The Ethics of Love

The Journal of Ethics -     

On Sporting Integrity

It has become increasingly popular for sports fans, pundits, coaches and players to appeal to ideas of ‘sporting integrity’ when voicing their approval or disapproval of some aspect of the sporting world. My goal in this paper will be to examine whether there is any way to understand this idea in a way that both makes sense of the way in which it is used and presents a distinctly ‘sporting’ form of integrity. I will look at three recent high-profile sporting incidents that caused sporting integrity to be called into question. I will then examine three different ways in which philosophers have sought to understand integrity and examine whether any of these accounts can provide us with a plausible account of sporting integrity. I will argue that such an account can be given and show how this helps us to understand the three cases.     

Admiration Over Time

In this paper, we investigate the diachronic fittingness conditions of admiration – that is, what it takes for a person to continue or cease to be admirable over time. We present a series of cases that elicit judgements that suggest different understandings of admiration over time. In some cases, admirability seems to last forever. In other cases, it seems that it can cease within a person's lifetime if she changes sufficiently. Taken together, these cases highlight what we call the puzzle of admiration over time. We then present a potential solution to this puzzle.     

Homosexuality: Sin or sickness? A dialogue

The [ollozving discussion takes place in what Bernard Shaw, in the Preface to Candida, called an oasis in a desert of unattractiveness—the study of the Executive Secretary of The George W. Henry Foundation in the Parish House of a midtown Episcopal Church. The Foundation, chartered by the State of New York to help those who by reason of their sexual maladjustment are in trouble with themselves, the law or society, was organized in 1948; its staff, board members and officers come from a variety of religious persuasions to serve all who come or are sent to it without regard to race, creed, or color. The participants in the dialogue are Canon Rend Bozarth, the founder and head of the Society of St. Paul, an Anglican monastic community, located in Oregon, and Alfred A. Gross, the Executive Officer of the Foundation, associated with Dr. Henry for more than a quarter of a century.We publish this article particularly at this time because of our selection of an outstanding book by Dr. Gross,Strangers In Our Midst: Problems of the Homosexual in American Society, on this theme—a book in which Dr. Gross deals more thoroughly and more comprehensively with the entire problem of homosexuality. The article may also be seen as a continued discussion of the article on Pastoral Counseling for Homosexuals by Dr. George W. Henry, published inPastoral Psychology, November, 1951.     

The second androgyny: A proposed revision in adaptive priorities for college women

Evidence has accumulated suggesting that androgyny, as popularly conceived (i.e., balanced and flexible display of masculine and feminine behaviors across situations), has more adaptive value for women than for men and even that it holds less value than believed for women. Four sex types were compared in a series of studies bearing upon psychological adjustment in college women: (1) balanced androgyny, (2) blended androgyny that integrates masculinity and femininity, (3) femininity, and (4) masculinity. In three out of four studies that considered daily stress symptoms, Type A characteristics, and menstrual distress, balanced androgynes demonstrated the poorest psychological adaptation and blended androgynes the best. The fourth study considered the psychological characteristics associated with eating disorders and found feminine women to be the most maladapted. Interpretation of the trend of results in terms of identity problems for the balanced androgynous woman was offered.     

A rapid technique to assess the resting states of the eyes and other threshold phenomena: The Modified Binary Search (MOBS)

A technique was developed to automate subjective measurement of the resting states of the eyes. This technique, the Modified Binary Search (MOBS), evolved from the binary search and a commonly used manual bracketing technique. The procedure is mathematically and logically simple, and it requires minimal storage and computation capabilities. Monte Carlo simulations indicate that the MOBS procedure provides more precise measures with fewer stimulus presentations than conventional staircases. It is also relatively insensitive to response errors.     

Algorithms for fast and precise computation of the normal integral

Five highly accurate algorithms that evaluate the normal distribution function are presented. The algorithms, which are based on either numerical integration or series expansions, are explicated, and applications of Simpson’s rule are discussed. Computer programs that implement the algorithms were compared with respect to accuracy and speed. The programs attain from 11- to 15-decimal-place accuracy in finding one-tailed areas of the normal curve, and most execute very quickly. Recommendations are made for selection of algorithms and programs to approximate the normal distribution.