Adding to the Mix: Integrating ELSI into a National Nanoscale Science and Technology Center

This paper describes issues associated with integrating the study of Ethical, Legal and Social Issues (ELSI) into ongoing scientific and technical research and describes an approach adopted by the authors for their own work with the center for nanophase materials sciences (CNMS) at the Oak Ridge national laboratory (ORNL). Four key questions are considered: (a) What is ELSI and how should it identify and address topics of interest for the CNMS? (b) What advantages accrue to incorporating ELSI into the CNMS? (c) How should the integration of ELSI into the CNMS take place? (d) How should one judge the effectiveness of the activity? We conclude that ELSI research is not a monolithic body of knowledge, but should be adapted to the question at hand. Our approach focuses on junctures in the R&;D continuum at which key decisions occur, avoids topics of a purely ethical nature or advocacy, and seeks to gather data in ways that permit testing the validity of generalization. Integrating ELSI into the CNMS allows dealing with topics firmly grounded in science, offers concrete examples of potential downstream applications and provides access to the scientists using the CNMS and their insights and observations. As well, integration provides the opportunity for R&;D managers to benefit from ELSI insights and the potential to modify R&;D agendas. Successful integration is dependent on the particular ELSI question set that drives the project. In this case questions sought to identify key choices, information of value to scientists, institutional attributes, key attributes of the CNMS culture, and alternatives for communicating results. The opportunity to consult with scientists on ELSI implications is offered, but not promoted. Finally, ELSI effectiveness is judged by observing the use to which research products are put within the CNMS, ORNL, and the community of external scholars.     

‘Torturing things until they confess’: Günther Anders' critique of technology

ELSI (Ethical, Legal and Social Implications) initiatives are frequently attached to major science programmes. The expectation is that ELSI research will produce a practical advanced assessment of the impacts of technological development. Williams' overview of the field demonstrates that this encourages a mechanistic understanding of technological development leading to compressed foresight, i.e. the notion that the future is imminent in the present. The development of the ELSI domain in Canada has been characterised by an affinity between the types of knowledge valorised by the field and modes of legal reasoning, suggesting a legal variant of compressed foresight. The concept of juridification and an analysis of two related modes of legal reasoning (analogy and reflective equilibrium) shed light on the connection between legal reasoning and the ELSI field in Canada. The deployment of the aforementioned modes of legal reasoning enables law to define and operationalise difficult questions by drawing on currently existing principles and precedents. Thus, when legal modes of reasoning are brought to bear on ELSI questions, the future is made a calculable and manageable extension of the present, dovetailing with the ELSI field's requirement of pragmatic, advanced assessment.     

Specificity and Engagement: Increasing ELSI’s Relevance to Nano–Scientists

Scholars studying the ethical, legal, and social issues (ELSI) associated with emerging technologies maintain the importance of considering these issues throughout the research and development cycle, even during the earliest stages of basic research. Embedding these considerations within the scientific process requires communication between ELSI scholars and the community of physical scientists who are conducting that basic research. We posit that this communication can be effective on a broad scale only if it links societal issues directly to characteristics of the emerging technology that are relevant to the physical and natural scientists involved in research and development. In this article, we examine nano-ELSI literature from 2003 to 2010 to discern the degree to which it makes these types of explicit connections. We find that, while the literature identifies a wide range of issues of societal concern, it generally does so in a non-specific manner. It neither links societal issues to particular forms or characteristics of widely divergent nanotechnologies nor to any of the many potential uses to which those nanotechnologies may be put. We believe that these kinds of specificity are essential to those engaged in nano-scale research. We also compare the literature-based findings to observations from interviews we conducted with nanoscientists and conclude that ELSI scholars should add technical- and application-related forms of specificity to their work and their writings to enhance effectiveness and impact in communicating with one important target audience—members of the nanoscale science community.     

Researching psychotherapy integration: A heuristic approach

Moustakas argues that questions and methodology in heuristic research flow out of inner awareness, meaning and inspiration. The approach might arguably embrace a combination of qualitative research methods, and constitute a kind of bricolage. This paper describes a heuristic enquiry into psychotherapy integration that used such a combination of methods – an interpretative phenomenological approach, case studies, reflexive action, and writing. It demonstrates how each of these methods contributed to the six phases of heuristic enquiry, from the initial engagement with psychotherapy as a trainee to the creative synthesis of published works and a PhD thesis, together with some reflection on the enquiry's limitations and rigour. Published texts, training, clinical practice and reflexivity constituted the material from which a new organizing framework for understanding psychotherapy integration was formulated. The author reflects on how the research design allowed deep engagement with this material, and changed his perspective of psychotherapy integration. In conclusion, this paper suggests that both psychotherapy integration and heuristic enquiry can only be conducted on an individual and personal basis, and that it is the quality of the relationship, with the client, or the research material, that produces results.     

公正的启发理论述评

组织公正感包括分配公正、程序公正、互动公正等重要的组成要素。尽管这些公正感的构成要素有不同的内涵和影响因素,然而在许多情况下,这些要素之间有较高的一致性。与过去注重这些要素的差异性相反,Lind看到了这些公正感要素之间的一致性,提出了试图整合这些一致性的公正理论：公正的启发理论。该文比较全面地介绍了公正的启发理论的含义,如何启发等核心概念,并对启发理论存在的问题进行了分析,指出了启发理论研究的方向。     

A Comparison of Heuristic Procedures for Minimum Within-Cluster Sums of Squares Partitioning

Perhaps the most common criterion for partitioning a data set is the minimization of the within-cluster sums of squared deviation from cluster centroids. Although optimal solution procedures for within-cluster sums of squares (WCSS) partitioning are computationally feasible for small data sets, heuristic procedures are required for most practical applications in the behavioral sciences. We compared the performances of nine prominent heuristic procedures for WCSS partitioning across 324 simulated data sets representative of a broad spectrum of test conditions. Performance comparisons focused on both percentage deviation from the “best-found” WCSS values, as well as recovery of true cluster structure. A real-coded genetic algorithm and variable neighborhood search heuristic were the most effective methods; however, a straightforward two-stage heuristic algorithm, HK-means, also yielded exceptional performance. A follow-up experiment using 13 empirical data sets from the clustering literature generally supported the results of the experiment using simulated data. Our findings have important implications for behavioral science researchers, whose theoretical conclusions could be adversely affected by poor algorithmic performances.     

The Ethical, Legal, and Social Implications Research Program at the National Human Genome Research Institute

Organizers of the Human Genome Project (HGP) understood from the beginning that the scientific activities of mapping and sequencing the human genome would raise ethical, legal, and social issues that would require careful attention by scientists, health care professionals, government officials, and the public. The establishment of the ELSI (ethical, legal, and social implications) programs at the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) and the Department of Energy (DOE) was thought to be vital to the success of the HGP in the United States. It also provided a novel approach to the simultaneous study of ethical, legal, and social issues and basic scientific issues. Eric Juengst, the first director of the ELSI program, described its origins in a previous issue of the Kennedy Institute of Ethics Journal (Juengst 1991). Now in its seventh year, the ELSI program has accomplished much. This article summarizes the evolution and goals of the ELSI program at NHGRI, outlines the program's current research priorities with examples of activities within each priority area, and provides a look to the future, including the initiation of a strategic planning process.     

From therapeutic jurisprudence...to jurisprudent therapy

For nearly a decade, "therapeutic jurisprudence" (TJ) has provided a theoretical framework within which legal rules, legal procedure, and legal roles are analyzed in terms of their therapeutic, neutral, or antitherapeutic effects. This article proposed "jurisprudent therapy" (JT), an extension of the TJ model, as a context for analyzing mental health science, mental health practice, and mental health roles in terms of their "jurisprudent," neutral, or "antijurisprudent" effects. The JT perspective neither supplants nor supersedes TJ; rather, it mirrors and augments an established process for interdisciplinary contrast, comparison, and integration. Just as an empathic and evolving legal system provides psychological benefits, so does a legally informed and juridically compatible progression of social science promote principles of justice and human freedom. Consideration of these two complementary models in tandem yields an array of brainstorming devices, to synergistic effect, with heuristic implications for teaching, research, and service delivery.     

Fairness heuristic theory is an empirical framework: a reply to Arnadóttir

In this article on fairness heuristic theory, we point out some important flaws in Arnadóttir's (2002) claim that fairness heuristic theory is "not empirical," by which Arnadóttir meant that theory's predictions are knowable a priori, and are not contingent upon circumstances. To this end, we demonstrate that empirically testing effects predicted by fairness heuristic theory was and is important because this showed that the theory's propositions are not necessarily knowable a priori and are contingent upon circumstances. This implies that, according to Arnadóttir's definition, fairness heuristic theory clearly is an empirical framework. It would have been helpful if Arnadóttir had studied the fairness literature more thoroughly (as this would have easily revealed fairness heuristic theory to be not knowable a priori and to be contingent upon circumstances) and also if she had pointed out which of our studies fail to follow her line of reasoning. Our reply was written not as an attempt to defend fairness heuristic theory as we applaud, indeed are honored by, attempts to scrutinize our work in progress. Our only aim here was to point at some important flaws in the Arnadóttir article, because we think these will hamper rather than advance the science of psychology of justice.     

The Heritage of Ralph Wendell Burhoe for the Dialogue between Science and Theology: A German Perspective

This paper begins with some reflections on my personal experiences with Ralph Wendell Burhoe during visits to the Chicago Center for Religion and Science. I learned to know Burhoe as an interested and kind person with enormous intellectual power. In this paper I argue that integration of different concepts was the chief focus of his thinking, expressing both an ethical and a dogmatic concern. If his theory of altruism contributes to the scientific investigations into the problem of trans-kin altruism, then his vision of a scientific theology gains credibility. Such an integration is made plausible through the interpretation of altruism in light of Christian love. In fact, Burhoe's neonaturalistic approach may be a fertile resource for the dialogue between science and theology in Germany, and serve as an exemplar of Burhoe's important impact on this dialogue in general.     

When reduction leads to construction: Design considerations in scientific methodology

Philosophers have paid little attention to the kind of reduction involved in transforming an analytically intractable equation into solvable form. I argue that this practice is important because it involves the design of a basic level theory for use in a specific domain. The design process can lead to the construction of a new theory. As a result of my analysis, theory design emerges as an important category of analysis for scientific methodology. Similarities between design in technology and science are explored to illuminate the heuristic function of such reductions.     

Finding a place for elimination in inter-level reductionist activities: Reply to Wimsatt

According to Wimsatt, a proper treatment of reduction must distinguish between two types of reductionist activities scientists engage in. One of the benefits of better understanding the nature of reduction, he believes, is that it shows that eliminativism, that is, the elimination of concepts and theories from science, is a rather circumscribed and limited affair, especially in the case of inter-level reductionist activities. While I agree with Wimsatt that it is important to distinguish the two types of reductionisms, I show that elimination in inter-level reductionist activities can be a powerful heuristic in science, driving both inter-level and successional reduction.     

市场信息整合的创造性思维机制初探

采用个别测试和集体测试相结合的方法, 辅以个别访谈等技术, 运用自编的实验测试材料, 通过两个实验探索市场信息的量、关键启发信息的突出性等对商业投资问题的思维决策结果的影响, 初步探讨了市场信息整合的创造性思维过程和机制。实验结果发现, 提供给被试的市场信息越多, 信息整合的问题空间越大, 其整合过程难度越大; 在问题空间进行搜索时, 被试需要抓住关键启发信息形成一个初始意向, 明确进一步搜索的思维方向; 初始意向形成后, 被试须筛选必要信息、排除冗余信息, 并进一步整合有用信息, 使初始意向更加精致化, 最终形成一个“可盈利的完善的投资方案”。     

Epistemology and the theory of problem solving

Problem solving has recently become a central topic both in the philosophy of science and in cognitive science. This paper integrates approaches to problem solving from these two disciplines and discusses the epistemological consequences of such an integration. The paper first analyzes problem solving as getting a true answer to a question. It then explores some stages of cognitive activity relevant to question answering that have been delineated by historians and philosophers of science and by cognitive psychologists and artificial intelligencers. The traditional opposition between discovery and justification is challenged. It is suggested that epistemology may be conceptualized, in part, as the critical assessment of problem-solving strategies.     

An Integrative Model of Work Attitudes,Motivation, and Performance

A comprehensive theoretical model of work attitudes, motivation, and performance is presented that integrates key constructs prevalent in more limited theories. The constructs were selected on the basis of their importance as shown by past research and because of their seeming complementarity rather than redundance with one another. The framework connects the constructs causally on the basis of both logic and empirical evidence. It is expressed in the form of a path diagram amenable to empirical test, in the hope that it will have heuristic value. It is expected that such an integration will provide a better basis for understanding and improving work attitudes, motivation, and performance than do the more limited approaches.     

Knowledge and cognitive integration

Cognitive integration is a defining yet overlooked feature of our intellect that may nevertheless have substantial effects on the process of knowledge-acquisition. To bring those effects to the fore, I explore the topic of cognitive integration both from the perspective of virtue reliabilism within externalist epistemology and the perspective of extended cognition within externalist philosophy of mind and cognitive science. On the basis of this interdisciplinary focus, I argue that cognitive integration can provide a minimalist yet adequate epistemic norm of subjective justification: so long as the agent’s belief-forming process has been integrated in his cognitive character, the agent can be justified in holding the resulting beliefs merely by lacking any doubts there was something wrong in the way he arrived at them. Moreover, since both externalist philosophy of mind and externalist epistemology treat the process of cognitive integration in the same way, we can claim that epistemic cognitive characters may extend beyond our organismic cognitive capacities to the artifacts we employ or even to other agents we interact with. This move is not only necessary for accounting for advanced cases of knowledge that is the product of the operation of epistemic artifacts or the interactive activity of research teams, but it can further lead to interesting ramifications both for social epistemology and philosophy of science.     

Belief-based and analytic processing in transitive inference: Further evidence for the importance of premise integration

Transitive inference problems were presented in a modified conclusion evaluation procedure. Conclusions were believable or unbelievable and valid, invalid or indeterminate. The 67 undergraduate students read the premises, evaluated the conclusions (accept, reject, cannot tell), then provided confidence ratings. Fluid intelligence was also assessed. Acceptance of valid conclusions, rejection of invalid conclusions and cannot tell responses to indeterminate conclusions of non-integrable problems indicated use of analytic processing. Believability effects indicated the use of heuristic processing. Fluid intelligence and premise integration ability (non-integrable problems) predicted greater use of analytic processing on valid and invalid problems. Premise integration ability was associated with reduced belief bias on invalid problems. Premise integration ability appears to influence the extent of heuristic versus analytic processing. Confidence was sensitive to the presence of belief–logic conflict. Conflict detection scores reflecting this sensitivity were not associated with analytic processing suggesting that conflict detection occurs automatically and reflects an intuitive logic.     

通货膨胀知觉的认知机制和影响因素

通货膨胀知觉是个体对通货膨胀的主观体验.通货膨胀知觉的认知机制主要体现在体验阶段和整合阶段.体验阶段主要涉及到个体对物价的感受性和记忆,整合阶段主要涉及到个体利用可得性启发式以及锚定和调整启发式完成对通货膨胀的最终估计.通货膨胀知觉的影响因素主要包括通货膨胀预期、框架效应、对价格公平性的认知、社会放大效应以及货币改革等.未来可以从通货膨胀知觉的信息加工方式、认知神经机制、跨文化研究以及具有较高生态效度的测量指标等方面进一步探讨.     

Normative systems of discovery and logic of search

New computer systems of discovery create a research program for logic and philosophy of science. These systems consist of inference rules and control knowledge that guide the discovery process. Their paths of discovery are influenced by the available data and the discovery steps coincide with the justification of results. The discovery process can be described in terms of fundamental concepts of artificial intelligence such as heuristic search, and can also be interpreted in terms of logic. The traditional distinction that places studies of scientific discovery outside the philosophy of science, in psychology, sociology, or history, is no longer valid in view of the existence of computer systems of discovery. It becomes both reasonable and attractive to study the schemes of discovery in the same way as the criteria of justification were studied: empirically as facts, and logically as norms.     

ACCEPTABILITY CRITERIA FOR WORK IN THEOLOGY AND SCIENCE

Abstract. The philosophy of science of Imre Lakatos suggests criteria for acceptability of work in the interdisciplinary area of theology and science: proposals must contribute to scientific (or theological) research programs that lead to prediction and discovery of novel facts. Lakatos's methodology also suggests four legitimate types of theology–and–science interaction: (1) heuristic use of theology in science; (2) incorporation of a theological assertion as an auxiliary hypothesis in a scientific research program, or (3) as the central theory of a research program; and (4) hybrid theology–and–science programs with empirical data. Three recent Zygon articles illustrate these four types.