Truthmakers and modality

This paper attempts to locate, within an actualist ontology, truthmakers for modal truths: truths of the form or . In section 1 I motivate the demand for substantial truthmakers for modal truths. In section 2 I criticise Armstrong’s account of truthmakers for modal truths. In section 3 I examine essentialism and defend an account of what makes essentialist attributions true, but I argue that this does not solve the problem of modal truth in general. In section 4 I discuss, and dismiss, a theistic account of the source of modal truth proposed by Alexander Pruss. In section 5 I offer a means of (dis)solving the problem

Diisopropylamide and TMP turbo-grignard reagents : a structural rationale for their contrasting reactivities

A neutral dimeric molecule in crystal form, the diisopropylamido turbo-Grignard reagent "(iPr2N)MgCl⋅LiCl" (see structure; blue N, red O, green Mg, yellow Cl, black C) separates into several charged ate species in dynamic exchange with each other in THF solution as determined by a combination of EXSY and DOSY NMR studies

Economic Impact of Wildlife-Associated Recreation Expenditures in the Southeast United States: A General Equilibrium Analysis

The economic impact of wildlife-associated recreation in the Southeast United States was evaluated using a general equilibrium model. Exogenous demand shocks to the regional economy were based on estimates of expenditures by wildlife recreationists on hunting, fishing, and wildlife watching activities. Counterfactual simulations were carried out, making alternative assumptions about labor and capital mobility and their supply. Without wildlife-associated recreation expenditures, regional employment would have been smaller by up to 783 thousand jobs, and value added would have been $22 to$48 billion less. These findings underscore the significance of regional factor market conditions in economic impact and general equilibrium analysis.general equilibrium modeling, input-output analysis, regional economic impact, wildlife-associated recreation activities, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy, R13, R15, Q26,

Regulation of vascular endothelial growth factor bioactivity in patients with acute lung injury

Background: Reduced bioactive vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) has been demonstrated in several inflammatory lung conditions including the acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). sVEGFR-1, a soluble form of VEGF-1 receptor, is a potent natural inhibitor of VEGF. We hypothesised that sVEGFR-1 plays an important role in the regulation of the bioactivity of VEGF within the lung in patients with ARDS. Methods: Forty one patients with ARDS, 12 at risk of developing ARDS, and 16 normal controls were studied. Bioactive VEGF, total VEGF, and sVEGFR-1 were measured by ELISA in plasma and bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid. Reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction for sVEGFR-1 was performed on BAL cells. Results: sVEGFR-1 was detectable in the BAL fluid of 48% (20/41) of patients with early ARDS (1.4– 54.8 ng/ml epithelial lining fluid (ELF)) compared with 8% (1/12) at risk patients (p = 0.017) and none of the normal controls (p = 0.002). By day 4 sVEGFR-1 was detectable in only 2/18 ARDS patients (p = 0.008). Patients with detectable sVEGFR-1 had lower ELF median (IQR) levels of bioactive VEGF than those without detectable sVEGFR-1 (1415.2 (474.9–3192) pg/ml v 4761 (1349–7596.6) pg/ml, median difference 3346 pg/ml (95% CI 305.1 to 14711.9), p = 0.016), but there was no difference in total VEGF levels. BAL cells expressed mRNA for sVEGFR-1 and produced sVEGFR-1 protein which increased following incubation with tumour necrosis factor a. Conclusion: This study shows for the first time the presence of sVEGFR-1 in the BAL fluid of patients with ARDS. This may explain the presence of reduced bioactive VEGF in patients early in the course of ARDS

A house of cards: bias in perception of body size mediates the relationship between voice pitch and perceptions of dominance

Theories of the evolution of low voice pitch in men are based on the idea that voice pitch is an honest indicator of physical dominance, but relationships among pitch, physical body size and strength among same sex adults voice are weak and unstable. Nevertheless, judgements of body size based on voice pitch are the result of perceptual bias that low frequencies sound large. If dominance judgements are based in part on perception of size, then dominance perception could also be the result of perceptual bias. Thus, we tested if the relationship between voice pitch and judgements of height mediated the relationship between voice pitch and dominance judgements. The relationship between voice pitch and perceived height fully mediated the relationship between voice pitch and dominance. This was driven by the portion of variance that was inaccurate in height perception (i.e. residual error), and not conditional upon actual height, or perceptions thereof. Collectively our results demonstrate that the relationship between voice pitch and perceived dominance is not based on observation of real world relationships between physical size and voice pitch, but rather based on a bias to perceive low pitched voices as large people. Hence, the relationship between dominance and voice pitch is coincidental rather than causal. Thus, since the relationship between physical dominance and voice pitch is conditional upon the relationship between a biased perception of body size, voice pitch is not an honest indicator of physical dominance. Consequently, the evolution of low pitch in men’s voices cannot be explained by selection for accurate dominance cues

Sensory exploitation, sexual dimorphism, and human voice pitch

Selection for low male voice pitch is generally assumed to occur because it is a valid cue of formidability. Here we summarize recent empirical challenges to this hypothesis. We also outline an alternative account in which selection for low male voice pitch is a byproduct of sensory exploitation

The Possibility Principle And The Truthmakers For Modal Truths

A necessary part of David Armstrong’s account of truthmakers for modal truths is his Possibility principle: any truthmaker for a contingent truth is also a truthmaker for the possibility of the complement of that contingent truth (if T makes p true and p is contingent, then T makes }*p true). I criticize Armstrong’s Possibility principle for two reasons. First, his argument for the Possibility principle both relies on an unwarranted generalization and vitiates his desire for relevant truthmakers. His argument undercuts relevant truthmakers by entailing that each contingent being is a truthmaker for all modal truths. Second, even if the argument seems successful, the Possibility principle is subject to counterexamples. Armstrong’s being composed of more than fifty atoms makes it true that something composed of more than fifty atoms exists and that truth is contingent, but his being composed of more than fifty atoms does not make it true that it is possible that it is not the case that something composed of more than fifty atoms exists

Single-kernel ionomic profiles are highly heritable indicators of genetic and environmental influences on elemental accumulation in maize grain (Zea mays)

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