Appreciating Covers

A recording or performance of a song is a cover if there is an earlier, canonical recording of the song. It can seem intuitive to think that properly appreciating the cover requires considering it in relation to the original, or at least that doing so will yield a deeper appreciation. This intuition is supported by some philosophical accounts of covers. And it is complicated by the possibility of hearing in, whereby one hears elements of the original version in the cover. We argue that it can nevertheless be just as legitimate to consider a cover version on its own as it is to consider it in relation to the earlier recording that it is covering. In some cases, these two modes of appreciation will offer distinct rewards. In other cases, one mode will be substantially more rewarding than the other. The details matter, especially in complicated cases like covers of covers, but neither mode is privileged in principle

Intentionality and cognitivism

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Linguistics and Philosophy, 1984.MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND HUMANITIES.Bibliography: leaves 148-150.by Ronald Albert McClamrock.Ph.D

Friends with benefits! Distributed cognition hooks up cognitive and social conceptions of science

One approach to science treats science as a cognitive accomplishment of individuals and so defines a scientific community as an aggregate of individual enquirers. Another treats science as a fundamentally collective endeavor and so defines a scientist as a member of a scientific community. Distributed cognition has been offered as a framework that could be used to reconcile these two approaches. Adam Toon has recently asked if the cognitive and the social can be friends at last. He answers that they probably cannot, posing objections to the would-be rapprochement. We clarify both the animosity and the tonic proposed to resolve it, ultimately arguing that that worries raised by Toon and others are uncompelling

The Emergence of Emotions

Emotion is conscious experience. It is the affective aspect of consciousness. Emotion arises from sensory stimulation and is typically accompanied by physiological and behavioral changes in the body. Hence an emotion is a complex reaction pattern consisting of three components: a physiological component, a behavioral component, and an experiential (conscious) component. The reactions making up an emotion determine what the emotion will be recognized as. Three processes are involved in generating an emotion: (1) identification of the emotional significance of a sensory stimulus, (2) production of an affective state (emotion), and (3) regulation of the affective state. Two opposing systems in the brain (the reward and punishment systems) establish an affective value or valence (stimulus-reinforcement association) for sensory stimulation. This is process (1), the first step in the generation of an emotion. Development of stimulus-reinforcement associations (affective valence) serves as the basis for emotion expression (process 2), conditioned emotion learning acquisition and expression, memory consolidation, reinforcement-expectations, decision-making, coping responses, and social behavior. The amygdala is critical for the representation of stimulus-reinforcement associations (both reward and punishment-based) for these functions. Three distinct and separate architectural and functional areas of the prefrontal cortex (dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, orbitofrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex) are involved in the regulation of emotion (process 3). The regulation of emotion by the prefrontal cortex consists of a positive feedback interaction between the prefrontal cortex and the inferior parietal cortex resulting in the nonlinear emergence of emotion. This positive feedback and nonlinear emergence represents a type of working memory (focal attention) by which perception is reorganized and rerepresented, becoming explicit, functional, and conscious. The explicit emotion states arising may be involved in the production of voluntary new or novel intentional (adaptive) behavior, especially social behavior

Linking the Issue: The Relative Success of Same-Sex Marriage Campaigns

I analyze two contextual and one strategic factor affecting the success of recent same-sex marriage campaigns in Ireland, with reference to those in England and Northern Ireland. The movement in Ireland used the electoral pathway, of constitutional referendum, rather than the more common legislative or judicial pathways. These three regions are focused on because of their similarity as British Isle polities, and in timing of marriage equality discourse, but differences in legal status of same-sex marriage and pathways pursued. Ireland is the first nation to legalize same-sex marriage by popular vote. The first contextual factor contributing to the referendum’s success was high voter turnout of portions of the population traditionally less likely to vote, such as rural, native Irish speakers and young adults. Second is the declining moral authority of the Catholic Church, especially on this issue. The strategic factor was the same-sex marriage movement’s campaign’s focus on linking same-sex marriage to other salient issues in Ireland, through framing the question as empathetic and intersectional. I argue that the different pathways affect the nature of the movements’ campaigns and results. Drawing on my field work in Ireland, England, and Northern Ireland, I also argue that the process and outcome of the electoral pathway entrenches social change because of my observation that less conflict is present after implementation of a contentious social policy if through electoral means, as there is the feeling that citizens were linked to the decision, implying further social changes could be successful if following similar campaign styles

Molten Salt Nuclear Reactors: A Comparative Assessment of the Resource Requirements and Proliferation-Risk Attributes of Single-Fluid and Dual-Fluid Denatured Designs

Molten salt reactors were first proposed as an alternative to solid-fueled light water reactors at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in the 1950's. Although the designs showed promising features such as greatly reduced uranium requirements and waste production, and did not suffer from any fundamentally prohibitive technology barrier, the program was canceled due to lack of Government funding. This paper reconsiders the use of denatured molten salt reactors (DMSRs) as a source of clean, carbon-free electricity in the future. Monte Carlo and nuclear burn-up codes are used to evaluate two different DMSR designs as candidates to be widely deployed around the world as small modular reactors. ORNL's single-fluid DMSR design is benchmarked and evaluated using modern neutron cross section libraries. Characteristics such as fuel requirements, waste production, and proliferation risk are assessed. A new, two- fluid DMSR is designed as an alternative to the single-fluid DMSR with the hopes of determining whether the improved fuel effciency of the two-fluid design is worth the added complexity and proliferation risk. Both the single-fluid and two- fluid DMSR designs were found to offer superior performance to traditional light water reactors. Although the two- fluid DMSR designed here does offer superior fissile-effciency when compared to the single- fluid design, much work remains to be done to determine whether its problems, particularly the problem of uranium saturation in the fuel salt, could be overcome. The single-fluid DMSR design is particularly well suited for the role of small modular reactor due to its low fuel consumption and high level of proliferation resistance. It is recommended that serious research resume on molten salt reactors since they have the potential to greatly improve upon the negative attributes of traditional light water reactors and could become a valuable source of carbon-free electricity in the future

Eastland with Judge William C. Keady and Orma Smith.

Undated.https://egrove.olemiss.edu/joephoto_f/1142/thumbnail.jp

APPRECIATING COVERS

A recording or performance of a song is a cover if there is an earlier, canonical recording of the song. It can seem intuitive to think that properly appreciating a cover requires considering it in relation to the original, or at least that doing so will yield a deeper appreciation. This intuition is supported by some philosophical accounts of covers. And it is complicated by the possibility of hearing in, whereby one hears elements of the original version in the cover. We argue that it can nevertheless be just as legitimate to consider a cover version on its own as it is to consider it in relation to the earlier recording that it is covering. In some cases, these two modes of appreciation will offer distinct rewards. In other cases, one mode will be substantially more rewarding than the other. The details matter, especially in complicated cases like covers of covers, but neither mode is privileged in principle