Though I have been a member of this Institute, I think from its foundation, I have been a steadily inactive member, and have resisted with what grace I could the blandishments of our Secretary when he has suggested that I should address my fellow-members. For I am not a philosopher, either by training or, I fear, by instinct; and, now that I have allowed myself to be inveigled into this place, I feel that I am brawling in church. I am (...) the most ill-informed of laymen, and, if you feel any interest at all in what I am about to say, it will, I fear, only be the rueful interest that the expert sometimes takes in an exhibition of ignorance. (shrink)

A major paradox of modern happiness gained wide public exposure in 1776 when Thomas Jefferson substituted the phrase “the pursuit of happiness” in place of Locke’s formulation: “life, liberty, and property.” In substituting happiness for property, Jefferson obscured the central hypocrisy of the Revolution, that—as contemporaries complained—the “loudest yelps for liberty” were made by those practicing slavery. Jefferson elided the overlap between the pursuit of happiness and the protection of human property. And he blurred the connection between the assertion of (...) slave power and the creation of a broad emotional hegemony in the service of multifaceted projects of political-economic mastery. Today, historians of emotion face an urgent need to explore the deep roots of this feeling in systems of unfreedom. (shrink)

BackgroundDecision-making in initiating life-sustaining health technology is complex and often conducted at time-critical junctures in clinical care. Many of these decisions have profound, often irreversible, consequences for the child and family, as well as potential benefits for functioning, health and quality of life. Yet little is known about what influences these decisions. A systematic review of reasoning identified the range of reasons clinicians give in the literature when initiating technology dependence in a child, and as a result helps determine the (...) range of influences on these decisions.MethodsMedline, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsychINFO, Web of Science, ASSIA and Global Health Library databases were searched to identify all reasons given for the initiation of technology dependence in a child. Each reason was coded as a broad and narrow reason type, and whether it supported or rejected technology dependence.Results53 relevant papers were retained from 1604 publications, containing 116 broad reason types and 383 narrow reason types. These were grouped into broad thematic categories: clinical factors, quality of life factors, moral imperatives and duty and personal values; and whether they supported, rejected or described the initiation of technology dependence. The majority were conceptual or discussion papers, less than a third were empirical studies. Most discussed neonates and focused on end-of-life care.ConclusionsThere is a lack of empirical studies on this topic, scant knowledge about the experience of older children and their families in particular; and little written on choices made outside ‘end-of-life’ care. This review provides a sound basis for empirical research into the important influences on a child’s potential technology dependence. (shrink)

This work presents the diverse fields of expertize, various viewpoints, ideas and rich experiences in this field. This collection stresses on importance of the perception of Gift of Life in a Pluralistic Society .

Background Maternal mental health during the peripartum period is critically important to the wellbeing of mothers and their infants. Numerous studies and clinical trials have focused on various aspects of interventions and treatments for perinatal mental health from the perspective of researchers and medical health professionals. However, less is known about women’s experiences of participating in perinatal mental health research, and the ethical issues that arise. Aim To systematically review the literature on the ethical issues that emerge from pregnant and/or (...) postpartum women’s experiences of taking part in perinatal mental health-related research. Methods Systematic review of nine bibliographic databases, from inception to July 2021. Qualitative, quantitative and mixed method studies were included if they reported on ethical issues experienced by perinatal women. Research ethical issues encompassed any issue relating to women’s experiences of being offered study information, recruitment, consent, retention and respect for autonomy. Titles, abstracts and full text screening, appraisal of the methodological quality of included studies, and data extraction, were conducted independently by two reviewers. Ethical considerations Ethical approval was not required for this systematic review. Findings A total of 9830 unique citations was retrieved. Six studies met the inclusion criteria. Studies were clinically and methodologically heterogenous, and only one was purposively designed to explore women’s experiences. The key finding was the establishment of trust between the researcher and participant in all stages of the research process. Findings are presented according to recruitment and consent processes, participation and retention, and study follow-up and completion. Conclusion The establishment of trust between the researcher and perinatal women leads to a dynamic with research ethical implications relevant to all stages of perinatal mental health-related research. Further research on the research ethical issues experienced by perinatal women is required because of the limited literature. (shrink)

In a seminal and distinguished lecture published a little over thirty years ago, Sir Richard Southern examined the exercise of patronage as a means of government and as an instrument of social change in England in the reign of King Henry I. Focusing on the careers of some of the king's servants who rose in wealth and status by working in his administration, Southern elucidated their opportunities and methods of advancement, their rewards, and their manipulation of power and position to (...) bolster their local authority. In the years since Southern wrote, the important themes he opened up about these servants have been reexamined and developed by a number of scholars. These themes are further illuminated by the career of one of the most important of Henry's servants, Eustace Fitz John, lord of Malton and Alnwick, who rose from relatively obscure origins to a position of considerable prominence in the government of northern England. Eustace's career also tells us much about the means used by Henry I to complete and consolidate the Norman conquest of the north, integrate the region within the Norman system of government, and provide for its security and about the cross-border relationships of his northern administrators. A study of Eustace's career is additionally valuable because it throws light on many important aspects of the history of King Stephen's reign and the reign of Henry II. (shrink)

(1995). Women and eugenics in Britain: The case of Mary Scharlieb, Elizabeth Sloan Chesser, and Stella Browne. Annals of Science: Vol. 52, No. 5, pp. 481-502.

Essay outlining the life and work of Albert Eustace Haydon born in Brampton, Ontario, Canada in 1880, one of the founders of 'religious humanism' and of the humanist movement in America.

In considering the rise of American Humanism, we will explore these developments, as expressed in the Free Religious Association (FRA) and the early Chicago School of Philosophy. Brief consideration will be given to the developments in the Unitarian Church in America which led to the formation of the FRA in 1867. The focus on the FRA will center on four key founders, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Octavius Brooks Frothingham, Francis Ellingwood Abbot and William James Potter. Following the World’s Congress of Religions (...) (1893) and the adoption of Abbot’s “free religion” in a revised constitution for Unitarianism in 1895, the emphasis shifts to the early philosophy department at the University of Chicago and the rise of Humanism. Contributions and influences on the development of Humanism by George Burman Foster, Edward Scribner Ames, and Albert Eustace Haydon will be explored. (shrink)

Descartes was both metaphysician and natural philosopher. He used his metaphysics to ground portions of his physics. However, as should be a commonplace but is not, he did not think he could spin all of his physics out of his metaphysics a priori, and in fact he both emphasized the need for appeals to experience in his methodological remarks on philosophizing about nature and constantly appealed to experience in describing his own philosophy of nature. During the 1630s, he offered empirical (...) support for the basic principles of his natural philosophy, while also promising to provide a metaphysical justification. He offered the metaphysical justification in the Meditations and Principles. and claimed absolute certainty for it. At the same time, he recognized that the particular postulated mechanisms of his natural philosophy did not reach that standard of certainty. These mechanisms were supported by empirical testing or confirming of causes through observed effects. (shrink)