Crisis Informatics: Perspectives of Trust – Is Social Media a Mixed Blessing?

This paper highlights one of the key concerns in the emerging area of crisis informatics: issues of trusted information in crises/disasters and how the unregulated nature of social media affects information creation and dissemination. Deciding which information providers to trust and what sources of information to trust in crises is critical as acting upon trusted information can shape and influence the nature of the crisis. Social media is a powerful tool for sharing information during crises and can be used to improve emergency management capabilities, however, it has the power to misinform and to hinder response efforts

Explaining the Unobserved: Why Quantum Theory Ain't Only About Information

A remarkable theorem by Clifton, Bub and Halvorson (2003) (CBH) characterizes quantum theory in terms of information--theoretic principles. According to Bub (2004, 2005) the philosophical significance of the theorem is that quantum theory should be regarded as a ``principle'' theory about (quantum) information rather than a ``constructive'' theory about the dynamics of quantum systems. Here we criticize Bub's principle approach arguing that if the mathematical formalism of quantum mechanics remains intact then there is no escape route from solving the measurement problem by constructive theories. We further propose a (Wigner--type) thought experiment that we argue demonstrates that quantum mechanics on the information--theoretic approach is incomplete

Counting Steps: A Finitist Approach to Objective Probability in Physics

We propose a new interpretation of objective probability in statistical physics based on physical computational complexity. This notion applies to a single physical system (be it an experimental set-up in the lab, or a subsystem of the universe), and quantifies (1) the difficulty to realize a physical state given another, (2) the 'distance' (in terms of physical resources) between a physical state and another, and (3) the size of the set of time-complexity functions that are compatible with the physical resources required to reach a physical state from another. This view (a) exorcises 'ignorance' from statistical physics, and (b) underlies a new interpretation to non-relativistic quantum mechanics

From Ruler to Healer: Changes in Religious Experience in the Western Himalayas

Research literature on the Western Himalayas emphasizes the theistic control of local deities. In the framework of this ruling system, described by the concepts of \u27Little Kingdom\u27 and \u27government by deity\u27, local deities functioned as gods and kings. They practice their royalty through a concrete divinity notion, aided by human mediums. In this article we will indicate the beginning of a conceptual change in the perception of a local deity named Mahāsū. Although Mahāsū is still perceived as a ruler, his role has become largely symbolic. We maintain that this illustrates how local theistic conceptions adapt to changes in the political and economic-technologic spheres as well as to the influence of pan-Hindu tradition

Quantum Hypercomputation - Hype or Computation?

A recent attempt to compute a (recursion--theoretic) non--computable function using the quantum adiabatic algorithm is criticized and found wanting. Quantum algorithms may outperform classical algorithms in some cases, but so far they retain the classical (recursion--theoretic) notion of computability. A speculation is then offered as to where the putative power of quantum computers may come from