Network

Network is a device for organising and conceptualising non-linear complexity. Networks defy narrative, chronology and thus also genealogy because they entail a multiplicity of traces. Networks problematize boundaries and centrality but intensify our ability to think in terms of flows and simultaneity. As a concept, network has been highly conducive to theorizing phenomena and processes such as globalization, digital media (Internet), speed, symbiosis and complexity. This in turn enables us to rethink what constitutes the foundations of intelligence, knowledge and even life itself. One particularly useful application of network as a concept is the notion of the gift, which is often seen as the archetypical figure for understanding the nature of economics and social relationships

On the evolutionary stability of the Uruguayan Savanna

Tropical and subtropical grasslands have been the single-most valuable resource throughout the course of human evolution, and, to this point, despite fundamental errors associated with economic theory which suggest otherwise, these rangelands remain amongst the most evolutionarily stable (and thus valuable) assets on Earth. However, given the problem noted above and, in conjunction with the inherently short-term nature of political motivations, these grasslands are being rapidly lost to crop-lands and urban sprawl – and thus it is of little surprise that conservation efforts are most prominent amongst private individuals with long-term goals and dominant Resource Holding Power ($). This brief communique submits that, not only would political leaders serve their nations well by extending long-term economic incentives to those who conserve grasslands, but that, moreover, economic prosperity, food security, and national security may prove ephemeral without such measures.Long Term Investment Strategy ; Diversification ; Sustainability ; Tragedy of the Commons ; Food Security ; Rangelands

Giffen paradoxes in quantum market games

Recent development in quantum computation and quantum information theory allows to extend the scope of game theory for the quantum world. The paper presents the history and basic ideas of quantum game theory. Description of Giffen paradoxes in this new formalism is discussed.Comment: 12 pages (2 figs), LaTe

REPOSITIONING DERRIDA'S DECONSTRUCTION

Tulisan ini adalah suatu studi fenomenologis yang mengetengahkan faham Derrida tentang dekonstruksi dan pelbagai penjelasan teknis yang mendukung ide dasar aliran ini. Bagi Derrida filsafat pertama-tama bukan dilihat sebagai hasil karya para idealis atau rationalis, melainkan sebagai tulisan atau teks (bahasa Latin texere berarti menenun), semacam tenunanatau fabrikasi dari pelbagai pengalaman dan proses berpikir manusia, pola tingkah laku, dan kebudayaan, yang ia lihat sebagai wacana (diskursus). Pandangan dasar Derrida, kendati telah menuai banyak kritik, tetaplah memungkinkan kita memahami lebih dalam persoalan-persoalan yang tersembunyi di balik pandangan tradisional tentang rasio, kesadaran, esensi,fondasi, dan sebagainya

Einige Pendenzen. Weben und Text in der antiken Literatur

The metaphorical relation between the craft of weaving and singing or writing has often been noted and explained, not least with view to the etymological relation of text and textile. It is unsurprising, then, that it has become a commonplace assumption among literary critics to interpret the description of woven garments or scenes of weaving in literature as unequivocal representations of the literary texts themselves. The present contribution proposes to defamiliarise these overly familiar relations and make a fresh attempt at explaining the success of the metaphor of weaving for textual production: Engaging with the various stages and procedures of textile production at the upright loom common in Antiquity, the paper identifies two fundamental qualities of weaving that lie at the heart of its metaphorical appropriation: the linearity and coherence of the working process in weaving and its instantaneous materialisation in the woven garment. Drawing on a wide range of texts from ancient literature (Plautus, Cicero, Optatian, ps.Virgil’s Ciris, and ps.Tibullus’ Pagyricus Messallae), it is shown that the metaphor of weaving owes its success to the fact that it allows for reflection on the dialectics of ideality and materiality in texts. Against this backdrop, a reading of the Metamorphoses is put forward that interprets the Ovidian weaving scenes as a meditation on the metaphor iself