Politics, Influence, and the Small Scale Organization of Political Communication Networks

This paper addresses the factors that give rise to both heterogeneous and homogeneous opinion distributions within political communication networks. We argue that the factors sustaining homogeneity and heterogeneity are not entirely symmetrical – heterogeneity is not necessarily explained by treating it as the flip side of homogeneity. Two primary questions guide the effort. If influence within a dyad depends on the distribution of opinions beyond the dyad, is dyadic influence contingent on the construction of the network within which the dyad is located? In particular, how does the micro-structure of the larger network affect the persuasiveness of communication within the dyad? We pursue an analysis based on agent based models of the communication process. The analysis points toward the importance of particular forms of small scale organization in preserving homogeneous opinion distributions. Homogeneity is more likely when network density is particularly high – when direct connections are more frequent among more agents. Correspondingly, when we observe homogeneity within communication networks in the natural world, the organization and reach of small scale social organization is likely to be key

Networked buffering: a basic mechanism for distributed robustness in complex adaptive systems

A generic mechanism - networked buffering - is proposed for the generation of robust traits in complex systems. It requires two basic conditions to be satisfied: 1) agents are versatile enough to perform more than one single functional role within a system and 2) agents are degenerate, i.e. there exists partial overlap in the functional capabilities of agents. Given these prerequisites, degenerate systems can readily produce a distributed systemic response to local perturbations. Reciprocally, excess resources related to a single function can indirectly support multiple unrelated functions within a degenerate system. In models of genome:proteome mappings for which localized decision-making and modularity of genetic functions are assumed, we verify that such distributed compensatory effects cause enhanced robustness of system traits. The conditions needed for networked buffering to occur are neither demanding nor rare, supporting the conjecture that degeneracy may fundamentally underpin distributed robustness within several biotic and abiotic systems. For instance, networked buffering offers new insights into systems engineering and planning activities that occur under high uncertainty. It may also help explain recent developments in understanding the origins of resilience within complex ecosystems. \ud \u

'No Thanks': a Socio-Semiotic Approach

This contribution argues for a socio-semiotic approach to natural-language communication which focuses on the connectedness between linguistic code and social and sociocultural practice. Section 1 investigates natural language communication with regard to propositional, interpersonal and interactional meaning from both code and inference-model viewpoints. The results of this discussion are accommodated in the redefinition of two of the most important premises of pragmatics, i.e. rationality and intentionality. In section 2, the interdependence of culture, context and communication is analysed in the framework of ethnomethodology, in which the linguistic realization of an utterance and its degree of contextualization are examined with regard to encoding, decoding, inference and implicature. In section 3 the phenomenon of communicative strategy is analysed in a socio-semiotic framework and special attention is given to the speech acts of denial and rejection. Communicative strategies are defined within the framework of preference organization and classified with regard to their preferred and dispreferred modes of linguistic representation and interpretation. In section 4, the results of the investigation of denials and rejections are systematized in the framework of the dialogue act of a plus/minus validity claim, which is based on Habermas' approach to communication (1987) and Halliday's functional interpretation of language (1996). In the conclusion, culture is defined as both a macro and a micro concept, and is created in and through the process of communication. Linguistic code and sociocultural practice are context-dependent by definition: they are anchored to linguistic contexts, which are embedded in sociocultural contexts, which are embedded in social contexts Thus, the macro concept of culture and its context-dependent manifestation as particular cultural values are reflected in particular communicative strategies which are interdependent on the presentation of self in everyday life (Goffman 1971)

Challenging the field: Bourdieu and men's health

©2014 Macmillan Publishers Ltd. This article considers how understandings of health promotion with men may be assisted by engagement with Bourdieu's theoretical work. The article outlines leading concepts within Bourdieu's work on 'field', 'habitus' and 'capital'; considers subsequent critical debates among gender, feminist and sociological theorists around structure and agency; and links these to discussions within men's health. A particular focus concerns structural disruption of, and movement of social actors between, 'fields' such as family, work and leisure settings. The article examines, through Bourdieu's critical legacy, whether such disruption establishes conditions for transformative reflexivity among men in relation to previously held dispositions (habitus), including those inflected by masculinities, that affect men's health practices. Recent work within Bourdieu's heritage potentially facilitates a re-framing of understandings of men's health practices. The article specifically explores masculine ambivalence within accounts of reflexivity, identities and practice, and considers how social and symbolic (masculine) capital are in play. Implications of Bourdieu's leading concepts for theorising settings-focused approaches to men's health promotion are exemplified with reference to a men's health project in a football stadium leisure setting. The article considers the benefits and challenges of applying gendered critical insights drawing on Bourdieu's work to men's health promotion, and discusses emerging theoretical dilemmas

Lower Court Constitutionalism: Circuit Court Discretion in a Complex Adaptive System

While federal circuit courts play an essential role in defining what the Constitution means, one would never know it from looking at most constitutional scholarship. The bulk of constitutional theory sees judge-made constitutional law through a distorted lens, one that focuses solely on the Supreme Court with virtually no attention paid to other parts of the judicial hierarchy. On the rare occasions when circuit courts appear on the radar screen, they are treated either as megaphones for communicating the Supreme Court’s directives or as tools for implementing the theorist’s own interpretive agenda. Both approaches would homogenize the way circuit courts make choices about constitutional meaning, carving independent federal judges into cookie-cutter replicas of either the theorist or the Supreme Court.These “one size fits all” theories fail to see circuit courts for what they are — parts of an interpretive system where constitutional law is made from both the top-down and from the bottom-up. This partially decentralized structure positions circuit courts to help the system adapt to changes in its environment and ensure its long-term stability and survival. Rather than focusing on their “inferior” position in the judicial hierarchy or the “best” available theory of constitutional interpretation, circuit courts should use their interpretive discretion in constitutional cases in ways that serve this adaptive function.This Article uses a “complex adaptive system” model to explore how decentralized systems balance their need for overall order and stability with demands for evolution and change. These systems rely on two factors: variation (the degree to which the system’s components differ from one another) and interdependence (the degree to which the system’s components affect one another) to manage those competing forces. When applied to circuit courts, a complex adaptive system model shows the importance of generating different answers to difficult interpretive questions rather than a uniform approach, and developing mechanisms for facilitating interpretive communication across circuits. In turn, it offers the promise of aligning constitutional theory with the way constitutional law is actually made

Feeling committed to a robot: why, what, when and how?

The paper spells out the rationale for developing means of manipulating and of measuring people's sense of commitment to robot interaction partners. A sense of commitment may lead people to be patient when a robot is not working smoothly, to remain vigilant when a robot is working so smoothly that a task becomes boring and to increase their willingness to invest effort in teaching a robot. We identify a range of contexts in which a sense of commitment to robot interaction partners may be particularly important

Méthodes d'apprentissage inspirées de l'humain pour un tuteur cognitif artificiel

Les systèmes tuteurs intelligents sont considérés comme un remarquable concentré de technologies qui permettent un processus d'apprentissage. Ces systèmes sont capables de jouer le rôle d'assistants voire même de tuteur humain. Afin d'y arriver, ces systèmes ont besoin de maintenir et d'utiliser une représentation interne de l'environnement. Ainsi, ils peuvent tenir compte des évènements passés et présents ainsi que de certains aspects socioculturels. Parallèlement à l'évolution dynamique de l'environnement, un agent STI doit évoluer en modifiant ses structures et en ajoutant de nouveaux phénomènes. Cette importante capacité d'adaptation est observée dans le cas de tuteurs humains. Les humains sont capables de gérer toutes ces complexités à l'aide de l'attention et du mécanisme de conscience (Baars B. J., 1983, 1988), et (Sloman, A and Chrisley, R., 2003). Toutefois, reconstruire et implémenter des capacités humaines dans un agent artificiel est loin des possibilités actuelles de la connaissance de même que des machines les plus sophistiquées. Pour réaliser un comportement humanoïde dans une machine, ou simplement pour mieux comprendre l'adaptabilité et la souplesse humaine, nous avons à développer un mécanisme d'apprentissage proche de celui de l'homme. Ce présent travail décrit quelques concepts d'apprentissage fondamentaux implémentés dans un agent cognitif autonome, nommé CTS (Conscious Tutoring System) développé dans le GDAC (Dubois, D., 2007). Nous proposons un modèle qui étend un apprentissage conscient et inconscient afin d'accroître l'autonomie de l'agent dans un environnement changeant ainsi que d'améliorer sa finesse. ______________________________________________________________________________ MOTS-CLÉS DE L’AUTEUR : Apprentissage, Conscience, Agent cognitif, Codelet