Although the individuality of whole-body movements has been suspected for years, the scientific proof and systematic investigation that individuals possess unique movement patterns did not manifest until the introduction of the criteria of uniqueness and persistence from the field of forensic science. Applying the criteria of uniqueness and persistence to the individuality of motor learning processes requires complex strategies due to the problem of persistence in the learning processes. One approach is to examine the learning process of different movements. For (...) this purpose, it is necessary to differentiate between two components of movement patterns: the individual-specific component and the discipline-specific component. To this end, a kinematic analysis of the shot put, discus, and javelin throwing movements of seven high-performance decathletes during a qualification competition was conducted. In total, joint angle waveforms of 57 throws formed the basis for the recognition task of individual- and discipline-specific throwing patterns using a support vector machine. The results reveal that the kinematic throwing patterns of the three disciplines could be distinguished across athletes with a prediction accuracy of up to 100% (57 of 57 throws). However, athlete-specific throwing characteristics could also be identified across the three disciplines. Prediction accuracies of up to 52.6% indicated that up to 10 out of 19 throws of a discipline could be assigned to the correct athletes, based on only knowing these athletes from the kinematic throwing patterns in the other two disciplines. The results further suggest that individual throwing characteristics across disciplines are more pronounced in shot put and discus throwing than in javelin throwing. Applications for training and learning practice in sports and therapy are discussed. In summary, the chosen approach offers a broad field of application related to the search of individually optimal movement solutions in sports. (shrink)

Abstract: The notion of a self-pattern, as developed in the pattern theory of self, which holds that the self is best explained in terms of the kind of reality that pertains to a dynamical pattern, acknowledges the importance of neural dynamics, but also expands the account of self to extra-neural (embodied and enactive) dynamics. The pattern theory of self, however, has been criticized for failing to explicate the dynamical relations among elements of the self-pattern; as (...) such, it seems to be nothing more than a mere list of elements. We’ll argue that the dynamics of a self-pattern are reflected in three significant and interrelated ways that allow for investigation. First, a self-pattern is reflectively reiterated in its narrative component. Second, studies of psychiatric or neurological disorders can help us understand the precise nature of the dynamical relations in a self-pattern, and how they can fail. Third, referencing predictive processing accounts, neuroscience can also help to explicate the dynamical relations that constitute the self-pattern. (shrink)

ArgumentIn the United States, scientific knowledge is brought before the courts by way of testimony – the testimony of scientific experts. We argue that this expertise is best understoodfirstas related to the quality of the underlying scienceand thenin terms of who delivers it. Bloodstain pattern analysis (BPA), a contemporary forensic science, serves as the vaulting point for our exploration of objectivity as a metric for the quality of a science in judicial contexts. We argue that BPA fails to meet (...) the minimal standard set by Helen Longino’s social-procedural account of objectivity (1990, 2002). In light of some pressing issues for social-procedural accounts, we offer an infrastructural account of objectivity. This account offers what amounts to a friendly amendment to Longino’s account and adds to the ways in which we might analyze social-procedural objectivity. Finally, we address an issue that is pressing in the legal context: given that scientific knowledge is delivered by individuals, not communities, at least in U.S. courts, we (may) need a way to evaluate individual scientific and epistemic agents. We suggest a means for making this evaluation that is derived from our infrastructural account of objectivity. (shrink)

Since its introduction, multivariate pattern analysis, or ‘neural decoding’, has transformed the field of cognitive neuroscience. Underlying its influence is a crucial inference, which we call the decoder’s dictum: if information can be decoded from patterns of neural activity, then this provides strong evidence about what information those patterns represent. Although the dictum is a widely held and well-motivated principle in decoding research, it has received scant philosophical attention. We critically evaluate the dictum, arguing that it is false: decodability (...) is a poor guide for revealing the content of neural representations. However, we also suggest how the dictum can be improved on, in order to better justify inferences about neural representation using MVPA. 1Introduction 2A Brief Primer on Neural Decoding: Methods, Application, and Interpretation 2.1What is multivariate pattern analysis? 2.2The informational benefits of multivariate pattern analysis 3Why the Decoder’s Dictum Is False 3.1We don’t know what information is decoded 3.2The theoretical basis for the dictum 3.3Undermining the theoretical basis 4Objections and Replies 4.1Does anyone really believe the dictum? 4.2Good decoding is not enough 4.3Predicting behaviour is not enough 5Moving beyond the Dictum 6Conclusion. (shrink)

Since its introduction, multivariate pattern analysis, or ‘neural decoding’, has transformed the field of cognitive neuroscience. Underlying its influence is a crucial inference, which we call the decoder’s dictum: if information can be decoded from patterns of neural activity, then this provides strong evidence about what information those patterns represent. Although the dictum is a widely held and well-motivated principle in decoding research, it has received scant philosophical attention. We critically evaluate the dictum, arguing that it is false: decodability (...) is a poor guide for revealing the content of neural representations. However, we also suggest how the dictum can be improved on, in order to better justify inferences about neural representation using MVPA. (shrink)

William Gibson's 1984 cyberpunk novel Neuromancer continues to be a touchstone in cultural representations of the impact of new information and communication technologies on the self. As critics have noted, the posthumanist, capital-driven, urban landscape of Neuromancer resembles a Foucaultian vision of a panoptically engineered social space in which no activity (even unofficial and illegal activity) eludes the disciplinary gaze of power. On the other hand, William Gibson's latest novel, Pattern Recognition, marks an important ideological shift from Neuromancer. Though (...) the novel retains a deep ambivalence toward new technologies' potential impact on the self, Pattern Recognition nevertheless locates a new source for hope and agency in embodied everyday experience. This article maintains that the change can best be understood as a complex transition from the worldview of Michel Foucault to that of Michel de Certeau. (shrink)

Coastlines play an important role in human activity and economic development. Reasonably allocating shoreline resources and addressing contradictions between ecological protection and development are critical issues. In this study, positive and negative factors affecting the natural, environmental, and socioeconomic status of the coastal zone while considering land and sea effects were comprehensively analyzed using ecological theories and methods, and an improved restrictive composite index model was constructed. We quantitatively analyzed the comprehensive utilization pattern of the Bohai Rim coastline, China, (...) in terms of the coastline utilization type and spatial agglomeration characteristics. The comprehensive utilization pattern of the Bohai Rim coastline is as follows: ecological areas are present in the north and south, and industrial areas are present in the east and west. Industrial production areas along the coastline are mainly distributed in the East Liaodong and Bohai bays, and ecological protection areas are located in the estuaries of the Liaohe and Yellow River. The improved restricted comprehensive index method model weakens the interaction among variables and makes the calculation results closer to the real situation. The results of the comprehensive utilization pattern of Bohai Rim coastline obtained by quantitative evaluation are of great significance for the coordinated development of coastline ecological protection and development and utilization. (shrink)

We present a technique for the analysis of pattern formation by a class of models for the formation of ocular dominance stripes in the striate cortex of some mammals. The method, which employs the adiabatic approximation to derive a set of ordinary differential equations for patterning modes, has been successfully applied to reaction-diffusion models for striped patterns [1]. Models of ocular dominance stripes have been studied [2,3] by computation, or by linearization of the model equations. These techniques do not (...) provide a rationale for the origin of the stripes. We show here that stripe formation is a non-linear property of the models. Our analysis indicates that stripe selection is closely linked to a property in the dynamics of the models which arises from a symmetry between ipsilateral and contralateral synapses to the visual cortex of a given hemisphere. (shrink)

Insect vision is nothing if not active. The regular head movements, called saccades, enable the fly Drosophila to keep a straight path in flight despite inequalities in the thrust of the wings. Using their own motion, bees in flight measure the ranges of nearby objects. A long history of research shows that bees discriminate visually in ways that depend on their activity or task, so we must distinguish between vision during flying, fixating or hovering and landing.Bees return again and again (...) for a reward of sugar solution and use their eyes to find their way. In an apparatus that makes them discriminate between two simulataneously visible but regularly interchanged targets, seen at a distance of 27 cm, bees are able to distinguish a remarkable number of simple patterns, but they fail in certain critical cases. The results can be explained with the hypothesis that bees have several broadly tuned overlapping filters with large fields that respond to the predominant orientation in a region of the image, and others for radial and circular patterns. Together with colour, these filters are independent of range. Bees prefer to use landmarks where they can, then global pattern at the largest scale, and lastly the detail around the goal. The way that discrimination of one visual feature is independent of other variables can be explained by models analogous to the colour triangle in colour discrimination. (shrink)

Stratification, that is, the structuring of society on the basis of differential social status of various groups, is a common feature of human societies. But the traditional pattern of social stratification in India has certain characteristics which are rather unique, and these have attracted and intrigued many scholars all over the world. The structural and cultural characteristics of the traditional pattern of stratification in India have deep roots in the past. They have stemmed from certain peculiar ethnic constellations (...) that came into being some three thousand years ago, and they have been given many twists and turns by numerous socio-cultural currents and cross currents through all these millennia. (shrink)

The spontaneous organization of collective activities in animal groups and societies has attracted a considerable amount of attention over the last decade. This kind of coordination often permits group‐living species to achieve collective tasks that are far beyond single individuals' capabilities. In particular, a key benefit lies in the integration of partial knowledge of the environment at the collective level. In this contribution, we discuss various self‐organization phenomena in animal swarms and human crowds from the point of view of information (...) exchange among individuals. In particular, we provide a general description of collective dynamics across species and introduce a classification of these dynamics not only with respect to the way information is transferred among individuals but also with regard to the knowledge processing at the collective level. Finally, we highlight the fact that the individual’s ability to learn from past experiences can have a feedback effect on the collective dynamics, as experienced with the development of behavioral conventions in pedestrian crowds. (shrink)

When we assume that we have cultural competence rather than thoroughly engaging in what Dewey calls the pattern of inquiry, we fail to achieve cultural humility. By analyzing how habits undermine inquiry and underlie failure in situations that call for cultural humility, we may be better equipped to address unintentional offenses. In this essay, I define cultural humility and contrast it with cultural competence, explaining why aiming for cultural competence alone is problematic. Next, I consider the attributes necessary for (...) cultural humility and the attitudes that Dewey considers beneficial for inquiry. This is followed by an outline of Dewey’s pattern of inquiry and explanation of how unquestioned habits of thought short-circuit our ability to become culturally humble. I suggest that we forgo attempting to achieve cultural competence and instead use Dewey’s pattern of inquiry with the attitudes he recommends as tools to work toward cultural humility. (shrink)

A core symptom of anxiety disorders is the tendency to interpret ambiguous information as threatening. Using EEG and BOLD-MRI, several studies have begun to elucidate brain processes involved in fear-related perceptual biases, but thus far mainly found evidence for general hypervigilance in high fearful individuals. Recently, multi-voxel pattern analysis (MVPA) has become popular for decoding cognitive states from distributed patterns of neural activation. Here, we used this technique to assess whether biased fear generalization, characteristic of clinical fear, is already (...) present during the initial perception and categorization of a stimulus, or emerges during the subsequent interpretation of a stimulus. Individuals with low spider fear (LSF, n = 20) and high spider fear (HSF, n = 18) underwent functional MRI scanning while viewing series of schematic flowers morphing to spiders. In line with previous studies, individuals with high fear of spiders were behaviorally more likely to classify ambiguous morphs as spiders than individuals with low fear of spiders. Univariate analyses of BOLD-MRI data revealed stronger activation towards spider pictures in high fearful individuals compared to low fearful individuals in numerous areas. Yet, neither average activation, nor support vector machine classification (i.e. a form of MVPA) matched the behavioral results - i.e., a biased response towards ambiguous stimuli - in any of the regions of interest. This may point to limitations of the current design, and to challenges associated with classifying emotional and neutral stimuli in groups that differ in their judgment of emotionality. Improvements for future research are suggested. (shrink)

This paper is concerned with the genesis of mathematical knowledge. While some philosophers might argue that mathematics has no real subject matter and thus is not a body of knowledge, I will not try to dissuade them directly. I shall not attempt such a refutation because it seems clear to me that mathematicians do know such things as the Mean Value Theorem, The Fundamental Theorem of Arithmetic, Godel's Theorems, etc. Moreover, this is much more evident to me than any philosophical (...) view of mathematics I know of — including my own. So I am going to take mathematics as my starting point. (shrink)

Phonology is the study of abstract sound patterns in human language, as opposed to phonetics, which studies all aspects of speech, including articulation and acoustics. The phonology of each language consists of various computations. In Sound Pattern of English (SPE) the computations are called rules, and the phonology of a language is a complex function resulting from composing the rules in a particular order. Aside from internalism, naturalism and nativism are the most important notions of Chomsky's legacy in linguistics. (...) SPE phonology explicitly adopts strict and consistent naturalism, internalism and nativism. The rightful legacy of SPE includes the naturalism, internalism and nativism found also in Chomsky's syntactic work. The SPE arguments given against building markedness into the formal theory are consistent with the idea of phonology as naturalistic inquiry, and these convincing arguments are only reinforced by the inconsistencies in markedness‐based approaches. (shrink)

Malgré l'obscurité qui entoure encore l'étymologie du couple νόος-νοεῖν, il est possible, au niveau sémantique, d'établir une signification première non seulement en lien avec l’expérience directe, mais plus précisément dans le sens du νόος-organe/fonction de l'élaboration de « schémas d'action ». L'activité du νόος serait donc la création d' « images » qui n'auraient pas une valeur seulement « représentationnelle » mais, avant tout, « pragmatique-conative », capables d' « anticiper », sans pourtant être le fruit d'une réflexion élaborée, la (...) « forme » de l'action à accomplir par le sujet et le pousser à cet accomplissement. L'article se propose de développer cette conjecture, replaçant le νόος dans les spécificités de la culture orale homérique, au moyen de la confrontation avec : 1) les deux hypothèses étymologiques prédominantes, qui partagent l’idée d’un lien étroit entre l’activité du νόος et le registre de la vision : l'hypothèse *snu, radical indoeuropéen, qui vaut pour « flairer » une chose ou une situation (von Fritz, Heidegger, Gadamer et al.) et l'hypothèse *nes, autre radical qui sert à indiquer « le retour de la lumière » ou « l’évitement de la mort » (Frame et al.) ; 2) les positions de Kérenyi, Snell et Lesher sur le νόος, qui appuient leur réflexion critique sur le texte homérique, considéré source principale pour la détermination du sens du νόος-νοεῖν ; 3) le domaine des sciences cognitives et notamment la notion d' « action-oriented representation » développée par Andy Clark et l'hypothèse du νόος comme « le mouvement de retour de la conscience à elle-même », développée par Stefanelli avec l'utilisation des travaux de Damasio. Cette confrontation permettra de corroborer l'hypothèse initiale du νόος comme « schéma d'action » et de clarifier son caractère d’activité « productive » et de « construction » de la réalité. (shrink)

Given the controversies over Mandarin Chinese in terms of Talmy’s bipartite language typology, this paper presents an exhaustive study of Chinese motion verbs collected from two authoritative dictionaries, namely, The Ancient Chinese Dictionary (2nd Edition) and The Contemporary Chinese Dictionary (7th Edition). An analysis of 662 motion verbs in ancient Chinese and 693 motion verbs in modern Chinese indicates that Mandarin Chinese has undergone a typological shift from verb-framed to satellite-framed as far as the lexicalization pattern is concerned. The (...) typological shift seems to have been driven by two forces, the decline of monosyllabic motion verbs and the upsurge of disyllabic motion verbs, which, upon second thoughts, can be boiled down to a single but predominant process of disyllabification in Chinese, whereby two (former) roots that bear a wide range of syntactic relations are lexicalized into a disyllabic word. Thus, we see an intriguing case of how phonology and morphosyntax interact to impact the typological properties of a language. (shrink)

First Published in 1999. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.