A propósito de su reciente visita a Colombia, invitado por la Corte Constitucional y la Universidad de La Sabana, los profesores Leonardo García Jaramillo y Vicente F. Benítez-R. entrevistaron al profesor Jeremy Waldron. Waldron fue Chichele Professor en la Universidad de Oxford, discípulo y contradictor de Dworkin, y es uno de los autores más influyentes del debate teórico político y constitucional contemporáneo. Actualmente es University Professor de la Universidad de New York. La traducción al español de la entrevista (...) es también de Leonardo García Jaramillo y Vicente F. Benítez-R... (shrink)

IntroductionTranscranial magnetic stimulation is a consolidated procedure for the treatment of depression, with several meta-analyses demonstrating its efficacy. Theta-burst stimulation is a modification of TMS with similar efficacy and shorter session duration. The geriatric population has many comorbidities and a high prevalence of depression, but few clinical trials are conducted specifically for this age group. TBS could be an option in this population, offering the advantages of few side effects and no pharmacological interactions. Therefore, our aim is to investigate the (...) efficacy of TBS in geriatric depression.Clinical trial registration[https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/], identifier [NCT04842929]. (shrink)

In this article, we are exploring a methodological approach to research on faith and religious expressions in urban Africa. We are committed to trans-disciplinary work that pursues research methods mutually liberating for researchers, co-researchers and community participants and that results in long-term benefits and strengthened agency on the part of the host communities. Our reflections in this article are based on a collaborative research project1 in two regions of Pretoria, Tshwane2 – Pretoria Central and Mamelodi East – in which we (...) explore how religious innovation and competition in and amongst churches contribute to the healing or perpetuation of urban fractures. (shrink)

A critical and constructive discussion of philosophical questions which have particular bearing on the formulation of educational aims.

Background: Informed consent is regarded as a contract between autonomous and equal parties and requires the elements of information disclosure, understanding, voluntariness and consent. The validity of informed consent for critically ill patients has been questioned. Little is known about how these patients experience the process of consent.Objective: The aim of this study was to explore critically ill patients’ experience with the principle of informed consent in a clinical trial and their ability to give valid informed consent.Design: 11 stroke patients (...) who had been informed about thrombolytic treatment and had been through the process of deciding whether or not to participate in a thrombolysis trial went through repeated qualitative semistructured interviews.Results: None of the patients had any clear understanding of the purpose of the trial. Neither did they understand the principles of randomisation and voluntariness. Reasons for giving or not giving consent were trust, conceptions of benefits and risks and altruism. Several patients found it immoral to involve patients in the consent procedure and argued that this was the doctors’ responsibility. Others argued that it is a duty to question patients and perceived it as a sign of being treated with respect and dignity. A majority of the patients found the consent process vague and ambiguous.Conclusions: The results indicate that the principle of informed consent from critically ill patients cannot be seen as a contract between equal and autonomous parties. Further studies are needed to explore critically ill patients’ experiences with the process of informed consent. (shrink)

" Quiconque voudrait entreprendre l'histoire du déplacement qui eut lieu au sein de la philosophie analytique, depuis son commencement, aux alentours de 1950, jusqu'à son achèvement, dans les années 1970, aurait à mettre l'accent sur trois ouvrages fondamentaux : l'article " Two Dogmas of Empiricism " de W. Quine (195 1), les Investigations philosophiques de Wittgenstein (1954), et Empirisme et philosophie de l'esprit de Wilfrid Sellars (1956). De ces trois œuvres, le long essai de Sellars, riche et intriqué, demeure le (...) moins connu et le moins discuté. Les historiens de la philosophie anglo-américaine récente ont souligné l'importance de l'essai de Quine, qui mettait en question la notion de " vérité analytique ". Ils ont également souligné l'importance de l'œuvre du dernier Wittgenstein. [... ] Empirisme et philosophie de l'esprit a contribué à produire ce que Donald Davidson appelle "une rupture si profonde dans la pensée philosophique contemporaine que nous pourrions bien ne pas nous en apercevoir" ". (extrait de la préface de R. Rorty). (shrink)

Currently assessment and management of animal welfare are based on the supposition that welfare status is something experienced identically by each individual animal when exposed to the same conditions. However, many authors argue that individual welfare cannot be seen as an ‘objective’ state, but is based on the animal’s own self-perception; such perception might vary significantly between individuals which appear to be exposed to exactly the same challenges. We argue that this has two implications: (1) actual perceived welfare status of (...) individuals in a population may vary over a wide range even under identical environmental conditions; (2) animals that appear to an external observer to be in better or poorer welfare condition may all in fact perceive their own individual status as the same. This would imply that optimum welfare of a social group might be achieved in situations where individual group members differ markedly in apparent welfare status and perceive their own welfare as being optimal under differing circumstances. Welfare phenotypes may also vary along a continuum between self-regarding and other-regarding behaviour; a variety of situations exist where (social) individuals appear to invest in the welfare of other individuals instead of maximising their own welfare; in such a case it is necessary to re-evaluate individual welfare within the context of a social group and recognise that there may be consequences for the welfare of individuals, of decisions made at the group level or by other group members. (shrink)

Cognition or higher brain activity is sometimes seen as a phenomenon greater than the sum of its parts. This viewpoint however is largely dependent on the state of the art of experimental techniques that endeavor to characterize morphology and its association to function. Retinal ganglion cells are readily accessible for this work and we discuss recent advances in computational techniques in identifying novel parameters that describe structural attributes possibly associated with specific function. These parameters are based on calculating wavelet gradients (...) from cell images followed by the extraction of meaningful measures including 2nd wavelet moment, entropy of orientation, and curvature. For the three cell types analyzed, the mean 2nd wavelet moment, which relates to the field of influence of the dendritic-tree segments was significantly different. cells had the highest mean 2nd wavelet moment, followed by the and cells (134 ± 22, 93 ± 19 and 63 ± 12, respectively). There was no significant difference between cells for entropy of orientation, indicating no class with a preferential orientation of their dendritic tree. Curvature provided similar results to the 2nd wavelet moment with cells having the highest curvature followed by and the cells (mean ± SD: 161 ± 15; 134 ± 22; 121 ± 15). Our feature space analysis also indicated a difference between these cell types. No difference was found between the and cell types and their physiological counterparts the Y and X cells based on wavelet analysis. Both the X and Y cells can be divided into two subtypes, the ON- and OFF-center cells based on the stratification level of the dendritic tree within the retina. Using 2nd wavelet moment, a difference in their morphological attributes, not reported previously, was noted for these subtypes. The 2nd wavelet moment and curvature are further discussed with respect to explaining regularity of spacing and coverage associated with retinal ganglion cell mosaics. (shrink)

IX. 6. 12. iacere indolem illam Romanam ablatosque cum armis animos; non reddere salutem, non salutantibus dare responsum, non hiscere quemquam prae metu potuisse.

IX. 6. 12. (The young nobles of Capua describe the bearing of the Romans released from the Caudine Forks after having passed under the yoke.).

We show how a simple nonlinear dynamical system (the discrete quadratic iteration on the unit segment) can be the basis for modelling the embryogenesis process. Such an approach, even though being crude, can nevertheless prove to be useful when looking with the two main involved processes:i) on one hand the cell proliferation under successive divisions ii) on the other hand, the differentiation between cell lineages. We illustrate this new approach in the case of Caenorhabditis elegans by looking at the early (...) stages of embryogenesis, up to several hundreds of cells (lima bean larval stage). We show how the many results that have been obtained by several groups can be interpreted in terms of values for the parameters controlling the dynamical system. Furthermore, we can extend the model to the cases of genetic mutations. More precisely the teratogenetic and lethal effects are associated with abnormal variation of the control parameters with time. (shrink)

In the present paper we continue the investigation of the lattice of subvarieties of the variety of ${\sqrt{\prime}}$ quasi-MV algebras, already started in [6]. Beside some general results on the structure of such a lattice, the main contribution of this work is the solution of a long-standing open problem concerning these algebras: namely, we show that the variety generated by the standard disk algebra D r is not finitely based, and we provide an infinite equational basis for the same variety.

In the present paper we continue the investigation of the lattice of subvarieties of the variety of √′ P quasi-MV algebras, already started in [6]. Beside some general results on the structure of such a lattice, the main contribution of this work is the solution of a long-standing open problem concerning these algebras: namely, we show that the variety generated by the standard disk algebra D r is not finitely based, and we provide an infinite equational basis for the same (...) variety. (shrink)

In this new and third edition, the additional fragments contained in the appendix of the second edition have been incorporated in the main text. Some further discoveries have been included, and reference has been made to the results of recent research on the relative placing of certain papyrus fragments. The index of names has been brought up to date.