Dominant development discourse and policy are based on crucial misconceptions about peasants and their livelihoods. Peasants are viewed as inherently poor and hungry and their farming systems are considered inefficient, of low productivity, and sometimes even environmentally degrading. Consequently, dominant development policies have tried to transform peasants into something else: industrialised commercial farmers, wage labourers, urban workers, etc. This article seeks to deconstruct three key misconceptions about peasants by explaining how and why marginalised peasants around the world face poverty and (...) hunger. An explanation of the process of marginalisation of peasants through the influence of five “mediating factors” is put forward. It is contended that by addressing the mediating factors through policies devised with the active participation of peasants, the marginalisation of peasants would be reduced or eliminated. This would allow peasants to forge an adequate livelihood in rural areas based on their independent farming, and thereby contribute to the achievement of food sovereignty. (shrink)

The Hoffmann reflex (H-wave) is produced by alpha-motoneuron activation in the spinal cord. A feature of this electromyography response is that it exhibits fluctuations in amplitude even during repetitive stimulation with the same intensity of current. We herein explore the hypothesis that physical training induces plastic changes in the motor system. Such changes are evaluated with the fractal dimension (FD) analysis of the H-wave amplitude-fluctuations (H-wave FD) and the cross-covariance (CCV) between the bilateral H-wave amplitudes. The aim of this study (...) was to compare the H-wave FD as well as the CCV before and after track training in sedentary individuals and athletes. The training modality in all subjects consisted of running three times per week (for 13 weeks) in a concrete road of 5 km. Given the different physical condition of sedentary vs. athletes, the running time between sedentary and athletes was different. After training, the FD was significantly increased in sedentary individuals but significantly reduced in athletes, although there were no changes in spinal excitability in either group of subjects. Moreover, the CCV between bilateral H-waves exhibited a significant increase in athletes but not in sedentary individuals. These differential changes in the FD and CCV indicate that the plastic changes in the complexity of the H-wave amplitude fluctuations as well as the synaptic inputs to the Ia-motoneuron systems of both legs were correlated to the previous fitness history of the subjects. Furthermore, these findings demonstrate that the FD and CCV can be employed as indexes to study plastic changes in the human motor system. (shrink)

En la vida cotidiana del ejercicio del derecho, ya sea en el campo de la judicatura, ora en el del litigio, bien sea en el de la academia, o en actividades administrativas, es bastante común que se hable de la prueba sumaria; pero desafortunadamente no es común que se tenga plena conciencia de su entidad, alcances y usos conforme a su propia naturaleza. Es preocupante observar la peligrosa y antijurídica ligereza, con la cual se acude a la prueba sumaria; pero (...) no para darle su natural uso, sino para superar omisiones de los sujetos procesales con interés de parte en el cumplimiento de las cargas probatorias. La prueba sumaria es utilizada en forma deliberada para conseguir ciertas ventajas probatorias en el proceso, con evidente desmedro del derecho de prueba de la contraparte, afectación de la garantía de la igualdad real de las partes en el proceso, y conculcación del derecho de defensa en toda su extensión. En realidad, el mal uso de la prueba sumaria implica violar los principios probatorios de necesidad, publicidad, contradicción, legalidad y formalidad de la prueba. En otros términos, la utilización indiscriminada de la prueba sumaria, sin el cuidado y la estrictez exigidos expresamente por el mismo legislador para poder usarla, constituye una manifiesta violación al derecho constitucional fundamental al debido proceso. (shrink)

Study of the social and political project by José Antonio Saco, based on an economic proposal where the organization of the Cuban agriculture was central. Far beyond from the sacarocratic dominant position of the sacarocracia, this maintained a antislavery position and favoured the introduction of a white country population and the agricultural diversification involving orange, añil and rice, among other cultivars. This reformist project supposed a number of changes related to the increase of ethnic composition of the peasant. In the (...) long run, these changes brought about the ethnic and cultural features of the Cuban identi% mainly from political, demographic, economic, and cultural determinants. Reports on 1862, which were presented lnformation Board, demonstrate that, with the exception of the sugar-bowl industry, the remaining agricultural branches were principally a white colonist, indigenous and immigrant's property. Slowly, those had settled over the lands, as since 57% of whites were agriculturalists. (shrink)

Reseña del libro En el principio existía el axioma de no contradicción (Hacia Guillermo de Ockham por la Literatura y la Filosofía) Andrés Felipe López (2019). Madrid: Editorial Verbum, S.L. 140 pp.

El presente artículo se centra en una investigación sobre los vínculos entre la teoría crítica de la educación inclusiva, la justicia social y la literatura de tradición oral, puesto que a través de los referentes hallados se interpela a la literatura desde el mismo contexto del Sur Global, visto como un punto de partida para comprender los problemas culturales, sociales e interculturales. Desde estas consideraciones, se hizo una revisión sistemática de la producción y publicación de trabajos investigativos referentes al estudio (...) de las variables Literatura de tradición oral, Justicia social y Educación inclusiva, bajo el enfoque PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses). El objetivo del análisis propuesto fue conocer las características principales de las publicaciones registradas en base de datos Scopus y Web of Science y su alcance en el estudio de las variables propuestas, logrando la identificación de 106 publicaciones en total. Gracias a esta primera identificación, se refinaron los resultados a través de dos palabras clave, “Social justice (and) Inclusive education”, llegando a un total de 23 documentos, después de excluir los duplicados y aquellos que no cumplían con los criterios de análisis. Luego fueron analizados esperando conocer la relación entre las variables, y cómo en América se ha avanzado en materia de lucha contra la corrupción. Los hallazgos apuntan a: 1) que la educación inclusiva establece vínculos con la literatura de tradición oral desde el reconocimiento de la pluralidad y las diferencias culturales; 2) que los autores resaltan expresiones culturales transmitidas de generación en generación para fecundar nuevos conocimientos desde la comunidad; 3) y que la justicia social se traduce en una educación que reconoce diferencias y genera espacios para otros saberes, como es el caso de la literatura de tradición. (shrink)

El documental ha sido tradicionalmente una práctica cinematográfica tremendamente compleja y problemática, en tanto basa su autoridad en presentar el “mundo histórico”, al tiempo que es claro que ha recurrido a diversas estrategias ficcionales. En este contexto, este artículo reflexiona acerca de estas estrategias y su uso en tres documentales contemporáneos: Los rubios, Vals con Bashir y La imagen perdida. La hipótesis de trabajo plantea que el reconocimiento de la fragmentación de la subjetividad y la fragilidad de la memoria hacen (...) necesaria la inclusión de diversas estrategias como el escamoteo de las expectativas de los espectadores, el uso de imágenes animadas y las múltiples disyunciones entre voz, imagen y autoría. (shrink)

Colombia padece la imagen de que, desde sus inicios como colonia española hasta el presente, el país ha sido controlado por la oligarquía. Este ensayo examinará las evidencias que apuntan a esta alegación y confirmará que en sus inicios la Nación sí fue dominado por un grupo élite y reducido. Sin embargo, en años modernos, la oligarquía persiste pero que un grupo más extendido--una para-oligarquía o el Establecimiento--tiene mayor incidencia en las determinaciones en el progreso del país a través de (...) los factores psico-sociales de cooptación y transfuguismo. (shrink)

This paper investigates how the introduction of AI to decision making increases moral distance and recommends the ethics of care to augment the ethical examination of AI decision making. With AI decision making, face-to-face interactions are minimized, and decisions are part of a more opaque process that humans do not always understand. Within decision-making research, the concept of moral distance is used to explain why individuals behave unethically towards those who are not seen. Moral distance abstracts those who are impacted (...) by the decision and leads to less ethical decisions. The goal of this paper is to identify and analyze the moral distance created by AI through both proximity distance (in space, time, and culture) and bureaucratic distance (derived from hierarchy, complex processes, and principlism). We then propose the ethics of care as a moral framework to analyze the moral implications of AI. The ethics of care brings to the forefront circumstances and context, interdependence, and vulnerability in analyzing algorithmic decision making. (shrink)

In this sequel to Healing Civilization, Dr. Naranjo addresses the cultural and ecological crisis of the 21st Century. He reviews a number of theories and approaches to bettering society and advocates, in particular, the innovation of making the educational system more ethically and spiritually directed--more inner directed than devoted to sustaining current economic or cultural models for society. Naranjo examines the relationship between past historical eras and cultural progress and the growth and development of the individual child from (...) infancy to maturity and old age. While sober in tone regarding these various global crises, the author maintains an optimistic view based on the continuing spiritual development of humanity. (shrink)

El objetivo del presente artículo es fortalecer el aprendizaje y la calidad educativa en el trabajo colaborativo, evaluando estrategias didácticas y aplicando la estrategia de diseño de textos académicos en la licenciatura de Mercadotecnia, respondía a la cuestión ¿De qué manera la debilidad en el aprendizaje y baja calidad educativa en el trabajo colaborativo repercuten en las deficiencias de la aplicación de la estrategia didáctica del diseño de textos académicos? La investigación es de tipo mixto, la metodología de la Investigación–Acción. (...) El estudio dio resultados en el trabajo colaborativo porque ayudo a los alumnos a adquirir conocimientos. (shrink)

The migration of nursing professionals from developing countries such as Zimbabwe to industrialised countries is taking place at an alarming rate, with little signs of slowing down. In Africa, nurses form the backbone of the healthcare delivery system and their migration has a huge negative impact on health service provision. Drawing on evidence from selected health institutions, the paper shows the magnitude of migration of nurses from Zimbabwe. The paper also shows that public to private health sector migration of nurses (...) is occurring at a significant rate. The effects of such movements are examined in detail. For instance, at the health institution level, nurse migration has led to staff shortages, and health institutions located in the disadvantaged areas have been the worst affected. The paper calls for the adoption of an integrated approach in managing and addressing the concerns of the nursing professionals. (shrink)

En este artículo, se analiza la documentación producida por autores franceses o afrancesados, en la cual América y sus procesos de independencia, en particular los hispanoamericanos, ocupan un lugar central. Se localiza un importante corpus documental que incluye libros e impresos periódicos. Algunos de ellos fueron de uso en las escuelas primarias y secundarias francesas, otros circularon entre académicos y profesores universitarios. También se analizan algunos textos provenientes de conmemoraciones americanistas, como discursos de legatarios o personalidades con prestigio político o (...) científico, y textos literarios que concursaron en variados eventos vinculados con las celebraciones y conmemoraciones de la Independencia. A partir de ellos, se proponen cinco ejes de reflexión: primero, desde la perspectiva de las representaciones sociales, políticas y culturales de las independencias hispanoamericanas, donde las preocupaciones investigativas están orientadas a lo que se dice que pasó y menos a lo que pasó. Segundo, la reiteración de la categoría influencia para pensar las relaciones decimonónicas entre América y Francia subraya la originalidad de las ideas ilustradas y la Revolución Francesa; en cambio, las revoluciones hispanoamericanas representarían una de sus consecuencias más o menos distorsionada a este lado del Atlántico. Tercero, el lenguaje hermenéutico de lo que se dice que pasó instituyó mitos políticos modernos, asociados directamente con una revolución exitosa, igualitaria, libertaria y fraterna. Cuarto, en el contexto planetario de las dinámicas de modernización política, “lo francés” debe ser pensado como una parte de los procesos de mundialización de la modernidad. Quinto, el examen social y cultural de la producción intelectual presentada permite una mirada crítica a las historias nacionales o continentales, de tal forma que se puedan comprender mejor los procesos de modernización. (shrink)

La mirada del envejecimiento, desde una visión de derechos, tiene como antecedente la Segunda Asamblea Mundial sobre Envejecimiento, de la cual se derivó el Plan Internacional de Acción en Envejecimiento de Madrid, que ha sido un documento clave de seguimiento en las reuniones regionales intergubernamentales y no gubernamentales sobre envejecimiento en la región latinoamericana. Adicionalmente, existen dos instrumentos claves a considerar en las políticas de envejecimiento de la región: el Consenso de Montevideo y la Convención Interamericana para la Protección de (...) los Derechos de las Personas Mayores. En todos estos documentos, se abordan las siguientes áreas prioritarias: la situación económica de las personas mayores; salud y bienestar; y entornos sociales y físicos favorables. En este artículo, se analiza cómo ha sido el tratamiento, en las distintas reuniones regionales, del tema de cuidados, el cual se inserta en el área sobre salud y bienestar, además de discutir cómo se han traducido los distintos señalamientos sobre cuidados en la normativa de México. (shrink)

Neste ensaio, gostaria de esclarecer, por meio da filosofia de Mayz Vallenilla, a estreita relação que existe entre técnica e alienação, como uma filosofia da técnica que se preocupa com o comportamento do homem, portanto, com sua alienação. Como resultado, este ensaio será dividido em três partes: na primeira seção, será desenvolvido um diálogo entre um historiador e um sociólogo, para construir uma breve história da técnica; na segunda seção apresentarei um diálogo sobre o conceito de alienação entre Marx e (...) Heidegger a partir do pensamento do filósofo venezuelano Mayz Vallenilla e na última seção apresentarei a conexão entre ética e meta-técnica como alternativa atraente à alienação técnica. (shrink)

I. Teoría del derecho.--II. Teoría del estado.

While scientific inquiry crucially relies on the extraction of patterns from data, we still have a far from perfect understanding of the metaphysics of patterns—and, in particular, of what makes a pattern real. In this paper we derive a criterion of real-patternhood from the notion of conditional Kolmogorov complexity. The resulting account belongs to the philosophical tradition, initiated by Dennett :27–51, 1991), that links real-patternhood to data compressibility, but is simpler and formally more perspicuous than other proposals previously defended in (...) the literature. It also successfully enforces a non-redundancy principle, suggested by Ladyman and Ross, that aims to exclude from real-patternhood those patterns that can be ignored without loss of information about the target dataset, and which their own account fails to enforce. (shrink)

Charles L. Dodgson's reputation as a significant figure in nineteenth-century logic was firmly established when the philosopher and historian of philosophy William Warren Bartley, III published Dodgson's ?lost? book of logic, Part II of Symbolic Logic, in 1977. Bartley's commentary and annotations confirm that Dodgson was a superb technical innovator. In this paper, I closely examine Dodgson's methods and their evolution in the two parts of Symbolic Logic to clarify and justify Bartley's claims. Then, using more recent publications and unpublished (...) letters, I argue that Dodgson approached the elimination problem in class logic differently than his contemporaries, and in doing so, anticipated several important concepts and techniques in automated deductive reasoning. These materials also provide additional insight into his reasons for writing this book. (shrink)

Well known as a mystic, Catherine of Siena has been credited with pope Gregory XI’s return to Rome from Avignon, with convincing him to pursue a crusade and with playing a major role in making peace between the Papal League and Italian City states. This narrative ascribes these accomplishments to Catherine’s extraordinary gifts, a fruit of her mystical experience. Contemporary historical research, however, shows that Catherine was chosen by ecclesiastical authorities to advocate for papal policies. She was guided to causes (...) and policies she should pursue, which were already determined by the pope and his advisors. In light of this historical research and from the perspective of Christian spirituality studies, I examined Catherine’s letters to pope Gregory XI to analyse and interpret her spirituality of political engagement. Her multiple authoritative exhortations to Gregory XI telling him how her wisdom applied to the choices before him can be read as a spirituality of papal governance and as ‘formation’ for his critical leadership of the church. By means of this article I have shown that Catherine’s advice was intended for the salvation and transformation of others and for the good of the church so that it might best mediate salvation. This goal was her interpretation of the mission entrusted to her through her spiritual advisor. Her own spirituality in daring to forcefully ‘form’ the pope and in espousing papal causes by preaching her creative integration of Gospel wisdom was witness to an unselfconscious courage and utter trust in God acting through her; a fruit of her own profound journey of transformation.Contribution: This article offers a new interpretation of Catherine of Siena’s engagement in papal politics and related spirituality. Catherine was chosen for this task by ecclesiastical authorities, then construed this mission as a call to ‘form’ the pope; thus, her letters to Gregory XI are interpreted as a spirituality of papal governance. (shrink)

Although it has been argued that mechanistic explanation is compatible with abstraction, there are still doubts about whether mechanism can account for the explanatory power of significant abstract models in computational neuroscience. Chirimuuta has recently claimed that models describing canonical neural computations must be evaluated using a non-mechanistic framework. I defend two claims regarding these models. First, I argue that their prevailing neurocognitive interpretation is mechanistic. Additionally, a criterion recently proposed by Levy and Bechtel to legitimize mechanistic abstract models, and (...) also a criterion proposed by Chirimuuta herself aimed to distinguish between causal and non-causal explanation, can be employed to show why these models are explanatory only under this interpretation. Second, I argue that mechanism is able to account for the special epistemic achievement implied by CNC models. Canonical neural components contribute to an integrated understanding of different cognitive functions. They make it possible for us to explain these functions by describing different mechanisms constituted by common basic components arranged in different ways. (shrink)

Although much has been written on Descartes’ thought on animals, not so much has originated in, or has taken full account of, Descartes’ views on emotions. I explore here the extent to which the latter can contribute to the debate on whether he embraced, and to which extent, the doctrine of the bête machine. I first try to show that Descartes’ views on emotions can help offer new support to the skeptical position without necessarily creating new tensions with other central (...) aspects of his philosophy. And second, I sketch the type of theory of animal passions which Descartes could have accepted. The general conclusion I draw is not that Descartes did not hold the view of the bête machine but rather that we can find within his thought a solid stream of ideas, which became stronger towards the end of his life, that points in the opposite direction. (shrink)

A number of biologists and philosophers have noted the diversity of interpretations of evolvability in contemporary evolutionary research. Different clusters of research defined by co-citation patterns or shared methodological orientation sometimes concentrate on distinct conceptions of evolvability. We examine five different activities where the notion of evolvability plays conceptual roles in evolutionary biological investigation: setting a research agenda, characterization, explanation, prediction, and control. Our analysis of representative examples demonstrates how different conceptual roles of evolvability are quasi-independent and yet exhibit important (...) relationships across scientific activities. It also provides us with the resources to detail two distinct strategies for how evolvability can help to synthesize disparate areas of research and thereby potentially serve as a unifying concept in evolutionary biology. (shrink)

The article begins with an integrative theory of neurosis and with the notion of the “patriarchal mind,” which I conceive as the psycho-social foundation of what we call “civilisation” and proceed to characterize as a despotic and repressive activity of the father on the mother and on the child in the family, and also of an analogous relation between the intellect on the emotional and on the instinctual sub-selves in the individual mind. Next, I propose that patriarchy entails four interrelated (...) problems: violent authority; the eclipse of caring; the repression of instinct; and the invalidation of intuition; and point out that since these are evident in our well-recognized social problems, these may be traced down to the “patriarchal complex” that in turn defines patriarchal society. Finally, I develop the idea that not only is the patriarchal mind is embodied in each of the known interpersonal or character pathologies, but that each of these pathologies contributes to the systemic and cultural presence of the patriarchal mind. The corollary of this analysis is that the healing of both our interpersonal and social pathologies will depend on the healing of the patriarchal mind, which is conceivably possible to bring about through a specially designed education oriented to the balanced development of “three-brained beings,” in whom a balance has been achieved between the intellectual, emotional, and instinctive sub-selves that constitute our mind. (shrink)