bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The Nature and Status of the Study Of Politics
Authors: White A. K. 
Published: February 2009

What kind of subject is Politics? Is it a science, an art, a religion or a philosophy? Is the study of politics an independent subject—a subject in its own right—or is it simply a branch of some other and, presumably, superior subject?These questions require to be answered because there is obvious uncertainty at the moment about the nature and status of the study of politics. The uncertainty is shown by the fact that Politics goes under different names and is associated with different subjects in different universities. Politics is sometimes called Political Philosophy and sometimes Political Science. Some universities confine the study of politics to History. Others make it a branch of Ethics. The latest tendency is to associate Politics and Economics and regard the economic as the most important of the relations of politics.Among the objections to the independence of Politics, one deserves to be noted. Politics, it is said, is an aspect of a total social situation which it shares with Ethics and Economics. Thus it is a mistake to try to disentangle the political factor and view it in itself.
On the Synthetic Aspect of Mathematics
Authors: Whitrow G. J. 
Published: February 2009

In the most recent edition of Language, Truth and Logic, Professor A. J. Ayer still maintains that pure mathematics is analytic, being in fact merely a vast system of tautology. He is much more confident about this than are most contemporary professional mathematicians who have investigated the foundations of their subject. Following the breakdown of the efforts both of Frege and of Russell and Whitehead to derive pure mathematics from logic, i.e. to prove that the denial of any one proposition of mathematics would necessarily be self-contradictory, Hilbert attempted to prove the more modest thesis that pure mathematics is consistent, i.e. that no two propositions of mathematics can contradict each other; but in 1931 Gödel discovered that even this thesis was undecidable according to the “rules of the game.” As Weyl has recently lamented, “From this history one thing should be clear: we are less certain than ever about the ultimate foundations of (logic and) mathematics.”The sense in which Ayer uses the terms analytic and tautology implies also that in his view the activities of pure mathematicians lead to nothing new. It is true that he remarks that “there is a sense in which analytic propositions do give us new knowledge. They call attention to linguistic usages of which we might otherwise not be conscious, and they reveal unsuspected implications in our assertions and beliefs.” But, he continues, “we can also see that there is a sense in which they may be said to add nothing to our knowledge. For they may be said to tell us what we know already. ” This denial of novelty in mathematics is as typical of contemporary positivism as the prophecy of Comte that the composition of the stars would never be revealed to us and the objections of Mach to the atomic hypothesis were characteristic of nineteenth century positivism. Indeed, one wonders why the term positivism should have been appropriated by successive philosophers whose common outlook could be so much more fittingly described as negativism.
Ethical Objectivity
Authors: Fraser J. L. 
Published: February 2009

The present state of ethical theory and practice is disquieting. Objectivism, in all its varieties, is unconvincing, and subjectivism, hedonic or emotive, is intellectually incredible and socially intolerable. No one is ethically content—except the dogmatist and the sceptic, who act willy nilly with the exponents of “might-cum-persuasion makes right.” Can we find a happier middle region between these inhospitable poles? Perhaps the very limitations of human valuation will provide the ground that ethics requires.Let us begin by considering the conditions which must hold if ethical action is to be possible:1. Only if the agent can provide a justifying reason for his choice of action can he claim to act ethically. For ethical action is a species of purposive action, and to act purposively entails the ability to give justifying reasons for one's choice of action. (“Justifying” here is to be understood as “putatively justifying”). Thus ethical action presupposes putatively grounded ethical judgment.2. Justifying reasons must be acknowledgeable by all competent judges, i.e. by all persons who (I) are acquainted with all relevant knowledge of the nature and consequences of the alternative courses of action, (2) allow as far as possible for congenital, cultural and idiosyncratic bias, (3) are capable of sane and serious reflection, and (4) are able to make survey of their experience and to draw conclusions from it. For the judgment “the action A is ethically preferable to its alternatives B (in this situation)” entails “A ought to be done” which in turn entails “every competent judge is capable of acknowledging the ground of the judgment ‘A is ethically preferable to B’ and consequently would be able to set himself to perform A as an ethical act, (i.e. an autonomous act for which the agent can provide a justifying reason).” We can assure ourselves of this requirement of acknowledgeability by observing that whenever we resolve, and not merely settle, an ethical disagreement, we have achieved not only a factual, predictive, valuational and attitudinal agreement between the disputants, but a joint acknowledgment of the ground of the ethical judgment. Without this, the agreement could not be said to be ethical, whether the judgment be right or wrong or neither, but merely an agreement to disagree, ethically. Unless ethical disagreement is in principle resolvable, ethical judgment is impossible, for we should be unable to claim that our choice ought to be acted upon.
Restricted Moralities
Authors: Brunton J. A. 
Published: February 2009

It will, I suppose, be readily agreed that questions concerning the scope of moral principles are of vital importance for the moral philosopher. If we are to accept a view, such as Professor Hare's, that there are formal criteria for any morality if it is to count as a morality, then it is necessary to know what is left outside the fence. Are Egoism and Caste Morality to count as moralities, restricted to the interests of one and of a limited group of persons respectively; or is there a logical absurdity in calling them moralities at all?Hare's thesis of ‘prescriptive universalisability’, as definitive of the formal structure of any moral system, rules out such restricted ‘moralities’. Using ‘ought’ as a key-concept in moral discourse, Hare suggests that the word has two basic functions:(i) to prescribe: meaning to commend courses of action sincerely to oneself and others.(ii) to prescribe consistently, or universalisably; that is, in the same way, on relevantly similar occasions, to anyone, including oneself, unless valid reasons for discrimination of persons can be offered.
Sensations, Experiences and Brain Processes
Authors: Heil John 
Published: February 2009

In his defence of the identity theory, Professor Smart has attempted to show that reports of mental states (for example, sensation reports) are strictly topic-neutral. If this were the case then it would follow that there is nothing logically wrong with the claim that the mind is the brain (and nothing more) or that mental states are really nothing but brain states. Some phillosophers have argued that a fundamental objection to any form of materialism is that the latter makes an obvious logical blunder in identifying the mental with the physical. This is the view that dualism is enshrined in our language. If this is true then of course statements such as ‘the mind is actually nothing but the brain’ and ‘mental states are really nothing but physical processes’ would be quite unacceptable on strictly logical grounds. Smart's claim that talk about mental states is topic-neutral, however, appears to exempt materialism from such objections. The question is, does it? That is to say, are sensation reports and the like topic-neutral in the required sense? Are they analogous in principle to statements of the form ‘someone is in the room’? Smart's point is that expressions such as ‘someone phoned: it was the doctor’ are logically similar to those of the form ‘I am having a red after-image: it is a brain process.’ ‘Someone’ is not logically equivalent to ‘the doctor’ (and it even sounds strange to say ‘someone is the doctor’), but it may, of course, be true that the doctor is the someone who phoned. Does this analogy hold and is it correct to say that sensation reports and mentalistic expressions in general are topic-neutral, that they refer only to experienced ‘somethings’? Smart's claim runs as follows:When a person says, ‘I see a yellowish-orange after-image’, he is saying something like this: ‘There is something going on which is like what is going on when I have my eyes open, am awake, and there is an orange illuminated in good light in front of me, that is, when I really see an orange’. (And there is no reason why a person should not say the same thing when he is having a veridical sense-datum, so long as we construe the ‘like’ in the last sentence in such a sense that something can be like itself.) Notice that the italicised words, namely ‘there is something going on which is like what is going on when’, are all quasi logical or topic neutral words. This explains why the ancient Greek peasant's reports about his sensations can be neutral between dualistic metaphysics and my materialistic metaphysics. It explains how sensations can be brain processes and yet how a man who reports them need know nothing about brain processes. For he reports them only very abstractly as ‘something going on which is like what is going on when…’ Similarly, a person may say ‘someone is in the room’, thus reporting truly that the doctor is in the room, even though he has never heard of doctors.
The Nature of Things
Authors: Ayers M. R. 
Published: February 2009

Anthony Quinton's The Nature of Things covers competently a good deal of philosophical ground in hopeful pursuit of a coherent ontology de-scribable as ‘a version of materialism’. He seems to discern two major difficulties for the enterprise: first, that of giving an acceptable account of ontology, and, secondly, that of reconciling his naturalism with his empiricist principles. ‘Naturalism’ is the view that man and his doings constitute a part of nature on the same ontological level as other natural things, and materialism is a naturalist philosophy. Of the second difficulty Quinton writes:…a naturalistic view of the world has had to find its chief philosophical expression through doctrines of a sceptical and subjectivist kind, such as Hume's, which have a tendency to undermine the naturalistic presumptions which inspired them. In this book I have tried to equip materialism with solid philosophical credentials.
A Review of Ondansatron Versus Other Antiemetics in Postoperative Nausea and Vomiting
Authors: Sealey Lynn 
Published: February 2009

AbstractThe workload of the recovery unit can be considerably increased by patients suffering post operative nausea and vomiting (PONV). The unit can often become blocked by patients too sick to discharge back to the main ward. Via a review of the literature and a small research study in the authors own recovery ward, it was concluded that PONV causes patients to stay in recovery longer. In fact the study reveals of those patients who did not receive an antiemetic perioperatively, 31% suffered PONV and those who had PONV spent 29 minutes longer in recovery.Despite ondansatron being one of the most expensive drugs, it was only successful in 81% of cases. However those people who did receive ondansatron, spent an average of 8 minutes less time in recovery, compared with those who were not given it. These findings potentially have considerable cost implications, relevant in todays current climate of economy saving strategies. These findings and their implications are discussed.
The Concerns of Recovery Practitioners Assisting in the Care of ICU Patients
Authors: Sealey Lynn 
Published: February 2009

When high dependency and intensive care units are full, which occurs more and more often nationally, recovery wards are being utilised to hold critically ill patients. Recovery practitioners are often expected to assist in the care of these patients.A small study established the views of a sample of recovery practitioners regarding the recovery unit being used as stop-gap, or ICU overflow. There were positive and negative opinions from recovery practitioners who were involved in the care of these critically ill patients. Recovery practitioners often reported feeling inexperienced and ill equipped, with increased levels of stress when working in the ICU bay. Only 20% of recovery practitioners in the study, expressed optimism about working in the ICU bay, and 60% identified that training and development was a strategy which may help to overcome some of their perceived problems.This paper reports these concerns and identifies strategies which have been implemented to address some of these concerns.
Delegation Dilemma: Accountability is Undermined by a Lack of Role Clarity
Authors: King Linnette 
Published: February 2009

ABSTRACTA lack of clarity in role definition can pose a risk to the care of patients in the peri-operative phase. Health care teams are often made up of multi-skilled-nursing-care-providers that are not statutorily registered professionals. This may undermine who is actually responsible and accountable in practice. This delegation dilemma is due to certain market forces, like changes and reforms in health service provision, shortages of doctors and nurses, and ever rising costs. Change and development in practitioners' scope of practice has been encouraged with training to enable practitioners to take on certain specific aspects of health care provision that were traditionally part of a doctor and, or a nurse's role. These changes should be monitored and considered by risk managers or those responsible for clinical governance, as they raise important legal and professional issues. In short, there is confusion over accountability driven by issues of role expansion. The respective professional bodies, both medical and nursing and the Department of Health need to come together and find a consensus of opinion in resolving the confusion over accountability and role delineation.
Airway Management in Recovery
Authors: Oakley M. 
Published: February 2009

ABSTRACTMaintaining the patient's airway in the post anaesthetic stage of the patient's care is a skilful endeavour and all practitioners working in a recovery unit must be familiar with all types of obstruction, the causes and how to treat them. Awareness must also be demonstrated of the airway adjuncts available to maintain a patient's airway.
A Systematic Approach for Nursing Specialities: Part 2
Authors: McAuliffe M. S. , Edge M. J. 
Published: February 2009

ABSTRACTThis overview of the research process is for nurses who have either not had a formal course of study in the area, or have not thought about the process in some time. Using a systematic method of viewing the research process should improve understanding. By knowing how question type determines design, and ultimately how results are structured, nurses will be better able to engage in the process as knowledgeable participants. Using this framework should allow those, who wish to do so, to further study the numerous variations in designs and nuances within in each level.
We (Theatre Health Care Professionals) are the Patient's Advocate: Fact or Fiction?
Authors: Bradley M. 
Published: February 2009

AbstractThe word ‘advocacy’ is often used in hospitals. The author's practice has always been to treat the patient as he would like himself or a member of his family to be treated, but is this being an advocate? This article will examine the concept of advocacy and its relevance to the perioperative arena. In the view of the author, protecting a patient's dignity, being aware of tissue viability, ensuring the right patient receives the right treatment, monitoring of vital signs, correct patient positioning etc. are all a part of our duty of care.
Cessation of Long-Term Morphine Analgesia - A Case Study
Authors: Cowan David T , Wright David 
Published: February 2009

BackgroundWith regard to the problematic use of opioid analgesic drugs, attention is focused not only on those who began using opioids for recreational purposes, but also on those who may become iatrogenically addicted to opioids administered for pain control. It has been suggested that narcotics opioids cause psychological and physical dependence after relatively small therapeutic doses, for a relatively short period of administration Glatt 1974 and that physical dependence may even start to manifest after a single therapeutic dose Qones 1980. Despite these claims, some patients report that they are able to benefit from relatively long-term opioid analgesia without experiencing the effects of problematic drug use that are associated with recreational drug users (Cowan et al 2001, 2002). This issue has obvious implications for anaesthetic and recovery room practitioners who routinely administer opioids to patients in their care. In view of this, the following case study report may be of interest to such practitioners.
The development of group CBT for the treatment of
road-traffic-accident-related post-traumatic stress disorder: a pilot study
Authors: Thompson Andrew R. , Wilde Eamonn , Boon Katherine 
Published: February 2009

AbstractIndividually focused CBT for road traffic accident (RTA)-related post-traumatic stress
disorder (PTSD) involving exposure and cognitive restructuring has been shown to be
effective. Group CBT interventions provide an opportunity for treatment to be delivered in
a cost-effective fashion and may also be ‘normalizing’ for patients,
but few evaluations have been published. Many elements of CBT lend themselves well to
group presentation, although implementing exposure presents a specific problem. The
development and preliminary evaluation of a group (n = 6) targeting
RTA-related PTSD is described here. Pre- and post-questionnaire evaluation is accompanied
by assessment of patient satisfaction. Four of the group no longer met diagnostic criteria
and the remaining two showed clinically significant change in both the number and severity
of symptoms. In addition symptoms of depression decreased from the severe to the mild
range within the group and there were high levels of participant satisfaction reported.
Further research is required to evaluate this and similar packages before group treatment
can be advocated as an alternative to individual CBT for PTSD.
Are we as good as we think we are? Self-assessmentversusother forms of assessment of competence in psychotherapy
Authors: Mathieson Fiona M. , Barnfield Tracey , Beaumont Graeme 
Published: February 2009

AbstractThe Oracle of Delphi's admonition to ‘know thyself’ may be more difficult than it seems, when it comes to self-assessment of competence in cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT). This paper investigates the accuracy of self-rating of competence in relation to other measures such as ‘direct’ assessment of videotaped sessions or supervisor ratings. Self-assessment of competence is something most of us do and arguably has an important role in professional development, but it may also be biased and unreliable. Two measures were developed, based on the Cognitive Therapy Scale – Revised, to assess student and supervisor assessments of competence at the start and end of a CBT training course. Competence data across a range of measures from a 5-year audit of a postgraduate CBT course is presented and the relationship between self-rated and other-rated measures explored. Results are discussed and it is suggested that trainee self-assessment, while not found in this study to be correlated with other measure of competence, may provide important information about confidence development, and areas where a trainee perceives they have strengths and weaknesses.
Access to artificial reproduction technology in the Nordic countries in 2004
Authors: OLAFSDOTTIR HELGA SOL , MATTS WIKLAND , ANDERS MÖLLER 
Published: February 2009

AbstractObjective. To survey access to Artificial Reproduction Technology (ART) treatments in 2004 with regard to legislation, geographical location, financing and the kind of ART treatments provided in the Nordic countries. Design. Retrospective descriptive survey of practice at ART clinics and legislation. Setting. Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. Sample. Sixty‐six ART clinics registered with the Nordic Fertility Society in autumn 2005. Methods. A questionnaire was sent to all ART clinics and a survey of legislation concerning ART treatments and public statistics was performed. The response rate was 79%. Main outcome measures. Access to ART treatments. Results. The differences in legislation among the countries mainly concerns gamete donation. Couples living in larger cities or densely populated areas have best access to ART treatments. With regard to subsidizing of treatment costs, Finland and Denmark seem to be the best of the Nordic countries. Conclusions. The main differences among the countries concern the legislation, the cost of the treatments and how those are subsidized.
Brain magnetic resonance elastography on healthy volunteers: A safety study
Authors: Liu Guang-Rui , Gao Pei-Yi , Lin Yan , Xue Jing , Wang Xiao-Chun , Sui Bin-Bin , Ma Li , Xi Zhi-Nong , Bai Qin , Shen Hao 
Published: February 2009

Background: Magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) is a recently developed imaging technique that can directly visualize and quantitatively measure tissue elasticity. Purpose: To evaluate the safety of brain MRE on human subjects. Material and Methods: The study included 20 healthy volunteers. MRE sequence scan (drive signal not applied to external force actuator) and MRE study were separately performed on each volunteer at an interval of more than 24 hours. The heart rate and blood pressure of each volunteer were measured immediately before and after MRE sequence scan and MRE study. Electroencephalography (EEG) was also performed within 2 hours after each scan. The volunteers were asked about their experience of the two scans. Randomized-block analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to analyze the data of blood pressure and heart rate. Paired t test was used to analyze the data of the two EEG examinations. The volunteers were followed up 1 week after the examination. Results: All procedures were performed on each volunteer, and no one complained of obvious discomfort. No related adverse events were reported during follow-up. There was no statistically significant difference in heart rate or blood pressure. There was a statistically significant difference ( P<0.05) in EEG results in the right temporoparietal region. Increased power was found in the theta, delta, alpha, and beta2 bands. No brain injury was detected by the EEG examinations. Conclusion: Based on the study results, brain MRE examinations are safe to perform on human subjects.