Pax6 is a transcription factor essential for the development of tissues including the eyes, central nervous system and endocrine glands of vertebrates and invertebrates. It regulates the expression of a broad range of molecules, including transcription factors, cell adhesion and short‐range cell–cell signalling molecules, hormones and structural proteins. It has been implicated in a number of key biological processes including cell proliferation, migration, adhesion and signalling both in normal development and in oncogenesis. The mechanisms by which Pax6 regulates its downstream (...) targets likely involve the use of different splice variants and interactions with multiple proteins, allowing it to generate different effects in different cells. Extrapolation to developmental transcription factors in general suggests that variation in the nature of individual factors is likely to contribute to the emergence of differences between tissues. BioEssays 24:1041–1051, 2002. © 2002 Wiley‐Periodicals, Inc. (shrink)

Lawrence M. Friedman and Robert V. Percival, The Roots of Justice: Crime and Punishment in Alameda County, California, 1870?1910 Chapel Hill, N.C.: The University of North Carolina Press, 1981, 335 pp. Charles Campbell, Serving Time Together: Men and Women in Prison Fort Worth, Texas Christian University Press, 1980, 237 pp.

This edited book provides an in-depth examination of the implications of neuroscience for the criminal justice system. It draws together experts from across law, neuroscience, medicine, psychology, criminology, and ethics, and offers an important contribution to current debates at the intersection of these fields. It examines how neuroscience might contribute to fair and more effective criminal justice systems, and how neuroscientific insights and information can be integrated into criminal law in a way that respects fundamental rights and moral values. -/- (...) The book’s first part approaches these questions from a legal perspective, followed by ethical accounts in part two. Its authors address a wide range of topics and approaches: some more theoretical, like those regarding the foundations of punishment; others are more practical, like those concerning the use of brain scans in the courtroom. Together, they illustrate the thoroughly interdisciplinary nature of the debate, in which science, law and ethics are closely intertwined. It will appeal in particular to students and scholars of law, neuroscience, criminology, socio-legal studies and philosophy. (shrink)

The ancient one-to-one relationship with the biological life cycle has gradually deteriorated due to the world undergoing a metamorphic process. Such a metamorphosis has affected ecological harmony, in terms of it being both an approach to studying the relationships between living beings and the environment, and a branch of knowledge protecting and promoting ecological balance. One of the crucial aspects of this phenomenon is the need to rethink and redefine the concept of life in an era that has been described (...) as the “Anthropocene”. In introducing this special issue of the Journal, the paper aims to investigate the environmental question, which plays a crucial role in contemporary political thought, due to the survival of both nature and mankind being threatened. Since the 1950s, such a complex situation has resulted in two lines of thought whose views follow two opposed ideologies – anthropocentrism and anti-anthropocentrism. (shrink)

This chapter is an edited transcript of a panel discussion at the Truth 20|20 Conference. The discussion centers around a discussion between P.F. Strawson and Gareth Evans recorded for the Open University in 1973. In the ensuing discussion, Strawson’s and Evans’ comments on truth are compared both to Ramsey’s work on truth just before his death, and also to contemporary pluralist accounts. One of the major themes of the discussion is the distinction, suggested by Strawson and Evans, between a ‘thin’ (...) notion of truth suitable for application across a variety of domains, and a more substantive notion appropriate for certain domains but not others. The panelists consider whether these two notions could be made to fit into a coherent overarching account, and whether the theory of truth is the right place to locate this ‘thin’/‘substantive’ distinction. (shrink)

Anthropology at the Edge: Essays on Culture, Symbol, and Consciousness. J. Ian Prattis. Lanham, MD: University Press of America, 1996. $27.50 (paper), xviii. 311 pp.

The research described here contributes to the extant empirical research on business ethics education by examining outcomes drawn from the literature on positive organizational scholarship (POS). The general research question explored is whether a course on ethical decision-making in business could positively influence students’ confidence in their abilities to handle ethical problems at work (i.e., moral efficacy), boost the relative importance of ethics in their work lives (i.e., moral meaningfulness), and encourage them to be more courageous in raising ethical problems (...) at work even if it is unpopular (i.e., moral courage). Specifically, the study used a rigorous quasi-experimental pretest–posttest research design with a treatment (N = 30) and control group (N = 30) to investigate whether a graduate-level course in business ethics could influence students’ levels of moral efficacy, meaningfulness, and courage. Findings revealed that participants in the business ethics treatment course experienced significant positive increases in each of the three outcome variables as compared to the control group. The largest increase was in moral efficacy, followed by moral courage, and finally, moral meaningfulness. These findings are discussed in the context of the current research on business ethics education and POS. Implications for future research are discussed. (shrink)

Ethical conduct is the hallmark of excellence in engineering and scientific research, design, and practice. While undergraduate and graduate programs in these areas routinely emphasize ethical conduct, few receive formal ethics training as part of their curricula. The first purpose of this research study was to assess the relative effectiveness of ethics education in enhancing individuals’ general knowledge of the responsible conduct of research practices and their level of moral reasoning. Secondly, we examined the effects of ethics education on the (...) positive psychological outcomes of perspective-taking, moral efficacy, moral courage, and moral meaningfulness. To examine our research hypotheses, we utilized a pretest–posttest quasi-experimental design consisting of three ethics education groups (control, embedded modules, and stand-alone courses). Findings revealed that both embedded and stand alone courses were effective in enhancing participants’ perspective-taking, moral efficacy, and moral courage. Moral meaningfulness was marginally enhanced for the embedded module condition. Moral judgment and knowledge of responsible conduct of research practices were not influenced by either ethics education condition. Contrary to expectations, stand alone courses were not superior to embedded modules in influencing the positive psychological outcomes investigated. Implications of these findings for future research and practice are discussed. (shrink)

The finding that women are attracted to men older than themselves whereas men are attracted to relatively younger women has been explained by social psychologists in terms of economic exchange rooted in traditional sex-role norms. An alternative evolutionary model suggests that males and females follow different reproductive strategies, and predicts a more complex relationship between gender and age preferences. In particular, males' preferences for relatively younger females should be minimal during early mating years, but should become more pronounced as the (...) male gets older. Young females are expected to prefer somewhat older males during their early years and to change less as they age. We briefly review relevant theory and present results of six studies testing this prediction. Study 1 finds support for this gender-differentiated prediction in age preferences expressed in personal advertisements. Study 2 supports the prediction with marriage statistics from two U.S. cities. Study 3 examines the cross-generational robustness of the phenomenon, and finds the same pattern in marriage statistics from 1923. Study 4 replicates Study 1 using matrimonial advertisements from two European countries, and from India. Study 5 finds a consistent pattern in marriages recorded from 1913 through 1939 on a small island in the Philippines. Study 6 reveals the same pattern in singles advertisements placed by financially successful American women and men. We consider the limitations of previous normative and evolutionary explanations of age preferences and discuss the advantages of expanding previous models to include the life history perspective. (shrink)

The meaning of any given lexical item emerges from an analysis of its contextual usage, but with biblical languages, often a traditional gloss will be accepted as if it were the clear meaning of a lexical item. Lexicons and dictionaries rarely go all the way back to a fresh analysis of the actual usage of a lemma, so the traditional meaning is rarely reconsidered. Those learning biblical languages accept the lexicon’s judgement without stopping to reflect on how the lexicon reached (...) its conclusion. The acceptance of a traditional gloss as the meaning then gets assumed as more and more texts are read, reinforcing the assumption that the meaning is the gloss learned early on as the equivalent for that lexical item. This study focuses on the biblical Hebrew root בשׁל and the Greek verb ἕψω, both traditionally understood to denote the activity of preparing food by boiling in liquid. These lexemes appear in the Old Testament in some exegetically challenging texts, so clarifying the range of meaning may help to illuminate the interpretation of difficult passages. The full context of the usage of these lexical items in the Hebrew Bible and Septuagint is examined using cognitive semantics with the goal of identifying the semantic and pragmatic clues that point to the conceptual meaning evoked by these lexical items in biblical Hebrew and Greek.Contribution: The re-analysis of the data serves to re-evaluate traditional assumptions about the meanings of these words. Clarifying the meaning may illuminate some exegetical difficulties. (shrink)

The Septuagint (LXX) generally approached the antiphrastic, euphemistic use of ברך [bless] with a literal translation of ברך with εὐλογέω. This choice produced a Hebraism, as the Greek verb is not generally used antiphrastically. The translators may have expected the Greek audience to track with the figurative usage. Job contains four of the six uses of this euphemism, and LXX Job is evenly split between the use of εὐλογέω and the use of more creative renderings. These creative renderings in Job (...) 1:5 and 2:9 reflect the exegesis of the translator.Contribution: The contribution of this research article is its focus on the phenomenon of euphemism in Biblical Hebrew and the implications of non-literal renderings in the Septuagint for a theologically-significant Hebrew euphemism. The article fits within the scope of the journal as a contribution to this special collection on the Septuagint. (shrink)

Replacing the value-free ideal (VFI) for science requires attention to the broader understanding of how science in society should function. In public spaces, science needed to project the VFI in norms for science advising, science education, and science communication. This resulted in the independent science advisor model and a focus on science literacy for science education and communication. Attending to these broader implications of the VFI which structure science and society relationships is crucial if we are to properly replace the (...) VFI with a better ideal. (shrink)

While the Value-Free Ideal (VFI) had many precursors, it became a solidified bulwark of normative claims about scientific reasoning and practice in the mid-twentieth century. Since then, it has played a central role in the philosophy of science, first as a basic presupposition of how science should work, then as a target for critique, and now as a target for replacement. In this paper, we will argue that a narrow focus on the VFI is misguided, because the VFI coalesced in (...) the midst of other important shifts in the relationship between science and society. In particular, the mid-twentieth century saw the acceptance of the “social contract for science,” a tacit agreement between scientists and government officials, and more broadly between science and society. It was built around three core concepts: a distinction between basic and applied science, a conception of scientific freedom that limited social responsibility for scientists, and a justification for public funding of basic science in the form of the linear model. Within the conceptual framework of the social contract for science, it is clearer both (1) why the VFI was adopted, (2) why it is difficult to replace the VFI within the old social contract, and (3) how we need to revise the social contract for science in order to replace the VFI. (shrink)

Synthetic biologists aim to generate biological organisms according to rational design principles. Their work may have many beneficial applications, but it also raises potentially serious ethical concerns. In this article, we consider what attention the discipline demands from bioethicists. We argue that the most important issue for ethicists to examine is the risk that knowledge from synthetic biology will be misused, for example, in biological terrorism or warfare. To adequately address this concern, bioethics will need to broaden its scope, contemplating (...) not just the means by which scientific knowledge is produced, but also what kinds of knowledge should be sought and disseminated. (shrink)

Consideration of the adaptive problems faced by our ancestors suggests functional reasons why people exhibit some biases in social judgment more than others. We present a taxonomy consisting of six domains of central social challenges. Each is associated with somewhat different motivations, and consequently different decision-rules. These decision-rules, in turn, make some biases inherently more likely to emerge than others.

In contrast to evidence for evolved sex differences, support for the argument that female aggression was suppressed by patriarchial ideologies is thin. One empirical test of the differential stigmatization hypothesis is proposed, utilizing the four standard criteria for judgments of abnormality.

Testosterone's connection to sex differences and key evolutionary processes arouses controversy. Effects on humans and other species, though, are not robotically deterministic but are parts of complex interactions. We discuss the societal implications of these findings and consider how the naturalistic fallacy and the person–situation dichotomy contribute to misunderstandings here.

This article questions social constructionists' claims to introduce Wittgenstein's philosophy to psychology. The philosophical fiction of a neonate Crusoe is introduced to cast doubt on the interpretations and use of the private language argument to support a new psychology developed by the constructionists. It is argued that a neonate Crusoe's viability in philosophy and apparent absence in psychology offends against the integrity of the philosophical contribution Wittgenstein might make to psychology. The consequences of accepting Crusoe's viability are explored as they (...) appear in both philosophy and psychology. (shrink)

Fair trade bananas are the latest inan increasing array of commodities that are beingpromoted by various organizations in an effort tocreate alternative production and consumption patternsto the environmentally destructive and sociallyinequitable patterns inherent in traditionalproduction and trade systems. Fair trade is touted asa strategy to achieve more sustainable developmentthrough linking environmentally and socially consciousconsumers in the North with producers pursuingenvironmentally sound and socially just productionpractices in the South. Promotion of fair tradebananas in Europe has achieved impressive initialgains on the consumer (...) end of the commodity chain,capturing 10 percent or more of the banana trade inseveral countries. Yet in spite of these gains, thefair trade banana initiative appears to beencountering serious obstacles to its further success.We argue that the primary challenge in creating atruly alternative trade in bananas stems from thedifficulties of upholding rigorous social andenvironmental standards in the face of increasinginroads into fair trade markets by transnationalcorporations producing under less rigorous conditions.We then develop a series of options for strengtheningfair trade banana initiatives in both Europe and NorthAmerica. We conclude by arguing that the case ofbananas illuminates the general question of how toachieve more progressive and sustainable productionand consumption systems within a global system thatdrives production and consumption toward greaterintegration and homogenization under the control oftransnational corporations. (shrink)

A theory can be an explanation of a piece of the world. A theory of law is intended to be an explanation of that phenomenon of social communication which we call Law. But, Raffaele De Giorgi, perhaps the person responsible for the introduction of luhmannian theory in Argentina, (jointly with Torres Nafarrate in Mexico in translating Luhmann’s work to Spanish), asked: What is a theory of society? What is the “Law of society”? And answered: Can we discuss this?, hands managed (...) by hands, nothing different from a prostheses. According to De Giorgi we are sure that the themes that we use as objects or objects that we use as themes, are our construction, we think that we turn around ourselves, while we continue rotating around the vacuum. It is a paradox, or another paradox: ¿Is it possible to get out or get rid of these paradoxes? Logic does not help us. Logic, according to Luhmann, can only see to the fact that some expressions, with unavailable truths, are in contradiction with other expressions, the problem cannot be resolved us- ing logical operations. With the help of Gegenparadoxierungen (against-par- adox), systemic therapy is the alternative where the problem can be toler- ated. And, according to Luhmann, the placement of the paradox should be conducted in a more or less skilled, successful, or useful way to break the logjam.A creative use of paradoxes, especially legal ones, allows us to observe how Luhmann’s theory has impacted existing theories in ArgentinaThemes such as the paradoxality of law, or its being without foundation (and without beginning, the vacuity of their principles and the opacity of its distinctions and operations), filtered theories (like Carlos Cárcova or Ernesto Grün) and jurisprudential practices have started shifting things to what Bielefeld Professor has called “old European”Resumen:Una teoría puede ser una explicación de un sector del mundo. Una teoría del derecho pretende ser una explicación de ese fenómeno de comunicación social que llamamos derecho. Pero, Raffaele De Giorgi, tal vez uno de los máximos responsables de la introducción de la teoría de la luhmanniana en la Argentina (junto a Javier Torres Nafarrate de México, a través de su traducción de las obras de Luhmann al español), pregunta:¿Qué es una teoría de la sociedad? ¿Qué es el “Derecho de la sociedad”? y responde: es que podemos discutir esto?, manos que son manejadas por manos, nada diferente de una prótesis. Y agrega: estamos seguros de que los temas que usamos como objetos o los objetos que utilizamos como temas, son nuestra construcción, pensamos que nos volvemos sobre nosotros mismos, mientras continuamos girando alrededor del vacío.Es una paradoja, u otra paradoja. ¿Es posible salir, deshacerse de estas paradojas? La lógica no nos ayuda. La lógica dice Luhmann, sólo puede ver el hecho de que algunas expresiones, cuya verdad no está disponible, entran en contradicción con otras expresiones, para las cuales vale decir la misma cosa. Usando operaciones lógicas, el problema no puede ser resuelto. Como terapia sistémica la única que podemos ver, con el auxilio de la Gegenparadoxierungen (“contra-paradoja”), es un lugar menos doloroso en el que puede tolerarse el problema. Y recordó que, en cierto sentido, la colocación de la paradoja se realizará con más o menos éxito, esto es: de manera útil para desbloquear la situación.Y es el uso creativo de paradojas, especialmente uno que se hizo por el Derecho, el que nos permite observar cómo su teoría (la de Luhmann) se ha comenzado a reciclar en las teorías existentes en Argentina. Temas como el problema de la paradojalidad del Derecho, de su ser sin fundamentos y sin comienzo, de la vacuidad de sus principios y la opacidad de sus operaciones y distinciones, se filtran teorías (como las de Carlos Cárcova o Ernesto Grün) y prácticas de la jurisprudencia y puede verse que ha comenzado a remover ese tipo de pensamiento que el profesor de Bielefeld había llamado “vétero europeo”. (shrink)

In the early nineteenth century, France clearly dominated Oriental studies in Europe. A decline of this dominance began with the "Florist" controversy, a debate from 1825 to 1829 over the aims of Oriental scholarship. This clash of methods almost tore the Société Asiatique apart and succeeded in setting Orientalist scholars in France on an exacting, scientific course that eclipsed the Romantic, literary roots out of which their studies had sprung. Ironically, the adoption of this new agenda inhibited the further growth (...) of Oriental studies in France and was indicative of the relative decline of science there. (shrink)

To examine the underlying processes of an innovative mind-body practice, Mindful Body Awareness, this exploratory study involved four case studies analyzed phenomenologically using the dialogal method. Mindful Body Awareness combines manual and verbal processing, and is focused on facilitation of client body awareness. Four individuals were recruited to receive weekly 1.25 hour sessions over four weeks. The Helpfulness Aspects of Therapy form was administered immediately after each session to access participants’ perceptions of the therapy experience. In addition, the Scale of (...) Body Connection was used to examine pre- and post-body awareness and bodily dissociation. Analysis involved phenomenology and descriptive statistics. The overall perceived helpfulness of the intervention was evident in the four themes that emerged from the analysis. These themes were gaining interoceptive awareness, personal agency, therapist trust and conceptual framing, and transformation. The participants’ responses were also used to investigate the therapy process across time. A pattern of increased interoceptive depth was apparent, as was a concomitant progression in embodied sense of self. Improvements in body awareness and bodily dissociation were evident for two of the four participants. These findings help to identify primary components of Mindful Body Awareness and suggest the role of these components in the embodiment process. (shrink)

Proximate selfish goals reflect the machinations of more fundamental goals such as self-protection and reproduction. Evolutionary life history theory allows us to make predictions about which goals are prioritized over others, which stimuli release which goals, and how the stages of cognitive processing are selectively influenced to better achieve the aims of those goals.