpretation and understanding of the world and existence. At the same time the ancient metaphysics is connect with Hegel’s dialectical ontology and with the modern thinking of Marx, Nietzsche, Freud, Heidegger, and others as the interpretive context for understanding the central problems of the technical and scientific world during his time. Novalis, Hölderlin, Rimbaud, Whitman, Eliot and others show the dreamy nature of existence, the transcendence of the Cosmos, welcome the infinity. For Alexis karpouzos the combination of ancient and modern thought creates the holistic experience of universal space-time and the consciousness of the unity. The poetic thought of Alexis karpouzos is a expressions of soul's inner experiences, expression of universality. The inspiring visual images and the symbolic use of language offer a description of elevating experiences of consciousness, a glimpse of higher worlds. The philosophy of Alexis karpouzos speak to the human experience from a universal perspective, transcending all religions, cultural and national boundaries. Using vivid images and a direct language that speaks to the heart, his philosophy evokes a sense of deep communication with the collective unconscious, a sense of connection to all the creatures of the world, compassion for others, admiration for the beauty of nature, reverence for all life, and an abiding faith in the invisible touch of world. Alexis karpouzos thoughts are often terse and paradoxical, challenging us to to break out of the box of limiting beliefs and see things from a new perspective. Above all, Alexis karpouzos continually calls to us to wake up and explore the mysteries within our own selves, i.e the mysteries of universe. (shrink)

In the lively debate of the last two decades about the validity of the ‘secularization thesis’, the comparison between Europe and the USA plays a central role. The high level of religiosity beyond the Atlantic has put under pressure the assumption of the loss of importance of religion in modernity, which had been prevalent for a long time. In this debate, the connection between the differentiation theory and sociology of religion, which has already been discussed by the classics of (...) the discipline, has attracted too little attention. This article takes up this desideratum and proposes, following Max Weber, a theory of differentiation which is able to cover the variety of religious processes. This proposed analysis will be made concrete with reference to the different paths to modernity of Europe and the USA and the related importance of religion. (shrink)

This paper presents a range of new triviality proofs pertaining to naïve truth theory formulated in paraconsistent relevant logics. It is shown that excluded middle together with various permutation principles such as A → (B → C)⊩B → (A → C) trivialize naïve truth theory. The paper also provides some new triviality proofs which utilize the axioms ((A → B)∧ (B → C)) → (A → C) and (A → ¬A) → ¬A, the fusion connective and the Ackermann constant. An (...) overview over various ways to formulate Leibniz’s law in non-classical logics and two new triviality proofs for naïve set theory are also provided. (shrink)

Starting from the quantization of the action variable as a basic principle, I show that this leads one to the probabilistic description of physical quantities as random variables, which satisfy the uncertainty relation. Using such variables I show that the ensemble-averaged action variable in the quantum domain can be presented as a contour integral of a “quantum momentum function,” pq(z), which is assumed to be analytic. The condition that all bound states pq(z) must yield the quantized values of the action (...) variable requires the equation for pq(z) to be the Riccati differential equation, which can be converted to the Schrödinger equation for the wave function. The rule for probabilities in quantum mechanics follows from the physical meaning of pq(z) and its connection with the probability density. The discussion involves the correspondence principle and the assumption that the spacetime symmetries known in classical physics are valid in the quantum domain. (shrink)

When George Bernard Shaw described Dartington Hall as a ‘salon in the countryside’, he was referring to the maelstrom of ideas, conversations, and experimentation around psychology, mysticism, and spirituality within the estate's larger ethos of community living and rural reform. Disenchanted with the effects of industrialization and the ravages of the First World War, American railway heiress Dorothy Whitney Elmhirst and her second husband, Leonard Elmhirst, purchased the extensive Devonshire estate in 1925 and began to encourage regular visits and social (...) and spiritual advice from prominent British interwar intellectuals such as Aldous Huxley and Gerald Heard. As the estate's activities expanded during the 1930s, Dorothy enlisted the help of visiting American constitutional psychologist William Sheldon to assess and advise upon the well-being of children attending Dartington's experimental school. Sheldon's ‘Promethean Psychology’ and ‘Somatotyping’ body classification system offered the Dartington group, a social, spiritual, and ‘scientific’ alternative to Freudian understandings of the mind. Visitors such as Huxley, decades later, relied on Sheldon's somatotyping system to fashion a utopian education in Pala (in his last novel, Island) where the population might live in nonmaterialistic cooperative harmony. Dartington's attraction to the use of Sheldon's Promethean psychology in supporting a utopian view of progressive education was as short-lived as were Pala's utopian ambitions decades later. In years to come, however, elements of Sheldon's views continued to find an audience among physical educators and sports scientists, who saw in somatotypes a useful guide for assessing talent identification and future sporting success. (shrink)

This article critiques McGuire’s (2008) work on Spirituality and Materiality: Why Bodies Matter? in the book Lived Religion: Faith and Practice in Everyday Life. In her work, McGuire challenges the traditional Western dichotomy between spirituality and materiality, which places the two in a binary opposition. She argues that spiritual experiences are closely connected to the body and physical environment. This article aims to analyze the main strengths of McGuire’s work, particularly its strong empirical foundation through qualitative research methods, such as (...) interviews and observations, which enhance the credibility of her arguments. However, several weaknesses are identified in this study. First, McGuire does not clearly define spirituality, leading to ambiguous interpretations. Second, her generalization that material aspects are always involved in achieving spirituality overlooks the possibility of non-material approaches, such as meditation or introspection. Third, the work neglects psychological factors that influence individual spiritual experiences, such as trauma or motivation. Fourth, the concept of materiality is problematic, as she does not adequately explain how it leads to spiritual experiences. Lastly, McGuire’s in some cases’ use of her personal experiences as a basis for her arguments could introduce bias, as spirituality is highly subjective and varies for each individual. This study employs a qualitative approach to provide an in-depth analysis of McGuire’s work and relevant literature on spirituality and materiality, focusing on how different traditions define and practice spirituality, particularly about pathways that emphasize non-material aspects in achieving spiritual experiences. (shrink)

The comparative analysis of Hesychasm in the late Byzantine Orthodox Church and Sufism in the Islamic tradition illuminates intriguing parallels and distinctions in their spiritual frameworks. Emphasizing the significance of spiritual experiences through prayer, Hesychasm, rooted in Orthodox spirituality, focuses on hesychia and the prayer of the heart. Sufism, within the Islamic tradition, centers on dhikr, the continuous remembrance of Allah. Despite shared teachings on the heart and continuous prayer, the traditions diverge in practices, such as the Jesus Prayer in (...) Hesychasm and the invocation of Allah's name in Sufism, contributing to the rich tapestry of spiritual experiences. This comparative exploration offers nuanced insights into diverse ways spiritual seekers engage with the divine across cultures. Recognizing universal quests for connection with the transcendent, the analysis contributes to the broader dialogue on mysticism and spirituality. The discussions on divine light, knowledge of God, and transformative processes underscore shared themes, while differences in theological nuances highlight the unique paths individuals traverse in their spiritual journeys. Ultimately, both Hesychasm and Sufism emphasize the experiential dimension of spirituality, fostering profound encounters with the divine despite their theological and philosophical distinctions. (shrink)

Machine generated contents note: Chapter One: Wrong Question, Right Answer -- Exercise 1: Getting right into it -- Exercise 2: Watching your hand -- Exercise 3: Marking practice -- Chapter Two: Realistic Drawing -- Exercise 4: Picking an object to draw -- Exercise 5: Attentive looking -- Exercise 6: Noticing awareness -- Exercise 7: Marking from the sense of sight -- Exercise 8: Simple rendering -- Exercise 9: Try perspective -- Exercise 10: Working inward -- Chapter Three: Systematic Drawing -- (...) Exercise 11: The circular arrow - a visual mantra -- Exercise 12: Improvising between two points and finding the world in between -- Exercise 13: Thought as art -- Exercise 14: All four pixel images -- Exercise 15: Book of compositions -- Chapter Four: Improvisational Drawing -- Exercise 16: Going outside the box -- Exercise 17: Not-breath awareness -- Exercise 18: Growing improvisation -- Exercise 19: Chasing the Coltrane Effect -- Exercise 20: Drawing to reveal inner conditions -- Exercise 21: Noticing Intuition -- Exercise 22: You are the universe drawing -- Chapter Five: Reading the Drawings -- Exercise 23: An exact physical description -- Exercise 24: Feeling the meaning -- Exercise 25: The story we tell ourselves -- Exercise 26: Connecting our story to a larger story -- Chapter Six: The Search for the Source of Creativity -- Exercise 27: Priming the source -- Exercise 28: Sitting still at the origin -- Exercise 29: Embedded sources -- Exercise 30: Mindful of the path -- Chapter Seven: Meta-Drawing -- Exercise 31: Sharing with yourself -- Exercise 32: Sharing with a trusted friend -- Exercise 33: Sharing with the world. (shrink)

This book provides a perceptive analysis of the "narrative turn" that led Paul Ricoeur to his magisterial work Time and Narrative. Ricoeur has for many years explored the intersections of diverse strands of European philosophy, but it is his recent work that has attracted the most discussion and engendered the most debate in Europe and America. The Narrative Path explores the roots and meaning of that work. Two of the book's five essays reach back to Ricoeur's earlier work to clarify (...) his themes: Richard Kearney concentrates on the role of imagination in hermeneuties, and Maria Villela Petit explores the development of Ricoeur's concept of history from History and Truth to Time and Narrative. Two essays analyze the significance of Ricoeur's reflections on metaphoric and narrative language: Serge Mellinger looks at the relationship between time and poetry from the point of view of Ricoeur's discussions of the connection between time and narrative, and T. Peter Kemp extends Ricoeur's analysis to argue that narration is indispensable to ethics. The book concludes with a reflection by Ricoeur himself on the linguistic, practical, and ethical dimensions of human beings, and with a bibliography of Ricoeur's work in English. T. Peter Kemp teaches in the Department of Philosophy at the University of Copenhagen. The Narrative Pathis based on a special issue of the journal Philosophy and Social Criticism, edited by David Rasmussen, who is Professor of Philosophy at Boston College. (shrink)

The present article is a sympathetic critique of the most prominent contemporary articulations of family abolitionism. It examines whether queer communist family abolitionism is successful in linking an account of reasons for abolition, with an account of the means of abolition, and finally with an account of the ends of abolition in the form of speculation on a possible world without families. Recent work by M.E. O’Brien has developed these connections in ways that have never been done so thoroughly before; (...) but the rejection of states as an institutional form of political power leaves it unclear what forms of equality we could expect in such a world, and why coercive power would be unnecessary there. Family abolition is a utopian political agenda; but that utopianism needs to be constrained by a realist concern with issues of power, resources, and human capacities. This will require confronting trade-offs and imperfections within possible worlds without families. The recognition that there are many paths to a world without families, and many possible such worlds, is the first step towards aligning reasons, means, and ends and confronting the social and political trade-offs that this entails. (shrink)

Lexical models diverge on the question of how to represent complex words. Under the morpheme-based approach, each morpheme is treated as a separate unit, while under the word-based approach, morphological structure is derived from complex words. In this paper, we propose a new computational model of morphology that is based on graph theory and is intended to elaborate the word-based network approach. Specifically, we use a key concept of network science, the notion of shortest path, to investigate how complex words (...) are learned, stored, and processed. The notion of shortest path refers to the task of finding the shortest or most optimal path connecting two non-adjacent nodes in a network. Building on this notion, the current study shows (i) that new complex words can be segmented into morphemes through the shortest path analysis; (ii) that attested English words tend to represent the shortest paths in the morphological network; and (iii) that novel (unattested) words receive higher acceptability ratings in experiments when they are formed along established optimal paths. The model's performance is tested in two experiments with human participants as well as against the behavioral data from the English Lexicon Project. We interpret our empirical results from the perspective of a usage-based model of grammar and argue that network science provides a powerful tool for analyzing language structure. (shrink)

In recent years, functional connectivity in the developmental science received increasing attention. Although it has been reported that the anatomical connectivity in the preterm brain develops dramatically during the last months of pregnancy, little is known about how functional and effective connectivity change with maturation. The present study investigated how effective connectivity in premature infants evolves. To assess it, we use EEG measurements and graph-theory methodologies. We recorded data from 25 preterm babies, who underwent long-EEG monitoring at least twice during (...) their stay in the NICU. The recordings took place from 27 weeks postmenstrual age until 42 weeks PMA. Results showed that the EEG-connectivity, assessed using graph-theory indices, moved from a small-world network to a random one, since the clustering coefficient increases and the path length decreases. This shift can be due to the development of the thalamocortical connections and long-range cortical connections. Based on the network indices, we developed different age-prediction models. The best result showed that it is possible to predict the age of the infant with a root mean-squared error equal to 2.11 weeks. These results are similar to the ones reported in the literature for age prediction in preterm babies. (shrink)

_Abstract_: This article discusses the unity of cognitive science that seemed to emerge in the 1950s, based on the computational view of cognition. This unity would entail that there is a single set of mechanisms (i.e. algorithms) for all cognitive behavior, in particular at the level of productive human cognition as exemplified in language and reasoning. In turn, this would imply that theories in psychology, and cognitive science in general, would consist of algorithms based on symbol manipulation as found in (...) digital computing. However, a number of developments in recent decades cast doubt on this unity of cognitive science. Also, there are fundamental problems with the claim that cognitive theories are just algorithms. This article discusses some of these problems and suggests that, instead of unified theories of cognition, specific mechanisms for cognitive behavior in specific cognitive domains could be needed, with architectures that are tailor-made for specific forms of implementation. A sketch of such an architecture for language is presented, based on modifiable connection paths in small-world like network structures. _Keywords_: Connection Paths; Control of Activation; Small-world Networks; Symbol Manipulation; Unity of Cognition _Dalle teoria unificate della cognizione a quelle specifiche_ _Riassunto_: Questo articolo discute l’unità della scienza cognitiva che sembrava emergere negli Anni ’50 e che era basata su una concezione computazionale della cognizione. Questa unità prevedeva l’esistenza di un singolo insieme di meccanismi (algoritmi) per tutti i comportamenti cognitivi, in particolare al livello della cognizione umana produttiva come, per esempio, linguaggio e ragionamento. A sua volta ciò implicava che le teorie psicologiche e, più in generale della scienza cognitiva, prevedessero algoritmi basati sulla manipolazione di simboli come nella computazione digitale. E, tuttavia, diversi sviluppi degli ultimi decenni hanno messo in dubbio questa unità della scienza cognitiva. Affermare che le teorie cognitive sarebbero solo algoritmi presenta problemi di fondo. Questo articolo discute alcuni di questi problemi, suggerendo che, invece di teorie della cognizione unificata, si potrebbe aver bisogno di meccanismi specifici per il comportamento cognitivo in specifici domini cognitivi, con architetture ritagliate per specifiche forme di implementazione. Questo articolo presenta uno schizzo di una simile architettura per il linguaggio, basata su vie di connessione modificabili in piccoli mondi come le strutture di reti. _Parole chiave_: Vie di connessione; Controllo dell’attivazione; Reti di piccoli mondi; Manipolazione di simboli; Unità della cognizione. (shrink)

This paper responds to recent work in the philosophy of Homotopy Type Theory by James Ladyman and Stuart Presnell. They consider one of the rules for identity, path induction, and justify it along ‘pre-mathematical’ lines. I give an alternate justification based on the philosophical framework of inferentialism. Accordingly, I construct a notion of harmony that allows the inferentialist to say when a connective or concept is meaning-bearing and this conception unifies most of the prominent conceptions of harmony through category theory. (...) This categorical harmony is stated in terms of adjoints and says that any concept definable by iterated adjoints from general categorical operations is harmonious. Moreover, it has been shown that identity in a categorical setting is determined by an adjoint in the relevant way. Furthermore, path induction as a rule comes from this definition. Thus we arrive at an account of how path induction, as a rule of inference governing identity, can be justified on mathematically motivated grounds. (shrink)

The new mathematical connection of De Donder’s differential entropy production with the differential changes of thermodynamic potentials (Helmholtz free energy, enthalpy, and Gibbs free energy) was obtained through the linear sequence of equations (direct, straightforward path), in which we use rigorous thermodynamic definitions of the partial molar thermodynamic properties. This new connection uses a global approach to the problem of reversibility and irreversibility, which is vital to global learners’ view and standardizes the linking procedure for thermodynamic potentials (Helmholtz (...) free energy, enthalpy, and and Gibbs free energy)—preferably to the sensing learners. It is shown that De Donder’s differential entropy production in an isolated composite system is equal to the differential change in total entropy and that De Donder’s equation agrees with Clausius’ inequality. The useful work of the irreversible process is discussed, which with the decrease of irreversibility tends towards the hypothetical maximum useful work of the reversible process. (shrink)

For time-independent fields the Aharonov-Bohm effect has been obtained by idealizing the coordinate space as multiply-connected and using representations of its fundamental homotopy group to provide information on what is physically identified as the magnetic flux. With a time-dependent field, multiple-connectedness introduces the same degree of ambiguity; by taking into account electromagnetic fields induced by the time dependence, full physical behavior is again recovered once a representation is selected. The selection depends on a single arbitrary time (hence the so-called holonomies (...) are not unique), although no physical effects depend on the value of that particular time. These features can also be phrased in terms of the selection of self-adjoint extensions, thereby involving yet another question that has come up in this context, namely, boundary conditions for the wave function. (shrink)

The phenomenon of knowledge withholding is a vital issue that undermines knowledge sharing and innovation, hinders the development of offline and online organizations. Clarifying the relationship between influencing factors and knowledge withholding is significant to improve the phenomenon of knowledge withholding in offline and online organizations. Few types of research focus on the online virtual academic community and integrate the three factors of knowledge, individual, and environment to research knowledge withholding. To solve the limitation, this research is based on sociology (...) and psychology-related theories. The two dimensions of enabling and inhibition are divided into factors affecting knowledge withholding. An attempt is made to explore the path between the three types of factors influencing knowledge, individual and environment, and knowledge withholding. This study collected data from 616 users in China’s virtual academic community. It used a structural equation model combined with a cross-layer connected neural network to conduct an empirical analysis on the proposed hypothesis. The results found that: in the virtual academic community, knowledge power in the enabling dimension is the main reason for users to form knowledge psychological ownership, which affects users’ knowledge withholding. However, the effect of professional commitment on users’ knowledge psychological ownership is not significant. After SEM-ANN model fitting, the combined inhibitory effect of community privacy protection and community reciprocity on user knowledge withholding in the inhibition dimension is significantly improved. This research has a specific guiding significance for enhancing the knowledge withholding phenomenon of the virtual academic community and creating an excellent academic exchange atmosphere. (shrink)

The rapidly growing research on hybrid organizations in recent years suggests that these organizations may have particular abilities to facilitate institutional change. This article contributes to our understanding of change and, in particular, sustainable transformation in society by highlighting the importance of organizational forms. Looking more closely at the role of hybrid organizations in processes of path generation, we analyze the conditions under which hybrid organizations may enable path generation. A retrospective exploratory case study of the Swedish hybrid organization The (...) Natural Step confirms how hybrids can take part in- and may facilitate the early phases of path generation: assimilation and coalescence. The conclusion drawn is that hybrids have multivocal abilities that enable them to earn trust and authority to open up “neutral” spaces for orientation and connection between actors in separated sub-paths, and that this in turn may ease tensions and trigger dialogue and exchange, also between former opponents. Yet, as also seen in the case, this enabling position of the hybrid may be both fragile and temporary. (shrink)

This paper aims to focus on certain aspects of two education methods: one initiated in the first half of the twentieth century by Maria Montessori, and the other in the second half of that century by Matthew Lipman. The aim – neither comparative nor analytical – is to shed light on the connections and, more specifically, the elements of the Montessori Method that reflect on Lipman’s proposal. The question this paper aims to answer is: can P4C find fertile ground in (...) schools applying the Montessori Method? The paper will focus, among other elements: on the importance to give space to thinking experience from childhood and on the recognition of the value of childhood. Both Lipman and Montessori have systematically observed children of different ages – the former in the first half, the latter in the second half of the twentieth century. Both characterized, gave value, and focused their scientific contributions on children’s ability to think and express their thoughts through languages. As educational researchers and professionals know, children have the ability to think, but such ability has not always been considered to exist. Even when it is evoked in words, educational choices and proposals seem – still today – to express mistrust towards children’s thought. The two mentioned authors have repeatedly highlighted the importance of an essential right: the right to think and to be given a space – even as children – to exercise thinking with others. In particular, both authors – though envisaging different educational paths – identified the same categories functional to exercising thinking. Their interconnection may guide the actions of teachers, educators, and learning process experts. In fact, P4C might play a role in educational contexts in which the class is already considered a community of inquiry, in which the teacher is assigned the same role as a facilitator. (shrink)

About 80 or 90 percent of high school graduates associate their life plans with study in higher and specialized secondary educational institutions and with work in the area of professions of mental labor. However, the real prospect for the majority of youth entering independent life in the 1970s and 1980s is the acquisition of a labor skill. Today the choice of a path in life by youth is in many respects spontaneous and random. Only about 40 percent of those entering (...) higher educational institutions are confident of the correctness of their choice, and about one-third of the graduates are unhappy with the choice they made. When he takes a job, a young person, after ten years in school, is not only compelled immediately to fill gaps in his knowledge and relearn things but to reorient himself psychologically. For many it is only at that moment that the tortuous "search for themselves" begins, and in connection with a job, a migration from job to job. The losses to all concerned that this involves have a common source: the gap between school and life has not yet been closed. (shrink)

This study was aimed at formulating a model to examine the potential value of perceived constructivist pedagogical practices in decreasing tendency to neutralize academic cheating through a psychological outcome of academic self-efficacy, in three academic learning settings: new learning environments, traditional face-to-face learning environments and distance learning environments. Data were collected from a sample of 289 undergraduate college students. Path analysis main results showed positive connections between the extent to which constructivist practices are present in the learning settings, as perceived (...) by the participants, and SE, which in turn reduced the tendency toward justifying academic cheating. Analysis of variance results showed that most of the constructivist dimensions were perceived by students enrolled in the NLE as relatively highly present compared with the other groups. Moreover, NLE students held more positive academic SE beliefs and were less inclined toward academic cheating justification than the other groups. Interpretation of these results and implications for future research are discussed. (shrink)

In the resolution of the Central Committee of the CPSU entitled "On the Periodical Kommunist," the study of the dialectics of the forces and relations of production is assigned to the sphere of economics. It is no accident that the question is posed in this way. Today, under conditions of restructuring, a concrete analysis of the economic connections, contradictions, and interactions of socialist society and of the real forms of manifestation of economic relations is more important than ever. The [current] (...) criticism of erroneous views, widespread in their time, about the exceptional character of the economic system of socialism that made it possible to "constitute" productive relations through the "creative force of the economic plan," is especially timely and substantive. However, a more general sociophilosophical study of the dialectics of the forces and relations of production is also necessary. Lenin's words have never lost their vital force: we cannot take up "particular questions without first solving the general question. …"' It is from these general sociophilosophical positions that we shall be examining some aspects of this topic that we think important. (shrink)

This paper is dedicated to feelings (pathē) as criteria of truth and criteria of choice and avoidance in Epicureanism. The first section reviews two features of the other two Epicurean criteria of truth, perceptions and preconceptions: their non-rational and evident character. The second section extends the account to feelings, showing how, on the basis of their non-rational and evident character, feelings can be used to gain insights. The third section of the paper finally turns to feelings as criteria of choice (...) and avoidance. It examines some neglected textual evidence that shows that perceptions and feelings are closely connected to each other, that is, that Epicurean feelings are defined as perceptions and observances of themselves, shedding some new light on the joint role of feelings and perceptions in choices and avoidances. (shrink)

The comparative analysis of Hesychasm in the late Byzantine Orthodox Church and Sufism in the Islamic tradition illuminates intriguing parallels and distinctions in their spiritual frameworks. Emphasizing the significance of spiritual experiences through prayer, Hesychasm, rooted in Orthodox spirituality, focuses on hesychia and the prayer of the heart. Sufism, within the Islamic tradition, centers on dhikr, the continuous remembrance of Allah. Despite shared teachings on the heart and continuous prayer, the traditions diverge in practices, such as the Jesus Prayer in (...) Hesychasm and the invocation of Allah's name in Sufism, contributing to the rich tapestry of spiritual experiences. This comparative exploration offers nuanced insights into diverse ways spiritual seekers engage with the divine across cultures. Recognizing universal quests for connection with the transcendent, the analysis contributes to the broader dialogue on mysticism and spirituality. The discussions on divine light, knowledge of God, and transformative processes underscore shared themes, while differences in theological nuances highlight the unique paths individuals traverse in their spiritual journeys. Ultimately, both Hesychasm and Sufism emphasize the experiential dimension of spirituality, fostering profound encounters with the divine despite their theological and philosophical distinctions. (shrink)

The increasing availability of digital data reflecting economic and human development, and in particular the availability of data emitted as a by-product of people’s use of technological devices and services, has both political and practical implications for the way people are seen and treated by the state and by the private sector. Yet the data revolution is so far primarily a technical one: the power of data to sort, categorise and intervene has not yet been explicitly connected to a social (...) justice agenda by the agencies and authorities involved. Meanwhile, although data-driven discrimination is advancing at a similar pace to data processing technologies, awareness and mechanisms for combating it are not. This paper posits that just as an idea of justice is needed in order to establish the rule of law, an idea of data justice – fairness in the way people are made visible, represented and treated as a result of their production of digital data – is necessary to determine ethical paths through a datafying world. Bringing together the emerging scholarly perspectives on this topic, I propose three pillars as the basis of a notion of international data justice: visibility, engagement with technology and antidiscrimination. These pillars integrate positive with negative rights and freedoms, and by doing so challenge both the basis of current data protection regulations and the growing assumption that being visible through the data we emit is part of the contemporary social contract. (shrink)

Dasakathāvatthu appears to be a unique, but less known course of training in the Buddhist spiritual practice of the Theravāda tradition. Though the importance of the practice is highlighted, it is discussed with very little information in the Pāli Nikāya literature. But a well-informed discussion of the practice is found in the commentarial texts. One specific feature of the practice is that the path factors are defined as kathā suggesting that the practice is dialogical. This is in connection with (...) the Buddha’s advice that monks should spend their time either in dhamma-discussion or in noble silence. The dasakathāvatthu is an illustration of the kind of practice and talks that qualify for dhamma-discussion. The commentarial literature points out that the Buddha highly appreciates the one who, after being skilled in these talks, acts as a kalyānamitta and discusses them with others. The stress seems to be that the conversation one has with fellow practitioners is vital in one’s spiritual journey. In other words, the spiritual journey should consist in not walking alone but walking together. For my study of the subject, I used primarily the Pāli Nikāya texts and their commentaries as source materials. (shrink)

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:Focusing on The Experience:Exploring Alternative Paths for ResearchEleanor Stubley, Anneli Arho, Päivi Järviö, and Tuomas MaliWriting and speaking are essential means of understanding, studying, and sharing music in the Western art music tradition. As a group of researchers, our story begins with the gap that seemingly exists between theoretical definitions or accounts of music and our experience of it as music makers—that is to say as composers, performers, (...) conductors, and teachers. Poignantly sensitive to the ways in which our musical experience and knowledge is embodied, we found ourselves one day four years ago sitting around an electrically-charged dinner table where ideas, questions, and the joy of having found someone like-minded seemed to be the main entrée. Since then, we have been working as a group, [End Page 39] experimenting with different ways of collaborating, using writing as a means of exploring and sharing our experiences across long distances. At first, the goal was simply to find a common ground, a platform for developing an extended dialogue that would draw on our unique backgrounds and divergent ways of our thinking. But, in the absence of a common language, both linguistic and theoretical, there were problems. We had, for example, to come to understand what each of us meant by the word experience and the role it could play as the ground of research, not as a series of defining moments or events but as the largely invisible flow of human life. We also had to deal with the inter-wovenness of mind and body, individual, and culture, not to mention our individual musical sensitivity and artistry. Confronted by these larger issues, our differences soon became the means to explore gaps or openings that could be entered to reveal the continuous becoming of music and language, the places where they intersect and diverge, and our own being in relationship to both.The papers presented in this symposium were the outgrowth of our dialogue during the summer of 2004. Each of us worked independently, yet each of us was also aware of the direction, the themes, and the ways of the others. The result is kaleidoscopic, each author starting from a different place, but seemingly working from the same palette of colors.Eleanor Stubley writes as a philosopher and conductor. Her work here is part of a larger on-going study that examines the way in which the body fills both language and our experience of music, with a particular focus on the way in which an interest in the body renews our understanding of music, language, and thought. Through a series of inter-connecting meditations inspired by the letter A, she challenges the practice of grounding research and practice in definitions of music as "organized sound." Her writing makes visible the habitual of a variety of educational practices, asking us to think anew about instructional technologies such as the alphabet, scale, and taxonomies of musical form, and to find in what we have traditionally thought of as practices of the mind, the omnipresence of the body. It also offers a new perspective on the hand, not as a tool or muscle to be trained as a skill, but as the very ground from which to develop an aesthetics of music that combines and recognizes the multiple ways in which we know and encounter music, through sight, sound, movement, and touch.Anneli Arho writes as a composer, educator, and philosopher/researcher. She explores the power of working from within the factical situation of a musician making music, focusing in particular on the embodiedness of music, questions of meaningfulness, and the ways in which phenomenological reflection on her own musical experiences has allowed her to move beyond traditional research discourses. Her writing asks us as educators to re-think curricular definitions of [End Page 40] composition, not simply as a collection of skills to be acquired or languages to be learned, but rather as embodied ways of living in and through sound. Using notation as an example, she argues that composing generates its own practical and existential questions distinct from those of listener, performer, and researcher, and which can never be totally shared with others... (shrink)

Physarum polycephalum, a unicellular and multiheaded slime mould, can form highly efficient networks connecting separated food sources during the process of foraging. These adaptive networks exhibit a unique characteristic in that they are optimized without the control of a central consciousness. Inspired by this phenomenon, we present an efficient exploration and navigation strategy for a swarm of robots, which exploits cooperation and self-organisation to overcome the limited abilities of the individual robots. The task faced by the robots consists in the (...) exploration of an unknown environment in order to find a path between two distant target areas. For the proposed algorithm, we experimentally present robustness tests and obstacle tests conducted to analyse the performance of our algorithm and compare the proposed algorithm with other swarm robot foraging algorithms that also focus on the path formation task. This work has certain significance for the research of swarm robots and Physarum polycephalum. For the research of swarm robotics, our algorithm not only can lead multirobot as a whole to overcome the limitations of very simple individual agents but also can offer better performance in terms of search efficiency and success rate. For the research of Physarum polycephalum, this work is the first one combining swarm robots and Physarum polycephalum. It also reveals the potential of the Physarum polycephalum foraging principle in multirobot systems. (shrink)

Ambiguous Adventure, one of the most iconic novels in Senegalese history, recounts the plight of a traditional African society in the face of an encroaching western modernity, with its main character, Samba Diallo, as the face of this momentous struggle. The captivating story inspired numerous critiques that address the text from sociological, religious, and philosophical perspectives. Not surprisingly, most of the interpretations are based on the textual connection to Islam, the religion embraced and practiced by the Diallobé community in (...) the novel, and deal with universal topics such as death, identity, colonialism, initiation, tradition, and modernity. Building on the work done before me on Samba’s own search for identity within the Muslim context, I look to pre-Islamic Fulani traditions articulated by Amadou Hampaté Bâ, which better illuminate the process of initiation that leads the human being to transform into a self-realized person. I argue, based on this Fulani metaphysical context, that from the very beginning, Samba Diallo’s journey is initiatic in itself, in the traditional Fulani conception of the term, one that is connected to the sacred dimension. In this sense, the Fulani indigenous traditions anticipate Samba’s journey toward a sacred identity, highlight a clear roadmap to that very process, and, contrary to many critics, lead the initiate to success. (shrink)

A child’s death is a profound loss for mothers and affects hundreds of thousands of women. Mothers report inconsolable and progressive grief that is distinct from depression and impacts daily emotions and functions. The brain mechanisms responsible for this relatively common and profound mental health problem are unclear, hampering its clinical recognition and care. In an initial exploration of this condition, we used resting state functional MRI (fMRI) scans to examine functional connectivity in key circuits, and task-based fMRI to examine (...) brain network activity in grieving mothers in response to pictures of their deceased child and as well as recognizable deceased celebrities and unfamiliar individuals. We compared nine mothers who had lost an adult child and aged-matched control mothers with a living child of a similar age. Additionally, we collected diffusion imaging scans to probe structural connectivity and complemented the imaging studies with neuropsychological assessments. Increased functional activation in Ventral Attention/Salience Networks accompanied by a reduced activation in the medial prefrontal cortex in response to the deceased child’s picture robustly distinguished the grieving mothers from controls. Heightened resting-state functional connectivity between the paraventricular thalamic nucleus (PVT) and the amygdala distinguished the grieving mothers from the controls and correlated with subjective grief severity. Structurally, maternal grief and its severity were associated with alterations in corticolimbic white matter tracts. Finally, grieving mothers performed worse than controls on neuropsychological tests of learning, memory, and executive function, linked with grief severity. Reduced activation in cortical regions inhibiting emotions and changes in the PVT circuitry—a region involved in long-term emotional memories and decision making under conflict—distinguish grieving mothers from controls. Notably, the magnitude of neurobiological changes correlates with the subjective severity of grief. Together, these new discoveries delineate a prevalent and under-recognized mental health syndrome and chart a path for its appreciation and care. (shrink)

Sovereignty and non-interference principles are trademarks of the Association of South-East Asian Nations regional approach. Starting from 1993, ASEAN has been developing a process aimed at creating a human rights system. This process reached its acme in August 2013 when the ASEAN Human Rights Declaration was formally launched. In the frame of the tension between sovereignty and human rights, the paper firstly analyzes the roots of the ASEAN path towards the creation of the regional human rights system grounded on the (...) Vienna World Conference debate. Next comes an analysis of the political commitments assumed by ASEAN in the last 20 years in the process of creating a human rights body in the region. Furthermore, the paper presents an in-depth analysis of the most problematic issues connected with the nature, functions, mandate, and purposes of the ASEAN Intergovernmental Human Rights Commission. This is followed by an analysis of the AHRD. (shrink)

This paper carries out an intensive study of Heidegger's famous reflection on the word dao and of his citations from the Daodejing, with the purpose of elucidating his complex relation with Daoist thinking. First I examine whether dao could be said to be a guideword for Heidegger's path of thinking. Then I discuss Heidegger's citations, in six places of his writings, from five chapters of the Daodejing, by situating them in the immediate textual context as well as against the broad (...) background of the fundamental presuppositions and orientations of Heidegger and Laozi's thinking. My examination of Heidegger's citations from the Daodejing has for the first time gathered together all the relevant materials discovered so far. (shrink)

Students often have difficulty connecting theoretical and text-based scholarship to the real world. When teaching in Asia, this disconnection is exacerbated by the European/American focus of many canonical texts, whereas students' own experiences are primarily Asian. However, in my discipline of political philosophy, this problem receives little recognition nor is it comprehensively addressed. In this paper, I propose that the problem must be taken seriously, and I share my own experiences with a novel pedagogical strategy which might offer a possible (...) path forward. Recent scholarship has championed an active learning approach, where students engage in their own research, and deliver outward-facing products that have a meaning and purpose beyond the confines of the student-professor relationship. In this spirit, I have put into practice a strategy of course design, where active learning is used to overcome students' disconnection with the course content. In particular, as a major component of course assessment, students are required to write an 'opinion piece', which is then showcased on a public website. The opinion piece must address a real-world issue which the student himself or herself selects and deems important; furthermore, it must build on the theoretical tools of the course and be written in a style which makes it accessible to a wider audience. I discuss the implementation of this strategy in two political philosophy courses, including strategies to avoid 'dumbing down' and ‘diluting’ the process of critical thinking. While no formal analysis of impact of the strategy on learning outcomes has been conducted, an anonymous pedagogical survey has yielded an overwhelmingly positive response for students' self-reported perceptions of the curricular innovations. (shrink)

Johannes Jessenius became known by his contemporaries mostly as an exponent of the Italian anatomical Renaissance in Central Europe at the end of the sixteenth and at the beginning of the seventeenth century. The image of Jessenius in the twentieth century was also created with respect to his activities in the area of anatomy in Wittenberg and Prague in particular. The aim of this article is to put Jessenius into the context of the development of anatomy in the sixteenth century. (...) An important point in this progression can be seen in the change of the definition of anatomy from the art of dis- secting bodies and a “method” of instructing students to the way of acquiring knowledge of bodies and nature. The crucial role in this process played anatomical writings of the second half of the 16th century and the development seems to be connected with methodological discussions at the University of Padua. Jessenius, in his anatomical writings, primarily followed the Paduan anatomist Andreas Vesalius, whose work De humani corporis fabrica expresses the fundamental change in Renaissance anatomy. In addition, the methodological background of the anatomical Renaissance, which Jessenius became acquainted with during his studies in Padua, also echoes in Jessenius’ works. (shrink)