The modal account of luck revisited

According to the canonical formulation of the modal account of luck [e.g. Pritchard (2005)], an event is lucky just when that event occurs in the actual world but not in a wide class of the nearest possible worlds where the relevant conditions for that event are the same as in the actual world. This paper argues, with reference to a novel variety of counterexample, that it is a mistake to focus, when assessing a given event for luckiness, on events distributed over just the nearest possible worlds. More specifically, our objection to the canonical formulation of the modal account of luck reveals that whether an event is lucky depends crucially on events distributed over all possible worlds–viz., across the modal universe. It is shown that an amended modal account of luck which respects this point has the additional virtue of avoiding a notable kind of counterexample to modal accounts of luck proposed by Lackey (2008)

INTERNATIONAL TRADE: HOW IT AFFECTS VIRGINIA AGRICULTURE

International Relations/Trade,

Not knowing a cat is a cat: analyticity and knowledge ascriptions

It is a natural assumption in mainstream epistemological theory that ascriptions of knowledge of a proposition p track strength of epistemic position vis-à-vis p. It is equally natural to assume that the strength of one’s epistemic position is maximally high in cases where p concerns a simple analytic truth (as opposed to an empirical truth). For instance, it seems reasonable to suppose that one's epistemic position vis-à-vis “a cat is a cat” is harder to improve than one's position vis-à-vis “a cat is on the mat”, and consequently, that the former is at least as unambiguous a case of knowledge as the latter. The current paper, however, presents empirical evidence which challenges this intuitive line of reasoning. Our study on the epistemic intuitions of hundreds of academic philosophers supports the idea that simple and uncontroversial analytic propositions are less likely to qualify as knowledge than empirical ones. We show that our results, though at odds with orthodox theories of knowledge in mainstream epistemology, can be explained in a way consistent with Wittgenstein's remarks on 'hinge propositions' or with Stalnaker's pragmatics of assertion. We then present and evaluate a number of lines of response mainstream theories of knowledge could appeal to in accommodating our results. Finally, we show how each line of response runs into some prima facie difficulties. Thus, our observed asymmetry between knowing “a cat is a cat” and knowing “a cat is on the mat” presents a puzzle which mainstream epistemology needs to resolve

Airline Crew Scheduling with Potts Neurons

A Potts feedback neural network approach for finding good solutions to resource allocation problems with a non-fixed topology is presented. As a target application the airline crew scheduling problem is chosen. The topological complication is handled by means of a propagator defined in terms of Potts neurons. The approach is tested on artificial random problems tuned to resemble real-world conditions. Very good results are obtained for a variety of problem sizes. The computer time demand for the approach only grows like \mbox{(number of flights)}^3. A realistic problem typically is solved within minutes, partly due to a prior reduction of the problem size, based on an analysis of the local arrival/departure structure at the single airportsComment: 9 pages LaTeX, 3 postscript figures, uufiles forma

Embodied Transitions in Michel de Montaigne

Sixteenth-century French philosopher Michel de Montaigne was one of the first writers to reflect on embodiment. “I am myself the matter of my book,” he proclaims in the introduction to his Essays. Montaigne writes about various moments of embodied transitions: a near-death experience, reflections on aging and cognitive decline, and a lengthy discussion of how to cope in the face of devastating loss. Taking an interdisciplinary perspective by analyzing the relationship between embodiment, health representations, and geropsychological themes, this chapter analyzes Montaigne’s in-between moments, arguing that Montaigne’s essays—innovative in their own time—remain important in discussing embodied transitions today

Sins, Sex, and Secrets: The Legacy of Confession from the Decameron to the Heptaméron

A quick digital search for the term ‘confession’ in Boccaccio’s Decameron yields 75 results (Decameron Web). Confession in Boccacio’s text is conspicuously present and, I argue, not coincidental: it highlights the increased attention to the sacrament after the Fourth Lateran Council made annual confession mandatory in 1215. Decameron 1.1 depicts a false confession performed by a wicked man on his deathbed. His confessor follows the protocol of confession manuals, which began to appear in increasing number following 1215, but his interpretive skills do not extend beyond the questions he is bound by protocol to ask. In Boccaccio’s world, confession, though important, is rather formulaic and prone to manipulation by wicked evil-doers such as the man in 1.1. A few centuries later, wicked evil-doers continue to manipulate confessional narrative in Marguerite de Navarre’s Heptaméron (1559). Hers is a text that proclaims to model itself after the Decameron– with a few significant alterations. The Prologue establishes that all stories be true. Storytelling takes place on the grounds of an abbey, an explicitly confessional space. References to confession in Marguerite’s text highlight the shifting status of confession in the sixteenth century. This paper explores the ways in which Marguerite de Navarre takes Boccacio’s sacramental legacy and transforms it into a confessional space where some of the most pressing concerns of her time come to light

Detection of Neonatal Calf Diarrhea Virus (NCDV) and Human Infant Reolike Diarrhea Virus

The purpose of this study was to develop a diagnostic test and conduct a survey for the neonatal calf diarrhea virus (NCDV) and human infant reolike diarrhea virus. Two immunologic methods were developed in this investigation. Immune electron microscopy (IEM) and the fluorescent viral precipitin test (FVPT) are the methods used to detect NCDV and the human virus. Both methods are based upon the principle that viral aggregates form when the virus is reacted with anti-NCDV antibody. Aggregates in the IEM method are negatively stained and observed with the use of an electron microscope. Fluorescein labeled antibody is used in the FVPT and the resultant aggregates are observed with the use of epifluorescence microscopy. IEM and the FVPT are sensitive, specific and rapid. The sample is examined within two hours after arriving at the laboratory. Both methods are useful; however, the FVPT allows for more general application because it requires less technical skill and relatively inexpensive equipment is used. NCDV was found in 41% (14/34) of diarrheic calves tested in northern Utah and NCDV antibody was in 100% (16/16) of adult animals tested. The human reolike virus was found in 80% (4/5) of the infants tested

What Women Know: The Power of \u3ci\u3eSavoir\u3c/i\u3e in Marguerite de Navarre’s \u3ci\u3eHeptaméron\u3c/i\u3e

The verbs savoir and connaître appear in central moments in the Heptaméron. Knowledge—as it appears in the frame narrative and in the novellas—can be a way for men and women to debate, among many other things, the relationship between the sexes. When women use this word, or when they demonstrate that they know something, it creates the space to participate – not always unambiguously – in otherwise male-dominated conversations. How Marguerite writes about the acquisition, possession, fragmentation, or loss of knowledge, underscores her interest in exploring the role of women in communities of knowledge