A Critique of Charles Peirce\u27s Account of the Necessary Conditions for the Possibility of Experience

Herein is investigated the effort to establish the necessary conditions for the possibility of experience begun by Immanuel Kant and carried further by Charles Peirce. I focus my attention on Peirce\u27s development of a Kantian strategy for discovering and proving such conditions. The conclusion that I argue for is that such an effort requires the use of a rational intuitive faculty. Both Kant and even more vociferously Peirce overtly reject the existence of such a faculty, yet, I argue, it is difficult to make sense of certain crucial discoveries in its absence

Antioxidants and mucosa protectives: realistic therapeutic options in inflammatory bowel disease?

Oxidative damage is involved in the pathogenic process of idiopathic chronic inflammatory bowel disease. Although specific intervention in the oxidative cascade showed promising results in animal models and preliminary patient trials, the clinical efficacy of antioxidants still has to be established. Mucosa protection, for example by dietary fatty acids, seems to attenuate the intestinal inflammatory process as well but awaits definite clinical proof for the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease

Temporary Institutions: The dynamism of beer regulations in Brazil before, during and after the 2014 World Cup

The purpose of this study is to present the phenomenon of temporary institutions. Institutional theorists generally describe institutions as permanent and resistant to change. However, in practice, temporary institutions exist and challenge the perceived stability that scholars suggest institutions to have. By presenting temporary institutions, we explain how they are conceived from transnational organizations and can have lasting effects on a host nations endemic institutional framework. We further justify that the phenomenon is inadequately explained by related theories and therefore is a unique construct. Via an inductive case study design we present a temporary institution by observing and analyzing the institutional framework using institutional indicators (regulative, normative, cognitive) to evaluate changes in beer consumption laws in Brazilian football stadia before, during and after the FIFA World Cup 2014. Our findings support our initial propositions surrounding temporary institutions. First, FIFA as a transnational organization implemented a temporary institutional framework in Brazil replacing previous beer consumption laws in football stadia to support its sponsor, Budweiser. Second, after the World Cup key figures in states of Brazil questioned the institutional framework surrounding beer consumption in football stadia that existed before the World Cup. Finally, we observe that our findings cannot be described by related theories suggesting its uniqueness in institutional studies. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed

A Peircean Critique of and Alternative to Intentionalism about Perceptual Experience

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI)My thesis is broadly construed this way: intentionalism, as a theory about perceptual experience, says that the intentional character of perceptual experience determines the phenomenological character of that experience. In some way, to be explained, phenomenology is determined by intentional content. I will show that intentionalism fails on two accounts. It fails to replace the sense-data theory as an explanation of the content of perceptual experience. It also fails to deal satisfactorily with the problem of perceptual illusion. I will then offer an alternative rooted in the perceptual theory of Charles Peirce. I believe his critical but common sense approach preserves the intuition of sense-data theory, that perception is primarily a relation between perceivers and objects. Peirce’s theory also provides a better solution to the problem of illusion

Trying for better circumstances (Zama Zama) : exploring ubuntu amongst marginalised women in an informal settlement

This article explores possible experiences of ubuntu in the Zama Zama informal settlement. Postfoundational practical theology and the narrative approach function as paradigm and methodology. Themes and/or discourses like poverty, violence, xenophobia and the role of the local church were identified, but ubuntu is not always visible as a lived reality amongst the members of the community. The church is an exception. Women play a leading role in the congregation and it is in the church where ubuntu values are visible and experienced.http://www.ve.org.za/am201

Altered calcium influx of peripheral Th2 cells in pediatric Crohn’s disease: infliximab may normalize activation patterns

OBJECTIVE: Crohn's disease is a chronic inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract with an abnormal immune phenotype. We investigated how intracellular calcium kinetics of Th1 and Th2 lymphocytes alter upon specific inhibition of Kv1.3 and IKCa1 channels in pediatric Crohn's disease. STUDY DESIGN: Blood was taken from 12 healthy and 29 Crohn's disease children. Of those, 6 were switched to infliximab and re-sampled after the 4th infliximab treatment. Intracellular calcium levels were monitored using flow cytometry in the presence or absence of specific inhibitors of Kv1.3 and IKCa1 potassium channels. RESULTS: In Crohn's disease treated with standard therapy, calcium response during activation was higher than normal in Th2 cells. This was normalized in vitro by inhibition of Kv1.3 or IKCa1 potassium channels. After the switch to infliximab, potassium channel function and expression in Th2 lymphocytes were comparable to those in Th1 cells. CONCLUSION: These results may indicate that potassium channels are potential immune modulatory targets in Crohn's disease

Supervised exercise therapy for intermittent claudication in a community-based setting is as effective as clinic-based

ObjectiveThis cohort study was conducted to determine the effect on walking distances of supervised exercise therapy provided in a community-based setting.MethodsThe study included all consecutive patients presenting at the vascular outpatient clinic with intermittent claudication, diagnosed by a resting ankle brachial index <0.9, who had no previous peripheral vascular intervention for peripheral arterial disease, no major amputation, and sufficient command of the Dutch language. The exclusion criterion was the inability to walk the baseline treadmill test for a minimum of 10 m. The intervention was a supervised exercise therapy in a community-based setting. A progressive treadmill test at baseline and at 1, 3, and 6 months of follow-up measured initial claudication distance and absolute claudication distance. Changes were calculated using the mean percentages of change.ResultsFrom January through October 2005, 93 consecutive patients with claudication were eligible. Overall, 37 patients discontinued the supervised exercise therapy program. Eleven stopped because of intercurrent diseases, whereas for 10, supervised exercise therapy did not lead to adequate improvement and they underwent a vascular intervention. Three patients quit the program, stating that they were satisfied with the regained walking distance and did not require further supervised exercise therapy. Ten patients were not motivated sufficiently to continue the program, and in three patients, a lack of adequate insurance coverage was the reason for dropping out. Data for 56 patients were used and showed a mean percentage increase in initial claudication distance of 187% after 3 months and 240% after 6 months. The mean percentage of the absolute claudication distance increased 142% after 3 months and 191% after 6 months.ConclusionSupervised exercise therapy in a community-based setting is a promising approach to providing conservative treatment for patients with intermittent claudication

The role of Galectin-1 and Galectin-3 in the mucosal immune response to <i>Citrobacter rodentium</i> infection

Despite their abundance at gastrointestinal sites, little is known about the role of galectins in gut immune responses. We have therefore investigated the Citrobacter rodentium model of colonic infection and inflammation in Galectin-1 or Galectin- 3 null mice. Gal-3 null mice showed a slight delay in colonisation after inoculation with C. rodentium and a slight delay in resolution of infection, associated with delayed T cell, macrophage and dendritic cell infiltration into the gut mucosa. However, Gal-1 null mice also demonstrated reduced T cell and macrophage responses to infection. Despite the reduced T cell and macrophage response in Gal-1 null mice, there was no effect on C. rodentium infection kinetics and pathology. Overall, Gal-1 and Gal-3 play only a minor role in immunity to a gut bacterial pathogen.Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimento