Notes from the Editor

  The present issue of the JOURNAL OF SOCIOCYBERNETICS is the last edition under my responsibility. In January 2015 the quite recently elected board of the ISA-Research Committee 51 will take up its work and Fabio Giglietto, Professor at the Department of Communication and Human Studies of the University of Urbino “Carlo Bo” (http://www.uniurb.it) and research fellow of the Center for Sociocybernetics Studies (http://www.sociocybernetics.eu), will commence as the new journal editor. During the last four years Fabio Giglietto, already was a member of the editorial board of our Journal. I wish him and the new board continued success and all the best for the upcoming period. The current edition includes articles applying several theoretical aspects of complexity analysis on different empirical cases. In their article "Reflections on the Complexity of Ancient Social Heterarchies: Toward New Models of Social Self-Organization in Pre-Hispanic Colombia" Nathalie Mezza-Garcia, Tom Froese and Nelson Fernández face the limitations which hierarchical and centrally controlled systems have in their information processes with respect to manage large-scale crisis and challenges. With reference to historical examples in pre-Hispanic Colombia, specifically the cultures of the Zenú, the Muiscas and the Tayronas, the authors propose that creating and analyzing computer models of their heterarchically and decentralized processes of management could provide a broader perspective on the possibilities of self-organized political systems. In his article "The Paradox of Social Ties after the ICT Revolution: A Second-Order Observation" Saburo Akahori explores what kinds of distinctions are used when the change of social systems is observed. His analysis refers on the question of significance of social ties in Japan, which has repeatedly been emphasized in recent years. One example is the frequency of use of the Japanese word kizuna which means bond. It sounds odd because conventionally kizuna indicates intimate, continuous relationships, not temporary relationships. Even though the word kizuna means strong ties, now it also implies weak ties. Here the author asks for the reason why the strange usage of the word kizuna has become acceptable. Patricia E. Almaguer-Kalixto, José A. Amozurrutia, Chaime Marcuello Servós present in their paper "Policy Processes as Complex Systems: The case of Mesoamerican Sustainable Development Initiative" a research methodology for analyzing policy processes that are defined at the global level but implemented locally. The interrelations between these two levels pose great conceptual challenges in explaining the changes, transformations and continuations occurring in this complex process based on empirical information. Understanding the policy process as a complex system, the paper proposes analyzing macro, meso and micro levels as subsystems of the total process, identifying the interrelations between policy action, actors and discourses. The paper takes the example of the Mesoamerican Sustainable Development Initiative (MSDI) of the Puebla Panama Plan (PPP), a regional integration plan for a new ‘Mesoamerica’ that originally included the seven Central American countries and the southern states of Mexico. In her paper "Sustainable Technology Assessment and Sustainable Scenarios of Techno Social Phenomena" Michiko Amemiya-Ramírez describes sustainable technology as a technological subsystem with marginal or no negative impacts on other technological systems, as well as the environment, the society and the economy. To identify such technologies it is necessary to describe their behavior and their present and future interactions with those systems. Due to social dynamics, a complete assessment to identify sustainable technologies requires a hard systems analysis and a soft system analysis. A hard system analysis is useful to assess the interactions, behavior and characteristics of the technology quantitatively. A soft system analysis is convenient to describe other characteristics and interactions through qualitative and non measurable characteristics. For further issues of the JOURNAL OF SOCIOCYBERNETICS we invite scholars who have their background in the field of systems theory, sociocybernetics, information- and communication science and who apply this for studying various social phenomena regarding their complexity and dynamics, to submit articles for publication in the JOURNAL OF SOCIOCYBERNETICS. For submitting articles authors need to register with the journal prior to submitting. People who want to register have the option to register as a reader or as an author. Every reader or author can register by themselve using the journal's website. After clicking the register item they will be guided through the registration process. After registration they will be able to login by username and password and then authors may submit their papers. The system will immediately confirm the submission and will automatically trigger the review process. Authors will get an email with a URL that will enable them to track its progress through the editorial process once they are logged in. We recommend to review the "About the Journal” page for the journal's policies, as well as the "Author Guidelines"

Niklas Luhmann and Cybernetics

Even though Niklas Luhmann himself never declared his own approach as a cybernetic one, and even if the relationship between systems theory and cybernetics is still not clearly defined in every way, it seems to be legitimate to classify Luhmann's Theory of Social Systems into the field of cybernetics approaches, more precisely as a socio-cybernetic one. Beside the concept of autopoiesis by Maturana and Varela there are various systems thinkers and cyberneticists like Wiener, Ashby, Shannon, Bateson, von Foerster who influenced Luhmanns work deeply. Certainly he fits the cybernetic principles into his theory rather idiosyncratically and partly after some significant revisions, but one can argue that Luhmann's Theorie of Social Systems is the conclusion of a confrontation of the mayor issues of cybernetic discourse with the European philosophical tradition. In the following article it is discussed the question in what extent we can include Luhmann's work into the cybernetic tradition.  Which are the significant connection-points between cybernetics and Luhmann's work? What is the relevance of this connection for Luhmanns own theoretical development?  Which are the congruences and which are the differences? To what extent is Luhmann's Theory of Social Systems even though his critical distance - integrable into the spectrum of the approaches of ``New Cybernetic'' (as Geyer & van der Zouwen formulated in 1986)?  After a short discussion on what is characterizing a theory as a cybernetic one, the article reconstructs Luhmann's critical debate on the most important theoretical problems of cybernetics and finally it will sketch out Luhmanns answer to this debate, which he gives in his own concepts. For Luhmann the fascination of cybernetics consists in explaining the problem of constancy and invariance of systems in a highly complex and dynamical world by observing communication processes. This makes cybernetics to a definitive non-ontological approach and brings it near to the functionalistic sociology

Announcements

1). The 12th International Conference of Sociocybernetics will be held from 24-28th June 2013, in Merida, Mexico, and addresses »The sociocybernetics of social systems and social networks« in fields of complex social phenomena such as education, economy, interdisciplinary research, international relations, management, migration, new social media communication, scientific production, sustainability, social movements and systemic violence. The conference will discuss papers reporting the empirical findings of research studies that apply sociocybernetics (both concepts and/or methodologies). addressing the methodological and ethical issues associated with the creation and maintenance of research networks and with the reflective, self-referential aspects of research in sociocybernetics. discussing theoretical and conceptual issues concerning how to effectively characterize social systems, social networks and the interactions of social actors. 2). The next World Congress of Sociology will be hosted by the Japan Sociological Society (JSS) from 13-19 July 2014. RC 51 will be present with 18 sessions

Notes from the Editor

  The current issue of the Journal of Sociocybernetics is the first edition after its transformation into an open-access online journal. The reorganisation we have made during the last year enables electronic support of online-submission of articles and online management of the review and publishing process. We thank very much the University of Zaragoza for the possibility of hosting our Journal at the university's server and its generous technical and organisational assistance. As of now potential authors will be guided through the whole process of submitting an article, information of current peer-to-peer review status, copysediting, galley proofing and publication. For submitting articles authors need to register with the journal prior to submitting. People who want to register have the option to register as a reader or as an author. Every reader or author can register by themselves using the journal's website. After clicking the register item they will be guided through the registration process. After registration they will be able to login by username and password and then authors may submit their papers. The system will immediately confirm the submission and will automatically trigger the review process. Authors will get an email with a URL that will enable them to track its progress through the editorial process once they are logged in. We recommend that you review the "About the Journal” page for the journal's policies, as well as the "Author Guidelines". The reorganisation needed a longer time than was first thought. I would like to beg your pardon for the tardiness of publication and thank both authors and readers for your patience. With a regrettable delay we are now publishing in close secsession the volumes for 2011, 2012 and 2013. 2011 and 2012 will be published as a double issue. The current edition comprises articels with theoretical and epistemological aspects of sociocybernetics. In his article “The Spectral Sign: A Cybernetic Perspective on Digital Conversations” Marco Tolodo Bastos discusses the idea of a spectral sign, which is defined as the outcome of an operation that corrupts the semiotic structure of a sign, replacing instead of adding units of meaning. From a linguistic point of view, the spectral sign relies on the effects of communication technologies that challenge the dyadic representation of a sign. Instead of relating to another sign to perform a paired circle, spectral sign connects a diversity of circles that are not immediately accessible in a semiotic context. In his article “Les Deux Angleterres et le Continent Anglophone Sociology as the Guardian of Old European Semantics” Steffen Roth questions the reasons for the marginality of Luhmann's Theory of Social Systems in Anglophone sociology. He comes to the conclusion that, while Europe, or ‘the continent’, is still perceived as old compared with the Anglophone new world(s), it is still Anglophone sociology that preserves ‘Old European’ semantics. Sociology in continental ‘Old Europe’, however, seems to have a chance of slowly being acquainted with a new, post-enlightenment mindset focused on semantics and communication rather than on humans and action. In this edition we start with a series of three articles by Roberto Gustavo Mancilla which gives a general introduction to Sociocybernetics. Part 1 (in this issue) discusses the differentiation between first and second order cybernetics, the concept of observer and the concept of society as a complex adaptive system. The following parts will adress the aspects of power, law and justice, and epistemological questions on constructivism. These parts will be published in the next issues of the Journal of Socio­cyber­netics. Michael Paetau (Editor

Neuronal ICAM-5 regulates synaptic maturation and microglia functions

The human brain continues to fascinate generation after generation of neuroscientists. Our knowledge is expanding at an accelerating rate, yet the details of memory formation and information processing remain an enigma. The purpose of this work has been to provide novel insights into how the brain operates on a molecular level, with the focus on one particular protein, the intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM)-5. The human brain is more than just the sum of its components. It is fundamental that the different cell types that reside in the brain work together in perfect harmony, each playing their own role, still in tune with each other. In this dissertation I have investigated the ICAM-5 mediated communication between neurons and the resident immune cells of the brain, the microglia. First, we identified a molecular mechanism, by which ICAM-5 plays a role as a negative regulator of spine maturation. In the young spine, ICAM-5 competes with glutamate receptors for binding to the cytoskeletal anchor �-actinin. Synaptic transmission induces a cleavage of the extracellular ICAM-5, and the maturation process of the spine is allowed to proceed. Next, we showed that the consequentially solubilized fragment of ICAM-5 is bound by microglia and affects them. Soluble ICAM-5 inhibits phagocytosis and promotes an anti-inflammatory phenotype in immune challenged microglia. Taken together, these results suggest that ICAM-5 is a versatile molecule that plays a role in synaptic maturation and immunology. It is tempting to speculate on a role for ICAM-5 in synaptic pruning, however this line of research remains in the future scope for now.Hjärnan är ett komplext organ som är väl isolerat från resten av kroppen. Den består av nervceller som processerar information, samt stödceller. En av dessa stödceller kallas mikroglia och de sköter immunförsvaret i hjärnan. Det har visat sig att dessa celler även påverkar hur nervcellerna kommunicerar med varandra, hur de mognar och utvecklas. I min avhandling har jag forskat i hur ett protein från nervcellerna påverkar synapsmognaden och immunfunktioner i hjärnan. Det visade sig att nervceller kan klyva detta protein som då binds av mikroglia och gör dem mindre inflammatoriska. Då ICAM-5 klyvs til följd av robust kommunikation mellan två nervceller, så lossnar den intracellulära delen av ICAM-5 från cellen skelett och detta tillåter synapsen att mogna. ICAM-5 är således en mycket intressant molekyl i hjärnan som påverkar både hur minnet formas och hur immunförsvaret fungerar

Brainstem intraparenchymal schwannoma : A case report and literature review

Publisher Copyright: ©2021 Published by Scientific Scholar on behalf of Surgical Neurology InternationalBackground: Intracranial intraparenchymal schwannomas (IS) are rare tumors that have mainly been described in case reports. Here, we report on a case of a brainstem IS and included a comprehensive literature review. Case Description: A 74-year-old man presented with progressive gait disturbances. CT- and MRI-imaging revealed a contrast-enhancing mass accompanied by a cyst in the dorsolateral pons. Hemangioblastoma was suspected and surgery was advised. During surgery, gross total resection of a non-invasive tumor was performed. Postoperative recovery was uneventful. Based on histopathological examination, the intraparenchymal brainstem tumor was diagnosed as schwannoma. Conclusion: Our extensive review illustrates that ISs are benign tumors that most often present in relatively young patients. Malignant cases have been described but form an extremely rare entity. Preoperative diagnosis based on radiological features is difficult but should be considered when peritumoral edema, calcifications, and cysts are noted. In benign cases, gross total resection of the lesion is curative. To adequately select this treatment and adjust the surgical strategy accordingly, it is important to include IS in the preoperative differential diagnosis when the abovementioned radiological features are present.Peer reviewe

Anatomy of Green Open Access

Open Access (OA) is the free unrestricted access to electronic versions of scholarly publications. For peer reviewed journal articles there are two main routes to OA, publishing in OA journals (gold OA) or archiving of article copies or manuscripts at other web locations (green OA). This study focuses on summarizing and extending upon current knowledge about green OA. A synthesis of previous studies indicates that the green OA coverage of all published journal articles is approximately 12 %, with substantial disciplinary variation. Typically, green OA copies become available with considerable time delays, partly caused by publisher imposed embargo periods, and partly by author tendencies to archive manuscripts only periodically. Although green OA copies should ideally be archived in proper repositories, a large share is stored on home pages and similar locations, with no assurance of long-term preservation. Often such locations contain exact copies of published articles, which may infringe on the publisher’s exclusive rights. The technical foundation for green OA uploading is becoming increasingly solid, which is largely due to the rapid increase in the number of institutional repositories. The number of articles within the scope of OA mandates, which strongly influence the self- archival rate of articles, is nevertheless still low.peerReviewe

A simple magnetoencephalographic auditory paradigm may aid in confirming left-hemispheric language dominance in epilepsy patients

Objective The intracarotid amobarbital procedure (IAP) is the current "gold standard" in the preoperative assessment of language lateralization in epilepsy surgery candidates. It is, however, invasive and has several limitations. Here we tested a simple noninvasive language lateralization test performed with magnetoencephalography (MEG). Methods We recorded auditory MEG responses to pairs of vowels and pure tones in 16 epilepsy surgery candidates who had undergone IAP. For each individual, we selected the pair of planar gradiometer sensors with the strongest N100m response to vowels in each hemisphere and -from the vector sum of signals of this gradiometer pair-calculated the vowel/tone amplitude ratio in the left (L) and right (R) hemisphere and, subsequently, the laterality index: LI = (L-R)/(L+R). In addition to the analysis using a single sensor pair, an alternative analysis was performed using averaged responses over 18 temporal sensor pairs in both hemispheres. Results The laterality index did not correlate significantly with the lateralization data obtained from the IAP. However, an MEG pattern of stronger responses to vowels than tones in the left hemisphere and stronger responses to tones than vowels in the right hemisphere was associated with left-hemispheric language dominance in the IAP in all the six patients who showed this pattern. This results in a specificity of 100% and a sensitivity of 67% of this MEG pattern in predicting left-hemispheric language dominance (p = 0.01, Fisher's exact test). In the analysis using averaged responses over temporal channels, one additional patient who was left-dominant in IAP showed this particular MEG pattern, increasing the sensitivity to 78% (p = 0.003). Significance This simple MEG paradigm shows promise in feasibly and noninvasively confirming left-hemispheric language dominance in epilepsy surgery candidates. It may aid in reducing the need for the IAP, if the results are confirmed in larger patient samples.Peer reviewe

Progressive Stroke-Like Symptoms in a Patient with Sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease

Sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (sCJD) is a rare neurodegenerative disorder in which accumulation of a pathogenic isoform of prion protein (PrPSc) induces neuronal damage with distinct pathologic features. The prognosis of sCJD is devastating: rapid clinical decline is followed by death generally within months after onset of symptoms. The classic clinical manifestations of sCJD are rapidly progressing dementia, myoclonus, and ataxia. However, the spectrum of clinical features can vary considerably. We describe a definite, neuropathologically verified sCJD in a 67-year-old woman who initially presented with progressive stroke-like symptoms: left-sided hemiparesis and ataxia within a few days. The initial brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed bilateral cortical hyperintensity on diffusion-weighted sequences (DWI) resembling multiple ischemic lesions. Despite anticoagulation with low-molecular-weight heparin, the patient deteriorated rapidly, became dysphagic and bedridden with myoclonic jerks on her left side extremities correlating with intermittent high-amplitude epileptiform discharges on electroencephalography (EEG). Basal ganglia hyperintense signal changes in addition to cortical ribboning were seen in DWI images of a follow-up MRI. Repeated EEG recordings showed an evolution to periodic sharp wave complexes. Protein 14-3-3 was positive in her cerebrospinal fluid specimen, in addition to an abnormally high total tau level. In the terminal stage the patient was in an akinetic, mutistic state with deteriorating consciousness. She died 19 days after admission to the hospital. Neuropathologic investigation corroborated the clinical diagnosis of sCJD with spongiform degeneration and immunohistochemical demonstration of the deposition of pathologic PrPSc