Utilitarianism: Doctrinal analysis evolution of thought

Utilitarianism as an innovative and original stream of ethical and political thought has enriched the philosophical discourse of the last three centuries. Utilitarian thinkers claim that maximization of pleasure correlated with minimization of pain is the correct way to create an objective catalog of rules or behaviors that result in the formation of the highest utility for a society and its individuals. From a methodological perspective, there are differences among the utilitarian philosophers on issues such as: happiness, pleasure or utility guide to diametrical disaccord on an ethical or institutional area. The present analysis of the utilitarian thought represents some of the interesting differences in interpretation of this doctrine. However, utilitarianism does not include logical or intellectually strong arguments for the protection of an individual’s rights against the interest of people at large. Thus, this doctrine during the 18th and the 19th centuries postulated the political egalitarianism. Nowadays, utilitarianism has lost its strong ethical position. In the past, utilitarianism was a political instrument to protect most of the people in a society from an arbitrary reigning of small elite groups. In recent times, this thought legitimizes the coercion of the majority will regardless of the fact that other smaller groups may have different political views. Such thinking allows to objectify the individual man which is only identified with instrumentality to maximization of utility. The author analyzes the writings of Jeremy Bentham, John Stuart Mill and Herbert Spencer, and compares their doctrines with the scientific literature and forwards a basic thesis on the universal principles of utilitarianism. The author argues that the actual rules of political ethics under conditions of limitation theory of utility append the law of inviolability of the natural rights of an individual.Publication of English-language versions of the volumes of the “Annales. Ethics in Economic Life” financed through contract no. 501/1/P-DUN/2017 from the funds of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education devoted to the promotion of scholarship

Electric dipoles vs. magnetic dipoles - for two molecules in a harmonic trap

We study energy levels of two heteronuclear molecules moving in a spherically symmetric harmonic trap. A role of electric dipole interactions is compared and contrasted with our earlier results (https://arxiv.org/abs/1512.00631) for two magnetic dipolar atoms. We stress importance of a rotational energy with its value which is very high compared to the energy of dipolar interaction. We show that dipolar forces do not play a significant role in the ground state of the system under typical experimental conditions. However, there exist excited states that exhibit anticrossings similar to the ones observed for magnetic dipoles.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figure

Social dominance and wheel running in females of Djungarian hamster (Phodopus sungorus)

Wheel running is a behaviour that has a rewarding effect on animals. There are not numerous papers investigating potential relationships between social rank and wheel running in mammals kept in groups, and the majority of published researches were conducted on male house mice (Mus musculus). The aim of our study was to investigate if social dominance and wheel running are related in female Djungarian hamsters (Phodopus sungorus). Hamsters were kept in groups, and social position of every animal was expressed as dominance index calculated on the basis of agonistic behaviour. We found significant positive correlation between dominance index and wheel running (rs = 0.809, n = 18, P < 0.0001), thus dominants used wheel more often than subordinates. Our results are consistent with those published on male mice. In conclusion, we claim that in majority of mammals (independent of their sex) kept in groups with restricted possibility of wheel running, dominants use wheel more often (or in optimal time) than subordinates, what is consistent with the fact that dominants have priority of access to resources

Phylogenetic analysis reveals an ancient gene duplication as the origin of the MdtABC efflux pump.

The efflux pumps from the Resistance-Nodulation-Division family, RND, are main contributors to intrinsic antibiotic resistance in Gram-negative bacteria. Among this family, the MdtABC pump is unusual by having two inner membrane components. The two components, MdtB and MdtC are homologs, therefore it is evident that the two components arose by gene duplication. In this paper, we describe the results obtained from a phylogenetic analysis of the MdtBC pumps in the context of other RNDs. We show that the individual inner membrane components (MdtB and MdtC) are conserved throughout the Proteobacterial species and that their existence is a result of a single gene duplication. We argue that this gene duplication was an ancient event which occurred before the split of Proteobacteria into Alpha-, Beta- and Gamma- classes. Moreover, we find that the MdtABC pumps and the MexMN pump from Pseudomonas aeruginosa share a close common ancestor, suggesting the MexMN pump arose by another gene duplication event of the original Mdt ancestor. Taken together, these results shed light on the evolution of the RND efflux pumps and demonstrate the ancient origin of the Mdt pumps and suggest that the core bacterial efflux pump repertoires have been generally stable throughout the course of evolution

Ecological Quality of the Construction Investment Project

The aim of the article is to indicate the possibility of assessing the quality of construction solutions for investment projects by analyzing their environmental performance, also formulated as ecological quality. The concept of the environmental performance of a construction project was defined as adapting the solutions applied throughout the whole life cycle to comply with the environment. The life cycle of the construction project begins articulating building needs, then the concept and feasibility study of the project appears at the beginning of the life cycle of the project. This is followed by the design of the building and executive processes. The next stages of the project life cycle are the implementations of logistic and construction processes, which end with putting the project into service. The operation phase ends with a project closure (usually demolition or deconstruction). An attempt was made to specify the criteria for assessing the ecological quality of construction investment projects in individual phases of their cycle. The investigations were based on available literature and practical experience of the authors of the study. It was also stressed that the perspective of the subject should be taken into account in the environmental assessment. This is due to the fact that the processes of shaping the object in the program, project and implementation phases are related to operational processes and the liquidation phase. It was emphasized that each of the stakeholders should perceive all stages of the construction project cycle

Influence of thermal phenomena on dc characteristics of the IGBT

The paper concerns the study of the effect of thermal phenomena on characteristics of the IGBT. The used measurement set-ups and the results of measurements of dc characteristics of the selected transistor obtained under different cooling conditions are presented. The influence of the ambient temperature and the applied cooling system on the shape of these characteristics is discussed. In particular, attention has been paid to the untypical shape of non-isothermal characteristics of this element in the sub-threshold range

On structure, family and parameter estimation of hierarchical Archimedean copulas

Research on structure determination and parameter estimation of hierarchical Archimedean copulas (HACs) has so far mostly focused on the case in which all appearing Archimedean copulas belong to the same Archimedean family. The present work addresses this issue and proposes a new approach for estimating HACs that involve different Archimedean families. It is based on employing goodness-of-fit test statistics directly into HAC estimation. The approach is summarized in a simple algorithm, its theoretical justification is given and its applicability is illustrated by several experiments, which include estimation of HACs involving up to five different Archimedean families.Comment: 63 pages, one attachment in attachment.pd

Individual Professional Practice in the Company

Tato bakalářská práce pojednává o mé odborné praxi ve firmě Webvalley s.r.o., která se primárně věnuje tvorbě internetových aplikací. Je zde shrnuté mé působení na pozici programátora internetových aplikací, kde jsem pracoval na webových stránkách pro firmu TONAK a.s. a také uživatelském portále pro americkou firmu Perfect Origins. Práce na těchto projektech zde bude popsána. Při práci s těmito projekty jsem se setkal s postupy, které jsem dále aplikoval v praxi. Získané dovednosti využiji v dalším profesním životě.This bachelor thesis deals with my professional experience in Webvalley s.r.o., which is primarily concerned with the creation of Internet applications. Here is my summary of my position as an Internet Application Programmer, where I worked on a website for TONAK a.s. and a user portal for Perfect Origins. Work on these projects will be described here. When working with these projects, I have met procedures that I have applied in practice. I will use the acquired skills in my next professional life.460 - Katedra informatikyvýborn

Druga Rzeczpospolita. Epilog

Księga dedykowana prof. dr. hab. Michałowi Domagale poświęcona jest tematyce związanej z Jego zainteresowaniami naukowymi – zasadami ustroju współczesnych państw. To zbiór artykułów napisanych przez Jego uczniów, kolegów i przyjaciół z Katedry Prawa Konstytucyjnego, Wydziału Prawa i Administracji Uniwersytetu Łódzkiego. Teksty dotyczą zasady suwerenności i odnoszą się do rozwiązań ustrojowych polskich bądź wybranych państw europejskich, w przeszłości należących do bloku państw socjalistycznych, a także problemów związanych z członkostwem suwerennego państwa w organizacjach międzynarodowych

Russia's position on the events in Kyrgyzstan (April-June 2010). OSW Commentary No. 38, 2010-07-27

Russia was the first state in the world to de facto recognise the regime change in Kyrgyzstan that took place on 7 April 2010. This recognition, along with a previous campaign by the Russian media against the then President Kurmanbek Bakiyev, has given rise to suspicion that the events of April were provoked by Russia. However, it seems no more than reasonable to say that Russia provided some inspiration and lobbying in that direction. Russia offered support to the new Kyrgyz government almost immediately, albeit conditionally. Russia’s relations with Roza Otunbayeva’s government have been changing in nature; they are currently much cooler than they had been immediately after the coup. There are many indications that this change was a reaction to the extension of the lease agreement for the American military base in the Manas airport. At the same time, Moscow remains in contact with the political rivals to the current regime, which suggests that the Kremlin is preparing for different developments, and does not regard the current crisis as having been fully resolved. Despite the interim government’s plea for help, Russia refused to undertake military intervention in southern Kyrgyzstan, which plunged into ethnic unrest in June. This shows that Russia is wary of being dragged into a long-standing and bloody conflict in the region, which could entail considerable expenses and jeopardise Russia’s authority. It should be expected that after the October parliamentary elections in Kyrgyzstan, Russia will return to its plans to establish a second military base in this country (in addition to the Kant base) to reinforce its dominant position in the region. This is the first time that Russia has had a real chance to play a stabilising role in the CIS area. How Russia copes with this challenge may decide its position in post-Soviet Central Asia – and in a wider context, its relations with NATO, the USA and China