A counterexample to Fishburn's conjecture on finite linear qualitative probability

Kraft, Pratt and Seidenberg (Ann. Math. Statist. 30 (1959) 408) provided an infinite set of axioms which, when taken together with de Finetti's axiom, gives a necessary and sufficient set of “cancellation” conditions for representability of an ordering relation on subsets of a set by an order-preserving probability measure. Fishburn (1996) defined f(n) to be the smallest positive integer k such that every comparative probability ordering on an n-element set which satisfies the cancellation conditions C₄,…,C_k is representable. By the work of Kraft, Pratt, and Seidenberg (1959) and Fishburn (J. Math. Psychol. 40 (1996) 64; J. Combin. Design 5 (1997) 353), it is known that n-1?f(n)?n+1 for all n?5. Also Fishburn proved that f(5)=4, and conjectured that f(n)=n-1 for all n?5. In this paper we confirm that f(6)=5, but give counter-examples to Fishburn's conjecture for n=7, showing that f(7)?7. We summarise, correct and extend many of the known results on this topic, including the notion of “almost representability”, and offer an amended version of Fishburn's conjecture.     

Forming Life Satisfaction among Different Social Groups during the Modernization of China

Quality of life has become a notable concern in the modernization of China. However, there are no adequate data to chart the formation of quality of life, in terms of life satisfaction, and in relation to the societal conditions of modernization. Moreover, it is still a question concerning how life satisfaction forms among people of different social groups, differentiated by class, education, age, and gender. To answer the questions, the present study involved a random sample survey of 732 inhabitants in Beijing. Results indicate the contributions of income, age, perceived modern economic conditions in society, and satisfaction with societal economic conditions. In contrast, education and the ownership class appear to predict lower life satisfaction. Furthermore, there are significant variations in the effects of the factors in predicting the life satisfaction of people in different social groups. Notably, perceived economic conditions appear to be less important to people of higher class positions. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Exogenous testosterone and social experience each enhance the development of aggressive behavior in Cyprinodon variegatus

The combined effects of testosterone and social experience from the time of hatching on development of aggressive behaviors in Cyprinodon variegatus were investigated. Social experience was defined as a rearing condition allowing visual, tactile, chemosensory, and auditory contact with zero, three, or 15 additional conspecifics. Behaviors were videotaped once weekly from 3 weeks to 4 months post-hatching, using the focal animal method, and an ethogram was constructed. At 3 months post-hatching, half the fish were injected once with testosterone propionate (2 μg/g b. w., i. p., vehicle-Ringer's solution) and the other half were injected with Ringer's isotonic saline solution. Testosteronetreated subjects showed significantly greater frequencies and durations of behaviors that may be related to aggression than did saline controls. Two weeks after the treatments, a round-robin tournament was conducted between testosterone- and saline-treated fish from each rearing condition. Testosterone-treated fish won significantly more encounters than did saline-treated subjects over all rearing conditions. Furthermore, significantly more aggressive acts were displayed by fish raised in the groups of 16 and the groups of four than did the Isolates. Although the number of aggressive acts exhibited by the group of 16 was greater than the group of four, the difference was not statistically significant.     

不同心理弹性大学生在有或无应激情景下的注意偏向特点

采用点探测实验范式,考察不同心理弹性水平大学生在有或无应激情景下的注意偏向特点。采用中国版Connor-Davidson心理弹性量表从450名被试中筛选出19名高分组被试和20名低分组被试,将被试随机分入有应激情景或无应激情景两种实验情景下进行实验。结果表明：（1）高心理弹性组被试的注意偏向分显著高于低心理弹性组;（2）高心理弹性组被试在无应激情景下对低应激词表现出注意警觉,低心理弹性组被试在无应激情景下对高应激词表现出注意回避。     

La qualité de vie au travail dans les services de ressources humaines

This research looks at work well-being for human resources staffs, which are brought to manage relations between individuals and organization, between organization and society, between individuals and society. 263 human resources staffs performed a questionnaire estimating work facets such professionals satisfaction and commitment, work conditions and health. Results shown firstly a work quality of life for staffs, what does not prevent them from reporting hardness (temporal constraints, working overload), secondly the absence of systematic effects of status, age and gender on work attitudes and health. Results and futur works are discussed.     

The Ontological Roots of Human Science: the Message of Evolution—The Physics of Freedom (Choice)

The original proposal of H. H. Pattee (1971) Pattee, H. H. 1971. “Can life explain quantum mechanics?”. In Quantum theory and beyond, Edited by: Bastin, T. 307–319. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.  [Google Scholar] of basing quantum theoretical measurement theory on the theory of the origin of life, and its far reaching consequences, is discussed in the light of a recently emerging biological paradigm of internal measurement. It is established that the “measurement problem” of quantum physics can, in principle, be traced back to the internal material constraints of the biological organisms, where choice is a fundamental attribute of the self-measurement of matter. In this light, which is shown to be a consequence of Pattee's original suggestion, it is proposed that biological evolution is a gradual liberation from the inert unity of “subject” and “object” of inanimate matter (as “natural law” and “initial conditions”), to a split biological existence of them and, as a consequence, the “message of evolution” is freedom, rather than complexity in itself. Some classical philosophical systems are brought into context to show that the epistemologies of several strictly philosophical systems of the social sciences are well acquainted with the problem and their solutions support our conclusions.     

The partnership between the Early Intervention Institute,St Petersburg,and the Anna Freud Centre,London

The authors describe study and teaching links between the Early Intervention Institute in St Petersburg and the Anna Freud Clinic in London. Some brief clinical examples from a variety of settings are given as well as a longer case presentation. The impact of widespread institutional care, alcoholism and terrible housing conditions on child mental health are illustrated. This raises questions about the role of child psychotherapy when social conditions are so harsh. The case material indicates that, despite this, children can be helped in some measure to feel more secure, by the therapist providing constancy and reliability within an often frightening and dangerous external world.     

Primary shame,mortal wound and tragic circularity: Some new reflections on shame and shame conflicts

Invited to contribute some thoughts on recent developments in psychoanalytic thinking about shame, the author starts off with Aristotle's prescient analysis of shame and then focuses on accumulating experiences in the psychoanalytic treatment of patients with severe neuroses, in particular the close relationship of severe traumatization and chronic states of shame, and how this is reflected in shelfdestructive repetitions. Reminiscent of what we know from tragedy and the tragic dimension of human existence, this repetition compulsion shows a built‐in circularity. These circular dynamics have at their core struggles with deep woundedness that can variably be conceived of as primary pain, primary shame and primary anxiety. Consequently, throughout the experiences with these patients goes the absoluteness both of their conscience and of their ideal, what we know as the “archaic superego:”     

Determining Activity of the Autonomic Nervous System from Measurements of Autonomic Change

Three hundred and fifty female high school students observed an outcome of a hypothetical interpersonal dyadic interaction. The outcome was either a suicide (serious outcome) or a half-hearted suicide attempt (less serious outcome). In one condition, one of the actors was presented as intentionally performing certain actions which he or she knew could cause the other actor to attempt or actually commit suicide. In the other condition, the perpetrator acted in an unintentional manner. Ss' identifications with either the victim or the perpetrator were also manipulated. Furthermore, Ss were independently classified as to whether they considered circumstances (C) or intentionality (I) as the important factor in attributing responsibility. C-attributers identifying with the victim assigned more responsibility to the perpetrator for the serious outcome. C-attributers identifying with the perpetrator assigned more responsibility to that perpetrator in the less serious condition. Predictions for I-attributers were also confirmed.     

Rich deontic logic: a preliminary study

This paper begins the development of new types of deontic operators, particularly ones whose semantic characterization is based on models with forward-branching time. In such models, supplemented by a choice function to model human agency, and an obligation function to introduce normative features, it is possible to develop a rich language with a variety of obligation operators, differing from one another in how they relate to time, and to the causal conditions, the causal consequences, and the logical consequences of actions. We approach these concepts making extensive use of the notion of a transition, as introduced in [M. Xu, Synthese 112 (1997) 137].