Trendsetters and imagination: Adam Smith’s views on change in Fashion

This paper presents a reconstruction and interpretation of the process of change in Adam Smith’s philosophy basing on the example of changes in fashion. I shall focus on the role of imagination, as well as on the role of the wealthy in the process. I shall analyse how sympathy, respect and cognitive errors result in looking up to and mimicking the great. Something introduced by a small number of people becomes fashionable, as others follow. However, the processes of change will be regarded as an effect of individual behaviour and decisions that affect the society.Il presente saggio presenta una ricostruzione e una interpretazione del processo di modifica della filosofia di Adam Smith, basandosi sull'esempio del cambiamento della moda. Mi concentrerò sul ruolo dell'immaginazione, così come sul ruolo della ricchezza nel processo, per poi analizzare come la simpatia, il rispetto e gli errori cognitivi portano a guardare e imitare i "grandi". Se qualcosa introdotto da un piccolo numero di persone diventa di moda, gli altri seguono. Tuttavia, i processi di cambiamento saranno considerati come un effetto del comportamento individuale e delle decisioni che influenzano la società

Adam Smith and Sophie de Grouchy on Education

The paper analyses Adam Smith’s and Sophie de Grouchy’s views concerning education. It addresses both the issues of formal education in institutions for instruction as well as it mentions an informal transfer of values within the family and the society. The brief characteristic of the notions of sympathy and an impartial spectator precedes the discussion of the goals education should serve. It is an individual’s development that is the core issue of the thinkers’ considerations. The benefits for the society, at least in Smith’s case, are important, yet subordinate. Both of the philosophers presented a critique of existing educational institutions. Smith’s views on ways of financing universities and schools are also summarized in the paper. Moreover, a discussion on the issues of educating children and adults is presented, mentioning the importance of universal access to knowledge. It is the idea that people need to achieve the ability to think critically and not to learn the rules (also those of morality) by heart that marks the significance of Smith’s and de Grouchy’s philosophy of education.The paper analyses Adam Smith’s and Sophie de Grouchy’s views concerning education. It addresses both the issues of formal education in institutions for instruction as well as it mentions an informal transfer of values within the family and the society. The brief characteristic of the notions of sympathy and an impartial spectator precedes the discussion of the goals education should serve. It is an individual’s development that is the core issue of the thinkers’ considerations. The benefits for the society, at least in Smith’s case, are important, yet subordinate. Both of the philosophers presented a critique of existing educational institutions. Smith’s views on ways of financing universities and schools are also summarized in the paper. Moreover, a discussion on the issues of educating children and adults is presented, mentioning the importance of universal access to knowledge. It is the idea that people need to achieve the ability to think critically and not to learn the rules (also those of morality) by heart that marks the significance of Smith’s and de Grouchy’s philosophy of education

Unintended Consequences – Chosen Aspects: Adam Smith vs Bernard Mandeville

The paper focuses on the chosen aspects of the role of unintended consequences in Adam Smith’s thought, including the issue of the invisible hand. However, without limiting his philosophical considerations the idea of unintended consequences the few instances where he mentions the invisible hand. Individuals when making decisions and undertaking actions are causing the unintended consequences, therefore due to the complexity of human motivations and behaviour it is extremely difficult to foresee other peoples’ behaviour and longterm results. This way unintended consequences play a crucial role in the process of modifying moral and social norms and institutions, in market exchange and development of the societies. Moreover some similarities and discrepancies between Adam Smith’s and Bernard Mandeville’s views on unintended consequences are pointed out. Mandeville notices that the consequences of actions we undertake can frequently differ from what was assumed when planning and criticized the ultimate belief in the power of a human mind

Adam Smith on Institutions for Instruction

Adam Smith o instytucjach służących kształceniu Chociaż uwagi Adama Smitha dotyczące edukacji i instytucji jej służących nie zajmują wiele miejsca w jego dziełach, to jednak są mocno zakorzenione w jego teorii. Filozof krytykował stałe pensje nauczycieli, przyjmując, że współzawodnictwo pomiędzy nimi wymusi na nich przygotowywanie interesujących i pożytecznych zajęć. Był zwolennikiem rywalizacji między uniwersytetami i pochlebnie wyrażał się o prywatnych nauczycielach. Obstawał jednak zarazem przy współfinansowaniu edukacji przez państwo, ponieważ powszechna nauka dzieci i możliwość zajęcia umysłu przez robotników są korzystne nie tylko dla pojedynczych ludzi, ale też dla państwa.Adam Smith’s remarks concerning education and its institutions, though they occupy no significant place in his works, are, in fact, deeply grounded in his theory. The philosopher criticized teachers’ fixed salaries assuming that it competition  among them would encourage them to prepare interesting and useful classes. He was in favour of competition among universities and wrote favourably of private teachers. At the same time, he argued in favour of co-financing education by the state, as universal education for children and possibility to keep workers’ minds active are not only beneficial to individuals, but also to the state

Selenium Bioconcentration in Freshwater Periphyton

Selenium is an essential micronutrient for most forms of life, but it can elicit developmental toxicity in aquatic and semi-aquatic vertebrates, such as fish and waterfowl, through dietary exposure to excess organic Se compounds. When inorganic Se (as selenate or selenite) is introduced into an aquatic ecosystem as a contaminant, it is bioconcentrated by microorganisms and primary producers (algae, periphyton), biotransformed into organic Se compounds and passed on to higher trophic levels through the food chain. The enrichment of Se in algae is difficult to predict due to interspecific differences in Se bioconcentration, which have been demonstrated to vary by several orders of magnitude in planktonic algae. In addition, Se bioconcentration data are largely lacking for freshwater, periphytic species of algae, and for multi-species periphyton biofilms, adding to the challenge of modeling Se transfer in periphyton-based food webs. Therefore, this research project was designed to address specific knowledge gaps related to the enrichment of selenium in different periphyton communities, as defined by differences in photoautrophic assemblage composition. To satisfy this objective, laboratory-grown and naturally-grown periphyton biofilms were exposed to environmentally relevant concentrations of selenite [Se(IV)] or selenate [Se(VI)] (nominal concentrations of 5 and 25 μg Se L-1) under similar, controlled laboratory conditions. Laboratory-grown periphyton biofilm experiments assessed Se oxyanion bioconcentration in single-species, freshwater periphytic biofilms representative of three major algal phyla: Chlorophyta (Stichococcus bacillaris), Cyanophyta (Anabaena flos-aquae) and Bacillariophyta (Asterionella formosa). Results of these experiments revealed that there was different enrichment of selenate versus selenite for the three species of algae tested (e.g., selenite enrichment was significantly higher than selenate enrichment for A. formosa). There were also significant differences in Se enrichment when comparing similar treatments among the three species of algae tested (e.g., enrichment of selenate was 3.6-fold higher in S. bacillaris compared to A. flos-aquae for the 25 μg Se L-1 treatment). Nevertheless, interspecific Se enrichment did not vary by orders of magnitude for freshwater periphyton, but rather by less than one order of magnitude. Naturally-grown periphyton experiments assessed Se oxyanion accumulation in freshwater periphyton communities sampled from five different water bodies. Results revealed that unique periphyton assemblages were derived from the five different field sites, as confirmed by light microscopy and targeted DNA sequencing of the plastid 23S rRNA gene in algae. Selenium accumulation demonstrated a maximum of 23.6-fold difference for selenite enrichment and 2.1-fold difference for selenate enrichment across the periphyton/biofilm assemblages tested. The assemblage from one field site demonstrated both high accumulation of selenite and iron, and was subjected to additional experimentation to elucidate the mechanism(s) of accumulation. Selenite accumulation was assessed in both unaltered and heat-killed periphyton, and in periphyton from the same site grown without light to exclude phototrophic organisms. All periphyton treatments showed similar levels of Se accumulation, indicating that much of the apparent uptake of selenite was due to non-biological processes (i.e., surface adsorption). The results of this study highlight the need for further exploration of the ecological consequences of extracellular adsorption of selenite to periphyton and will also help to reduce uncertainty in the prediction of Se dynamics and food-chain transfer in freshwater environments