The Ribbon of Love: Fuzzy-Ruled Agents in Artificial Societies

The paper brings two motivations to the theoretical explorations of social analysis. The first is to enrich the agent based computational sociology by incorporating the fuzzy set theory in to the computational modeling. This is conducted by showing the importance to include the fuzziness into artificial agent’s considerations and her way acquiring and articulate information. This is continued with the second motives to bring the Darwinian sexual selection theory – as it has been developed broadly in evolutionary psychology – into the analysis of social system including cultural analysis and other broad aspects of sociological fields. The two was combined in one computational model construction showing the fuzziness of mating choice, and how to have computational tools to explain broad fields of social realms. The paper ends with some opened further computer program development

New Exhibition Hall 3 in Frankfurt – Case History of a Combined Pile-Raft Foundation Subjected to Horizontal Load

Concerning the load bearing behaviour of vertical loaded Combined Pile-Raft Foundations (CPRFs) many studies and publications are available whereas for CPRFs subjected to horizontal or inclined loads scientific results or case histories are very rare. But also for horizontal loading it is possible to obtain a very economic foundation design and to reduce the movements by using a CPRF. Following a theoretical illustration of the load bearing behaviour of a CPRF subjected to horizontal loads the paper is focused on the new exhibition hall 3 in Frankfurt am Main. With a length of 210 m, a width of 130 m and a height of 45 m it is one of the biggest exhibition halls in Europe. The high horizontal loads resulting from the arch thrust of the roof with a free span of 165 m are transferred to the subsoil by two CPRFs. The structure of the hall, the design concept of the foundation, the subsoil conditions and some aspects of construction are described. During the construction process of the hall and afterwards the foundation was observed with an extensive geotechnical measurement program. The measurement program and the results of the measurements are described and valuated

Theoretical Validity and Empirical Utility of a Constructionist Analytics

Wing-Chung Ho offers an extensive critique of what he calls our “radical constructionist approach to family experience,” questioning the theoretical validity and empirical utility of the research program. This article responds to the charges in the broader context of the program\u27s constructionist analytics, discussing family\u27s experiential location, organizational embeddedness, and the importance of ethnographic sensibility. A brief extract of situated talk and interaction is presented to illustrate the discursive complexity and institutional bearings of family as a category of experience. The conclusion takes up the issue of whether the program is radical in conceptualization and empirical realization

Developing a Stand-alone Internet Version of the Lidcombe Program for Early Stuttering

The Lidcombe Program is an evidence-based program and is the preferred intervention option in Australia to treat preschool age children who stutter. Speech pathologists help parents to implement the program at home by training them during regular visits at the clinic. Parents learn how to identify stuttering, rate stuttering severity and provide verbal contingencies during conversations. However, the Lidcombe Program is not accessible to all families that need it. Known obstacles that hinder access to the Lidcombe Program, delivered according to the Lidcombe Program Treatment Guides (Onslow, Packman & Harrison, 2003; Packman et al., 2014), are work or time restrictions of speech pathologists due to heavy caseload, and distance for families who live remotely (Rousseau, Packman, Onslow, Dredge & Harrison, 2002; Wilson, Lincoln & Onslow, 2002). The construction of a stand-alone Internet-based intervention, that is, an intervention that does not require the physical involvement of a speech pathologist when delivered, has the potential to overcome these obstacles. This thesis presents the construction and trialling of the first part of an Internet version of the Lidcombe Program, and the construction of a problem-solving tool for parents who do the program. The thesis is presented in six sections. Section I provides an overview of early stuttering, including its onset, cause and course. Potential impacts on social development and intervention for different age groups are discussed and an overview of treatment options for preschool age children is given. Subsequently the Lidcombe Program is introduced, as well as evidence that supports it. Different delivery formats of the Lidcombe Program are explained and insight in how the Lidcombe Program translates into everyday practice is provided. Section II explores theoretical issues that may need to be taken into consideration when developing the Internet Lidcombe Program. First, an overview of telehealth interventions in speech pathology is given, which results in understanding some practical issues related to its application. Aspects of other Internet-based health interventions are then discussed, to identify potential issues for the development of the Internet Lidcombe Program. The literature on adult learning and Internet-based learning is then reviewed, because the Lidcombe Program is directed towards parents of preschool age children who stutter and therefore it is essential to understand how they learn. Next, the design of the Internet Lidcombe Program is explained, including the necessary adaptations of the clinic-based Lidcombe Program components. It becomes clear that the Internet Lidcombe Program needs to be separated into two parts. Part 1 consists of a Parent Training (hereafter called Internet Parent Training), in which parents are introduced to the Lidcombe Program components, and Part 2 consists of Treatment (hereafter called Internet Treatment), in which parents start treating their child. Section III identifies the need for problem-solving support throughout the Internet Lidcombe Program and describes the qualitative problem-solving study conducted to (1) identify treatment problems that can emerge during the course of the Lidcombe Program and (2) develop potential solutions to solve them. This study was conducted in two parts. In Part I of the study, template analysis was applied to identify the treatment problems. Template analysis is based on the construction of a template through an iterative process of collecting and analysing data. Data were collected using various sources, including a brainstorming meeting, Lidcombe Program publications, reports of participants at different sites and in-depth interviews with expert speech pathologists. Part II of the study provided solutions through interviews with seven speech pathologists experienced with the Lidcombe Program. A summary structured around the main themes is given in this thesis. The findings of this study are reported in a qualitative description, organised in the template. They support the development of the Internet Lidcombe Program and the construction of a problem-solving tool for the program. Section IV illustrates how the findings of the problem-solving study are incorporated and how the identified theoretical issues related to Internet-based health interventions and adult education are addressed in the Internet Parent Training. Section V reports the feasibility study of the Internet Parent Training. Six parents of preschool age children who were about to commence the Lidcombe Program in a clinic completed the Internet Parent Training. Outcome measures were participants’ knowledge, skills, experiences and usage data, and the reports of participants and treating speech pathologists about starting the clinic-based Lidcombe Program after completing the Internet Parent Training. Results indicated that the Internet Parent Training could be optimised with a few small modifications, but overall it seemed to provide the training in stuttering and Lidcombe Program components for which it was constructed. Section VI discusses the implications of the problem-solving study and the feasibility study of the Internet Parent Training, and explores the future directions of the Internet Lidcombe Program

Syntactic reconstruction in Indo-European : the state of the art

Interest in syntactic reconstruction was implicit in the work of the founding fathers of the Comparative Method, including Franz Bopp and his contemporaries. The Neo-Grammarians took a more active interest in syntactic issues, concentrating especially on comparative descriptive syntax. In the 20th century, typologically-inspired research gave rise to several reconstructions of neutral word order for Proto-Indo-European. This work was met with severe criticism by Watkins (1976), which had the unfortunate effect that work on syntactic reconstruction reached a methodological impasse and was largely abandoned. However, the pioneering work of Hale (1987a), Garrett (1990) and Harris & Campbell (1995) showed that syntactic reconstruction could be carried out successfully. Currently, three different strands of work on syntactic reconstruction can be identified: i) the traditional Indo-Europeanists, ii) the generativists, and iii) the construction grammarians. The reconstructions of the two first strands are incomplete, either due to lack of formal representation, or due to the inability of the representational system to explicate the details of the form-meaning correspondences underlying any analysis of syntactic reconstruction. In contrast, Construction Grammar has at its disposal a full-fledged representational formalism where all aspects of grammar can be made explicit, hence allowing for the precise formulations of form-meaning correspondences needed to carry out a complete reconstruction. This is exemplified in the present paper with a reconstruction of grammatical relations for Proto-Germanic, involving a set of argument structure constructions and the subject tests applicable in the grammar of the proto-stage

A Swiss Pocket Knife for Computability

This research is about operational- and complexity-oriented aspects of classical foundations of computability theory. The approach is to re-examine some classical theorems and constructions, but with new criteria for success that are natural from a programming language perspective. Three cornerstones of computability theory are the S-m-ntheorem; Turing's "universal machine"; and Kleene's second recursion theorem. In today's programming language parlance these are respectively partial evaluation, self-interpretation, and reflection. In retrospect it is fascinating that Kleene's 1938 proof is constructive; and in essence builds a self-reproducing program. Computability theory originated in the 1930s, long before the invention of computers and programs. Its emphasis was on delimiting the boundaries of computability. Some milestones include 1936 (Turing), 1938 (Kleene), 1967 (isomorphism of programming languages), 1985 (partial evaluation), 1989 (theory implementation), 1993 (efficient self-interpretation) and 2006 (term register machines). The "Swiss pocket knife" of the title is a programming language that allows efficient computer implementation of all three computability cornerstones, emphasising the third: Kleene's second recursion theorem. We describe experiments with a tree-based computational model aiming for both fast program generation and fast execution of the generated programs.Comment: In Proceedings Festschrift for Dave Schmidt, arXiv:1309.455

Teacher education pedagogies and methodological constructs: or about different ways to approach teacher education

This paper plots the methodological constructs identified in different teacher education pedagogies deployed in teacher education settings of Higher Education Institutes in the province of Catamarca. The focus is on showcasing how future teachers are aided -from the methodological constructs of mentors- to make pedagogical decisions and broaden their potential for action during the educational path. The research was conducted from a qualitative approach. Three Higher Education Institutes representing different socio-cultural contexts and educational traditions were selected on the assumption that distinct pedagogies would be found; not only structured on the basis of stereotypical training, but also on the specificity of the disciplinary field. Seventeen semi-structured interviews were carried out and were accompanied by classroom observation of teacher educators in different areas, from distinct disciplinary backgrounds and varied seniority. The qualitative analysis of the data enabled the reconstruction of three typologies that explain the modes in which teacher education is pedagogically configured in the institutes under study as well as the dominant methodological construct that sets up each pedagogical approach. Thus, the pedagogy of ‘modeling’ teaching is based on methodological constructs based on the transmission of disciplinary contents and the instilment of behavior patterns; the ‘traditional’ view is built on methodological constructs elaborated on the basis of disciplinary logic; and the ‘eclectic’ approach is materialized in methodological constructs based on the synthesis of heterogeneous components or constructions grounded on pedagogical abstention.Fil: Diaz, Ana Griselda. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro de Investigaciones y Transferencia de Catamarca. Universidad Nacional de Catamarca. Centro de Investigaciones y Transferencia de Catamarca; ArgentinaFil: Yuni, Jose Alberto. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro de Investigaciones y Transferencia de Catamarca. Universidad Nacional de Catamarca. Centro de Investigaciones y Transferencia de Catamarca; Argentin