In this paper, I critically evaluate John Broome’s recent arguments against individual denialism, the thesis that current humans (in some sense) do no wrong by not refraining from performing acts that emit insignificant amounts of greenhouse gases. After isolating and clarifying Broome’s position, I argue that Broome’s argument overgenerates; is in tension with his defence of carbon offsetting; and uses problematic assumptions. I close by noting the upshot of my critical evaluation on other issues in applied ethics.de/p.

Scaffolds are fundamental to many cellular signaling pathways. In this essay, a novel class of scaffolds are proposed, whose action bears striking resemblance to kinetic proofreading. Commonly, scaffold proteins are thought to work as tethers, bringing different components of a pathway together to improve the likelihood of their interaction. However, recent studies show that the cytoskeletal scaffold, anillin, supports contractile signaling by a novel, non‐tethering mechanism that controls the membrane dissociation kinetics of RhoA. More generally, such proof‐reading‐like scaffolds are distinguished (...) from tethers by a rare type of cooperativity, manifest as a super‐linear relationship between scaffold concentration and signaling efficiency. The evidence for this hypothesis is reviewed, its conceptual ramifications are considered, and research questions for the future are discussed. (shrink)

The ethical and legal challenges posed by assisted reproduction techniques are both profound and breathtaking, with most societies unable to fully comprehend one technique before another one, even more daring, emerges. The wrongful implantation of embryos in two women undergoing in vitro fertilisation treatments at two separate clinics in the UK seriously vitiates the traditional concept of who is a parent. In one case, a patient’s embryos were wrongly implanted into another woman seeking similar treatment, and in the second, a (...) woman’s eggs were fertilised using sperm from a man other than her husband.In the first mix-up, neither member of the recipient couple was the genetic parent of the child, while in the second case, the recipient mother was the genetic mother and her husband was not the genetic father. The mix-ups resulted in litigation to determine who the rightful parents were. First, I will show in this paper that, although the outcome of the application of English law in both cases was in agreement with the outcome prescribed by basic principles of Islamic law and bioethics, that agreement is based on different reasoning in the two traditions. Next, I will show that the profound ethical implications of reproductive technologies begs for a more pluralistic bioethical discourse than the one-dimensional analysis applied by secular Western societies that currently dominates the enquiry, particularly as most Western societies are more or less multicultural and multireligious. (shrink)

Based on a sample of 54 Islamic indices over the period 2007–2014, we investigate the effect of Shariah board members' educational background on Islamic indices' risk and return characteristics via the screening criteria. Using a capital asset pricing model benchmark analysis, we assess the sensitivity of Islamic indices to their conventional peers in terms of beta and derive a measure of return (Jensen's alpha). First, we observe that the higher the number of members in common among the boards, the higher (...) the risk–return profile of Islamic indices. Second, commonalities among board members lead to standardization of the screening criteria and to similar Islamic indices' performance. Third, we show that different betas across providers depend on the screening criteria, while the economic educational background of board members affects performance in terms of Jensen's alpha. Our study aims at contributing to the governance literature related to board composition and its importance as a possible driver of performance. In addition, given the impressive growth that Islamic finance has experienced during the last decade, this topic is of great interest to the asset management industry. (shrink)

While numerous studies have examined the relationships between facial actions and emotions, they have yet to account for the ways that specific spontaneous facial expressions map onto emotional experiences induced without expressive intent. Moreover, previous studies emphasized that a fine-grained investigation of facial components could establish the coherence of facial actions with actual internal states. Therefore, this study aimed to accumulate evidence for the correspondence between spontaneous facial components and emotional experiences. We reinvestigated data from previous research which secretly recorded (...) spontaneous facial expressions of Japanese participants as they watched film clips designed to evoke four different target emotions: surprise, amusement, disgust, and sadness. The participants rated their emotional experiences via a self-reported questionnaire of sixteen emotions. These spontaneous facial expressions were coded using the Facial Action Coding System, the gold standard for classifying visible facial movements. We corroborated each facial action that was present in the emotional experiences by applying stepwise regression models. The results found that spontaneous facial components occurred in ways that cohere to the their evolutionary functions based on the rating values of emotional experiences (e.g., the inner brow raiser might be involved in the evaluation of novelty). This study provided new empirical evidence for the correspondence between each spontaneous facial component and first-person internal states of emotion as reported by the expresser. (shrink)

Integrated reporting encourages firms to provide information on their environmental, social and governance activities. Studies on this area in developing countries concentrate on the environmental and social aspects of the phenomenon, thus neglecting the governance disclosure element. Given this, the study examined the disclosure practices of the governance element of integrated reporting among Ghanaian listed firms. The content of 410 annual reports of 33 firms was examined based on a checklist of 18 disclosure items. Moving average scores and Wilcoxon signed-rank (...) test were employed to analyse the data. The study found that governance reporting is receiving attention in Ghana, suggesting that the firms have recognised its potentials. The findings imply that the firms employed governance reporting as a strategy to influence public perception and obtain their acceptance. This study provides insights into how firms address the governance aspect of integrated reporting that is neglected in the literature. (shrink)

Bangladesh is aspiring to achieve universal health coverage by 2030. In this regard, quality and efficient healthcare delivery have been regarded as a major challenge. Proper management of employees is crucial for service organizations like healthcare because in healthcare employees provide life saving services which make them unique from other non-health professionals. They directly interface with the patients or service seekers who make evaluative judgment of the quality of service delivered by the employees. Therefore, it is important that healthcare organizations (...) (both public and private) comprehend specific organizational factors and issues that influence employee’s attitudes and behaviors, which ultimately affect their service behaviour at work. Drawing from the organizational justice principles and other management theories, this article presents a conceptual framework and a set of hypotheses regarding the relationships among distributive justice, procedural justice, interactional justice, employee’s citizenship behaviour, role prescribed behaviour and counterproductive behaviour for the healthcare organizations in Bangladesh. The purpose is to assist the policy makers and service providers in identifying desirable human resource management practices that healthcare organizations in Bangladesh should seek and engage in and at the same time, avoid undesirable practices in order to maintain optimum level of employee commitment, and citizenship behavior essential for ensuring quality and efficient service delivery to the communities. This article is ‘theoretical’ but it has practical implications for the policy makers and service providers who are directly involved with service delivery system. It is also expected that the paper enriches the health service delivery literature and also advocates focusing on justice perspectives particularly in Bangladesh. (shrink)

The goal of responsible engineers is the creation of useful and safe technological products and commitment to public health, while respecting the autonomy of the clients and the public. Because engineers often face moral dilemma to resolve such issues, different engineers have chosen different course of actions depending on their respective moral value orientations. Islam provides a value-based mechanism rooted in the Maqasid al-Shari‘ah (the objectives of Islamic law). This mechanism prioritizes some values over others and could help resolve the (...) moral dilemmas faced in engineering. This paper introduces the Islamic interpretive-evaluative maxims to two core issues in engineering ethics: genetically modified foods and whistleblowing. The study aims primarily to provide problem-solving maxims within the Maqasid al-Shari‘ah matrix through which such moral dilemmas in science and engineering could be studied and resolved. (shrink)

This paper proposes a model to study the arrangement of Islamic project finance with the participation of the government as a provider of loan guarantees. The owner-shareholders initiate a project and raise funds by issuing Islamic profit-loss sharing mudarabah certificates. The government intervenes in providing financial guarantees in order to enhance the creditworthiness and increase the mudarabah capital capacity of the project. Our work raises several policy implications related to the structuring of Islamic project finance and the participation of both (...) government and multilateral public agencies such as the Islamic Development Bank. It provides a unifying framework for the improvement of access to funds for Islamic projects and gives a rationale for government intervention in the arrangement of these projects. (shrink)

The role of higher education -- Education and society -- Education and community life -- Education and planned development -- The basis of national unity -- Education and one world -- The crisis of youth -- Universities and national unity -- Universities and the future -- Knowledge and national unity -- Intellectual standards and national progress -- The challenge of a new age -- Indian philosophy of education: -- -Ancient ideals -- -The continuity of tradition -- -At the cross roads (...) -- -Education and national development. (shrink)

Self-efficacy as applied to language learning encompasses the belief in one’s ability to obtain mastery in a sought-after domain of linguistic competence by committing to goals and maintaining acquired skills. Intercultural communication and effectiveness are of interest to the professional and personal language goals of learners as their progress depends upon a strong motivation to put practical language skills to use when the real-world requires it. Studying or working abroad and engaging in intercultural training are two such contexts that bind (...) research in learner characteristics between applied linguistics and positive psychology as they provide a substrate of concrete interactions through language brokering, transformative experiences characterized by opportunities for changes in self-concept, negotiations with values and authenticity, and forms of interpersonal development underwritten by intercultural communication as an ability. The Self-Efficacy in Intercultural Communication Scale (SEIC) was developed by Peterson et al. (2011) in a sample of educators with overseas sojourning work experience. However, the original study lacked confirmatory analyses of internal and external validity that would provide clarity toward model identification and applicability for research that deals with intercultural communication competence across populations with diverse sample characteristics. A total of 876 teachers (M age = 37.48, SD = 10.81) and 266 university students (M age = 19.48, SD = 0.74) in Japan responded to items from the SEIC instrument. Acceptable model fit was supported for the 8-item short-form as proposed by Peterson et al. (2011). Metric invariance was observed for individuals from a sample of sojourning English language teachers similar to the original validation and a nationwide survey of Japanese teachers of English, offering indications of cross-cultural validity. Degrees of equivalence were also found for the Japanese items as extending fitness for use to students from two universities in Japan. Concurrent validity was supported for self-efficacy in intercultural communication measured by the scale with intercultural effectiveness competencies and speaking and listening self-efficacy constructs used in classroom contexts. Together, this study offers a tool of valid indicators for researchers and practitioners who aim to observe this self-efficacy in positive education or programs that intersect with language learning and intercultural communication. (shrink)

This group of essays concentrates on the themes of freedom and democracy. The author argues that the pursuit of scientific culture is dependent on a religious culture, of which he regards Islam as one of the finest examples.

First published in 2008. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

Hazrat Sharafuddin bin Yahyah Maneri was a scholar and Sufi of the thirteenth-fourteenth centuries. He was a prolific writer. One of his important books is a collection of letters titled Maktubat-i-Sadi. The article focuses to bring out the main themes of the book and identified ten topics to discussed. They are: 1. Concept and love of God; 2. Deceiving nature of the world; 3. Sin and repentance; 4. Necessity of a qualified spiritual guide and obedience to his guidance; 5. Origin (...) and need of Sufism; 6. Poverty and its role in the purification of evil soul; 7. Rendering selfless service to others; 8. Fate and predestination; 9. Observance of the Shariah; and 10. Acquisition of good qualities and shunning of the evil ones. The philosophical and spiritual significance of these teachings have been pointed out in this article. Philosophy and Progress, Vol#71-72; No#1-2; Jan-Dec 2022 P 79-96. (shrink)

Examining the coverage of the 2016 US Presidential election of the highest circulating New Zealand newspaper—the New Zealand Herald (NZH)—this study argues that this newspaper sets agenda against Donald Trump—the Republican Party candidate in the 2016 US election. Examining all news, editorials and photographs published in NZH, it discursively argues that this newspaper overshadowed and dehumanized Trump and especially his leadership ability. The other major candidate—the Democratic Party candidate Hillary Clinton—was applauded in the coverage. The NZH repeatedly focused upon the (...) activities of Trump through news, views and images to dehumanize him. The repetition, therefore, does not necessarily mean that a particular media outlet favors a particular candidate. It also argues that the media outlet of a distant nation that cannot influence its reader to vote for a particular candidate may still set the agenda in favor of a candidate. (shrink)

A sample of 871 currently married urban Bangladeshi women was used to assess the impact of mass media family planning programmes on current contraceptive use. The analyses suggested that radio had been playing a significant role in spreading family planning messages among eligible clients; 38% of women with access to a radio had heard of family planning messages while the figures for TV and newspaper were 18·5% and 8·5% respectively. Education, number of living children and current contraceptive use were important (...) predictors of exposure to any mass media family planning messages. There was a negative relationship between breast-feeding and the current use of contraception indicating a low need for contraception among women who were breast-feeding. (shrink)

The empirical basis for self-control in Dohsa-hou as it relates to effects on cognitive processes has been explored in a few studies of the Japanese psychotherapy, but not under standardized conditions with a strong predictive theory of control. This study reports on a series of experiments with the Dual Mechanisms of Control framework to clarify the possible regulatory mechanism of Dohsa-hou by focusing on shoulder movement, a key body movement task used by practitioners across applied settings. Cognitive control was operationalized (...) with the AX version of Continuous Performance Test paradigm for proactive control and a modified Stroop task paradigm for reactive control in a 3-arm parallel group trial study design. Healthy Japanese university students were assigned to a Dohsa-hou group that performed a shoulder movement task for few minutes, an active control group that performed a similar task, or a passive control group comprised of a resting condition. A total of 55 participants performed the AX-CPT and 57 participants performed the modified Stroop task before and after the group manipulation. In the AX-CPT, an increase in the error rate of AY trial from pre- to post-test was observed in the passive control group only, and found to be marginally higher in the passive control group relative to Dohsa-hou group at post-test. This indicated that Dohsa-hou moderated the activation of proactive control by repeated AX-CPT performance. The error rate of the Proactive Behavioral Index did not differ from zero at post-test only in the Dohsa-hou group, indicating flexible cognitive control. In the modified Stroop task, there was no difference between congruent and incongruent trials at post-test for the Dohsa-hou group only, indicating the facilitation of reactive control. The evidence for a balancing effect for the Dohsa-hou-based shoulder movement task indicates that clients experience a form of continuous self-monitoring, which might reduce mind-wandering from their focus on movement execution combined with iterative verbal feedback from the therapist. Overall, the results of the present study suggest that the self-regulatory mechanism promoted in clinical Dohsa-hou emphasizes guided shifts in attention to the reactive mode toward a balance of cognitive control. (shrink)

This study aims to identify artificial intelligence (AI) technologies that are applied in climate-smart agricultural practices and address ethical concerns of deploying those technologies from legal perspectives. As climate-smart agricultural AI, the study considers those AI-based technologies that are used for precision agriculture, monitoring peat lands, deforestation tracking, and improved forest management. The study utilized a systematic literature review approach to identify and analyze AI technologies employed in climate-smart agriculture and associated ethical and legal concerns. The study findings indicate several (...) ethical concerns for deploying AI in climate-smart agricultural practices pertaining to data inaccuracy, other technical errors based on wrong recommendations or wrongful acts, data ownership and intellectual property issues, and economic issues resulting in digital division and privacy and security related issues. In this study, the ethical concerns were further examined based on criminal law, tort law, privacy and data protection law, and intellectual property law. In this regard, the study finds that the current tort law pattern is more suitable than the criminal law pattern to address some major ethical concerns, such as data inaccuracy and other technical errors based on wrong recommendations or wrongful acts. Finally, the study recommends that at the global level, all countries need to fill up the current gap of international law on climate-smart agriculture through agreeing on a standard set of legal provisions and enhancing collaboration in innovation and deployment of climate-smart agricultural AI. It further recommends that at the local level, countries need to adopt suitable regulations addressing multi-stakeholders’ interests associated with the deployment of climate-smart agricultural AIs. (shrink)

Using an international setting consisting of 5410 corporations domiciled in 24 countries, we test the insurance-like effect of corporate social responsibility (CSR) performance in the era of the pandemic and confirm that CSR performance increases socially responsible companies’ resilience against the adverse effects of the crisis. Comparing stakeholders' responses to CSR activities during the pandemic and normal periods, we observe that the link between CSR performance and firm value is stronger during the crisis period. We also realize that the social (...) aspect of CSR performance is the main driver for the mentioned effects. Finally, comparing the resilience of highly committed socially responsible companies with those with moderate and very low CSR ratings, we observe that best-in-class companies enjoy the greatest buffering effects, implying that the insurance-like effect of CSR performance is non-linear against systematic crises. Findings are robust to ceremonial CSR activities, extreme values of market-based instruments, endogeneity concern, etc. (shrink)

Memorisation of the Qur’ān occupies a central position in Muslim conception of religious education. The awareness of preserving the Qur’ān through memorisation is becoming prevalent and is still continued in these modern days in many educational institutions in many parts of the Muslim countries. This article examines different methods of Qur’ānic memorization being practiced in Malaysia. Similarities and uniqueness of those methods will be presented. The evaluation of those Qur’ānic memorisation techniques brings to the foreground the educative value of memorisation (...) as a learning tool and the implications memorisation methods have in enhancing an individual’s learning performance. (shrink)

Biotechnology is the use of living systems and organisms to develop or make products, or any technological application that uses biological systems, living organisms or derivatives to make or modify products or processes for specific use. Biotechnology is a constantly evolving field of modern science. New tools and products developed by biotechnologists are useful in research, agriculture, industry and healthcare. Although it has many benefits including lowering our environmental footprint, and helping in diagnosis and treatment of diseases, it comes with (...) its all-possible disadvantages. The four main societal concerns revolve around are ethical, safety, bioterrorism and environmental issues. This paper aims to describe those societal concerns raised by applications of biotechnology and possible regulations related to biotech innovations and policy implementation. (shrink)

For Hindi speakers Kabīr is a seminal figure in the early history of Hindi literature. The contemporary image of Kabīr is as a champion of an earthy spirituality which transcended all religious boundaries and a scathing critic of all established religions. In this paper I examine how prior to the 19th century multiple identities for Kabīr were transmitted through oral and manuscript based traditions at networks of local sites. I then show how in the 19th century regional perceptions of Kabīr’s (...) identity were negotiated as print cultures developed and how caste issues then influenced perceptions of Kabīr’s identity within nationalist histories of Hindi literature. The conclusion is that multiple localized identities were inherent in constructions of Kabīr in manuscript and oral traditions, but that Kabīr’s incorporation into print cultures has led to contestations at a national level about how to construct a single unitary identity for Kabīr. (shrink)