DEADLY PLURALISM? WHY DEATH‐CONCEPT,DEATH‐DEFINITION,DEATH‐CRITERION AND DEATH‐TEST PLURALISM SHOULD BE ALLOWED,EVEN THOUGH IT CREATES SOME PROBLEMS

Death concept, death definition, death criterion and death test pluralism has been described by some as a problematic approach. Others have claimed it to be a promising way forward within modern pluralistic societies. This article describes the New Jersey Death Definition Law and the Japanese Transplantation Law. Both of these laws allow for more than one death concept within a single legal system. The article discusses a philosophical basis for these laws starting from John Rawls' understanding of comprehensive doctrines, reasonable pluralism and overlapping consensus. It argues for the view that a certain legal pluralism in areas of disputed metaphysical, philosophical and/or religious questions should be allowed, as long as the disputed questions concern the individual and the resulting policy, law or acts based on the policy/law, do not harm the lives of other individuals to an intolerable extent. However, while this death concept, death definition, death criterion and death test pluralism solves some problems, it creates others.     

Methodological issues unsaid in medical research

Methodology consitutes the study of methods considered as < manners of leading its thought, of establishing or of showing truths according to certain principles and with a certain order >. We will see that medical < truths >, knowledge, could be of an extremely different nature: factual knowledge is a simple observation, often with operational vocation\; theoretical knowledge belongs to a coherent whole, it fascines and facilitates our representations of pathologies\; the causal knowledge is often the subject of extreme interrogations in medical practice\; it is of primarily metaphysical nature. These distinctions are not without consequence in methodological terms. Theories are useful because they facilitate the choice of the assumptions to be tested, the variables to be measured and the interpretation of the results of experiments. The risk however exists to be unable to think apart from their framework, and thus to neglect any source of knowledge which they could not integrate. The cause is inaccessible to science\; it will be necessary, in practice, to be limited to the search for variables of upstream on which action of prevention or cure could be undertaken. To establish, to show this medical knowledge, it is necessary to resort to the scientific method by formulating refutable assumptions by reproducible experiments, and that this process involves a belief in the found results. It appears thus that for the same experimental plan, the level of belief and thus the level of proof of the results is a function of the type of measurement carried out (commonplace measurement or of high technicality), of the medical discipline and the media character or not of studied pathology, even of stakes of being able. The medical reproducibility of experiments is problematic since results of these experiments are in general random. This results from the considerable number of variables entering in the determination of human pathologies, and that the majority of these variables are either unknown, or impossible to control. Randomisation makes it possible to give a probabilistic character to this risk: it is then possible to resort to mathematics to carry out statistical tests, to calculate confidence intervals and to profit from a possibility of making inferences with a known margin of error. In the absence of randomisation, it is possible to resort to models\; they imply however the knowledge of statistical methods, reserve, experience and a great intellectual honesty during the interpretation of the results, finally a replication of the experiments is here, more than elsewhere, essential.     

现代生物医学科技前沿与中西医结合交叉

本文讨论了中医现代化和中西医结合的有关问题,指出中医现代化工作可分为三个方面：第一方面,应当培养大批临床上过硬的中医人才,在临床上有所突破,以此为基础进行理论研究;第二方面,将中医理论转换成现代语言;第三方面,中医与包括现代生物医学在内的多学科结合。阐述了现代生物医学科技前沿与中西医结合交叉而产生的新学科一光子中医学。指出光子中医学将为中西医结合提供理论和技术平台,成为多学科研究中医的代表性学科,并将成为中医现代化的一个重要方向,为人类卫生事业作出重大贡献。     

The logical structure of dreams and their relation to reality.

The contradictions and non sequiturs often found in dreams (or, equivalently, dream-narratives) are not in fact logical errors, but express and work with a type of logic that characterizes the deepest dimensions of our waking reality. These are the dimensions in which we deal with ourselves as a whole, our lives as a whole, or with the sense of reality as a whole. We do so, for example, in situations of deep personal transformation, or of recognition of deep difference of outlook. The paper argues that the logic of these situations is validly one of contradiction and non sequitur, that dreams sometimes express and work with these kinds of situations, and that these kinds of dreams therefore validly involve the same kind of logic. These kinds of dreams consequently also express insight into the sense that our lives or existence as a whole has for us. In achieving that insight, they actively orient, situate, or resituate us in our relation to our lives or existence as a whole. In this respect they are in themselves a practice of philosophy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Is science metaphysically neutral?

This paper challenges the claim that science is metaphysically neutral upheld by contenders of the separation of peacefully co-existent science and religion and by evolutionary theists. True, naturalistic metaphysical claims can neither be refuted nor proved and are thus distinct from empirical hypotheses. However, metaphysical assumptions not only regulate the theoretical and empirical study of nature, but are increasingly supported by the growing empirical body of science. This historically evolving interaction has contributed to the development of a naturalistic worldview that renounces the necessity of a transcendent god and of purposeful design. The thesis presented here differs not only from the claims of the "separatists" and of evolutionary theists. In pointing to the metaphysical aspects of science, I also criticize the failure of some evolutionary naturalists to distinguish between empirical and metaphysical contentions. Most important, based on the examination of science suggested here, creationists' false accusation that science is only a naturalistic dogma is refuted. Finally, the difficulties involved in the position endorsed here for the public support of evolution are acknowledged, taking into account the high religious profile of the American society and the social and political context in the US and in other countries.     

The Puzzle of Chuukese Mobility Patterns—Contradictory,Dualistic, or Pluralistic?

Education, employment, and health care are the three main reasons given by Micronesians for the ongoing flow of migrants to the USA. In many families, remittances constitute the only source of steady cash income. Therefore, migration is seen as part of the islanders’ subsistence strategy. Emotional implications for the individual are subsumed under the collective good. This paper will review migration motifs as experienced by chóón (people of) Chuuk, Federated States of Micronesia. With regard to kin relations, the value of family and notions of the self, focus is put on those who leave and/or come back as well as on those who make the decisions. Western spectators are often puzzled by the apparent contradictions between the adherence to traditional culture and the practices of modern life, between love for land and kin and the perceived necessity to nevertheless leave both behind. This paper thus aims to explore whether these dynamics are really in contradiction or rather parallel and interlocking dimensions of cultural concepts of locality and mobility that are connected to ideas of belonging.     

Teste Albumasare cum Sibylla: astrology and the Sibyls in medieval Europe

In the 1480s Dominican humanist Filippo de’ Barbieri published an illustration of a supposedly ancient female seer called the ‘Sybilla Chimica’, whose prophetic text repeated the words of the ninth-century astrologer Abu Ma‘shar. In tracing the origins of Barbieri’s astrological Sibyl, this article examines three sometimes interlocking traditions: the attribution of an ante-diluvian history to the science of the stars, the assertion of astrology’s origins in divine revelation, and the belief in the ancient Sibyls’ predictions of the birth of Christ and other Christian truths. Medieval authors from the twelfth century on began to cite these traditions together, thereby simultaneously authorizing the use of astrology to predict religious changes and blurring the categories of natural and supernatural as applied to human understanding. This blending of astrology and prophecy appears notably in works by such authors as John of Paris, John of Legnano, Johannes Lichtenberger, and Marsilio Ficino. Ultimately the trajectory that produced Barbieri’s astrological Sibyl would lead to a wave of astrological apocalyptic predictions in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, as well as to the harnessing of astrology for the defense of the faith in the form of an astrological natural theology, sacralizing science as well as nature.     

从宏基因组学切入探讨老年性阴道炎阴道微生态的微观整体性

老年性阴道炎是女性绝经后的常见病、多发病,西医认为该病的病因为绝经后或长期闭经后雌激素水平降低,阴道微生态失衡。宏基因组学是近年出现的菌群整体性检测方法,采用宏基因组学技术检测老年性阴道的微观整体状况,将为本病中医证型及疗效评定提供客观精确的量化标准。     

Panbiogeography and conservation science in New Zealand

Abstract

New Zealand’s official conservation science framework, the Protected Natural Areas Programme (PNA), is evaluated in relation to current biogeographic/systematic methods and principles with reference to philosophy, taxonomy, information content, and historical geological/biological relations. The PNA Programme and its parent International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) framework is based on a phenetic system of classification that does not reflect process (phylogenetic) characters of ecological systems. The PNA philosophy of conservation science is shown to be essentialist, rooted in traditional medieval Western metaphysics, and out of step with current developments in biogeography, systematics, and ecology. Panbiogeography is an appropriate global perspective for developing a conservation science because it meets the requirements of homology, monophyly, increased information content, and empirical testability whereas the PNA programme does not. Establishment of a Panbiogeographic Track Atlas is proposed as a suitable conservation framework for historical ecology and biogeography. The atlas could provide an empirical natural resource inventory to identify priority areas for conservation at an economically acceptable cost compared to the PNA Programme. Application of cladistic techniques to ecological and biogeographic patterns in relation to the Atlas can provide aphylogenetically sound hierarchical classification for conservation science. The potential benefits of the panbiogeographic approach for conservation education and tourism are discussed.     

Anatomy,metaphysics, and values: The ape brain debate reconsidered

Conventional wisdom teaches that Thomas Huxley discredited Richard Owen in their debate over ape and human brains. This paper reexamines the dispute and uses it as a test case for evaluating the metaphysical realist, internal realist, and social constructivist theories of scientific knowledge. Since Owen worked in the Kantian tradition, his anatomical research illustrates the implications of internal realism for scientific practice. As an avowed Cartesian, Huxley offered a well developed attack on Owen's position from a metaphysical realist perspective. Adrian Desmond's political retrospective on the dispute affords the additional opportunity to contrast internal realism with social constructivism. I argue that since Huxley ultimately based his attack on his valuing Europeans as superior to blacks, his argument illustrates the hazards of accepting the metaphysical realist promise of value free science. Desmond overlooks this racial dimension of the dispute, and his work shows how social constructivism can distract the historian and philosopher from even the social meaning of science. As internal realists like Putnam have argued, values enter science not from without, but from within the very process of science itself.     

Research note: Genes on chromosomes: The conversion of Thomas Hunt Morgan

In the first decade of the twentieth century, the foundation for the science of genetics was set. In 1900, the data of Gregor Mendel were rediscovered. By 1915, a community of scientists accepted that there were entities on chromosomes that controlled the development of observable traits. During the intervening period, Thomas Hunt Morgan was one of the major skeptics regarding the chromosomal location of the genes. His acceptance may have been the turning point for the flowering of American genetics. This paper will discuss the reasons for Morgan's recalcitrance, his conversion to belief, and the nature of the scientific evidence that led to his acceptance.     

Emerging issues in traditional Chinese medicine

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has many beneficial effects and has been practiced for several thousand years. It is known to treat the cause of a disease rather than to alleviate its symptoms. Based on a belief that TCM is natural, safe, and of lower cost, consumers worldwide are spending more out-of-pocket money on this form of therapy. This increased spending, and reports of adverse reactions, has drawn the attention of many regulatory agencies. Scientists have called for more evidence-based and scientific research on the risks and benefits of TCM. In Canada, the Natural Health Product Regulations came into effect January 2004. TCM herbal product manufacturers will need to provide products of reputable quality to the market. Many will apply modern technology and good science to support their products. The issues facing producers, scientists, and consumers alike are quality control and assessment, standardization of bioactive components, mechanisms of actions, and integration of the evolved modern Chinese medicine into the healthcare system. Solid science, better regulation of the final product, and better education of consumers are necessary to extract the best of TCM to complement existing conventional medicine to deliver the best healthcare.     

青藏高原高寒地区生态草牧业可持续发展:原理、技术与实践

青藏高原在保障国家生态安全、发展高寒生态草牧业和改善当地民生等方面具有重要战略意义。实现高寒地区生态草牧业可持续发展,对推动青藏高原生态保护和区域高质量发展具有重要推动作用。由于高寒草地承载力低、草畜供需时空失衡和畜牧业经营方式粗放等原因,导致草地畜牧业生产效率低,牧民经营效益差,高寒草地退化严重。为了协调推动高原生态保护、国家公园建设和区域民生改善,传统草地畜牧业亟待转型升级。近年来在国家和地方科技项目支持下,针对高寒草地畜牧业系统效率低、资源消耗大和经营效益差的瓶颈,我们在位于青藏高原东缘农牧交错区的青海省贵南县系统开展了生态草牧业关键技术研发、应用和示范,集成了以“高寒草地适度利用—优质高产人工草地建植—优良牧草青贮—系列草产品加工—饲草料精准配置—家畜营养均衡饲养—高原特色畜产品精深加工—一二三产业融合—区域功能耦合”等为一体的高寒地区生态草牧业提质增效技术体系,积极推动了传统草地畜牧业向生态草牧业发展转变,促进了高寒地区生态—生产—生活协调发展。上述工作将为青藏高原生态保护、草牧业可持续发展和高寒地区牧民持续增收提供重要科技支撑,同时对我国西部典型生态脆弱区适应性管理,黄河上游生态保护和高质量发展具有一定的启示作用。     

The Cuban community in Puerto Rico: A comparative Caribbean perspective

The purpose of this article is to present the opinions of the Argentine intellectual, Leopoldo Lugones, regarding the Jews and the reasons for his seemingly contradictory attitudes towards them that mirror both the general precariousness of Jewish existence in Argentina and the contradictions of Argentine nationalism. Moreover, these writings also reveal other related aspects of Lugones’ thought and provide a partial overview of Argentine nationalistic thought from the beginning of the twentieth century to the late 1930s, thereby offering insights into the nature and evolution of Argentine nationalism in reaction to Jews and other immigrant groups.     

中西医观解读时间生物学

时间生物学是一门研究生命活动节律的科学。在西方医学中,研究时间生物学是利用分子生物学实验来阐释其机制,以西医的思维方法解释时间生物学的生理及病理过程;中医对时间生物学的记载有两千多年的历史,阴阳理论、子午流注学说以及五运六气学说一直以来都在指导中医的诊断和治疗。中西医观的不同对时间生物学的研究提供了新的研究思路,同时时间生物学也为研究中西医结合提供了广阔的前景。     

Milestones and rates of growth in the development of biology.

An attempt has been made to examine the exponetial rate of increase of the great discoveries, the "milestones," in the rise of biology from the beginning of the seventeenth century, and particularly in the rise of genetics from the beginning of the twentieth century. The biological sciences in general, during the three centuries named, exhibit a doubling of the number of great discoveries in each fifty years. Genetics, in the twentieth century, has risen much faster. Its doubling time for the most significant discoveries has been about twenty-two and a half years. Either of these rates is of course far slower than the exponential rise in the total output of biological science, the number of scientists, or the cost of science, which have been generally reported to double about every ten years or less. It follows that, as time passes, and until these exponetial rates become considerably altered, a relationship of diminishing returns is quite evident. As time passes, even though the most significant discoveries continue to increase exponetially, it takes a greater total output, a greater number of (assisting?) scientists, and greater amounts of money to yield a set quantity of major new findings. The rapid rise of the life sciences cannot continue its present course into the twenty-first century without meeting ineluctable limits to expansion. It may be argued that as in other human spheres of activity, so too in natural science there are limits to growth which we are rapidly approaching. From the predictable asymptote only unpredictable breakthroughs might deliver us.     

A comparison of Chinese traditional and Western medical approaches for the treatment of mild hypertension

We compared the efficacy of Chinese traditional treatment for mild hypertension with that of a standard Western medical regimen in a group of 50 well-matched patients (24 allocated to Western medicine and 26 to Chinese traditional medicine) with mild hypertension (diastolic blood pressure 90-104 mmHg). Those receiving Western therapy were treated in a stepped-care fashion with dihydrochlorothiazide and atenolol. Those in the Chinese traditional therapy group received one of two mixtures of nine herbs and other ingredients, depending on symptoms at initial evaluation. Blood pressure dropped significantly in both groups after only a few days on therapy. After 19 days on treatment, the group receiving Western therapy had a fall in blood pressure from 168.2/96.3 mmHg to 137.3/76.7 mmHg (p less than 0.01), while those on Chinese traditional therapy fell from 168.2/95.9 mmHg to 146.4/80.5 mmHg (p less than 0.01). The fall in blood pressure was significantly greater, however, in those given Western therapy. The relief of existing symptoms or development of possible drug side effects was similar in both groups, except for nocturia, occurring more often in the group treated with Western therapy. We conclude that Western therapy is more effective in reducing blood pressure as compared with Chinese traditional therapy, but effective control of blood pressure in mild hypertensives is possible with either form of treatment.     

``Why Study History for Science?'

David Hull has demonstrated a marvelous ability to annoy everyone who caresabout science (or should), by forcing us to confront deep truths about howscience works. Credit, priority, precularities, and process weave together tomake the very fabric of science. As Hull's studies reveal, the story is bothmessier and more irritating than those limited by a single disciplinaryperspective generally admit. By itself history is interesting enough, andphilosophy valuable enough. But taken together, they do so much in tellingus about science and by puncturing the comfortable popular illusion abouthow science works. Ultimately, David Hull shows by his example thathistory and philosophy of science can make science better. I agree, and withits focus on the history of science in particular, this paper explores why.     

Janus-faced race: Is race biological,social, or mythical?

As belief in the reality of race as a biological category among U.S. anthropologists has fallen, belief in the reality of race as a social category has risen in its place. The view that race simply does not exist—that it is a myth—is treated with suspicion. While racial classification is linked to many of the worst evils of recent history, it is now widely believed to be necessary to fight back against racism. In this article, I argue that race is indeed a biological fiction, but I critique the claim that race is socially real. I defend a form of anti-realist reconstructionism about race, which says that there are no races, only racialized groups—groups mistakenly believed to be races. I argue that this is the most attractive position about race from a metaphysical perspective, and that it is also the position most conductive to public understanding and social justice.