242 research outputs found
Explanation in the Social Sciences with particular reference to economics
The aim of this thesis is to discuss the nature of
social phenomena, and to determine (with particular reference to
economics) the appropriate way to explain them. Many of the
contentions advanced rest largely upon the fact that social phenomena
can be investigated only by methods which respect their distinctive
character and status as social phenomena.
In chapter I it is argued that the most important
difference between the social and the natural sciences is that the
former have to employ intentional criteria to identify their
explananda-phenomena. Because human and societal phenomena are
intrinsically meaningful, the type of causation which prevails in
the social realm is fundamentally different from that which prevails
in the physical.
In chapter II the claim of Popper and Hayek that the
task of the social sciences is to trace the unintended consequences
of human actions is critically examined. Two examples of economic
explanation are given in order to show the importance of unintended
consequences, and to illustrate the general form explanations of
social phenomena (apart from those of single actions) should adopt.
In chapter III the contention that the social sciences
deal with inherently complex phenomena is examined and defended,
and the main implications of this contention for social analysis
are drawn. The extent to which social phenomena are in principle
predictable is discussed.
In chapter IV the structural properties of formal
scientific theories are briefly characterised, and then Friedman's
famous argument on the testability of economic theories is analysed
and rejected. The role within a scientific theory of statements
formulated with reference to idealisations of the phenomena being
studied, and the role within a social explanation of the 'principle
of rationality', are discussed.
In chapter V the central questions behind the
methodological individualism/methodological holism controversy are
brought to light. Provided that methodological individualism is
not construed as a reductionist or mechanistic principle, it can
successfully avoid the main objections of its detractors. It is
argued that the method of functional analysis in sociology (in
the form developed by Merton) is consistent with methodological
individualism. Finally, it is claimed that (apart from a few
minor exceptions) the principle of methodological individualism
does indeed recommend the appropriate way to explain societal
phenomena.
In chapter VI, the various strands of thought running
through the five preceding chapters are drawn together in a brief
summary of the most important points raised by this thesis
Intellectual Property and Public Health – A White Paper
On October 26, 2012, the University of Akron School of Law’s Center for Intellectual Property and Technology hosted its Sixth Annual IP Scholars Forum. In attendance were thirteen legal scholars with expertise and an interest in IP and public health who met to discuss problems and potential solutions at the intersection of these fields. This report summarizes this discussion by describing the problems raised, areas of agreement and disagreement between the participants, suggestions and solutions made by participants and the subsequent evaluations of these suggestions and solutions. Led by the moderator, participants at the Forum focused generally on three broad questions. First, are there alternatives to either the patent system or specific patent doctrines that can provide or help provide sufficient incentives for health-related innovation? Second, is health information being used proprietarily and if so, is this type of protection appropriate? Third, does IP conflict with other non-IP values that are important in health and how does or can IP law help resolve these conflicts? This report addresses each of these questions in turn
Seed degeneration in potato : the need for an integrated seed health strategy to mitigate the problem in developing countries
Seed potato degeneration, the reduction in yield or quality caused by an accumulation of pathogens and pests in planting material due to successive cycles of vegetative propagation, has been a long-standing production challenge for potato growers around the world. In developed countries this problem has been overcome by general access to and frequent use of seed, produced by specialized growers, that has been certified to have pathogen and pest incidence below established thresholds, often referred to as certified seed. The success of certified seed in developed countries has concentrated the research and development agenda on the establishment of similar systems in developing countries. Despite these efforts, certified seed has had little penetration into the informal seed systems currently in place in most developing countries. Small-scale farmers in these countries continue to plant seed tubers acquired through the informal seed system, i.e. produced on-farm or acquired from neighbours or local markets. Informal seed tubers frequently have poor health status, leading to significant reductions in yield and/or market value. This review emphasizes the need to refocus management efforts in developing countries on improving the health status of seed tubers in the informal system by integrating disease resistance and on-farm management tools with strategic seed replacement. This 'integrated seed health strategy' can also prolong the good health status of plants derived from certified seed, which would otherwise be diminished due to potential rapid infection from neighbouring fields. Knowledge gaps, development challenges and impacts of this integrated seed health strategy are discussed.PostprintPeer reviewe
Money and exchange-rate regimes: theoretical controversies
It is common to suggest that alternative exchange-rate regimes are not related to different theoretical views about the workings of the economic system or to different schools of economic thought. This paper, however, emphasizes the relationship between alternative exchange-rate regimes and the different conceptions of money and of the role of the market as an economic regulator. When an exchange-rate regime is selected decision makers expect to achieve macroeconomic goals such as stimulating real economic growth and attaining long-run price stability. But these results stem from divergent theoretical understandings of money and its effects on the real economy — the neutrality or non-neutrality of money — and from the acceptance or rejection of the classical ergodic axiom of efficient market theory. Hence, we support the argument that underlying the choice of an exchange-rate regime there are different theoretical views. The aim of this paper, therefore, is to examine the main disagreements between the different prescriptions about exchange-rate regimes using as background the articulations between exchange-rate prescriptions and the monetary conceptions of different theorists. Exchange-rate regimes come in three varieties: pegged (fixed, but adjustable), floating, and fixed.
Spin-orbit coupling in interacting quasi-one-dimensional electron systems
We present a new model for the study of spin-orbit coupling in interacting
quasi-one-dimensional systems and solve it exactly to find the spectral
properties of such systems. We show that the combination of spin-orbit coupling
and electron-electron interactions results in: the replacement of separate spin
and charge excitations with two new kinds of bosonic mixed-spin-charge
excitation, and a characteristic modification of the spectral function and
single-particle density of states. Our results show how manipulation of the
spin-orbit coupling, with external electric fields, can be used for the
experimental determination of microscopic interaction parameters in quantum
wires.Comment: 5 pages including 4 figures; RevTeX; to appear in Phys.Rev.Let
Intellectual Property and Public Health – A White Paper
On October 26, 2012, the University of Akron School of Law’s Center for Intellectual Property and Technology hosted its Sixth Annual IP Scholars Forum. In attendance were thirteen legal scholars with expertise and an interest in IP and public health who met to discuss problems and potential solutions at the intersection of these fields. This report summarizes this discussion by describing the problems raised, areas of agreement and disagreement between the participants, suggestions and solutions made by participants and the subsequent evaluations of these suggestions and solutions. Led by the moderator, participants at the Forum focused generally on three broad questions. First, are there alternatives to either the patent system or specific patent doctrines that can provide or help provide sufficient incentives for health-related innovation? Second, is health information being used proprietarily and if so, is this type of protection appropriate? Third, does IP conflict with other non-IP values that are important in health and how does or can IP law help resolve these conflicts? This report addresses each of these questions in turn
The Hubbard model within the equations of motion approach
The Hubbard model has a special role in Condensed Matter Theory as it is
considered as the simplest Hamiltonian model one can write in order to describe
anomalous physical properties of some class of real materials. Unfortunately,
this model is not exactly solved except for some limits and therefore one
should resort to analytical methods, like the Equations of Motion Approach, or
to numerical techniques in order to attain a description of its relevant
features in the whole range of physical parameters (interaction, filling and
temperature). In this manuscript, the Composite Operator Method, which exploits
the above mentioned analytical technique, is presented and systematically
applied in order to get information about the behavior of all relevant
properties of the model (local, thermodynamic, single- and two- particle ones)
in comparison with many other analytical techniques, the above cited known
limits and numerical simulations. Within this approach, the Hubbard model is
shown to be also capable to describe some anomalous behaviors of the cuprate
superconductors.Comment: 232 pages, more than 300 figures, more than 500 reference
A Picture of the Research Field of Doctoral Education from the Students’ Perspectives : Studies Using Questionnaires and Scales
Peer reviewe
Development and preliminary evaluation of a quality of life measure targeted at dementia caregivers
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Providing care for individuals with a progressive, debilitating condition such as dementia can adversely impact the quality of life (QOL) of informal caregivers. To date, there is no existing caregiver quality of life measure for dementia caregivers with breadth of coverage or that is applicable to caregivers of diverse ethnic backgrounds. The purpose of this study was to develop and evaluate a caregiver-targeted quality-of-life measure (CGQOL) for informal caregivers of persons with dementia that can be used with caregivers from a variety of ethnicities.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>91 items were field tested by telephone interviews with 179 English-speaking and 21 monolingual Spanish-speaking caregivers of persons with dementia. Repeat interviews were conducted with 71 caregivers. Administration time, scale score distributions, item-scale correlations, reliability, and associations of scales with patient and caregiver demographic and caregiving characteristics were estimated. Structure of associations among scales was examined using exploratory factor analysis.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Item analysis yielded 80 items distributed across 10 scales, with median administration time of 17 minutes [IQR 13.5–22 minutes] and minimal missing data. There were few floor or ceiling effects in scale score distributions. Internal consistency reliability was ≥ 0.78 for all scales; test-retest reliability (intraclass correlation) estimates exceeded 0.70 for 6 scales. More hours weekly spent in caregiving was uniquely associated with worse quality of life on 8 scales (p's ≤ 0.05). Three higher-order dimensions of caregiving assistance, emotional and social concerns, and spirituality and benefits were identified.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>These preliminary results support subsequent evaluation of test-retest reliability, construct validity, and responsiveness to change of this quality-of-life measure for caregivers from diverse ethnicities.</p
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