Towards a Phenomenological Analysis of Fictional Emotions

What are fictional emotions and what has phenomenology to say about them? This paper argues that the experience of fictional emotions entails a splitting of the subject between a real and a phantasy ego. The real ego is the ego that imagines something; the phantasy ego is the ego that is necessarily co-posited by any experience of imagining something. Fictional emotions are phantasy emotions of the phantasy ego. The intentional structure of fictional emotions, the nature of their fictional object, as well as the process of constituting the phantasy ego in representificational acts of consciousness are further elaborated to provide the groundwork for a phenomenological analysis of fictional emotions

From Horizon 2020 to Horizon Europe: why it is not yet “business as usual” for UK universities

Thanks to the Brexit deal, it is likely that UK researchers will gain access to the Horizon Europe programme and EU research funding. Will this suffice for UK higher education institutions to return to pre-Brexit participation levels, asks Marco Cavallaro (University of Lugano)

A Hybrid Reduced-Order Model for the Aeroelastic Analysis of Flexible Subsonic Wings—A Parametric Assessment

A hybrid reduced-order model for the aeroelastic analysis of flexible subsonic wings with arbitrary planform is presented within a generalised quasi-analytical formulation, where a slender beam is considered as the linear structural dynamics model. A modified strip theory is proposed for modelling the unsteady aerodynamics of the wing in incompressible flow, where thin aerofoil theory is corrected by a higher-fidelity model in order to account for three-dimensional effects on both distribution and deficiency of the sectional air load. Given a unit angle of attack, approximate expressions for the lift decay and build-up are then adopted within a linear framework, where the two effects are separately calculated and later combined. Finally, a modal approach is employed to write the generalised equations of motion in state-space form. Numerical results were obtained and critically discussed for the aeroelastic stability analysis of a uniform rectangular wing, with respect to the relevant aerodynamic and structural parameters. The proposed hybrid model provides sound theoretical insights and is well suited as an efficient parametric reduced-order aeroelastic tool for the preliminary multidisciplinary design and optimisation of flexible wings in the subsonic regime

From Happiness to Blessedness: Husserl on Eudaimonia, Virtue, and the Best Life

This paper treats of Husserl’s phenomenology of happiness or eudaimonia in five parts. In the first part, we argue that phenomenology of happiness is an important albeit relatively neglected area of research, and we show that Husserl engages in it. In the second part, we examine the relationship between phenomenological ethics and virtue ethics. In the third part, we identify and clarify essential aspects of Husserl’s phenomenology of happiness, namely, the nature of the question concerning happiness and the possibility of a phenomenological answer, the power of the will, the role of vocation, the place of obligation, the significance of habituation, the necessity of selfreflection and self-criticism, the importance of sociability and solidarity, the impact of chance and destiny, and the specter of regret. In the fourth part, we establish the inextricable linkage between Husserl’s metaethics and his metaphysics. In the fi ft h part, we provide a provisional exploration of his conception of the connection between happiness and blessedness. We acknowledge that there is an extensive literature on Husserl’s phenomenological ethics, and our study has benefitted greatly from it, but we also suggest that our holistic approach critically clarifies his description of happiness, virtue, and blessedness by fully recognizing that his phenomenological metaethics is embedded in his phenomenological metaphysics

Direct digital manufacturing of shoe heels through Fused Deposition Modeling

Additive manufacturing process chains for direct part production in the footwear sector are being investigated almost exclusively for athlete shoe soles and orthotics. This paper focuses on the direct digital manufacturing of high heels for woman shoes, which could provide solutions for personalized production and complex design for high added-value shoes. The study aims at testing the introduction of additively manufactured components into conventional shoe production lines. Sample heels of two common designs have been fabricated by the Fused Deposition Modeling technique, assembled with conventional mounting machines, and tested for wearability according to standard procedures. The experimentation has shown that fully process compatible and functional heels can be produced for a basic design under some restrictions, and has allowed to identify critical issues to be dealt with for future applications on more critical heel shapes. These results will help to develop methods for a robust heel design exploiting the flexibility and creative freedom allowed by additive processes

The Phenomenon of Ego-Splitting in Husserl’s Phenomenology of Pure Phantasy

Husserl's phenomenology of imagination embraces a cluster of different theories and approaches regarding the multi-faced phenomenon of imaginative experience. In this paper I consider one aspect that seems to be crucial to the understanding of a particular form of imagination that Husserl names pure phantasy. I argue that the phenomenon of Ego-splitting discloses the best way to elucidate the peculiarity of pure phantasy with respect to other forms of representative acts (such as remembering) and to any simple form of act modification (such as neutrality modification). First, I unravel the phenomenological distinctions which, respectively, oppose phantasy to perception, on the one hand, and phantasy to other forms of the so-called intuitive re-presentations. Second, I introduce the difference between presentative and representative acts, arguing that this cannot help us to single out the defining feature of phantasy experiences. The third section draws again an important distinction between pure phantasy and neutrality modification, which allows me to finally determine an internal trait of phantasy experiences, which Husserl refers to as the Ego-splitting (Ichspaltung). In this way, I hope to contribute to a refined characterization of Husserl's phenomenology of imagination