Olympism is among other things a peaceful philosophy. This means in practice that the most important thing for a researcher who studies peace movement in the Olympic Games is to examine how peace movements have been developed in the Olympic Games. The development of peace movement would be verified by analyzing the torch relay, the opening ceremony, and the Olympic Truce Resolution, in particular. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the validity of these peace movements in recent Olympic (...) Games and to clarify the problems arising from implementation of peace movement into the Olympic Games. (shrink)

This article discusses the effects of executive leadership on fiscal policies and performance. I propose that executive leadership, as a political entrepreneur who provides collective goods for organization, has incentives to maintain fiscal discipline so that he or she can stay in office by developing his or her party's reputation and leading party legislators to electoral success. This article argues that executive leadership with stronger public support is more likely to restrain fiscal expenditure and maintain fiscal discipline. I demonstrate this (...) argument by showing that the prime minister who receives higher public support is more likely to restrain fiscal expenditure in Japan. (shrink)

This article examines the power relationship between the prime minister and ruling party legislators. I theoretically explore the power relationship between the prime minister and ruling party legislators, and examine legislators' parliamentary voting, focusing on the political process of postal service privatization of 2005. This analysis presents three arguments. First, theoretically, when the prime minister attempts to achieve a project, risking his or her job, he or she can firmly control ruling party legislators. Second, empirically, the anti-Koizumi legislators' rebellion was (...) based on their unfounded assumption about the prime minister's behavior or ultimate outcomes. Third, the anti-Koizumi legislators' electoral incentives to secure their reelection and ruling incentives to weaken or overthrow the Koizumi Cabinet drove them to rebel against the prime minister in the Lower House, while the ruling incentives alone caused the rebellion in the Upper House. (shrink)

Previous studies reported that consumers choose a higher number of options in subtractive framing, which delete the unnecessary options from the full model with all options chosen than in additive framing, which adds options to a simple base model. The purposes of this study are to examine the effect of age on option framing and the differences of product type on the option framing effect using two product scenarios. Participants were 40 younger and 40 older adults. We measured the number (...) of options chosen, total price, choice difficulty, and choice satisfaction. In addition, cognitive functions were assessed. Results revealed that older and younger adults chose more options in the -OF condition for both the scenarios. For the medical examination, older adults chose more options than did the younger adults in both -OF and +OF conditions. Developmental shift in goals and motivation related to life-span may explain the differences between the age differences. (shrink)

In this paper, we present a version of Fraïssé theory for categories of metric structures. Using this version, we show that every UHF algebra can be recognized as a Fraïssé limit of a class of C*-algebras of matrix-valued continuous functions on cubes with distinguished traces. We also give an alternative proof of the fact that the Jiang–Su algebra is the unique simple monotracial C*-algebra among all the inductive limits of prime dimension drop algebras.

A decrease in cortical excitability tends to be easily followed by an increase induced by external stimuli via a mechanism aimed at restoring it; this phenomenon is called “homeostatic plasticity.” In recent years, although intervention methods aimed at promoting motor learning using this phenomenon have been studied, an optimal intervention method has not been established. In the present study, we examined whether subsequent motor learning can be promoted further by a repetitive passive movement, which reduces the excitability of the primary (...) motor cortex before motor learning tasks. We also examined the relationship between motor learning and the brain-derived neurotrophic factor. Forty healthy subjects participated. Subjects were divided into two groups of 20 individuals each. The first group was assigned to perform the motor learning task after an intervention consisting in the passive adduction–abduction movement of the right index finger at 5 Hz for 10 min, while the second group was assigned to perform the task without the passive movement. The motor learning task consisted in the visual tracking of the right index finger. The results showed that the corticospinal excitability was transiently reduced after the passive movement in the RPM condition, whereas it was increased to the level detected in the control condition after the motor learning task. Furthermore, the motor learning ability was decreased immediately after the passive movement; however, the motor performance finally improved to the level observed in the control condition. In individuals carrying the Val/Val genotype, higher motor learning was also found to be related to the more remarkable changes in corticospinal excitability caused by the RPM condition. This study revealed that the implementation of a passive movement before a motor learning tasks did not affect M1 excitatory changes and motor learning efficiency; in contrast, in subjects carrying the Val/Val polymorphism, the more significant excitatory changes in the M1 induced by the passive movement and motor learning task led to the improvement of motor learning efficiency. Our results also suggest that homeostatic plasticity occurring in the M1 is involved in this improvement. (shrink)

Farmers have always played a key role in developing and testing agricultural technology. Scientist initiated agricultural research models and methods that explicitly include the participation of farmers principally have been developed and implemented in the Third World. Recently, these strategies have begun to receive attention in the US sustainable agriculture research community. This paper presents a case study where scientists collaborated with farmers in developing, implementing, and revising research in peach insect pest management in sustainable agroecosystems in California. A theoretical (...) framework constructed from emerging epistemological and philosophical premises is used to point out the imperative of including participatory strategies in US sustainable agriculture. Methods drawn from Rapid Rural Appraisal were adapted to fit the local circumstances of working within intensive peach production systems and with a US farmer or ganization, California Clean Growers Association, in developing a research agenda. Farmer-scientist participation continued throughout the research implementation phases via individual and group meetings. A mid-project workshop provided a forum where farmers had explicit decision-making power over the course of the research project. Selected natural science research results are presented to illustrate the value of merging farmers' and scientists' knowledge in achieving relevant and scientifically interesting information. It is argued that the adoption and innovation of participatory research strategies in US sustainable agriculture will require confronting philosophical and methodological issues at individual and institutional levels. (shrink)