Background and PurposeTranscranial direct current stimulation is an emerging non-invasive neuromodulation technique for focal epilepsy. Because epilepsy is a disease affecting the brain network, our study was aimed to evaluate and predict the treatment outcome of cathodal tDCS by analyzing the ctDCS-induced functional network alterations.MethodsEither the active 5-day, −1.0 mA, 20-min ctDCS or sham ctDCS targeting at the most active interictal epileptiform discharge regions was applied to 27 subjects suffering from focal epilepsy. The functional networks before and after ctDCS were (...) compared employing graph theoretical analysis based on the functional magnetic resonance imaging data. A support vector machine prediction model was built to predict the treatment outcome of ctDCS using the graph theoretical measures as markers.ResultsOur results revealed that the mean clustering coefficient and the global efficiency decreased significantly, as well as the characteristic path length and the mean shortest path length at the stimulation sites in the fMRI functional networks increased significantly after ctDCS only for the patients with response to the active ctDCS. Our prediction model achieved the mean prediction accuracy of 68.3% after the nested cross validation. The mean area under the receiver operating curve was 0.75, which showed good prediction performance.ConclusionThe study demonstrated that the response to ctDCS was related to the topological alterations in the functional networks of epilepsy patients detected by fMRI. The graph theoretical measures were promising for clinical prediction of ctDCS treatment outcome. (shrink)

The artworks in 'Synthetic Times' explore a trajectory of uncanny visions ranging from the desire to transcend the corporal to the construction of synthetic worlds.

Charbonneau (2014) and Papale (2021) challenge the necessity of reproduction for evolution by natural selection (ENS) by contending that what really matter for ENS are memory and (re)generation at the population level, rather than lineage-forming reproduction at the local level. In this article, we critically evaluate their reproduction-independent accounts of ENS and defend the importance of lineage-forming reproduction in paradigmatic ENS on both empirical and theoretical grounds. We argue that none of the empirical cases they cite can be used as (...) evidence to demonstrate the existence of paradigmatic ENS without lineage-forming reproduction, and adopting their reproduction-independent views would lead to an account of ENS that is both too liberal and too strict. (shrink)

When we make transformative choices, there is always a risk of regret. While a decision-maker may predict that she will not regret her choice, others might predict the opposite and attempt to prevent her from proceeding to shield her from future regret. This paper argues that there is a pro tanto epistemic reason against such intervention because, ceteris paribus, it is prima facie irrational for others to maintain their belief (that she will regret) without deferring to the decision-maker’s own prediction. (...) This is because, unlike others, the decision-maker knows what it is like to live her current life, which puts her in a better epistemic position to make the regret prediction. (shrink)

In metaphysics, ‘brutal composition’ is supported by few philosophers except Ned Markosian, however, the detailed meaning of composition bruteness, and the related notion of restrictedness, has not been seriously discussed. I offer a novel and systematic account of composition restrictedness and bruteness, in which different senses of ‘restricted’ and ‘bruteness’ are explored, and I argue this can help to understand some interesting but neglected positions about composition, like ‘restricted universalism’.

Previous studies only considered the impact of personal or environmental factors on intensive smartphone use separately, while largely ignoring the impact of person-environment fit on it. Drawing on the P-E fit theory, we proposed that perceived overqualification, an indicator of person-job misfit, positively affects intensive smartphone use via job boredom, and affective commitment moderates this indirect effect. We examined our hypotheses using four-wave time-lag data of 450 workers from 62 teams. The results revealed that POQ raised job boredom of an (...) individual and thus increased their intensive smartphone use. In addition, when the affective commitment was high, the indirect effect from POQ to intensive smartphone use via job boredom was weaker. The implications, limitations, and future directions of this research were discussed. (shrink)

Maimonides (1135/1138–1204) and Zhu Xi 朱熹 (1130–1200) are unparalleled in the transformation and revitalization of Jewish and Confucian traditions, respectively. This article offers a comparative analysis of the two philosophers’ conceptions of nature and their view on the end of knowledge. It examines, on one hand, Maimonides’s distinctive interpretation of the rabbinic concept of maʿaseh bereshith (the Account of the Beginning) in the light of his statement that maʿaseh bereshith is identical with natural science; and on the other hand, Zhu (...) Xi’s elucidation of key concepts such as xing 性 (nature), shu 數 (number), tian 天 (heaven), and cheng 誠 (genuineness) in the framework of his doctrine of li 理 (pattern or principle) and qi 氣 (material force). The article points out that Maimonides not only connects the maʿaseh bereshith to the beginning of the world, as traditionally held; he also associates it with the beginning of the revelation of the Mosaic Law, which renders profound implications. While both emphasize the inherent nature of all things, they diverge on the ultimate goal of knowledge in terms of the hierarchy of virtues. Along with Aristotle, Maimonides prioritizes rational virtue over moral virtue, thereby placing intellectual perfection as the ultimate human perfection. In contrast, Zhu Xi esteems knowledge of nature as facilitating the pursuit of the highest goal of sagehood, and leaves no room for the higher status of theoretical pursuit to moral cultivation. (shrink)

This paper aims to explore one significant yet insufficiently elaborated aspect of valuing, namely the positional nature of valuing, which essentially reveals the fact that the valuer occupies a particular position or takes a specific viewpoint in relation to the object being valued. This positional nature of valuing does not merely embody a specific viewpoint from which the valuer’s beliefs, attitudes, reasons, and emotions are conveyed in a complex manner towards the valued object, but also constitute a particular position from (...) which the valuer engages with the valued object in a reason-giving manner. As systematically elaborated and lucidly revealed by this paper, this positional nature of valuing will on the one hand elucidate the conceptual interlock between ‘valuing’ and ‘valuable’ along the value-reason nexus with reference to arguments by T.M. Scanlon and Samuel Scheffler. On the other hand, it will also illuminate why we may have reason to value something from the perspective of practical reasoning. (shrink)

This paper challenges the traditional metaphysical assumption that properties can be located in spacetime and examines the ontological implications of categorizing spacetime itself. By introducing a two-category ontology, we argue that attempts to locate properties in spacetime represent a category mistake, as this notion fails to address the fundamental categorization of spacetime. We propose that the notion of instantiation should be conceptually separated from spatiotemporal location, thereby allowing for properties that are Platonic yet immanent. Furthermore, we reevaluate the debate between (...) Platonism and Aristotelianism, advocating that Platonic properties can possess a form of immanence previously thought to be exclusive to Aristotelian frameworks. This reformation not only underscores the need for categorizing spacetime but also reshapes our understanding of the instantiation and immanence of properties within ontological dependence frameworks. (shrink)

This paper firstly extracts the humanised design elements of urban small and micro public space from the connotation of urban small and micro public space and humanised design, and applies its design elements to actual projects. The questionnaire is taken as the main source of research data in this paper, and the independent variables, dependent variables and control variables are additionally set. Combining the research data with mathematical and statistical methods, we explore the interaction relationship between the humanised design of (...) urban micro and small public spaces and the subjective well-being of residents. It is found that the regional characteristics of the humanised design elements of urban small and micro public spaces have the greatest influence on subjective well-being, with a regression coefficient of 0.418. In addition, it can be concluded that site selection, regional characteristics, scale, and visual mentality have significant correlation on life happiness, life satisfaction, and economic satisfaction, satisfying P. (shrink)

Preservice mathematics teachers’ accurate understanding of mathematical problem solving and its teaching is key to the performance of their professional quality. This study aims to investigate preservice mathematics teachers’ understanding of problem solving and its teaching and compares it with the understanding of in-service mathematics teachers. After surveying 326 in-service mathematics teachers, this study constructs a reliable and valid tool for the cognition of mathematical problem solving and its teaching and conducts a questionnaire survey on 26 preservice mathematics teachers. Survey (...) results reveal that preservice mathematics teachers have a good understanding of mathematical problem solving and its teaching and are more confident in the transfer value of problem solving ability. By contrast, in-service teachers are more optimistic that problem solving requires exploration, continuous thinking, and the participation of metacognition. This article concludes that preservice mathematics teachers should focus more on the initiative and creativity of students and put students at the center of education. In addition, teacher educators should provide more teaching practice opportunities for preservice teachers. The findings also show that in-service teachers’ understanding of problem solving and its teaching is inferior to that of preservice teachers on some indicators, implying the importance of post-service training for in-service teachers. (shrink)

Idioms are the unity of figurative and formulaic expressions, driving a variety of creative variants used in everyday life. This study explored how Chinese readers made sense of Chinese idioms and their variants, with possible constraints from their strength in overall inhibitory control (OIC). Our new attempt at a comprehensive measure of inhibitory control managed to predict the readers’ self-paced reading behavior in the context of the idioms written in the Chinese ideographic script. Those with poorer OIC were assumed to (...) show more difficulties in inhibiting the literal meaning of a Chinese idiom as the supportive context unfolded. Such constraints from OIC also resurfaced during the comprehension of the Chinese variants employed in this study that were likely treated as novel idioms. We thereby assumed a hybrid route for the comprehension of Chinese idiomatic expressions. Nonetheless, idiom familiarity or decomposability exerted limited influence during these processes. The current study enriches the individual-difference approach to idiom comprehension by further expounding how its account varies with an ideographic writing system characterized by symbolic glyphs. (shrink)

In this article, we attempt to explore Husserl’s transcendental subjectivity and its relation to the world. Our focus is on the question of whether Husserl’s transcendental subjectivity can be seen as transcendental ‘being-in-the-world,’ in response to critical examinations made by philosophers such as Heidegger, Merleau-Ponty, Patočka, and Biemel. While their critiques have complex implications and are subject to debate, they contribute to our understanding of the intricate relationship between transcendental subjectivity and the world. It is important to clarify that this (...) article aims to defend Husserl’s perspective rather than provide an exhaustive analysis of the critiques. We argue that, according to Husserl’s transcendental phenomenology, transcendental subjectivity is, in fact, integrated within the world’s transcendental structure. This argument is supported by three main points. Firstly, Husserl’s transcendental subjectivity and its internal consciousness are not secluded but remain open and intentionally related to the external world. Secondly, Husserl clarifies the sense of transcendental ‘being-in-the-world,’ with subjective constitution revealing its sense. Lastly, Husserl proposes the notion of transcendental person as an attempt to address how transcendental subjectivity exists concretely in the life-world. This holistic perspective sought to provide a comprehensive understanding of transcendentally grounded subjectivity and its embodied existence in the world with the essential state of ‘being-in-the world.’. (shrink)

The question of the origin of goodness in the Xunzi is an important key to understanding Xunzi’s thoughts. Current interpretation approaches are mainly divided into the sage-centered and Heaven-centered approaches. The sage-centered approach holds that goodness originates from the intelligence or the good potential of the sages. However, this explanation either conflicts with Xunzi’s idea that the gentleman and the petty man have the same endowment or with the theory of bad human nature. The Heaven-centered approach maintains that goodness originates (...) from the Heaven or Dao. However, this approach leads to the problem of the rigidity of moral norms or contradiction with Xunzi’s naturalistic Heaven. In this paper, I point out a third approach, arguing that goodness originates from customs. This interpretation is compatible with Xunzi’s theory of bad human nature and naturalistic Heaven. Also, it avoids the problem of giving special humanity to the sages and the rigidity of moral norms. (shrink)

Recent research indicates that environmentally responsible stakeholders’ green needs and practices effectively enhance substantive or symbolic corporate environmental responsibility. However, few studies have noted the potential for these green needs and practices to backfire. We integrate moral licensing theory and upper echelons theory to develop a theoretical framework. This framework can predict the differential effects of stakeholders’ green needs on corporate green innovation, contingent on the moral credits that these needs confer upon executives. The evidence comes from the practice of (...) green bond issuance by listed firms and a quasi-natural experiment of China’s environmental tax policy. We find that a 1% increase in the regional environmental protection tax is associated with a 0.036% decrease in a firm’s green innovation. Conversely, a 1% increase in green bond issuance corresponds to a 0.020% increase in a firm’s green innovation. Moreover, these effects are enhanced when managerial discretion is high and mitigated in firms with prosocial executives. Our findings suggest that executives engage in moral mental accounting/balancing, and thus treat stakeholders’ green needs differently. (shrink)

This article traces the emergence and application of Max Weber’s influential concept of charisma in his “Confucianism and Taoism” (1920) and “Politics as a Vocation" (1919), two texts that have not received much attention in the discussion of charisma. Through these texts, we learn to appreciate Weber’s engagement with classical Chinese philosophy and the global composition of this key idea in the twentieth century.

Charbonneau ( 2014 ) and Papale ( 2021 ) challenge the necessity of reproduction for evolution by natural selection (ENS) by contending that what really matter for ENS are memory and (re)generation at the population level, rather than lineage-forming reproduction at the local level. In this article, we critically evaluate their reproduction-independent accounts of ENS and defend the importance of lineage-forming reproduction in paradigmatic ENS on both empirical and theoretical grounds. We argue that none of the empirical cases they cite (...) can be used as evidence to demonstrate the existence of paradigmatic ENS without lineage-forming reproduction, and adopting their reproduction-independent views would lead to an account of ENS that is both too liberal and too strict. (shrink)

Traditional Chinese landscape painting serves as a profound cultural and spiritual expression, reflecting the Chinese people's reverence for nature through symbolic representation, aesthetic philosophy, and artistic craftsmanship. Since its emergence during the Tang Dynasty, landscape painting evolved into a distinct art form characterized by spiritual contemplation and cultural symbolism. Its development through the Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties led to the establishment of northern and southern schools, each with its unique techniques and philosophical underpinnings. In modern society, technological advancements (...) and the influence of Western art have posed new challenges and opportunities for landscape painting. This study explores the philosophical and spiritual dimensions of landscape elements in traditional Chinese art while examining innovative techniques that merge classical aesthetics with modern artistic expressions. Through analyzing the works of key landscape painters, the study highlights advancements in thematic representation, stylistic innovation, and symbolic meaning, offering insights into how traditional landscape painting can be revitalized in contemporary art while preserving its cultural and spiritual heritage. (shrink)

Smith’s imagination of sociability and interpersonal relationships in commercial society carries a strong Epicurean tone. However, in terms of moral philosophy, Smith severely criticised Epicureanism and firmly defended the ‘natural beauty of virtue’ within the framework of sentimentalism (i.e. the existence of moral worth independent of pleasure and utility). He claimed that Epicureanism’s denial of the ‘natural beauty of virtue’ not only misunderstands the basis of moral judgement but also ignores people’s corresponding moral motives and the possibility of their self-formation (...) in character. He similarly criticised Hume. In Smith’s view, Hume also neglected the ‘natural beauty of virtue’. This negligence underestimated the dignity of human nature in terms of moral motives, moral perception and the self-cultivation of character, thus failing to explain the possibility of justice, self-command, generosity, and other virtues. In general, drawing on established intellectual resources, Smith offered a more active, energetic perspective on the moral agent than Epicurus and Hume. The active and noble moral agent, rather than rationally maximising individuals, was an enlightened participant in Smith’s commercial society. (shrink)

The Tang Dynasty (618–907) stands as a pinnacle of cultural, artistic, and spiritual flourishing, with its music and dance embodying profound metaphysical, religious, and philosophical dimensions. Beyond their aesthetic appeal, these art forms served as mediums for spiritual expression, ritualistic practice, and intercultural religious dialogue, particularly along the Silk Road. However, the challenge of revitalizing Tang Dynasty music and dance in contemporary times requires reconciling historical traditions with modern sensibilities, integrating religious and philosophical reflections, and leveraging innovative technologies to enhance (...) their spiritual resonance. This study explores the philosophical and religious significance of Tang Dynasty music and dance within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), emphasizing their role in fostering intercultural exchange, sacred aesthetics, and ethical values. A qualitative research approach is employed, incorporating historical analysis, case studies, and cultural hermeneutics to examine how these ancient art forms can be revitalized while retaining their transcendental and ritualistic essence. Drawing from Buddhist, Daoist, and Confucian influences embedded in Tang Dynasty artistic traditions, this research highlights how these performances once served as vehicles for divine worship, meditative practice, and moral education. Methodologies include the integration of virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) to create immersive spiritual experiences, the fusion of traditional music and dance with sacred narratives, and the use of interactive storytelling to preserve religious symbolism. Case studies, such as the immersive encounter at Chang’an Twelve Hours and the evolution of Imitation Tang Music and Dance, exemplify how these innovations can restore the spiritual and philosophical depth of Tang-era performances. This study concludes that interdisciplinary collaboration and international partnerships can play a crucial role in sustaining the spiritual and cultural legacy of Tang Dynasty music and dance. By embedding these art forms within the broader discourse of religious aesthetics and philosophy, their revitalization can contribute not only to cultural preservation but also to the enrichment of contemporary spiritual thought in a globally connected world. Future research should further explore the role of sacred music and dance in interfaith dialogue and their potential to inspire a renewed understanding of religious and philosophical traditions. (shrink)

Pronatalist policies, once regarded as a solution to declining fertility rates, face mounting scrutiny as they intersect with complex sociocultural dynamics across societies. Recent United Nations (UN) projections (2024) highlight an irreversible demographic trend: East Asian nations, exemplified by South Korea’s record-low fertility rate of 0.72, represent a global shift towards subreplacement fertility, as shown in figure 1.1 Lee’s analysis critiques pronatalist policies’ limitations, arguing that cash incentives and other state-sponsored measures merely mask systemic inequities while reinforcing paternalistic norms.2 This (...) commentary extends Lee’s critique by identifying a fundamental contradiction: welfare-driven pronatalist policies risk exacerbating inequities by diverting resources from broader well-being priorities. UN data show that even substantial pronatalist spending—as evidenced by South Korea’s $270 billion expenditure since 2008—fails to counter structural forces driving fertility decline,2 such as gendered labour disparities and rising single-person households. This paradox necessitates a paradigm shift from population sustainability—a relic of Malthusian anxieties—to population well-being, prioritising inclusive social services over demographic engineering. By anchoring this argument in the latest demographic evidence, we challenge policymakers to confront the ethical imperative of reallocating resources towards underserved groups, whose marginalisation is both a cause and consequence of pronatalism’s narrow calculus. Figure 1 Changes and projections of total fertility rate (live births per woman) in East Asia representative countries (1950–2050). *These data do not include …. (shrink)

The functional neuro-anatomical model of attachment (NAMA) proposes that the balance between affective evaluation and cognitive control systems can be modulated by adult attachment styles and attachment priming. However, little is known about the characteristics of emotional conflict control that are modulated by attachment patterns. Accordingly, the present study adopted two experiments to investigate the associations between attachment styles, attachment (in)security priming, and emotional conflict control. Experiment 1 (N = 225) examined the association between attachment styles and emotional interference, demonstrating (...) that individuals high on attachment anxiety (AX) relied more on affective evaluation to hinder conflict control. Furthermore, Experiment 2 (N = 185) explored the effect of attachment priming on emotional conflict control. Moderated mediation models indicated that high sense of attachment security mediated the relationship between security priming and increased emotional interference when it interacted with high AX. Additionally, high sense of insecurity partially mediated the association between threat priming and reduced emotional interference only for individuals with high AX, while low AX strengthened the effect of threat priming on decreased emotional interference. Together, these findings provide supporting evidence for the NAMA that the emotional-cognitive balance in emotional conflict control is modulated by both attachment styles and attachment priming. (shrink)

This paper explores Martin Buber’s dialogical philosophy and its influence on Lu Nan’s 呂楠 photography. By comparing Lu Nan’s trilogy, which documents marginalized communities in China, with Tyagan Miller’s Covenant: Scenes from an African American Church, the study examines how Buber’s I-Thou concept shapes their practices. It highlights their efforts to transcend the subjectivity-objectivity divide in photography, as suggested by Susan Sontag. Through the “Dialogical Aperture” framework, this research provides insights into the ethical and aesthetic dimensions of documentary photography, proposing (...) Buber’s philosophy as a pathway to more authentic representations of reality. (shrink)

This article explores ecological theology in mainland China from 1990 to 2024 through the lens of Stephen B. Bevans’ contextual theology. By analysing its reception, it becomes clear that a distinctly contextualised ecological theology has not yet emerged in China. Considering this gap, the article examines potential directions for Chinese ecological theology across four dimensions of contextual theology. The academic and religious communities should focus on diversified yet overlapping approaches to develop Chinese ecological theology collaboratively. From the perspective of mutual (...) learning between Chinese and Western civilisations, Chinese ecological theology should adopt ‘synthetic model’ to integrate traditional Chinese concepts of ‘Heaven-Nature-Human’ and respond to both local and global challenges. A synthetic model of Chinese ecological theology could become a significant voice in the international theological community, contributing to global sustainable prosperity.Contribution: This article makes two contributions. Firstly, it provides a systematic review and reflection on ecological theology in mainland China from 1990 to 2024. Secondly, it highlights the future development directions and models of Chinese ecological theology from the perspective of contextual theology. (shrink)

In his 2020 work, _ Hegel in a Wired Brain_, Žižek explores whether digital machines can comprehend the unconscious as the surplus of language. According to him, even if future digital machines could decode and comprehend all human thoughts and discourse, they would remain incapable of capturing the unconscious dimension that is retroactively constituted within the chain of signifiers. In recent years, with the remarkable advancements achieved by large language models (LLMs) — such as ChatGPT (Generative Pre-trained Transformer) — in (...) the field of natural language processing, these models have emerged as the most promising approaches in artificial intelligence and have become significant subjects of philosophical reflection. Consequently, the pressing question now arises: Can LLMs comprehend, or even possess, their own unconscious?To address these questions,t his paper will first provide a brief technical overview of LLMs, then outline Žižek’s interpretation of the unconscious via Lacanian psychoanaly tic semiotics. Based on several intriguing experiments—such as questioning LLMs about their understanding of the coffee joke and requesting them to generate similar jokes—this study will analyze the unconscious of LLMs. The conclusion will be cautionary: while LLMs do not yet possess a human-equivalent unconscious, they can comprehend and partially access this paradoxical space.Rather than focusing on the traditional issue of whether AI can understand semantics as opposed to syntax, this paper centers on the unconscious third dimension of “ undead ” that lies between semantics and syntax, and whether LLMs can understand this retroactively generated paradoxical viod within the chain of signifiers. (shrink)

This article argues that the Sarvāstivāda’s “ X takes Y as svabhāva ” system constitutes a multilayered reduction system where “ X takes Y as svabhāva ” can be understood as “ X is reduced to Y.” Here, svabhāva functions as a means of reduction. The reduction system comprises three layers, and its primary aim is to reduce non-dharma types to dharma types. Furthermore, the article discusses whether the multilayered reduction system is ontological or epistemological. Moreover, based on the third (...) layer of the reduction system, the article suggests that svabhāva has only played a limited role in defining dharma types. (shrink)

History and literature are different ways to satisfy the basic human desire to preserve what is memorable, beautiful, or painful against all-devouring time and the transience of human experience, and to commemorate what is meaningful and valuable in our personal or collective memories. It is thus not surprising that history and literature share certain structural similarities in recuperating the past with vivid descriptions, believable characterizations, and coherent, convincing narratives. The sense of history is not an antiquarian interest in a dead (...) and detached past, but a vivid and living experience of what is relevant at the present, and H-G. Gadamer’s hermeneutic concept of “contemporaneity” (Gleichzeitigkeit) offers a helpful theoretical framework for understanding the immediacy of our experience of the past in literary or historical representations. But there is also an important difference between literary and historical representations in that the historian is epistemologically and morally bound to what actually happens, while the poet or the novelist is free to construct a fictional representation through imagination unrelated to actuality. In the Chinese tradition, there is the concept of “the historian’s virtue” and a historian is committed to the true record of history at any cost, even his life. By drawing on some exemplary works of ancient Chinese literature and historiography, this essay discusses some of the theoretical issues related to the writing and the understanding of history and try to lead to the mutual illumination of poetry and history rather than their opposition and mutual exclusion. (shrink)

Drawing on attribution theory and expectancy violation theory, this study investigates the effect of corporate social responsibility (CSR) on stock market reactions in the context of intentional crises, during which stakeholders are likely to attribute crisis responsibility to the focal firm. Using a sample of Chinese listed firms from 2012 to 2022, we find that in the context of an intentional crisis, the stock market reacts more negatively to firms with higher prior CSR performance. Two contingency factors (i.e., media attention (...) and state ownership) strengthen this negative relationship. This study contributes to the CSR literature by broadening knowledge of the insurance-like effects of CSR and by identifying a “boomerang effect” of CSR in the context of intentional crises. (shrink)

In the Original publication of the article the revised date was erroneously published as: 20 August 2017 the correct date is: 20 August 2020.

This paper studies the fixed-time trajectory tracking control problem of robot manipulators in the presence of uncertain dynamics and external disturbances. First, a novel nonsingular fixed-time sliding mode surface is presented, which can ensure that the convergence time of the suggested surface is bounded regardless of the initial states. Subsequently, a novel fast nonsingular fixed-time sliding mode control is developed so that the closed-loop system is fixed-time convergent to the equilibrium. By applying the proposed NFNFSMC method and the adaptive technique, (...) a novel adaptive nonsingular fixed-time control scheme is proposed, which can guarantee fast fixed-time convergence of the tracking errors to small regions around the origin. With the proposed control method, the lumped disturbance is compensated by the adaptive technique, whose prior information about the upper bound is not needed. The fixed-time stability of the trajectory tracking control under the proposed controller is proved by the Lyapunov stability theory. Finally, corresponding simulations are given to illustrate the validity and superiority of the proposed control approach. (shrink)

Considering three monetary policy rules, together with two endogenous macroprudential policies that are credit constraints for households and counter-cyclical capital for bankers, this paper establishes a dynamic stochastic general equilibrium model. Based on the welfare analysis of different combinations of macroprudential rules and monetary policy rules, this paper identifies the optimal policy combinations and analyzes the coordination effects between macroprudential policies and monetary policies. The results show that no matter what kind of monetary policy rules is implemented, the introduction of (...) macroprudential rules has improved the level of total social welfare. In the optimal “two pillars” framework of monetary policies and macroprudential rules, the main objective of monetary policy is to stabilize price inflation, and the macroprudential policy to be implemented is the CRR macroprudential policy. This combination can effectively promote the stability of the real estate market, financial market, and macroeconomy, while maximizing the improvement of total social welfare. (shrink)

Guided by the theories of system theory, synergetic theory, and other disciplines and based on fuzzy data mining algorithm, this article constructs a three-tier social security fund cloud audit platform. Firstly, the article systematically expounds the current situation of social security fund and social security fund audit, such as the technical basis of cloud computing and data mining. Combined with the actual work, the necessity and feasibility of building a cloud audit platform for social security funds are analyzed. This article (...) focuses on the construction of the cloud audit platform for social security funds. The general idea of using fuzzy data mining algorithm to build the social security fund audit cloud platform is to compress the knowledge contained in a large number of data into the weights between nodes and optimize the weights through the learning of the neural network system. Through the optimization function, the information contained in the neural network is stored in a few weights as far as possible. The main information is further highlighted by network clipping and removing weights that have little impact on the output. (shrink)

Most of the existing literature on social preferences either tests whether certain characteristics of the social context influence individual decisions, or tries to estimate parameters of social preference functions describing such behavior at the level of the entire population. In the present paper, we are concerned with measuring parameters of social preference functions at the individual level. We draw upon concepts developed for eliciting other types of utility functions, in particular the literature on decision making under incomplete information. Our method (...) derives parameters of social preference functions from indifference statements about the distribution of payoffs a group. We apply our method in a controlled social preference experiment to establish the external validity of estimated parameters. Our results show the expected relationships to some external factors and also a strong correspondence between parameter estimates and factors that, according to the subjects’ own descriptions, influenced their behavior. We also find that some concepts discussed in the literature on social preferences, in particular envy toward players receiving a larger payoff, have very diverse and complex effects at the individual level. (shrink)

BackgroundBilateral cerebral palsy is the most common type of CP in children and is often accompanied by different degrees of communication impairment. Several studies have attempted to identify children at high risk for communication impairment. However, most prediction factors are qualitative and subjective and may be influenced by rater bias. Individualized objective diagnostic and/or prediction methods are still lacking, and an effective method is urgently needed to guide clinical diagnosis and treatment. The aim of this study is to develop and (...) validate an objective, individual-based model for the prediction of communication impairment in children with BCP by the time they enter school.MethodsA multicenter prospective cohort study will be conducted in four Chinese hospitals. A total of 178 children with BCP will undergo advanced brain magnetic resonance imaging at baseline. At school entry, communication performance will be assessed by a communication function classification system. Three-quarters of children with BCP will be allocated as a training cohort, whereas the remaining children will be allocated as a test cohort. Multivariate lesion- and connectome-based approaches, which have shown good predictive ability of language performance in stroke patients, will be applied to extract features from MR images for each child with BCP. Multiple machine learning models using extracted features to predict communication impairment for each child with BCP will be constructed using data from the training cohort and externally validated using data from the test cohort. Prediction accuracy across models in the test cohort will be statistically compared.DiscussionThe findings of the study may lead to the development of several translational tools that can individually predict communication impairment in children newly diagnosed with BCP to ensure that these children receive early, targeted therapeutic intervention before they begin school.Trial registrationThe study has been registered with the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry. (shrink)

Information on age-related differences in affective meanings of words is widely used by researchers to study emotions, word recognition, attention, memory, and text-based sentiment analysis. To date, no Chinese affective norms for older adults are available although Chinese as a spoken language has the largest population in the world. This article presents the first large-scale age-related affective norms for 2,061 four-character Chinese words (AANC). Each word in this database has rating values in the four dimensions, namely, valence, arousal, dominance, and (...) familiarity. We found that older adults tended to perceive positive words as more arousing and less controllable and evaluate negative words as less arousing and more controllable than younger adults did. This indicates that the positivity effect is reliable for older adults who show a processing bias toward positive vs. negative words. Our AANC database supplies valuable information for researchers to study how emotional characteristics of words influence the cognitive processes and how this influence evolves with age. This age-related difference study on affective norms not only provides a tool for cognitive science, gerontology, and psychology in experimental studies but also serves as a valuable resource for affective analysis in various natural language processing applications. (shrink)

The outbreak of COVID-19 at the end of 2019 has become the most devastating public health event of the 21st century. The different performances of governments and people in different countries and regions show that national values may play an important role in the prevention and control of COVID-19. Based on data from the seventh wave of World Values Survey and the Human Freedom Index report in 2020, three national value factors are extracted in this manuscript, including religious belief, government (...) satisfaction and individual freedom. Then ordinary least squares regression regression model is constructed to explore the influence of these three value factors on the prevention and control of COVID-19 and some heterogeneity analysis is implemented. The results show that religious belief and individual freedom significantly increased the COVID-19 infection rate, while government satisfaction significantly reduced the COVID-19 infection rate. The study findings have the ability to hold up after a range of robustness. For countries and regions with different COVID-19 testing policies, the influence of national values is different. Only in countries and regions with high testing rate policies and complete systems of the prevention and control of COVID-19, the influence of national values is significant. Based on these findings, a series of targeted policy recommendations for building national values in the post-epidemic era are proposed. (shrink)