240 research outputs found
What Can Information Encapsulation Tell Us About Emotional Rationality?
What can features of cognitive architecture, e.g. the information encapsulation of certain emotion processing systems, tell us about emotional rationality? de Sousa proposes the following hypothesis: “the role of emotions is to supply the insufficiency of reason by imitating the encapsulation of perceptual modes” (de Sousa 1987: 195). Very roughly, emotion processing can sometimes occur in a way that is insensitive to what an agent already knows, and such processing can assist reasoning by restricting the response-options she considers. This paper aims to provide an exposition and assessment of de Sousa’s hypothesis. I argue information encapsulation is not essential to emotion-driven reasoning, as emotions can determine the relevance of response-options even without being encapsulated. However, I argue encapsulation can still play a role in assisting reasoning by restricting response-options more efficiently, and in a way that ensures which options emotions deem relevant are not overridden by what the agent knows. I end by briefly explaining why this very feature also helps explain how emotions can, on occasion, hinder reasoning
“I’m in a very good frame of mind”: A qualitative exploration of the experience of standing frame use in people with progressive multiple sclerosis
This is the final version. Available on open access from BMJ Publishing Group via the DOI in this recordData sharing:
The SUMS study protocol and statistical analysis plan are publicly available at
https://www.plymouth.ac.uk/research/sums. Individual participant data that underlie
the results will be made available (after de-identification) on a controlled access
basis, subject to suitable data sharing agreements. Requests for data sharing should
be made to the Chief Investigator (CI; J Freeman) in the first instance.The study aim was to explore the experiences of people with progressive multiple
sclerosis (MS) and their standing assistants during their participation in SUMS, a
randomised controlled trial (RCT) of a home-based, self-managed standing frame
programme.
Design
A qualitative approach, using audio diary methodology was used to collect data
contemporaneously. Diary data were transcribed verbatim and analysed using
thematic analysis.
Setting
Participants were recruited from eight health-care organisations in two regions of the
United Kingdom. The intervention was home-based.
Participants
As part of the RCT, 140 participants were randomly allocated to either usual care or
usual care plus a standing frame programme. Using a sampling matrix 12 people
with progressive MS (six female, aged 35–71 years, Expanded Disability Status
Scale 6.5-8.0) and eight standing assistants (four female) kept audio diaries of their
experiences.
Intervention
The standing frame programme involved two face-to-face home-based
physiotherapy sessions to set up the standing frame programme, supplemented by
educational material designed to optimise self-efficacy. Participants were
encouraged to stand for at least 30 minutes, three times a week for the 36 week
study period.
Results
Four main themes were identified: “Feeling like the old me”; “Noticing a difference”; “I
want to do it right” and “You have a good day, you have a bad day”.
Conclusions
Supported standing helped people with progressive MS feel more like their old
selves and provided a sense of normality and enjoyment. People noticed
improvements in physical and psychological symptoms, which were often associated
with increased participation in activities they valued. Provision of support from a
physiotherapist and recognition of the variable nature of the condition were
highlighted as factors to consider when establishing a standing programme.National Institute for Health Research (NIHR
Assessment of a home-based standing frame programme in people with progressive multiple sclerosis (SUMS): a pragmatic, multi-centre, randomised, controlled trial and cost-effectiveness analysis
People severely impaired with progressive multiple sclerosis spend much of their day sitting, with very few options to improve motor function. As a result, secondary physical and psychosocial complications can occur. Effective and feasible self-management strategies are needed to reduce sedentary behaviour and enhance motor function. In this study, we aimed to assess the clinical and cost effectiveness of a home-based, self-managed, standing frame programme.31301748This article is freely available via Open Access. Click on the Publisher URL to access the full-text.Publishe
The narrative self, distributed memory, and evocative objects
In this article, I outline various ways in which artifacts are interwoven with autobiographical memory systems and conceptualize what this implies for the self. I first sketch the narrative approach to the self, arguing that who we are as persons is essentially our (unfolding) life story, which, in turn, determines our present beliefs and desires, but also directs our future goals and actions. I then argue that our autobiographical memory is partly anchored in our embodied interactions with an ecology of artifacts in our environment. Lifelogs, photos, videos, journals, diaries, souvenirs, jewelry, books, works of art, and many other meaningful objects trigger and sometimes constitute emotionally-laden autobiographical memories. Autobiographical memory is thus distributed across embodied agents and various environmental structures. To defend this claim, I draw on and integrate distributed cognition theory and empirical research in human-technology interaction. Based on this, I conclude that the self is neither defined by psychological states realized by the brain nor by biological states realized by the organism, but should be seen as a distributed and relational construct
Astrobiological Complexity with Probabilistic Cellular Automata
Search for extraterrestrial life and intelligence constitutes one of the
major endeavors in science, but has yet been quantitatively modeled only rarely
and in a cursory and superficial fashion. We argue that probabilistic cellular
automata (PCA) represent the best quantitative framework for modeling
astrobiological history of the Milky Way and its Galactic Habitable Zone. The
relevant astrobiological parameters are to be modeled as the elements of the
input probability matrix for the PCA kernel. With the underlying simplicity of
the cellular automata constructs, this approach enables a quick analysis of
large and ambiguous input parameters' space. We perform a simple clustering
analysis of typical astrobiological histories and discuss the relevant boundary
conditions of practical importance for planning and guiding actual empirical
astrobiological and SETI projects. In addition to showing how the present
framework is adaptable to more complex situations and updated observational
databases from current and near-future space missions, we demonstrate how
numerical results could offer a cautious rationale for continuation of
practical SETI searches.Comment: 37 pages, 11 figures, 2 tables; added journal reference belo
Alternatives and responsibility: an asymmetrical approach
En este trabajo defiendo una visión asimétrica sobre la relación entre las posibilidades alternativas y la responsabilidad moral, según la cual se requiere tener posibilidades alternativas para ser culpable por lo que uno decide o hace, pero no para ser laudable por ello. Defiendo la no necesidad de alternativas para ser laudable a través de un examen de lo que yo llamo “ejemplos Lutero”. Mi defensa de la necesidad de alternativas para ser culpable procede en cambio mediante un análisis de los llamados “casos Frankfurt”. En ambos casos, mis argumentos se basan en la afirmación según la cual, en las adscripciones de responsabilidad moral, la cuestión principal no es si el agente podría haber hecho algo distinto, sino si debería haber hecho lo que hizo, de modo que la primera pregunta solo se vuelve apremiante cuando la respuesta a la segunda es negativa. Así, pues, en lo que se refiere a la responsabilidad moral, el concepto de obligación o deber moral es previo al de posibilidades alternativas.In this paper, I defend an asymmetrical view concerning the relationship
between alternative possibilities and moral responsibility, according to which
alternative possibilities are required for being blameworthy, but not praiseworthy, for
what one decides or does. I defend the non-necessity of alternatives for
praiseworthiness through an examination of what I call ‘Luther’ examples. My defence
of the necessity of alternatives for blameworthiness proceeds instead through an
analysis of so-called ‘Frankfurt’ examples. In both cases, my arguments rest on the
contention that, in ascriptions of moral responsibility, the primary question is not
whether the agent could have done otherwise, but whether she should have done what she did, so that the former question only becomes pressing when the answer to the latter is negative. Concerning moral responsibility, then, the concept of moral obligation or duty is prior to that of alternative possibilities
The effect of forearm posture on wrist flexion in computer workers with chronic upper extremity musculoskeletal disorders
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Occupational computer use has been associated with upper extremity musculoskeletal disorders (UEMSDs), but the etiology and pathophysiology of some of these disorders are poorly understood. Various theories attribute the symptoms to biomechanical and/or psychosocial stressors. The results of several clinical studies suggest that elevated antagonist muscle tension may be a biomechanical stress factor. Affected computer users often exhibit limited wrist range of motion, particularly wrist flexion, which has been attributed to increased extensor muscle tension, rather than to pain symptoms. Recreational or domestic activities requiring extremes of wrist flexion may produce injurious stress on the wrist joint and muscles, the symptoms of which are then exacerbated by computer use. As these activities may involve a variety of forearm postures, we examined whether changes in forearm posture have an effect on pain reports during wrist flexion, or whether pain would have a limiting effect on flexion angle.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We measured maximum active wrist flexion using a goniometer with the forearm supported in the prone, neutral, and supine postures. Data was obtained from 5 subjects with UEMSDs attributed to computer use and from 13 control subjects.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The UEMSD group exhibited significantly restricted wrist flexion compared to the control group in both wrists at all forearm postures with the exception of the non-dominant wrist with the forearm prone. In both groups, maximum active wrist flexion decreased at the supine forearm posture compared to the prone posture. No UEMSD subjects reported an increase in pain symptoms during testing.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The UEMSD group exhibited reduced wrist flexion compared to controls that did not appear to be pain related. A supine forearm posture reduced wrist flexion in both groups, but the reduction was approximately 100% greater in the UEMSD group. The effect of a supine forearm posture on wrist flexion is consistent with known biomechanical changes in the distal extensor carpi ulnaris tendon that occur with forearm supination. We infer from these results that wrist extensor muscle passive tension may be elevated in UEMSD subjects compared to controls, particularly in the extensor carpi ulnaris muscle. Measuring wrist flexion at the supine forearm posture may highlight flexion restrictions that are not otherwise apparent.</p
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