Popper, Basic Statements and the Quine-Duhem Thesis

In this paper I explore Karl Popper’s ‘critical rationalism’, focusing on its presuppositions and implications as a form of realism regarding the nature of scientific truth. I reveal an underlying tension in Popper’s thought pertaining to his account of basic statements and the related question of whether the falsification of a universal theory can ever justifiably be regarded as final or conclusive. I conclude that Popper’s account of basic statements is implicitly conventionalist, and that it should, in consistency, have forced him in the direction of Quinean holism

The Case for Participatory Education

Participatory learning or Participatory Education as a formal declaration of either ideology or praxis has yet to be written and I would certainly not attempt to write one in the current educational capacity I now find myself in however I have found myself in the unique position of actually being first to something and so have decided to enjoin the relatively scant sketches of, as far as the great blade of written history is concerned, cutting edge economic philosophy with the over-personal, absolutely singular experience of a student-teacher in Cleveland, Ohio. The principles of Participatory Education are adapted from the book Participatory Economics by Michael Albert however Albert is building the case for equitable economies and therefore far outstrips the scope of this small study. I have borrowed from Participatory Economics only the concepts of: affective decision-making or decision making by those affected which engenders ownership of decision, liberation theories, regarding power--by the deed and the creed--and the use of power in the group, and freedom of movement, which ties in to both power and choic

The Case for Participatory Education

Participatory learning or Participatory Education as a formal declaration of either ideology or praxis has yet to be written and I would certainly not attempt to write one in the current educational capacity I now find myself in however I have found myself in the unique position of actually being first to something and so have decided to enjoin the relatively scant sketches of, as far as the great blade of written history is concerned, cutting edge economic philosophy with the over-personal, absolutely singular experience of a student-teacher in Cleveland, Ohio. The principles of Participatory Education are adapted from the book Participatory Economics by Michael Albert however Albert is building the case for equitable economies and therefore far outstrips the scope of this small study. I have borrowed from Participatory Economics only the concepts of: affective decision-making or decision making by those affected which engenders ownership of decision, liberation theories, regarding power--by the deed and the creed--and the use of power in the group, and freedom of movement, which ties in to both power and choic

As First Secretary of State, is Dominic Raab the second most senior politician in the UK?

As well as being Foreign Secretary, Dominic Raab holds the office of First Secretary of State, and he has previously deputised for the PM. Surveying this office’s near 60-year history, Stephen Thornton and Jonathan Kirkup explain how its importance depends on who holds the post, and, whatever happens to Raab in any reshuffle, the status of First Secretary can vary according to how the post-holder is perceived by the PM

Reduction of structural loads using maneuver load control on the Advanced Fighter Technology Integration (AFTI)/F-111 mission adaptive wing

A transonic fighter-bomber aircraft, having a swept supercritical wing with smooth variable-camber flaps was fitted with a maneuver load control (MLC) system that implements a technique to reduce the inboard bending moments in the wing by shifting the spanwise load distribution inboard as load factor increases. The technique modifies the spanwise camber distribution by automatically commanding flap position as a function of flap position, true airspeed, Mach number, dynamic pressure, normal acceleration, and wing sweep position. Flight test structural loads data were obtained for loads in both the wing box and the wing root. Data from uniformly deflected flaps were compared with data from flaps in the MLC configuration where the outboard segment of three flap segments was deflected downward less than the two inboard segments. The changes in the shear loads in the forward wing spar and at the roots of the stabilators also are presented. The camber control system automatically reconfigures the flaps through varied flight conditions. Configurations having both moderate and full trailing-edge flap deflection were tested. Flight test data were collected at Mach numbers of 0.6, 0.7, 0.8, and 0.9 and dynamic pressures of 300, 450, 600, and 800 lb/sq ft. The Reynolds numbers for these flight conditions ranged from 26 x 10(exp 6) to 54 x 10(exp 6) at the mean aerodynamic chord. Load factor increases of up to 1.0 g achieved with no increase in wing root bending moment with the MLC flap configuration

Characteristics of Laboratory Confirmed Ethylene Glycol and Methanol Exposures Reported to a Regional Poison Control Center

Introduction. Ethylene glycol (EG) and methanol (MET) exposuresare rare but can cause significant morbidity and mortality.Though frequently treated similarly, EG and MET exposures havecharacteristics that are not well differentiated in the literature. Wesought to describe the clinical characteristics of EG and MET exposures,confirmed with quantitative serum levels. Methods. An IRB-approved retrospective review of the Universityof Kansas Health System Poison Control Center database from July2005 to July 2015 identified all EG/MET exposures evaluated ata health care facility. Initial measurements were EG/MET levels,serum pH, serum creatinine, anion gap, serum ethanol level, maxanion gap, max osmolar gap, therapy performed (hemodialysis,fomepizole, ethanol) and death. Results. The search identified 75 cases, with 59 cases having onlydetectable EG levels and 15 cases having only detectable MET levels.The average EG level was 126 mg/dL (range 5 - 834). The averagedetectable methanol level was 78 mg/dL (range 5 - 396). The averagemaximum anion gap of the EG positive group was 20 mEq/L (range8 - 35). The average maximum anion gap of the MET positive groupwas 14 mEq/L (range 6 - 34). One death was reported in the EG positivegroup, with an initial level of 266 mg/dL. Conclusions. In this study of EG/MET exposures, EG exposureswere more common than MET exposures, but they had similardemographics, laboratory findings, and interventions. Continuedstudies are warranted to characterize these uncommon exposuresfurther. Kans J Med 2018;11(3):67-69