The affectively extended self: A pragmatist approach

In this paper we suggest an understanding of the self within the conceptual framework of situated affectivity, proposing the notion of an affectively extended self and arguing that the construction, diachronic re-shaping and maintenance of the self is mediated first by affective interactions. We initially consider the different variations on the conception of the extended self that have been already proposed in the literature (Clark & Chalmers 1998; Heersmink 2017, 2018; Krueger 2018; Wilson, Lenart 2015). We then propose our alternative, contextualising it within the current debate on situated affectivity. While the idea that we exploit the external environment in order to manage our affective life is now rather widespread among philosophers (e.g. Colombetti & Krueger 2015, Piredda 2019), its potential consequences for and connections with the debate on the self remain underexplored. Drawing on James’ intuition of the “material self”, which clearly connects the self and the emotions in agency, and broadly envisioning an extension of the self beyond its organismic boundaries, we propose our pragmatist conception of the self: an affectively extended self that relies on affective artifacts and practices to construct its identity extended beyond skin and skull

First results from the MEG experiment

The MEG experiment, searching for the rare decay μ+ → e+γ, started the data taking at PSI in 2008. Based on data from the initial three months of operation an upper limit on the branching ratio BR(μ → eγ) < 2.8 · 10−11 at 90% confidence level is reported. This corresponds to the measurement of positrons and photons from ∼ 1014 stopped μ+-decays by a superconducting positron spectrometer and a 900 litre liquid-xenon photon detector

Compression of Ultrashort Laser Pulses via Gated Multiphoton Intrapulse Interference Phase Scans

Delivering femtosecond laser light in the focal plane of a high numerical aperture microscope objective is still a challenge, despite significant developments in the generation of ultrashort pulses. One of the most popular techniques, used to correct phase distortions resulting from propagation through transparent media, is the multiphoton intrapulse interference phase scan (MIIPS). The accuracy of MIIPS however is limited when higher order phase distortions are present. Here we introduce an improvement, called Gated-MIIPS, which avoids shortcomings of MIIPS, reduces the influence of higher order phase terms, and can be used to more efficiently compress broad band laser pulses even with a simple 4f pulse shaper setup. In this work we present analytical formulas for MIIPS and Gated-MIIPS valid for chirped Gaussian pulses; we show an approximated analytic expression for Gated-MIIPS valid for arbitrary pulse shapes; finally we demonstrate the increased accuracy of Gated-MIIPS via experiment and numerical simulation.Comment: 11 pages, 7 figure

Sustainability and valorization of small pelagics: implementation of a shark-free eco-label for pelagic trawling fisheries in the Adriatic Sea

This study analyses the willingness of consumers to pay an extra price for shark-free eco-label products of fresh small pelagics compared to the ordinary ones. The data collected for this study derives from a contingent valuation survey conducted among 200 consumers, in Ravenna and Pavullo nel Frignano, in a fish market and a supermarket each. There have been administrated further questionnaires to one wholesaler and to the sales manager of the two fishmongers and two supermarkets per town. Open-ended questions of the consumers’ questionnaires have been analysed through cross section linear regressions with ordinary least squares (OLS), using software Gretl, while qualitative analyses on the close-ended have been done using Excel. Freshness, origin and method of production are the aspects considered mostly by the consumers. Among all the interviewed, general knowledge of labels of is scarce. Maximum prices proposed by the consumers indicate that future shark-free eco-label of small pelagic could be sold with a price ranging from 7 to 10 €. The regression shows that the extent of the additional price that the consumer is willing to pay is related to the degree of information of the BIO label. Moreover, consumers could be interested in a shark-free eco-label. All vendors currently have no interest in promoting eco-labels, as joining the certification is considered a cost, as well as keeping the certified lines separate from the non-certified ones without mixing the products. None will assume the risk of joining the certification first, preferring to let others pave the way. An economic estimation of the amount of money that fishers gain from the by-catch has been calculated using pelagic trawling shark by-catch data provided by the Experimental Centre for Habitat Conservation (CESTHA) and fish prices from ISMEA and NISEA dataset. The economic loss due to the release of sharks is lower compared to how much the vessels could gain by joining the shark-free eco-label

Reflections on the Ethics of Technical and Literary Language in Primo Levi

In this article I will analyse the two modalities of writing which characterised Levi’s life, namely the technical writing of weekly professional reports, and the literary writing of poetry and short stories. I will above all focus on such texts as The Wrench, The Periodic Table, Other People’s Trades and the Essays and I will analyse the way in which chemistry lies at the basis of his poetic. The most significant difference between the above-mentioned forms of writing rests in the fact that Levi’s technical writing always describes reality on the basis of models created by sciences. Literary writing, on the other hand, does not reproduce a model nor describes a fixed order, because it functions as a way of representing the possibilities that lie beyond existence, i.e. it is a way of creating an order; literary writing does not restrict itself to describing an object, but instead produces new interpretations of the object, and consequently new interpretations of life. Therefore, I will analyse the function of metaphor because, from Levi’s perspective, it is necessary for good literature: in fact, thanks to its structure, metaphor is apt to show what cannot be described in a rigorous way, namely ethics and aesthetics

La Figura di Costantino dal tempo di papa Simmaco a Gregorio di Tours

Nel terzo libro del De sanctis Sardiniae Giovanni Arca afferma che papa Simmaco costruì a Roma, nei pressi delle terme di Traiano, una basilica dedicata ai santi Silvestro e Martino. La costruzione della basilica rientra nelle numerose attività edilizie che hanno caratterizzato il tormentato pontificato di Simmaco, ma si segnala per la particolare rilevanza attribuita a Silvestro, vescovo di Roma dal 314 al 335, anni importanti per la svolta cristiana dell’impero ad opera di Costantino. Non mi soffermo sulla figura storica di questo papa, ricordo soltanto che la sua sbiadita immagine è stata rimodellata nel corso del V secolo dagli Actus Beati Silvestri. L’uso antico e ampiamente diffuso di questa anonima composizione agiografica, che ha creato la leggenda del battesimo romano di Costantino ad opera proprio di papa Silvestro, veniva riconosciuto “pur senza entusiasmo” dal Decretum Gelasianum de libris recipiendis et non recipientis. Gli Actus Beati Silvestri, infatti, si raccomandavano sia perché raccontavano il trionfo del cristianesimo e l’inizio di una nuova fase dell’impero, sia perché venivano attribuiti ad Eusebio di Cesarea

La "Malattia dell'anima" negli scrittori cristiani d'Africa

La definizione tradizionale di malattia dell'anima deriva dalla riflessione medico-filosofica antica sulla psicopatologia. Come ha messo in luce Jackie Pigeaud nel suo studio sulla "malattia dell'anima", l'espressione è "un'analogia" originata dalla supposizione che l'anima, come il corpo, possa essere affetta dalla malattia. La presa di coscienza medica e filosofica, nonché la constatazione dell'interazione tra corpo e anima hanno fatto sì che la medicina e l'etica collaborassero a fornire interpretazioni e spiegazioni di quel complesso fenomeno che rientra propriamente nel territorio della psicopatologia. Nell'ambito della cultura cristiana l'approccio al problema della malattia dell'anima non ha interessato soltanto la medicina e l'etica, ma ha investito anche la sfera della teologia e della catechesi. Perciò, in questo contributo si cercherà di analizzare l'evoluzione e l'arricchimento di questa tematica nella letteratura cristiana, limitando l'indagine a Tertulliano e Cipriano, attivi nella grande metropoli di Cartagine nel II e III secolo

La Vergine di Antiochia

Nel secondo libro del De uirginibus Ambrogio sostiene che è necessario approntare per le vergini cristiane una precettistica specifica ma, "vescovo da meno di tre anni" (nondum triennalis sacerdos), non si ritiene ancora capace di dar corpo all'opera. Con il racconto delle virtù di cui ha dato prova la casta martire di Antiochia prima di morire, egli vuole dimostrare in qual modo le vergini cristiane devono mettere in atto la imitatio Mariae nella realtà contemporanea. È pertanto interessante indagare in qual modo Ambrogio abbia rivisitato la sua fonte, riuscendo a trasformare il resoconto della Passio, più elementare nella struttura e nel linguaggio, in un racconto capace di affascinare il lettore