The Role of Reinforcement Learning in the Emergence of Conventions: Simulation Experiments with the Repeated Volunteer’s Dilemma

We use reinforcement learning models to investigate the role of cognitive mechanisms in the emergence of conventions in the repeated volunteer’s dilemma (VOD). The VOD is a multi-person, binary choice collective goods game in which the contribution of only one individual is necessary and sufficient to produce a benefit for the entire group. Behavioral experiments show that in the symmetric VOD, where all group members have the same costs of volunteering, a turn-taking convention emerges, whereas in the asymmetric VOD, where one “strong” group member has lower costs of volunteering, a solitary-volunteering convention emerges with the strong member volunteering most of the time. We compare three different classes of reinforcement learning models in their ability to replicate these empirical findings. Our results confirm that reinforcement learning models can provide a parsimonious account of how humans tacitly agree on one course of action when encountering each other repeatedly in the same interaction situation. We find that considering contextual clues (i.e., reward structures) for strategy design (i.e., sequences of actions) and strategy selection (i.e., favoring equal distribution of costs) facilitate coordination when optima are less salient. Furthermore, our models produce better fits with the empirical data when agents act myopically (favoring current over expected future rewards) and the rewards for adhering to conventions are not delayed

'Vaguely Disreputable': Ray Harryhausen and the 'Kidult' Film

This article explores the role of film producer and special effects pioneer Ray Harryhausen in the development of the so-called “kidult” film. It examines the origins and the significations of the word “kidult”, which was seen to refer both to a specific type of film and to the audiences it mobilises. It denoted appeal to child and adult audiences, while asserting a distinction, a breaking away from parallel conceptions of the “family film” and “family audiences”, which had held sway in Hollywood’s industry and promotional discourses since the early 1930s. Harryhausen claimed to have invented the word, and his film 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958) was explicitly promoted as a “kidult” film on initial release. Through close analysis of Harryhausen’s fantasy films, this article argues that these productions adopted many of the essential narrative and representational elements of the 1950s Hollywood teen film, while still recognisably residing within a broader definition of Hollywood family entertainment. It contends that Harryhausen’s films were precursors to the contemporary Hollywood fantasy blockbuster in their address to the conceptual “kidult” consumer, their fast-paced, action-adventure narratives, and their emphasis on spectacle

Winona Daily News

https://openriver.winona.edu/winonadailynews/1877/thumbnail.jp

The Winonan

https://openriver.winona.edu/thewinonan2000s/1080/thumbnail.jp

To Where the Clock Changes: Migrant Illegalisation and its Consequences Along the France-UK Border

The history of British immigration control has culminated in the establishment and growth of informal, camp-like migrant settlements in northern France. Despite their proliferation across Europe, the current literature does not yet provide sufficient anthropological understanding of these spaces. To bridge this gap, this thesis draws on ethnographic fieldwork conducted in 2018 and 2019 exploring the intersections of violence and affect in one particular settlement, Dankix. Dankix is continuously built and rebuilt by its street homeless undocumented Kurdish residents, as they attempt to reach the United Kingdom in lorries and small boats. Since the turn of the century, over 340 people have died along the France-UK border. This thesis examines the circumstances that lead to death in Dankix. It explores the way that different forms of violence are exerted upon people living in the settlement, how they are elucidated through interpersonal encounters, and how residents negotiate such a violent milieu in their bid to reach the UK. In addressing these issues, this research examines how structures of violence become (in)visible and shape the everyday. It focuses on the humanitarian encounter, smuggling and other money-making strategies, arrest and detention, embodiment, and border death to illustrate life and death within a setting to which, as yet, scholars have paid little attention. This thesis shows that violence transforms the economy of affective attachments through which Dankix residents experience, mediate, and interpret the world around them, and their place within it. It draws out particularities of informal camps to show how key themes in migration literature, such as waiting, are complicated by this setting and its spatial politics. Finally, it argues that Dankix has become a space where death is misrecognised as inevitable. It concludes by making policy recommendations that, if implemented, would enable Dankix residents to seek asylum in the UK safely

Saudi-Arab Emerging Video Game Cultures, Archetypes, Narratives, and User Experiences

Arab representation in media has been a major focus of many works of renowned scholars, such as Edward Said (1978), Shaheen (2000), Karim (2005) and others. Journalism, film, television, and ancient literature have all been studied in these works. A recent addition to the study of Arab representation is the medium of video games. This was first examined by Reichmuth and Werning (2006) and Machin and Suleiman (2006) and extended by many works that are discussed in this thesis. The vast majority of the literature on Arab representation in video games focuses on Western video games and the reaction of Arab developers to these representations. Lack of specificity is another characteristic of this field. Both characteristics manifest in repeated comparative studies, where scholars select one local culture as an archetype, then embark on a comparative study of the global gaming community. In so doing, there is an unfair generalisation of Arab identity across broad and diverse regions, in terms of ethnic, ideological, national, historical, and even linguistic components. The present investigation critiques the shortcomings of this previous literature, while testing some alternative methods and approaches needed to re-examine the lack of access, language barriers and the aforementioned generalisations that have limited this field until now. Rather than assuming a single archetype for Saudi culture, this thesis departs from previous scholarship by examining the various aspects of the transformation process leading to what could be called an emergent “Saudiness”. Specifically, this study examines the construction and depiction of Saudi-Arab identity through the narratives and audiovisual content of video games, paying close attention to recent developments in Saudi cultural and media policy and the mandates set forth by the Vision 2030 development plan (SCEDA, 2016). Using theories on participatory culture (Jenkins, 2009) and spreadable media (Jenkins, Ford, and Green, 2013) as well as a content analysis of previously understudied material shared by a cohort of Saudi gamers, this research investigates the particular markers and strategies used to distinguish the spectrum of cultural aspects and elements with which Saudi gamers identify. To achieve this, the analysis focuses on three distinct archetypes of Saudi Arabs in video games: (a) the Saudis in Western video games, as suggested by previous works; (b) the Saudi citizen archetype, as recommended by state policy; and (c) the Saudi culture, as represented by Saudi gamers and Saudi game producers -- who in many cases reject the idea of a single archetype. In sum, this research sheds new light on the interactions between centralised and decentralised media in Saudi Arabia, as well as the Saudi gamers\u27 sense of agency, demonstrating how Saudis perceive Saudi representations in video games as part of a complex spectrum of interactions within a larger global gaming community

Jews and Humor

Jews and humor is, for most people, a natural and felicitous collocation. In spite of, or perhaps because of, a history of crises and living on the edge, Jews have often created or resorted to humor. But what is “humor”? And what makes certain types, instances, or performances of humor “Jewish”? These are among the myriad queries addressed by the fourteen authors whose essays are collected in this volume. And, thankfully, their observations, always apt and often witty, are expressed with a lightness of style and a depth of analysis that are appropriate to the many topics they cover. The chronological range of these essays is vast: from the Hebrew Bible to the 2000s, with many stops in between for Talmudic texts, medieval parodies, eighteenth century joke books, and twentieth century popular entertainment. The subject matter is equally impressive. In addition to rounding up many of the “usual suspects,” such as Woody Allen, the Marx Brothers, and Gilda Radner, these authors also scout out some unlikely comic resources, like the author of the biblical book of Exodus, the rabbinic writer of Genesis Rabbah, and the party records star Belle Barth. Without forcing any of these characters into a pre-constructed mold, the scholars who contributed to this collection allow readers both to discern the common features that make up “Jewish humor” and to delight in the individualism and eccentricities of the many figures whose lives and accomplishments are narrated here. Because these essays are written in a clear, jargon-free style, they will appeal to everyone—even those who don’t usually crack a smile!https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/sjc/1001/thumbnail.jp