Crafting the hammer: a philosophical examination of attempts to capture the human capacity for number

Theoretical thesis.Bibliography: pages 48-55.Introduction -- Chapter 1. Setting the scene -- Chapter 2. Spelke's nativist position -- Chapter 3. The language embodied position -- Chapter 4. Enculturation -- Conclusions -- References.This thesis argues that two empirical approaches to capture the human capacity for number are not well-justified and are too narrow, and consequently, are not robust enough to capture this capacity. The two empirical approaches analysed are the nativist approach endorsed by Elizabeth Spelke (e.g. 2011) and the embodied cognition approach formulated by George Lakoff and Rafael Núñez (2000). I argue that the former approach privileges neural modules in the explanation of this capacity without sufficient justification; the latter approach excludes neural circuits from the explanation, also without sufficient justification, as well as fails to provide a plausible evolutionary story to explain the emergence of number in human life. I conclude the thesis by arguing that an empirical approach robust enough to capture the human capacity for number should be informed by theories on niche construction (Sterelny, 2007); mimesis (Tomasello, 1999); the emergence of the modern mind (Donald, 1991); neural reuse (Anderson, 2010) and cognitive integration (Menary, 2007).Mode of access: World wide web1 online resource (55 pages

An evaluation of brief correspondence programs for problem drinkers

The provision of accessible and cost-effective treatment to a large number of problem drinkers is a significant challenge to health services. Previous data suggest that a correspondence intervention may assist in these efforts. We recruited 277 people with alcohol abuse problems and randomly allocated them to immediate cognitive behavioral treatment by correspondence (ICBT), 2 months in a waiting list (WL2-CBT), self-monitoring (SM2-CBT), or extended self-monitoring (SM6-CBT). Everyone received correspondence CBT after the control period. Over 2 months later, no drop in alcohol intake occurred in the waiting list, and CBT had a greater impact than SM. No further gains from SM were seen after 2 months. Effects of CBT were well maintained and were equivalent, whether it was received immediately or after 2 to 6 months of self-monitoring. Weekly alcohol intake fell 48% from pretreatment to 18.6 alcohol units at 12 months. Our results confirmed that correspondence CBT for alcohol abuse was accessible and effective for people with low physical dependence