Positive Claims Research Articles

Erratum: Still No Answers for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Erratum: Still No Answers for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Knowledge of Need

Some of the duties of individuals and organisations involve responsiveness to need. This requires knowledge of need, so the epistemology of need is relevant to practice. The prevailing contention among philosophers who have broached the topic is that one can know one’s own needs (as one can know some kinds of desires) by feeling them. The article argues against this view. The main positive claims made in the article are as follows. Knowledge of need, in both first‐person and second‐person cases, is a type of knowledge‐that with no basic epistemological source. Needs, like medical conditions, have signs and symptoms. Knowledge of these, with inference, results in knowledge of need. Finally, it is argued that need is akin to, but not a special case of, metaphysical necessity de re. Some implications of this for the epistemology of need are explained.

Perceptions of interactive whiteboard pedagogy in the teaching of Chinese language

<span>There have been many positive claims made concerning the benefits of learning through a pedagogy which makes use of an interactive whiteboard (IWB), leading to a rapid acquisition and implementation of the IWB in schools. There is more limited research, however, of the effectiveness of the IWB in language learning and, in particular, in the learning of Chinese. This case study research used both qualitative and quantitative data to collect teacher and student perceptions of the learning of Chinese through an IWB pedagogy in one secondary school in Sydney, Australia, involving students in three levels of senior secondary school. Our findings confirm previous studies which state that students endorse the use of new technology in education. In particular, our study shows that the students believed that the IWB was effective in enhancing various aspects of their Chinese language learning. The positive attitude of the teacher towards the use of new technology in teaching is also found to play an important role in the implementation and success of the use of the IWB and in turn leads to the effective teaching and learning of Chinese. This study contributes to attention within research to the application of new technology in language learning.</span>

Ruin probability in the Cramér–Lundberg model with risky investments

We consider the Cramér–Lundberg model with investments in an asset with large volatility, where the premium rate is a bounded nonnegative random function c t and the price of the invested risk asset follows a geometric Brownian motion with drift a and volatility σ > 0 . It is proved by Pergamenshchikov and Zeitouny that the probability of ruin, ψ ( u ) , is equal to 1 , for any initial endowment u ≥ 0 , if ρ ≔ 2 a / σ 2 ≤ 1 and the distribution of claim size has an unbounded support. In this paper, we prove that ψ ( u ) = 1 if ρ ≤ 1 without any assumption on the positive claim size.

Conceptions of Cognition for Cognitive Engineering

Cognitive processes, cognitive psychology tells us, unfold in our heads. In contrast, several approaches in cognitive engineering argue for a shift of unit of analysis from what is going on in the heads of operators to the workings of whole socio-technical systems. This shift is sometimes presented as part of the development of a new understanding of what cognition is and where the boundaries of cognitive systems are. Cognition, it is claimed, is not just situated or embedded, but extended and distributed in the world. My main question in this article is what the practical significance is of this framing of an expanded unit of analysis in a cognitive vocabulary. I focus on possible consequences for how cognitive engineering practitioners think about function allocation in system design, and on what the relative benefits and costs are of having a common framework and vocabulary for talking about both human and technical system components. I argue for what I call an expansive but deflated conception of cognition, primarily on pragmatic grounds. In addition, I claim that the important lesson of the “boundaries of cognition” debate in cognitive science is the negative claim that there is not anything special about the biological boundary of the skin and skull per se, rather than some positive claim about where the boundaries of extended or distributed cognitive systems really are. I also examine the role of the concept of cognition in the theoretical frameworks of distributed cognition, joint cognitive systems (also known as cognitive system engineering), and cognitive work analysis.

Smoke and Mirrors: How an Allegedly Inclusionary Strategy Perpetuates an Exclusionary Discourse

The purpose of this paper is to critically explore the meaning making theoretical perspectives underlying the creation and development of a public mentoring program, allegedly designed as an inclusionary strategy for facilitating newcomers' labour market integration. Building upon findings outlined in the program's latest Evaluation Report (Bejan 2011) and drawing upon participant-observation as an inductive field-based research strategy, this paper questions the uncontested legitimization of the cited program as a positive inclusionary strategy and claims it perpetuates the very same discriminatory practices and systemic barriers that impede immigrants' ability to fully participate within the Canadian labour market. It further argues that, despite its affirmed inclusionary objective, the program's formation is rooted in theoretical perspectives that justify exclusion, reproducing and maintaining, by extension, an exclusionary status quo. As a result, it rejects the application of social capital and social inclusion/exclusion theories, those hypothetically deemed to be guiding the program's development, and those traditionally used as explanatory for newcomers' inability to successfully participate within the labour market. It then proposes a structural perspective as a theoretical base to direct the program's future design. Its conclusion emerged from the author's interpretative framework, that only a structural approach will draw attention to the power imbalances and discrepancies between Canadian-born individuals and newcomers, as they relate to the issues of labour market participation and subsequent economic gains. L'objectif de cet article est d'analyser sous un angle critique la signification des perspectives théoriques sous-jacentes à la création et au développement d'un programme de mentorat public censé viser une stratégie inclusive qui faciliterait l'intégration des nouveaux arrivants dans le marché du travail. À partir des conclusions exposées dans le dernier Rapport D'Évaluation (Bejan 2011) de ce programme, et selon une méthode de recherche inductive qui s'appuie sur les observations de participants, nous questionnons ici sa légitimation incontestée comme stratégie inclusive et positive, et nous affirmons qu'elle perpétue des pratiques discriminatoires et des obstacles systémiques qui limitent la capacité des immigrants à prendre pleinement part au marché du travail canadien. Nous soutenons en outre que, malgré les objectifs inclusifs visés, l'élaboration de ce programme prend ses racines dans des perspectives théoriques qui justifient la pratique de l'ostracisme, ce qui a pour effet de reproduire et de soutenir un statu quo exclusif. Par conséquent, nous rejetons dans cet article l'application des théories d'un capital social et de l'inclusion / exclusion sociale , aussi bien celles considérées comme propres à guider le développement de ce programme, que celles traditionnellement utilisées pour expliquer l'incapacité des nouveaux arrivants à trouver leur place dans le monde professionnel. Ensuite, nous proposons une perspective structurelle comme base théorique pour diriger les futurs développements du programme en question. En conclusion, ce qui ressort du cadre interprétatif de l'auteur, c'est que seule une approche structurelle attirera l'attention sur les déséquilibres de pouvoir et les écarts entre les personnes nées au Canada et les nouveaux venus, en ce qui a trait à la question de l'accès à l'emploi et des gains économiques.

Is Desert in the Details?1

1 Thanks are due to Adam Arico, Matt Bedke, Mike Bruno, Jerry Gaus, Kate Johnson, Josh Knobe, David Schmidtz, Daniel Silvermint, Jen Zamzow, and an anonymous referee for this journal. 2 Samuel Scheffler says that “none of the most prominent contemporary versions of philosophical liberalism assigns a significant role to desert at the level of fundamental principle.” Samuel Scheffler, “Responsibility, Reactive Attitudes, and Liberalism in Philosophy and Politics.” Philosophy and Public Affairs 21, no. 4 (1992): 299-323, 301. See, for example John Rawls, A Theory of Justice. Revised ed. Cambridge: Belknap Press, 1999, 89; “The Basic Structure as Subject.” American Philosophical Quarterly 14, (1977): 159-65, 162; Ronald Dworkin, “Why Bakke Has No Case.” New York Review of Books, November 10, 1977; Thomas Nagel, Mortal Questions. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1979; Brian Barry, Political Argument. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1965; Robert Goodin, “Negating Positive Desert Claims.” Political Theory 13, no. 4 (1985): 575-598. 3 John Rawls, A Theory of Justice. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1971, 104. 4 Eric Rakowski, Equal Justice. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1991, 112. 5 Serena Olsaretti, Liberty, Desert, and the Market. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004, 28. 6 Peter Vallentyne, “Brute Luck Equality and Desert.” In Desert and Justice, edited by Serena Olsaretti, 169– 185. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003, 175.

Does eating local food reduce the environmental impact of food production and enhance consumer health?

The concept of local food has gained traction in the media, engaged consumers and offered farmers a new marketing tool. Positive claims about the benefits of local food are probably not harmful when made by small-scale producers at the local level; however, greater concern would arise should such claims be echoed in policy circles. This review examines the evidence base supporting claims about the environmental and health benefits of local food. The results do not offer any support for claims that local food is universally superior to non-local food in terms of its impact on the climate or the health of consumers. Indeed several examples are presented that demonstrate that local food can on occasions be inferior to non-local food. The analysis also considers the impact on greenhouse gas emissions of moving the UK towards self-sufficiency. Quantitative evidence is absent on the changes in overall emissions that would occur if the UK switched to self-sufficiency. A qualitative assessment suggests the emissions per item of food would probably be greater under a scenario of self-sufficiency than under the current food system. The review does not identify any generalisable or systematic benefits to the environment or human health that arise from the consumption of local food in preference to non-local food.

Truth and Argument Evaluation

We are all familiar with the traditional conception of what makes for a good argument: that its premises are true and that it is valid.[1] That traditional view of the goodness of arguments has sustained serious criticism over the past few decades, so that most theorists have dropped either the validity requirement or the truth requirement or both. Almost all theorists that I am aware of take it that an argument is good if it fulfills its purpose, and it is widely agreed that arguments can fulfill their purpose even when not all of their premises are true, or they are not deductively valid. Still, some theorists retain a focus on the truth-directed nature of arguments, and those theorists rightly hold that, given such a focus, truth plays an important role in the evaluation of arguments. Johnson (2000) goes so far as to reintroduce truth as a constraint on premise adequacy, alongside the criterion of acceptability, and he holds that in a case where a premise is false but acceptable, truth (/falsity) outweighs acceptability. What I propose to do in this essay is to discuss the role that truth plays in the evaluation of arguments, when the purpose of arguments is understood as truth-directed in some important way. I begin with a discussion of truth and the purpose of arguments. In the second section of the paper, I give an argument to the effect that the theory of argument evaluation ought not to involve truth as a constraint on premise adequacy. The third section contains my argument for the positive claim that the proper place for the concept of truth is in the metatheory in terms of which the theory of evaluation is worked out.[2] I conclude the essay with a response to Hamblin’s (1970) argument that no arguments are truth-directed. [1] Hitchcock (1999) traces the concept of soundness in the textbook tradition to Black (1946), and before that (but with different terminology), to Cohen and Nagel (1934). [2] By "theory of evaluation" I mean the set of criteria that a theory provides us with for evaluating arguments. By "the metatheory" in terms of which the theory of evaluation is worked out, I mean the broader theory of argument, including reference to what it is that the criteria for argument evaluation are supposed to accomplish, in which the theory of evaluation is articulated.

Positive Aesthetics: claims and problems

In this paper I present an overview of the doctrine known as Positive Aesthetics regarding aesthetic judgements about nature. According to this view, all pristine nature is always beautiful and, generally, although not necessarily, human intervention tends to introduce ugliness in nature. One of the strong practical motivations behind this claim is an attempt to ground our reasons to preserve natural environments in aesthetic reasons. Positive Aesthetics has been defended within contrary approaches to nature appreciation such as the cognitivists and the anti-cognitivist. Recently, the possibility of real ugliness in nature has been defended; at the same time, it is argued that the presence of ugly items in nature does not lead necessarily to the idea that they are not aesthetically valuable. Hence, natural ugliness can be a reason to preserve nature. In this sense, the denial of the Positive Aesthetics claim is shown to be compatible with the appeal to aesthetic negative qualities as a source of reasons for preserving natural environments.

‘CHOCOLATE’ AND OTHER KIND TERMS: IMPLICATIONS FOR SEMANTIC EXTERNALISM

How do people manage to refer to chocolate, despite knowing so little about it? Traditional semantic externalism gives a two-part answer, a negative claim that meanings are not determined inside speakers' heads, and a positive claim that meanings are fixed by external factors. This gets the semantics of ‘chocolate’ half right: the negative claim is correct, but the positive claim is not. There is nothing special about ‘chocolate’, and scientifically respectable natural-kind terms also fail to live up to the positive expectations of traditional externalism. However, kind-term indeterminacy is compatible with important advances associated with externalism's de re understanding of kind terms.

Patrick Chamoiseau's Creole Conteur and the ethics of survival

This article concerns the Creole Conteur in Patrick Chamoiseau's depictions of the slave plantation in Au temps de l'antan (1988a), crire en pays domin (1997) and Texaco (1992). It proposes that Chamoiseau's vision of the plantation be seen as a parable for contemporary Martinique, one that seeks to reinstate a redemptive history in which the past has a positive claim on the present. The article examines the tensions internal to this recuperative attempt, especially those carried in the relationship between literal and spiritual forms of hunger: the slaves' famine condition and the survival tactics of dbrouillardise compete with the spiritual nourishment found in an emergent collective identity. The article demonstrates that Chamoiseau uses the Conteur to redraw the symbolic boundaries of the plantation from an amoral grey zone to a cohesive Creole social order, making the plantation past relevant to the present day. It explores how Chamoiseau preserves the parable's frame of moral instruction even though, as a survival tale involving extreme duress, it involves a calculus beyond good and evil.

Contemporary Contributions to Sexual Ethics

This survey of Catholic moralists' writings on sexuality and sexual ethics describes the development of basically positive claims. Far less contentious than the debates in the aftermath of Humanae vitae, these more contemporary works suggest an attentiveness to a theologizing on sexuality. Moreover, while earlier works emphasized the conscience of Catholics in resolving norms regarding sexuality, today's writings are more critical of human conduct and more instructive about the need for more responsible sexual conduct.

Bayes factors in complex genetics

The past few years have seen tremendous progress in our understanding of the genetics underlying complex disease, with associated variants being identified in dozens of traits. Despite the fact that this growing body of empirical evidence unequivocally shows the necessity for extreme levels of significance and large samples sizes, the reasoning behind these requirements is not always appreciated. As genome-wide association studies reach the limits of their resolution in the search for rarer and weaker effects, the need for appropriate design and interpretation will become ever more important. If the genetic analysis of complex disease is to avoid accumulating false positive claims, as it has in the past, then researchers will need to allow for less tangible variables such as power and prior odds rather than relying exclusively on significance when assessing the results of these studies. In this review, the basic foundations of association testing are explained from a Bayesian perspective and the potential benefits of Bayes factors as a means of measuring the weight of evidence in support of an association are described.

Quantitative evaluation of the chilled-ammonia process for CO 2 capture using thermodynamic analysis and process simulation

There is strong world-wide interest in developing new and improved processes for post-combustion capture of CO 2, often using chemical absorption. Developers of new processes make positive claims for their proposals in terms of low energy consumption, but these are usually difficult to validate. This paper demonstrates that rigorous application of thermodynamic analysis and process simulation provides a powerful way to quantitatively estimate the energy requirements of CO 2-capture processes by applying the methodology to the analysis and evaluation of the chilled-ammonia process.

Is Scientific Knowledge Rational? (review)

Reviewed by: Is Scientific Knowledge Rational? Clint Jones Is Scientific Knowledge Rational? By Halil Rahman Açar. Istanbul: Insan Publications, 2008. Pp. 245. U.S. $50.00. In his new book Is Scientific Knowledge Rational? Halil Rahman Açar probes the problem that rationality has presented to paradigms of epistemology throughout the history of Western thought. He claims early on that “we do not at present, have a general theory of rationality that can explain both the rationality of action and the rationality of a set of beliefs” (p. 14). His purpose is to address this problem by defending rationality and by building up a coherent reconstruction of it through an analysis of truth and science, which are currently the dominant paradigms of human rationality. The chapters of the text are set up to address the problem through a series of stages that will build up to a theory of meta-rationality—but more on that later. Chapter 1 is devoted to rationality in general, and its primary focus is the development of a clearer understanding of what exactly rationality is by way of analyses of human nature, human culture, and human interaction. Chapter 2 takes up the question of the superiority of rationality in science; that is, it focuses on knowledge as the product of science. Chapter 3, on objectivity and subjectivity in science, deals with the problem of science as a human endeavor and tries to separate out the subjective preferences of scientists (and philosophers) from objective knowledge characterized through scientific theories. Chapter 4 deals with truth in science, but the author is clear that he does not mean capital T truth, but rather a truth we produce by participating in each level of knowledge. Chapter 5 shifts the focus of the text away from fundamental questions about science to look at the progress science has made in its pursuit of truth and rationality. Açar begins by offering his own definition of rationality as a guide to the intention of the text: “Rationality . . . must be seen as an alternative system of interpreting knowledge” (p. 15). However, he goes on to add the following addendums to his definition in the first chapter: rationality is not intelligence, it differs from noncognitive aspects of human community and communication, and it is the manner in which humans grasp and relate to the world they inhabit. By arguing this way he ultimately makes a positive claim for a fundamental, or foundational, rationality that unites all of humankind. Eventually, following Jonathan Bennett, he argues that rationality is what marks humans off as separate from animals. Rational acts become acts that one ought to perform and irrational acts are those that one ought not to perform. Making his case, though, that rational acts are different, or require a different rationality, than rational beliefs, Açar argues that while there may be objectivity in science there is not objectivity in scientists. Because we cannot have absolute certainty through an empirical discipline we hold our rational beliefs on insufficient evidence. This is because [End Page 561] scientists are subjective agents susceptible to feelings or commitments that erode their ability to perform objectively. Developing an adequate theory of rationality that can transcend the context of both scientists and experiments becomes the final focus of the text in chapter 6. It is for this reason that I want to spend a little more time on the arguments in favor of the meta-rationality that Açar proposes. In chapter 6, he attempts to explain his theory of meta-rationality, without which, he claims, “we will not be able to solve the problem [of rationality]” (p. 159). The problem with his meta-rationality theory is that it offers no substantial help to his argument because it ultimately concludes with an acknowledgment that no meta-theory can be tested; it can only be acknowledged. Before he gets to this point, however, he moves through arguments about monism and pluralism in order to make the groundbreaking claim that his theory is “radically different from the proposals considered [in the preceding chapters] . . . [because] it allows for a variety of conceptions of rationality and it takes none of them as the only correct...

Noneconomic Damage Caps and Medical Malpractice Claim Frequency: A Policy Endogeneity Approach

Medical malpractice has received much attention in the media with highly publicized jury awards and reported consequences of excessive litigation. Health care and medical malpractice remain a prominent issue, especially in the current political climate. Policy endogeneity, however, plagues most analyses of various federal, state, or local policies. In this article, I analyze the effect of noneconomic damage caps on the frequency of positive payment medical malpractice claims, recognizing that these laws are likely endogenous. I construct a unique instrument using past and current values of state political composition and other factors. In contrast to previous literature, I find no evidence that caps on noneconomic damages are associated with a reduction in medical malpractice positive payment claim frequency.

Teacher self‐evaluation and power

Positive claims are made for the adoption of practices that permit greater levels of involvement in teacher appraisals. The assumption is that when teachers are more involved in observing and evaluating their teaching, corresponding increases in empowerment and autonomy occur as a direct result. This paper challenges this claim by arguing that teacher empowerment is much more complex when the nature of power is considered from three contrasting perspectives (sovereign, epistemological and disciplinary). Each notion of power is used to explain how power is exercised in self‐evaluation practices in ways that either enhance or curb teacher empowerment and development.

Standards of evidence for designed sex differences

AbstractAt the heart of the debate between social role theorists and evolutionary psychologists is whether natural selection has designed the minds of the sexes differently to some interesting extent. In this commentary I describe the standards of evidence for both the positive and negative claims. In my opinion, Archer has met the standard for designed sex differences in intrasexual conflict.

Special bank resolution and shareholders' rights: balancing competing interests

PurposeAn effective bank resolution regime requires taking action while the bank still has positive net worth and shareholder claims still have economic value. Such actions raise a number of legal issues with respect to the rights of shareholders. This paper aims to consider how to strike a balance between the need to protect the legitimate rights of shareholders and the need for a prompt and rapid action and a failure resolution mechanism that minimizes disruptions to the financial system and preserves market discipline.Design/methodology/approachThe paper examines the nature of the shareholders' rights and the legal protection afforded to them. In the European context, the relevant sources of law are the European Convention on Human Rights and the applicable community legislation. It considers different options for resolution within this framework ranging from a pre‐packaged resolution decided by the shareholders ex ante to the outright divestiture of the shareholders once certain regulatory thresholds are breached while the bank still has positive net worth.FindingsThe curtailment of shareholder rights should seek to generate appropriate incentives for shareholders and other stakeholder and achieve broad objectives of enhancing predictability and maintaining public goods, while at the same time providing for due process, proportionality and adequate compensation.Practical implicationsThe paper presents options on how to reform existing frameworks in order to facilitate bank restructurings in a crisis.Originality/valueThe paper discusses key elements that policy makers need to consider in the design of a regulatory framework for early intervention and resolution.