What am I? Virtual Machines and the Mind/Body Problem

When your word processor or email program is running on your computer, this creates a "virtual machine” that manipulates windows, files, text, etc. What is this virtual machine, and what are the virtual objects it manipulates? Many standard arguments in the philosophy of mind have exact analogues for virtual machines and virtual objects, but we do not want to draw the wild metaphysical conclusions that have sometimes tempted philosophers in the philosophy of mind. A computer file is not made of epiphenomenal ectoplasm. I argue instead that virtual objects are "supervenient objects". The stereotypical example of supervenient objects is the statue and the lump of clay. To this end I propose a theory of supervenient objects. Then I turn to persons and mental states. I argue that my mental states are virtual states of a cognitive virtual machine implemented on my body, and a person is a supervenient object supervening on his cognitive virtual machine

Filling the dark spot: fifteen injured workers shine a light on the workers compensation system to improve it for others

Executive summary   The Creative Ministries Network (CMN) provides support to people affected by workplace injury and work-related death. Over the last fifteen years CMN has undertaken a number of projects examining the relationship between work and suicide. These earlier studies highlighted a gap in the research into work injury and compensation in relation to workers’ mental health.[1]   Existing research has concentrated on examining the health and/or return-to-work outcomes of compensation processes rather than considering the impact of the process itself on workers’ health and recovery. The research has also largely been epidemiological and/or focused on particular industry settings, injury types or points in the process from injury through compensation, rehabilitation and return to work. Very little work has been undertaken on compensation systems[2] from the perspectives of injured workers.   This study is intended to continue CMN’s commitment to develop a better understanding of the role played by work injury in mental health and suicidality by understanding the ways in which the Victorian WorkCover system impacts on the mental health of workers with long-term injuries. The purpose was to identify how workers might be better supported after an injury, and identify changes that compensation authorities, employers and unions can make to reduce mental distress amongst injured workers who are clients of the WorkCover system.   Workers who took part in the study noted a number of positives in the current WorkCover system:   The existence of a system that had provided workers with income and financial assistance with medical and other expenses related to their injury.   The focus on return to work and the support provided to retrain and re-enter the workplace was seen as helpful.   The capabilities of insurers’ case managers and the return-to-work co-ordinators made a difference. Where these individuals were skilled both technically and interpersonally, able to show empathy and humanity, the injured workers reported a better experience and one that enhanced their mental health and recovery.   Largely positive interactions with healthcare providers.   From the perspective of the workers interviewed, the study also revealed a number of problems associated with Victoria’s WorkCover system:   Overall, workers experienced the system as unfair and unjust, believed it prioritised the interests of employers and failed to remedy the situation that had caused them injury in the first place.   The majority of workers reported being treated disrespectfully, dismissively or without humanity by the system.   Workers reported inefficiencies, errors and the complex requirements of the system combined to create a sense of being trapped in a game, where winning and disproving the worker’s version of events was the main aim.   Workers were not prepared for the evidentiary and adversarial nature of the process. This took a toll on their sense of trust, as did the poor interpersonal treatment they received from WorkCover personnel and, for some, their own employers.   Overall, workers struggled with the requirements of the process, especially at a time when the experience of being injured in the workplace affected their ability to function. The accumulation of these impacts left workers feeling devalued and dehumanised.   Specific points in the process that appeared to have the potential for particular impact on workers’ mental health were:   At the beginning, when workers were at their most anxious about whether their claim would be accepted.   Attending insurers’ doctors for medical assessment and medical panels.   Returning to work.   Workers identified several elements of their experience as helpful in terms of managing the process and contributing to better mental health and recovery. The most valued was support they had received to engage with the process. One aspect of this is technical support, independent advice to assist them to navigate the system. But workers also stressed the importance of emotional support, someone who believed their version of events without question, someone who could see the workers’ desire to return to work and could hold onto the good worker identity of the individual.   It was less important where this came from (union, family, friends, GP and psychologist were all mentioned). What was seen as vital was the person who provided the support understood what the WorkCover experience was like and could assist the worker to navigate it.   This finding highlights the important issue of how the system might better utilise trained peer support workers to assist injured workers, a topic CMN is particularly keen to engage with WorkCover on.   The project makes the following recommendations:   Recommendation 1 Funding is sought for a pilot project to develop, trial and evaluate an intervention that utilises trained peer support workers in assisting injured workers’ recovery for life and work.   Recommendation 2 A course outline be developed, drawing on workers’ lived experience knowledge, for the professional development of WorkCover insurance case managers aimed at improving their ability to deal with traumatised and ill clients.   Recommendation 3 That injured workers and/or their representatives are included in future relevant research reference groups and policy development processes.   Recommendation 4 Further research is undertaken in relation to workers’ lived experience and what supports their recovery, including interactions with the WorkCover system. This research would deliberately target workers with serious physical and psychosocial injuries but who have recovered. This research could identify what was different in the workers’ experience and how they understand their experience.     [1] Mental health’ in this report refers to the workers’ self-described experience of their own mental, emotional and psychological well-being. This definition of ‘mental health’ draws on the notion of a ‘lived experience’ knowledge base and is consistent with the conceptualisation of mental health, ill-health, distress found in the literature on mental health recovery.   [2] The ‘system’ referred to throughout this report is that of Victorian WorkCover, constituted by legislation and administered by the Victorian WorkCover Authority. The system has defined roles for private insurers, employers, trade unions, health providers, workers and injured workers. &nbsp

Appointment of Counsel for Civil Litigants: A Judicial Path to Ensuring the Fair and Ethical Administration of Justice

In 2015, a pro se litigant named Aikiam Floyd brought a race discrimination claim in federal court against his former employer.1 However, his claim faced a motion to dismiss for being allegedly time barred. Jack Weinstein, who has been a federal judge in the Eastern District of New York since 1967, asked Floyd “a series of leading questions” to elicit the facts demonstrating the claim was not in fact time barred.2 Judge Weinstein then sua sponte recused himself, stating, “[T]he judge has intervened on plaintiff’s behalf. While no partiality could be construed in rejecting defendant’s motion for summary judgment based on timeliness, recusal now is desirable to avoid the appearance of partiality by the undersigned judge in future decisions in the case.”3 He expressed his frustration succinctly by commenting, “In many cases, pro se justice is an oxymoron.”4 The judge’s actions were so notable that they received a writeup in the New York Law Journal.

Bhutan and the border crisis with China

Amid rising tensions in the Himalayas, the kingdom of Bhutan is being drawn into an asymmetric border crisis with China, with implications for all South Asia. In the disputed Doklam and Pasamlung regions, China’s presence is now visible within Bhutanese territory, and Beijing has upped the ante further recently, claiming Sakteng near the border with Arunachal Pradesh (in India). John Pollock argues that with Sino-Indian relations already damaged by other events, Bhutan is seeing its territory encroached on as Beijing seeks advantage over India

Water Security at United States Air Force Installations

Global water security is a growing concern that poses unique challenges that stem from geopolitical arrangement, regional location, and local climate conditions. United States national defense relies on an uninterrupted water supply to sustain operations to carry out its readiness mission. Accurate water security assessments are necessary for adapting to climate factors and to provide essential information to meet the changing needs of human water demand. This research presents how different water metrics are applied at various United States Air Force locations to measure water scarcity. Geographical Information Systems (GIS) software is used to conduct spatial correlation across the United States to identify ranges between the metrics. Reported water condition data from 34 United States Air Force installation development plans was assessed for correlation with the selected water scarcity metrics, though no evidence suggesting a relationship between the developed water scarcity index and the installation development plan data was identified. The development of an index to accurately relay water scarcity conditions will improve the ability to overcome water planning and regional water management challenges and combat factors that contribute to water scarcity. Such measures are needed to ensure water security as United States water resources face challenges from climatic variation and the threat of cyber-attacks on water systems

Workers’ compensation and mental health : examining the mental health impacts of involvement in the Victorian Work Cover system from the perspective of long-­term injured workers

The project aimed to explore long--term injured workers&rsquo; experiences and perceptions of their mental health as they progressed through the Victorian WorkCover process. The purpose of the project was to assist in understanding these factors in order to identify how workers might be better supported, and to identify changes that compensation authorities, employers and unions can make to reduce mental distress amongst injured workers. As a project based on workers&rsquo; accounts of their experiences, it aimed to provide a narrative basis for the development of supportive policy and practice to reduce mental distress amongst people who are clients of the WorkCover system. The project was a qualitative study based on fifteen in--depth interviews with people who had been injured at work and who had been off work for at least six months. The workers who took part in the study were recruited with the assistance of their trade unions, using an advertisement that was distributed via the unions&rsquo; regular communication channels. Workers were asked to tell their story of injury and recovery with a particular focus on how they felt and the factors that affected them, both positively and negatively. They were also asked what could or should be changed to support workers&rsquo; recovery and improve their experience of the WorkCover system. The workers who took part in the study came from a variety of industry sectors (education, textile and clothing manufacturing and meat industries) and different occupational categories (professional, trade/technical and manual). They included people whose primary injury was physical and those whose primary injury was psychosocial. <br /