<Chapter 1> Democracy and vigilantism: The spread of Gau Rakshaks in India

This chapter explores the changing character of Indian democracy by analysing the emergence of vigilantism in recent decades in India. To elaborate the author’s claim, this chapter reviews and examines the four cases of vigilantism: (a) Maoist movements, (b) the Ranvir Sena, (c) the Salwa Judam, and (d) the Gau Rakshaks classified based on four ideal types. While the ‘state deficit’ - the inability of state to solve socio-economic problems-bred and enabled the rise of Maoist movements and the Ranvir Sena, the new tendency accounts for the emergence of vigilantism through the Salwa Judam and Gau Rakshaks, in which we can see a consistent pattern of state support. In effect, this chapter attempts to underline the strong difference between the vigilantism bred by state deficit and the new vigilantism that draws on state support and complicity. Gau Rakshaks represent a new strategy for oppressing Muslim minorities that constitutes an infringement of constitutional liberalism, symbolizing a crisis in Indian democracy itself

An Empirical Test of Formal Equivalence between Emmert’s Law and the Size-Distance Invariance Hypothesis

Emmert’s law and the size-distance invariance hypothesis have been said to be formally equivalent, provided that Emmert’s law means that the perceived size of an afterimage is proportional to the perceived distance of the projected surface of the afterimage. However, there have been very few studies that have attempted to verify this formal equivalence empirically. We measured both the perceived size and distance of afterimages and real objects with the same proximal size. Nineteen participants projected afterimages of 1 deg in visual angle on the wall located at distances of 1 to 23 meters from the participants. They also observed real objects, disc-shaped and made from a sheet of Styrofoam board, with the same proximal size as that of the afterimages, which were located at the same physical distances as those of the wall on which the afterimages were projected. Each participant reproduced the apparent sizes of the afterimages and real objects using the reproduction method and estimated the apparent distances using the magnitude estimation method. When the mean apparent sizes of the afterimages and real objects, represented as a function of apparent distance, were fitted to a linear function, the slopes for the afterimages and real objects did not differ significantly. These results are interpreted as evidence for the formal equivalence of Emmert’s law and the size-distance invariance hypothesis.Es común considerar a la ley de Emmert y la hipótesis de la invarianza del tamaño-distancia como equivalentes formalmente. Para llegar a esta conclusión se parte de considerar que, al aplicar la ley de Emmert, el tamaño percibido de la postimagen es proporcional a la distancia percibida de la superficie en la que se proyecta. A pesar de lo anterior, muy pocos estudios han intentado verificar empíricamente esta equivalencia formal. En este trabajo se midió tanto el tamaño percibido como la distancia de postimágenes y de objetos reales con el mismo tamaño proximal. 19 participantes proyectaron postimágenes con un ángulo visual de 1 grado sobre una pared de 1 a 23 metros respecto a los participantes. Estos también observaron objetos reales, en forma de discos, hechos de una plancha de espuma Styrofoam, con el mismo tamaño proximal que el de las postimágenes, que se colocaron a las mismas distancias físicas que las de la pared sobre la que se proyectaron las postimágenes. Cada participante reprodujo los tamaños aparentes de las postimágenes y de los objetos reales usando el método de reproducción y estimó las distancias aparentes empleando el método de estimación de magnitudes. Cuando los tamaños medios aparentes de las postimágenes y de los objetos reales, representados en función de la distancia aparente, se ajustaron a una función lineal, las pendientes de las postimágenes y de los objetos reales no diferían significativamente. Estos resultados se interpretan como evidencia para la equivalencia formal de la ley de Emmert y la hipótesis de la invarianza del tamaño-distancia

Improvement of the Non-Stationary Response by the Introduction of a Non-Linear Element of Zero-Memory Type

A method of improving the response of control systems subjected to suddenly applied random inputs by introducing a non-linear element is presented. The technique described here is based on the concept of non-stationary equivalent linearization. The description begins with the calculation of optimum equivalent gain to minimize the mean squared error. From this result, the principal line of attack is to determine the introduced non-linear characteristic and to evaluate how much better it can be expected to perform than its linear counterpart. It is also shown that an intentional non-linear control system gives a considerable reduction of mean squared error. Detailed aspects of the numerical procedure are illustrated by a typical example

A Study on the Control Performance of Relay Control Systems Subjected to a Random Input

The present problem in an on-off relay control system is to construct the operation of a controller generating the control signal which determines the on-off position in such a way that the mean squared value of the error response becomes minimum. First, when the input to the system is random with gaussian amplitude probability distribution and the control signal is of some non-linear function of the error and its derivative, the general procedure of analysis for the evaluation of the error probability density function is described by solving the Fokker-Planck equation. Second, the determination of parameters of the controller is proposed so that the mean squared error is minimized. Finally, how the results obtained here are incorporated in a predictive-controller is presented. The remainder of this paper is devoted to the analytical consideration of a simple predictor-relay control system subjected to a gaussian random input

Stereoscopic depth aftereffects without retinal position correspondence between adaptation and test stimuli

AbstractTo clarify whether stereo-slant aftereffects are independent of stimulated retinal position, two experiments compared the magnitude of aftereffects between the following two conditions: when the adaptation and test stimulus fell on (1) the same retinal position, and (2) on different retinal positions separated by 0.5°–20°. In Experiment 1, disc- or ring-shaped surface consisting of random-dots was presented at the central or peripheral visual fields. In Experiment 2, rectangular surface was presented at the upper or lower visual fields. After two minutes inspection of a random-dot stereogram depicting a ±30° slanted surface, the observer adjusted the slant of the test stimulus to appear fronto-parallel. The results of the experiments showed that significant aftereffects were observed similarly in both conditions. Moreover, the separation nor the stimulus shape scarcely affected the magnitude of the aftereffects. Based on these results we concluded that the depth processing mechanism which operates independently from the stimulated retinal position is responsible for the depth aftereffects we found

Attention shift not memory averaging reduces foveal bias

AbstractTwo experiments examined which of two mechanisms, attention shift or memory averaging, reduces foveal bias. The target stimulus was a black dot presented for 80ms while observers maintained fixation. The two main conditions were ‘with’ and ‘without’ vertical and horizontal bars as landmarks, which were placed on more eccentric positions than the target stimulus. To induce attention, the landmark was flashed on for 80 ms (Experiment 1) or disappeared (Experiment 2) with a stimulus onset asynchrony of 0, 106.4, or 212.8ms in both experiments. As a control, non-flashed and non-disappeared landmark conditions were employed. The observers’ task was to point to the remembered location of the target with a mouse cursor. The results showed that the magnitudes of foveal bias were significantly lower in the flashed and disappeared landmark conditions than in the without landmark condition. Furthermore, the magnitudes in the flashed and disappeared landmark conditions did not differ from their respective control conditions. The latter finding in the disappeared landmark conditions provides evidence for ‘attention shift’ against ‘memory averaging’ as the mechanism reducing foveal bias

最適非線形制御系の統計学的シンセシス

京都大学0048新制・課程博士工学博士工博第77号新制||工||49(附属図書館)821京都大学大学院工学研究科航空工学専攻(主査)教授 椹木 義一, 教授 得丸 英勝, 教授 国井 修二郎学位規則第5条第1項該当Kyoto UniversityDA

Algorithmic group formation and group work evaluation in a learning analytics-enhanced environment: implementation study in a Japanese junior high school

In-class group work activities are found to promote the interpersonal skills of learners. To support the teachers in facilitating such activities, we designed a learning analytics-enhanced technology framework, Group Learning Orchestration Based on Evidence (GLOBE) using data-driven approaches. In this study, we implemented the algorithmic group formation and group work evaluation systems in a Japanese junior high school context. Data from a series of 12 collaborative learning activities were used to validate the difference in the measured heterogeneity of the formed homogeneous and heterogeneous groups compared to random grouping. Further, the peer rating and self-perception of the group work were compared for comparative reading and idea exchange tasks. We found algorithmically formed groups, considering the learner model data, either heterogeneously or homogeneously performed better than random grouping. Specifically, students in groups created by the homogeneous algorithm received higher peer ratings and more positive self-perception of group work in the idea exchange group tasks. We did not find significant differences in the comparative reading tasks. Along with the empirical findings, this work presents a paradigm of continuous data-driven group learning support by incorporating the peer and teacher evaluation scores as an input to the subsequent algorithmic grouping