The dynamic nature and increasing complexity of the construction industry have led to increased conflicts in construction projects. An accurate prediction of the outcome of a dispute resolution in courts could effectively reduce the number of disputes that would otherwise conclude by spending more money through litigation. This study aims to introduce a two-layered fuzzy logic model for predicting court decisions in construction contract disputes. 100 cases of construction contract disputes are selected from the courts of Iran. A questionnaire survey (...) is then conducted to extract a set of fuzzy rules for identifying important decision parameters and expert knowledge. Accordingly, a two-layered fuzzy logic-based decision-making architecture is proposed for the prediction model. Furthermore, the fuzzy system is trained based on 10-fold cross-validation. Analysis of results indicates that 51 out of the 100 cases are filed after the dissolution and termination of the contract show a significant impact of these clauses as the root cause in construction contract disputes. Our results present a proposed hierarchical fuzzy system that can correctly predict nearly 60% of the test data. Also, we demonstrate a methodology of using argument before ML to establish interpretable AI models. Based on our findings, a fuzzy model with a hierarchical structure may be used as a simple and efficient method for predicting court decisions in construction contract disputes. (shrink)

Michel Foucault has inspired a rich body of work in the field of critical social theory and the social sciences in general. Few scholars working in the area of social movement studies, however, have applied a Foucauldian perspective to examining the twin phenomena of social mobilization and collective action. This may stem, in large part, from the commonly held assumption that Foucault had far more to say about ‘regimes of power’ than ever about mobilization and collective action or contention politics (...) in general. Be that as it may, a close interrogation of his work reveals the broad contours of a theoretical framework for analyzing social movements whose chief merit lies in a sensitivity to the sociopolitical context within which oppositional movements form, develop and conduct their operations. This paper aims at delineating what a Foucauldian model of social movements would entail, with specific reference to the Middle East and North Africa, a region traditionally consigned to the margins of social movement studies. An enquiry of this kind is important because, as I argue, the leading mainstream social movement theories that have been applied to contemporary MENA cases invariably fall short of fully elucidating the phenomenon of mass mobilization. Specifically, leading mainstream theories are prone to certain universalistic assumptions and ‘West-centric’ orientations that render them incapable of accounting for the specificities of MENA cases. I shall demonstrate how a Foucauldian perspective on social movements can bypass the problem of applicability to the MENA region by mapping out a theoretical framework whose chief merit lies in a sensitivity to the sociopolitical context within which oppositional movements form, develop and conduct their operations. At the same time, I argue that a Foucauldian model transcends social movement theories with their linear conception of social and political progress, their exclusivist understanding of sociopolitical ‘development’ and ‘modernist’ assumptions by advancing an account of ‘multiple modernities.’. (shrink)

How can suffering and injustice be reconciled with the idea that God is good, that he loves humans and is merciful to them? Job's question runs through the history of the three monotheistic religions. Time and again, philosophers, theologians, poets, prophets and laypersons have questioned their image of God in the light of a reality full of hardship. Some see suffering as proof of God's existence, others as a demonstration that there can be no God, while others still respond by (...) rebelling against Him. In this remarkable book Navid Kermani - a distinguished Islamic scholar of Iranian origin - sees this revolt against God as the central motif of one of the great but neglected works of literature: _The Book of Suffering _by the thirteenth-century Persian poet Faridoddin Attar. Through the prism of Attar's text Kermani tells the story of a religious faith that knows God but is angry with Him: a counter-theology that runs through many religions and connects Judaism, Islam and modernity. With astonishing range and stylistic brilliance Kermani brings Attar to life as one of us, enabling the great Persian poet to speak directly to us today despite the time that separates us. (shrink)

Background Ethics education can be developed in undergraduate nursing curriculum using a variety of teaching and learning strategies, and the content of narrative-based stories has rarely been evaluated in ethics courses. Objective This study aimed to compare the effect of teaching ethical principles through narrative ethics and lectures on the moral sensitivity of undergraduate nursing students. Methods This was a pretest and posttest quasi-experimental study with a control group. A total of 105 undergraduate nursing students from the nursing department of (...) Kerman University of medical science were included in the study. The narrative-based story and lecture lasted for four two-hour sessions. The outcomes were measured by a moral sensitivity questionnaire. Results The study results showed that teaching ethical principles had a significant effect on the mean score of moral sensitivity in the intervention groups after the intervention, but it was not significant in the control group. Based on the mean score of moral sensitivity, the students in the narrative story group got a higher score in all subscales of moral sensitivity questionnaire. Conclusion Based on this study’s findings, it can be concluded that narrative-based education is an effective way for undergraduate nursing students to promote their moral sensitivity and the ability to make ethical decisions. (shrink)

Although often cast by realists as an exemplar of moralist or rationalist thinking, Jürgen Habermas and certain commentators on his work reject this characterisation, highlighting elements of his thought that conflict with it. This article will examine dimensions of Habermas’s work that relate to many realist concerns in political theory. I argue that while he escapes the commonplace caricature of an abstract thinker who is inattentive to real world affairs, Habermas’s claims in relation to communication, historical and empirical context, and (...) the development of rights in history, reveal a narrow consideration of what defines context and a progressivist narrative of history that fails to address seemingly outdated beliefs and political forces. An analysis of these issues can serve to inform understandings of these topics in realist thought and in political theory more broadly. (shrink)

In recent realist theory and more broadly, pessimism has tended to be treated as a problem or a liability for thought, limiting aspirations for political change and leading towards conservatism. In this article, I turn to Niccolò Machiavelli as a resource through which to theorize differently about the idea. I argue that pessimism in Machiavelli’s work can be associated with an effort to look candidly upon political affairs and to express scepticism towards complacency in thought and conduct. Such an approach, (...) rather than tending towards despair or cynicism, can be seen to make different dimensions of history and politics visible and to open up different paths of judgment and decision-making as a result. Rather than constraining thought and action, pessimism in Machiavelli’s thinking can therefore reveal novel possibilities for political conduct. (shrink)

This article is a comparative theoretical study of authority in the Arab Spring which draws upon the work of Max Weber and Khalil Ahmad Khalil, and examines the theoretical importance of a shift away from authority understood along the lines of single, charismatic individuals. I argue that the central implication of the lack of dominant leaders in the Arab Spring is the potential for the growth of a popular form of charismatic authority. This popular understanding of charisma would have several (...) important consequences for building a more broadly inclusive arrangement of democratic rule. First, it would allow for the self-realization of ordinary citizens in a way that was not possible in an authoritarian setting, where popular aspirations and demands were realized only abstractly, if not simply denied, by being invested in the figure of an ‘inspirational leader.’ This self-realization relies upon an important reversal of an image of Arab publics as incapable of self-governance. Second, it would signal a shi... (shrink)

Maternal opioid use during pregnancy is a growing national problem and can lead to newborns developing neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome soon after birth. Recent data demonstrates that nearly every 15 min a baby is born in the United States suffering from NOWS. The primary treatment for NOWS is opioid replacement therapy, commonly oral morphine, which has neurotoxic effects on the developing brain. There is an urgent need for non-opioid treatments for NOWS. Transcutaneous auricular neurostimulation, a novel and non-invasive form of (...) electrostimulation, may serve as a promising alternative to morphine. tAN is delivered via a multichannel earpiece electrode worn on and around the left ear, targeting two cranial nerves—the vagus and trigeminal nerves. Prior research suggests that auricular neurostimulation exerts an anxiolytic effect on the body by releasing endogenous opioids and reduces withdrawal symptoms in adults actively withdrawing from opioids. In this first-in-human prospective, open-label trial, we investigated tAN as an adjuvant to morphine therapy in eight infants >33 weeks gestational age suffering from NOWS and receiving oral morphine treatment. Infants received tAN for 30 min 1 h before receiving a morphine dose. tAN was delivered at 0.1 mA below perception intensity at two different nerve targets on the ear: Region 1, the auricular branch of the vagus nerve; and Region 2, the auriculotemporal nerve. tAN was delivered up to four times daily for a maximum of 12 days. The primary outcome measures were safety [heart rate monitoring, Neonatal Infant Pain Scale, and skin irritation] and morphine length of treatment. tAN was well-tolerated and resulted in no unanticipated adverse events. Comparing to the national average of 23 days, the average oral morphine LOT was 13.3 days and the average LOT after tAN initiation was 7 days. These preliminary data suggest that tAN is safe and may serve as a promising alternative adjuvant for treating NOWS and reducing the amount of time an infant receives oral morphine. (shrink)

Utilization of renewable energies in association with energy storage is increased in different applications such as electrical vehicles, electric boats, and smart grids. A robust controller strategy plays a significant role to optimally utilize the energy resources available in a power system. In this paper, a suitable controller for the energy resources of an EB which consists of a 5 kW solar power plant, 5 kW fuel cell, and 2 kW battery package is designed based on the linear parameter varying (...) controller design approach. Initially, all component dynamics are augmented, and by exploiting the sector-nonlinearity approach, the LPV representation is derived. Then, the LPV control method determines the suitable gains of the states’ feedbacks to provide the required pulse commands of the boost converters of the energy resources to regulate the DC-link voltage and supply the power of EB loads. Comparing with the state-of-the-art nonlinear control methods, the developed control approach assures the stability of the overall system, as it considers all component dynamics in the design procedure. The real-time simulation results demonstrate the performance of the designed controller in the creation of a constant DC-link voltage. (shrink)

Die Frage nach dem Ursprung des Bösen spielt nicht nur für die Theodizee (" Warum lässt Gott das zu?"), sondern auch für das Selbstverständnis des Menschen und die Beweggründe zu (un-)moralischem Handeln eine entscheidende Rolle. Was aber ist genau unter dem Bösen zu verstehen? Wo liegt sein Ursprung? Mit seinen drei Beiträgen, des Theologen und Religionsphilosophen Ingolf U. Dalferth, des früheren Dogmatik-Professors und jetzigen Bischofs Karl Kardinal Lehmann und des Orientalisten und Schriftstellers Navid Kermani, bietet dieser Band Antworten aus (...) der Sicht verschiedener Konfessionen und Religionen. Dabei geht es u.a. um die Unterscheidung zwischen vermeidbaren und unvermeidbaren Übeln, um die Freiheit des Menschen und seine Verantwortung für das Böse und um die Tradition der Gottesklage im Islam. (shrink)