USING VIDEO TECHNOLOGY TO DISSEMINATE BEHAVIORAL PROCEDURES: A REVIEW OF FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS: A GUIDE FOR UNDERSTANDING CHALLENGING BEHAVIOR (DVD)

Although applied behavior analysis has generated many highly effective behavior‐change procedures, the procedures have not always been effectively disseminated. One solution to this problem is the use of video technology, which has been facilitated by the ready availability of video production equipment and software and multiple distribution methods (e.g., DVD, online streaming). We review a recent DVD that was produced to disseminate the successful experimental functional analysis procedure. The review is followed by general recommendations for disseminating behavior‐analytic procedures via video technology.     

Technology as prospective ontology

Starting from common-sense notions of ‘furniture of the world’ a process ontology is developed in which prospective is an integral part. Technology as configurations that work (precariously) embodies expectations which structure further development. Examples (a cloned puppy, hotel keys, DC airplanes, stem cells, and overpasses on Long Island) are used to develop the notion of material narratives that are “written”, not just by engineers and designers/producers, but also by users: “reading” implies some further “writing”. In contrast to prevailing notions of technological control (through manipulation of building blocks), the “writing” of nanotechnology is modulation of the invisible and impredictable - an extreme example of unruly technology and repair work after the fact, where in practice control is a gesture not so different from magic. Because ontology cannot be other than prospective, it is political throughout. Thus, prospective technology highlights ontological politics.     

Findings follow framings: navigating the empirical turn

In this paper, I outline several methodological questions that we need to confront. The chief question is how can we identify the nature of technological change and its varied cultural consequences—including social, political, institutional, and economic dimensions—when our different research methods, using distinct ‘levels’ or ‘scales’ of analysis, yield contradictory results. What can we say, in other words, when our findings about technology follow from the framings of our inquiries? In slightly different terms, can we combine insights from the fine-grained “social shaping of technology” as well as from complementary approaches accenting the “technological shaping of society?” As a way forward, I will suggest conducting multi-scale inquiries into the processes of technological and cultural change. This will involve recognizing and conceptualizing the analytical scales or levels on which we conduct inquiry (very roughly, micro, meso, macro) as well as outlining strategies for moving within and between these scales or levels. Of course we want and need diverse methodologies for analyzing technology and culture. I find myself in sympathy with geographer Brenner (New state spaces: urban governance and the rescaling of statehood, 2004, p. 7), who aspires to a “theoretically precise yet also historically specific conceptualization of [technological change] as a key dimension of social, political and economic life.”     

Towards a reflexive framework for development: technology transfer after the empirical turn

The purpose of this essay is to: (1) detail how recent trends in philosophical theory have made it possible for philosophers of technology to critically discuss technology transfer; (2) demonstrate that economic standards of assessment are conducive to obscuring the hidden tradeoffs that technological practices, such as mobile phone use in Bangladesh, can engender; and (3) provide the basis of an alternative model that can reflexively addresses dimensions of technology transfer that neo-classical economic accounts occlude.     

It’s not just what you know, it’s who you know: Testing a model of the relative importance of social networks to academic performance

Applying three mathematical modeling techniques, this study proposes and tests the fit of an academic performance model, and then estimates the relative importance of four performance predictors: academic ability, performance goal orientation, educational technology use, and social network density. Drawing on social network theory, findings from this study show that social network density is a statistically important and unique predictor of academic performance, suggesting that “who you know” matters in large classroom settings. However, this study also indicates that academic ability is the most dominant factor in the explanation of academic performance. Practical and theoretical implications for enhancing academic performance through social networks are discussed.

Gender Schemas: A Cognitive Explanation of Discrimination of Women in Technology

Despite the need for qualified personnel in the field of information technology (IT), women are under represented. Recruiting has been difficult and those women entering the profession often leave. Gender schema theory adds to the explanation of behaviors and attitudes in the workplace that may adversely impact women in technology. We surveyed members of Systers, an online forum for women in technology, to examine gender schemas of IT women to see if there is a significant difference between them and the general public. Our findings suggest that there is a significant difference in the gender-schemas of women in technology and the gender-schemas of the general population. A subsequent sample of male IT students and men in the general public also indicated a significant difference in gender schemas of these two groups. Implications of these differences and future research in this area are discussed.     

我国食管癌进一步研究的思路

为进一步探讨食管癌的发病机制和寻求食管癌的防治新策略,本文回顾了现代科学技术革命和食管癌研究的发展史,借鉴现代科学技术革命的成功经验,提出将整体的有关调节因素与食管癌发病机制相结合,拓宽综合性和多学科合作的研究思路,可能会发现攻克食管癌防治研究的突破点,同时,创新研究技术和加强实验室建设是加速食管癌研究取得新进展的有效途径。     

泌尿外科技术的进展与应用

随着科学技术的飞速发展,以腔内泌尿外科为代表的泌尿外科技术得到迅速发展和广泛应用。回顾历史,泌尿外科技术的发展是在实践、认识,再实践、再认识的过程中不断发展、完善的;但高技术决不是万能的,作为泌尿外科医生,在应用这些技术时必须坚持一切从实际出发,在系统论的指导下不断提高和拓展临床思维,做到全面、客观、真实地认识疾病,真正掌握和应用泌尿外科高新技术,使其更好地为患者服务。     

中医基本理论体系的重建与科学技术

中医学基本理论体系核心包括医学理论和古代朴素哲学思想,医哲不分造成的循环封闭体系阻碍了中医学对现代科学技术的吸收;在保持中医学基本特点的前提下,弱化古代哲学的影响,重建以人生命活动为根本、全面开放的学科体系,有利于中医学可持续发展。     

鲁绣的演变及影响——从威海地区的刺绣看鲁绣的传承与发展

鲁绣,作为山东著名的传统刺绣,是我国刺绣工艺史上记载最早的品种之一。其演变过程历史悠久,遍布广泛。本文通过对鲁绣发展演变的研究,来进一步加强鲁绣作为传统的刺绣工艺品的传承和发展,并提出一些对鲁绣艺术发展的相应对策。