The Standard Metre in Paris

In Philosophical Investigations, Wittgenstein argues that we can neither say of the standard One Metre in Paris that it is a single metred length, nor that it is not. Kripke's reply to the puzzle is well known: the sentence expressing the assertion that the standard One Metre is one metre in length (at time t₀) is a true, a priori and contingent sentence. In this paper, I would like to show the nature of the intuition that runs behind Kripke's reply to the puzzle, and why, in the final analysis, it is not satisfactory, with respect to the point made by Wittgenstein. In addition, I will show that the case of the One Metre in Paris exemplifies the radical break Wittgenstein makes with traditional concepts of meaning. I then draw a general lesson that shows that the structure of concepts and functions (measures) in Wittgenstein is given by the idea of an arbitrary choice of “an object of comparison.” Concepts and functions (measures) are materialised and internalised in the form of objects that are arbitrarily sampled from a sample space of same logical‐type objects.     

Mission Impossible and Wittgenstein's Standard Metre

In this paper, I argue that context sensitivity is crucial for a proper exegesis of Wittgenstein's remark that one can say of the standard metre rod neither that it is one metre long nor that it is not one metre long. I discuss cases in which we can meaningfully assert that the rod in question is one metre long and explain why these cases do not conflict with Wittgenstein's insight. I analyse Pollock's recent defence of Wittgenstein's remark, as well as Kripke's objections to it, and show that, while their commentaries are helpful, blindness to context renders them unsatisfactory.     

Wittgenstein on The Standard Metre

In this paper I argue that Wittgenstein is correct when he says of the Standard Metre stick that we can neither say that it is or is not a metre in length – despite what our intuitions may tell us to the contrary. Specifically, the paper deals with Kripke's criticism of Wittgenstein's claim in Naming And Necessity and with Salmon's attempt to arbitrate between the two views. I conclude that, not only is Wittgenstein correct, but that both Kripke and Salmon (and possibly the majority of philosophers) simply do not understand the concept of measurement.     

Timing in solo and duet piano performances

Perhaps some of the most refined forms of timing arise in musical performance, particularly in the coordination between musicians playing together. Studies of timing in solo and duet piano performances are described, in which the musicians gave repeat performances of the music. In both solo and duet performances there was expressive use of timing, modulating the tempo of the music and the phase relationship between the voices, and the expressive forms were similar in successive performances of the piece. There was also evidence of separate timing control of the metre and of the production of notes and rests. Thus timing in musical performance is best modelled by assuming two levels of timekeeper, one pacing the metre and the other contained in the movement trajectories of note production, computed by motor procedure in relation to the metre. It is argued that expressive forms are derived from an interpretation of the music rather than memorized; and that coordination between voices in the music is achieved at the level of the metre.     

Analysing playing using the note-time playing path

This article introduces a new method of data analysis that represents the playing of written music as a graph. The method, inspired by Miklaszewski, charts low-level note timings from a sound recording of a single-line instrument using high-precision audio-to-MIDI conversion software. Note onset times of pitch sequences are then plotted against the score-predicted timings to produce a Note-Time Playing Path (NTPP). The score-predicted onset time of each sequentially performed note (horizontal axis) unfolds in performed time down the page (vertical axis). NTPPs provide a visualisation that shows (1) tempo variations, (2) repetitive practice behaviours, (3) segmenting of material, (4) precise note time positions, and (5) time spent on playing or not playing. The NTPP can provide significant new insights into behaviour and cognition of music performance and may also be used to complement established traditional approaches such as think-alouds, interviews, and video coding.     

The communication of musical metre in piano performance

Six pianists of varying levels of experience were required to give repeated performances of a note sequence presented for sight-performance under two conditions. The two conditions differed only in the location of metrical stresses signified by the notation. In condition (b) the bar-lines and beams were shifted one note to the right in comparison to condition (a). Details of note duration and intensity were recorded by computer. This allowed the discovery of significant differences in expressive treatment between the two conditions. There were significant agreements between subjects concerning the position, nature and direction of expressive variation. The more experienced players, however, made greater use of expressive variation than did the less experienced players. In a second experiment listeners were asked to identify the metre of each performance from the first experiment. They achieved greatest success at this with the most experienced player, least success with the least experienced player. A detailed examination of between-performer agreements and disagreements, and their effects on listeners, allowed the isolation of a proposed set of generally effective procedures for signalling stress. These procedures imply the existence of an internal representation guiding performance which identifies the major metrical subdivisions of a bar in the absence of notational symbols specifically marking these subdivisions.     

Fluency disruption in speech and in wind instrument playing

A case of an adult who stutters and complains of a similar fluency problem when playing the trombone is reported. This is the fourth such report, with previous cases involving trumpet, flute, and horn playing.     

Gazing behavior and coordination during piano duo performance

This study was designed to investigate the roles of gazing behavior during piano duo performance by highlighting coordination among performers. Experiment 1 was conducted under four conditions: invisible, only the body visible, only the head visible, and face -to -face. Experiment 2 was conducted under three conditions: invisible, only the movable head visible, and only the fixed head visible. In both experiments, performers looked toward each other just before temporal changes during coordination moments, which improved synchronization accuracy. The results also showed that gazing without movement cues to some extent facilitated synchronization, although asynchrony was greater under the restricted- movement condition than under the free- movement condition. The following results were obtained:(1)?Mutual gaze is important for reducing timing lag between performers. (2)?Mutual gaze modulates remarkable and arbitrary temporal expressions, such as fermata. (3)?Performers may utilize movements as visual cues for strict synchronization.     

Passion, craving, and affect in online gaming: Predicting how gamers feel when playing and when prevented from playing

According to the Dualistic Model of Passion, two forms of passion can motivate a behavior: harmonious passion and obsessive passion. Across various life activities, studies have found that the two forms of passion show different relationships with affect, linking harmonious passion to positive affect and obsessive passion to negative affect. To investigate if this pattern also holds for online gaming, the present study investigated 160 gamers involved in playing massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMOs) and examined positive and negative affect (a) when playing and (b) when prevented from playing. In addition, the effects of general affect and craving for playing MMOs were controlled for. Results were as expected from the Dualistic Model of Passion: harmonious passion for online gaming predicted positive affect when playing whereas obsessive passion predicted negative affect when playing and when prevented from playing. Moreover, these effects remained unchanged when general affect and craving were controlled for. With this, the present research shows that individual differences in passion for online gaming explain unique variance in gaming-related emotions. Moreover, the present findings suggests that craving is a variable that future research on positive and negative affect in online gaming should pay closer attention to.     

Computer game playing in adolescence: Prevalence and demographic indicators

Computer game playing is a popular activity among adolescents yet there have been no systematic studies in the U.K. on its prevalence and its demographics. A questionnaire study was undertaken with 387 adolescents (12–16 years of age) to establish the time spent playing computer games, who they first started playing with, the reasons why they first started and why they play now and negative consequences of play. Results revealed that for many adolescents, home computer game playing can take up considerable time with 7% of the sample playing for at least 30 hours a week. Although there were no differences between males and females in who played computer games, it was established that males were found to play significantly more regularly than females.     

Demographic factors and playing variables in online computer gaming.

Despite the growing popularity of online game playing, there has been no primary survey of its players. Therefore, an online questionnaire survey was used to examine basic demographic factors of online computer game players who played the popular online game Everquest (i.e., gender, age, marital status, nationality, education level, occupation). The survey also examined playing frequency (i.e., amount of time spent playing the game a week), playing history (i.e., how long they had been playing the game, who they played the game with, whether they had ever gender swapped their game character), the favorite and least favorite aspects of playing the game, and what they sacrifice (if anything) to play the game. Results showed that 81% of online game players were male, and that the mean age of players was 27.9 years of age. For many players, the social aspects of the game were the most important factor in playing. A small minority of players appear to play excessively (over 80 h a week), and results suggest that a small minority sacrifice important activities in order to play (e.g., sleep, time with family and/or partner, work, or schooling).     

Timing and trajectory in rhythm production

The Wing-Kristofferson movement timing model (A. M. Wing & A. B. Kristofferson, 1973a, 1973b) distinguishes central timer and motor implementation processes. Previous studies have shown that increases in interresponse interval (IRI) variability with mean IRI are due to central timer processes, not motor implementation. The authors examine whether this is true with IRI duration changes in binary rhythm production. Ten participants provided IRI and movement data in bimanual synchronous tapping under equal (isochronous) and alternating (rhythm) interval conditions. Movement trajectory changes were observed with IRI duration (300, 500, or 833 ms) and for 500-ms IRIs produced in rhythm contexts (300/500 ms, 500/833 ms). However, application of the Wing-Kristofferson model showed that duration and context effects on IRI variability were attributable largely to timer processes with relatively little effect on motor processes.     

Perceptual and cognitive characteristics of common playing cards

We examined the perceptual and cognitive characteristics of the playing cards commonly used in the Western world. Specifically, we measured their visibility, memorability, likability, and verbal and visual accessibility. Based on visibility and memorability, four groups of cards were distinguished: the Ace of Spades, other Aces, number cards, and face cards. Within each of these groups, there were few differences due to value or suit. Based on likability and accessibility, three additional groups were distinguished: the Ace of Hearts, Queen of Hearts, and King of Hearts. Several interesting relations were found between how people remember, like, and access cards; some of these were similar to effects found in studies of visual perception, while others seemed entirely new. Our results demonstrate that rigorous examination of real-world stimuli can shed light on the perception of ordinary objects, as well as help us understand why magic works in the mind.     

The effect of tempo on pedal timing in piano performance

The temporal coordination of hand and foot actions in piano performance is an interesting instance of highly practiced, perceptually guided complex motor behavior. To gain some insight into the nature of this coordination, ten pianists were asked to play two excerpts from the piano literature that required repeated use of the damper pedal to connect successive chords. Each excerpt was played at three prescribed tempos on a Yamaha Disklavier and was recorded in MIDI format. The question of interest was whether and how changes in tempo would affect the timing of pedal releases and depressions within the periods defined by successive manual chord onsets. Theoretical possibilities ranged from absolute invariance (variable phase relationships) to relative invariance of pedal timing (constant phase relationships). The results show that, typically, the timing of pedal actions is neither absolutely nor relatively invariant: As the tempo increases, both pedal releases and depressions usually occur a little sooner and pedal changes (release-depression sequences) are executed a little more quickly, but these effects are proportionally smaller than the changes in manual (and pedal) period duration. Since this may be due to unequal changes in peripheral hand and foot kinematics with tempo, it remains possible that there is invariance of either kind at the level of central motor commands. However, it is the peripheral timing that produces the acoustic consequences musicians try to achieve.