We describe our attempts at curriculum development at the undergraduate level working within the constraints of a large traditional university system. Curriculum reform is described as a three-step process of product innovation, accommodation and assimilation. In a dual-pronged strategy, students are constructively engaged, first, in investigative projects and assigned specific tasks, giving them a flavour of creative research, and, second, in development of curricular products. The process of transfer of pedagogic innovations into the formal classroom is enhanced by a teacher (...) training programme that aims to provide experiential learning of research-based innovative teaching practices, catalyse a process of reflection through classroom research and establish a collaborative network of teachers. (shrink)

Concept of manas in Indic philosophy; a study.

To assess the intelligence of machines, Alan Turing proposed a test of imitation known as the imitation game, famously known as the Turing test. To assess whether artificial intelligent (AI) systems could be moral or not, Colin Allen et al. developed a test of imitation in the context of morality, a test known as the Moral Turing Test (MTT), which I will, in this paper, call the moral imitation game. There are arguments against developing any type of MTT or moral (...) imitation game. Rather than developing a moral imitation game, this paper proposes a criterion of imitation for AI systems in the moral scenario. To develop a criterion of imitation, I explore the notion of moral attribution in detail. Within the case of moral attribution, I introduce the subject‐ascriber distinction. The notion of moral attribution and the subject‐ascriber distinction is employed to address the following questions: (a) how is the assessment in MTT arranged?, (b) what is the role of the interrogator in the MTT?, and (c) what information is to be concealed from the interrogator? The first question deals with the aspect of assessment, the second question deals with the reordering of the role of the interrogator and the third one deals with the concealment aspect of the imitation game. After that, a criterion of imitation for AI systems is put forward. Using the subject‐ascriber distinction in moral attribution and David Lewis' Mad Pain and Martian Pain cases, it is argued that the notion of sentience is insignificant for the ascriber for moral attributions. (shrink)

A general meta-logical theory is developed by considering ontological disputes in the systems of metaphysics. The usefulness of this general meta-logical theory is demonstrated by considering the case of the ontological dispute between the metaphysical systems of Lewis’ Modal Realism and Terence Parsons’ Meinongianism. Using Quine’s criterion of ontological commitments and his views on ontological disagreement, three principles of metalogic is formulated. Based on the three principles of metalogic, the notions of independent variable and dependent variable are introduced. Then, the (...) ontological dispute between Lewis’ Modal Realism and Terence Parsons’ Meinongianism are restated in the light of the principles of metalogic. After the restatement, Independent variable and dependent variables are fixed in both Lewis’ Modal Realism and Terence Parsons’ Meinongianism to resolve the dispute. Subsequently, a new variety of quantifiers are introduced which is known as functionally isomorphic quantifiers to provide a formal representation of the resolution of the dispute. The specific functionally isomorphic quantifier which is developed in this work is known as st-quantifier. It is indicated that how st-quantifier which is one of the functionally isomorphic quantifiers can function like existential quantifier. It is also shown that there is some kind of inconsistency which is unavoidable in stating the ontological disagreement and therefore, paraconsistent logic is a requirement in stating the ontological disputes. (shrink)

It is the primary duty of business to satisfy consumer by providing quality goods and services at right place, right time, in right quantity at a fair price. The need for consumer protection is recognized by law makers in India since ancient times. It was very well realized that a consumer is prone to exploitation on the part of providers of goods and services. Therefore, the ancient Indian law codes regulated not only social conditions but also the economic life of (...) people by establishing human values and code of trade practices to protect the interests of buyers. This article is mainly based on the detailed study of ancient Indian literature, that is, Manu Smriti, Narada Smriti, Brihaspati Smriti and Arthshastra. (shrink)

Using speech act theory from the Philosophy of Language, this paper attempts to develop an ethical framework for the phenomenon of speech processing. We use the concepts of the illocutionary force and the illocutionary content of a speech act to explain the ethics of speech processing. By emphasizing the different stages involved in speech processing, we explore the distinct ethical issues that arise in relation to each stage. Input, processing, and output are the different ethically relevant stages under which a (...) spoken item or a speech navigates within the range of speech-processing modules. Employing the illocutionary force-content distinction, we specify and characterize the input-related ethical issues, the output-related ethical issues, and the processing-related ethical issues involved in speech processing. Together with illocutionary force-content distinction, we employ the data-information distinction to characterize the stage-wise ethical issues in the phenomenon of speech processing as the ethics of collecting (speech) data, the ethics of contextualizing (speech) data/information, and the ethics of releasing the con-textualized information (processed speech). Immediate ethical issues that arise from the range of speech processing modules are distinguished from distant ethical issues. We also indicate the nature of ethical issues that arise from Speaker Independent speech technologies. (shrink)

This paper tries to unleash the nature of the paradox of nonexistence or non-being or negative singular existentials by using a General Metalogical Theory. In the first section, this paper explains in detail the paradox of negative singular eixistentials and explains how Alexius Meinong and Bertrand Russell respond to this paradox. Russell resolves the paradox using quantification method which Quine extends to formulate a criterion of ontological commitments. In the second section, a General Metalogical Theory is explained, and it is (...) shown that how the developed General Metalogical Theory is useful in unleashing the paradox of nonexistence. The principles of General Metalogical Theory is developed from Quine’s criterion: to be is to be the value of bound variable. In Quine’s criterion, the notion of the bound variable is significant. The General Metalogical Theory in unleashing the nature of the paradox mainly focuses on the question: from where does the binding of the bound variable come? The paper argues that it is not enough to say that the binding of the bound variable comes from the existentially loaded use of the particular quantifier. General Metalogical Theory attempts to show that the binding of the bound variable comes from somewhere else, so that we attach the particular quantifier to the variable and use the particular quantifier in an existentially loaded sense. Explaining the binding nature of the bound variable in the above-mentioned manner will unleash the nature of the paradox. (shrink)

This paper resolves the problems raised by Israel Scheffler and Noam Chomsky against Quine’s criterion of ontological commitment. I call Scheffler’s and Chomsky’s problems as (1) the problem of inexorable ontological commitments and (2) the problem of false existential inferences. I extend their problems to a third one, which is called as the problem of extended inexorable ontological commitments to rival entities. In order to present the third problem, two ontological disputes are considered: Russell–Meinong dispute from the context of the (...) referential theory of meaning and David Lewis–Meinong dispute from the context of modal metaphysics. In order to work out a resolution to these three problems, I emphasize the distinction between meta-ontology/meta-theory and object theory. Then, it is explained that there is a functional difference between Quine’s criterion of ontological commitments (meta-theory) and the object theories to which this criterion is applied. Here, considering the functional difference, I introduce different kinds of commitments: direct commitments and indirect commitments. Using Strawson’s views on the notion of presupposition, the distinction between direct commitments and indirect commitments is characterized further. Employing this distinction, I resolve the problem of inexorable ontological commitment to the entities, the problem of false existential inferences and the problems of extended inexorable ontological commitment to the rival entities. (shrink)

Comparative study of the Jaina and Hindu ethics.

"Economic Justice in an Unfair World" is a stimulating, well-researched book combining economic analysis, political philosophy, and contemporary policy, all focused on one key question: What does one mean by economic justice in a world cut through by inequalities of income, bargaining power, and human poverty?

In rebellion against low‐dimensional (e.g., two‐factor) theories in psychology, the authors make the case for high‐dimensional theories. This change in perspective requires a shift towards a focus on computation and quantitative reasoning.

There has been much recent debate about women's rights and their relation to human rights. Debates about domestic violence in Vanuatu are situated in this global frame but also in a regional and historical context dominated by the relation between kastom (tradition) and Christianity. This article depicts the dynamics of a conference on Violence and the Family in Vanuatu held in Port Vila in 1994, in terms of the competing claims of universal human rights and cultural relativism. The allegedly western (...) character of human rights which focus on the individual and civil and political rights is often contrasted with the non-western stress on collectivities and the rights to economic development and self-determination. These sorts of ideological oppositions in international politics reverberate in domestic politics as well, and especially in those which situate women and men as subjects in conflict, as they are in many domestic disputes. (shrink)

There is consistent evidence that everything coming out from the religious/spiritual phenomenon bends us most harshly. And that occurs regardless of the form religiousness or spirituality takes in practice or theory, despite the broad range of embracing religious concepts and creeds from atheism to fanatism, or moreover disregarding the impossibility of labeling as good or wrong these creeds from another perspective than the one that produced it. Many people adhere to religion for the sake of their souls, but it turns (...) out that regular participation in faith-based activities is good for the body and mind, too. Whether we are talking from a social perspective, or a psychological, mental, or bodily one, religious creeds and/or faith-based activities change us in a way or another, nearly for good and incessantly. Is that a good or a wrong thing? – the problem is that we cannot even assess this except from the same perspective that originates it, which makes even more difficult to analyze the religious phenomenon, especially for its better eventual management. Could this be a motif for lesser religious engagement in the civil societies characterized by a decreasing religious attachment? (shrink)

Study on being with the reference of Indic philosophy and modern perspective.

Dans La Volonté de savoir, Foucault écrit : "Là où il y a pouvoir, il y a résistance".

Introduction Cet article prend pour objet d’analyse un thème restreint : le sens de la technique, confronté au problème de l’histoire « entre » Hans Jonas et Günther Anders. Sur un plan biographique, Jonas mentionne à plusieurs reprises Anders dans ses Souvenirs essentiellement pour décrire leur rencontre, lorsqu’ils étaient tous les deux étudiants. Il le désigne également, dans leur correspondance, comme étant l’un de ses plus vieux amis. En dépit de la grande richesse de cette corres-pondan...

L’ouvrage Spiritualité, vie et monde historique dans la phénoménologie transcendantale de Husserl est la version remaniée de la thèse d’Andrea Sebastiano Staiti, soutenue en février 2009. L’ouverture proposée résulte d’un constat bibliographique : Husserl, dans son projet d’une étude de la conscience transcendantale pure, s’est également confronté à des thèmes tels que l’intersubjectivité, l’histoire, l’éthique, la culture ou encore la théologie. Parmi ses nombreux thèmes, l’histoire est choi..

As of 2007 the world economy has been caught in the worst crisis since the 1930s. Yet after two years of only partly successful efforts to mobilize and coordinate global action of financial control and stimulus, ending with the G-20 meeting of March 2009, responsibility for corrective economic initiatives has essentially been left to individual countries, supported by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the European Union (EU). Moreover, such support has been usually conditional on countries following financial policies of (...) tough austerity. The United States took some actions to stimulate its economy, but by many accounts these were insufficient. Most of Europe has not even attempted stimulus measures and has been in a period of economic stagnation, with falling real incomes among the poorest parts of the population. Although some signs of “recovery” have been heralded in 2013 and 2014, growth has mostly been measured from a lower base. There is little evidence of broad-based economic recovery, let alone improvements in the situation of the poor or even of the middle-income groups. (shrink)

Technology transfer is a multi-level process of communication involving a variety of senders and receivers of ideas and materials. As a response to market failure, or as an effort to accelerate market-driven social change, technology transfer may combine public and private aparatus or rely solely on public institutional mechanisms to identify, develop, and deliver innovations and information. Technology transfer institutions include universities, government ministries, research institutes, and what may be termed the ‘project sector’. Four farm- and village-level change models are (...) considered: traditional community development, adoption-diffusion, training and Visit Extension, and Farming Systems Research. The challenges to technology transfer efforts center on developing indigenous capacity to generate and adapt agricultural technology to local conditions. This is the primary objective of technology transfer in agriculture and the basis for advancing rural development. (shrink)

Therapeutic letter writing has been viewed by psychologists as a powerful form of creative writing in health care settings. I explore the cultural contexts that have aided its popularization to shed fresh light on debates about its psychological function and efficacy. I draw on the sociologist Frank Furedi’s analysis of ‘therapy culture’ to argue that contemporary ideologies of the vulnerable self have stimulated this practice, particularly in the form of letters written not-to-be-sent. I conclude by considering models of developmental letter (...) writing that attempt to challenge these ideologies, including narrative therapists’ provocative method of corresponding with clients. (shrink)

While recent studies have increasingly suggested leadership as a major precursor to corporate social responsibility, empirical studies that examine the impact of various leader aspects such as style and ethics on CSR and unravel the mechanism through which leadership exerts its influence on CSR are scant. Ironically, paucity of research on this theme is more prevalent in the sphere of social enterprises where it is of utmost importance. With the aim of addressing these gaps, this research empirically examines the interaction (...) between ethical leadership and CSR and, in addition, investigates organic organizational cultures as mediators in the above interaction. To this end, a model was developed and tested on the sample of 350 middle- and top-level managers associated with 28 Indian healthcare social enterprises, using Structural Equation Modeling Analysis, Bootstrapping and PROCESS. Results reveal that ethical leadership both directly and indirectly influences CSR practices. The indirect influence of ethical leadership involves nurturing clan and adhocracy cultures, which in turn influence CSR. These findings are significant for social enterprise leaders seeking to encourage their organizations’ socially responsible behavior. (shrink)