9,466 research outputs found
Aesthetic objects, aesthetic judgments and the crafting of organizational style in creative industries
In this article, we conceptually engage with style as central to creative industries. We specifically argue that style is crafted into being via an interplay between aesthetic judgments and âaesthetic objects.â We define aesthetic objects as temporary, material settlements fueled by a continual sense of dissatisfaction, eventually resolved through relational engagements. These remain under aesthetic inquiry throughout the process of crafting, until brought to particular close. We elaborate our theorizing with a non-traditional exemplar of the Bride Dress in the preparation of a 2009 Jean-Paul Gaultierâs fashion show. Our subsequent contribution is a richer conceptual understanding of style, with a material, aesthetic engagement at its center. In addition, in foregrounding under-explored features (i.e., aesthetic judgments, crafting of physical materials), and introducing new concepts (i.e., aesthetic objects), we outline promising openings for and significant connections with scholarship on creative or fluid industries, style, and organizational identity
The myth of psychical distance in aesthetic experience
The object of the present thesis is:
1. to question the modem and prevalent view that some kind of âpsychical attitudeâ is necessary to the emergence and success of an aesthetic experience. Edward BULLOUGHâs theory of âpsychical distanceâ has been chosen and thoroughly analyzed as a significant example of the above view.
2. to offer an alternative to the above theory, which is based on a teleological/cosmological argument, and which makes an aesthetic experience dependent on a metaphysical âintuitionâ of our âattunementâ to, and âsymbiosisâ with, the world.
In support of my research, I examine and discuss:
i. the aesthetic experience of âbeautifulâ nature, âbeautifulâ craftsmanship, and art, and I suggest some distinctions between them which have an important bearing on my rejection of âpsychical distanceâ as a viable aesthetic process.
ii. how the unique nature and role of âgeniusâ in art provides us, not only with arguments supporting the views expressed in my theory, but with more reasons to believe that art is in a league apart in aesthetics, and could perhaps benefit further from its study through a philosophy of mind.
iii. âexpressionâ and âcommunicationâ as fundamental sources of, and constituents of art, and their application through a form of âRepresentational Symbolismâ developed in S. LANGERâs theory of aesthetics.
iv. the need for a thorough familiarization and understanding of the content, context, and genetic sources of works of art, in order to achieve a rapprochement/communion between artists and the observers of their works.
v. H.G. GADAMERâs theory of âplayâ, 1) as an explanation of how the essence of works of art, though shaped by the thoughts and feelings of artists, interpreters, and observers, is protected by the workâs âcircle of meaningâ which sets observers at an âabsolute distanceâ from the work, making therefore âany practical purposive shareâ in it impossible; and 2) as a hermeneutical approach which allows Gadamer to solve problems of âcontemporaneityâ in art.
vi. some important aspects of M. MERLEAU-PONTYâs theory of âperceptionâ; in particular, his emphasis on the necessity, for an understanding of, and communion with, the world, of a grasp of natureâs language
Tuner: a tool for designing and optimizing ion optical systems
Designing and optimizing ion optical systems is often a complex and difficult
task, which requires the use of computational tools to iterate and converge
towards the desired characteristics and performances of the system. Very often
these tools are not well adapted for exploring the numerous degrees of freedom,
rendering the process long and tedious, as well as somewhat random due to the
very large number of local minima typically found when looking for a particular
optical solution. This paper presents a novel approach to finding the desired
solution of an optical system, by providing the user with an instant feedback
of the effects of changing parameters. The process of finding an approximate
solution by manually adjusting parameters is greatly facilitated, at which
point the final tune can be calculated by minimization according to a number of
constraints.Comment: 15 pages, 6 figures, to be published in Nuclear Instruments and
Methods
Periodicals Collection Management: Organizing, Creating, and Maintaining a System
This paper examines Providence Collegeâs experience in organizing, creating, and implementing the libraryâs collection management system, including how and why we chose Microsoft AccessÂź, involved non-periodicals library staff in each phase, worked with existing periodicals information to form the basis for the collection management system, decided which information/fields to include, and retrieved/compiled the necessary information about each title by comparing our existing records to what was physically on the shelf.
We also discuss how we used the collection management system to solicit input into collection management decisions such as cancellations and retention, create detailed reports with a variety of information, provide the information required for the periodicals integration project that combined the previously separate humanities and science collections into one collection as part of the library renovation project, manage the temporary division of the collection into three locations as part of the library renovation project, and assist academic departments in managing periodical titles in their respective areas
The detection of intentional contingencies in simple animations in patients with delusions of persecution
Background. It has been proposed that delusions of persecution are caused by the tendency to over-attribute malevolent intentions to other people's actions. One aspect of intention attribution is detecting contingencies between an agent's actions and intentions. Here, we used simplified stimuli to test the hypothesis that patients with persecutory delusions over-attribute contingency to agents' movements.
Method. Short animations were presented to three groups of subjects: (1) schizophrenic patients; (2) patients with affective disorders; and (3) normal control subjects. Patients were divided on the basis of the presence or absence of delusions of persecution. Participants watched four types of film featuring two shapes. In half the films one shape's movement was contingent on the other shape. Contingency was either âintentionalâ: one shape moved when it âsawâ another shape; or âmechanicalâ: one shape was launched by the other shape. Subjects were asked to rate the strength of the relationship between the movement of the shapes.
Results. Normal control subjects and patients without delusions of persecution rated the relationship between the movement of the shapes as stronger in both mechanical and intentional contingent conditions than in non-contingent conditions. In contrast, there was no significant difference between the ratings of patients with delusions of persecution for the conditions in which movement was animate. Patients with delusions of persecution perceived contingency when there was none in the animate non-contingent condition.
Conclusions. The results suggest that delusions of persecution may be associated with the over-attribution of contingency to the actions of agents
On Genocide, Economic Reasons vs. Ethnic Passion
The traditional vision of genocide is exogenous. In this framework, ethnies have a real sense. The economic approach of conflicts has expressed slight differences in the relation between ethnies and conflicts. However it does not reject this explanation. Here we propose an alternative approach, an endogenous vision of genocide. Genocide appears in society where social capital plays a major role in solidarities. But social capital is a weak asset in the individual portfolio. Economic and social shocks may have impacts on the assets structure and may produce conflicts such as genocide. In this new framework, policy makers may have to adopt prudential rules.Conflicts, Ethnocide, Genocide, Policies implications, Social capital
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