Discovery Of Truth Research Articles

Simultaneity in the Scientific Enterprise

Abstract In this article, we explore the concept of simultaneity in the scientific enterprise, defined herein as the near-coincident discovery of significant advances in the development of our scientific understanding of the world. We do this by examining two case studies of such coincident or near-coincident discoveries: the development of the so-called Lorentz transformation by H.A. Lorentz (1904) and A. Einstein (1905); and the Aharonov-Bohm effect discovered independently in chronological order by Franz(1939), Ehrenberg and Siday (1949) and Aharonov and Bohm (1959). It is now generally acknowledged that the Lorentz transformations were independently developed by both Lorentz and Einstein as they worked on different approaches to solve a similar problem – i.e., the preservation of the form of Maxwell’s equations in coordinate systems moving relative to one another, while the relationship between the Ehrenberg-Siday and Aharonov-Bohm works is still controversial. In our view, these independent discoveries allow some speculation about the nature of human discovery and understanding of scientific truths as they progress through time. Key words: Gauge field theory; Quantum electrodynamics; Aharonov-Bohm effect; Sociology of knowledge; Multiple scientific discoveries

Lope de Vega y el descubrimiento de la verdad en la comedia nueva

This article discusses the treatment that the mechanism of the discovery of the dramatic truth had in the main theoretical and poetry essays of the Golden Age, mostly Italians. The origin of this resource is in the Aristotle’s Poetics , and this is the starting point for the development of a comparative study of its concept, types and application to the new comedy genre and more specifically, to some selected comedies written by frey Lope Felix de Vega Carpio. To note the treatment that the playwright makes, we work with three plays that are assigned to the first period of Lope’s production: Los hechos de Garcilaso de la Vega y Moro Tarfe , Las ferias de Madrid and La serrana de La Vera

Reimagining Puerto Rican history in Seva Vive

Luis López Nieves' short story Seva published in the newspaper Claridad in 1983 narrates the discovery of a hidden truth of the Spanish-American War of 1898: the inhabitants of the town Seva fought bravely against the invading American forces and were subsequently slaughtered. Taken as fact by some of the newspaper's readers, the story engaged the polemic intersection of popular memory, historical record, and colonial power. Released in 2008, Francisco Serrano's internationally acclaimed film Seva Vive uses digital technology to recast the interpretive practice of history undergirding Seva. This article combines an analysis of the film's use of documentary footage, photographs, digital technology, interviews, and literary text. It relies on current theorizations of adaptation, archive and authenticity to understand how the film's visual aesthetic of play denaturalizes the process by which history appears to us as true. The film visualizes the selective processes that produce historical accounts of colonizer and colonized, thus decoupling authenticity and the colonized subject.

Schumpeter's theory of self-restoration: a casualty of Samuelson's Whig historiography of science

This article argues that Samuelson’s influential 1987 call for a ‘Whig history of economic science’ rests on a Whig historiography of the natural sciences. This contrasts with how science actually works: Samuelson neglects the critical role of controversy in the development of knowledge, leading to the misleading idea that scientists pursue discovery at the expense of reflection on the foundation and history of their subject. The consequence is institutional delegitimation: the exclusion of legitimate contrary hypotheses when economists test their theories, invalidating the test. Samuelson further confuses the history of ideas with the history of texts. This expands the scope of institutional delegitimation to a systematic misrepresentation of the actual ideas at stake in the economic controversies, erecting a permanent obstacle to the discovery of truth. I illustrate this with Samuelson’s exclusion from consideration of two ‘non-ignorable’ contributions to macroeconomic theory: Schumpeter’s Business Cycles, which he failed to recognise as a theory of endogenous capitalist self-restoration, and the concept of endogenous decline, excluded by his Whig reinterpretation of Marx’s theory of value. Schumpeter and Marx offered opposed, but legitimate, alternatives to the post-war macroeconomic consensus of which Samuelson was a major architect. In particular, both recognised that deep and prolonged crises were a natural product of capitalism, not an inexplicable exception. To respond to the 2008 downturn, economics needs to reopen a wide discussion without excluding, a priori, any of these opposed theoretical explanations, instead seeking to understand clearly what each of them actually says and testing them against the empirical evidence of history.

Inconvenient truths: A public intellectual’s pursuit of truth, justice and power

Public sociology involves challenging received wisdoms. Thus, it requires unusual fortitude, as these wisdoms are embedded in common sense, itself backed up by interests and sometimes force. To change what is taken to be common sense, such as neoliberal orthodoxy, therefore, can be accomplished most effectively through a social movement. To challenge conventional wisdom requires the discovery of truth and that can call for unorthodox methods, such as breaking into powerful agencies that hold official secrets. To challenge deeply held truths, whether they are deeply held by the powerful or the weak, can earn one long-lasting hostility, such as when I investigated the killings by the Philippine Communist Party. This is because there is an inherent and inescapable conflict between truth and power that will never disappear.

Conversing on ethics, morality and education

In philosophical use, ‘ethics’ and ‘moral philosophy’ are more closely synonymous—one deriving from Greek, ethikē and the other from Latin moralis. In typical social science paradigms, there generally prevails a consensual sense of contemporary everyday use of ethics, except where earlier usage sustains discourse in terms of morals—as with moral psychology. This article takes a recent publication in this journal by Patrick Welch to propose a ‘conversation’ between theoretic and empirical approaches to ethics and morals. This is illustrated using works by Joseph Ratzinger to suggest a natural law approach that brings together premises and empirics in ethical and moral discourse and action. This kind of integration helps the discovery and owning of truth that is ‘not of one’s own making’. Such a synthetic approach is especially relevant to raising student identity with ethical/moral issues and in assisting their building of psychological structures and processes that support education in ethical/moral reasoning and action.

Mark Twain, Nietzsche, and Terrible Truths That Can Set Us Free

Mark Twain, Nietzsche, and Terrible Truths That Can Set Us Free

Letter to the Editor

The commentor takes issue with various points made in the original article by P.R. Bhattacharjee (ibid., vol.32, no.2, pp.24,26, April 2013). In particular she feels that the most fundamental flaw in Bhattacharjee's scheme is that defining 'current' in a direction perpendicular to the flow of charge becasue this redefinition breaks the symmetry of the Maxwell equations. She feels Bhattacharjee's article does nothing to clear up any confusion and offers no new insight. Rather, the author confuses lumped and vectorial models of electromagnetics, real vectors, and psuedovectors and only muddies the waters. In replying Bhattacharjee notes that the work described in the original article had been an extension of the previous article "Discovering the Vectorial Nature of Electric Current," which appeared in the vol. 3, 2012 issue of the International Journal of Physical and Mathematical Sciences (IJPMS), a peer-reviewed journal published by the International Centre of Cultural Inventory (icoci.org). It was clearly stated in the earlier 2012 published paper in IJPMS that the said work deals with a debatable issue and what has been reported in it is exclusively related to the feeling of the author with respect to the long-running misleading concept about electric current. It has also been mentioned in that paper that the said study reflects a discovery of the real truth, which has been overlooked so far and, as such, deserves special attention. The author feels the newly introduced vectorial portrayal of electric current is very much clear, leaving no room for confusion and has rationality with the convention used in regard to the direction of unit positive normal in defining vector area in vector calculus. Also, such a direction for the vectorial current follows from the well-known Ampere's theorem of equivalent magnetic shell

Exploring wisdom in relationship with coping styles, social desirability, subjective well being, age and gender

In the past few years Wisdom has been upcoming area of research in the field of psychology. The west has shared some interesting work on wisdom and its correlates, development, variables contributing to wisdom, and many other wisdom related life skills. To the best of the author's knowledge, the concept of wisdom as a psychological construct hasn't been taken up extensively as a part of research in India. Despite the blessings of abundant spiritual and religious knowledge found in our Ancient Indian texts (Vedas, The Gita, Guru Granth Sahib ji, etc.), there hasn't been much work on characteristics of wise people and wisdom in everyday life. There is also a need to see if the work done in the west finds similar results in the Asian context and how significant are the cultural differences.In this study, a brief overview will be given of how wise people cope? Is there any gender difference in wisdom? Does wisdom necessarily increase with age? Do wise people have the need to impress others? Are wise people able to accept the negative side of their personality (self deception)? Are wise people happier? All of this has been answered using standardized self report measures and statistical analysis.Over the past two decades many definitions of wisdom have been proposed. Surprisingly, the construct of wisdom is such that it is difficult to arrive at one specific definition. Many people confuse wisdom with intelligence, creativity, moral reasoning and knowledge. Here a few of the many differences between the above mentioned constructs will be discussed based on Robert J Sternberg's work (Sternberg, 1990). According to Sternberg, wisdom, creativity and intelligence are the same. What makes them different is their use. Difference between Wisdom, Intelligence and Creativity: A wise person gets into in depth clarity seeking by focusing on the question of why. He/she doesn't rely on automatic assumptions. Whereas, intelligent person looks for automatic solutions and routines which help him solve a problem faster. A creative person has no interest in thewhy of what he does. He's interested in exploring new things which carry element of originality or uniqueness. Furthermore, intelligence is the discovery of new truths and wisdom is understanding the depth of the existing ones (Ardelt, 2008). Secondly, a wise person is capable of comfortably accepting the contradictions, uncertainties and ambiguities in life. They know that they don't know it all. An intelligent person would like to solve the ambiguity. He can tolerate the uncertainty of life only if he is both wise and intelligent. A creative person tolerates ambiguity with discomfort (Sternberg, 1990).Difference between Wisdom and Moral Reasoning: Whereas, moral reasoning is limited to matters of justice and fairness, wisdom involves judgments and insights about issues that are not only of moral concerns but other than moral concerns as well. Some problem situations require practical solutions instead of moral solutions. Moral reasoning involves looking at one aspect like justice, fairness and care. Wisdom on the other hand involves taking into account multiple aspects other than just the moral aspect. Therefore, wisdom is broader and all entailing.Difference between Wisdom and Knowledge: Knowledgeable people are not necessarily humble if they are under the illusion that they know. Humility and transcendence of self are qualities of the wise. Thus, knowledgeable can be prone to superiority and excessive ego which the wise are capable of controlling (Ardelt, 2008).Definitions of Wisdom: While some researchers focus on the as a feature of wisdom, a few focus on acceptance of limitations of knowledge as a quality of the wise and some focus on integration of cognitive, reflective and affective aspects of life as wise. Meacham (1990) defines wisdom as awareness of not knowing everything in life. Baltes and Smith (1993) define wisdom as an expertise in the domain of fundamental pragmatics of life, such as life planning and life review. …

Ważyk metafizyczny? / Ważyk – A Metaphysician?

Summary Adam Ważyk’s last volume of poems Zdarzenia (Events) (1977) can be read as a resume of the an avant-garde artist’s life that culminated in the discovery of a new truth about the human condition. The poems reveal his longing for a belief that human life, the mystery of life and death, makes sense, ie. that one’s existence is subject to the rule of some overarching necessity, opened onto the last things, rather than a plaything of chance. That entails a rejection of the idea of man’s self-sufficiency as an illusion, even though that kind of individual sovereignty was the cornerstone of modernist art. The art of late modernity, it may be noted, was already increasingly aware of the dangers of putting man’s ‘ontological security’ at risk. Ważyk’s last volume exemplifies this tendency although its poems appear to remain within the confines of a Cubist poetics which he himself helped to establish. In fact, however, as our readings of the key poems from Events make clear, he employs his accustomed techniques for a new purpose. The shift of perspective can be described as ‘metaphysical’, not in any strict sense of the word, but rather as a shorthand indicator of the general mood of these poems, filled with events which seem to trap the characters into a supernatural order of things. The author sees that much, even though he does not look with the eye of a man of faith. It may be just a game - and Ważyk was always fond of playing games - but in this one the stakes are higher than ever. Ultimately, this game is about salvation. Ważyk is drawn into it by a longing for the wholeness of things and a dissatisfaction with all forms of mediation, including the Cubist games of deformation and fragmentation of the object. It seems that the key to Ważyk’s late phase is to be found in his disillusionment with the twentieth-century avant-gardes. Especially the poems of Events contain enough clues to suggest that the promise of Cubism and surrealism - which he sought to fuse in his poetic theory and practice - was short-lived and hollow.

Phenomenological research of meaning-making for the bereavement of a close person

The study analyzes the phenomenon of meaning making for the bereavement of a person with whom they had close relationships, based on the experience of seven research participants. All of them had been nursing a relative till the death from an incurable disease. The study aims to identify the essential structure and get a clear and systematic description of meaning-making for the bereavement. All the data were collected in depth semi-structured interviews (lasting 50–80 minutes). The main question of the interview was “please remember and describe the specific situation or the moment when you understood that you have lost your a close person. What does this understanding mean to you?” An analysis of the interviews was performed on the basis of the A. Giorgi phenomenological psychological analysis method. At the end of the study, there were discovered and identified 13 essential aspects, 5 directions, and 2 fundamental spaces of meaning-making for the bereavement. All the findings were shared by every participant. The results were summarized into a single definition. First of all, results of the research have revealed that meaning-making for the bereavement is a process rather than a one-off event or situation. The results show that the meaning-making for the bereavement of a close person is mainly expressed by qualitative changes in relationships and in the world-view. In the area of qualitative changes in the relationships, it is worth to distinguish changes in the relationship with the relative one: here one can find a big concern for nursing the loved one, experiencing the ongoing existence of a dead relative and feeling a strong spiritual support from them because of the deep relations before death. The other changes in the area are qualitative changes in social relations.The area of qualitative changes in the world-view unfolds in three levels. The first level concerns the evaluation of experiences in time perspective: change in the attitude towards bereavement is reavealed; the evaluation of its emotional states becomes objective; and all these aspects are summarized as a valuable lesson for personal grow. The second level concerns the identification and appreciation of discovered benefits: the relevance of living here and now; the importance of changes in the personal system of the relevance of living here and now; the importance of changes in the personal system of values; and the recognition that relative’s attitude towards death affected the worldview of others. The third level unfolds the discovery of fundamental truths: the meaning of the experience of loss is perceived as metaphysical and beyond the limits of the human mind; the temporality of existence and the unknowability of death is recognized.

Stanley Cavell and the Education of Grownups Naoko Saito and Paul Standish (eds)

Reviewed by: Stanley Cavell and the Education of Grownups edited by Naoko Saito and Paul Standish Thomas Wallgren Naoko Saito and Paul Standish. (eds) Stanley Cavell and the Education of Grownups. Fordham University Press, New York, 2012. 262 pp. including index. The main strength of this volume is its clarity of focus. The focus is on what Hilary Putnam tells us is his “favorite definition of philosophy”, “Stanley Cavell’s ‘education for grownups’” (p. 37). I take it that the quote is Putnam’s favorite not only because of the truth of the definition but also because it may strike many professional philosophers as surprising. It serves to awaken us to the importance of something we know but have forgotten that we know, and that we have therefore lost hold of. In this volume it is probably Cavell himself who provides the most memorable clue to how we may begin to unravel the truth of his definition. There are two claims. One is that “the learning of speech, the ordering and reordering of words” is “the most fundamental of the matters we can be said to learn”; the other is that such learning has an internal connection to the “practice of philosophizing” (p. 23). If mainstream, analytical, representationalist theories of meaning are basically true the only internal connections between philosophizing and the learning of speech are that philosophy tells us what we have learnt when we have learnt to speak and how, thanks perhaps to compositionality, “ordering” of words has countless possibilities. In this volume there is no criticism of such philosophy. Instead it provides a set of elaborations of the notion that the language we have learnt when we have learnt to speak remains enigmatic to us in ways that representationalist theories fail to capture and that we need to understand if we are to understand ourselves. The basic idea is most easily recognizable when we think of ethics. If we say that “it is always possible to improve one’s understanding of a concept like ‘bravery’ or ‘justice’“ (p. 45) many will agree. The element of surprise comes in when the claim is generalized. Not only the “grammar” of bravery and the grammar of key words in theoretical philosophy, such as knowledge and meaning have the said character. Also ordinary words, words like “chair”, “have a grammar” (p. 24) that implicates us as carrying responsibility for how we place them in our lives The explication of this idea is an important theme in Wittgenstein’s later work. Cavell has probably done more than any other philosopher [End Page 257] in bringing attention to it. It is particularly helpful that Cavell has shown that the topic of skepticism in Wittgenstein’s later work is inseparable from his notion of philosophy as an activity in which we seek friendship, community, recognition and acknowledgement in the face of the threats of denial, exile, and isolation. It is this positive vision of how a philosophy that does not work with arguments and theories that are supposed to serve the discovery and establishment of truths can be important for us that is central to Cavell’s definition of philosophy. The contributions by Goodman, Standish, Bearn, Colapietro, Arcilla, and Saito in the present volume all provide useful discussions of how nothing less than the “moral coherence” (p. 152) of how we live is at stake in such philosophy. It is an additional strength that many of the contributors also stress that because our struggle for clarity about grammar is a struggle for clarity about how we can share life with others, their educational philosophy is a political philosophy, a philosophy that creates “the appetite for democracy” (Putnam, p. 168). The back-cover and the editorial introduction to the volume indicate a desire to make Cavell’s philosophy relevant in particular for educators. The contributions by Standish, Bearn, and Arcilla address the issue head-on (with Bearn using Whitehead to surpass limitations he claims to see in Cavell’s and Wittgenstein’s “flight from the sensual”, p. 108). When education is seen as involving “inculcation into the practices of community” and hence, achievement of membership in a polis (p. 84), this notion can be used...

Challenging Truths: Reflections on the Theological Dimension of Comparative Theology

Given that comparative theology is aimed at learning from the insights of other religious traditions, the comparative theologian’s confessional perspective must be engaged and subject to possible transformation through the discovery of truth in those traditions. Despite Francis Clooney’s and James Fredericks’ attempts to distance comparative theology from the theology of religions, its truth-seeking dimension makes participation in the theology of religions unavoidable. Crucial to integrating what is learned, moreover, is a willingness to allow presuppositions about the other to be challenged and to make revisions if necessary. Keith Ward exhibits this willingness but, on this basis, distinguishes comparative theology from confessional theology, thus obscuring the legitimacy of revision from a committed religious standpoint. Where comparative theologians are willing and able to integrate all that is learned through their study of other traditions, comparative theology can be conceived of as both a confessional enterprise and a contribution to what Wilfred Cantwell Smith called ‘World Theology’—that is, the ongoing attempt to give intellectual expression to the faith of us all.

Book Review: Defamation, Libel Tourism, and the SPEECH Act of 2010: The First Amendment Colliding with the Common Law by Harry Melkonian

Defamation, Libel Tourism, and the SPEECH Act of 2010: The First Amendment Colliding with the Common Law. Harry Melkonian. Amherst, NY: Cambria Press, 2011. 367 pp. $119.99 hbk.These days the global influence of the U.S. Constitution is declining. But it is not entirely clear whether this applies the real and perceived impact of U.S. free speech abroad. For example, actual malice, the uniquely American doctrine that is decidedly media friendly, has been adopted by Argentina, Hungary, and other countries. As recent U.S. review article noted, actual malice has led many countries to engage in judicial conversation with American about what freedom of speech and the press should mean in an open democracy.Defamation, Libel Tourism, and the SPEECH Act of 2010 centers on proposition by Australian lawyer Harry Melkonian that American and English laws are converging, and thus Congress passed the SPEECH (Securing the Protection of our Enduring and Established Constitutional Heritage) Act address libel tourism-in which plaintiffs avoid speech-friendly American sue in foreign countries- as nonissue. The SPEECH Act bars enforcement of foreign judgments in the United States if they violate the First Amendment.This book offers detailed, albeit occasionally repetitive, study of U.S. and U.K. law, based on the author's doctoral dissertation at an Australian university. It argues that America and England are increasingly similar each other in balancing freedom of speech with reputational interest. Melkonian claims that English has expanded freedom of the press since v. Times Newspapers Ltd. (1999) through responsible journalism as defense, which he maintains substantially parallels the U.S. Supreme Court's watered down application of actual malice in Harte-Hanks Communications v. Connaughton (1989). No doubt this is provocative argument. In support of his claim, the author draws on the doctrinal law of the United States and England.Melkonian extensively examines the American actual malice rule and the English reasonable journalism defense. But his analysis of the Harte-Hanks impact on American might have been more comprehensive and in-depth. This is all the more compelling, given that the his central argument revolves around the Harte-Hanks-induced erosion of First Amendment protection of press freedom in favor of reputation. As a special case of convergence of Anglo-American law, Melkonian justifiably gives considerable attention reportage, for both U.S. and U.K. recognize it as defense for claims against the media in republishing defamatory newsworthy statement about matter of public interest. It is surprising, however, that there is little mention of the direct impact of the American neutral doctrine on the English reportage defense.A lengthy overview of the defamation privilege in U.S. and U.K. is framed by the comparative principle of functionality: [T]he legal system of every society faces essentially the same problems, and solves these problems by quite different means though very often with similar results. Melkonian's discussion of the New York Times actual malice rule vis-a-vis the reasonable journalism defense is contextually informative.In explaining U.S. and U.K. standards on versus freedom of speech, he turns various free speech theories (i.e., self-government, marketplace of ideas, and discovery of truth). His discussion is not limited England and the United States, however, as he considers Canada, Australia, and New Zealand for comparative look at how other Commonwealth countries address issues-whether similarly or differently from Anglo-American law.For those who wonder about the principle of comity's relevance American on foreign judgments, the Reynolds Defence chapter is an excellent read. …

Nauczyciel akademicki: neutralność czy aksjologiczne zaangażowanie?

W artykule poddaje się dyskusji problem aksjologicznej neutralności (Wertfreiheit) w sferze dydaktyki uniwersyteckiej. W opinii Maxa Webera nauka wymaga obiektywności oraz wolności od wartościowania u osób ją uprawiających, które winny kierować się bezosobowym powołaniem (Beruf) skierowanym jedynie na poszukiwanie prawdy. Neutralność aksjologiczna pociąga za sobą w konsekwencji nie¬wartościowanie w dydaktyce uniwersyteckiej. W pracy autor rozpatruje argumenty wysuwane przez prof. Iję Lazari Pawłowską skierowane przeciwko weberowskiej neutralności aksjologicznej, zwłaszcza w domenie dydaktyki uniwersyteckiej.

An attachment theory approach to narrating the faith journey of children of parental divorce

This study explores the effects of parental divorce on a child’s faith. Drawing from attachment theory, Granqvist and Kirkpatrick proposed two probable developmental pathways to religion. For those with secure attachment, whose cumulative experiences of sensitive, religious caregivers enhance the development of a God image as loving; belief emerges from a gradual process of socialisation (correspondence hypothesis). By contrast, for children with insecure attachment, turning to God is more typically precipitated by significant emotional turmoil; the discovery of new truth is indistinguishable from the discovery of a new relationship; and God serves as a substitute attachment figure (compensation hypothesis). Qualitative interviews with 12 seminary students who are adult children of their parents’ divorce illustrate the viability of using attachment theory as a heuristic for narrating, enhancing understanding of, and distinguishing the developmental faith journey of children who experience the divorce of their parents.

Stanisław Brzozowski on the ideal of the modern man

Stanisław Brzozowski formulated the ideal of modern man in the polemic with the contemporary man, who has ceased to believe in truth and moral values and is devoid of the will to act. For Brzozowski modernity involves the discovery of truth about the human condition: about man as an autonomous subject, a creator of values, who struggles with non-human reality. This truth was formulated in Kant’s idea of autonomy and in Marx’ idea of a collective conquest of the world of nature. For Brzozowski, ideal modern man is “the conscious labourer,” who labours because he wants to proudly impose a human law on the non-human world. At the same time Brzozowski used the term “modernity” to describe life of constant change in the modern world, understood as a set of results of man’s reign over nature. For the sake of human maturity, Brzozowski expected the truly modern man to perceive modern life as an unquestionable value. Undoubtedly, there is an evident tension in Brzozowski’s ideal of modern man between the affirmation of creativity in the world of change and the necessity of disciplined production, including unchangeable moral foundations of labour. There is also a major shift in this ideal, stemming from Brzozowski’s change of attitude towards religion.

Mixed Methods for the Interpretation of Longitudinal Gerontologic Data

This article's main objective is to demonstrate that data analysis, including quantitative data analysis, is a process of interpretation involving basic hermeneutic principles that philosophers have identified in the interpretive process as applied to other, mainly literary, creations. Such principles include a version of the hermeneutic circle, an insistence on interpretive presuppositions, and a resistance to reducing the discovery of truth to the application of inductive methods. The importance of interpretation becomes especially evident when qualitative and quantitative methods are combined in a single clinical research project and when the data being analyzed are longitudinal. Study objectives will be accomplished by showing that three major hermeneutic principles make practical methodological contributions to an insightful, illustrative mixed methods analysis of a qualitative study of changes in functional disability over time embedded in the Precipitating Events Project-a major longitudinal, quantitative study of functional disability among older persons. Mixed methods, especially as shaped by hermeneutic insights such as the importance of empathetic understanding, are potentially valuable resources for scientific investigations of the experience of aging: a practical aim of this article is to articulate and demonstrate this contention.

Método, análise e verdade em Psicologia: sobre uma análise institucional do discurso

O presente artigo objetiva discutir as implicações do método na produção da verdade em Psicologia por meio do conceito de análise tal como formulado pela análise institucional do discurso. Para tanto, elabora-se uma reflexão que parte da concepção foucaultiana de discurso em direção às noções de instituição, sujeito e análise, com as quais se trabalha na perspectiva proposta. Desenvolvida por Marlene Guirado, a análise institucional do discurso estabelece-se como uma organização de ideias que viabiliza uma analítica da subjetividade, na qual o papel desempenhado pelo próprio método passa a ser considerado na produção das verdades que formula, consideração possibilitada por uma análise que, de modo diverso de uma interpretação, interroga os modos de produção do discurso (e das verdades nele estabelecidas) ao invés de sua significação. Essa tarefa é intermediada pela análise das condições de possibilidade de enunciação e de subjetivação em um dado contexto, de onde se propõe uma prática em Psicologia que reconheça o caráter de produção artificial em contraposição ao de descoberta natural da verdade.

Epistemic Mediation: Aligning Expertise across Boundaries within an Endangered Species Habitat Conservation Plan

This paper uses videotaping and discourse analysis to study participants' dialogue and conduct during preparation of the Coachella Valley habitat conservation plan in southern California. The research uses social worlds analysis to reveal that the plan's technical advisors did not find facts through the collective discovery of scientific truths with unitary meanings, but instead constructed facts by aligning professional visions of space, time, and agency. The validity of the resulting plan relied on its ability to be a “boundary object”, meaning different things to different groups, while simultaneously laying claim to universality and objectivity. However, its subsequent failure to satisfy an unexpected scientific peer review demonstrates the importance of anticipating downstream reception and use when developing such documents. This case study shows that planners can be epistemic mediators, creating and stabilizing technical knowledge claims that project authority by showing a responsive face to many audiences.