Making Sense of the Mental Universe

In 2005, an essay was published in Nature asserting that the universe is mental and that we must abandon our tendency to conceptualize observations as things. Since then, experiments have confirmed that — as predicted by quantum mechanics — reality is contextual, which contradicts at least intuitive formulations of realism and corroborates the hypothesis of a mental universe. Yet, to give this hypothesis a coherent rendering, one must explain how a mental universe can — at least in principle — accommodate (a) our experience of ourselves as distinct individual minds sharing a world beyond the control of our volition; and (b) the empirical fact that this world is contextual despite being seemingly shared. By combining a modern formulation of the ontology of idealism with the relational interpretation of quantum mechanics, the present paper attempts to provide a viable explanatory framework for both points. In the process of doing so, the paper also addresses key philosophical qualms of the relational interpretation

Getting beyond the surface : using geometric data analysis in cultural sociology

Geometric Data Analysis (GDA) refers to a group of statistical techniques that disclose underlying patterns in categorized data. GDA represents categories of variables and individuals as points in a multi-dimensional Euclidean space. This contribution presents some of GDA’s analytic properties and their connection to a relational approach of the social world. Moreover, the potential of GDA for cultural sociology will be discussed. What does GDA add to insights based on ‘orthodox’ correlational techniques and exactly how does it get beyond the surface of things? Research on the association between cultural consumption and socio-economic background will serve as an illustration

Extending the Power of the Concept Map

This pilot study introduces a scale to assess structural knowledge in concept maps. The need to increase our understanding of structural knowledge through improved assessment is made evident in a review of research that indicates that its quality is related to problem-solving abilities. The new scale is derived from Biggs and Collis' (1982) Structure of the Learning Outcome (SOLO) taxonomy and Rumelhart and Norman's (1978) modes of learning (structuring, accretion, and tuning). It is applied to link descriptions in an enhanced concept map structure that has been dubbed the "concept map+." Eight levels link quality can be recognized with the new scale. This builds on the original concept assessment scale of Novak and Gowin (1984) where just three types of link quality were acknowledged.Cette étude pilote présente une échelle pour l'évaluation des connaissances structurelles dans les cartes conceptuelles. Une analyse de la recherche ayant révélé que la qualité des connaissances structurelles est liée aux habiletés de résolution de problèmes, il est évident qu'il faut améliorer nos méthodes d'évaluation pour mieux comprendre ces connaissances. La nouvelle échelle est basée sur la taxonomie de Biggs et Collis (1982) sur la structure résultats d'apprentissage (Structure of Learning Outcome, SOLO) et sur les modes d'apprentissage de Rumelhart et Norman (1978) : structuration, accroissement et adaptation. Elle est appliquée aux descriptions de liens dans une structure perfectionnée cartes conceptuelles que l'on appelle ? concept map+.?. Cette nouvelle échelle distingue niveaux dans la qualité des liens, augmentant ainsi l'échelle d'évaluation originale de Novak et Gowin (1984) qui comportait seulement trois niveaux de qualité des liens