A new look at Counterexamples in topology

The book Counterexamples in Topology is a useful catalogue of topological spaces and properties. This thesis extends that catalogue to the properties of sobriety and packedness, and describes some related theory. A purely topological account of sobriety and sober reflections is given, together with an account of the connection with point-free topology which motivates it. Concrete constructions of the sober, T0 and T1 reflections of a topological space are given, and these are calculated for each space in Counterexamples in Topology. These are used to study the relationship between sobriety and the T1 separation property. The notion of a specialization topology is introduced as a means of constructing topological spaces from quasiordered sets. The Alexandrov, Scott and weak topologies are described and shown to be examples of this notion. The sobriety and sober reflections of specialization topologies are considered, and these motivate a suggestion for a generalization of the notion of a topological space. The calculations in this thesis are summarized in two reference tables

Naturalism and Moral Expertise in the Zhuangzi

This essay will examine scholarly attempts at distilling a proto-ethical philosophy from the Daoist classic known as the Zhuangzi. In opposition to interpretations of the text which characterize it as amoralistic, I will identify elements of a natural normativity in the Zhuangzi. My examination features passages from the Zhuangzi – commonly known as the “knack” passages – which are often interpreted through some sort of linguistic, skeptical, or relativistic lens. Contra such readings, I believe the Zhuangzi prescribes an art of living – or shù [術] – which incorporates a few motifs familiar to certain threads of philosophical naturalism. Building on existing scholarship which treats of the praxeology of the text, I argue that the naturalist themes present in the Zhuangzi support an unusual, but robust, view of moral expertise

How Can Speech Recognisers Help Applied Research in the Civil Engineering, Transport and Related Industries

BACKGROUND Speech recognition technology is rapidly advancing to the point here it can be usefully applied in a wide range of mtexts. For applications within the SERC Environment Committee's area of interest -civil engineering; construction; building; transport; water resources there are a number of kinds of recording situation in which one needs to keep one's eyes on the situation being studied; or in which the recording conditions (eg moving around with instruments) are unfavourable. The limitations of conventional pen and paper recording for these situations are obvious; and the limitations of hand-held data capture devices are also becoming apparent. Speech is therefore an easier medium to use; and a tape recorder a convenient means of recording the observations. For well defined recording tasks; speech recognisers might be a helpful way of transcribing the record. This seminar was convened to enable those who are potentially interested in such an application of information technology to hear of the latest developnents and assessments of the suitability of the technology