The governance of European security

This article seeks to develop a concept of ‘security governance’ in the context of post-Cold War Europe. The validity of a governance approach lies in its ability to locate some of the distinctive ways in which European security has been coordinated, managed and regulated. Based on an examination of the way governance is utilised in other political fields of political analysis, the article identifies the concept of security governance as involving the coordinated management and regulation of issues by multiple and separate authorities, the interventions of both public and private actors (depending upon the issue), formal and informal arrangements, in turn structured by discourse and norms, and purposefully directed toward particular policy outcomes. Three issues are examined to demonstrate the utility of the concept of security governance for understanding security in post-Cold War Europe: the transformation of NATO, the Europeanisation of security accomplished through EU-led initiatives and, finally, the resultant dynamic relationship between forms of exclusion and inclusion in governance

Concept learning consistency under three‑way decision paradigm

Concept Mining is one of the main challenges both in Cognitive Computing and in Machine Learning. The ongoing improvement of solutions to address this issue raises the need to analyze whether the consistency of the learning process is preserved. This paper addresses a particular problem, namely, how the concept mining capability changes under the reconsideration of the hypothesis class. The issue will be raised from the point of view of the so-called Three-Way Decision (3WD) paradigm. The paradigm provides a sound framework to reconsider decision-making processes, including those assisted by Machine Learning. Thus, the paper aims to analyze the influence of 3WD techniques in the Concept Learning Process itself. For this purpose, we introduce new versions of the Vapnik-Chervonenkis dimension. Likewise, to illustrate how the formal approach can be instantiated in a particular model, the case of concept learning in (Fuzzy) Formal Concept Analysis is considered.This work is supported by State Investigation Agency (Agencia Estatal de Investigación), project PID2019-109152GB-100/AEI/10.13039/501100011033. We acknowledge the reviewers for their suggestions and guidance on additional references that have enriched our paper. Open Access funding provided thanks to the CRUE-CSIC agreement with Springer Nature

Training trajectories and the development of the process of recognition and validation of acquired knowledge

The recognition and validation of prior learning is an emergent training practice. In Portugal, since 2001, it has been possible to obtain an academic certification by valuing the formal, non-formal and informal learning. Since 2006 it has also been possible to achieve professional certification. The current study was conducted with adults and trainers who were involved in the recognition, validation and certification of competences. This research study, using qualitative research methods, analysed the way how these processes are developed and organised. This analysis was specially focused on three aspects: (i) the exploration of the concept of competence; (ii) the use of one’s life story as a methodological support; and (iii) the interplay between adult life experiences and the scientific concepts portrayed in the referential. The findings suggested that work analysis was not used to conceive methods, aiming at the recognition of competences

Formalism Analysis on the Novel Androphobia by Ullan Pralihanta

Formalism is the main concept used as an analysis material. In formalism there are two aspects studied (1) formal aspects of language and (2) storytelling techniques. The formal aspects of language relate to five aspects, namely (1) title, (2) point of view, (3) style and tone, (4) symbolism, and (5) irony. The storytelling technique deals with three aspects, namely (1) fabula, (2) sujet and (3) motif. This study focuses on storytelling techniques. Fabula or stories relate to sequences of events in order sorted in causality relationships. In the novel Androphobia by Ullan Pralihanta is divided into 3 parts, namely (1) episodes of love Yasmin─Ovan, (2) episodes of love Robin─Gadis, and (3) episodes of shrinkage. Sujet is a plot, a narrative structure, that is the way semantic material presentation in a text in Androphobia, a novel by Ullan Pralihanta uses a forward plot with several flashes of events. The forward plot occurs 2 times, that is, (1) the events of part 1, part 2, part 3, part 5, and part 15, (2) the events of section 6, section 7, sections 9, 10 to section 19. The flashy event occurs in Section 15 to Section 6

Insights from College Algebra Students' Reinvention of Limit at Infinity

The limit concept in calculus has received a lot of attention from mathematics education researchers, partly due to its position in mathematics curricula as an entry point to calculus and partly due to its complexities that students often struggle to understand. Most of this research focuses on students who had previously studied calculus or were enrolled in a calculus course at the time of the study. In this study, I aimed to gain insights into how students with no prior experience with precalculus or calculus might think about limits via the concept of limit at infinity, with the goal of designing instructional tasks based on these students’ intuitive strategies and ways of reasoning. In particular, I designed a sequence of instructional tasks that starts with an experientially realistic starting point that involves describing the behavior of changing quantities in real-world physical situations. From there, the instructional tasks build on the students’ ways of reasoning through tasks involving making predictions about the values of the quantity and identifying characteristics associated with making good predictions. These instructional tasks were developed through three iterations of design research experimentation. Each iteration included a teaching experiment in which a pair of students engaged in the instructional tasks under my guidance. Through ongoing and reflective analysis, the instructional tasks were refined to evoke the students’ intuitive strategies and ways of thinking and to leverage these toward developing a definition for the concept of limit at infinity. The final, refined sequence of instructional tasks together with my rationale for each task and expected student responses provides insights into how students can come to understand the concept of limit at infinity in a way that is consistent with the formal definition prior to receiving formal instruction on limits. The results presented in this dissertation come from the third and final teaching experiment, in which Jon and Lexi engaged in the sequence of instructional tasks. Although Jon and Lexi did not construct a definition of limit at infinity consistent with a formal definition, they demonstrated many strategies and ways of reasoning that anticipate the formal definition of limit at infinity. These include identifying a limit candidate, defining the notion of closeness, describing the notion of sufficiently large, and coordinating the notion of closeness in the range with the notion of sufficiently large in the domain. On the other hand, Jon and Lexi demonstrated some strategies and ways of reasoning that potentially inhibited their development of a definition consistent with the formal definition. Pedagogical implications on instruction in calculus and its prerequisites are discussed as well as contributions to the field and potential directions for future research

Insights from College Algebra Students' Reinvention of Limit at Infinity

The limit concept in calculus has received a lot of attention from mathematics education researchers, partly due to its position in mathematics curricula as an entry point to calculus and partly due to its complexities that students often struggle to understand. Most of this research focuses on students who had previously studied calculus or were enrolled in a calculus course at the time of the study. In this study, I aimed to gain insights into how students with no prior experience with precalculus or calculus might think about limits via the concept of limit at infinity, with the goal of designing instructional tasks based on these students’ intuitive strategies and ways of reasoning. In particular, I designed a sequence of instructional tasks that starts with an experientially realistic starting point that involves describing the behavior of changing quantities in real-world physical situations. From there, the instructional tasks build on the students’ ways of reasoning through tasks involving making predictions about the values of the quantity and identifying characteristics associated with making good predictions. These instructional tasks were developed through three iterations of design research experimentation. Each iteration included a teaching experiment in which a pair of students engaged in the instructional tasks under my guidance. Through ongoing and reflective analysis, the instructional tasks were refined to evoke the students’ intuitive strategies and ways of thinking and to leverage these toward developing a definition for the concept of limit at infinity. The final, refined sequence of instructional tasks together with my rationale for each task and expected student responses provides insights into how students can come to understand the concept of limit at infinity in a way that is consistent with the formal definition prior to receiving formal instruction on limits. The results presented in this dissertation come from the third and final teaching experiment, in which Jon and Lexi engaged in the sequence of instructional tasks. Although Jon and Lexi did not construct a definition of limit at infinity consistent with a formal definition, they demonstrated many strategies and ways of reasoning that anticipate the formal definition of limit at infinity. These include identifying a limit candidate, defining the notion of closeness, describing the notion of sufficiently large, and coordinating the notion of closeness in the range with the notion of sufficiently large in the domain. On the other hand, Jon and Lexi demonstrated some strategies and ways of reasoning that potentially inhibited their development of a definition consistent with the formal definition. Pedagogical implications on instruction in calculus and its prerequisites are discussed as well as contributions to the field and potential directions for future research

An analysis of the concept of equilibrium in organization theory

This article analyzes how the equilibrium concept is used in four organization theories: the theories of Fayol, Mintzberg, Morgan, and Volberda. Equilibrium can be defined as balance, fit or requisite variety. Equilibrium is related to observables dependent on the definition of organization as work organization, formal organization or artifact organization. The discussed theories can be mapped on a state space model in a way that clarifies the equilibrium concept.\ud The equilibrium concept in organization theory in general can be formalized mathematically using concepts from systems theory. The equilibrium condition can be formulated in terms of a difference function that has to be zero at equilibrium. A central idea is the necessity to maintain equilibrium by actions. This is done by means of a circular causal mechanism that reinforces equilibrium once it has been established as long as the organization conforms to the Law of Requisite Variety. The difference function on which the condition of organizational equilibrium is based takes different forms for each of the four organization theories studied. The establishment of these difference functions enables a comparison with the types of fit described by Venkatraman. It turns out that all types of fit described by Venkatraman are gamma-space based. The analysis of the four theories leads to five equilibrium types, of which two (the Gestalt type and the Matching type) have been described by Venkatraman. Three types of equilibrium that were found have not been covered by Venkatraman: Fayol’s balance / mu-space type, Volberda’s gamma-space/ variety type and Morgan’s mu-space / variety type

Towards an Islamic lifelong learning information system: A visionary model of an Islamic learning community

Statistics from studies and analysis showed that the Muslim countries are the least democratic, having lowest income, as well as slowest growth income per head. Such are the results from inefficient system and management of education as well as not being able to practice lifelong learning to the upmost.Education has been the answer at the early time of Islam during the prophet’s life. Based on the claim, this paper aimed at proposing an alternative educational model in order to implement the need for mass-educating the Muslim community in general. The model, which is based on the Nested Learning Community Concept, takes into account current ICT infrastructure and pervasive computing applications.It consists of five integrated layers, supported by three information system pillars namely content, communication, and self directed assessment performance.The model adopted a non formal education system which does not require students to sit in class and follow instructions to pass exams.It provides a platform for life improvement and wellbeing of oneself.Should the model be implemented in a structured way, it can fulfill all the requirements for an effective educational system in the current lifestyle of the digital age and bring us back to the glory of Ottoman Empire

Husserl and Community

This dissertation is on Edmund Husserl\u27s concept of personal community. I argue that Husserl\u27s concept of community is based on his formal theory of parts and wholes. More specifically, it is argued that the terms Husserl uses to describe features of community in his later writings are already established early in his philosophical career. The first three chapters of the dissertation focus on Husserl\u27s unique conception of community in general. The final two chapters turn to political communities from a Husserlian standpoint. In the first chapter, I investigate how Husserl\u27s account of the ontological structure of community is tied to his theory of parts and wholes. I position his concept of community in relation to two traditional theories found in the philosophy of the social sciences, namely, individualism and holism. On that basis, I argue that Husserl\u27s concept of community is an attractive alternative to both traditional theories. My second chapter demonstrates the criteria Husserl uses in his taxonomy of community types. Husserl makes distinctions between community types based on how loosely or tightly members are bound together. By appealing to Husserl\u27s notion of mereological proximity, I argue that anonymous and intimate forms of community organization are two poles that provide a spectrum of community organization. This allows me to show how conflicting accounts of Husserl\u27s concept of some communities understood as personalities of a higher order can be disambiguated. In chapter three, I provide a phenomenological analysis of the experience of community from the first-person perspective of membership. For Husserl, consciousness includes a blend of presence and absence for objects and their surrounding horizons, with this process occurring in a unique way in the context of the experience of community membership. Interactions are experienced differently for persons we know personally as opposed to unknown others, and Husserl\u27s sophisticated account of the intentionality of consciousness provides the resources for understanding these experiences. My fourth chapter provides an interpretation of political obligations from a Husserlian perspective. I argue that Husserl has an advantage over Margaret Gilbert in accounting for political obligations amidst unknown others in large communities having the features of impersonality and anonymity. I proceed by way of a comparative analysis with Gilbert\u27s social ontology, and specifically her affirmative answer to the political membership problem. Given a difficulty with Gilbert\u27s account of membership in groups having the features of impersonality and anonymity, I supplement her argument in the form of a Husserlian-inspired answer to the membership problem. The fifth chapter provides an interpretation of trust and betrayal within political communities from the perspective of Husserl\u27s concept of community. This task is accomplished by way of comparing Husserl\u27s notion of crisis with the roles that trust and betrayal play in political life. I again proceed by way of comparing Husserl with Gilbert on these topics. In that way, a Husserlian approach to trust and crisis is put forth in the context of political communities. It thereby becomes possible to thematize trust not just as a positive notion that can then be betrayed, but elucidates features of the world that have been taken for granted which act as the condition of possibility of such crises occurring in the first place