Rick Riordan's Intention in Writing Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief and the Reception of the Readers

This research studies Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan. The objectives are to describe the Greek mythology presented in the novel, the intention of Rick Riordan, and the reception of the readers. The methodology is hermeneutic referring to Recoeur's theory. It was found that, first, the Greek mythology presented in the novel is blended with American real life; second, the main character is a son of a Greek mythology god and a real American woman and, third, the setting is a blend of places in Greek mythology and real American cities. The intention of Riordan is to open up American culture that is lived through by Americans, that a part of American culture is Greek mythology. The readers accept that the novel fulfils the readers' horizon of expectation of aesthetic enjoyment and of the incorporation of Greek mythology into real American life

Mythology and destiny

In Albanian tradition, the essential attributes of the mythological figures of destiny seem to be symbolic interchangeable representations of birth itself. In addition, their mythical combat is but the symbolic representation of the cyclic return in the watery and chthonian world of death, leading, like the vegetation, to the cosmic revival of a new birth. Both protective and destructive positions of the attributes of birth, symbolized by the amniotic membranes, the caul and other singular markers, or by the means of the symbolism of maternal water, would be only two antinomic oppositions, two complementary and interchangeable terms of the mythopoeic opposition of the immanence of universal regeneration. One could bring closer to the Albanian figures certain mythological representations in Scandinavian and Slavic traditions. At any case, the ambivalent representations of soul and destiny are not isolated in Albanian tradition. There are especially those which have also a function of assistance to childbirth, close to Greek representations of the destiny, personified there by the Moires, in Scandinavian and Germanic traditions by Nornes and in the Albanian tradition by other local figures

The Mythology of Game Theory

Non-cooperative game theory is at its heart a theory of cognition, specifically a theory of how decisions are made. Game theory\u27s leverage is that we can design different payoffs, settings, player arrays, action possibilities, and information structures, and that these differences lead to different strategies, outcomes, and equilibria. It is well-known that, in experimental settings, people do not adopt the predicted strategies, outcomes, and equilibria. The standard response to this mismatch of prediction and observation is to add various psychological axioms to the game-theoretic framework. Regardless of the differing specific proposals and results, game theory uniformly makes certain cognitive assumptions that seem rarely to be acknowledged, much less interrogated. Indeed, it is not widely understood that game theory is essentially a cognitive theory. Here, we interrogate those cognitive assumptions. We do more than reject specific predictions from specific games. More broadly, we reject the underlying cognitive model implicitly assumed by game theory

Disaster Mythology and Availability Cascades

Sociological research conducted in the aftermath of natural disasters has uncovered a number of “disaster myths” – widely shared misconceptions about typical post-disaster human behavior. This paper discusses the possibility that perpetuation of disaster mythology reflects an “availability cascade,” defined in prior scholarship as a “self-reinforcing process of collective belief formation by which an expressed perception triggers a chain reaction that gives the perception increasing plausibility through its rising availability in public discourse.” (Kuran and Sunstein 1999). Framing the spread of disaster mythology as an availability cascade suggests that certain tools may be useful in halting the myths’ continued perpetuation. These tools include changing the legal and social incentives of so-called “availability entrepreneurs” – those principally responsible for beginning and perpetuating the cascade, as well as insulating decision-makers from political pressures generated by the availability cascade. This paper evaluates the potential effectiveness of these and other solutions for countering disaster mythology. Las investigaciones sociológicas realizadas tras los desastres naturales han hecho evidentes una serie de “mitos del desastre”, conceptos erróneos ampliamente compartidos sobre el comportamiento humano típico tras un desastre. Este artículo analiza la posibilidad de que la perpetuación de los mitos del desastre refleje una “cascada de disponibilidad”, definida en estudios anteriores como un “proceso de auto-refuerzo de la formación de una creencia colectiva, a través del que una percepción expresada produce una reacción en cadena que hace que la percepción sea cada vez más verosímil, a través de una mayor presencia en el discurso público” (Kuran y Sunstein 1999). Enmarcar la propagación de los mitos del desastre como una cascada de disponibilidad sugiere que ciertas herramientas pueden ser útiles para parar la continua perpetuación de los mitos. Estas herramientas incluyen el cambio de los incentivos legales y sociales de los llamados “emprendedores de la disponibilidad”, los principales responsables del inicio y la perpetuación de la cascada, además del aislamiento de quienes toman las decisiones de las presiones políticas generadas por la cascada de disponibilidad. Este artículo evalúa la efectividad potencial de estas y otras soluciones para contrarrestar los mitos del desastre

The Hobbit and Tolkien\u27s Mythology (2014), ed. Bradford Lee Eden

Book review of The Hobbit and Tolkien\u27s Mythology (2014), ed. Bradford Lee Ede

Sex determination in mythology and history

The history of ideas on how the sexes became divided spans at least three thousand years. The biblical account of the origin of Eve, and the opinions of the philosophers of classical Greece, have unexpected bearings on present-day ideas. The scientific study of sex determination can be said to have begun in the 17th century with the discovery of spermatozoa, but the origin and function of the “spermatic animalcules” eluded investigators until 1841. The mammalian egg was discovered in 1827, and in the last quarter of the century fertilization was observed. The view current at that time, that sex determination was under environmental control, gave way to the idea of chromosomal determination in the first quarter of the 20th century. The study of human and other mammalian chromosomes during the third quarter of the century, and the discovery of sex-chromosome abnormalities, emphasized the importance of the Y chromosome for male sex determination. The last quarter of the century witnessed a hunt for the “testis-determining” gene, thought to be responsible for the differentiation of Sertoli cells, and culminating in the isolation of SRY (Sry in the mouse). However, an increasing number of additional genes and growth factors were found to be required for the establishment of male sex. During the same period evidence emerged that male development was accompanied by enhanced growth, both of gonads and whole embryos. An unexpected finding was the demonstration of temperature-dependent sex determination in reptiles. With the advent of the 21st century, it was shown that Sry induces cell proliferation in fetal mouse gonads, and it has been suggested that male sex differentiation in mammals requires a higher metabolic rate. These insights could lead to a better understanding and improved treatment of abnormalities of sexual development

Affirmative Action and Its Mythology

For more than three decades, critics and supporters of affirmative action have fought for the moral high ground ­ through ballot initiatives and lawsuits, in state legislatures, and in varied courts of public opinion. The goal of this paper is to show the clarifying power of economic reasoning to dispel some myths and misconceptions in the racial affirmative action debates. We enumerate seven commonly held (but mistaken) views one often encounters in the folklore about affirmative action (affirmative action may involve goals and timelines, but definitely not quotas, e.g.). Simple economic arguments reveal these seven views to be more myth than fact.