‘DU bist Radio’ (DBR) is an award winning [DBR has been awarded with the “Catholic Media Award of the German Bishops Conference, Prädikat WERTvoll” (2011), the Suisse “Media Prize Aargau/Solothurn” (2010), the German “Alternative Media Award” (2009) and was nominated for the “Prix Europa” (2009)] monthly radio format that goes on air on three Swiss radio stations. The purpose of this program which was first broadcast in 2009 is the development of a new media format which—without applying any journalistic (or (...) other) filter and influence—conveys authenticity of expression amongst society’s most vulnerable fellow citizens such as patients, clients and the socially deprived. So-called marginal groups are encouraged to speak for themselves, as a possible paradigm case for encouraging the inclusion of patients’ and relatives’ “unfiltered” voices in general and in clinical ethics as well. Before handing over the microphone to the groups in focus, a team of journalists, educated in medical ethics, over a period of 4 days, teaches them on-site radio skills and craft. Once this task is completed and the actual production of the broadcast begins, the media crew does not exert any influence whatsoever on the content of the 1-h program. Thus, the final product is solely created and accounted for by the media-inexperienced participants, leading to unforeseen and often surprising results. It is discussed that the DBR approach of fostering authenticity of expression can serve as an enhancement to today’s respect and autonomy oriented field of medical ethics. (shrink)

Our ability to select relevant information from the environment is limited by the resolution of attention – i.e., the minimum size of the region that can be selected. Neural mechanisms that underlie this limit and its development are not yet understood. Functional MRI was performed during an object tracking task in 7- and 11-year-old children, and in young adults. Object tracking activated canonical fronto-parietal attention systems and motion-sensitive area MT in children as young as 7 years. Object tracking performance improved (...) with age, together with stronger recruitment of parietal attention areas and a shift from low-level to higher-level visual areas. Increasing the required resolution of spatial attention – which was implemented by varying the distance between target and distractors in the object tracking task – led to activation increases in fronto-insular cortex, medial frontal cortex including anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and supplementary motor area, superior colliculi, and thalamus. This core circuitry for attentional precision was recruited by all age groups, but ACC showed an age-related activation reduction. Our results suggest that age-related improvements in selective visual attention and in the resolution of attention are characterized by an increased use of more functionally specialized brain regions during the course of development. (shrink)

Die Entscheidung für oder gegen lebensverlängernde Behandlungsmaßnahmen geht inzwischen der Hälfte aller Todesfälle in Europa voraus. Sie wird im klinischen Alltag häufig als ethische Herausforderung wahrgenommen, zudem sind unter Klinikern juristische Unsicherheiten und Fragen der korrekten Vorgehensweise verbreitet. Die hier vorgestellte Münchner Leitlinie zu Entscheidungen am Lebensende soll rechtliche Unsicherheit reduzieren, Klinikumsmitarbeiter für die ethische Dimension von Therapieentscheidungen am Lebensende sensibilisieren und ethisch begründete Entscheidungen fördern. Aus organisationsethischer Perspektive soll mit der Leitlinie eine Reflexion und Meinungsbildung zu einem ethisch relevanten (...) Themenbereich erfolgen und ein Beitrag zur Qualitätssicherung der Patientenversorgung und damit auch zur Patientenzufriedenheit geleistet werden. Die Prozesse der Leitlinienentwicklung, -aktualisierung und -implementierung werden vorgestellt. Die wesentlichen inhaltlichen Elemente der Leitlinie mit Darstellung der Rechtslage, der Definition zentraler Begriffe und Klärung medizinischer Entscheidungskriterien werden an Hand eines Entscheidungsalgorithmus dargestellt. Inhalt und Prozess der Leitlinienentwicklung werden auf die folgenden organisationsethischen Qualitätskriterien hin überprüft: deliberativer Prozess, inhaltliche Transparenz, repräsentative Zusammensetzung der Arbeitsgruppe, Implementierung und Evaluation der Leitlinie. Institutionen, die diese Leitlinie übernehmen wollen, sollten diese von einem autorisierten Gremium überprüfen lassen und auf die spezifischen Bedürfnisse ihrer Institution adaptieren. Hierfür ist eine vorgeschaltete Bedarfserhebung hilfreich. In dem Gremium sollten all diejenigen vertreten sein, die in der Folge mit der Leitlinie arbeiten werden. (shrink)

In diesem Aufsatz wird untersucht, wie sinnvoll und berechtigt die Rede von neuen Formen der Menschenwürdeverletzung durch die Nutzung von KI-Systemen ist. Nach der Skizze eines Kernverständnisses von Menschenwürdeverletzung werden vier Anwendungsgebiete von KI-Systemen exemplarisch erörtert. Es wird dafür argumentiert, dass Menschenwürdeverletzungen zwar weder mit extensiver Werbung und Überredungsstrategien noch mit der Nutzung von Daten über Menschen an sich verbunden sind, dass sie aber tatsächlich da drohen, wo Menschen nicht selbst darüber entscheiden können, welche ihrer Daten wofür verwendet werden und (...) wo ein KI-System selbstständig, ohne weiteres Zutun eines Menschen, über wichtige Belange von Menschen wie Leben und Tod entscheidet. (shrink)

Contents: PART I: AESTHETICS OF ARCHITECTURE: QUESTIONS. Francis SPARSHOTT: The Aesthetics of Architecture and the Politics of Space. Arnold BERLEANT: Architecture and the Aesthetics of Continuity. Stephen DAVIES: Is Architecture Art? PART II: NATURE OF ARCHITECTURE. B.R. TILGHMAN: Architecture, Expression, and the Understanding of a Culture. David NOVITZ: Architectural Brilliance and the Constraints of Time. Michael H. MITIAS: Expression in Architecture. Ralf WEBER: The Myth of Meaningful Forms. Michael H. MITIAS: Is Meaning in Architecture a Myth? A Response (...) to Ralf Weber. PART III: AESTHETIC EXPERIENCE IN ARCHITECTURE. Allen CARLSON: Existence, Location, and Function: The Appreciation of Architecture. Martin DONOUGHO: Spaced Out or Folded In? Trends in Architectural Choreography. Tom LEDDY: Dialogical Architecture. Roy T. DECKER: Tactility and Imagination: Considerations of Aesthetic Experience in Architecture. Robert GINSBERG: Aesthetics in Hiroshima. The Architecture of Remembrance. (shrink)

The article considers the problem of rationality on the basis of two key texts by the prominent proponents of the new cartography for philosophy. These include A Manifesto for Re:emergent Philosophy by Jonardon Ganery (2016) and Comparative Philosophy without Borders edited by Arindam Chakrabarti and Ralf Weber (2016). The both mentioned texts are imbued with the fervor of the movement for liberation from colonial intellectual servitude and epistemological injustice that does not recognize a plurality of ways of thinking. (...) They call for redefinition of the distinctive models of understanding as well as for justification of their rights to be acknowledged. A new cartography of philosophy presupposes a new atlas of rationality. The Manifesto by J. Ganery is compared with The Manifesto for Philosophy by A. Badiou. Both are calling for support for their global projects - “rebuilding of philosophy’s edifice” (Badiou) and “re:emergence of philosophy” (Ganeri). Badiou implies “an approach to the Philosophy” or “a return to the philosophy” by recognition of the four sources of the truth, which he regards as politics, love, art and science. Ganery speaks about “the plurality of ways of thinking”, about the movement for liberation from colonial intellectual dependence by applying the intercultural approach. The two philosophers acknowledge the plurality of cultural worlds. Badiou means “the philosophy of events,” while Ganery - “philosophy of a new cartography.” Badiou discovers different logics in disparate worlds that every time are submitted in specific forms, and thus he comes to the conclusion that single universal logic is impossible. Ganery is consistent and does not contradict himself by claiming plurality of rationalities, of logical systems, and thus advocates the promotion of the project for a new cartography of philosophy. (shrink)

This book analyzes the reasons for organ shortage and ventures innovative ideas for approaching this problem. It presents 29 contributions from a highly interdisciplinary group of world experts and upcoming professionals in the field. Every year thousands of patients die while waiting for organ transplantation. Health authorities, medical professionals and bioethicists worldwide point to the urgent and yet unsolved problem of organ shortage, which will be even intensified due to the increasing life expectancy. Even though the practical problem seems to (...) be well known, the search for suitable solutions continues and often restricts itself by being limited through disciplinary and national borders. Combining philosophical reflection with empirical results, this volume enables a unique insight in the ethics of organ transplantation and offers fresh ideas for policymakers, health care professionals, academics, and the general public. (shrink)

Managers often face situations that challenge their ability to reason morally. Avariety of factors, including the issue itself and personal and organizational influences, may affect their responses. Using Kohlberg’s moral development theory and the Adapted Moral Judgment Interviewtechnique, we examine the influences of context, age, gender, type of work, and industry membership on 308 managers’ moral reasoning. No significant differences are found when considering age or gender. Differences are discovered when assessing the context of the dilemmas, managers’ type of work (...) (managerial vs. technical), and industry membership (manufacturing vs. service). Implications from our findings are discussed. (shrink)

Experimental modeling in biology involves the use of living organisms (not necessarily so-called "model organisms") in order to model or simulate biological processes. I argue here that experimental modeling is a bona fide form of scientific modeling that plays an epistemic role that is distinct from that of ordinary biological experiments. What distinguishes them from ordinary experiments is that they use what I call "in vivo representations" where one kind of causal process is used to stand in for a physically (...) different kind of process. I discuss the advantages of this approach in the context of evolutionary biology. (shrink)

Using Ajzen's Theory of Planned Behavior and Kohlberg's Theory of Moral Development, we look at individual beliefs (What should I do?), intention (What would I do?), and actual behaviors (What did I do?) and the rationale used in each instance. Of the 12 hypotheses, 10 are strongly supported and 2 are moderately supported. This data set shows that significant differences exist between belief and action, belief and intention, and intention and action; the rationales used to support belief, intention, and action (...) differ from one another. Implications for academic research and managerial practice are discussed and research limitations are examined. (shrink)

We prove that every homogeneously Souslin set is coanalytic provided that either (a) 0long does not exist, or else (b) V = K, where K is the core model below a μ-measurable cardinal.

Reoccurring instances of unethical employee behavior raises the question of the effectiveness of organization’s employee ethics training programs. This research seeks to examine employee ethics training programs among US-based global organizations by asking members of the Ethics and Compliance Officer Association to describe various elements of their organizations’ ethics training programs. This investigation and assessment reveal that there are some effective aspects of ethics training but five serious concerns are identified and discussed as potential contributions to the lack of ethics (...) among business organizations’ employees. (shrink)

In a rare opportunity, the authors gathered data from two matched health care providers managed by an insurance company where auditors had discovered theft by employees in one of the matched organizations. Data were gathered about the organizations' ethical work climates (EWCs). Analysis revealed statistically significant differences in EWCs across the two organizations. As predicted, the organization with the morally preferred EWCs did not have theft. Both macro- and micro-organizational influences are explored to explain these differences, along with implications for (...) practitioners and academic research. This is the first study to suggest that a priori EWCs can be useful in predicting observable behavior. (shrink)

Bribery in international business has become a priority concern among business, government, and community leaders. While discussions among philosophers often emphasize the ethical justification for banning bribery, policy-makers around the world are challenging it on the basis of its effects for economic development. In this paper we define bribery, trace recent efforts by the public, private, and civil society sectors to curb it, and attempt to answer the question: Will bribery become less common?

As concerns of the Earth heading towards environmental change is gaining more prominence, this article will introduce a pilot study intended to investigate the common ideas children have about nature and how such ideas emerge within a philosophical community of inquiry about nature. We are particularly interested in a cultural comparison between German and Canadian children in order to see if the different historical and cultural developments influence how children understand and feel about nature. This pilot study contributes towards a (...) greater understanding of the cultural differences underlying how children’s perceptions of nature are tied to their identity formation. Furthermore, the process of philosophical inquiry may lend sensitivity to how children reflect and feel as they grow in today’s culture focused on environmental sustainability and economic development. (shrink)

In recent developments in Artificial Intelligence and especially in robotics we can observe a tendency towards building intelligent artefacts that are meant to be social, to have ‘human social’ characteristics like emotions, the ability to conduct dialogue, to learn, to develop personality, character traits, and social competencies. Care, entertainment, pet and educational robots are conceptualised as friendly, understanding partners and credible assistants which communicate ‘naturally’ with users, show emotions and support them in everyday life. Social robots are often designed to (...) interact physically, affectively and socially with humans in order to learn from them. To achieve this goal, roboticists often model the human‐robot interaction on early caregiver‐infant interactions. In this paper I want to analyse prominent visions of these ‘socio‐emotional’ machines as well as early prototypes and commercial products with regard to the human‐machine interface. By means of this I will ask how feminist critiques of technology could be applied to the field of social robotics in which concepts like sociality or emotion are crucial elements while, at the same time, these concepts play an important role in feminist critiques of technology. (shrink)

Research has shown that “no use” drug education programs, with the objective of scaring or shaming youth into abstinence, have not been effective in addressing problematic substance use. The ineffectiveness of such scare tactic approaches has led program developers to focus on prevention and harm reduction associated with drug use, or in general, health literacy promotion. While significant ‘discussion-based’ drug education programs have been developed over the past decade and has encouraged students to be expressive and critical thinkers regarding drug (...) use, their effective implementation has been a challenge. This paper introduces Engaged Philosophical Inquiry as a pedagogical approach in order to promote drug literacy. The EPI approach is used both as the content and means of professional development for high school teachers to address the significant role of teachers in these programs. Its goal is to help teachers become aware of and re-evaluate their biases, beliefs and behaviors, before they are able to facilitate a non-stereotyped, open, and thoughtful discussion on drug use related topics. The overall idea of this paper is based on an in-progress research project sponsored by Mitacs organization. It discusses the significance of the project by first presenting the existing methods and theoretical approaches to drug education. On that basis, it shows how EPI can contribute to traditional drug education approaches. It then describes how the methodology and phases of the project are rooted in a dialogical process that aim for a close collaboration with teachers. (shrink)

This article examines the idea that “human dignity” means that humans as such are valuable. It does so not from a perspective of normative or metaethics but from the perspective of the practice of valuing that consists in manifested dispositions of actions and emotions. From this point of view a commonly neglected problem becomes evident: How can we value a concrete person non-instrumentally without any reference to her individual properties or achievements and without having any relationship with this person? The (...) suggestion for an answer to this question coincidences with an answer to another question concerning the idea of human dignity, namely the question regarding the relation between the ideas of value on the one hand and dignity on the other hand: to be able to explain what it means to value humans as such, we have to assume that “dignity” is not just the indication of a certain value, but is also a condition that humans can be in. (shrink)

Ich rekonstruiere und kritisiere Hans Drieschs Argumentation für die Behauptung, daß biologischen Prozessen nur eine substanzdualistische Ontologie der belebten Materie (Vitalismus) gerecht werden kann. Meine Diagnose lautet, daß Drieschs Argumentation zwar logisch schlüssig ist bzw. durch leichte Modifikationen in eine logisch gültige Form gebracht werden kann, aber von empirisch unbegründeten, metaphysischen Prämissen über die Möglichkeiten eines energieumwandelnden Mechanismus ausgeht.

Editorial para o dossiê Nietzsche e a Educação.

Analysing cylindromatosis and the associated defects in the CYLD gene is providing novel insights into the molecular principles of epithelial growth control and carcinogenesis in, and beyond, the skin. In this review, we summarize the histopathology and histogenesis of cylindromas, and the available genetic information on patients with these skin appendage tumors. Focusing on recent data concerning the normal functions and signaling interactions of the CYLD gene product, we explain how CYLD interferes with TNF‐α or TLR‐mediated signaling as well as (...) with JNK or NF‐κB‐dependent p65/50 signaling to limit inflammation. In addition, we delineate how CYLD interferes with activation of the proto‐oncogene Bcl3 and with cyclin D1 expression to limit tumorigenesis, and chart how tumor growth‐promoting agents or UV light and inflammatory mediators can activate CYLD. We argue that these recent insights into CYLD function and cylindroma pathogenesis may lead to the development of novel molecular strategies for cancer prevention and treatment. BioEssays 29:1203–1214, 2007. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. (shrink)

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:What about the Billeter-Jullien Debate? And What Was It about? A Response to Thorsten Botz-BornsteinRalph WeberNo doubt Thorsten Botz-Bornstein is right to highlight that the debate of 2006 and 2007 (if indeed it can be called a debate1) between Jean François Billeter and François Jullien was particularly heated. It was to some extent a personal affair in that both protagonists overstepped the scholarly bounds set for an exchange of (...) arguments, the heat at times reaching the boiling point. Billeter reproached Jullien for no less than instrumentalizing China, fashioned as the absolute Other and instrumentalized for almost no other purpose than to continue a philosophical discourse established by Jullien himself, a discourse that became ever more auto-referential, furthering only the most dubious of ideological interests. In one passage, Billeter goes so far as to claim that, rather than allowing the “Chinese authors” their own voice and letting them develop their own arguments, in the end “it is always him [i.e. Jullien] who talks” (Billeter 2006a, p. 45). Regardless of just how personal Billeter’s opposition to Jullien was meant to be—and at least one commentator claims that beyond the polemical title the text offers a “rigorous argumentation” (Danjou 2006; cf. also Zufferey 2006)—Jullien certainly took it personally, asking himself in his riposte, Chemin faisant, just why Billeter was so angry at him (Jullien 2007, p. 137).His riposte is marketed on the title page in big letters as a “Réplique à ***,” which is explained by the series editors, Alain Badiou and Barbara Cassin, in terms of the reaction to a splinter that more often than not swiftly removed is quickly forgotten but that occasionally provokes a considerable reflexive gesture, of just the kind that Jullien offers, thanks to ***. A quote by Foucault precedes the text itself, reading: “There are critiques to which one responds and others to which one gives a riposte. [End Page 228] Perhaps wrongly so, for why not similarly lend an ear that is attentive to incomprehension, to banality, to ignorance or to insincerity?” Only once, at the very beginning of the text, is Billeter’s name (by implication the subject either of incomprehension, banality, ignorance, insincerity, or a combination of all four) fully mentioned; thereafter only his initials, JFB, are used. Even until recently the practice of giving the silent treatment has persisted, as when Jullien in the interview with Martin and Spire simply observes “that the sinologists who criticize me … have themselves produced nothing since that critique—do you need names?” (Martin and Spire 2011, p. 209; italics in original), before referring the reader to the many books he has written since Chemin faisant. Needless to add, this point is premised on quantity trumping quality, which is at least slightly disconcerting given that Jullien’s works have been found as early as 1996 to be marked by “a great deal of overlapping if not outright repetition (or at least rewriting)” (Reding 1996, p. 162)—something that apparently still is the case in his many books “produced” since then.From one standpoint, Botz-Bornstein is also right in referring to the affair as mainly a French debate, involving a sizable number of participants and spanning a considerable period of time, from Billeter and Jullien’s 1989 and 1990 exchange in the pages of Études chinoises over how to read Wang Fuzhi (see Billeter 2006a, p. 37 n. 1); to several volumes on and in co-operative works with Jullien (Jullien and Marchaisse 2000, Marchaisse 2003, Cornaz and Marchaisse 2004, Chartier and Marchaisse 2005, Jousset 2006, and Serrurier and Bricout 2011); to the publication of the partisan Oser Construire: Pour Jullien (Chartier 2007) and Billeter’s answer to it (Billeter 2007); to the many discussions of Jullien that continue to take as their starting point the exchange with Billeter (cf. Keck 2009). The text by Martin and Spire, for instance, makes ample reference to the debate, as Botz-Bornstein mentions, and speaks out in favor of Jullien (Martin and Spire 2011, pp. 77–97). Yet, the debate is also the starting point for Jean Levi’s (2011) recent criticism of Jullien. Beyond the borders of France... (shrink)

L’échec du sommet de Vilnius à la fin de 2013 et les récents événements ukrainiens ont mis en évidence les conséquences liées au refus de la prise en compte de l’histoire des partenaires dans la négociation que développe l’Union européenne avec ses voisins orientaux. Ils montrent que les expériences collectives alimentées à des sources historiques différentes sont autant de ressources que les acteurs mobilisent pour faire valoir d’autres dimensions temporelles. Sans une communauté de références partagées, à la base des intérêts (...) collectifs, les asymétries entre les joueurs ne peuvent que croître. L’examen du processus d’élargissement et celui de la Politique européenne de voisinage mettent en valeur les limites de la stratégie de la Commission quand elle prétend s’appuyer sur la socialisation des élites pour contrer les conflits. Les résultats se mesurent en termes de déclarations sans suite quand les idées constitutives de l’UE et le transfert des compétences ne sont d’aucun poids. L’analyse des deux séquences permet de conclure que les temporalités sont un enjeu de la négociation et que l’ « européanisation » n’est pas le modèle de toute négociation possible. (shrink)

Muitas revisões e críticas são feitas a partir dos estudos da teoria kantiana, e a crítica feminista é uma delas. A posição da mulher na filosofia de Kant é de exclusão da vida pública, sendo relacionada ao belo, guiada pelas emoções e não pela razão. Nesse contexto, o presente trabalho busca inicialmente demonstrar aspectos da teoria kantiana sobre a posição da mulher e considerações sobre o imperativo categórico, para após, adentrar às críticas feministas direcionadas ao filósofo. Para sua realização serão (...) utilizados quatro textos principais que envolvem as filósofas Esperanza Guisán, Luisa Posada Kubissa, Stella Villarmea e Nagl-Docekal. A partir das críticas, é apresentada uma releitura feminista que utiliza os estudos de Kant para fundamentar um feminismo ético. (shrink)