Forms of the Word and the Mystery of the Objectified Nature of the Word

The time has come to proceed from forms of givenness of the word to forms of the word as such. They can, if you like, be called external and inner structures. Humboldt, however, preferred to speak of the external and inner forms of the language. Shpet adopted precisely this distinction. Why did this problem interest Shpet? Already in [Appearance and sense], he had set the task of returning to the source of pretheoretical, living science. Shpet wrote that the outer cover of words and logical expressions obscure the objectified meaning and that it was necessary to remove another cover from the objectified sign so as to grasp a certain genuine intimacy, and in it the fullness of being (Shpet, 1914. Pp. 5-6). We shall keep in mind this major undertaking posed by this scientist. The existence of the inner form of words should not come as a surprise. That same year (1914) Ortega y Gasset wrote that material objects have a third dimension. However, we cannot see or touch it: "For just as depth needs a surface beneath which to be concealed, the surface, or outer cover, in order to be so, needs something over which to spread, covering it" (Ortega y Gasset, 2000. Pp. 62-63).     

XII. Something on Vision from Within

Earlier I attempted to show that Shpet was able to penetrate behind the external form of the word through its shell, which in itself is by no means simple, into its inner form, which proved to be immeasurably more complex than the external form. For me it still remains a mystery: How was he able to penetrate into the "living soul" of the word? Of course, he was helped in this by encyclopedic knowledge. He was, after all, a philosopher, a linguist, a psychologist, and an art cognoscente; he completed two years at the physics and mathematics and the history and philology departments of Kiev University. And Shpet also knew seventeen (!) languages. It seems to me that Shpet saw language (languages) and the word from within. He blended into the word rather than manipulated it. "Vision from within" is not a fantasy of my own. Goethe, who in the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson could see with his every pore, knew how to see from within. Ortega y Gasset in 1932 published a special article on this subject: "Goethe's vision from within." What Daniil Kharms saw from within was the absurd.     

The Problem of the Development of the Intellect and Learning in Human Psychology

The definition of word from which Shpet proceeds embraces every linguistic phenomenon, both autosemantic and synsemantic. The definition includes every isolated word ("dictionary material") as well as a coherent period or sentence and any organic member or arbitrarily established part of them: "Indeed, whatever specific part of a whole in human speech we isolate, it will contain, if only virtually, the properties, functions, and relations of the whole" (Shpet, 1989. P. 402).     

The Problem of the "Formative" Elements of Consciousness in the Activity Theory of the Mind

The problem of the structure and psychological mechanisms of consciousness has a rich history, to which M. M. Bakhtin, G. G. Shpet, L. S. Vygotsky, and, later, A. N. Leont'ev and S. L. Rubinshtein all made significant contributions. It is our purpose in the present article to discuss only one aspect of this problem: the structure of individual consciousness. Pursuing the line of research delineated by Vygotsky, Leont'ev (1977) posed some cardinal questions: Of what is consciousness composed? How does it arise? What are its components? He called the latter the "formative elements" of consciousness. According to Leont'ev, there are three such "forming" elements: the sensory fabric of perception (or of an image), meaning, and sense. The inclusion of the sensory fabric in the structure of consciousness along with ostensive meaning and sense was a definite step forward along the path toward the ontologization of conceptions of consciousness.¹ But I think that individual consciousness construed in this way is still insufficiently ontological. Leont'ev's three "formative elements" do not completely account for the connection between consciousness and being (see M. M. Bakhtin, for whom consciousness "participates" in being and is essential for life). One might even reproach Leont'ev for a certain inconsistency: activity, although it is the source of consciousness, is itself not one of its "formative elements." Of course, he could answer this reproach by saying that the "formative elements" are structural elements, constituents, not generative elements. However, it seems to me that the distinction between constitutive and generative is very, very relative in any analysis of living consciousness, which is continually in the process of being constructed.     

IX. Meaning and the Semantic Act

Shpet concludes his definition of the structure of the word as follows:

Indeed, if one accepts that morphological forms are external and agrees to call ontic forms of named things pure, then the logical forms lying between them will be inner forms with respect to both the former and the latter since, in this latter case, the "content" of an object is inner content veiled by its pure forms. It is this content, being internally logically formed, that constitutes sense. Logical forms are inner forms as forms of ideal sense, expressed and communicated; ontic forms are pure forms of real and possible corporeal content.     

The role fo glutamine synthetase and glutamine metabolism in nitrogen metabolite repression, a regulatory phenomenon in the lower eukaryote Neurospora crassa

Summary Growth of Neurospora crassa on media containing NH ₄ ⁺ leads to the repression of a variety of permeases and alternative pathways which would generate NH ₄ ⁺ , so called ammonium repression. The mutant am ₂ which lacks NADP-GDH is not subject to ammonium repression of nitrate reductase or urea permease, but like the wild type has repressed levels of these systems when grown in the presence of proline, glutamate or glutamine. The glutamine synthetase (GS) mutant gln-la has derepressed levels of the aforementioned systems unless grown with glutamine.The oligomeric state of GS depends upon the nitrogen sufficiency of the cell, a tetrameric form predominates under conditions of nitrogen limitation and an octameric form under conditions of nitrogen sufficiency. We have found that the tetrameric form GS predominates in the mutants am ₂ and gln-la when they are ammonium derepressed.The mechanism of NH ₄ ⁺ repression in N. crassa is thought to entail a cessation of positive gene action by the product of the nit-2 regulatory gene. We propose that under conditions of NH ₄ ⁺ sufficiency, and hence glutamine sufficiency, the octameric form of GS represses nit-2 gene expression and thereby achieves ammonium repression.     

Switch between competition and facilitation within a seasonal scale at colony level in bryophytes

The relative importance of positive and negative interaction in species assemblages is thought to be dependent on the harshness of the physical environment. I studied the consistency of this prediction in a field experiment using growth of the target species Warnstorfia exannulata as influenced by the presence or absence of two adjacent species, Sphagnum warnstorfii and Scapania undulata. In particular, I focused on the mechanism by which colony–colony interactions occur, elucidating how the balance of positive and negative interactions changes along a water gradient. Because the natural fluctuations of the environment modify the water gradient, it was expected that the competitive hierarchies of the species would not remain consistent over time. Results indicated that the different hydrological properties of the colonies, thought to be the necessary condition for the appearance of species interactions, were not sufficient to explain the outcome of the species interactions. The switch from competition to facilitation under more stressful conditions was not confirmed along a water stress gradient. In addition, natural climatic fluctuations, by affecting the length of the water gradient, changed the competitive hierarchies of the species on a seasonal scale.     

The two faces of revenge: moral responsibility and the culture of honor

Retributive emotions and behavior are thought to be adaptive for their role in improving social coordination. However, since retaliation is generally not in the short-term interests of the individual, rational self-interest erodes the motivational link between retributive emotions and the accompanying adaptive behavior. I argue that two different sets of norms have emerged to reinforce this link: (1) norms about honor and (2) norms about moral responsibility and desert. I observe that the primary difference between these types of retribution motivators lies in where the normative focus is placed after an offense. In the first form of retribution, the normative focus is on the offended party. In the second, it is on the offender. Next, I show how each class of norms is well tailored to the particular features of the environment in which these forms of retributive behavior emerge. Finally, I consider some philosophical implications of these observations. I suggest that my account, if correct, would pose tough challenges for contemporary philosophical theories of moral responsibility and punishment.

Reproductive Compensation: A Review of the <Emphasis Type="Italic">Gryllus</Emphasis> spp.—<Emphasis Type="Italic">Ormia ochracea</Emphasis> Host-Parasitoid System

Calling male field crickets (Gryllus spp.) are acoustically located and subsequently parasitized by the parasitoid fly, Ormia ochracea (Diptera: Tachinidae). Parasitism by O. ochracea results in cricket death. The reproductive compensation hypothesis posits that when a host’s residual reproductive value decreases, it would be adaptive for that host to shift its resources into current reproduction. Reproductive compensation has not been observed in the cricket-fly system. Here we review the studies to date that have investigated reproductive compensation in the cricket-fly interaction, in an attempt to understand why crickets do not compensate for their future reproductive losses. We conclude that the cricket-fly interaction may not be an ideal system in which to investigate reproductive compensation and furthermore, that reproductive compensation has been poorly investigated in this system.     

Species names and metaphyly: a case study in Discodorididae (Mollusca, Gastropoda, Euthyneura, Nudibranchia, Doridina)

Dayrat, B. & Gosliner, T. M. (2005). Species names and metaphyly: a case study in Discodorididae (Mollusca, Gastropoda, Euthyneura, Nudibranchia, Doridina) —Zoologica Scripta, **, ***–***. Absence of resolution in phylogenetic trees, or metaphyly, is a common phenomenon. It mainly results from the fact that each data set has its own limit and can hardly be expected to reconstruct alone an entire hierarchy. Because metaphyly helps point out which regions of a tree merit further investigation, one should not avoid metaphyly but rather should try to detect it by addressing carefully node reliability. In this paper we explore the implication of metaphyly for species names. We present a phylogenetic analysis of Discodorididae (Mollusca, Gastropoda, Nudibranchia, Doridina), with an emphasis on relationships among species of Discodoris and its traditionally close ‘allies’ such as Peltodoris and Anisodoris. We demonstrate that some species must be transferred to different discodoridid subclades with which they share synapomorphies, but that many species form a metaphyletic group at the base of Discodorididae, and therefore cannot be placed in any taxon of genus level. We demonstrate that the current International Code of Zoological Nomenclature does not allow taxonomists to handle this situation because it requires selecting a taxon name of genus rank for every species binomial. Then we evaluate the results provided by new forms of species names, both in a rank‐based system, such as the current nomenclature, and a rank‐free system. All solutions considered would cause radical changes to the ‘spirit’ of the current ICZN (and, by extension, to the other current codes). In a rank‐free system of nomenclature, such as the PhyloCode, the best result is obtained with an epithet‐based form that does not mention supra‐specific relationships. Under this method, official species names would take the form ‘boholiensis Bergh, 1877’, although page numbers and letters can be added for uniqueness purposes. Taxonomists would then be free to add supra‐specific taxon names in ‘common’ species names, such as Discodorididae boholiensis Bergh, 1877 or simply Discodorididae boholiensis. Here we wish to stimulate discussion of a problem that we believe merits wide debate: absence of resolution in phylogenetic reconstruction and its impact on species nomenclature.     

Evidence of a M1-muscarinic GPCR homolog in unicellular eukaryotes: featuring Acanthamoeba spp bioinformatics 3D-modelling and experimentations

Acetylcholine affects the target cellular function via muscarinic and nicotinic cholinergic receptors that are seen to exist in humans. Both the cholinergic receptors are G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) that perform cardinal functions in humans. Anti-muscarinic drugs, particularly the ones that target M1 subtype (mAChR1), have consistently shown to kill unicellular pathogenic eukaryotes like Acanthamoeba spp. As the M1 receptor subtype has not been reported to be expressed in the above protist, the presence of an ancient form of the M1 muscarinic receptor was inferred. Bioinformatic tools and experimental assays were performed to establish the presence of a ligand-binding site. A search for sequence homology of amino acids of human M1 receptor failed to uncover an equivalent ligand-binding site on Acanthamoeba, but structural bioinformatics showed a hypothetical protein L8HIA6 to be a receptor homolog of the human mAChR1. Immunostaining with an anti-mAChR1 antibody showed cellular staining. Growth assays showed proliferation and lethal effects of exposure to mAChR1 agonist and antagonist respectively. With the recent authentication of human mAChR1 structure and its addition to the database, it was possible to discover its structural analog in Acanthamoeba; which could explain the effects of anticholinergics observed in the past on Acanthamoeba spp.

The discovery of a receptor homolog of human mAChR1 on Acanthamoeba with future studies planned to show its expression and binding to cholinergic agonist and antagonist would help clarify its role in the biology of this protist pathogen.     

Determination and Novel Features of the Absolute Absorption Spectra of the Heme a Moieties in Cytochrome c Oxidase

The absolute absorption spectra of the two heme a moieties in cytochrome c oxidase were determined in the Soret region where spectral contributions from copper ions are negligible. This determination employs a set of absorption spectra of the enzyme recorded during anaerobic reduction with sodium dithionite, and does not require any other spectral data. The unique feature of the component spectra revealed in the present study suggests the existence of a specific interaction of heme a with the immediate environment as its origin. The usefulness of the absolute spectra in quantitative analysis of the spectral data is presented.     

Behavioral manipulation of host caterpillars by the primary parasitoid wasp Cotesia glomerata (L.) to construct defensive webs against hyperparasitism

Many parasitoids control the behavior of their hosts to achieve more preferable conditions. Decreasing predation pressure is a main aim of host manipulation. Some parasitoids control host behavior to escape from their enemies, whereas others manipulate hosts into constructing defensive structures as barriers against hyperparasitism. Larvae of the parasitoid wasp Cotesia glomerata form cocoon clusters after egression from the parasitized host caterpillar of the butterfly Pieris brassicae. After the egression of parasitoids, the perforated host caterpillar lives for a short period and constructs a silk web that covers the cocoon cluster. We examined whether these silk webs protect C. glomerata cocoons against the hyperparasitoid wasp Trichomalopsis apanteroctena. In cocoon clusters that were not covered by silk webs (bare clusters), only cocoons hidden beneath others avoided hyperparasitism. In covered cocoon clusters, both cocoons hidden beneath others and those with a space between them and the silk web avoided hyperparasitism, whereas cocoons that contacted the silk webs were parasitized. The frequency of cocoons that were hidden beneath others increased with the increasing number of cocoons in a cluster, but the defensive effect of cluster size was thought to be lower than that of silk webs. However, the rate of hyperparasitism did not differ between covered and bare clusters when we allowed the hyperparasitoids to attack the cocoon clusters in an experimental arena. This result was thought to have been caused by low oviposition frequency by these hyperparasitoids. As a result, silk webs did not guard the cocoons from hyperparasitoids in our experiments, but would protect cocoons under high hyperparasitism pressure by forming a space through which the ovipositors could not reach the cocoons.     

Observations on the fine structure of the endophyte of the root nodules of alnus glutinosa (L.) gaertn.

Summary Electron micrographs have been prepared showing different stages in the development of the endophyte in Alnus glutinosa root nodules. Although the complete life cycle of the organism has not yet been worked out it is concluded that it is an Actinomycete. The organism can exist as a septate, branching filament of diameter 0.7–1.0 . However, under certain conditions within the nodule, the endophyte can form spherical sub-divided vesicles 4–5 in diameter and it is suggested that these vesicles are analogous to sporangia. Yet again under other conditions the organism fragments to form bacteroids. It would appear that the different forms of the organism are associated with different seasons of the year and with different metabolic patterns, of particular interest in this connection is the fixation of nitrogen which is associated with the nodule symbiosis.     

On the Semio-Mathematical Nature of Codes

The relational structure of RNA, DNA, and protein bears an interesting similarity to the determination problem in category theory. In this paper, we present this deep-structure similarity and use it as a springboard for discussing some abstract properties of coding in various systems. These abstract properties, in turn, may shed light on the evolution of the DNA world from a semiotic perspective. According to the perspective adopted in this paper, living systems are not information processing systems but “meaning-making” systems. Therefore, what flows in the genetic system is not “information” but “value.” We define meaning, meaning-making, and value and then use these terms to explain the abstract dynamics of coding, which can illuminate many forms of sign-mediated activities in biosystems.     

The riboflavin-sensitized photooxidation of horseradish apoperoxidase

Summary Native horseradish peroxidase, as well as its reduced and carboxymethylated form, and the apoenzyme, showed resistance to photodynamic action. Sensitivity to this action was detected only in reduced and carboxymethylated apoenzyme, when the photooxidation of its histidine residues was observed. When analyzing the bulk hydrophobic character (H_f) and the accessibility coefficients (B_r) in those amino acid residues which can be subjected to photooxidation in horseradish peroxidase, it was found that all of them are situated in hydrophobic zones with low accessibility coefficients. This could justify the high resistance of this enzyme to photodynamic action. The only exception is tryptophan-117, which has low values of H_f and B_r, and therefore its resistance to photodynamic action can only be explained in terms of its location and environment. Tryptophan-117 would be situated in a zone of antiparallel-structure, according to Chou and Fasman's predictive method for protein conformation.     

Negative complementation among ad2 mutants of yeast

Summary Ad ₂ remedial mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiae which showed conditional growth at 35°C or with 1 M KCl at 25° C or 35° C, were crossed with other remedial and non-remedial mutants in all pairwise combinations. 19 remedials (11 K ₂₅, 5 temp. and 3 K ₃₅) and 189 non-remedial mutants were used. The standard conditions used were incubation at 25° C in the absence of adenine.Among 1625 combinations there were 367 (22.6%) cases of negative complementation. In these cases the diploids were unable to grow under the same conditions which permitted a strong growth of the remedial haploid.No negative complementation was observed among K ₂₅×K ₂₅ combinations. When only one haploid partner was remedial the temp. ¢ non-remedial combinations showed a rate 2.5 times higher than that observed among K ₂₅ × non-remedial combinations. When the remedial haploid was a K ₃₅ the incidence was the same as that noted with temp. × non-remedial combinations. The high incidence observed in the latter temp. combinations was not subject to influence attributable to strain; the incidence being the same whether the remedial partner belonged to the a or to the mutant strains. The K ₂₅ × non-remedial combinations, on the other hand, showed such an influence.For an explanation of the mechanism involved in negative complementation it was postulated that, assuming non-random monomer aggregation, some mutant pairs would form only active heterologous multimers while others, due to the nature of their mutation, would form only inactive aggregates which entrap all the remedial monomers. It is thought that this postulate may have some application in explaning the complementation mechanism in general.Mit Unterstützung der Deutschen Forschungsgemeinschaft.     

Climatic factors restricting the distribution of the aphid Rhopalosiphoninus latysiphon to the subterranean parts of field potato plants

Rhopalosiphoninus latysiphon (Davidson) infests the roots of field potato plants, but it is normally absent from the foliage. In cool conditions it is possible to rear this aphid on the foliage of potato plants. From experiments, it is suggested that R. latysiphon does not normally infest the foliage because it does not tolerate the high air temperatures and the radiant heat to which it would be exposed; a damp environment is also preferred. These are probably the main causal factors in the aphid's selection of a subterranean environment.     

Fish skin bacteria: Colonial and cellular hydrophobicity

Dental plaque is a complex community of bacteria coexisting in an environment frequently limited by carbon and energy sources. UnlikeStreptococcus mutans, other oral streptococci such asS. milleri andS. sanguis have an absolute requirement for and actually consume all available arginine when grown glucose limited in a chemically defined medium. The conditions, particularly in terms of arginine concentration, under which the dental plaque bacteriaS. mutans andS. milleri would coexist under glucose-limiting conditions were investigated. The minimum level of arginine supporting optimal growth ofS. milleri was found to be ca. 50M, and above this level these strains outcompetedS. mutans. However, coexistence withS. mutans could be achieved at arginine levels of 14–40M, depending upon theS. milleri andS. mutans strains used. Under such dual limitation,S. milleri was unable to respond to glucose pulses but did respond to pulses of arginine and arginine plus glucose. One of the twoS. milleri strains did not tolerate low pH. In contrast,S. mutans did not tolerate high pH whereasS. milleri was unaffected. This is relevant to dental plaque where arginine catabolism produces a pH rise. Additionally, arginine is an important nutrient since it can be used as an energy source by some oral streptococci.     

Fighting for food: a dynamic version of the Hawk-Dove game

Summary The Hawk-Dove game (Maynard Smith, 1982) has been used to analyse conflicts over resources such as food. At the evolutionarily stable strategy (ESS), either a proportionp* of animals always play Hawk, or each animal has a probabilityp* of playing Hawk. We modify the standard Hawk-Dove game to include a state variable,x, that represents the animal's level of energy reserves. A strategy is now a rule for choosing an action as a function ofx and time of day. We consider a non-reproductive period and adopt the criterion of minimizing mortality over this period. We find the ESS, which has the form play Hawk if reserves are belowc* (t) at timet, otherwise play Dove. This ESS is very different from the ESS in the standard Hawk-Dove game. It is a pure ESS that depends on the animal's state and on time. Furthermore, it is characterized by the strong condition that any single mutant that does not adopt the ESS suffers a reduction in fitness. The standard Hawk-Dove game assumes pay-offs that are related to fitness; our approach starts from a definition of fitness and derives the pay-offs in the process of finding the ESS. When the environment becomes worse (e.g. food becomes less reliable or energy expenditure increases) the ESS changes in such a way as to increase the proportion of animals that will play Hawk.