A popular and plausible response against Laudan's “pessimistic induction” has been what I call “preservative realism,” which argues that there have actually been enough elements of scientific knowledge preserved through major theory‐change processes, and that those elements can be accepted realistically. This paper argues against preservative realism, in particular through a critical review of Psillos's argument concerning the case of the caloric theory of heat. Contrary to his argument, the historical record of the caloric theory reveals that beliefs about (...) the properties of material caloric, rejected by subsequent theories, were indeed central to the successes of the caloric theory. Therefore caloric remains a favorable case for Laudan. Further, I argue that even confirmed cases of preservation do not warrant an inference to truth. (shrink)

What can we conclude from a mere handful of case studies? The field of HPS has witnessed too many hasty philosophical generalizations based on a small number of conveniently chosen case studies. One might even speculate that dissatisfaction with such methodological shoddiness contributed decisively to a widespread disillusionment with the whole HPS enterprise. Without specifying clear mechanisms for history-philosophy interaction, we are condemned to either making unwarranted generalizations from history, or writing entirely "local" histories with no bearing on an overall (...) understanding of the scientific process. I propose a move away from the habit of viewing historical cases as an inductive evidence-base for general philosophical theses. The relation between historical and philosophical studies should not be seen as one between the particular and the general, but as a relation between the concrete and the abstract. An abstract framework is necessary for telling any concrete story at all. In this paper I explore how doing concrete history can help our abstract philosophizing. In the absence of ready-made philosophical concepts appropriate for understanding a given historical episode, the historian is compelled to craft new abstract philosophical concepts. Therefore, history-writing can be a very effective method of philosophical discovery. I will illustrate these claims through a discussion of two investigations in HPS from my own recent and current work: (1) temperature measurement and epistemic iteration; (2)constitution and laboratory practices in the Chemical Revolution. (This will also raise, and solve, a problem of reflexivity: how can we use case studies to show how to go beyond case studies?). (shrink)

Both children and adults predict the content of upcoming language, suggesting that prediction is useful for learning as well as processing. We present an alternative model which can explain prediction behaviour as a by-product of language learning. We suggest that a consideration of language acquisition places important constraints on Pickering & Garrod's (P&G's) theory.

We argue against the common view that it is impossible to give a causal account of the distant correlations that are revealed in EPR-type experiments. We take a realistic attitude about quantum mechanics which implies a willingness to modify our familiar concepts according to its teachings. We object to the argument that the violation of factorizability in EPR rules out causal accounts, since such an argument is at best based on the desire to retain a classical description of nature that (...) consists of processes that are continuous in space and time. We also do not think special relativity prohibits the superluminal propagation of causes in EPR, for the phenomenon of quantum measurement may very well fall outside the domain of application of special relativity. It is possible to give causal accounts of EPR as long as we are willing to take quantum mechanics seriously, and we offer two such accounts. (shrink)

For Pyun, Minjung theology is a "religion-neglect" and indigenization theology or han philosophy is "politics-neglect." However, he conceded that ...

The direct use of a physical law for the purpose of measurement creates a problem of circularity: the law needs to be empirically tested in order to ensure the reliability of measurement, but the testing requires that we already know the value of the quantity to be measured. This problem is discussed through some detailed examples of energy measurements in quantum physics; three major methods are analyzed in their interrelation, with a focus on the method of “material retardation.” It seems (...) that the only reasonable solution is to establish the law needed for the measurement by relying on an alternate method of measurement. This solution is also circular, since it amounts to letting different measurement methods justify each other. However, this circularity can be fruitful for the process of concept building; meaning can be created in a web of interconnected measurement methods. (shrink)

Information processing in neural systems can be described and analysed at multiple spatiotemporal scales. Generally, information at lower levels is more fine-grained but can be coarse-grained at higher levels. However, only information processed at specific scales of coarse-graining appears to be available for conscious awareness. We do not have direct experience of information available at the scale of individual neurons, which is noisy and highly stochastic. Neither do we have experience of more macro-scale interactions, such as interpersonal communications. Neurophysiological evidence (...) suggests that conscious experiences co-vary with information encoded in coarse-grained neural states such as the firing pattern of a population of neurons. In this article, we introduce a new informational theory of consciousness: Information Closure Theory of Consciousness (ICT). We hypothesise that conscious processes are processes which form non-trivial informational closure (NTIC) with respect to the environment at certain coarse-grained scales. This hypothesis implies that conscious experience is confined due to informational closure from conscious processing to other coarse-grained scales. ICT proposes new quantitative definitions of both conscious content and conscious level. With the parsimonious definitions and a hypothesise, ICT provides explanations and predictions of various phenomena associated with consciousness. The implications of ICT naturally reconcile issues in many existing theories of consciousness and provides explanations for many of our intuitions about consciousness. Most importantly, ICT demonstrates that information can be the common language between consciousness and physical reality. (shrink)

We argue that the meaning of smiles is interpreted from physical/contextual cues, and simulation may simply reinforce the information derived from these cues. We suggest that, contrary to the claim of the SIMS model, positive and negative smiles may invoke similar simulation processes. Finally, we provide alternative explanations for the role of eye contact in the processing of smiles.

The closed-off management of the university during coronavirus disease 2019 may be associated with an elevated odds of psychological and behavioral issues among college students. We aimed to use the stress-process model to explore the potential mechanisms for this phenomenon. A total of 924 college students were recruited via posters, peer referrals, and class attendance. Among them, 82 were probable depression, 190 were probable anxiety, and 69 were internet addiction. Parallel mediation was used to test this theoretical model. For (...) personal resources, the perceived risk of COVID-19 was positively associated with psychological distress via negative coping style and internet addiction via negative coping style or self-esteem. For social resources, the perceived risk of COVID-19 was positively associated with psychological distress and internet addiction via roommate relationships. Negative coping styles and roommate relationships are possible psychological mechanisms linking the perceived risk of COVID-19, psychological distress, and internet addiction. (shrink)

Within a Complex Dynamic Systems Theory framework, this longitudinal qualitative study explored the complex patterns and identified the degree of variability in three learners’ developmental process. Learners’ listening performance was tracked and examined every 6 weeks, followed by retrospective interviews and self-reflections every 7 weeks over the 43-month span. A series of CDST techniques were adopted for data analysis, including using min–max graphs to trace the minimum and maximum scores on the EFL learners’ listening developmental indices over time. Monte-Carlo (...) and Loess smoothing analyses were applied to gauge for degrees of variability. The results suggest that: Min–max graphs and smoothed Loess curves depict flux developmental processes of learners’ L2 listening; learners differed from each other in the degree of inter-individual variability in their listening developmental trajectory; and occurrence of unanticipated patterns confirm that learners demonstrated personalized intra-individual variability within their unique listening developmental process. Results indicate that variability is a pattern characteristic of CDST both between and within individuals, and inform us about how Chinese EFL listeners’ language develops. We conclude by discussing the implications for researchers and practitioners who are concerned with learners’ developmental trajectories and unexpected changing patterns in the process of foreign language learning. (shrink)

The importance of value-based leadership such as authentic, ethical, and servant leadership is inconspicuous. However, the benefits of these leadership approaches are often only explained through the behaviors of their followers. As such, limited research has communicated the leader’s motivation for pursuing such leadership behavior, resulting in such discourse to escape theorizing. We draw upon role theory and paid attention to the role of higher-level management (leadership) through the trickle-down model to underline their importance in the organization. We then expand (...) this role theory framework by synthesizing research to explain the emergence of value-based leadership behavior at the frontline of management. In doing so, we aim to provide a stronger explanation of the emergence of value-based leadership in organizations. We conclude this analysis by guiding future research in the form of propositions to investigate the psychological process and organizational factors to empirically examine the proposed role framework. (shrink)

In this paper, a two-level green supply chain composed of a manufacturer and a retailer is taken as the background. Considering the consumer’s double consumption preference and the manufacturer’s green product R&D investment, a differential game model of the green supply chain under the government cost subsidy strategy is constructed. Firstly, the equilibrium points of the system are solved and their stability is discussed and analyzed. Secondly, the dynamic evolution process of Nash equilibrium under the parameters of green degree, (...) green preference coefficient, retail channel preference coefficient, coefficient of the sensitivity of price, and adjustment speed are described by numerical simulation. The results show that the two ways of a system entering chaos are Flip bifurcation and N-S bifurcation, respectively, by 2D bifurcation graph, and it is also verified in 1D bifurcation diagram. When the bifurcation parameters are small, the system maintains Nash equilibrium stability. If the green degree of products is increased, the green preference coefficient will also increase; on the contrary, the retail preference coefficient will decrease. Research and development cost subsidy policy can effectively improve the green degree of products and increase the sales volume of products, so as to improve the profit of supply chain members. (shrink)

The theory of Yin and Yang and the Five Movements is based on the concept of cyclical time. This ancient cosmological model postulates that when expansive energy reaches its apex, mutual life-saving relations prevail over mutually conflictual societal relations, and that this cycle repeats. This cosmic change model was first presented in ancient Korea and China, by Hado-Nakseo, via numerological configurations and symbols. The Hado diagram was drawn by a Korean thinker, Bok-hui (?-BC3413), also known as Great Empeor Fuzi (...) or Fu-hsi in Chinese mythology. Confucius once recognized him as the father of I Ching (Book of Changes). The Eastern cosmology was further developed by King Wen and the Duke of Zhou and compiled by Confucius (BC551?-BC 479) during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. Nakseo diagram was first discovered by the famous King Wu of China, who founded the Xia dynasty. In contrast to the harmonious mathematical matrix of Hado, Nakseo symbolizes the conflictual and dynamic expansion of the universe. In the Nakseo world, masculine energy is structurally greater than feminine energy, continuously breeding disequilibrium and conflict. The Yin and Yang model suggests that everything in the universe exists as a combination of opposing dynamics. At any given time, one of the two dynamics grows while the other declines. When Yang energy is at its peak, Yin energy is at its nadir; then, a reversal occurs; and envetually the whole cycle repeats. It would thus be logical to express that when conflictual energy has reached its apex harmonious energy begins to wax. It can be argued that since the state of disequilibrium within the universe represented by Nakseo cannot indefinitely sustain its dynamic of expansion, harmonious international relationships eventually come to pervade the world. This argument represents a unique applicationof the concept of Yin and Yang logic to international arms race and arms control. This cyclical dynamics can explain the long-term process of arms build-up followed by eventually by nuclear standoff and subsequent nuclear arms control regimes as NPT, CTBT, MTCR, SALT, START, PSI and etc. One can boldly claim that Yin and Yang logic offers a clue to creating a theory of structural peace by discovering a constructivist element in the model. The esoteric matrixes of ancient Korea and China thus provide humanity with an new vision for nuclear disarmament and a sustainable peace. (shrink)

I present philosophical reflections arising from a study of laboratory measurement methods in quantum physics. More specifically, I investigate three major methods of measuring kinetic energy, from the period during which quantum physics was developed and came to be widely accepted: magnetic deflection, electrostatic retardation, and material retardation. The historical material serves as a provocative focus at which many broader philosophical topics come together: the empirical testing of theories, the universal validity of physical laws, the interaction between theoretical and experimental (...) traditions, incommensurability, meaning and definition, realism and instrumentalism, the process of scientific change, and the unity of science. ;I begin the discussion by noting that the measurement methods in question were based on classical theory. Chapter 1 asks how the classical reasoning in measurements can be interpreted in quantum-mechanical terms, and concludes that only a "surface interpretation" is possible, since the classical methods involve many assumptions that conflict with quantum mechanics. Chapter 2 attempts to give a quantitative assessment of the inaccuracies that might result from using the "incorrect" classical theory in the design of measurement methods. Chapter 3 asks how we can know whether a measurement method is reliable, and investigates how different methods of measuring the same quantity can ground each other; this mutual grounding is also seen as a process of concept-formation. Chapter 4 argues that the customary quantum theories of measurement do not describe actual measurements well, and originate from an overly literal interpretation of the operator formalism of quantum mechanics. Chapter 5 examines how the classically reasoned measurement methods were incorporated into quantum physics; that history suggests a model of scientific development which can introduce fundamental changes while preserving much continuity with the old tradition. Chapter 6 develops a philosophical framework which allows a synthetic view of the concrete results presented in the earlier chapters: my work is an attempt to establish "conceptual coherence," creating and clarifying noncontradictory connections among the various conceptual activities that make up quantum physics. (shrink)

Although stressful life events have been shown to be a key risk factor for adolescent NSSI, the potential mediators and moderators of this relationship are unclear. Based on the social development theory and the organism-environment interaction model, we tested whether the link between stressful life events and adolescent NSSI was explained in part by deviant peer affiliation, and whether this process was buffered by gratitude. Chinese adolescents anonymously completed questionnaires to assess the study variables. The present study demonstrated that (...) stressful life events was linked to NSSI in part because of deviant peer affiliation, and high gratitude was a key protective factor to buffer this indirect effect. Teaching gratitude may be a helpful component of prevention and intervention programs to reduce adolescent NSSI. (shrink)

This article reflects on important terms and concepts that constitute the cosmology of the Yijing: ji, tian, yin-yang , and the correlative aspects of temporality. These are familiar terms from the Yijing as well as other philosophical texts from ancient China. It begins with a comparative inquiry into Chinese and Greek attitudes toward time and then explores the related philosophical consequences. Although the ancient Chinese view of the world as temporal, processual, and relational may be found to be in contrast (...) with Greek substance-oriented philosophy, it is argued here that we should revise some commonly accepted interpretations of Chinese terms. Without adequate reflection on temporality and process, many important terms may be misconstrued as atemporal and substance-oriented, which would be alien to the sensibilities of East Asian traditions. Thus, it is attempted here to gauge the adequacy of the prominent existing interpretations of these terms and ideas while giving an account of how such interpretations may be revised to better recognize the role of temporality and process. Specifically, it is proposed that the interpretations given here accord best with a conception of time as a spiral trajectory, as opposed to either the cyclic or linear conceptions of time usually considered dominant in the Yijing and ancient Chinese philosophy. (shrink)

We compare the predictions of two important proposals made by De Neys to findings in the anchoring effect literature. Evidence for an anchoring-and-adjustment heuristic supports his proposal that system 1 and system 2 are non-exclusive. The relationship between psychophysical noise and anchoring effects, however, challenges his proposal that epistemic uncertainty determines the involvement of system 2 corrective processes in judgment.

The concept of a public energy field is central to public administration discourse theory. Its main idea is the facilitation of dialog between government and the public, on the basis of equality, to construct a public policy consensus. In contemporary society, social media provides new and distinctive channels for such interactions. Social media can, therefore, be conceived as a novel type of public energy field. Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, interactions between the Chinese government and the Chinese public (...) have been acutely reflected through WeChat official accounts. This article focuses on the COVID-19 pandemic and, through social media text mining and processing, analyzes the text topics and emotions covered. Basic principles of discourse validity, regarding this public energy field and two guarantee conditions, are applied to analyze the information exchange and dialog between the government and the public on COVID-19 through WeChat official accounts. It was found that the government’s WeChat official accounts have not yet formed a harmonious dialog space to balance the public energy field, and that the interaction between the government and the public has to be improved. The government’s social discourse had a significant influence on the public’s social discourse. Using text analysis, the study found that the government has published information on 11 topics related to the prevention and control of the pandemic. It can be argued that the public energy field presented by both the government and the public effectively portrayed and reflected the actual situation of the pandemic in China. (shrink)

Literature is a reflection of a certain era of social life, in particular in the creative process of the natural landscape and cultural environment, and through the writer's aesthetic and its profound impact. Sui and Tang dynasties ago, China has experienced 300 years of confrontation between north and south during the regime of political division and military confrontation, the literature in the isolated north and south of the closed state, the two sides to strengthen and develop their aesthetic characteristics (...) of this region: North Chongyang just of the gas, the South is still feminine style. Sui Zuo short years, and by the Tang Dynasty to consolidate and develop the political unification, so that the north and south to strengthen the development of literature and their two aesthetic fashion is becoming integrated. In general, the development of Tang poetry to melt north and south sides of the two United States in one extreme, to energetic quality is actually a bone to soft Wanhua Li for their skin, the two complement each dependent, the formation of a Tang Dynasty theme of sound. (shrink)

Customary discussions of quantum measurements are unrealistic, in the sense that they do not reflect what happens in most actual measurements even under ideal circumstances. Even theories of measurement which discard the projection postulate tend to retain two unrealistic assumptions of the von Neumann theory: that a measurement consists of a single physical interaction, and that the topic of every measurement is information wholly contained in the quantum state of the object of measurement. I suggest that these unrealistic assumptions originate (...) from an overly literal interpretation of the operator formalism of quantum mechanics. I also suggest, following Park, that some issues can be clarified by distinguishing the sense of the term ''''measurement'''' occurring in the quantum-mechanical operator formalism, and the sense of ''''measurement'''' that refers to actual processes of gaining information about the physical world. (shrink)

The aim of the inquiry is to interpret the Yijing consistently in terms of time and creativity. In the course of analysis of cosmology, changes and constancy, the self and community in the Yijing, this inquiry suggests that time and creativity play a significant role to understand the whole text. ;In the Yijing, change and time are the ultimate facts of the world. As there is no external agency, every being is in the middle of self-realizing process. It (...) is an one-world view in the sense that myriad things generate and produce in the same field. They are unique and self-determining in that they have freedom to make a decision to construct themselves in their own way. ;There are various kinds of term for change and constancy in the Yijing. While bian tends to be employed as discontinuous breakthrough from one to another, tong refers to continuity. The compound biantong, a dynamic concept of concord of the opposites, seems to signify effective change under the changing environment and "to hit the mark timely." ;Constancy in the Yijing is full blossom of realization and unbounded movement of dao. ;In the Yijing, instead of defining general quality of human being, human being is characterized as temporally self-creative. Image and word play a reinforcing role in the creative process of person-making. Images and words point out the experience of perceiver to orient oneself to the goal of maximizing one's potency. This process suggests a magnifying process of the person. ;Time and creativity play a primary role in making many kinds of interpersonal relationships. Interweaving interpersonal relationship is serial and continuous. At the same time, relationships are discontinuous in that they do not repeat and duplicate what the initiators achieved. The process formulates seamless network of persons. (shrink)

The appearance of mass media and a versatile medium of videos can serve the convenience and instructive information for children; on the other hand, it could abet them in implicit image consumption. Now is the time for kids' to be in need of thinking power which enables them to make a choice, applications andcriticism of information within such visual cultures. In spite of these social changes, the realities are that our curriculum still doesn't meet a learner's demand properly. This research, (...) in this context, is aimed at looking out on the currently implemented art appreciation learning process in a critical fashion, and also aimed at suggesting a plan for visual culture learning by applying the philosophy program for kids as a new alternative. The purpose of such education is toenhance the capability to solve a variety of problems they are facing in the course of daily life by reflecting their matter of concern in a curriculum. What we have to pay attention to in visual culture learning is 'visual literacy.' Such an interpretative faculty of a critical reading of images is a must especially when kids should make a judgment of value hidden in images in their daily events, make an analysis of an ideological message and make an information-oriented decision. Therefore, learners have to enrich their higher-order thinking power as well as critical thinking faculty in modern society. If there is no objection to these social surroundings, it is quite natural that philosophy education, which forms a base of a higher-order thinking for children should be handled significantly at school. (shrink)

Do sensory measurements deserve the label of “measurement”? We argue that they do. They fit with an epistemological view of measurement held in current philosophy of science, and they face the same kinds of epistemological challenges as physical measurements do: the problem of coordination and the problem of standardization. These problems are addressed through the process of “epistemic iteration,” for all measurements. We also argue for distinguishing the problem of standardization from the problem of coordination. To exemplify our claims, (...) we draw on olfactory performance tests, especially studies linking olfactory decline to neurodegenerative disorders. (shrink)

This study utilizes structural equation modeling (SEM) to explore the positive effect of corporate environmental ethics on competitive advantage in the Taiwanese manufacturing industry via the mediator: green innovation performance. This study divides green innovation into green product innovation and green process innovation. The empirical results show that corporate environmental ethics positively affects green product innovation and green process innovation. In addition, this study verifies that green product innovation mediates the positive relationship between corporate environmental ethics and competitive (...) advantage, but green process innovation does not. Therefore, corporate environmental ethics can not only affect competitive advantage directly, but also influence it indirectly via green product innovation in the Taiwanese manufacturing industry. Taiwanese manufacturing companies can increase their corporate environmental ethics and green product innovation to enhance their competitive advantages. (shrink)

In this article, it is argued that Ch'oe Han-gi (1803-1877), a Korean Confucian scholar from the late Chosŏn, can be credited with finding the full philosophical significance of the notion of experience (kyŏnghŏm). At the same time, his philosophy of experience can be interpreted adequately in the context of not British empiricist but Confucian philosophical assumptions. There is both continuity and discontinuity in Ch'oe's relation to Confucian tradition. Unlike the Confucian traditionalist, he admitted that inherited knowledge and practice are potentially (...) fallible. Confucian tradition, though still reliable, becomes less important than the process of the world itself, in whose flux all experience must be repeatedly tested. For Ch'oe, humans imbued with configurative energy and with their capability for correlative thinking become skilled in experiencing the world directly without absolute dependence on past Confucian traditions. (shrink)

An interesting case of the complex interaction between theory and experiment can be found in many experiments in quantum physics employing classical reasoning. It is expected that this practice would lead to quantitative inaccuracy, unless the measurements' results were averaged. Whether or not this inaccuracy is significant depends critically on the details of the particular experimental situation. The example of Millikan's photoelectric experiment, in which he obtained a precise value of Planck's constant, provides a good case for illustrating the (...) class='Hi'>process of estimating the inaccuracy resulting from the classical-quantum discrepancy. In the case of Millikan's experiment, it seems that a significant inaccuracy was avoided because of fortunate coincidences. In general, in the absence of a careful analysis, it is impossible to say whether the use of classical reasoning interferes with the accuracy of a quantum-physical experiment. (shrink)

Axon regeneration is a conserved process across the animal kingdom. Recent studies using the soil worm Caenorhabditis elegans as a model system revealed that machineries regulating engulfment of dying cells also control axon regeneration and axon debris removal. In this review, the relationships between the engulfment machinery and the biological processes triggered by axon injury and subsequent axon regeneration drawn from divergent views are examined. In one study, it is found that engulfing cells directly promote axon regeneration. In this (...) context, CED‐1 (Drosophila Draper/mouse MEGF10), an engulfment protein expressed on the surface of engulfing cells, functions as a receptor for axon debris removal and as an adhesion molecule for axon regeneration. In other studies, it is shown that those engulfment genes, previously known to function within the engulfing cells for cell corpse removal, can have a cell‐autonomous “non‐engulfing cell” role in axon regeneration. Together, these findings suggest that engulfment genes are repurposed for neuronal regeneration by acting in both engulfing cells and regenerating neurons. (shrink)

Social enterprises, promising organizations for solving societal problems with innovative approaches, rely upon their members’ active roles for workplace innovation. However, we still have a limited understanding about how social enterprises can foster employees’ endeavors for innovation. By focusing on employee learning and innovative behavior, we investigate the influences of perceived social mission, value congruence, and human resource management (HRM) practices in social enterprises. We conducted two complementary studies to answer our research questions. In Study 1, with a survey of (...) 369 employees from 68 social enterprises, we examined a multilevel moderated mediation model with firm‐level and individual‐level data. We found that perceived social mission promoted learning and innovative behavior by increasing value congruence, and that commitment‐based HRM practices enhanced the overall process from mission to employee efforts for innovation. In Study 2, with 300 daily surveys from 60 employees participating in an experience sampling study, we found that those with high‐value congruence showed a significantly more stable pattern with less variance in innovative behavior than in learning behavior. Our study adds novel implications to the underdeveloped literature on employee innovation and HRM in social enterprises by uncovering the positive effects of social mission and value facets for boosting learning and innovative behaviors. Our research also suggests that social enterprises should benefit from pursuing and emphasizing the social mission and commitment‐based HRM bundle together, which will promote the prosperity and well‐being of business and society. (shrink)

In this article, we introduce the theory of archetype, which explains the connection between ancient myths and the human mind. Based on the assumption that archetypes are in the deepest level of human mind, we propose that archetypal symbolism is a kind of knowledge that supports the cognitive process for creating subjective world-view towards the physical world we live in. According to archetypal symbolism, we conducted an empirical study to identify archetypal symbols in modern movies. A new collection of (...) movie clips was developed to represent eight essential archetypes: anima, animus, mentor, mother, shadow, hero’s departure, hero’s initiation and hero’s return, which can be used in future studies on human emotion. In order to investigate the emotions towards these archetypal symbols, we provide suggestions from the psychological point of view. The present study demonstrates how to identify symbolic meanings in movies, and indicates a new direction for future studies in psychology. (shrink)

The metaphor of parasites or parasitism has dominated literary critical discourse since the 1970s, prominent examples being Michel Serres in France and J. Hillis Miller in America. In their writings the relationship between text and paratext, literature and criticism, is often likened to that between host and parasite, and can be therefore deconstructed. Their writings, along with those by Derrida, Barthes, and Thom, seem to be suggesting the possibility of a semiotics of parasitism. Unfortunately, none of these writers has drawn (...) enough on the biological foundation of parasitism. Curiously, even in biology, parasitism is already a metaphor through which the signified of an ecological phenomenon involving two organisms is expressed by the signifier of “[eating] food at another’s [side] table”. This paper will make some preliminary remarks on semiotics of parasitism, based on the notions of Umwelt (Jakob von Uexküll) and structural coupling (Maturana and Varela). It will look into the phenomenon of co-evolutionary process in community ecology. With reference to empirical history, the project will briefly surveythe literary and medical praxis of the 17th century England where large number of creative writings referred to the phenomenon of parasitism, which was deeply embedded in religious practice (e.g., the Eucharist) and political life (e.g., the courtier ecology in monarchy) of the times. Finally, it will touch upon the possible ‘parasitic’ relationship between language and biology. (shrink)

ABSTRACTPeople often continue to rely on misinformation in their reasoning after they have acknowledged a retraction; this phenomenon is known as the continued-influence effect. Retractions can be particularly ineffective when the retracted misinformation is consistent with a pre-existing worldview. We investigated this effect in the context of depressive rumination. Given the prevalence of depressotypic worldviews in depressive rumination, we hypothesised that depressive rumination may affect the processing of retractions of valenced misinformation; specifically, we predicted that the retraction of negative misinformation (...) might be less effective in depressive ruminators. In two experiments, we found evidence against this hypothesis: in depressive ruminators, retractions of negative misinformation were at least as effective as they were in control participants, and more effective than retractions of positive misinformation. Findings are interpreted in terms of an attentional bias that may enhance the sali... (shrink)

The purpose of this study was to identify how older Korean people seek information and their desire to participate in decision making about their health care. A total of 165 elderly people living in Seoul, South Korea, participated in the study. Data were collected during individual interviews using the Autonomy Preference Index. The mean information-seeking score was high. The mean score for their desire to participate with a physician in decision making was lower, but this was higher when family members (...) were involved. The study indicates that many older people want to receive information about their health care. Families (or guardians), as well as older people themselves, should be included in the decision-making process. Nurses can encourage older people to express their wishes, while treating each individual with respect. (shrink)

Within the same pathogen-stress framework as proposed by Fincher & Thornhill (F&T), we argue further that pathogen stress promotes matrilocal rather than patrilocal family ties which, in turn, slow down the process of modernity; and that pathogen stress promotes social learning or copying, including the adoption of foreign religions.

In recent years, workplace well-being has been a popular research topic, because it is helpful to promote employees’ welfare, thereby bringing valuable personal and organizational outcomes. With the development of technology, the technology industry plays an important role in Taiwan. Although the salary and benefits provided by the technology industry are better than other industries, the work often requires a lot of time and effort. It is worth paying attention to whether a happy workplace will bring subjective well-being for the (...) technology industry in Taiwan. This study explored the influence of workplace well-being, job involvement, and flow on the subjective well-being. The research was conducted by a questionnaire survey. A total of 256 employees in the technology industry in the Nanzi Processing Zone in Kaohsiung City, Taiwan were surveyed. Collected data were analyzed by statistical methods, such as multivariate and structural equation models. The study results indicated that workplace well-being, flow, and job involvement have a positive and significant impact on the subjective well-being. In addition to having a direct impact on subjective well-being, flow is also a significant variable to mediate the impact of workplace well-being to subjective well-being. In addition, job involvement also affects subjective well-being through flow, which means that the state of selflessness at work is the most important factor affecting subjective well-being. Finally, based on the research findings, the researcher provided practical suggestions to the government and the technology industry. (shrink)

In rebellion against low‐dimensional (e.g., two‐factor) theories in psychology, the authors make the case for high‐dimensional theories. This change in perspective requires a shift towards a focus on computation and quantitative reasoning.

Service process optimization is conducive to the innovation of enterprise services, but the poor logic design of multiple touchpoints can easily lead to problems in the service process, such as scattered layouts and repeated paths. Aiming at the promotion of service innovation and user experience, this paper takes the optimization of a single service touchpoint as the prerequisite and proposes a service process optimization method based on service touchpoint association and the design structure matrix. The association of (...) service touchpoints is categorized into two types, namely, noncoupled and coupled association. The DSM is used to describe the two types of association between service touchpoints, and the matrix operation is used for modular identification and layering of the two kinds of association. Finally, through the above steps, the problematic service process was replanned. By using the service process optimization of a new retail convenience store as an example, the service process is divided into 6 relatively independent modules, and the order of module execution is arranged. Moreover, the optimal service process of the convenience store system is determined, and the method is verified to be feasible. Through optimization both from single service touchpoint and service process modularization, the study provides a reference for process optimization of the complex service system. (shrink)

The Hygiene Hypothesis has been recognized as an important cornerstone to explain the sudden increase in the prevalence of asthma and allergic diseases in modernized culture. The recent epidemic of allergic diseases is in contrast with the gradual implementation of Homo sapiens sapiens to the present-day forms of civilization. This civilization forms a gradual process with cumulative effects on the human immune system, which co-developed with parasitic and commensal Helminths. The clinical manifestation of this epidemic, however, became only visible (...) in the second half of the twentieth century. In order to explain these clinical effects in terms of the underlying IgE-mediated reactions to innocuous environmental antigens, the low biodiversity of antigens in the domestic environment plays a pivotal role. The skewing of antigen exposure as a cumulative effect of reducing biodiversity in the immediate human environment as well as in changing food habits, provides a sufficient and parsimonious explanation for the rise in allergic diseases in a highly developed and helminth-free modernized culture. Socio-economic tendencies that incline towards a further reduction of environmental biodiversity may provide serious concern for future health. This article explains that the “Hygiene Hypothesis”, the “Old Friends Hypothesis”, and the “Skewed Antigen Exposure Hypothesis” are required to more fully explain the rise of allergy in modern societies. (shrink)

The effective controlling and monitoring of an industrial process through the integration of statistical process control and engineering process control has been widely addressed in recent years. However, because the mixture types of disturbances are often embedded in underlying processes, mixture control chart patterns are very difficult for an SPC-EPC process to identify. This can result in problems when attempting to determine the underlying root causes of process faults. Additionally, a large number of categories of (...) disturbances may be present in a process, but typical single-stage classifiers have difficulty in identifying large numbers of categories of disturbances in an SPC-EPC process. Therefore, we propose a two-stage neural network based scheme to enhance the accurate identification rate for MCCPs by performing dimension reduction on disturbance categories. The two-stage scheme includes a combination of a NN, support vector machine, and multivariate adaptive regression splines. Experimental results reveal that the proposed scheme achieves a satisfactory AIR for identifying MCCPs in an SPC-EPC system. (shrink)

Deception is common in the marketplace where individuals pursue self-interests from their perspectives. Extant research suggests that perspective-taking, a cognitive process of putting oneself in other’s situation, increases consumers’ ethical tolerance for marketers’ deceptive behaviors. By contrast, the current research demonstrates that consumers who take the dishonest marketers’ perspective become less tolerant of deception when consumers’ moral self-awareness is high. This effect is driven by moral self-other differentiation as consumers contemplate deception from the marketers’ perspective: high awareness of the (...) “moral self” motivates consumers to distance themselves from the “immoral other.” The findings shed new light on how self-morality can vicariously shape social consideration in ethical judgments. (shrink)

Computational modeling of sketch understanding is interesting both scientifically and for creating systems that interact with people more naturally. Scientifically, understanding sketches requires modeling aspects of visual processing, spatial representations, and conceptual knowledge in an integrated way. Software that can understand sketches is starting to be used in classrooms, and it could have a potentially revolutionary impact as the models and technologies become more advanced. This paper looks at one such effort, Sketch Worksheets, which have been used in multiple classroom (...) experiments already, with students ranging from elementary school to college. Sketch Worksheets are a software equivalent of pencil and paper worksheets commonly found in classrooms, but they provide on-the-spot feedback based on what students draw. They are built on the CogSketch platform, which provides qualitative visual and spatial representations and analogical processing based on computational models of human cognition. This paper explores three issues. First, we examine how research from cognitive science and artificial intelligence, combined with the constraints of creating new kinds of educational software, led to the representations and processing in CogSketch. Second, we examine how these capabilities have been used in Sketch Worksheets, drawing upon experiments with fifth-grade students in biology and college students in engineering design and in geoscience. Finally, we examine some open issues in sketch understanding that need to be addressed to better model high-level aspects of vision, and for sketch understanding systems to reach their full potential for supporting education. (shrink)