Book Review

Abstract

THE NEW GROUP THERAPIES. Hendrik M. Ruitenbeek, Avon Books/Discus Editions, 1970     

Doctor can I buy a new kidney? I've heard it isn't forbidden: what is the role of the nephrologist when dealing with a patient who wants to buy a kidney?

Organ trafficking is officially banned in several countries and by the main Nephrology Societies. However, this practice is widespread and is allowed or tolerated in many countries, hence, in the absence of a universal law, the caregiver may be asked for advice, placing him/her in a difficult balance between legal aspects, moral principles and ethical judgments.In spite of the Istanbul declaration, which is a widely shared position statement against organ trafficking, the controversy on mercenary organ donation is still open and some experts argue against taking a negative stance. In the absence of clear evidence showing the clinical disadvantages of mercenary transplantation compared to chronic dialysis, self-determination of the patient (and, with several caveats, of the donor) may conflict with other ethical principles, first of all non-maleficence. The present paper was drawn up with the participation of the students, as part of the ethics course at our medical school. It discusses the situation in which the physician acts as a counselor for the patient in the way of a sort of “reverse” informed consent, in which the patient asks advice regarding a complex personal decision, and includes a peculiar application of the four principles (beneficence, non-maleficence, justice and autonomy) to the donor and recipient parties.     

对塔斯基“真”理论的辩护——与陈晓平教授商榷

陈晓平教授对塔斯基的"真"理论提出四点批评,并给出了使用"T′模式"作为真之定义的建议。但"T′模式"并不具有"内容恰当性"和"形式正确性",其引入的对"p"的摹状词解释比塔斯基的方案更复杂,对"真"进行递归定义在现有逻辑学内是不可能的。陈晓平教授对塔斯基"真"理论的批评和建议的失误之处在于误解塔斯基的原意、引入形而上学词项、需要新建形式逻辑。总之,其作为真之定义的"T′模式"是"不能允许地冗长"。     

Tower of London test: a comparison between conventional statistic approach and modelling based on artificial neural network in differentiating fronto-temporal dementia from Alzheimer's disease

The early differentiation of Alzheimer's disease (AD) from frontotemporal dementia (FTD) may be difficult. The Tower of London (ToL), thought to assess executive functions such as planning and visuo-spatial working memory, could help in this purpose. Twentytwo Dementia Centers consecutively recruited patients with early FTD or AD. ToL performances of these groups were analyzed using both the conventional statistical approaches and the Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs) modelling. Ninety-four non aphasic FTD and 160 AD patients were recruited. ToL Accuracy Score (AS) significantly (p < 0.05) differentiated FTD from AD patients. However, the discriminant validity of AS checked by ROC curve analysis, yielded no significant results in terms of sensitivity and specificity (AUC 0.63). The performances of the 12 Success Subscores (SS) together with age, gender and schooling years were entered into advanced ANNs developed by Semeion Institute. The best ANNs were selected and submitted to ROC curves. The non-linear model was able to discriminate FTD from AD with an average AUC for 7 independent trials of 0.82. The use of hidden information contained in the different items of ToL and the non linear processing of the data through ANNs allows a high discrimination between FTD and AD in individual patients.     

逻辑、语言和哲学讲习班与研讨会综述

2011年6月13-18日,清华大学人文学院哲学系举办了逻辑、语言和哲学讲习班与研讨会。本次活动的主旨是：对逻辑学、自然语言和哲学的交叉研究领域中的一些课题进行深入的介绍,交流最新的研究成果,展示逻辑学在跨学科研究领域中的重要作用。本次活动分为两个部分：为期五天的讲习班与为期一天的研讨会。活动的参加者有：阿姆斯特丹大学与斯坦福大学的范丙申（Johan vanBenthem）教授,阿姆斯特丹大学的斯托科霍夫（Martin Stokhof）教授,哥德堡大学与斯德哥尔摩大学的威斯特斯达（Dag Westerstahl）教授,     

一个维特根斯坦主义者眼中的框架问题

框架问题的核心命意乃是：在对智能体的行动进行表征之时,如何能够在有效地表征出行动的效果之时,避免对于其非效果的表征？对于符号主义路数的人工智能研究来说,框架问题的确非常棘手,因为它的存在使得对于行动的知识刻画必须引入大量的框架公理,并由此使得系统的计算负荷剧增。从历史上看,人工智能界赖以解决这个问题的基本路径主要有两条。第一条是诉诸于＂关于惯性的常识律＂或缺省逻辑,即在行动表征中预设：没有被表征式牵涉到的＂世界其余部分＂都将保持惯性。另一条路径则采纳了海耶斯的＂素朴物理学＂表征方案,即试图把日常物理学知识全部用谓词逻辑公理化,让系统自动推算出哪些动作会导致哪些结果。本文将论证,这两条道路其实都走不通。在此基础上,本文将从维特根斯坦的《论确定性》中寻找灵感,建立一个关于信念网动力学模型——在这个模型中,某些知识节点的激发只会导致某些与之毗邻的节点的激发,因此,对于特定问题求解路径的表征,就能够避免对于一个更大范围内的知识网络的牵涉。框架问题也有望借助于这个模型得到解决。最后,我将利用＂非公理推演系统＂（NARS）为这个模型提供一种尽量逼真的工程学模拟。     

Principles for quality undergraduate education in psychology

The principles for undergraduate education in psychology presented here are designed for creating a world-class educational system that provides students with the workplace skills needed in this information age; a solid academic background that prepares them for advanced study in a wide range of fields; and the knowledge, skills, and abilities that will enhance their personal lives. A quality undergraduate education is designed to produce psychologically literate citizens who apply the principles of psychological science at work and at home. The American Psychological Association (APA) urges all stakeholders in undergraduate education in psychology to incorporate these principles in establishing goals and objectives that fit their specific institutional needs and missions.