Inborn Capacity Research Articles

Faith and Hinge Epistemology in Calvin’s Institutes

Abstract In mainstream analytic epistemology, Reformed theology has made its presence prominently felt in Reformed epistemology, the view of religious belief according to which religious beliefs can be properly basic and warranted when formed by the proper functioning of the sensus divinitatis, an inborn capacity or faculty for belief in God that can be prompted to generate certain religious beliefs when presented with things (e.g., certain majestic aspects of creation). A major competitor to Reformed epistemology is Wittgensteinian quasi-fideism, a position drawn from the epistemology of Wittgenstein’s On Certainty, according to which some foundational religious commitments are not properly basic beliefs but some kind of apodictic, unshakeable certainties that form part of the structure of one’s rationality and worldview. I argue that the Reformed tradition has contained elements of quasi-fideism at least as far back as Calvin’s account of faith from the Institutes of the Christian Religion, book 3, chapter 2.

Biological and cognitive mechanisms and the role of culture in theory of mind development: In need of an integrative, biocultural perspective?

The present paper attempts a comprehensive approach to the biological, cognitive, as well as cultural foundations of theory of mind development. A critical analysis and synthesis of contemporary research findings serves as a basis for revisiting key theoretical accounts regarding the nature and development of this valuable sociocognitive faculty. Are the findings best interpreted within frameworks which consider developmental change and individual differences in the domain-general cognitive abilities (executive functions) that may underlie performance on theory of mind tasks (processing account)? Or is it more fruitful to discuss the development of theory of mind based on domain-specific mechanisms or capacities: an innate, modular mechanism that is underpinned by neurological maturation (modularity theories), or an inborn capacity to form naïve, intuitive theories about the mind, which are then subject to conceptual change as a function of experience (theory theory account), or a mechanism that serves simulations of mental states and related attributions (simulation theories)? Where possible, biological and neurocognitive processes, and experiential influences are discussed in combination. A disentanglement of general cultural influences from more proximal, social or familial effects on theory of mind development is also attempted. The aim is to highlight the value of an integrative, interdisciplinary approach to its study: a biocultural perspective could essentially serve this purpose by shifting attention to the interplay of biological, cognitive, and environmental forces shaping the lifespan dynamics of human theory of mind.

The forward edge transference within self-psychology and the activation of inborn capacity through interpretation and internalization.

This paper builds on the ideas of self-psychologists Marian Tolpin and Richard Geist in two ways. Firstly, the idea of using forward edge transference as fostering the promotion of psychological health and well-being. I present two verbatim clinical examples showing the use of forward edge transference, and thus the intersubjective engagement between therapist and patient. I suggest that forward edge transference, rooted in healthy and self-affirming childhood experiences, can lie buried and forgotten. Secondly, using the same two examples, this paper adopts the notion of interpretation as a carrier of selfobject functions and shows how the interpretation of forward edge transferences has the potential to catalyse (forgotten) inborn capacity. Internalization, a part of selfobject function and psychic development, is re-thought of as a process in which an interaction between patient and therapist appears to (re)activate inborn potential/capacity for the patient rather than as something the patient ‘takes in’ from the other/selfobject.

An Essay on Narrative, Reality, and Imagination

ABSTRACTNarrative is a verbal account, a story of related events which can be factual, fictional or both. Life experience and imagination are as essential to narrative as narrative is to mankind. The phylogenic perspective of literature suggests an inborn capacity for empathy, intelligence and inventiveness, whereas the ontological example is variable. Western knowledge, politics and ethics have evolved from their narrative of Greek myth, epic and drama, the few medieval writers, singularly by the Elizabethan theater, importantly the Arthurian legend and romance stories, English and Russian novels, and uniquely the American short story. This heritage progressively demarcated such life themes as the hero, maiden and adversary; love, hate and indifference; loyalty, deception and betrayal; desire, achievement and loss. These characterizations of self and other remain relevant to the contemporary novel, cinema/TV, and theater, as well as the news, commentary, and real life. Conversely, postmodern assumptions challenge that individual subjectivity determines what is real, valid or authentic, consequently the relativism of traditional, institutional and historical precedents of the truth. Further, the computer, gaming, smart device, and artificial intelligence have changed the content and function of customary narrative. Nonetheless, narrative — real and imagined, ancient and new — retains the meaning of a story about connected events which variously transcends the boundaries of difference.

Zhi and Neng belong to mind: a study of the capacity to be good in the mind of Xunzi

ABSTRACTThe mainstream of academia thinks that Xunzi’s theory of human nature, which claims that human nature is bad, is in contrast with those of Confucius and Mencius and is unable to provide a foundation for human moral subjectivity. However, there are more and more scholars bringing up different ideas, such as Lu Debin and Fung Yiuming. They think that Xunzi’s wei 偽 (artifice), which includes zhi知 (knowing) and neng 能 (capacity), is a kind of inborn capacity to think and activate that belongs to xing. This paper points out that zhi and neng belong to xin 心 (mind) rather than xing. In the text of Xunzi, xing is mainly regarded as human emotions and desires which would result in chaos if not controlled. Making zhi and neng belong to xing does not accord with Xunzi’s theory and will confuse people with the connotation of Xunzi’s xing.

Cardiac protein expression patterns are associated with distinct inborn exercise capacity in non-selectively bred rats.

In the present study, we successfully demonstrated for the first time the existence of cardiac proteomic differences between non-selectively bred rats with distinct intrinsic exercise capacities. A proteomic approach based on two-dimensional gel electrophoresis coupled to mass spectrometry was used to study the left ventricle (LV) tissue proteome of rats with distinct intrinsic exercise capacity. Low running performance (LRP) and high running performance (HRP) rats were categorized by a treadmill exercise test, according to distance run to exhaustion. The running capacity of HRPs was 3.5-fold greater than LRPs. Protein profiling revealed 29 differences between HRP and LRP rats (15 proteins were identified). We detected alterations in components involved in metabolism, antioxidant and stress response, microfibrillar and cytoskeletal proteins. Contractile proteins were upregulated in the LVs of HRP rats (α-myosin heavy chain-6, myosin light chain-1 and creatine kinase), whereas the LVs of LRP rats exhibited upregulation in proteins associated with stress response (aldehyde dehydrogenase 2, α-crystallin B chain and HSPβ-2). In addition, the cytoskeletal proteins desmin and α-actin were upregulated in LRPs. Taken together, our results suggest that the increased contractile protein levels in HRP rats partly accounted for their improved exercise capacity, and that proteins considered risk factors to the development of cardiovascular disease were expressed in higher amounts in LRP animals.

Not Noble Savages After All: Limits to Early Altruism

Many scholars draw on evidence from evolutionary biology, behavioral economics, and infant research to argue that humans are “noble savages,” endowed with indiscriminate kindness. We believe this is mistaken. While there is evidence for an early-emerging moral sense—even infants recognize and favor instances of fairness and kindness among third parties—altruistic behaviors are selective from the start. Babies and young children favor people who have been kind to them in the past and favor familiar individuals over strangers. They hold strong biases for in-group over out-group members and for themselves over others, and indeed are more unequivocally selfish than older children and adults. Much of what is most impressive about adult morality arises not through inborn capacities but through a fraught developmental process that involves exposure to culture and the exercise of rationality.

Understanding by Design (UbD) in EFL Teaching: Teachers’ Professional Development and Students’ Achievement

Professional development is a phenomenon that has a crucial importance for teachers to advance in their career professionally. Apart from their professional lives, it is also important for the acquisition of required knowledge, skills and instructional practices for addressing students' needs (Benedict, 2014; Cooper, 2014; Ingvarson, Meiers, & Beavis, 2005; Lee, 2014). A variety of sources, methods, and tools can be put into practice to sustain teachers' professional development. Understanding by Design (UbD) is among these tools.UbD can be utilized as a tool both for continuing teachers' professional development (Brown, 2004) and ensuring students' enduring understanding (Wiggins, 2010). The focal point of UbD is to pay attention to all learners and their learning preferences by minimizing learning that happens incidentally or by inborn capacity. While doing this, it is aimed that the instructional priorities are determined and the instruction is conducted by making a good design first. These aims can be used as a tool for both increasing students' academic achievement and sustaining teachers' development throughout all their professional lives (Brown, 2004; Wiggins & McTighe, 1998).UbD refers to the task of designing a unit plan covering a three-staged template during the teachers' designing process. At the first stage of the template, named desired results, concepts such as transfer, understanding, and acquisition are mentioned. Transfer can be described as students' making use of the knowledge in new learning situations independently. Understanding is the part in which enduring and transferable ideas as well as provocative essential questions are introduced.At the acquisition part, knowledge and skills that should be achieved at the end of the unit are identified. The key components of the first stage are big idea and essential question. These two components enhance students' seeing the 'big picture' and making inquiries with a sense of wonder throughout the unit in order to reach enduring understandings. The second stage, which is called the evidence, is the stage in which a performance task and some other assessment evidence are mentioned. In the third stage, named learning plan, all the strategies, methods, techniques, and materials are introduced (Wiggins & McTighe, 1998, 2005, 2011).The fact that implementing UbD in an educational institution enables its instructors to become active members of curriculum development is mentioned in many researches (Andrews, 2011; Baird, 2006; Bertram, 2011; Boehler, 2008; Boozer, 2014; Burson, 2011; Corvo, 2014; Edmunds, 2011; Kelting-Gibson, 2003; Meyer, 2006). Teachers' dealing with designing contributes to the burgeon of professional collaboration and dialogue at school settings (Anwaruddin, 2013). Together with their colleagues, teachers share ideas and make educational decisions in the designing process. Besides, implementing their own design in their lessons encourages the emergence of teachers' designer identity and helps to diminish the routine of textbook coverage (Wiggins & McTighe, 2011).Another important contribution of UbD is that it facilitates students' learning in a meaningful and enduring way (Anderson, 2012; Duke, 2011; Molina, 2013; Noble, 2011; Schoellhorn, 2012; Stotter, 2004; Takacs, 2010). One of the fundamental problems in EFL teaching is that content coverage becomes a goal rather than being a tool (Wiggins & McTighe, 2011). In fact, the focus of instruction is to lay a sound foundation for the development of learning skills with the help of the content that is presented to the students. As UbD unit designs basically include essential questions and assessment techniques as relevant to enduring understanding, they help students to see the big picture about learning. Furthermore, the integration of different methods and techniques addressing individual differences helps to establish an enjoyable learning atmosphere for students and makes important contributions to the active learning process (Wiggins & McTighe, 2007). …

Imitation: Not in Our Genes

A powerful longitudinal study has failed to find any evidence that newborn babies can imitate facial gestures, hand movements or vocalisations. After 40 years of uncertainty, these findings indicate that humans learn to imitate; this capacity is not inborn.

Individual and Community in Nietzsche’s Philosophy

Individual and Community in Nietzsche’s Philosophy

Human Social Behavioral Systems: Ethological Framework for a Unified Theory

Drive theories of motivation proposed by Lorenz and Tinbergen did not survive experimental scrutiny; however these were replaced by the behavioral systems framework. Unfortunately, political forces within science including the rise of sociobiology and comparative psychology, caused neglect of this important framework. This review revives the concept of behavioral systems and demonstrates its utility in the development of a unified theory of human social behavior and social bonding. Although the term “attachment” has been used to indicate social bonds which motivate affiliation, four differentiable social reward systems mediate social proximity and bond formation: the affiliation (attachment), caregiving, dominance and sexual behavioral systems. Ethology is dedicated to integrating inborn capacities with experiential learning as well as the proximal and ultimate causes of behavior. Hence, the behavioral systems framework developed by ethologists nearly 50 years ago, enables discussion of a unified theory of human social behavior.

Intersubjectivity and Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy

Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy (NRMT) is a music-centered approach built on belief that every human being has an inborn capacity to find meaning in musical (Nordoff & Robbins, 2004, 2007). It can be considered a form of music psy- chotherapy (Robarts, 2003; Turry, 2000), defined as using music therapy for goals of (Hesser, 1979/2002, p. 2). In clinical practice, Nordoff-Robbins (NR) music therapists prioritize careful listening and musical responsiveness (Nordoff & Robbins, 1977/2007; Verney & Ansdell, 2008). The process entails creating a therapeutic alliance through interactive music making that includes intersubjective of both cli- ent and therapist (Robarts, 2003, 2009).The concept of intersubjectivity, taken from infant research (Stern, 1985, 1990; Trevarthen, 1994; Trevarthen & Malloch, 2000), has developed through time and has been integrated into discipline of psychotherapy (Mitchell, 1988; Scharff & Scharff, 2011; Stolorow, 1988). Articulating nature and structure of therapeutic relationship deepens our understanding of NRMT and provides a lens through which to understand other forms of music therapy that emphasize extemporaneous musical exchange as a foundation of therapeutic process.Music and Relationship in Development of Nordoff-Robbins Music TherapyIn describing development of NR work, Robbins (2000) stressed the motivation that generated this work was fundamentally musical. The work came about from a love of musical creation, musical expression, and musi- cal experience (p. 15, original emphasis). They believed that a child's music is a window into his/her inner life. The way a child plays, including use of instruments, dynamics, tempo, rhythm, and phrasing, gives therapist insight into how that child experiences him- or herself and world around them (Nordoff & Robbins, 2004, 2007). Nordoff and Robbins strove to uncover musical sensitivities of each child, and to respond in turn to individualized musical expressions and qualities of these expressions (Nordoff & Robbins, 2004, 2007). In this way, they could attune to and meet each child where he or she was developmentally, emotionally, and musically, and provide musical experi- ences to challenge and move child towards purposeful activity, positive growth, and ultimately a better quality of life (Nordoff & Robbins, 2004, 2007).Nordoff, an experienced composer, performer, and teacher at time he met Robbins in 1958, brought to their partner- ship his broad musical knowledge (Robbins & Robbins, 1998). In their training of music therapy students, Nordoff stressed importance of honing one's musical awareness and percep- tion through thorough study of melodic, harmonic, and rhythmic components of music (Robbins & Robbins, 1998). This knowledge was fundamental in developing musical resources, clinical musicianship, and creativity needed to do work (Robbins & Robbins, 1998).The pioneering work of Nordoff and Robbins was remark- ably fruitful. They carried out numerous successful courses of therapy with children with a wide variety of challenges and needs-Edward (Nordoff & Robbins, 2007), Anna (Aigen, 1998; Nordoff & Robbins, 2007), and Audrey (Aigen, 1998) perhaps being best known. Aigen (1998) describes their approach as improvisational, interactional, explorative, oriented to self-actualization, pragmatic, and finally, one in which therapist never settles into a routine but is con- stantly evaluating musical tools and interventions to stimulate client's growth (p. 6). They approached each client with great respect for that client's individual developmental pro- cess; thus, each course of therapy was unique (Aigen, 1998).Relationship was also important to Nordoff and Robbins- in fact, first scale they developed was The Child-Therapist Relationship in Coactive Musical Experience, familiarly known as Relationship Scale (Nordoff & Robbins, 1977/2007). …

Exploration and comparison of inborn capacity of aerobic and anaerobic metabolisms of Saccharomyces cerevisiae for microbial electrical current production

Saccharomyces cerevisiae possesses numerous advantageous biological features, such as being robust, easily handled, mostly non-pathogenic and having high catabolic rates, etc., which can be considered as merits for being used as a promising biocatalyst in microbial fuel cells (MFCs) for electricity generation. Previous studies have developed efficient MFC configurations to convert metabolic electron shuttles, such as cytoplasmic NADH, into usable electric current. However, no studies have elucidated the maximum potential of S. cerevisiae for current output and the underlying metabolic pathways, resulting from the interaction of thousands of reactions inside the cell during MFC operation. To address these two key issues, this study used in silico metabolic engineering techniques, flux balance analysis (FBA), and flux variability analysis with target flux minimization (FATMIN), to model the metabolic perturbation of S. cerevisiae under the MFC-energy extraction. The FBA results showed that, in the cytoplasmic NADH-dependent mediated electron transfer (MET) mode, S. cerevisiae had a potential to produce currents at up to 5.781 A/gDW for the anaerobic and 6.193 A/gDW for the aerobic environments. The FATMIN results showed that the aerobic and anaerobic metabolisms are resilient, relying on six and five contributing reactions respectively for high current production. Two reactions, catalyzed by glutamate dehydrogenase (NAD) (EC 1.4.1.3) and methylene tetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase (NAD) (EC 1.5.1.5), were shared in both current-production modes and contributed to over 80% of the identified maximum current outputs. It is also shown that the NADH regeneration was much less energy costly than biomass production rate. Taken together, our finding suggests that S. cerevisiae should receive more research effort for MFC electricity production.

The Archaeology of Mind

The Archaeology of Mind

Listening to geophysics: Audio processing tools for geophysical data analysis and interpretation

Sensitivity for music is a diffuse property of the human brain. When we listen to music, the entire brain is active. In particular, the auditory cortex has connections to the frontal lobe of the brain where many of our capabilities for abstraction and inference are located. A widely accepted idea (although it is unproven) is that humans have an inborn capacity to process music. David Huron highlighted the adaptive advantage of having a mind able to recognize sound patterns and to extract complex significances from a heterogeneous flux of sounds arriving from the environment (Huron, 1991). Probably our ability to recognize complex sound patterns is one of the results of natural evolution of humans' cognitive capabilities (Ball, 2010). These concepts suggest the following idea: we could use complex sounds (and music in particular), and not only images, for geophysical data analysis, interpretation, and integration. An advantage to this could derive from the fact that sounds have many physical, perceptive, psychological, and cultural “dimensions”: this implies an expanded range of possibilities for analyzing and interpreting geophysical signals transformed into sounds. […] Human sensitivity for music (and for sounds in general) is nowadays supported by advanced technology and by many formats and informatics' protocols used in digital music (such as wav, mp3, MIDI). These allow easy sound manipulation, analysis, and integration. In particular, the MIDI protocol links heterogeneous information through multiple types of media. There is an additional reason why geophysical data analysis/interpretation could be performed in the domain of sounds and music: the nature of several types of geophysical signals, like seismic data, is closer to the physics of sounds than to the physics of images. These ideas have been investigated (partially) by other authors (Benioff, 1953; Speeth, 1961; Hayward, 1994; Kilb et al., 2012; Peng et al., 2012). In this article, I expand them by proposing a new approach based on exploring new interesting connections between geosciences and the most recent technological innovations in the domain of digital music.

English Language Teaching to Young Learners: Possible Pitfalls after Lowering the Age of Compulsory English in Pakistan

The young learners have an inbuilt and inborn capacity of absorbing the language inputs. With the growing age, their absorbing capacity reduces though it gets compensated by experience. The adult age can bring wisdom and knowledge but for acquisition, improvement and development of the skills, particularly the language skills, prime time is the young age. There has been a growing awareness about this in Pakistan where, in recent years, a major shift has taken place i.e., starting compulsory English from class-1 in all private and Government schools instead of class 6 th which had been the earlier practice since the independence of the country in 1947. There are many associated complex issues surrounding this new scenario which have emerged due to this major shift and need to be explored, meditated and researched from all the possible dimensions in order to enhance the advantages of the changed paradigm, reduce the risks to the bare minimum and train and fine tune the teachers and the schools to cope with this change in a professional and effective manner.

Metabolic Adaptations in the Liver of Born Long-Distance Running Mice

Long-distance runners have increased needs of energy supply. To unravel genetically based mechanisms required for efficient energy supply, we have analyzed hepatic metabolism of mice characterized by the inborn capacity to perform as long-distance runners. The mouse model had been established by phenotypic selection for high treadmill performance for 90 generations and was characterized by approximately 3.8-fold higher running capacities (Dummerstorf high Treadmill Performance mouse line [DUhTP]) compared with unselected and also untrained controls (Dummerstorf Control mouse line [DUC]). From 7-wk-old male mice, serum and liver samples were collected and analyzed for messenger RNA, protein, and metabolite levels, respectively. In livers from DUhTP mice, we identified significantly higher messenger RNA transcript levels of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor delta and higher protein levels of sirtuin-1, acetyl-CoA-synthetase, acetyl-CoA-carboxylase, phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase, and glutamate-dehydrogenase, suggesting higher gluconeogenesis and lipogenesis in DUhTP mice. In fact, higher hepatic levels of glycogen and triglycerides as well as higher concentrations of carbohydrate, fatty acid, and cholesterol metabolites were found in DUhTP mice. In parallel, in DUhTP mice, which did not have access to running wheels, a marked hyperlipidemia (cholesterol = 160% ± 8%, triglycerides = 174% ± 14% of controls, respectively), and abdominal obesity (DUhTP = 0.396 ± 0.019 g, DUC = 0.291 ± 0.019 g) were found. From our data, we conclude that the physiological basis of genetically fixed higher endurance-running performance in DUhTP marathon mouse is related to increased hepatic gluconeogenesis and lipogenesis. Expression of sirtuin 1 as well as of gluconeogenic and lipogenic key enzymes may be related to peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor delta. Metabolic adaptations presented in our study represent inborn features of superior endurance-running performance.

An update on primary identification, introjection, and empathy

This paper tries to follow the historical development of the ideas related to the term “primary identification.” It is shown that Freud's thinking regarding primary identification was developed around the phenomenon of mass suggestion, which was explained using the concept of identification with the leader, “primary identification,” and Einfühlung. However, two false translations from Freud's German to English led to severe confusion in the subsequent literature. The most important one was that “Einfühlung” was translated as “empathy.” It is shown that Freud meant by Einfühlung something like affect contagion that was considered to be an inborn capacity to activate motoric patterns by just looking at the behavior of other human beings. This idea is a conceptual forerunner of mirror neurons. The activation of these is a prerequisite for empathy, but without separation between the self and the other, the attribution to which the feeling belongs is impossible. Kernberg, following Klein, uses the term “introjection” for the process of very early internalisations. We are proposing to discriminate interjections from identifications following Piaget's description of assimilation versus accommodation.

FRONTLINE—Cross-Cultural Aspects of Beauty

The ever changing concept of beauty is elusive, surrounds us from birth and permeates our daily lives. This concept of beauty is affected by personal, interpersonal, cultural, and political issues. Arts and sciences have tried to define it to no avail as it continues to evolve. Human beings can recognize attractiveness in the other from an early age. Some favor culture as the reason behind this recognition believing that beauty and attractiveness in the other is a learned concept. Others favor an inborn capacity that allows human beings from very early to differentiate among what can be considered attractive versus unattractive in others’ faces (Etcoff, 2000). Even if we learn or are born to differentiate facial characteristics in others from an early age, an aspect that would facilitate attachment to the care taker, the meaning of such capacity for differentiation is still acquired in the context of interpersonal relationships. By the time human beings develop the capacity to determine their own concept of beauty and its influence on personality development, they have already been exposed to personal, interpersonal, political, and cultural concepts of beauty that can affect their sense of selfworth in a deep and at times immovable manner. It is this last aspect of beauty that we will explore in these papers. In the first of these articles, Ruth Lijtmaer introduces the concept of beauty by discussing it in the context of human aging, culture, and theories of beauty. Her concise review of pertinent literature frames the theoretical and clinical discussion of her patient’s personal struggle to try to resolve her inner conflicts through the beautification of her physical self with the help of plastic surgery. Maternal deprivation, competition with a “beautiful sibling,” and responsibility for the care of aging parents were among the dynamic issues that highlighted the treatment. Slow but steady exploration of such conflicted interpersonal relationships in the context of a sensitive therapeutic relationship allowed for

From Natural Thinking to Scientific Reasoning: Concepts of logica naturalis and logica artificialis in Late-Medieval and Early-Modern Thought

This article investigates the late-medieval and early-modern use of the concepts of natural and artifical logic. Natural logic is the inborn capacity to argue, common to all human beings, whereas artifical logic is the expression and description of this ability through formal rules that were codified in logical handbooks. According to most authors until the time of Kant, artificial logic must take its starting point from natural thinking and natural speech, since the organizational patterns of the human mind reveal themselves only in speaking about and discussing extra-mental reality. For these medieval and early-modern logicians, therefore, natural arguing is the object of artifical logic, which they developed in their logical treatises and taught in schools and universities.