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Selected AbstractsThat Which Makes the Sensation of Blue a Mental Fact: Moore on Phenomenal RelationismEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF PHILOSOPHY, Issue 3 2007Benj Hellie A gift of a dollar for each article in the philosophy of perception and consciousness published since 1990 making reference, explicitly or implicitly, to Moore's discussion in the second half of Moore 19031 of an alleged ,transparency' and ,diaphanousness' pertaining to some aspect of perceptual experience would very likely cover the tab of a mid-priced dinner for two.2 Moore's poetically expressed observations have captured the imagination of contemporary philosophers of perception and consciousness, and have served as the basis of much fruitful discussion in those areas. Still, despite all the attention these observations have received, the contemporary literature lacks a close reading of the second half of Moore's paper, without which it is impossible to understand Moore's observations in the context in which they were originally expressed. It is understandable that such a close reading is lacking: the second half of Moore's paper has been rightly described by one of his most sympathetic and dedicated interpreters as ,extremely dense and opaque' (Klemke 2000: 55).3 But despite the evident difficulties of the task, I aim here, with some trepidation, to provide the missing close reading. The main points of my interpretation will be these. The centerpiece of the anti-idealist manoeuvrings of the second half of the paper is a phenomenological argument for what I will call a relational view of perceptual phenomenal character, on which, roughly, ,that which makes the sensation of blue a mental fact' is a relation of conscious awareness, a view close to the opposite of the most characteristic contemporary view going under the transparency rubric.4 The discussion of transparency and diaphanousness is a sidelight, its principal purpose to shore up the main line of argumentation against criticism; in those passages all Moore argues is that the relation of conscious awareness is not transparent, while acknowledging that it can seem to be. My discussion will proceed as follows. In section 1, I will discuss some theses and elucidate some notions from the philosophy of perception and consciousness which will be central to my interpretation; having done so, I will be in a position to explain how an accurate understanding of Moore may contribute to theoretical advances in the philosophy of perception and consciousness. The next two sections contain the exegetical heart of the paper: section 2 provides an analysis of Moore's case for the relational view; section 3 attempts to explain the place of the relational view in the overall refutation of idealism. Section 4 critically discusses a pair of competing interpretations. Section 5 wraps things up, drawing concluding morals as to the campaigns on behalf of which Moore should and should not be enlisted. [source] The rise of research on futures in ecology: rebalancing scenarios and predictionsECOLOGY LETTERS, Issue 12 2009Audrey Coreau Abstract Concern about the ecological consequences of global change has increasingly stimulated ecologists to examine the futures of ecological systems. Studying futures is not only a crucial element of the interaction between science, management and decision making, but also a critical research challenge per se, especially because futures cannot be observed or experimented on. In addition, researchers can encounter methodological and theoretical difficulties, which make interpretations and predictions problematic. In the literature which deals with futures of ecological systems two main lines of research can be distinguished: a predictive approach, which dominates the literature, can be contrasted with a rarer number of studies that elaborate potential scenarios for ecological systems. Scenario approaches currently concern mainly contacts with stakeholders or decision makers, or the use of climate scenarios to derive projections about ecological futures. We argue that a new direction for ecological futures research could be explored by using ecological scenarios in combination with predictive models to further fundamental ecological research, in addition to enhancing its applied value. Ecology Letters (2009) 12: 1277,1286 [source] Lateral line system and its innervation in Tetraodontiformes with outgroup comparisons: Descriptions and phylogenetic implicationsJOURNAL OF MORPHOLOGY, Issue 5 2010Masanori Nakae Abstract The lateral line system and its innervation in ten tetraodontiform families and five outgroup taxa were examined. Although some homology issues remained unresolved, tetraodontiforms were characterized by having two types (at least) of superficial neuromasts (defined by the presence or absence of supporting structures) and accessory lateral lines and neuromasts (except Molidae in which "accessory" elements were absent). The preopercular line in Tetraodontiformes was not homologous with that of typical teleosts, because the line was innervated by the opercular ramule that was newly derived from the mandibular ramus, the condition being identical to that in Lophiidae. Within Tetraodontiformes, the number of neuromasts varied between 70 and 277 in the main lines and between 0 and 52 in accessory elements. Variations were also recognized in the presence or absence of the supraorbital commissure, mandibular line, otic line, postotic line, ventral trunk line, and some lateral line nerve rami, most notably the dorsal branch of the opercular ramule, being absent in Aracanidae, Ostraciidae, Tetraodontidae, Diodontidae, and Molidae. Morphological characteristics derived from the lateral line system and its innervation provided some support for a sister relationship of tetraodontiforms with lophiiforms. J. Morphol., 2010. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Deglaciation of the Irish Sea Basin: a critique of the glaciomarine hypothesisJOURNAL OF QUATERNARY SCIENCE, Issue 5 2001Danny McCarroll Abstract The glaciomarine model for deglaciation of the Irish Sea basin suggests that the weight of ice at the last glacial maximum was sufficient to raise relative sea-levels far above their present height, destabilising the ice margin and causing rapid deglaciation. Glacigenic deposits throughout the basin have been interpreted as glaciomarine. The six main lines of evidence on which the hypothesis rests (sedimentology, deformation structures, delta deposits, marine fauna, amino-acid ratios and radiocarbon dates) are reviewed critically. The sedimentological interpretation of many sections has been challenged and it is argued that subglacial sediments are common rather than rare and that there is widespread evidence of glaciotectonism. Density-driven deformation associated with waterlain sediments is rare and occurs where water was ponded locally. Sand and gravel deposits interpreted as Gilbert-type deltas are similarly the result of local ponding or occur where glaciers from different source areas uncoupled. They do not record past sea-levels and the ad hoc theory of ,piano-key tectonics' is not required to explain the irregular pattern of altitudes. The cold-water foraminifers interpreted as in situ are regarded as reworked from Irish Sea sediments that accumulated during much of the late Quaternary, when the basin was cold and shallow with reduced salinities. Amino-acid age estimates used in support of the glaciomarine model are regarded as unreliable. Radiocarbon dates from distinctive foraminiferal assemblages in northeast Ireland show that glaciomarine sediments do occur above present sea-level, but they are restricted to low altitudes in the north of the basin and record a rise rather than a fall in sea-level. It is suggested here that the oldest dates, around 17 000 yr BP, record the first Late Devensian (Weichselian) marine inundation above present sea-level. This accords with the pattern but not the detail of recent models of sea-level change. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] EPISTEMOLOGICAL CONTEXTUALISM: PROBLEMS AND PROSPECTSTHE PHILOSOPHICAL QUARTERLY, Issue 219 2005Michael Brady Epistemological contextualism has become one of the most important and widely discussed new proposals in the theory of knowledge. This special issue contributes to the debate by bringing together some of the main participants to provide a state-of-the-art discussion of the proposal. Here we offer a brief overview of the contextualist position, describe some of the main lines of criticism that have been levelled against the view, and present a summary of each of the contributions to this collection. [source] Crystallization and preliminary X-ray analysis of clade I catalases from Pseudomonas syringae and Listeria seeligeriACTA CRYSTALLOGRAPHICA SECTION D, Issue 8 2001Xavier Carpena Haem-containing catalases are homotetrameric molecules that degrade hydrogen peroxide. Phylogenetically, the haem-containing catalases can be grouped into three main lines or clades. The crystal structures of seven catalases have been determined, all from clades II and III. In order to obtain a structure of an enzyme from clade I, which includes all plant, algae and some bacterial enzymes, two bacterial catalases, CatF from Pseudomonas syringae and Kat from Listeria seeligeri, have been crystallized by the hanging-drop vapour-diffusion technique, using PEG and ammonium sulfate as precipitants, respectively. Crystals of P. syringae CatF, with a plate-like morphology, belong to the monoclinic space group P21, with unit-cell parameters a = 60.6, b = 153.9, c = 109.2,Å, , = 102.8°. From these crystals a diffraction data set to 1.8,Å resolution with 98% completeness was collected using synchrotron radiation. Crystals of L. seeligeri Kat, with a well developed bipyramidal morphology, belong to space group I222 (or I212121), with unit-cell parameters a = 74.4, b = 121.3, c = 368.5,Å. These crystals diffracted beyond 2.2,Å resolution when using synchrotron radiation, but presented anisotropic diffraction, with the weakest direction perpendicular to the long c axis. [source] | |||||||||||||