505 research outputs found
Complexity Results for Modal Dependence Logic
Modal dependence logic was introduced recently by V\"a\"an\"anen. It enhances
the basic modal language by an operator =(). For propositional variables
p_1,...,p_n, =(p_1,...,p_(n-1);p_n) intuitively states that the value of p_n is
determined by those of p_1,...,p_(n-1). Sevenster (J. Logic and Computation,
2009) showed that satisfiability for modal dependence logic is complete for
nondeterministic exponential time. In this paper we consider fragments of modal
dependence logic obtained by restricting the set of allowed propositional
connectives. We show that satisfibility for poor man's dependence logic, the
language consisting of formulas built from literals and dependence atoms using
conjunction, necessity and possibility (i.e., disallowing disjunction), remains
NEXPTIME-complete. If we only allow monotone formulas (without negation, but
with disjunction), the complexity drops to PSPACE-completeness. We also extend
V\"a\"an\"anen's language by allowing classical disjunction besides dependence
disjunction and show that the satisfiability problem remains NEXPTIME-complete.
If we then disallow both negation and dependence disjunction, satistiability is
complete for the second level of the polynomial hierarchy. In this way we
completely classify the computational complexity of the satisfiability problem
for all restrictions of propositional and dependence operators considered by
V\"a\"an\"anen and Sevenster.Comment: 22 pages, full version of CSL 2010 pape
Ludics and its Applications to natural Language Semantics
Proofs, in Ludics, have an interpretation provided by their counter-proofs,
that is the objects they interact with. We follow the same idea by proposing
that sentence meanings are given by the counter-meanings they are opposed to in
a dialectical interaction. The conception is at the intersection of a
proof-theoretic and a game-theoretic accounts of semantics, but it enlarges
them by allowing to deal with possibly infinite processes
On the Formal Semantics of IF-Like Logics
In classical logics, the meaning of a formula is invariant with respect to the renaming of bound variables. This property, normally taken for granted, has been shown not to hold in the case of Information Friendly (IF) logics. In this paper we argue that this is not an inherent characteristic of these logics but a defect in the way in which the compositional semantics given by Hodges for the regular fragment was generalized to arbitrary formulas. We fix this by proposing an alternative formalization, based on a variation of the classical notion of valuation. Basic metatheoretical results are proven. We present these results for Hodges' slash logic (from which these can be easily transferred to other IF-like logics) and we also consider the flattening operator, for which we give novel game-theoretical semantics
Changing a semantics: opportunism or courage?
The generalized models for higher-order logics introduced by Leon Henkin, and
their multiple offspring over the years, have become a standard tool in many
areas of logic. Even so, discussion has persisted about their technical status,
and perhaps even their conceptual legitimacy. This paper gives a systematic
view of generalized model techniques, discusses what they mean in mathematical
and philosophical terms, and presents a few technical themes and results about
their role in algebraic representation, calibrating provability, lowering
complexity, understanding fixed-point logics, and achieving set-theoretic
absoluteness. We also show how thinking about Henkin's approach to semantics of
logical systems in this generality can yield new results, dispelling the
impression of adhocness. This paper is dedicated to Leon Henkin, a deep
logician who has changed the way we all work, while also being an always open,
modest, and encouraging colleague and friend.Comment: 27 pages. To appear in: The life and work of Leon Henkin: Essays on
his contributions (Studies in Universal Logic) eds: Manzano, M., Sain, I. and
Alonso, E., 201
Implementing virtual collaborative inquiry practises in a middle-school context
The aim of the present study was to investigate the challenges that relate to the implementation of virtual inquiry practises in middle school. The case was a school course in which a group of Finnish students (N = 14) and teachers (N = 7) completed group inquiries through virtual collaboration, using a web-based learning environment. The task was to accomplish a cross-disciplinary inquiry into cultural issues. The students worked mainly at home and took much responsibility for their course achievements. The investigators analysed the pedagogical design of the course and the content of the participants' interaction patterns in the web-based environment, using qualitative content analysis and social network analysis. The findings suggest that the students succeeded in producing distinctive cultural products, and both the students and the teachers adopted novel roles during the inquiry. The web-based learning environment was used more as a coordination tool for organizing the collaborative work than as a forum for epistemic inquiry. The tension between the school curriculum and the inquiry practises was manifest in the participants' discussions of the assessment criteria of the course.The aim of the present study was to investigate the challenges that relate to the implementation of virtual inquiry practises in middle school. The case was a school course in which a group of Finnish students (N = 14) and teachers (N = 7) completed group inquiries through virtual collaboration, using a web-based learning environment. The task was to accomplish a cross-disciplinary inquiry into cultural issues. The students worked mainly at home and took much responsibility for their course achievements. The investigators analysed the pedagogical design of the course and the content of the participants' interaction patterns in the web-based environment, using qualitative content analysis and social network analysis. The findings suggest that the students succeeded in producing distinctive cultural products, and both the students and the teachers adopted novel roles during the inquiry. The web-based learning environment was used more as a coordination tool for organizing the collaborative work than as a forum for epistemic inquiry. The tension between the school curriculum and the inquiry practises was manifest in the participants' discussions of the assessment criteria of the course.The aim of the present study was to investigate the challenges that relate to the implementation of virtual inquiry practises in middle school. The case was a school course in which a group of Finnish students (N = 14) and teachers (N = 7) completed group inquiries through virtual collaboration, using a web-based learning environment. The task was to accomplish a cross-disciplinary inquiry into cultural issues. The students worked mainly at home and took much responsibility for their course achievements. The investigators analysed the pedagogical design of the course and the content of the participants' interaction patterns in the web-based environment, using qualitative content analysis and social network analysis. The findings suggest that the students succeeded in producing distinctive cultural products, and both the students and the teachers adopted novel roles during the inquiry. The web-based learning environment was used more as a coordination tool for organizing the collaborative work than as a forum for epistemic inquiry. The tension between the school curriculum and the inquiry practises was manifest in the participants' discussions of the assessment criteria of the course.Peer reviewe
Moorean Absurdities and the Nature of Assertion
10.1080/00048409612347111Australasian Journal of Philosophy741135-14
Yard vegetation is associated with gut microbiota composition
Gut microbes play an essential role in the development and functioning of the human immune system. A disturbed gut microbiota composition is often associated with a number of health disorders including immune-mediated diseases. Differences in host characteristics such as ethnicity, living habit and diet have been used to explain differences in the gut microbiota composition in inter-continental comparison studies. As our previous studies imply that daily skin contact with organic gardening materials modify gut microflora, here we investigated the association between living environment and gut microbiota in a homogenous western population along an urban-rural gradient. We obtained stool samples from 48 native elderly Finns in province Hame in August and November 2015 and identified the bacterial phylotypes using 16S rRNA Illumina MiSeq sequencing. We assumed that yard vegetation and land cover classes surrounding homes explain the stool bacterial community in generalized linear mixed models. Diverse yard vegetation was associated with a reduced abundance of Clostridium sensu stricto and an increased abundance of Faecalibacterium and Prevotellaceae. The abundance of Bacteroides was positively and strongly associated with the built environment. Exclusion of animal owners did not alter the main associations. These results suggest that diverse vegetation around homes is associated with health-related changes in gut microbiota composition. Manipulation of the garden diversity, possibly jointly with urban planning, is a promising candidate for future intervention studies that aim to maintain gut homeostasis. (C) 2020 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.Peer reviewe
- …