This article deals with interactions between citizenship and political ecology by examining the ‘pulp mills conflict’ in Gualeguaychú, Argentina. The conflict burst in 2003 when the Uruguayan authorities announced the construction of a cellulose plant on the shore of the Uruguay River. The citizens of Gualeguaychú, a city right across the border, initiated a movement of protest that soon transcended the local dimension. I argue that this protest was a battle over sovereignty and an environmental conflict between different conceptions of (...) development and diverse views of the use of a common resource, the river. The notion of ecological citizenship formed in this process is assessed by examining how this concept was constructed by local stakeholders and by unveiling the motivations informing citizens’ engagement. (shrink)

This article focuses on the relationship between ecological citizenship and the green state and asks whether it is a productive one. First, I examine the political system of an ideal ecological state to assess how it could encourage ecological citizenship. Then, I turn my attention to how eco-states might emerge and be sustained, and the obstacles they may encounter. I show that the green state has a strong potential to develop ecological citizenship, albeit with a rather narrow focus on its (...) deliberative dimension. However, my main point is that this potential may not be fully realised because the green state is grounded on a postliberal ecological democracy and an ecologically modernised economy. Since the green state cannot avoid the problems arising from the nexus between liberal democracy and capitalism, I claim that it is not the most appropriate locus for the cultivation of ecological citizenship. (shrink)

This book describes Carmeli's cosmological general and special relativity theory, along with Einstein's general and special relativity. These theories are discussed in the context of Moshe Carmeli's original research, in which velocity is introduced as an additional independent dimension. Four- and five-dimensional spaces are considered, and the five-dimensional braneworld theory is presented. The Tully-Fisher law is obtained directly from the theory, and thus it is found that there is no necessity to assume the existence of dark matter in the halo (...) of galaxies, nor in galaxy clusters.The book gives the derivation of the Lorentz transformation, which is used in both Einstein's special relativity and Carmeli's cosmological special relativity theory. The text also provides the mathematical theory of curved space?time geometry, which is necessary to describe both Einstein's general relativity and Carmeli's cosmological general relativity. A comparison between the dynamical and kinematic aspects of the expansion of the universe is made. Comparison is also made between the Friedmann-Robertson-Walker theory and the Carmeli theory. And neither is it necessary to assume the existence of dark matter to correctly describe the expansion of the cosmos. (shrink)

As a discourse genre, statements of purpose are characterized by their occluded status in the academy and by their hybrid nature. Statements of purpose are required in applications for a place in a postgraduate course, and they are requested to obtain information about the academic and professional background and skills of each applicant. A study of the genre’s linguistic and textual features is needed in Spanish to discover and understand writers’ and readers’ perception of this genre. A corpus of 50 (...) motivation letters in Spanish is analyzed here. We study the distinguishing macro- and microtextual features of this particular genre and co-occurrences between both kinds of features. At the macrotextual level, statements of purpose display prototypical rhetorical moves, which can be classified as writers’ moves and readers’ moves. On the microtextual level, modalization resources and discourse markers are discussed. This multiple perspectives analysis of the corpus shows evidence of significant co-occurrences among modalization, discourse markers, and rhetorical moves. Writers’ ideal representations of this discourse genre, which spans the academic and professional fields, can also be deduced. (shrink)

Las teorías clásicas de estratificación social se bao basado en la familia como unidad de estratificación, utilizándose la ocupación del hombre como medida de clase social. Estas teorías fueron criticadas sobre todo desde el feminismo, reclamando la visualización de las mujeres en el análisis de la estratificación social. Este artículo describe el concepto de clase social, debate sobre la medida de la clase social en las mujeres y revisa el impacto de las distintas medidas en las desigualdades en salud según (...) clase social en las mujeres. (shrink)

The therapeutic misconception has been seen as presenting an ethical problem because failure to distinguish the aims of research participation from those receiving ordinary treatment may seriously undermine the informed consent of research subjects. Hence, most theoretical and empirical work on the problems of the therapeutic misconception has been directed to evaluate whether, and to what degree, this confusion invalidates the consent of subjects. We argue here that this focus on the understanding component of informed consent, while important, might be (...) too narrow to capture the ethical complexity of the therapeutic misconception. We show that concerns about misplaced trust and exploitation of such trust are also relevant, and ought to be taken into account, when considering why the therapeutic misconception matters ethically. (shrink)

Although science is our most reliable producer of knowledge, it can also be used to create ignorance, unjustified doubt, and misinformation. In doing so, agnotological practices result not only in epistemic harms but also in social ones. A way to prevent or minimise such harms is to impede these ignorance-producing practices. In this paper, I explore various challenges to such a proposal. I first argue that reliably identifying agnotological practices in a way that permits the prevention of relevant harms is (...) more difficult than it might appear. I focus on an identifying criterion that many find apt for the task: bad faith motives. I then consider an objection—that reliable criteria are unnecessary to successfully address the concerns raised by agnotological strategies—and I show that it fails. I conclude by exploring other ways of conceptualising the problems attributed to agnotological practices. In particular, I challenge the focus on misinformation as the main problem of concern. (shrink)

This article deals with the form and use of reformulation markers in research papers written in English, Spanish and Catalan. Considering the form and frequency of the markers, English papers tend to prefer simple fixed markers and include fewer reformulators than Spanish and Catalan. On the contrary, formal Catalan and Spanish papers include more markers, some of which are complex and allow for some structural variability. As for use, reformulation markers establish dynamic relationships between portions of discourse which can be (...) identified in our corpus with expansion, reduction and permutation. The analysis of the corpus shows that English authors usually reformulate to add more information to the concept, whereas Catalan and Spanish authors reduce the contents or the implicatures of the previous formulation more frequently than English. (shrink)

Para poder encontrar uma base comum de justificação de princípios e normas que,sob condições de um pluralismo social e cultural, pudessem ser publicamente reconhecidos,John Rawls e Jürgen Habermas fazem uma reconstrução do ponto de vista sob o qualé possível fundamentar imparcialmente normas de ação. Mas de acordo com a concepçãohabermasiana de democracia, a legitimidade das normas depende da institucionalização deprocedimentos que promovem a deliberação e aumentam as chances de se alcançardecisões válidas de acordo com o uso público da razão. Esse (...) procedimento se refere à trocadiscursiva de razões na qual os participantes buscam chegar a um acordo somente combase no melhor argumento, ancorando a validade das normas na possibilidade de um acordoracionalmente fundamentado por parte de todos os possíveis concernidos, consideradosparticipantes em discursos racionais. (shrink)

Gender seems to be everywhere in the norms governing our social world: from how to be a good friend and how to walk, to children’s clothes. It is not surprising then that a difficulty in identifying someone’s gender is often a source of discomfort and even anxiety. Numerous theorists, including Judith Butler and Charlotte Witt, have noted that gender is unlike other important social differences, such as professional occupation or religious affiliation. It has a special centrality, ubiquity and importance in (...) social practices. This observation moves us away from the classic philosophical question ‘what is gender?’ towards a more underappreciated one: ‘what is the role of gender’? To answer this question, I introduce the notion of social standing, which refers to our ability to enter into social relations. Social standing distinctions are an important feature of human societies. However, our existing philosophical tools do not adequately capture this notion: it is neither a moral distinction, nor is it reducible to hierarchy. I offer a conception of our entry into social relations as always conditioned by various shared representational assumptions about social subjects. When individuals are anomalous with respect to those assumptions, their social standing is in doubt. This explains important forms of uncommon and peculiar treatment across societies. I argue that forms of social devaluation on the basis of severe and visible disability in our society are central examples of diminished social standing. In our social context, being hard to recognize through the matrix of gender makes one representationally anomalous and imperils one’s social standing. Gender plays a fundamental role because gender legibility is a precondition for full social standing. Gender norms parallel ‘ability norms’ in this respect, linking notions of normalcy in scholarship on gender and in scholarship on disability. Social standing also explains two key phenomena about gender. Firstly, it tells us why our social practices and norms are pervasively gendered. Given the performative and relational nature of gendered positions, this is necessary for constant gender legibility. Secondly, social standing recognition accounts for social anxiety phenomena around gender ambiguity. These phenomena are reactions to anomaly as a threat to our social systems of meaning. In the final part of my dissertation, I consider some political consequences of my view. Understanding this special role of gender allows us to identify a distinct type of backlash to feminist social change that is particularly insidious. It is not driven by the hierarchical investments of the most gender-privileged, but rather by our collective investment in gender as a system of social coordination. I explore 2000s ‘raunch feminism’ to argue for this hypothesis. Gender’s role as a conditioning parameter of social standing puts systematic pressure on all would-be social subjects to be gender legible. This requires that individuals position themselves in recognizably gendered ways within social practices. But when gender differentiation is eroded, this positioning becomes tricky. This gives rise to a disorientation I call ‘meaning vertigo’. Meaning vertigo prompts attempts at reinstating a clear gendered system. In the process, gender equality suffers a serious set-back. To make substantial feminist progress, we must unseat gender from its central position in social domains like sexuality. I suggest that the best way to do this may be by foregrounding other aspects of social identity as systems of social coordination, instead of working on gender directly. (shrink)

En este artículo trabajamos dentro del campo de la música tradicional, vinculándola con la perspectiva de género a través del análisis de los roles establecidos tanto en la tradición como en la actualidad. Para ello establecemos una metodología basada en la realización de entrevistas como medio para suplir la falta de referencias bibliográficas. Nuestros resultados se centran en la continuidad de los roles de género y su distribución a través de relaciones de poder, independientemente de los cambios de contexto acaecidos (...) entre la tradición y la actualidad. Por último reflejaremos el interés actual y las posibilidades didácticas sobre el tema. (shrink)

En este artículo tratamos el “romance do Comandante Moreno” como parte de la música de tradición oral gallega y de la memoria histórica en relación a la Guerra Civil española. Metodológicamente trabajamos con análisis de corte etnomusicológico que se centran en parámetros musicales, literarios y de contexto, además de trabajar con referencias bibliográficas y audiovisuales. Así, nos encontramos con características propias de la música de tradición gallega y una descripción concisa de los hechos, siendo este romance un testigo fidedigno de (...) los asesinatos ocurridos en 1937 y, por ello, un elemento con oportunidades didácticas para la creación de proyectos interdisciplinares. (shrink)

Este trabalho apresenta algumas considerações do pensador italiano Gianni Vattimo acerca da religião na idade contemporânea. O referido filósofo tem como base de suas reflexões a ideia de uma filosofia pós-moderna que se caracteriza pela desconstrução da metafísica da tradição moderna. Nesse sentido, o autor visualiza nas filosofias de Nietzsche e Heidegger a inauguração de uma nova orientação do pensamento ocidental, marcada por esse rompimento com as filosofias totalizantes e pela consideração do ser como resultado das circunstancias eventuais que compõem (...) a experiência existencial. A religião, por sua vez, não acompanhou tal movimento, mas conservou um pensamento marcado ainda pela estrutura da metafísica tradicional, por isso, não se encontra em condições de responder às atuais demandas deste mundo plural. O autor sinaliza para a necessidade da abdicação das estruturas dogmáticas e dos fundamentalismos da religião como meio para a abertura ao diálogo inter-religioso e intercultural. (shrink)

It is argued here that bioethicists might inadvertently be promoting genetic determinism: the idea that genes alone determine human traits and behaviours. Discussions about genetic testing are used to exemplify how they might be doing so. Quite often bioethicists use clinical cases to support particular moral obligations or rights as if these cases were representative of the kind of information we can acquire about human diseases through genetic testing, when they are not. On other occasions, the clinical cases are presented (...) in simplistic ways that portray genetic testing as yielding information more accurate than it actually is. It is concluded that, because of the problematic implications that the ideology of genetic determinism might have for individuals’ wellbeing and for our public policies, bioethicists should be careful to present these issues in ways that do not promote questionable ideas about the causal role of genes in human diseases and behaviours. (shrink)

The lack of public support for climate change policies and refusals to vaccinate children are just two alarming illustrations of the impacts of dissent about scientific claims. Dissent can lead to confusion, false beliefs, and widespread public doubt about highly justified scientific evidence. Even more dangerously, it has begun to corrode the very authority of scientific consensus and knowledge. Deployed aggressively and to political ends, some dissent can intimidate scientists, stymie research, and lead both the public and policymakers to oppose (...) important public policies firmly rooted in science. -/- To criticize dissent is, however, a fraught exercise. Skepticism and fearless debate are key to the scientific process, making it both vital and incredibly difficult to characterize and identify dissent that is problematic in its approach and consequences. Indeed, as de Melo-Martín and Intemann show, the criteria commonly proposed as means of identifying inappropriate dissent are flawed and the strategies generally recommended to tackle such dissent are not only ineffective but could even make the situation worse. -/- The Fight Against Doubt proposes that progress on this front can best be achieved by enhancing the trustworthiness of the scientific community and by being more realistic about the limits of science when it comes to policymaking. It shows that a richer understanding of the context in which science operates is needed to disarm problematic dissent and those who deploy it. This, the authors argue, is the best way forward, rather than diagnosing the many instances of wrong-headed dissent. (shrink)

While various definitions of moral distress have been proposed, some agreement exists that it results from illegitimate constraints in clinical practice affecting healthcare professionals’ moral agency. If we are to reduce moral distress, instruments measuring it should provide relevant information about such illegitimate constraints. Unfortunately, existing instruments fail to do so. We discuss here several shortcomings of major instruments in use: their inability to determine whether reports of moral distress involve an accurate assessment of the requisite clinical and logistical facts (...) in play, whether the distress in question is aptly characterized as moral, and whether the moral distress reported is an appropriate target of elimination. Such failures seriously limit the ability of empirical work on moral distress to foster appropriate change. (shrink)

The argument from inductive risk has been embraced by many as a successful account of the role of values in science that challenges the value-free ideal. We argue that it is not obvious that the argument from inductive risk actually undermines the value-free ideal. This is because the inductive risk argument endorses an assumption held by proponents of the value-free ideal: that contextual values never play an appropriate role in determining evidence. We show that challenging the value-free ideal ultimately requires (...) rejecting this assumption. (shrink)

Philosophers of science, particularly those working on science and values, often talk about the need for science to be socially responsible. However, what this means is not clear. In this paper, we review the contributions of philosophers of science to the debate over socially responsible science and explore the dimensions that a fruitful account of socially responsible science should address. Our review shows that offering a comprehensive account is difficult. We contend that broad calls for socially responsible science that fail (...) to attend to relevant dimensions are not the solution, as they preclude meaningful changes to research institutions and practices. We conclude that narrower, more explicit accounts are more likely to lead to substantive transformation. (shrink)

Em sede de objetivo geral pretende-se elucidar a partir de teóricos decoloniais sobre o neoliberalismo, as justificativas desenvolvimentistas, respondendo a seguinte pergunta de pesquisa: em que medida a concepção neoliberalista, abarcadas pelo Estado Brasileiro, configurou a atmosfera de conflitos socioambientais que se apresenta na atualidade da Amazônia brasileira? O método utilizado é o exploratório-indutivo, com estudo bibliográfico. Como principais resultados, tem-se na literatura de pesquisa da Amazônia sobre megaprojetos da (COSTA,2012; ACEVEDO MARÍN, 2017; Marin e Maia, 2018; LOUREIRO,2010;SILVA,2020, 2022) a (...) observância da deterioração das bases sociais nos territórios dos municípios afetados, e esta decorre da ausência de um planejamento mínimo para as pequenas cidades que sofrem com a migração, aumento brusco da população e ausência de infraestrutura mínima para a sobrevivência digna, alterando de forma negativa seu modo de vida. (shrink)

Resumo: Este artigo possui o propósito de colocar à prova a interpretação heideggeriana acerca das noções nietzschianas de vontade de potência e eterno retorno do mesmo. Para levar a cabo o referido objetivo, de início, apresentaremos o argumento desenvolvido por Heidegger nas suas preleções e textos sobre Nietzsche, editadas e publicadas em dois volumes, no ano de 1961. Num segundo momento, examinaremos, em Nietzsche: sua filosofia dos antagonismos e os antagonismos de sua filosofia, a resposta que Müller-Lauter ofereceu à crítica (...) de Heidegger. Por ocasião deste exame, tentaremos salientar que haveria certa insuficiência na réplica deste comentador. Por fim, iremos recorrer aos textos do próprio Nietzsche para tentar promover uma confrontação com a interpretação do Filósofo da Floresta Negra.: This article has the purpose to challenge the Heideggerian interpretation of Nietzsche’s notions of will to power and eternal recurrence. To carry out this objective, we will first present the argument developed by Heidegger in his lectures and texts on Nietzsche, edited and published in two volumes, in 1961. In a second moment, we will examine, in Nietzsche: his philosophy of antagonisms and the antagonisms of his philosophy, the answer that Müller-Lauter offered to Heidegger’s criticism. On the occasion of this examination, we will try to point out that there would be a certain insufficiency in this commenter’s reply. Finally, we will resort to Nietzsche’s own texts to try to promote a confrontation with the Black Forest Philosopher’s interpretation. (shrink)

The relation between noise and disturbance is investigated within the general framework of Galois connections. Within this framework, we introduce the notion of leak of information, mathematically defined as one of the two closure maps arising from the observable-channel compatibility relation. We provide a physical interpretation for it, and we give a comparison with the analogous closure maps associated with joint measurability and simulability for quantum observables.

Reprogenetic technologies, which combine the power of reproductive techniques with the tools of genetic science and technology, promise prospective parents a remarkable degree of control to pick and choose the likely characteristics of their offspring. Not only can they select embryos with or without particular genetically-related diseases and disabilities but also choose embryos with non-disease related traits such as sex. -/- Prominent authors such as Agar, Buchanan, DeGrazia, Green, Harris, Robertson, Savulescu, and Silver have flocked to the banner of reprogenetics. (...) For them, increased reproductive choice and reduced suffering through the elimination of genetic disease and disability are just the first step. They advocate use of these technologies to create beings who enjoy longer and healthier lives, possess greater intellectual capacities, and are capable of more refined emotional experiences. Indeed, Harris and Savulescu in particular take reprogenetic technologies to be so valuable to human beings that they have insisted that their use is not only morally permissible but morally required. -/- Rethinking Reprogenetics challenges this mainstream view with a contextualised, gender-attentive philosophical perspective. De Melo-Martín demonstrates that you do not have to be a Luddite, social conservative, or religious zealot to resist the siren song of reprogenetics. Pointing out the flawed nature of the arguments put forward by the technologies' proponents, Rethinking Reprogenetics reveals the problematic nature of the assumptions underpinning current evaluations of these technologies and offers a framework for a more critical and skeptical assessment. (shrink)

While studies have investigated the moral issue associated with downsizing, little research attention has been directed to leaders’ behaviors that result in organizational decline and eventually lead them to make a downsizing decision. This study tests a sequence-based model to assess (1) the impact of leaders’ risk-aversion and self-centeredness on organizational decline and downsizing and (2) the impact of organizational and industry decline on organizational downsizing. We address a gap in the decline literature that has only implicitly alluded to leadership (...) characteristics as forerunners of decline. Data collected from 85 firms indicate that both leadership risk-aversion and self-centeredness are significantly related to organizational decline. This results in intensified organizational downsizing. However, industry decline affects downsizing more significantly. (shrink)

A new reprogenetic technology, mitochondrial replacement, is making its appearance and, unsurprisingly given its promise to wash off our earthly stains --or at least the scourges of sexual reproduction--, John Harris finds only reasons to celebrate this new scientific feat.1 In fact, he finds mitochondrial replacement techniques (MRTs) so “unreservedly welcome” that he believes those who reject them suffer from “a large degree of desperation and not a little callousness.”2 Believing myself to be neither desperate nor callous, but finding myself (...) also no closer at all – not even after reading his article—to following Harris in welcoming these technologies wholeheartedly, it seems appropriate to respond. (shrink)

The aim of this paper is to show that critics of biological explanations of human nature may be granting too much to those who propose such explanations when they argue that the truth of genetic determinism implies an end to critical evaluation and reform of our social institutions. This is the case because when we argue that biological determinism exempts us from social critique we are erroneously presupposing that our social values, practices, and institutions have nothing to do with what (...) makes biological explanations troublesome. My argument is that what constitutes a problem for those who are concerned with social justice is not the fact that particular behaviours may be genetically determined, but the fact that our value system and social institutions create the conditions that make such behaviours problematic. Thus, I will argue that even if genetic determinism were correct, the requirement of assessing and transforming our social practices and institutions would be far from superfluous. Biology is rarely destiny for human beings and the institutions they create. (shrink)

Because of the important benefits that biomedical research offers to humans, some have argued that people have a general moral obligation to participate in research. Although the defense of such a putative moral duty has raised controversy, few scholars, on either side of the debate, have attended to the social context in which research takes place and where such an obligation will be discharged. By reflecting on the social context in which a presumed duty to participate in research will obtain, (...) this article shows that decontextualized discussions of this putative moral obligation are problematic. (shrink)

Many have argued that allowing and encouraging public avenues for dissent and critical evaluation of scientific research is a necessary condition for promoting the objectivity of scientific communities and advancing scientific knowledge . The history of science reveals many cases where an existing scientific consensus was later shown to be wrong . Dissent plays a crucial role in uncovering potential problems and limitations of consensus views. Thus, many have argued that scientific communities ought to increase opportunities for dissenting views to (...) be heard and taken seriously. Such opportunities are necessary for both limiting the influence .. (shrink)

ABSTRACT Regarding an already consolidated tradition in discourse studies in Latin America, with featured importance in graduate programs in the field of Linguistics and a busy calendar of annual events in the field, it is possible to say that there is considerable amount of imported knowledge being applied and very little creativity in local theoretical or methodological production. Discourse studies are generally divided into two main schools of thought: French discourse analysis and English discourse analysis. The denomination that represents these (...) lines of discourse sheds light on the colonized nature of the field. This colonization of discourse knowledge, in more immediate terms, indicates considerable effort applied to theories viewed as universally valid and scarcely modified for the situated context, but it also shows the implications of being a discourse analyst in a subordinate space within the academic field – a place where we, Latin American discourse researchers, occupy compared to our colleagues in the global North – and about contemplating theoretical alternatives. The decolonizing effort of this field should thus be directed to three converging paths: decolonizing knowledge, in the sense of criticizing theories and methods while understanding that there is no universal knowledge; decolonizing the power of the creative act of overcoming this universalizing knowledge, which means accepting the force of local methodological and theoretical production, especially by constantly questioning disciplinary separation and its impositions; and decolonizing the being, making strategic use of this paradoxical space, which contains the possibilities of knowledge communion, also including common knowledge. All this should have an impact on graduate-level education in discursive studies, in a virtuous cycle between consciousness, criticism and creativity. (shrink)

Recently, some have proposed moral bioenhancement as a solution to the serious moral evils that humans face. Seemingly disillusioned with traditional methods of moral education, proponents of bioenhancement believe that we should pursue and apply biotechnological means to morally enhance human beings. Such proposal has generated a lively debate about the permissibility of moral bioenhancement. We argue here that such debate is specious. The claim that moral bioenhancement is a solution - whether permissible or not - to the serious moral (...) problems that affect human beings is based on several problematic framing assumptions. We evaluate here three of such assumptions: the first rests on a contested understanding of morality, the second consist in a mistaken conception of human moral problems, and the third relates to problematic presuppositions grounding the interpretation of existent scientific evidence presented to defend moral bioenhancement. Once these framing assumptions are identified and critically evaluated, it becomes clear that the moral bioenhancement debate is misguided. (shrink)

An increase in global violence has forced the displacement of more than 70 million people, including 26 million refugees and 3.5 asylum seekers. Refugees and asylum seekers face serious socioeconomic and healthcare barriers and are therefore particularly vulnerable to physical and mental health risks, which are sometimes exacerbated by immigration policies and local social discriminations. Calls for a strong evidence base for humanitarian action have encouraged conducting research to address the barriers and needs of refugees and asylum seekers. Given the (...) role of epigenetics factors to mediate the effect of psychological and environmental exposures, epigenetic modifications have been used as biomarkers for life adversity and disease states. Therefore, epigenetic research can be potentially beneficial to address some of the issues associated with refugees and asylum seekers. Here, we review the value of previous and ongoing epigenetic studies with traumatized populations, explore some of the ethical challenges associated with epigenetic research with refugees and asylees and offer suggestions to address or mitigate some of these challenges. Researchers have an ethical responsibility to implement strategies to minimize the harms and maximize the short and long-term benefits to refugee and asylee participants. (shrink)

It might come as a surprise to many that Spain, a country with a strong Catholic tradition that officially banned contraceptive technologies until 1978, has some of the most liberal regulations in assisted reproduction in the world. Law No. 35/1988 was one of the first and most detailed acts of legislation undertaken on the subject of assisted-conception procedures. Indeed, not only did the law permit research on nonviable embryos, it made assisted reproductive technologies available to any woman, whether married or (...) not, through the national healthcare system. (shrink)

This paper reviews recent applications of the Einstein- Rosen type space-times to some problems of modern cosmology. An extensive overview of inhomogeneous universes filled with gravitational waves, classical fields, and relativistic fluids is given. The dynamics of primordial inhomogeneities, such as gravitational and matter waves and shocks, their interactions, and the global evolution of the models considered, is presented in detail.

Objective: To explore the relationship between the presentation of suffering and support for euthanasia in the British news media.Method: Data was retrieved by searching the British newspaper database LexisNexis from 1996 to 2000. Twenty-nine articles covering three cases of family assisted suicide were found. Presentations of suffering were analysed employing Heidegger’s distinction between technological ordering and poetic revealing.Findings: With few exceptions, the press constructed the complex terrain of FAS as an orderly or orderable performance. This was enabled by containing the (...) contradictions of FAS through a number of journalistic strategies: treating degenerative dying as an aberrant condition, smoothing over botched attempts, locating the object of ethical evaluation in persons, not contexts, abbreviating the decision making process, constructing community consensus and marginalising opposing views.Conclusion: The findings of this study support the view that news reporting of FAS is not neutral or inconsequential. In particular, those reports presenting FAS as an orderly, rational performance were biased in favor of technical solutions by way of the legalisation of euthanasia and/or the involvement of medical professionals. In contrast, while news reports sensitive to contradiction did not necessarily oppose euthanasia, they were less inclined to overtly support technical solutions, recognising the importance of a trial to address the complexity of FAS. (shrink)

A 27 de Outubro comemora a Igreja os santos Vicente, Sabina e Cristeta. Conhecidos como os Mártires de Évora, a eles foi erguida no século XV na cidade alentejana, no local onde se dizia terem nascido, uma ermida, ampliada no século seguinte já à conta do Município, que ainda hoje mantém a propriedade. Era-lhes também dedicada, na nave direita da Sé de Évora, uma das capelas laterais desaparecidas após a intervenção da Direcção-geral dos Monumentos Nacionais na década de 40 do (...) século XX.A naturalidade dos santos irmãos, embora assumida pelos eborenses, sobretudo após as argumentações de André de Resende, mantém-se de difícil comprovação, sendo por muitos autores atribuída não à cidade alentejana, mas a Talavera de la Reina (Toledo). Martirizados no século IV na cidade espanhola de Ávila, São Vicente e suas irmãs aí foram sepultados e em sua honra construída uma grande basílica, expressão do reconhecimento e devoção aos chamados Santos de Ávila. Da descrição legendária das suas vidas e martírios decorre a respectiva iconografia. Tudo aconteceu em tempo do governador Daciano, enviado à Península Ibérica pelo imperador Diocleciano, que promoveu uma intensa perseguição aos cristãos. O jovem Vicente, que poderia servir de incentivo aos pagãos pelo seu comportamento cristão exemplar, foi chamado à presença de Daciano que o pretendeu convencer a sacrificar a Júpiter. Perante a recusa, mandou conduzi-lo a uma das praças da cidade e obrigá-lo a executar o sacrifício ou a ser morto. Colocado sobre o altar de pedra, esta tornou-se mole ficando impressas as suas pegadas, prodígio que deixou todos os presentes admirados e convencidos de que o Deus de Vicente era o verdadeiro. Tal facto levou Daciano a suspender temporariamente a condenação, tendo mandado o jovem para a prisão, onde foi visitado por suas irmãs Sabina e Cristeta. Convencido por elas a fugir, foram os três perseguidos e apanhados em Ávila, sendo sujeitos a vários suplícios e finalmente partidas as suas cabeças com paus e pedras. Os seus corpos foram deixados ao abandono para pasto dos animais; todavia apareceu uma enorme serpente que os protegia e que se enroscou à volta de um judeu rico da cidade que pretendia desprezar os santos despojos e que só se viu livre da serpente quando prometeu converter-se ao cristianismo. Os mártires acabaram por ser sepultados pelos cristãos, espalhando-se rapidamente a sua devoção.O repertório iconográfico, muito reduzido no que concerne a arquidiocese de Évora, confina--se praticamente à igreja de São Vicente, onde se encontra a pedra na qual supostamente terá deixado as marcas dos seus pés; alguns painéis do retábulo-mor representam “São Vicente conduzido perante o altar de Júpiter”, “São Vicente na prisão e a visita de suas irmãs”, “o martírio de São Vicente”, e “o judeu impedido pela serpente de ultrajar os corpos dos três santos”. A representação escultórica segue muito de perto a de Ávila. Todos trazem a palma do martírio, São Vicente um livro aberto ou semicerrado. As irmãs Sabina e Cristeta apresentam uma iconografia pouco definida, sendo por vezes necessário, quando não estão inseridas no contexto duma cena conhecida, que o nome lhes seja sotoposto para fácil identificação. (shrink)

We present a mathematically precise derivation of some generalized orthogonality relations for the discrete series representations of SU(1,1). These orthogonality relations are applied to derive tomographical reconstruction formulas. Their physical interpretation is also discussed.