The rhetoric of the reasoned social scientific fact

An analysis is provided for one possible practical link between rhetorical and social scientific inquiry. That link is found in the rhetoric of the reasoned social scientific fact. Understanding this point of intersection involves grounding a rhetorical theory of how to create and to evaluate arguments (a rhetorical theory of invention and judgment) in the practical problems that confront contemporary social scientists during their efforts to construct reasoned social facts. The applicability of this invention and judgment framework to analysis of the rhetoric of social science is illustrated with reference to a controversy over the legitimacy of rules theoretic explanations of human communication processes. Implications of the practical link between rhetorical and social scientific inquiry are then drawn out.     

One hundred years of neuropsychology in Japan: Retrospect and prospect

The development of neuropsychology in Japan since the end of the 19th century will be outlined, including a number of pioneering works that gave a scientific basis to contemporary Japanese neuropsychology. The activities of societies/associations of related disciplines as well as the educational systems of clinical and experimental neuropsychology, which represents in Japan an interdisciplinary field, will be described. After national and international activities are mentioned, a review of significant Japanese contributions to main topics in neuropsychology will be given in some detail: dementia, memory disorders, frontal lobe syndromes, aphasia-alexia-agraphia, callosal syndromes, and specific right hemisphere syndromes. The issues of these interdisciplinary scientific investigations have found application in language and cognitive disabilities of brain-damaged patients, as well as evaluation of medical treatments and comedical rehabilitational efforts, care, and counseling. Finally, some comments will be presented on possible and desirable developments of Japanese neuropsychology in the future.     

Development of psychology in Bulgaria after the political changes in 1989

This article outlines the significant organizational and scientific changes that occurred in Bulgarian psychology after the fall of the totalitarian regime in 1989. These included the establishment of new university and research centers in psychology, the abolition of ideological censorship in psychology publications, free choice of research methodology and methods, free communication, and exchange of ideas with foreign psychologists, and the development of psychoanalytic practice and psychological services. The liberalization of the social conditions for the development of science, in general, made psychology a much sought-after science and practice. In this time of social transition, its authority grew significantly due to the fact that its calling was to study and solve, above all, the problems of the people, especially as they were faced with new social conditions. In the last 30 years, psychological science in Bulgaria has been significantly humanized. These changes allowed scientists to propose new methodological approaches not only to the study of the psyche, but also to the study of both Bulgarian and foreign history of psychology. Although in the last 30 years not all measures taken in the institutional management of the psychological science were positive, Bulgarian psychology was given a new opportunity to join the international scientific community.     

科学发明中原型启发的创造性思维成分及其脑机制

目前对创造性思维的测量及神经机制的研究, 国际上大多采用发散思维任务、远距离联想测验、顿悟问题解决等任务。但这些测量工具大多停留在对非科学类问题解决的研究上, 因此生态效度和预测效度都不高。本项目在前面研究的基础上, 探讨更符合现实生活的科学发明中原型启发的创造性思维成分及机制。研究一通过两个行为实验探索原型启发能力的创造性思维成分测试的结构效度; 研究二运用大样本磁共振数据, 从脑机制上进一步验证创造性思维成分的结构效度; 研究三通过3个核磁任务态探索原型启发能力的主要创造性思维成分的脑机制; 研究四试图在高校和企业研发机构进行跟踪研究, 检验创造性思维成分测试的预测效度。通过本项目的开展, 希望开发具有更高预测效度和生态效度的用于发明创造领域的创造性测量工具。     

A REFUTATION OF CONSEQUENTIALISM

Abstract: This article argues that consequentialism does not work as a comprehensive theory of right action. The argument is that what course of action maximizes the good makes sense only within a particular context, but that it is impossible to supply such a context while adhering to a global consistency requirement. A global consistency requirement merely specifies the demand for maximization: it insists that an individual action, in order to be morally right, must be optimific relative not only to a set of temporally and spatially local alternatives but also to all future possibilities that the action would preclude. I further argue that an appropriate context is impossible to provide because act consequentialism invokes incompatible temporal horizons, that of action and that of a maximizable good. The incompatibility between these two horizons makes it impossible for there to be any morally salient, consistent assignment of consequences to actions, and thus renders act consequentialism empty.     

TECHNO‐SECULARISM AND “REVEALED RELIGION”: SOME PROBLEMS WITH CAIAZZA'S ANALYSIS

Abstract. Instead of focusing my remarks on John Caiazza's interesting and important thesis about the way in which modern technology is drastically secularizing our culture today, I examine the frame within which he sets out his thesis, a frame I regard as seriously flawed. Caiazza's argument is concerned with the broad range of religion/science/technology issues in today's world, but the only religion that he seems to take seriously is what he calls “revealed religion” (Christianity). His consideration of religion is thus narrow and cramped, and this makes it difficult to assess properly the significance of what he calls techno‐secularism. I suggest that employing a broader conception of religion would enable us to see more clearly what is really at stake in the rise of techno‐secularism. Instead of defining the issues in the polarizing terms of revealed religion versus secularity, I argue for a more integrative approach in which concepts are developed that can bring together and hold together major religious insights and themes with modern scientific thinking. If, for example, we give up the anthropomorphism of the traditional idea of God as creator and think of God as simply creativity, it becomes possible to integrate theological insights with current scientific thinking and to formulate the issues posed by the rise of techno‐secularism in a more illuminating way. This in turn should facilitate effective address of those issues.     

SCIENCE AND SCIENTISM: THE IMPORTANCE OF A DISTINCTION

Abstract. John Caiazza's interesting argument is an important one and deserves a close hearing. However, his article could be more forceful if he would distinguish more carefully between science on the one hand and “scientific secularism” and “materialism” on the other.     

组织诚信:超越个体品德的组织伦理和行为

由于市场经济活动中的交易行为更多是组织层面的行为,企业组织诚信相比较于个体诚信来说对社会公众就具有更广泛和更普遍的影响。本文辨析了组织诚信与个体诚信的异同,指出组织诚信是组织作为社会环境中的道德行为者,自觉遵守商业经营的一系列价值和伦理规则。文章揭示了组织诚信的作用,以及它成为组织战略性资产的定位,并进一步提出了建设组织诚信的基本路径。     

论保密义务与诚信原则

尊重患者隐私,保守执业秘密,是医师的道德义务,也是法律义务,保密义务的理论基础在于诚实信用原则.为此,医疗活动中应引入体现伦理道德要求的诚信理念,从道德和法律两方面规范医师的行为,并且建立以法律规范为主的规制模式.     

生命科学研究与创新思维--我国生命科学研究现状与思考

分析总结了我国现代生命科学研究中存在的一些问题,如重复性研究,文献复习不够,文章中数据较少,一稿多投等,并分析了出现这些问题的原因:科研经费严重不足,没有足够的科研时间,缺乏科学的科研机制,急功近利,缺乏公正严格的评价标准和体系等.就这些问题提出来一些应对策略,如改革科研体制,集中统筹安排科研经费,完善科研管理制度,加强创新思维的培养等等.