bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
New Perspectives on theTractatus
Authors: Rosenberg Jay F.
Published: June 2010

A Philosopher writes a book about ontology and the philosophy of language. That is, the first parts of his book talk explicitly about ontology; the latter parts, explicitly about language. And there are some propositions which are about both. It is a difficult book, and would-be commentators cast about for some way to approach it. In most cases, they will resolve their quandaries by plunging in at the beginning and doggedly making their respective ways to the end. But some may notice that the book as a whole is dominated by one key idea. And that, in turn, may lead them to reflect that perhaps it might prove more edifying to begin with language.
Relativité historique et vérité immuable
Authors: Allard Jean-Louis
Published: June 2010

Le problème de la vérité a toujours préoccupé l'esprit humain; il hante pour ainsi dire l'homme d'aujourd'hui. Dans les brèves réflexions qui vont suivre, nous nous proposons de présenter une approximation tres limitée de ce problème tel qu'il se pose à la philosophic traditionnelle, à savoir: Le caractère historique et relatifde la connaissance humaine est-il conciliable avec I'affirmation de vérites immuables?
Mullane on Responsibility for Dreams
Authors: Hunter J. F. M.
Published: June 2010

In “Moral Responsibility for Dreams,” Harvey Mullane maintains that although there is something inappropriate about blaming people for their dreams, this is because we do not have very direct control over our dreams: but although this is the case, it is not the case that we have no control over them. We can work at having the right dreams, or not having the wrong ones, as we can work at blushing and not blushing and at loving our neighbour: and therefore presumably (although he does not say this) there must be a sense in which or a degree to which we can be responsible for what we dream. There are a number of aspects of this question, and of Mullane's treatment of it, which I would like to explore further.
La Philosophie de l'existence
Authors: Merleau-Ponty Maurice
Published: June 2010

J'ai mieux aimé vous parler de la philosophie de l'existence plutôt que de l'existentialisme, pour une raison, que vous devinez probablement. Le terme d'existentialisme a fini par désigner presque exclusivement le mouvement philosophique qui s'est produit en France après 1945 sous l'impulsion principalement de Sartre. Or, ce mouvement philosophique, en réalité, a des antécédents; il est lié à toute une tradition de pensée philosophique, tradition qui est compliquée, qui est longue, puisqu'il s'agit en réalité tout d'abord de la philosophie de Kierkegaard, il s'agit ensuite, en Allemagne, de philosophies comme celles de Husserl et de Heidegger, il s'agit, en France, même avant Sartre, d'une philosophie comme celle de Gabriel Marcel. Si bien qu'il est extrêmement difficile d'isoler la tentative de Sartre par rapport aux autres tentatives très connues elles-mêmes que je viens de mentionner. Il m'a semblé que Sartre ayant une originalité indiscutable — mais Sartre relevant quand même de tout un courant de pensée — il était vraiment impossible de prendre sa tentative philosophique, philosophico-politique en elle-même et de la séparer du reste. De sorte que je me propose de vous donner d'abord une vue sur ce qu'a été l'entrée en France de la pensée existentielle.
L'Expression et la parole d'après Merleau-Ponty
Authors: Cowley Fraser
Published: June 2010

La question du langage et de la parole dans les écrits de Merleau-Ponty ne peut se comprendre indépendamment de la phénoménologie du corps-propre et de son corrélat le monde vécu, c'est-à-dire son champ spatial et temporel, avec des horizons, proches ou lointains, dans lequel il se trouve et où il se situe.

Rappelons que Merleau-Ponty montre comment le but que se propose la perception par sa propre téléologie est la chose même, et comment, ce but une fois atteint, l'idée d'un monde en soi ou du réel en dérive. Le sujet percevant en tant que corps s'oublie; par rapport au monde en soi ce qui paraît rester du sujet n'est que conscience désincarnée, sujet de la science, sujet qui est partout et nulle part, qui est de tout temps et de nul temps, et qui enfin n'est personne.
De la durée intuitive au temps scientifique
Authors: Metz André
Published: June 2010

Le Temps a été — comme l'Espace — l'objet des spéculations et des discussions des philosophes depuis la plus haute Antiquité; mais depuis Newton et surtout depuis Kant, ces spéculations se sont appuyées sur des conceptions scientifiques modernes. Elles ont dû se transformer à la suite des révolutions amenées par les théories scientifiques récentes, mais les discussions qui ont suivi sont encore loin d'être closes, et le propos de cet article est de faire le point à ce sujet.
Dreaming as an Action
Authors: Mullane Harvey
Published: June 2010

In comments on my “Moral Responsibility for Dreams,” J. F. M. Hunter claims that I fail to see that “‘Dreaming is not an action’ is a grammatical remark, [not an “empirical” one] and as such makes no assertion as to what is or may be the case in our souls, but only about how we may talk about certain psychological goings-on.” (p. 535) Hunter argues that ‘Dreaming is not an action’ is a logical remark in the way that ‘Bachelors are unmarried’ is a logical remark. “It is not something that we notice about dreams, that they happen, as it is not something we notice about bachelors that they have no wives. It is part of the concept of a dream; and no matter what characteristics a phenomenon shares with a dream, such as being experienced while asleep, if it does not happen it is for that reason alone not a dream.” (p. 534)
Choosing and Doing
Authors: Dray William
Published: June 2010

The question of what is meant by assertions like “He could have done otherwise”, where the truth of what is said is regarded as a necessary condition of holding an agent to be morally responsible for what he has done, has recently been discussed by a number of philosophers. In this paper, I wish to contribute to that discussion, taking note particularly of a commentary by Austin on Moore's and Nowell-Smith's treatment of it, the commentary being found in Austin's British Academy Lecture entitled Ifs and Cans. I shall also consider certain responses to Austin's contentions by Nowell-Smith, D. J. O'Connor and Richard Taylor.
Réflexions sur la “Physique généralisée” du P. Teilhard de Chardin
Authors: Ambacher Michel
Published: June 2010

Il est indéniable que la pensée cosmologique du P. Teilhard de Chardin exerce une puissante séduction sur de nombreux esprits, qui ne sont pas loin d'y trouver lumière et certitude sous l'aspect d'une nouvelle synthèse des rapports entre la Science et la Foi. Il est non moins certain que, pour d'autres, cette pensée ne procède pas suivant la démarche rigoureuse d'une science, sans pour autant appartenir à la réflexion philosophique. Si le P. Teilhard parle bien en effet de “Phénoménologie” et semble se disposer ainsi à prendre rang parmi les disciples de Husserl ou de Bergson, il déclare l'entendre au sens d'une “Physique généralisée”, ce qui le situe plutôt dans l'orbite des savants. Peut-être parviendrons nous à discerner les raisons de cette ambiguïté si nous analysons les idées constitutives de cette Physique généralisée, pour en discuter ensuite les fondements.
Rejoinder to Mr. Sosa
Authors: Malcolm Norman
Published: June 2010

I believe that Mr. Sosa is right about my example but wrong on the substantive issue; which shows that my example was poorly chosen. If the ugliest Irishman was so ugly that even the Irish were offended, they might form a committee to get rid of him. Suppose he was kidnapped and deposited in New York. If we were informed of all this and also knew that the ugliest Irishman is the Prime Minister, I agree that we should have been given an adequate explanation of why the Prime Minister is in New York.
Le Marxisme et les idéologies
Authors: Lefebvre Henri
Published: June 2010

Le mot « idéologie » n'a pas été inventé par Marx. Il était d'usage fréquent au début du XlXème siècle, en France.

C'est ainsi qu'on le trouve dans Stendhal, qui le tenait lui-même de Cabanis, médecin et matérialiste du XVIIIème siècle, continuateur de la tendance matérialiste issue de Descartes dans son ouvrage « Rapport du physique et du moral chez l'homme ». Il s'employait alors dans un sens plutôt élogieux pour désigner les philosophes qui s'efforçaient d'analyser l'origine et la formation des idées chez l'être humain. Ainsi Condillac, dans son « Essai sur l'origine des connaissances humaines », développa la pensée de Locke et démontra que, non seulement l'âme, mais aussi les sens—non seulement l'art de fabriquer les idées, mais aussi l'art de la perception sensible—sont affaire d'expérience et d'habitude. C'est de l'éducation et des circonstances extérieures que dépend tout le développement de l'homme. En d'autres termes, Condillac s'efforçait d'expliquer toutes les idées à partir des sensations de l'individu humain, par les combinaisons de ces sensations et les associations habituelles entre elles; c'était un « sensualiste » et un « idéologue ».
Universal and Exclusive Terms
Authors: Baker A. J.
Published: June 2010

Questions about universal and exclusive terms have often arisen in the history of philosophy, and are connected with what, in more recent discussions, has been variously called the principle of “excluded opposites”, “polar opposites” or “non-vacuous contrasts”. This principle has been employed by a number of linguistically-minded philosophers and has in turn been criticized by other philosophers. These critics are, I believe, largely correct, but they have advanced their criticisms in a mainly informal way, making little reference to logic. I want to show that there are various types of universal and exclusive terms which can be classified in a logically rigorous way, and to go on to show that reference to this classification, together with an analysis of relevant examples, enables us to bring out precisely what is wrong with “the principle of excluded opposites”.
Are There Unresolvable Moral Disputes?
Authors: Glassen Peter
Published: June 2010

Those who uphold what is commonly called the “emotive” theory of ethics are apt to maintain, as a consequence of that theory, that at least some moral disputes, if not all, may be in principle unresolvable, no matter how much time is allotted to the disputants to enable them to try and come to an agreement. The reason is this: Moral judgments, according to the emotive theory, in its most extreme form at any rate, do not assert anything but merely express attitudes of approval and disapproval. When two people apparently affirm contradictory moral judgments—Smith, for example, saying “Divorce is wrong” and Jones saying “No, divorce is not wrong”—they do not, in the last analysis, disagree in belief, they disagree in attitude.
Other Minds
Authors: Margolis Joseph
Published: June 2010

I May, at a gathering, notice that Peter is sitting very stiffly in his chair. I say to myself, “Perhaps he has a pain. Yes, I think he has some sort of pain.” I have inferred a feeling of some sort from bodily behavior. It is not an impossible thing to do, to infer sometimes a feeling from bodily behavior. But it is a puzzling thing to do, at least in a philosophieal sense. Because we ordinarily hold that we cannot “observe” the feelings of another, that we can never directly confront these feelings, that feelings as actually felt are private to each of us. There may be interesting ways of challenging this sort of remark—for instance, by way of telepathy. But there is an advantage in puzzling over the kind of inference indicated, without the challenge of telepathy or similar abilities.
Le Marxisme de Sartre: Signification et Projet
Authors: Gervais Charles
Published: June 2010

La première grande question qui se pose au lecteur de la Critique de la Raison Dialectique est certainement celle des rapports entre les problématiques sartrienne et marxiste. Dans sa conclusion à Questions de Méthode, Sartre la forrnule clairement en écrivant que l'existentialisme « ne remet rien en question, sauf un déterminisme mécaniste qui n'est précisément pas marxiste et qu'on a introduit du dehors dans cette philosophie totale. Il veut, lui aussi, situer l'homme dans sa classe et dans les conflits qui l'opposent aux autres classes à partir du mode et des relations de production. Mais il veut tenter cette ‘situation’, à partir de l'existence, c'est-à-dire de la compréhension ». En termes plus généraux, l'existentialisme « veut dans le Savoir même et dans l'universalité des concepts réintroduire l'indépassable singularité de l'aventure humaine ». Nous sommes donc ici simultanément en présence d'une profession de foi dans le marxisme—car même la carence que Sartre reproche à celui-ci, l'élimination de l'homme, «tient à l'événement et non aux principes mêmes de la doctrine»—et d'une volonté d'introduire dans cette philosophie une méthode propre à l'idéologie de l'existence.
Archéologie du savoir et structures du langage scientifique
Authors: Lacharité Normand
Published: June 2010

La confrontation que nous chercherons à faire ici porte sur deux entreprises contemporaines que nous conviendrons de placer dans le mouvement structuraliste, celle de Foucault dans les Mots et les Choses, et celle des empiristes logiques dans leurs multiples travaux d'analyse du langage scientifique.
La Psychopathologie d'Eugène Minkowski
Authors: Ellenberger Henri F.
Published: June 2010

Le Traité de Psychopathologie d'Eugene Minkowski se distingue par son caractère très personnel, non moins que par l'ampleur de son information. Cet ouvrage résume l'œuvre d'une vie consacrée à la pratique de la psychothérapie, à la méditation philosophique, et à une active participation aux mouvements intellectuels de l'époque.

L'origine de ce livre, nous confie l'auteur, remonte à une promesse faite à Louis Lavelle en 1939, mais il a été rédigé à intervalles irréguliers de 1948 à 1966. Minkowski y a incorporé de nombreux travaux écrits à diverses périodes de sa vie et sur des sujets multiples.
Le Problème de la perception chez Leibniz
Authors: Belaval Yvon
Published: June 2010

Atribuer la perception à toutes les monades, et pas seulement aux esprits, devait faire aussitôt problème et orienter par la suite l'histoire du leibnizianisme. Le problème se trouvait posé, en premier lieu, par certaines ambiguïtés de Leibniz, quand il fonde les phénomènes psychologiques sur la géométrie projective de l'expressio, transpose les formes d'Aristote dans le contexte d'un siècle cartésianisé, se sert de l'analogie pour conclure; en second lieu, par la difficulté intrinsèque de la question; en troisième lieu, animer toutes les monades ne revenait-il pas à accorder que la matière peut penser? ou bien, ne s'exposaiton pas à verser dans le spinozisme? Il était donc prudent de réserver la perception aux seuls esprits. Wolff trahissait ainsi la monadologie. Mais à peine croyait-on avoir sauvé la distinction des deux substances en réduisant les simples monades aux Atomi Naturae de la Monadologia physica, qu'à partir de la métaphore des points animés on allait faire de l'esprit une production de la nature, avec le matérialisme, ou de la nature une production de l'esprit, avec la Naturphilosophie. On essaiera plus loin de donner une idée de cette histoire du leibnizianisme.
Weinberg's Refutation of Nominalism
Authors: Wilson Fred
Published: June 2010

Professor Weinberg, in his recent Abstraction, Relation, and Induction, has critically discussed the nominalistic tradition stemming from Ockham and continuing in the work of Berkeley and Hume. In this tradition there is one fundamental principle, which however divides into two parts. The first is (α) Whatever is distinguishable is distinct, and conversely. The second is (β) Whatever is distinct is separable, and conversely. Weinberg argues that both (α) and (β) are mistaken.

In this paper I propose to explore the case against nominalism. I shall suggest that Weinberg's argument against (β), though not defective in the way some recent critics believe, depends upon a hidden premiss. I shall also suggest that the argument against (β), when the needed premiss is added, is but a special case of a more general argument. The latter in no way depends upon considerations concerning relational predicates, though Weinberg does in his discussion specifically introduce such considerations. Nor is that unreasonable on his part.
Analytical Philosophy of Knowledge
Authors: Prado C. G.
Published: June 2010

This is an exciting book of considerable scope. In it Danto considers knowledge and knowledge-claims, belief, skepticism, and the relation language bears to the world. One might reflect the admitted “darkness” of the preface (APK xii) by saying that Danto is out to show how knowledge, belief, perception, and language require that there be a gap between us and the world (the object of these), and how that gap “is a traversable space” (loc. cit.). It should be noted that Danto applies many of his conclusions to traditional philosophical problems in his What Philosophy Is, a book apparently intended as an introductory text.
Artistic Verisimilitude (II)
Authors: Day J. P.
Published: June 2010

We are now in a position to answer the question of importance or relevance : the question, namely, whether it is true, as it is often claimed to be, that works of fine art which are ∼ AN, in particular tragedies and novels, should be AV; and, if so, why. Briefly, it seems to me that the claim is true for a variety of reasons which I shall now detail.

I pointed out earlier that a literary work is not a tragedy or a work of fiction at all unless it is ∼ AN. (Subsecs. 2.1.1., 2.1.3.) But if it is AV, then it is of course ∼ AN, so that this condition is met. Moreover, it is met n i the most satisfactory way; for, although a work is also ∼ AN if it is ∼ AV, it is evident that the better way of being ∼ AN is to be AV.
Le Sens du développement philosophique de Whitehead
Authors: Hélal Georges
Published: June 2010

Lorsqu'on examine la vie de Alfred North Whitehead, on est frappé par le nombre d'activités qui l'ont occupé successivement à diverses époques. D'abord on remarque deux grandes périodes: la première, entièrement consacrée aux mathématiques, qui s'étend de 1880 à 1924 et qui culmine dans la publication de Principia Mathematica (1910-1913; 2e ed. 1925-1927),œuvre écrite conjointement avec Bertrand Russell; la deuxième consacrée à la philosophic et qui couvre la période allant de 1916 à 1947, année de sa mort. Comme on le voit done, la première période chevauche la deuxième puisque, de 1916 à 1924, Whitehead fait oeuvre, à la fois, de mathématicien et de philosophe.
Uncertainty and Free Choice
Authors: Bronaugh Richard N.
Published: June 2010

Bernard Wand presented in this journal an article on the intelligibility of free choice or action. Sections I and II of his paper are devoted to showing that “the libertarian's position is one which makes free choice unintelligible, no matter what the principle of its explanation may be.” Basically his argument appears to be that any libertarian's explanation of free choice will contradict the libertarian thesis simply by being an explanation. Explanations function by the statement of antecedents (reasons or causes) for a fact; but if the fact is a specific 'free choice' in the libertarian sense, then it cannot be explained because, by definition, it has no antededents. If it cannot be explained then it is unintelligible. By this argument Mr. Wand claims to have shown that “the libertarian is forced by the logic of his own position to acknowledge the unintelligibility of free choice. …”
L'Écart des deux Wittgenstein comme discours
Authors: Lapointe Roger
Published: June 2010

La distinction de deux Wittgenstein est-elle mythique, ainsi que le voudrait R. J. Bernstein? Mythe créé involontairement par un penseur aussi peu mythomane que possible, B. Russell, quand, dans sa préface au Tractatus, il assigna à l'auteur l'intention d'établir les « conditions d'un langage logiquement parfait ». Prenant le contre-pied d'un Wittgenstein-I lancé à la poursuite d'un langage idéal, Wittgenstein-II aurait, dans Investigations philosophiques, opéré un retour au langage naturel et au sens commun.

Il est sans doute possible d'exagérer la distance qui sépare le Tractatus des Investigations philosophiques (dorénavant dénotés par T et IP). Mais on ne saurait la nier. Quelques rétractations expresses enregistrées dans le second ouvrage nous en empêcheraient (par exemple IP 23, 46, 97, 114). Le problème est plutôt de déterminer l'ampleur et la nature de la transformation, de la mesurer.
Randall's Interpretation of the Aristotelian “Active Intellect”
Authors: Horne James R.
Published: June 2010

Aristotle's explanation of the “active intellect” inDe AnimaIII, 5 constitutes a problem for us simply because we have to take this philosopher so seriously. If he were a writer given to poetic lapses or mythical adornments to his work we could consider dismissing the whole chapter as unessential. However, we know that Aristotle does not write unessential chapters, and that he is invariably engaged in an attempt to explain his subject fully and systematically, neither adding to it nor leaving anything out.

TheDe Anima, for example, is an attempt to describe the characteristics of living things, in an ascending order from the basic functions of vegetables to the most abstract thinking by human beings. The activities of nutrition, sensation, common sense, imagination, and movement are presented in Book II and in the early part of Book III.
GENDER AND RURAL–URBAN DIFFERENCES IN THE NUTRITIONAL STATUS OF IN-SCHOOL ADOLESCENTS IN SOUTH-WESTERN NIGERIA
Authors: OMIGBODUN OLAYINKA O. , ADEDIRAN KOFOWOROLA I. , AKINYEMI JOSHUA O. , OMIGBODUN AKINYINKA O. , ADEDOKUN BABATUNDE O. , ESAN OLUYOMI
Published: June 2010

This study assessed gender and rural/urban differences in height and weight, and the prevalence of stunting, underweight and overweight of school-going adolescents in south-west Nigeria, using 2007 WHO reference values for comparison. The influence of sexual maturity and the socio-demographic correlates of growth performance were also examined. In this cross-sectional study, 924 male (51.4%) and 875 female (48.6%) students (1799 in total) aged 10–19 years from eighteen schools in Ibadan (five rural, nine urban public and four urban private) were interviewed and examined. Although males were significantly taller than females (p<0.05), stunting was more pronounced for males, who were 7.5 cm shorter than the 2007 WHO reference, compared with females who were 3.5 cm shorter. Body mass index (BMI) for girls was also greater than for boys (p<0.05). Rural adolescents had lower heights and BMIs compared with those in urban areas. The mean height of male adolescents in rural schools fell below 2 SDs of the 2007 WHO reference between 14 and 17 years, while heights of males and females in private schools were similar to the median 2007 WHO standard. Low height-for-age was observed in 282 adolescents (15.7%), which, after multivariate analysis, was significantly associated with school type, gender, number of mother's children and puberty onset. Adolescents in rural schools were much more likely to be stunted than those in urban private schools (AOR 13.1; 95% CI 5.2–33.2) and males were three times more likely to be stunted compared with females (AOR 3.3; 95% CI 2.4–1.4). Low BMI-for-age was observed in 240 adolescents (18.9%), with correlates similar to stunting. Adolescents at the pre-puberty stage were twice as likely to have low BMI-for-age (OR 2.0; 95% CI 1.6–2.5) than those with signs of puberty. There were 2.3% overweight adolescents, who were significantly more likely to be female, in private school and post-pubertal. Innovative interventions for Nigerian adolescents, especially rural inhabitants and males, are needed to reduce the prevalence of stunting and underweight.
Recovery of Cronobacter sakazakii from environmental surface swabbing materials using a 5-h enrichment procedure
Authors: Lindsay Denise , Somerton Ben , Hill Bruce , Shrubb Owen
Published: June 2010

This study aimed to reduce the time taken to detect low numbers of Cronobacter sakazakii inoculated onto environmental swabs (100, 10 or 1 cfu per swab) using a simple plating procedure for application in a dairy testing laboratory. Three types of environmental swabs (Biolab FlexiSwab™, gauze swabs and the Whatman SwabCheck Polywipe™ sponge) were inoculated with either Cron. sakazakii in single culture or Cron. sakazakii together with Citrobacter freundii. A 5-h enrichment procedure of swabs in Cronobacter enrichment broth at 37°C prior to plating was then compared with no enrichment or 24-h enrichment. The 5-h enrichment procedure was as efficient at detecting Cron. sakazakii on environmental swabs at low cell concentrations (100 cfu per swab), and in pure culture or in competition with other coliforms (Citrobacter), as pre-enrichment for 24 h. This protocol was also successful in detecting 10 cfu per swab 80% of the time. The results also indicated that the type of swab selected for use in environmental safety programmes is influential on the outcome, with the FlexiSwab™ and gauze swabs being the most efficient swabbing materials evaluated in this study.
Memory performance in acute and weight-restored anorexia nervosa patients
Authors: Nikendei C. , Funiok C. , Pfüller U. , Zastrow A. , Aschenbrenner S. , Weisbrod M. , Herzog W. , Friederich H.-C.
Published: June 2010

Background

Anorexia nervosa (AN), at the stage of starvation and emaciation, is characterized by abnormalities in cognitive function, including memory performance. It is unclear whether memory impairment persists or is reversible following weight restoration, and whether memory function differs between AN subtypes. The aim of the present study was to investigate general memory performance in currently ill and fully weight-restored patients of different AN subtypes.

Method

Memory performance was assessed using the Wechsler Memory Scale-Revised (WMS-R) in a total of 99 participants, including 34 restricting-type AN patients (AN-RESTR), 19 binge-eating/purging-type AN patients (AN-PURGE), 16 weight-restored AN patients (AN-W-R) and 30 healthy controls (CONTROL). Cognitive evaluation included a battery of standardized neuropsychological tasks for validating the findings on memory function.

Results

Deficits were found with respect to immediate and delayed story recall in currently ill AN patients irrespective of AN subtype. These deficits persisted in weight-restored AN patients. Currently ill and weight-restored AN patients did not differ significantly from healthy controls with respect to working memory or other measures of neuropsychological functioning.

Conclusions

The findings suggest that impaired memory performance is either a stable trait characteristic or a scar effect of chronic starvation that may play a role in the development and/or persistence of the disorder.
Abnormal cortisol awakening response predicts worse cognitive function in patients with first-episode psychosis
Authors: Aas M. , Dazzan P. , Mondelli V. , Toulopoulou T. , Reichenberg A. , Di Forti M. , Fisher H. L. , Handley R. , Hepgul N. , Marques T. , Miorelli A. , Taylor H. , Russo M. , Wiffen B. , Papadopoulos A. , Aitchison K. J. , Morgan C. , Murray R. M. , Pariante C. M.
Published: June 2010

Background

Cognitive impairment, particularly in memory and executive function, is a core feature of psychosis. Moreover, psychosis is characterized by a more prominent history of stress exposure, and by dysregulation of the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis. In turn, stress exposure and abnormal levels of the main HPA axis hormone cortisol are associated with cognitive impairments in a variety of clinical and experimental samples; however, this association has never been examined in first-episode psychosis (FEP).

Method

In this study, 30 FEP patients and 26 controls completed assessment of the HPA axis (cortisol awakening response and cortisol levels during the day), perceived stress, recent life events, history of childhood trauma, and cognitive function. The neuropsychological battery comprised general cognitive function, verbal and non-verbal memory, executive function, perception, visuospatial abilities, processing speed, and general knowledge.

Results

Patients performed significantly worse on all cognitive domains compared to controls. In patients only, a more blunted cortisol awakening response (that is, more abnormal) was associated with a more severe deficit in verbal memory and processing speed. In controls only, higher levels of perceived stress and more recent life events were associated with a worse performance in executive function and perception and visuospatial abilities.

Conclusions

These data support a role for the HPA axis, as measured by cortisol awakening response, in modulating cognitive function in patients with psychosis; however, this association does not seem to be related to the increased exposure to psychosocial stressors described in these patients.
Genetic origins of the association between verbal ability and alcohol dependence symptoms in young adulthood
Authors: Latvala A. , Tuulio-Henriksson A. , Dick D. M. , Vuoksimaa E. , Viken R. J. , Suvisaari J. , Kaprio J. , Rose R. J.
Published: June 2010

Background

Cognitive deficits in alcohol dependence (AD) have been observed, poorer verbal ability being among the most consistent findings. Genetic factors influence both cognitive ability and AD, but whether these influences overlap is not known.

Method

A subset of 602 monozygotic (MZ) and dizygotic (DZ) twins from FinnTwin16, a population-based study of Finnish twins, was used to study the associations of verbal ability with DSM-III-R diagnosis and symptoms of AD, the maximum number of drinks consumed in a 24-h period, and the Rutgers Alcohol Problem Index (RAPI) scores. These twins, most of them selected for within-pair discordance or concordance for their RAPI scores at age 18.5 years, were studied with neuropsychological tests and interviewed with the Semi-Structured Assessment for the Genetics of Alcoholism (SSAGA) in young adulthood (mean age 26.2 years, range 23–30 years).

Results

All alcohol problem measures were associated with lower scores on the Vocabulary subtest of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale – Revised (WAIS-R), a measure of verbal ability. In bivariate genetic models, Vocabulary and the alcohol problem measures had moderate heritabilities (0.54–0.72), and their covariation could be explained by correlated genetic influences (genetic correlations −0.20 to −0.31).

Conclusions

Poorer verbal ability and AD have partly overlapping biological etiology. The genetic and environmental influences on the development of cognitive abilities, alcohol problems and risk factors for AD should be studied further with prospective longitudinal designs.
Vainglory, Modesty, and Political Agency in the Political Theory of Thomas Hobbes
Authors: Cooper Julie E.
Published: June 2010

Histories of political theory have framed the story of the emergence of sovereign states and sovereign selves as a story about secularization—specifically, a story that equates secularization with self-deification. Thomas Hobbes's investment in modesty and humility demonstrates the need for, and the possibility of, an alternative secularization narrative. Scholars have long insisted that “vainglory” is a key term for the interpretation ofLeviathan. But Hobbes's task is not complete once he has discredited vainglory. Hobbes must also envision, and cultivate, contrary virtues—and modesty is one virtue that Hobbes would cultivate. An analysis of Hobbes's attempt to redefine and rehabilitate the virtues of modesty shows that Hobbes warns against the temptation to self-deification. InLeviathan, the political task is not to enthrone humans in sovereign invulnerability, but rather to achieve the right balance between bodily security and consciousness of finitude.
Political Philosophy in Borges: Fallibility, Liberal Anarchism, and Civic Ethics
Authors: Salinas Alejandra
Published: June 2010

The political philosophy latent in Borges's works rests on the belief in a self-sufficient individual, the preeminence of liberty, a distrust of government, and nostalgia for anarchy understood as a self-organized order. Yet Borges also emphasizes the fallibility of individuals and warns against the civic indifference brought about by an isolated individualism. A paradox seems to emerge from these simultaneous convictions: would anarchy work if individuals are unable to do much in and by themselves? Can an individualistic disposition be conducive to a rich and orderly civic life? Borges's notion of fallibility is consistent with his defense of liberal anarchism because fallibility carries less pernicious effects under liberal anarchism than it does under alternative political arrangements. Thus, his notion of liberal anarchism is compatible with his concern for civic order if we look at the ethics of self-restraint that sustains Borges's simultaneous advocacy of a self-organized order and a stable civic life.
Sintéiseoir 1.0: a multidialectical TTS application for Irish
Authors: Lochlainn Mícheál Mac
Published: June 2010

This paper details the development of a multidialectical text-to-speech (TTS) application,Sintéiseoir, for the Irish language. This work is being carried out in the context of Irish as a lesser-used language, where learners and other L2 speakers have limited direct exposure to L1 speakers and speech communities, and where native sound systems and vocabularies can be seen to be receding even among L1 speakers – particularly the young.

Sintéiseoiressentially implements the diphone concatenation model, albeit augmented to include phones, half-phones and, potentially, other phonic units. It is based on a platform-independent framework comprising a user interface, a set of dialect-specific tokenisation engines, a concatenation engine and a playback device.

The tokenisation strategy is entirely rule-based and does not refer to dictionary look-ups. Provision has been made for prosodic processing in the framework but has not yet been implemented. Concatenation units are stored in the form of WAV files on the local file system.

Sintéiseoir’s user interface (UI) provides a text field that allows the user to submit a grapheme string for synthesis and a prompt to select a dialect. It also filters input to reject graphotactically invalid strings, restrict input to alphabetic and certain punctuation marks found in Irish orthography, and ensure that a dialect has, indeed, been selected.

The UI forwards the filtered grapheme string to the appropriate tokenisation engine. This searches for specified substrings and maps them to corresponding tokens that themselves correspond to concatenation units.

The resultant token string is then forwarded to the concatenation engine, which retrieves the relevant concatenation units, extracts their audio data and combines them in a new unit. This is then forwarded to the playback device.

The terms of reference for the initial development ofSintéiseoirspecified that it should be capable of uttering, individually, the 99 most common Irish lemmata in the dialects of An Spidéal, Músgraí Uí Fhloínn and Gort a’ Choirce, which are internally consistent dialects within the Connacht, Munster and Ulster regions, respectively, of the dialect continuum. Audio assets to satisfy this requirement have already been prepared, and have been found to produce reasonably accurate output. The tokenisation engine is, however, capable of processing a wider range of input strings and when required concatenation units are found to be unavailable, returns a report via the user interface.
From action research to the implementation of ICT pedagogical tools: taking into account students’ needs to propose adjusted online tutorial practice
Authors: Brudermann Cédric
Published: June 2010

This paper deals with the implementation of an “online pedagogical assistant” in a blended learning device for English for Special Purposes (ESP) students in a French university (UPMC, Paris VI). As it is now, it comprises a customized website designed to serve as a guide through the development of the students’ work.

The architecture of this website and the way it is meant to be used are parameters derived from the conclusions of action research carried out in 2007–2008 in another French university (Perpignan) amongst B1/B2 ESP students.1 The perspective of that study was to examine their needs when performing off site aural and written tasks. The data collected showed that the problems encountered were always the same – outlining a typology – and that most obstacles derived from A2/B1 elements they had already been through during their secondary education.

This application has been named an “online pedagogical assistant” because, by targeting the problems from the typology, it aims at leading students take care of their needs by themselves before emailing their productions to their tutor(s), particularly by pushing them into reflecting on a certain number of aspects they are already acquainted with but which they nonetheless tend to forget when working on their own.

From the typology of problems, a system of semi-automatic correction meant to help students proceed to self-corrections – notably through online references to relevant online help and exercises – has also been developed. In the correction phase of the students’ tasks, the purpose is therefore no longer for the tutor to correct their productions but to help them do it themselves.

Action research is in progress to evaluate the potential of those adjusted online tutorial practices in terms of second language (L2) acquisition.
Effects of topic interest and prior knowledge on text recall and annotation use in reading a hypermedia text in the L2
Authors: Erçetin Gülcan
Published: June 2010

This study investigates the effects of topic interest and prior knowledge on text recall and annotation use of second language learners engaged in reading a hypermedia text. The participants were proficient learners of English enrolled in an undergraduate English Language Teaching programme. They were asked to read a hypermedia text that incorporated word-level and topic-level annotations, and complete an immediate recall task. Participants’ interaction with the text was recorded during the reading task. Data collection tools also included a topic interest questionnaire, a prior knowledge test, and semi-structured interviews. Results indicated no meaningful relationship between topic interest and prior knowledge. Moreover, topic interest had a significant main effect on text recall while prior knowledge did not. In other words, topic interest facilitated the number of propositions recalled. Finally, a significant interaction between topic interest and prior knowledge was found in terms of access to annotations. When topic interest was low, the participants with low prior knowledge utilized content-related annotations more frequently than those with high prior knowledge. On the other hand, when topic interest was high, the participants with high prior knowledge accessed content-related annotations more frequently than those with low prior knowledge.
Decompositions into Subgraphs of Small Diameter
Authors: FOX JACOB , SUDAKOV BENNY
Published: June 2010

We investigate decompositions of a graph into a small number of low-diameter subgraphs. Let P(n, ε, d) be the smallest k such that every graph G = (V, E) on n vertices has an edge partition E = E0 ∪ E1 ∪ ⋅⋅⋅ ∪ Ek such that |E0| ≤ εn2, and for all 1 ≤ i ≤ k the diameter of the subgraph spanned by Ei is at most d. Using Szemerédi's regularity lemma, Polcyn and Ruciński showed that P(n, ε, 4) is bounded above by a constant depending only on ε. This shows that every dense graph can be partitioned into a small number of ‘small worlds’ provided that a few edges can be ignored. Improving on their result, we determine P(n, ε, d) within an absolute constant factor, showing that P(n, ε, 2) = Θ(n) is unbounded for ε < 1/4, P(n, ε, 3) = Θ(1/ε2) for ε > n−1/2 and P(n, ε, 4) = Θ(1/ε) for ε > n−1. We also prove that if G has large minimum degree, all the edges of G can be covered by a small number of low-diameter subgraphs. Finally, we extend some of these results to hypergraphs, improving earlier work of Polcyn, Rödl, Ruciński and Szemerédi.
From confederacy to convoy: Thoughts about the finality of the Union and its member states
Authors: WTE  , MC
Published: June 2010

We as constitutionalists owe it to ourselves and even to the 500 million other citizens of a member state and of the Union at the same time, to come up with a legally and constitutionally readable understanding of the situation. It must not be one suffering from the split between international and domestic public law. It must not mystify the Union as a completely original structure, intelligible only in its own terms. Such understanding should encompass not only the limits but also the logic of the situation; not only its mechanics but also its evolution. It should be intelligible for the public. It should allow for the multiple dualities of loyalty, of function, of legitimacy. It should allow for shared authority. Constitutional thought is well equipped to deal with actual duality and ambivalence. These characteristics of the Union are real and are here to stay.
Detailed spatial changes in the stress field of the 1984 western Nagano earthquake region
Authors: Yukutake Yohei , Iio Yoshihisa , Horiuchi Shigeki
Published: June 2010

We estimate the stress field after the 1984 western Nagano earthquake from numerous focal mechanisms. To precisely determine the focal mechanisms, we analyze the earthquakes that occurred around the eastern part of the main shock fault, where station coverage is fairly good. Most of the earthquakes that occurred in this part, except the main shock fault, are reverse fault types. In contrast, earthquakes that occurred near the main shock fault have T axes distributed in a belt (strike slip, oblique slip, and reverse fault types occurred equally). Using the stress inversion method to quantitatively estimate the stress field of these earthquakes revealed that the σ2 axis near the main shock fault is close to the vertical direction, whereas it is close to the horizontal direction in other regions. At the western edge of the study area, we observe that the σ1 axis rotates toward the NS direction and that the stress ratio (σ1 − σ2)/(σ1 − σ3) is low. We estimate that the magnitude of σhmin decreases near the main shock fault. Spatial variation of the stress field around the eastern part of the main shock fault is not generated by static stress changes caused by the main shock. Local stress anomalies might have occurred around the main shock fault before the main shock.
Crustal imaging of a mobile belt using magnetotellurics: An example of the Fowler Domain in South Australia
Authors: Thiel Stephan , Heinson Graham
Published: June 2010

A long‐period magnetotelluric data set was obtained in 2005 along a two‐dimensional profile across the western part of the late Archaean‐early Proterozoic Gawler Craton, South Australia. The study is aimed at delineating the electrical conductivity structure of the crust and upper mantle underneath an east‐west trending profile extending from the Gawler Range Volcanics in the east, crossing the Nuyts Domain and the highly prospective Meso‐Proterozoic Fowler Domain, and terminating in the Eucla Basin to the west. The resistivity model shows a very electrically resistive crust and upper mantle underneath the Nuyts and Fowler Domain, possibly representing the cratonic root of the Gawler Craton extending to depths of ∼160 km. The resistive cratonic root is closer to the surface underneath the Fowler Domain compared to the Nuyts Domain which supports findings from outcrops of metasediments of higher metamorphic grade in the Fowler Domain. A subvertical conductor marks the western terminus of the Fowler Domain and is imaged to upper mantle depths. On the eastern side of the Fowler Domain, another subvertical conductor extends to similar depths. These features spatially coincide with the Tallacootra and Coorabie shear zone at the surface, respectively, and their higher conductivity is likely due to a reduction in grain size of olivine associated with an increase in influence of grain boundary diffusion and thus enhanced conductivity. A comparison of the results with other surveys across mobile belts worldwide shows a more resistive response of the interpreted mobile belt of the Fowler Domain raising questions as to the nature of the domain.
Spectroscopy of B‐type asteroids: Subgroups and meteorite analogs
Authors: Clark Beth Ellen , Ziffer Julie , Nesvorny David , Campins Humberto , Rivkin Andrew S. , Hiroi Takahiro , Barucci Maria Antonietta , Fulchignoni Marcello , Binzel Richard P. , Fornasier Sonia , DeMeo Francesca , Ockert‐Bell Maureen E. , Licandro Javier , Mothé‐Diniz Thais
Published: June 2010

B‐type asteroids have a negative slope from ∼0.5 to ∼1.1 μm and beyond. What causes this? Visible to near‐infrared reflectance spectra (0.4–2.5 μm) are assembled for 22 B‐type asteroids. The spectra fall naturally into three groups: (1) those with negative (blue) spectral shapes like 2 Pallas (7 objects), (2) those with concave curve shapes like 24 Themis (11 objects), and (3) everything else (4 objects). The asteroid spectra are compared to mineral and meteorite spectra from the Reflectance Experiment Laboratory library of 15,000 samples, in a least squares search for particulate analogs, constrained by spectral brightness. The Pallas group objects show a trend of analogs from the CV, CO, and CK meteorite groups. Only three of the seven Pallas‐like objects are determined to be dynamically related (2, 1508, and 6411). The Themis group objects show a trend of analogs from the CI, CM, CR, CI‐Unusual, and CM‐Unusual meteorites (as expected from the work of Hiroi et al. (1996)). Seven of the 11 Themis‐like objects are dynamically related (24, 62, 222, 316, 379, 383, and 431). Allowing for reasonable uncertainties in the spectral matches, we find no need to invoke mineralogies that do not exist in the meteorite collection to explain B‐type spectra or their negative slopes. Our Themis group results are as expected and are consistent with previous work, but our Pallas group results are new and, in some cases, in conflict with previous work.
High sea‐floor stress induced by extreme hurricane waves
Authors: Wijesekera Hemantha W. , Wang David W. , Teague William J. , Jarosz Ewa
Published: June 2010

Strong surface waves and currents generated by major hurricanes can produce extreme forces at the seabed that scour the seafloor and cause massive underwater mudslides. Our understanding of these forces is poor due to lack of concurrent measurements of waves and currents under these storms. Using unique observations collected during the passage of a category‐4 hurricane, Ivan, bottom stress due to currents and waves over the outer continental shelf in the Gulf of Mexico was examined. During the passage of Ivan, the bottom stress was highly correlated with the wind with a maximum of about 40% of the wind stress. The bottom stress was dominated by the wave‐induced stresses, and exceeded critical levels at depths as large as 90 m. Surprisingly, the bottom damaging stress persisted after the passage of Ivan for about a week, and was modulated by near‐inertial waves.