Water saving irrigation is promoted as a strategy to mitigate future water stresses by the Chinese government and irrigation scientists. However, the dissemination of WSI in China has been slow and little is understood with respect to why farmers adopt WSI or how WSI interacts with the social and institutional contexts in which it is embedded. By analyzing qualitative data from 37 semi-structured and 56 unstructured interviews across 13 villages in northwest China, this paper examines smallholder farmers’ knowledge and perceptions (...) of WSI, and how WSI interacts with farmer livelihood decision-making and extant systems of land and water management. The results show that smallholders’ willingness to adopt and continuously use WSI was dampened by a lack of communal capital and measures for conflict resolution, a disconnect between the temporal demands of practicing WSI and the ways farmers prioritize different livelihood strategies, misconceptions about WSI systems and how they work, market risks, and landownership structure and economies of scale. These results suggest that programs for promoting WSI must be holistic in nature and address smallholders’ day-to-day problems. Understanding why WSI did not succeed in some places will help formulate policy interventions that avoid reproducing conflicts, risks, and technological malfunctions responsible for previous failure. (shrink)

An innocent form of emergence—what I call "weak emergence"—is now a commonplace in a thriving interdisciplinary nexus of scientific activity—sometimes called the "sciences of complexity"—that include connectionist modelling, non-linear dynamics (popularly known as "chaos" theory), and artificial life.1 After defining it, illustrating it in two contexts, and reviewing the available evidence, I conclude that the scientific and philosophical prospects for weak emergence are bright.

It is my contention that there is a significant relationship between “Phenomenology of Perception” (Merleau-Ponty) and “The Second Sex” (de Beauvoir). The two authors give great importancc to the lived body (Leib), either from a neutral perspective, either from a perspective feminine. This key concept of the phenomenology allows us to understand the lived experience of women and their possible relationship with feminism. From this corporeal sense we analyze the Merleau-Pontinian redefinition of subjectivity and reason. We emphasize his criticism of (...) reductionism, both epistemological as ontological. We refute certain feminists accusations against Merleau-Ponty. To do this, we study all his work in search of traces of women, we place them in context, while we study his own hermeneutics of psychoanalysis in order to highlight the contribution of it to the deconstruction of stereotypes about femininity. We conclude by showing the main keys of this phenomenology for· the current feminist Philosophy. (shrink)

This article investigates Charles Peirce’s development of logical calculi for classical propositional logic in 1880–1896. Peirce’s 1880 work on the algebra of logic resulted in a successful calculus for Boolean algebra. This calculus, denoted byPC, is here presented as a sequent calculus and not as a natural deduction system. It is shown that Peirce’s aim was to presentPCas a sequent calculus. The law of distributivity, which Peirce states in 1880, is proved using Peirce’s Rule, which is a residuation, inPC. The (...) transitional systems of the algebra of the copula that Peirce develops since 1880 paved the way to the 1896 graphical system of the alpha graphs. It is shown how the rules of the alpha system reinterpret Boolean algebras, answering Peirce’s statement that logical graphs supply a new system of fundamental assumptions to logical algebra. A proof-theoretic analysis is given for the connection betweenPCand the alpha system. (shrink)

Treatise on the doctrine of the Rāmānandīs, Vaishnava sect.

How did human vocalizations come to acquire meaning in the evolution of our species? Charles Darwin proposed that language and music originated from a common emotional signal system based on the imitation and modification of sounds in nature. This protolanguage is thought to have diverged into two separate systems, with speech prioritizing referential functionality and music prioritizing emotional functionality. However, there has never been an attempt to empirically evaluate the hypothesis that a single communication system can split into two functionally (...) distinct systems that are characterized by music- and languagelike properties. Here, we demonstrate that when referential and emotional functions are introduced into an artificial communication system, that system will diverge into vocalization forms with speech- and music-like properties, respectively. Participants heard novel vocalizations as part of a learning task. Half referred to physical entities and half functioned to communicate emotional states. Participants then reproduced each sound with the defined communicative intention in mind. Each recorded vocalization was used as the input for another participant in a serial reproduction paradigm, and this procedure was iterated to create 15 chains of five participants each. Referential vocalizations were rated as more speech-like, whereas emotional vocalizations were rated as more music-like, and this association was observed cross-culturally. In addition, a stable separation of the acoustic profiles of referential and emotional vocalizations emerged, with some attributes diverging immediately and others diverging gradually across iterations. The findings align with Darwin’s hypothesis and provide insight into the roles of biological and cultural evolution in the divergence of language and music. (shrink)

This paper investigates the applicability of reliabilism to scientific knowledge, and especially focuses on two doubts about the applicability: one about its difficulty in accounting for the epistemological role of scientific instruments, and the other about scientific theories. To respond to the two doubts, we extend virtue reliabilism, a reliabilist-based virtue epistemology, with a distinction of two types of epistemic virtues and the extended mind thesis from Clark and Chalmers (Analysis 58:7–19, 1998 ). We also present a case study on (...) the quantitative research methodology of social sciences to show that the methodology is actually an extended virtue reliabilism on how social science instruments and theories contribute to the formation of social scientific knowledge. (shrink)

Customer civility is an established construct in the study of ethical consumption. However, scholars have paid insufficient attention to customer civility in relation to the flourishing peer-to-peer economy. Therefore, the purpose of this article is to develop and test a theoretical framework which examines the antecedents of the customer civility in the P2P economy. We use social exchange theory to develop a model that posits customer interaction experiences with property owners, properties, and P2P platforms as antecedents of customer civility in (...) the P2P economy. Two studies were used to test our framework: Study 1 comprises a survey of Chinese customers ; Study 2 involves secondary data crawled from the Web site of Xiaozhu, one of China’s largest P2P accommodation platforms. OLS regression analysis was used for hypothesis testing. Results demonstrate three antecedents of customer civility in the P2P accommodation sector: interpersonal trust, property experience, and platform governance. In addition, the positive effect of interpersonal trust on customer civility is stronger when customers have high economic incentive, while the effect of property experience is significantly stronger when customers have low economic incentive. (shrink)

Research in the fields of complex problem solving (CPS) and dynamic decision making using microworlds has been mainly conducted in Western industrialized countries. This study analyzes the CPS process by investigating thinking‐aloud protocols in five countries. Participants were 511 students from Brazil, Germany, India, the Philippines, and the United States who worked on two microworlds. On the basis of cultural‐psychological theories, specific cross‐national differences in CPS strategies were hypothesized. Following theories of situatedness of cognition, hypotheses about the specific frequency of (...) problem‐solving strategies in the two microworlds were developed. Results of the verbal protocols showed (a) modification of the theoretical CPS model, (b) task dependence of CPS strategies, and (c) cross‐national differences in CPS strategies. Participants’ CPS processes were particularly influenced by country‐specific problem‐solving strategies. (shrink)

Food quality is an important issue on the global agenda, particularly in high- and middle-income economies, but of little concern in designing Mexico’s food policy. Food policy has focused on quantity and in the case of maize, on satisfying domestic demand by supporting large commercial agriculture and importing from abroad. However, and as argued in this paper, obtaining a food staple of quality is also an important issue for rural households and contributes to motivating continued smallholder production. Based on case (...) studies in the rural district of Atlacomulco, in the state of Mexico, as well as in two regions of the state of Chiapas, this paper analyzes the production and consumption strategies of rural households. We focus on goals of food security and quality and note differential trends among households of varying characteristics and local contexts. We find that the motivation of small-scale producers to grow maize should be supported by Mexico’s food policy. (shrink)

Counterfactual thinking is presumed to play a preparatory function in promoting people’s behavioural intentions. This study specifically addresses the impacts of COVID-19 severity, tourists’ counterfactual thinking about the pandemic, and tourists’ perceived duty-free consumption value on the effect of a duty-free policy on travel intentions. Four hundred and ten participants took part in this study, which involved a 2 × 2 design. Results reveal the following patterns: compared to the absence of a duty-free policy in tourist destinations, enactment of a (...) duty-free policy leads to stronger visit intentions through greater perceived value and the effect of a duty-free policy on travel intention is moderated by tourists’ counterfactual thinking and COVID-19 severity. (shrink)

Analysis of various Buddhist philosophical views.

Despite numerous studies on the treatment of developmental language disorder, the intervention effect has long been debated. Systematic reviews of the effect of language therapy alone are rare. This evidence-based study investigated the effect of language therapy alone for different expressive and receptive language levels in children with DLD. Publications in databases including PubMed, the Cochrane Library, the Wanfang Database and the China National Knowledge Infrastructure were searched. Randomized controlled trials were selected. The methodological quality of the included trials was (...) assessed using the modified Jadad method. RevMan 5.3 software was used for the data analysis. Fifteen trials were included in this study. Compared with the control group, the intervention group showed significant differences in overall expressive language development [standard mean differences, 0.46; 95% confidence interval, 0.12–0.80], mean length of utterances in a language sample, number of utterances in a language sample, parent reports of expressive phrase complexity, overall expressive vocabulary development and different words used in a language sample. However, language therapy did not show satisfactory long-term effects on DLD. Although language therapy is helpful in improving the performance of children with DLD, its long-term effect is unsatisfactory. (shrink)

Numerous recommendations and guidelines aim to improve the quality, timeliness and transparency of medical publications. However, these guidelines use ambiguous language that can be challenging to interpret, particularly for speakers of English as a second language. Cultural expectations within the Asia-Pacific region raise additional challenges and several studies have suggested that awareness and application of ethical publication practices in the Asia-Pacific region is relatively low compared with other regions. However, guidance on applying ethical publication practice guidelines in the Asia-Pacific region (...) is lacking. This commentary aims to improve publication practices in the Asia-Pacific region by providing guidance on applying the 10 principles of the Good Publication Practice 3 (GPP3) guidelines and the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) criteria for authorship. Recommendations are provided for encore presentations, applying the ICMJE authorship criteria in the context of regional cultural expectations, and the role of study sponsors and professional medical writers. Ongoing barriers to compliance with guidelines are also highlighted, and additional guidance is provided to support authors submitting manuscripts for publication. The roles of regional journals, regulatory authorities and professional bodies in improving practices are also discussed. (shrink)

Chan has been one of the most prominent sects of Chinese Buddhism since the mid and late Tang Dynasty and it has been particularly well-known around the world. The Platform Sutra purports to convey the teachings of Huineng, one of the most revered figures in the Chan tradition, and the text has been regarded as the most reliable source for the study of Chan. This canonical Buddhist text is generally categorized into four different versions: 1) Dunhuang ; 2) Huixin ; (...) 3) Qisong ; and, 4) Zongbao. The Dunhuang version is further divided into two manuscripts: the Old Dunghuang text and New Dunghuang text (also known as... (shrink)

This paper explores the shift in the position of the Catholic Church regarding religious freedom, in the context of the changing perspective on the relationship between Church and State. The Declaration Dignitatis humanae of Vatican II recognised religious freedom as a human right deriving from the dignity of the person. It reflected a significant change in perspective as it understood religious freedom as abidance by convictions held in conscience and as freedom from coercion. Both the State and the Church are (...) expected to ensure freedom from external coercion and from psychological pressure. The process which led to the recognition of religious freedom in the Catholic Church went along with the acknowledgement of the autonomy of the State in secular matters. The State is expected to recognise the freedom to profess freely religious beliefs and the right to free worship, but religious freedom may not interfere with secular authority in its own sphere of competence. Dignitatis humanae is therefore known as the declaration of the separation between Church and State. Yet, a more attentive lecture shows that it actually also advances a balanced model for the collaboration between State and Church in the shared concern for the common good. Both are required to act in a manner that advances the common welfare of society. (shrink)

This article discusses halal symbols in the Muslim religion; Muslims use halal as a guide for purchasing food and drink products. The article discusses especially the background of the existence of the halal logo, state regulations and the awareness of the Muslim community. Following results given in selected positions of the literature of the subject the authors come to the following theses and conclusions: the obligation to carry out halal certification has been regulated by Law Number 33 of 2014 and (...) Government Regulation Number 39 of 2021. In implementing the program this has been done in 38 provinces of Indonesia. The existence of the halal logo obligation aims to guarantee consumer protection for purchased goods, especially in Muslim communities. (shrink)

Impact investing urges investors to weigh the social and environmental impacts of their investment decisions. However, in practice, it remains unclear whether investors in financial products are driven by ethical motivations, such as environmental considerations, and what factors influence their trust in the non-financial aspects (e.g., green attributes) of these investments. This study investigates the ethical motivations behind investors’ decisions to invest in green bonds using a machine learning-assisted causal inference framework based on data collected on all green and conventional (...) bonds issued worldwide from 2007 to 2022. It also explores the underlying factors contributing to investors’ trust in green bonds by examining four perspectives: the issuer’s environmental performance, the transparency and governance of environmental disclosure related to bonds, and the financing purpose of the bonds. The results indicate that (1) investors are willing to forgo financial gains for environmental causes, with this sacrifice quantified as an 18 basis points (bps) green premium, demonstrating a clear ethical motivation; (2) the credibility of bond information, financing purposes, and issuer’s greenhouse gas emission intensity directly influence investors’ trust in green bonds, while bond information disclosure and the issuer’s environmental (E) scores have only indirect effects; and (3) companies with weaker environmental performance often adopt proactive disclosure or certification policies to bolster investors’ green trust. This study is the first to explore the factors influencing investors’ trust in green bonds and to analyze the overall causal transmission mechanism among these factors using a causal inference framework. (shrink)

On the works of Ācārya Śrīrāma Śarmā, 1911-1990, Hindu philosopher.

Faster R-CNN architecture is used to solve the problems of moving path uncertainty, changeable coverage, and high complexity in cold-air induced large-scale intensive temperature-reduction detection and classification, since those problems usually lead to path identification biases as well as low accuracy and generalization ability of recognition algorithm. In this paper, an improved recognition method of national ITR path in China based on faster R-CNN in complicated meteorological systems is proposed. Firstly, quality control of the original dataset of strong cooling processes (...) is carried out by means of data filtering. Then, according to the NITR standard and the characteristics of NITR, the NITR dataset in China is established by the intensive temperature-reduction areas located through spatial transformation. Meanwhile, considering that the selection of regularization parameters of Softmax classification method will cause the problem of probability calculation, support vector machine is used for path classification to enhance the confidence of classification. Finally, the improved faster R-CNN model is used to identify, classify, and locate the path of NITR events. The experimental results show that, compared to other models, the improved faster R-CNN algorithm greatly improves the performance of NITR’s path recognition, especially for the mixed NITR paths and single NITR paths. Therefore, the improved faster R-CNN model has fast calculation speed, high recognition accuracy, good robustness, and generalization ability of NITR path recognition. (shrink)

Dissociation is an important aspect of responses to traumatic events. According to a number of influential theories, it negatively impacts cognitive performance including encoding of the trauma memories, leading to an increased risk of later conditions such as posttraumatic stress disorder . We tested this hypothesis experimentally in two studies by inducing dissociation in the laboratory and investigating the effects on several aspects of cognition, including time estimation, digit and spatial span, and story recall. Dissociation was related to decrements in (...) time estimation, digit span, and story retention, but did not affect perceptual attention, spatial span, or immediate story recall. The results are discussed in the context of theoretical models of PTSD and their implications for official questioning of traumatized individuals such as sexual assault survivors. (shrink)

Introduction: Broad issues relating to filial piety and ethical dilemmas of families and care practitioners in residential care were discussed as part of an international networking project. It is meaningful to explore the different roles and responsibilities of participants in residential care in the context of China’s filial piety. Older residents and their children are part of this caring process, which might be significantly different from that in Western countries. However, only a little amount of research related to this topic (...) has been conducted. Objective: This study aimed to identify and describe the roles and responsibilities of a nursing professional, manager, older person, and her children, as well as other mutual contacts in residential care, based on the context of Chinese filial piety culture. Methods: The study was conducted as a case study. The product of the analysis, themes, or categories that describe the phenomenon, content analysis method was applied. After a consultation with a group of experts on research on older adults, a specific nursing home was selected in Xiamen City, China. This case study emphasized the roles and responsibilities of a nursing professional, manager, the older resident, and her children as they related to the care of older adult. The data, which consisted of interviews with four participants, were collected using a semi-structured interview method. Inductive content analysis was applied to analyze data. Ethical considerations: Permission to conduct the interviews received ethical approval from the participating organization based on national standards. The elements of voluntary participation, anonymity, and confidentiality on the part of the respondent were explained. Findings: The analysis resulted in four participants, with some variation of roles and responsibilities, describing staffing level and competence and their behavior for reducing the accident of the older adult, and the children of older adult influencing the quality of taking care of the older adult, based on the filial piety. The nursing home residents were described as becoming increasingly complex with a subsequent demand for increased spiritual support. There was variation in roles and responsibilities among four participants, but their contributions adjusting was an overall focus. Manager plays a considerable role in the future development of the institution, as a resource allocator, and decision-maker. Nursing professional is the main personnel serving as a link among staffs. The older adult herself adjust mentally and actively with the aging process, and some of them can be able to burden in taking care of her grandchildren or can be rehired and still have a distinct role in society. Children are required to fulfill their obligations to their parents, which involves supports of care, spiritual and economy. Several factors such as managers and nursing professional competence and their cooperation, various aspects of supports from their children based on the filial piety, and adequate communication and self-adjusting of the older adult, were recognized as factors affecting the process of taking care of the older adult. Discussion: New information was produced to serve as theoretical guidelines in managing nursing homes, the training of nursing staff, preservation of the filial piety culture, and encouraging self-care among older people in the new era. Conclusion: A variety of roles and responsibilities for a nursing professional, manager, MrsWang and her children was identified in the older adult care process. Several factors to manager’s and nursing professional’s experience of the resource situation and competence level, and also adequate communication and self-adjusting of the older adult were suggested to affect the effect of taking care of the older adult. The older adults were perceived as more complex with more physical and mental problems but inadequate care from family members forcing the older adult from home care to a nursing home. A nursing home seems to have a higher nursing competence and be well-suited for the needs of the older adult, on the other hand, filial piety and self-care are also needed to play an important role in taking care of the older adult. (shrink)

Faults; religious aspects; Islam; Islamic daʻwah.