Reclaiming Virtue Ethics for Economics

Virtue ethics is an important strand of moral philosophy which normative economists have largely neglected. It underpins influential critiques of the market (as a domain in which instrumental motivation corrodes virtue) and of economics (as justifying such motivation). We explain and respond to this critique. Using the methods of virtue ethics and with reference to the writings of major economists, we propose an understanding of the ‘telos’ (purpose) of markets as cooperation for mutual benefit, and identify traits that thereby count as virtues for market participants. We conclude that the market need not be seen as a virtue-free zone

Sport for Development and Peace in Divided Societies: Cooperating for Inter-Community Empowermentin Israel

© 2011, Copyright 2011 Taylor and Francis Group LLC. The idea of using sport for social, cultural and community development has been promoted for decades; however, only limited empirical research can be found that analyses the strategic potential of sport projects in contributing to conflict resolution, reconciliation and peace building in deeply divided societies. This study concentrates upon the experiences of a number of Football for Peace (F4P) projects operating in Israel in 2009. It identifies and investigates the inter-community sport management strategies employed in a particular project that featured Jewish, Arab, and Circassian communities in Northern Israel. The article focuses on and assesses the role played by external change agents in facilitating project delivery and development. Following an interpretive mode of enquiry, observations and focus group discussions with key project facilitators and sport coaches were conducted exploring participant experiences and using this information to develop practical recommendations for social development through sport. The following six strategic dimensions were elicited as critical elements for promoting positive inter-community relations, building local capacity and enhancing overall social development: greater emphasis on training for all volunteers; the provision of role model support; the development of local commitment and leadership; improvement of sport programming; the facilitation of wider community involvement; and project augmentation and extension. We argue that these practical suggestions have transferable implications for other grassroots organisations and NGOs that use sport projects in divided and/or disadvantaged communities elsewhere in the world

‘Better off, as judged by themselves’:A reply to Cass Sunstein

This paper is a reply to Sunstein’s comment on my paper ‘Do people really want to be nudged towards healthy lifestyles?’ The central claim of that paper was that, in their book Nudge, Thaler and Sunstein switch between two different interpretations of the ‘better off, as judged by themselves’ criterion, and that consistent use of one or other interpretation would have blunted the persuasive power of the book. In this reply, I defend that claim against Sunstein’s counter-arguments

Emergence of the Shackleton Range from beneath the Antarctic Ice Sheet due to glacial erosion

This paper explores the long-term evolution of a subglacial fjord landscape in the Shackleton Range, Antarctica. We propose that prolonged ice-sheet erosion across a passive continental margin caused troughs to deepen and lower the surrounding ice-sheet surface, leaving adjacent mountains exposed. Geomorphological evidence suggests a change in the direction of regional ice flow accompanied emergence. Simple calculations suggest that isostatic compensation caused by the deepening of bounding ice-stream troughs lowered the ice-sheet surface relative to the mountains by ~800m. Use of multiple cosmogenic isotopes on bedrock and erratics (26Al, 10Be, 21Ne) provides evidence that overriding of the massif and the deepening of the adjacent troughs occurred earlier than the Quaternary. Perhaps this occurred in the mid-Miocene, as elsewhere in East Antarctica in the McMurdo Dry Valleys and the Lambert basin. The implication is that glacial erosion instigates feedback that can change ice-sheet thickness, extent, and direction of flow. Indeed, as the subglacial troughs evolve over millions of years, they increase topographic relief; and this changes the dynamics of the ice sheet. © 2013 Elsevier B.V

Efficiency, equality and labelling: an experimental investigation of focal points in explicit bargaining

Efficiency, equality and labelling: an experimental investigation of focal points in explicit bargainin

Probing the interfacial and sub-surface structure of Si/Si1 – xGex multilayers

The ability to determine structural and compositional information from the sub-surface region of a semiconductor material has been demonstrated using a new time-of-flight medium energy ion scattering spectroscopy (ToF-MEISS) system. A series of silicon–silicon/germanium (Si/Si1 – xGex) heterostructure and multilayer samples, grown using both solid source molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) and gas source chemical vapor deposition (CVD) on Si(100) substrates, have been investigated. These data indicate that each individual layer of Si1 – xGex (x ~ 0.22) in both two- and three-period samples, can be uniquely identified with a resolution of approximately 3 nm. A comparison of MBE and CVD grown samples has also been made using layers with similar structures and composition. The total Ge content of each sample was confirmed using conventional Rutherford backscattering spectrometry

Critical reflections on the future of global sport governance in a post-Covid-19 world

As the COVID-19 pandemic passes its peak across most of the world people will be asking of society’s ruling elites, what lessons have been learned across the commanding heights of the institutional infrastructure as we have known it. In this chapter based on life-long experience of participation in, and critical commentary on, sport using both evidence-based argument and some ‘blue sky’ thinking. We shine our spotlight on sport, one of the social institutions that have featured most prominently during the coronavirus hiatus. We consider the role of community or grass-roots sport and the significant gap sport has left in our locked-down lives. We then scrutinise top-level national and international sport and finally make important recommendations for the future organisation and governance of sport in a post-coronavirus world