What my parents make me believe in learning: The role of filial piety in Hong Kong students' motivation and academic achievement

Chinese students are well‐known for their academic excellence. However, studies that explore the underlying mechanism of how cultural factors relate to the motivational process and academic achievement of Chinese students have been limited. This study aimed to examine the role of filial piety in shaping Chinese students' theories of intelligence so as to obtain a clearer understanding of the process by which parent–child connectedness is linked to Chinese students' academic achievement. A sample of 312 university students in Hong Kong were assessed concerning their filial piety beliefs, theories of intelligence and academic achievement. Data were analysed using structural equation modelling. The results indicated that different filial piety beliefs relate to students' academic achievement by shaping different theories of intelligence. Reciprocal filial piety beliefs were found to facilitate an incremental view of intelligence, which in turn contributes to students' academic achievement. Authoritarian filial piety beliefs were shown to be associated with an entity view of intelligence, which consequently deteriorates students' academic achievement. Cultural views of motivational processes can shed light on how motivational beliefs are developed as a product of cultural or socialization processes, which, in turn, contribute to students' academic success.     

Flavour neophobia in gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus) and hamsters (Mesocricetus auratus)

Flavour neophobia in gerbils and hamsters was studied by comparing the ingestive/pouching behaviour of these animals when presented with either a familiar unflavoured peanut or a novel one that imparted basic flavours such as sweet, salty, sour, or bitter. Neophobia was expressed by an aversion towards the novel nut manifested by greater latency either to ingest it (gerbils) or to deposit it in the cheek pouch (hamsters) relative to that of the unflavoured one. This method, involving reactions to the taste of novel solid food, provides a more sensitive measure than the traditional one measuring intake of a novel flavoured fluid. The results indicated that gerbils and hamsters encountering either a sweet, salty, or sour nut for the first time showed a neophobic reaction. However, there was no apparent sign of neophobia when the animals were tested with a nut flavoured with quinine. The theoretical implications of these findings are discussed.     

Technology, Recommendation and Design: On Being a ‘Paternalistic’ Philosopher

Philosophers have talked to each other about moral issues concerning technology, but few of them have talked about issues of technology and the good life, and even fewer have talked about technology and the good life with the public in the form of recommendation. In effect, recommendations for various technologies are often left to technologists and gurus. Given the potential benefits of informing the public on their impacts on the good life, however, this is a curious state of affairs. In the present paper, I will examine why philosophers are seemingly reluctant to offer recommendations to the public. While there are many reasons for philosophers to refrain from offering recommendations, I shall focus on a specific normative reason. More specifically, it appears that, according to a particular definition, offering recommendations can be viewed as paternalistic, and therefore is prima facie wrong to do so. I will provide an argument to show that the worry about paternalism is unfounded, because a form of paternalism engendered by technology is inevitable. Given the inevitability of paternalism, I note that philosophers should accept the duty to offer recommendations to the public. I will then briefly turn to design ethics, which has reconceptualised the role of philosophers and, in my mind, fitted well with the inevitability of paternalism. Finally, I shall argue that design ethics has to be supplemented by the practice of recommendation if it is to sustain its objective.     

Truth and the ‘Politics of Ourselves’

The authors take up Amy Allen's suggestion that while Foucault's work may be able to support a certain type of self‐critique and self‐development, it does not permit the kind of interpersonal relations that are necessary for the development of intersubjective meaning in struggles against imposed identities. The authors contend that for Foucault, relations of ‘truth’ play an important constitutive role in subjectivities, and that understanding the ‘politics of ourselves’ in the context of this truth shows not only an openness to meaningful interpersonal relations, but also that these relations are capable of generating the conceptual and normative resources necessary for resisting socially imposed subjectivities. The authors present such an account of intersubjective relations based on Foucault's discussion of parrhesia, and develop a model of collaborative political action that addresses the criticisms raised.     

Salt taste sensitivity and stimulus volume: sips and drops. Some implications for the Henkin taste test

Various presentation procedures and stimulus volumes were compared in their effect on salt taste sensitivity. For sodium chloride (NaCl) stimuli pipetted onto the tongue, subjects had comparable measured sensitivity to 10 ml and 1 ml volumes but a reduced sensitivity to 0.1 ml volumes. The greatest sensitivity was achieved with 10 ml sipped volumes. Modification of the Henkin dropwise triangular taste test, by increasing the stimulus volumes, increased subjects' sensitivity. Only the 1 ml pipette presentation increased the sensitivity of the Henkin procedure, albeit slightly, to the detection of changes in taste sensitivity, the purpose for which the procedure was actually designed. Such modification did not perturb salivary NaCl levels more than the regular Henkin procedure, so it would not be expected to introduce sensitivity drift.     

Diagnostic test evaluation of a nasal flow monitor for obstructive sleep apnea detection in sleep apnea research

In this diagnostic test evaluation of a nasal flow monitoring device for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), 34 patients referred for polysomnography were studied at home for three consecutive nights with the monitor. The mean age of subjects (+/-SD) was 41.9+/-10.3 years, and their mean apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) was 31.5+/-27.2. The difference between the average AHI from three nights at home on the monitor and the polysomnogram (PSG) result was 1.8+/-17.1. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) for PSG AHI > or = 10 was .96. With a threshold AHI of 18 on the flow monitor, sensitivity was .92, specificity .86, positive predictive value .96, and negative predictive value .75. For detecting severe OSA (AHI > or = 30), the AUC was .85. With knowledge of appropriate thresholds and the pretest risk of OSA, the flow monitor can be used to detect or exclude OSA for sleep-related research, as well as to identify severe cases needing priority for further evaluation.