Christopher Hood
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780198297659
- eISBN:
- 9780191599484
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198297653.003.0007
- Subject:
- Political Science, Comparative Politics
In the four chapters of Part II, public management ideas that loosely correspond to each of the four polar world views identified by cultural theory are discussed; here the cultural‐theory framework ...
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In the four chapters of Part II, public management ideas that loosely correspond to each of the four polar world views identified by cultural theory are discussed; here the cultural‐theory framework is mixed with a historical perspective to survey recurring approaches to public management that can be loosely characterized as hierarchist (Ch.. 4), individualist (Ch. 5), egalitarian (Ch. 6), and fatalist (this chapter). Starts by asking whether there can be a fatalist approach to public management—cultural theorists have identified fatalism as a viable way of life, but it does not figure prominently in conventional accounts on the provision of public services; Banfield has stated that in fatalist societies (such as Montegrano) public management will be (only) narrowly bureaucratic and statist because only paid officials will be concerned with public affairs, and the citizenry at large will be cynical about the motives of public officials; in spite of this widespread belief, however, there are likely to be few effective checks on public officials in a fatalist society, and Banfield sees fatalism as a social pathology bound to produce social backwardness and stagnation. Cultural theory is ambiguous on whether fatalism can be a viable basis of organization in the sense that a Montegrano‐type society could survive and reproduce itself over time, nor is it clear from the work of cultural theorists exactly what fatalists’ focus on karma amounts to. The last possibility—that fatalism might link to how‐to‐do‐it ideas about organizational design, as distinct from a view of the world as ineluctably ruled by the fickle goddess of fortune—has had little attention: from conventional cultural‐theory accounts, it would seem the most appropriate role, for fatalist social science in public management would be like that of the chorus in classical Greek theatre—and the second section of the chapter examines such a perspective on public management, looking particularly at one influential strain of ‘new institutionalist’ literature, which portrays the functioning of organizations as a highly unpredictable process, involving eclectic decision‐making unavoidably dependent on chance connections. It then moves on to build on the recipe for contrived randomness, and argues that a fatalist perspective can at least in some sense be taken beyond commentary and criticism into a positive prescription for conducting management and designing organizations to operate on the basis of chance.Less
In the four chapters of Part II, public management ideas that loosely correspond to each of the four polar world views identified by cultural theory are discussed; here the cultural‐theory framework is mixed with a historical perspective to survey recurring approaches to public management that can be loosely characterized as hierarchist (Ch.. 4), individualist (Ch. 5), egalitarian (Ch. 6), and fatalist (this chapter). Starts by asking whether there can be a fatalist approach to public management—cultural theorists have identified fatalism as a viable way of life, but it does not figure prominently in conventional accounts on the provision of public services; Banfield has stated that in fatalist societies (such as Montegrano) public management will be (only) narrowly bureaucratic and statist because only paid officials will be concerned with public affairs, and the citizenry at large will be cynical about the motives of public officials; in spite of this widespread belief, however, there are likely to be few effective checks on public officials in a fatalist society, and Banfield sees fatalism as a social pathology bound to produce social backwardness and stagnation. Cultural theory is ambiguous on whether fatalism can be a viable basis of organization in the sense that a Montegrano‐type society could survive and reproduce itself over time, nor is it clear from the work of cultural theorists exactly what fatalists’ focus on karma amounts to. The last possibility—that fatalism might link to how‐to‐do‐it ideas about organizational design, as distinct from a view of the world as ineluctably ruled by the fickle goddess of fortune—has had little attention: from conventional cultural‐theory accounts, it would seem the most appropriate role, for fatalist social science in public management would be like that of the chorus in classical Greek theatre—and the second section of the chapter examines such a perspective on public management, looking particularly at one influential strain of ‘new institutionalist’ literature, which portrays the functioning of organizations as a highly unpredictable process, involving eclectic decision‐making unavoidably dependent on chance connections. It then moves on to build on the recipe for contrived randomness, and argues that a fatalist perspective can at least in some sense be taken beyond commentary and criticism into a positive prescription for conducting management and designing organizations to operate on the basis of chance.
Carolyn Nordstrom and Antonius Robben (eds)
- Published in print:
- 1996
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520089938
- eISBN:
- 9780520915718
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520089938.001.0001
- Subject:
- Anthropology, Anthropology, Theory and Practice
This book contains chapters written by anthropologists who have experienced the unpredictability and trauma of political violence firsthand. The chapters combine theoretical, ethnographic, and ...
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This book contains chapters written by anthropologists who have experienced the unpredictability and trauma of political violence firsthand. The chapters combine theoretical, ethnographic, and methodological points of view to illuminate the processes and solutions that characterize life in dangerous places. They describe the first, often harrowing, experience of violence, the personal and professional problems that arise as troubles escalate, and the often-surprising creative strategies people use to survive. In the book the chapters give voice to all those affected by the conditions of violence: perpetrators as well as victims, civilians and specialists, black marketeers and heroes, jackals and researchers. Focusing on everyday experiences, the chapters bring to light the puzzling contradictions of lives disturbed by violence: the simultaneous existence of laughter and suffering, of fear and hope. By doing so, they challenge the narrow conceptualization that associates violence with death and war, arguing that instead it must be considered a dimension of living.Less
This book contains chapters written by anthropologists who have experienced the unpredictability and trauma of political violence firsthand. The chapters combine theoretical, ethnographic, and methodological points of view to illuminate the processes and solutions that characterize life in dangerous places. They describe the first, often harrowing, experience of violence, the personal and professional problems that arise as troubles escalate, and the often-surprising creative strategies people use to survive. In the book the chapters give voice to all those affected by the conditions of violence: perpetrators as well as victims, civilians and specialists, black marketeers and heroes, jackals and researchers. Focusing on everyday experiences, the chapters bring to light the puzzling contradictions of lives disturbed by violence: the simultaneous existence of laughter and suffering, of fear and hope. By doing so, they challenge the narrow conceptualization that associates violence with death and war, arguing that instead it must be considered a dimension of living.
Kristian Kloeckl
- Published in print:
- 2020
- Published Online:
- May 2020
- ISBN:
- 9780300243048
- eISBN:
- 9780300249347
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Yale University Press
- DOI:
- 10.12987/yale/9780300243048.003.0008
- Subject:
- Architecture, Architectural History
This concluding chapter reviews the central arguments of the book and reflects critically on living with uncertainty and unpredictability as a form of critical mobility for urban living. It considers ...
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This concluding chapter reviews the central arguments of the book and reflects critically on living with uncertainty and unpredictability as a form of critical mobility for urban living. It considers how the focus on efficiency, data-driven predictability, and control in the narrative about cities over the past two decades strikingly recalls the early days of the twentieth century. What then was the idealized new and modern has become the smart of today. The development of technology has long pursued the superlatives of faster, higher, bigger, cleaner, stronger, better, and safer. This was a promising strategy when the scope and reach of technologies were limited. Today, however, networked information technologies pervade not only cities but also large and intricate parts of our everyday practice.Less
This concluding chapter reviews the central arguments of the book and reflects critically on living with uncertainty and unpredictability as a form of critical mobility for urban living. It considers how the focus on efficiency, data-driven predictability, and control in the narrative about cities over the past two decades strikingly recalls the early days of the twentieth century. What then was the idealized new and modern has become the smart of today. The development of technology has long pursued the superlatives of faster, higher, bigger, cleaner, stronger, better, and safer. This was a promising strategy when the scope and reach of technologies were limited. Today, however, networked information technologies pervade not only cities but also large and intricate parts of our everyday practice.
Ingo Gildenhard
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- January 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199291557
- eISBN:
- 9780191594885
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199291557.003.0002
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Prose and Writers: Classical, Early, and Medieval
This chapter discusses figures of thought in Cicero's speeches to do with being human and the human condition. Special attention is given to the notions that human beings are inherently fallible and ...
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This chapter discusses figures of thought in Cicero's speeches to do with being human and the human condition. Special attention is given to the notions that human beings are inherently fallible and that human life unfolds in an unpredictable environment (personified in Fortune, goddess of happenstance and caprice) and is thus subject to random, i.e. amoral disasters. Both notions found articulation in new comic scripts, before appearing in other genres of discourse, such as rhetorical handbooks and public oratory. Against this background, the chapter explores how Cicero uses them to fashion models of the human self and of the universe, not least to address the problem of social accountability.Less
This chapter discusses figures of thought in Cicero's speeches to do with being human and the human condition. Special attention is given to the notions that human beings are inherently fallible and that human life unfolds in an unpredictable environment (personified in Fortune, goddess of happenstance and caprice) and is thus subject to random, i.e. amoral disasters. Both notions found articulation in new comic scripts, before appearing in other genres of discourse, such as rhetorical handbooks and public oratory. Against this background, the chapter explores how Cicero uses them to fashion models of the human self and of the universe, not least to address the problem of social accountability.
Richard Crouter
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195379679
- eISBN:
- 9780199869169
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195379679.003.0002
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
Chapter 2 examines the sense of history (awareness of the heights and depth of our existence) set forth in Niebuhr’s masterful book, The Nature and Destiny of Man, as an ever-present motif of his ...
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Chapter 2 examines the sense of history (awareness of the heights and depth of our existence) set forth in Niebuhr’s masterful book, The Nature and Destiny of Man, as an ever-present motif of his thought. He shares the view of the prophets of ancient Israel and Jesus of Nazareth regarding human moral blindness and hypocrisy. Like them, Niebuhr draws from past cultural, political, and religious experience to illumine events of the present day. The human self’s capacity for self-transcendence and freedom lies at the center of our grandeur as well as folly. An acute sense of the contingency and unpredictability of history goes hand in hand with a need for hope beyond the suffering love that marks the human story. In this biblical perspective the sense of God as supreme mystery coincides with a deep human need to appreciate the basic goodness and grace of the created order that surrounds us.Less
Chapter 2 examines the sense of history (awareness of the heights and depth of our existence) set forth in Niebuhr’s masterful book, The Nature and Destiny of Man, as an ever-present motif of his thought. He shares the view of the prophets of ancient Israel and Jesus of Nazareth regarding human moral blindness and hypocrisy. Like them, Niebuhr draws from past cultural, political, and religious experience to illumine events of the present day. The human self’s capacity for self-transcendence and freedom lies at the center of our grandeur as well as folly. An acute sense of the contingency and unpredictability of history goes hand in hand with a need for hope beyond the suffering love that marks the human story. In this biblical perspective the sense of God as supreme mystery coincides with a deep human need to appreciate the basic goodness and grace of the created order that surrounds us.
Peter Stone
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- May 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199756100
- eISBN:
- 9780199895120
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199756100.003.0002
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
This chapter defines a lottery as a process capable of generating a set of outcomes in which the particular outcome to be expected whenever the process occurs is unpredictable given available ...
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This chapter defines a lottery as a process capable of generating a set of outcomes in which the particular outcome to be expected whenever the process occurs is unpredictable given available information. (This is, according to the argument given here, equivalent to saying that the outcome is random.) One implication of this decision is that whenever a decision is made by lot, the decision cannot be made on the basis of reasons. The chapter then argues that lotteries can occasionally prove desirable in decision-making precisely because they prevent decision-making on the basis of reasons. Sometimes an agent faces indeterminacy, in which the good reasons available to the agent prove indeterminate, and there is the danger that bad reasons may enter into the process. Lotteries prevent this by ensuring that the final decision is made on the basis of no reasons. Lotteries can thereby sanitize decision-making. This is called the lottery principle.Less
This chapter defines a lottery as a process capable of generating a set of outcomes in which the particular outcome to be expected whenever the process occurs is unpredictable given available information. (This is, according to the argument given here, equivalent to saying that the outcome is random.) One implication of this decision is that whenever a decision is made by lot, the decision cannot be made on the basis of reasons. The chapter then argues that lotteries can occasionally prove desirable in decision-making precisely because they prevent decision-making on the basis of reasons. Sometimes an agent faces indeterminacy, in which the good reasons available to the agent prove indeterminate, and there is the danger that bad reasons may enter into the process. Lotteries prevent this by ensuring that the final decision is made on the basis of no reasons. Lotteries can thereby sanitize decision-making. This is called the lottery principle.
Deborah Chester
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- May 2016
- ISBN:
- 9781784992880
- eISBN:
- 9781526104199
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Manchester University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7228/manchester/9781784992880.003.0014
- Subject:
- Literature, Criticism/Theory
Often a character’s essential, true nature is revealed in the story’s middle, a revelation brought about through the stress or excitement of the central story event. A complex, multi-dimensional ...
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Often a character’s essential, true nature is revealed in the story’s middle, a revelation brought about through the stress or excitement of the central story event. A complex, multi-dimensional character will have an inner personality that contrasts with the surface mask he or she wears. Once a character’s basic nature is revealed, however, the mask should be slipped back on then later allowed to drop again at strategic moments in order to keep readers intrigued.Less
Often a character’s essential, true nature is revealed in the story’s middle, a revelation brought about through the stress or excitement of the central story event. A complex, multi-dimensional character will have an inner personality that contrasts with the surface mask he or she wears. Once a character’s basic nature is revealed, however, the mask should be slipped back on then later allowed to drop again at strategic moments in order to keep readers intrigued.
Peter Coles
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- January 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780198567622
- eISBN:
- 9780191718250
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198567622.003.0009
- Subject:
- Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
The word ‘cosmology’ is derived from the Greek ‘cosmos’ which means the world as an orderly system. To the Greeks, the opposite of cosmos was ‘chaos’, and views the universe as consisting of two ...
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The word ‘cosmology’ is derived from the Greek ‘cosmos’ which means the world as an orderly system. To the Greeks, the opposite of cosmos was ‘chaos’, and views the universe as consisting of two competing aspects: the orderly part that was governed by laws and which could be predicted, and the ‘random’ part which was disordered and unpredictable. With the rise of quantum theory and its applications to the theory of subatomic particles and their interactions, the cosmology has gradually ceded some of its territory to chaos. This chapter explores a few issues relating to the way uncertainty and unpredictability have forced their way into theories of the universe. These are the areas where a proper treatment of probability is vital. The cosmological ‘flatness problem’ is also discussed, along with the anthropic principle.Less
The word ‘cosmology’ is derived from the Greek ‘cosmos’ which means the world as an orderly system. To the Greeks, the opposite of cosmos was ‘chaos’, and views the universe as consisting of two competing aspects: the orderly part that was governed by laws and which could be predicted, and the ‘random’ part which was disordered and unpredictable. With the rise of quantum theory and its applications to the theory of subatomic particles and their interactions, the cosmology has gradually ceded some of its territory to chaos. This chapter explores a few issues relating to the way uncertainty and unpredictability have forced their way into theories of the universe. These are the areas where a proper treatment of probability is vital. The cosmological ‘flatness problem’ is also discussed, along with the anthropic principle.
Peter J. Thuesen
- Published in print:
- 2020
- Published Online:
- May 2020
- ISBN:
- 9780190680282
- eISBN:
- 9780190680312
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780190680282.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, History of Christianity
One of the earliest sources of humanity’s religious impulse was severe weather, which ancient peoples attributed to the wrath of storm gods. Enlightenment thinkers derided such beliefs as ...
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One of the earliest sources of humanity’s religious impulse was severe weather, which ancient peoples attributed to the wrath of storm gods. Enlightenment thinkers derided such beliefs as superstition and predicted they would pass away as humans became more scientifically and theologically sophisticated. But in America, scientific and theological hubris came face to face with the tornado, nature’s most violent windstorm. Striking the United States more than any other nation, tornadoes have consistently defied scientists’ efforts to unlock their secrets. Meteorologists now acknowledge that even the most powerful computers will likely never be able to predict a tornado’s precise path. Similarly, tornadoes have repeatedly brought Americans to the outer limits of theology, drawing them into the vortex of such mysteries as how to reconcile suffering with a loving God and whether there is underlying purpose or randomness in the universe. In this groundbreaking history, Peter Thuesen captures the harrowing drama of tornadoes, as clergy, theologians, meteorologists, and ordinary citizens struggle to make sense of these death-dealing tempests. He argues that, in the tornado, Americans experience something that is at once culturally peculiar (the indigenous storm of the national imagination) and religiously primal (the sense of awe before an unpredictable and mysterious power). He also shows that, in an era of climate change, the weather raises the issue of society’s complicity in natural disasters. In the whirlwind, Americans confront the question of their own destiny—how much is self-determined and how much is beyond human understanding or control.Less
One of the earliest sources of humanity’s religious impulse was severe weather, which ancient peoples attributed to the wrath of storm gods. Enlightenment thinkers derided such beliefs as superstition and predicted they would pass away as humans became more scientifically and theologically sophisticated. But in America, scientific and theological hubris came face to face with the tornado, nature’s most violent windstorm. Striking the United States more than any other nation, tornadoes have consistently defied scientists’ efforts to unlock their secrets. Meteorologists now acknowledge that even the most powerful computers will likely never be able to predict a tornado’s precise path. Similarly, tornadoes have repeatedly brought Americans to the outer limits of theology, drawing them into the vortex of such mysteries as how to reconcile suffering with a loving God and whether there is underlying purpose or randomness in the universe. In this groundbreaking history, Peter Thuesen captures the harrowing drama of tornadoes, as clergy, theologians, meteorologists, and ordinary citizens struggle to make sense of these death-dealing tempests. He argues that, in the tornado, Americans experience something that is at once culturally peculiar (the indigenous storm of the national imagination) and religiously primal (the sense of awe before an unpredictable and mysterious power). He also shows that, in an era of climate change, the weather raises the issue of society’s complicity in natural disasters. In the whirlwind, Americans confront the question of their own destiny—how much is self-determined and how much is beyond human understanding or control.
Marian Stamp Dawkins
- Published in print:
- 1998
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780198503200
- eISBN:
- 9780191686474
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198503200.003.0002
- Subject:
- Psychology, Cognitive Psychology
The first part of human's quest for consciousness in other species is to look at what is now known about their behaviour and to see whether this can be dismissed as simply the workings of unthinking, ...
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The first part of human's quest for consciousness in other species is to look at what is now known about their behaviour and to see whether this can be dismissed as simply the workings of unthinking, unfeeling automata, blindly going through a set series of actions with no hint of a mind to guide them or whether what they do is complex enough and unpredictable enough that it suggests the possibility – even a remote one – that somewhere a spark of consciousness has come alight. A stumbling block that many people have when they look at animals is that they see their behaviour as being the opposite of clever and complex. In fact, they see animals as essentially stupid.Less
The first part of human's quest for consciousness in other species is to look at what is now known about their behaviour and to see whether this can be dismissed as simply the workings of unthinking, unfeeling automata, blindly going through a set series of actions with no hint of a mind to guide them or whether what they do is complex enough and unpredictable enough that it suggests the possibility – even a remote one – that somewhere a spark of consciousness has come alight. A stumbling block that many people have when they look at animals is that they see their behaviour as being the opposite of clever and complex. In fact, they see animals as essentially stupid.
Phyllis C. Lee
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780198526223
- eISBN:
- 9780191689406
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198526223.003.0012
- Subject:
- Psychology, Cognitive Psychology
This chapter presents a general review of how non-human primates adjust to environmental variability via behavioural innovation, and place innovation into context as an adaptive strategy for coping ...
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This chapter presents a general review of how non-human primates adjust to environmental variability via behavioural innovation, and place innovation into context as an adaptive strategy for coping with unpredictability. It explains that primates as a group are renowned for their behavioural flexibility, their technical capacities, and for creating new contexts for social opportunities. Both phylogeny and life history underlie differences between species in their capacity to innovate, while within species, local ecological opportunities and constraints affect when, where, how often and among which age–sex classes innovations may arise and become fixed within behavioural repertoires. The chapter outlines here in a theoretical context how modelling costs and benefits could increase our understanding of innovation and dissemination of novel behaviour.Less
This chapter presents a general review of how non-human primates adjust to environmental variability via behavioural innovation, and place innovation into context as an adaptive strategy for coping with unpredictability. It explains that primates as a group are renowned for their behavioural flexibility, their technical capacities, and for creating new contexts for social opportunities. Both phylogeny and life history underlie differences between species in their capacity to innovate, while within species, local ecological opportunities and constraints affect when, where, how often and among which age–sex classes innovations may arise and become fixed within behavioural repertoires. The chapter outlines here in a theoretical context how modelling costs and benefits could increase our understanding of innovation and dissemination of novel behaviour.
Neil Heyde, Christopher Redgate, Roger Redgate, and Matthew Wright
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- December 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780199355914
- eISBN:
- 9780199355945
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780199355914.003.0026
- Subject:
- Music, Psychology of Music
Four highly experienced contemporary musicians—cellist, violinist, oboist and turntablist—who had never previously played together as a quartet discuss a public performance of free-improvisation. The ...
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Four highly experienced contemporary musicians—cellist, violinist, oboist and turntablist—who had never previously played together as a quartet discuss a public performance of free-improvisation. The conversation ranges across unpredictability and technology, composition and improvisation, and the rewards of getting to know one another through music.Less
Four highly experienced contemporary musicians—cellist, violinist, oboist and turntablist—who had never previously played together as a quartet discuss a public performance of free-improvisation. The conversation ranges across unpredictability and technology, composition and improvisation, and the rewards of getting to know one another through music.
Frederic Lawrence Holmes
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- October 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780300085402
- eISBN:
- 9780300129663
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Yale University Press
- DOI:
- 10.12987/yale/9780300085402.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, History of Science, Technology, and Medicine
In 1957, two young scientists, Matthew Meselson and Frank Stahl, produced a landmark experiment confirming that DNA replicates as predicted by the double helix structure Watson and Crick had recently ...
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In 1957, two young scientists, Matthew Meselson and Frank Stahl, produced a landmark experiment confirming that DNA replicates as predicted by the double helix structure Watson and Crick had recently proposed. It also gained immediate renown as a “most beautiful” experiment whose beauty was tied to its simplicity. Yet the investigative path that led to the experiment was anything but simple. This book vividly reconstructs the complex route that led to the Meselson-Stahl experiment and provides an inside view of day-to-day scientific research—its unpredictability, excitement, intellectual challenge, and serendipitous windfalls, as well as its frustrations, unexpected diversions away from original plans, and chronic uncertainty. The text uses research logs, experimental films, correspondence, and interviews with the participants to record the history of Meselson and Stahl's research, from their first thinking about the problem through the publication of their dramatic results. It also reviews the scientific community's reception of the experiment, the experiment's influence on later investigations, and the reasons for its reputation as an exceptionally beautiful experiment.Less
In 1957, two young scientists, Matthew Meselson and Frank Stahl, produced a landmark experiment confirming that DNA replicates as predicted by the double helix structure Watson and Crick had recently proposed. It also gained immediate renown as a “most beautiful” experiment whose beauty was tied to its simplicity. Yet the investigative path that led to the experiment was anything but simple. This book vividly reconstructs the complex route that led to the Meselson-Stahl experiment and provides an inside view of day-to-day scientific research—its unpredictability, excitement, intellectual challenge, and serendipitous windfalls, as well as its frustrations, unexpected diversions away from original plans, and chronic uncertainty. The text uses research logs, experimental films, correspondence, and interviews with the participants to record the history of Meselson and Stahl's research, from their first thinking about the problem through the publication of their dramatic results. It also reviews the scientific community's reception of the experiment, the experiment's influence on later investigations, and the reasons for its reputation as an exceptionally beautiful experiment.
Catherine Proot and Michael Yorke
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- January 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780199685011
- eISBN:
- 9780191765285
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199685011.003.0006
- Subject:
- Palliative Care, Patient Care and End-of-Life Decision Making, Palliative Medicine Research
In life-limiting illness, life is taken over, not only in practical and observable things, but also in outlooks, hopes, fears and priorities. Heightened by uncertainty and dread, time becomes the ...
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In life-limiting illness, life is taken over, not only in practical and observable things, but also in outlooks, hopes, fears and priorities. Heightened by uncertainty and dread, time becomes the frame for mixed and confused feelings. Carer and patient experience it differently: for the one time may seem to fly, for the other to drag. Time heals but it also threatens. The sense and power of time is considered and how it influences mood and behaviour. Time changes the priorities when much needs attention. For some the threat of unpredictability is hardly bearable. Time is not only about the passage of minutes, but poses questions of value—how do we use time? We argue the importance of awareness that patients and carers may seem on different tracks of time. Understanding by the one of the other is fundamental to caring and how it is received. Psychotherapy‘sformat and goals too are affected by the experience of time.Less
In life-limiting illness, life is taken over, not only in practical and observable things, but also in outlooks, hopes, fears and priorities. Heightened by uncertainty and dread, time becomes the frame for mixed and confused feelings. Carer and patient experience it differently: for the one time may seem to fly, for the other to drag. Time heals but it also threatens. The sense and power of time is considered and how it influences mood and behaviour. Time changes the priorities when much needs attention. For some the threat of unpredictability is hardly bearable. Time is not only about the passage of minutes, but poses questions of value—how do we use time? We argue the importance of awareness that patients and carers may seem on different tracks of time. Understanding by the one of the other is fundamental to caring and how it is received. Psychotherapy‘sformat and goals too are affected by the experience of time.
Wolfgang Banzhaf and Lidia Yamamoto
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- September 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780262029438
- eISBN:
- 9780262329460
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262029438.003.0021
- Subject:
- Public Health and Epidemiology, Public Health
This chapter starts with a discussion of some common criticisms of the artificial chemistry approach to modeling systems. It turns out that “opaque thought experiments” are an answer to some of them. ...
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This chapter starts with a discussion of some common criticisms of the artificial chemistry approach to modeling systems. It turns out that “opaque thought experiments” are an answer to some of them. Next we delimit the borders of the field, since obviously not everything can be modeled as an AC. After a summary of the main features of artificial chemistries we conclude the book with appeal to curiosity and research initiative of the reader.Less
This chapter starts with a discussion of some common criticisms of the artificial chemistry approach to modeling systems. It turns out that “opaque thought experiments” are an answer to some of them. Next we delimit the borders of the field, since obviously not everything can be modeled as an AC. After a summary of the main features of artificial chemistries we conclude the book with appeal to curiosity and research initiative of the reader.
- Published in print:
- 2020
- Published Online:
- January 2021
- ISBN:
- 9781789620979
- eISBN:
- 9781800341418
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Liverpool University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3828/liverpool/9781789620979.003.0004
- Subject:
- Society and Culture, Cultural Studies
Chaos theory is applied to processes of cultural mixing in which cultures retain their differences, and which used to occur over large expanses of time but now happen at great speed. The notion of an ...
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Chaos theory is applied to processes of cultural mixing in which cultures retain their differences, and which used to occur over large expanses of time but now happen at great speed. The notion of an erratic deterministic system allows us to understand the unpredictability that is seen as a major feature of contemporary cultures. Such a system is sensitive to its initial conditions, so that the present-day cultures of the Caribbean and the Americas, and Africa, cannot be understood without reference to the slave trade. The unpredictability of the erratic deterministic system allows us to distinguish between hybridity, which is predictable, and creolization, which is not. It is poetics that enables us to live with unpredictability. Measure and immeasurability combine in different relationships to characterize different periods in world literature.Less
Chaos theory is applied to processes of cultural mixing in which cultures retain their differences, and which used to occur over large expanses of time but now happen at great speed. The notion of an erratic deterministic system allows us to understand the unpredictability that is seen as a major feature of contemporary cultures. Such a system is sensitive to its initial conditions, so that the present-day cultures of the Caribbean and the Americas, and Africa, cannot be understood without reference to the slave trade. The unpredictability of the erratic deterministic system allows us to distinguish between hybridity, which is predictable, and creolization, which is not. It is poetics that enables us to live with unpredictability. Measure and immeasurability combine in different relationships to characterize different periods in world literature.
David P. Feldman
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- December 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780199566433
- eISBN:
- 9780191774966
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199566433.003.0014
- Subject:
- Physics, Theoretical, Computational, and Statistical Physics
Sensitive dependence on initial conditions makes it difficult to predict chaotic systems in the long term, as two initial conditions that begin close to each other rapidly get pushed apart. This ...
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Sensitive dependence on initial conditions makes it difficult to predict chaotic systems in the long term, as two initial conditions that begin close to each other rapidly get pushed apart. This chapter reconsiders this general phenomenon and examines some other ways to visualise and characterise the behaviour of chaotic orbits. It demonstrates that chaotic systems exhibit statistical regularities despite the unpredictability of the path of a particular orbit. Before discussing the statistical stability of chaos, the chapter considers the statistical properties and chaotic behaviour of orbits with the aid of histograms. It then looks at the ergodicity of orbits and the ergodic nature of the logistic equation with r = 4.0. It also shows how a chaotic logistic equation can be statically predictable despite having unpredictable orbits.Less
Sensitive dependence on initial conditions makes it difficult to predict chaotic systems in the long term, as two initial conditions that begin close to each other rapidly get pushed apart. This chapter reconsiders this general phenomenon and examines some other ways to visualise and characterise the behaviour of chaotic orbits. It demonstrates that chaotic systems exhibit statistical regularities despite the unpredictability of the path of a particular orbit. Before discussing the statistical stability of chaos, the chapter considers the statistical properties and chaotic behaviour of orbits with the aid of histograms. It then looks at the ergodicity of orbits and the ergodic nature of the logistic equation with r = 4.0. It also shows how a chaotic logistic equation can be statically predictable despite having unpredictable orbits.
Nick Gogerty
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- November 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780231162449
- eISBN:
- 9780231535212
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231162449.003.0013
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Financial Economics
This chapter first reviews the principal components of the economic panarchy discussed in the preceding chapters. It then discusses how economies are unpredictable but show general patterns and ...
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This chapter first reviews the principal components of the economic panarchy discussed in the preceding chapters. It then discusses how economies are unpredictable but show general patterns and trends similar to evolution's other processes. The challenge is to understand how these unpredictable and more predictable changes interact. Evolution's predictable economic trend toward growth and change seems to be held back mostly by knowledge and value flow blockers such as greed, abuse of power, and corruption. Understanding these factors may help investors pick economies that are viable for investment. The chapter looks at how more general evolutionary trends can help the allocator identify economic systems that are promising for investment.Less
This chapter first reviews the principal components of the economic panarchy discussed in the preceding chapters. It then discusses how economies are unpredictable but show general patterns and trends similar to evolution's other processes. The challenge is to understand how these unpredictable and more predictable changes interact. Evolution's predictable economic trend toward growth and change seems to be held back mostly by knowledge and value flow blockers such as greed, abuse of power, and corruption. Understanding these factors may help investors pick economies that are viable for investment. The chapter looks at how more general evolutionary trends can help the allocator identify economic systems that are promising for investment.
Mark A. Bedau and Paul Humphreys
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- August 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780262026215
- eISBN:
- 9780262268011
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262026215.003.0012
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Philosophy of Science
The following chapters present contemporary scientific perspectives on emergence. Covering a wide range of approaches to emergence, they include examples of each of the leading ideas on emergence: ...
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The following chapters present contemporary scientific perspectives on emergence. Covering a wide range of approaches to emergence, they include examples of each of the leading ideas on emergence: irreducibility, unpredictability, unexplainability, conceptual novelty, and holism. The following chapters also use concrete cases as examples of the flourishing scientific literature invoking emergence today, which are essential reading for those attempting to understand how science deals with emergence. Rich raw material is also offered from which empirically grounded generalizations about emergence in contemporary science can be generated. Comparing the philosophical analyses of emergence in part I with the empirical examples of purported emergent phenomena found in part II is a useful exercise.Less
The following chapters present contemporary scientific perspectives on emergence. Covering a wide range of approaches to emergence, they include examples of each of the leading ideas on emergence: irreducibility, unpredictability, unexplainability, conceptual novelty, and holism. The following chapters also use concrete cases as examples of the flourishing scientific literature invoking emergence today, which are essential reading for those attempting to understand how science deals with emergence. Rich raw material is also offered from which empirically grounded generalizations about emergence in contemporary science can be generated. Comparing the philosophical analyses of emergence in part I with the empirical examples of purported emergent phenomena found in part II is a useful exercise.
Sudhanshu Ranjan
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- July 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780199490493
- eISBN:
- 9780199096275
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780199490493.001.0001
- Subject:
- Law, Legal Profession and Ethics
A pathbreaking work on judicial accountability and independence. The work is remarkable for its extraordinary erudition as well as its straightforwardness. The author has the exemplary courage to ...
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A pathbreaking work on judicial accountability and independence. The work is remarkable for its extraordinary erudition as well as its straightforwardness. The author has the exemplary courage to speak the truth. He has not spared anyone holding everyone to account. He refuses to treat the judiciary as the holy cow and explains how the independence and accountability of judges are complimentary and complementary to each other. He holds judges accountable both for their conduct as well as for their judgements which are extra-legal. He questions judicial delays which frustrate justice under a design. If his suggestions are followed, delays will be a thing of the past. Lawyers are totally mercenary defending the indefensible in the name of right to defend, and they try to bury justice forgetting their role as the officers of the court. He has also presented beautifully how the law changes colour with the status of the party making a mockery of the right to equality. The author bemoans that judges live in the bygone days with all the trappings of colonial power reflected in the way they are addressed ‘My Lord’.Less
A pathbreaking work on judicial accountability and independence. The work is remarkable for its extraordinary erudition as well as its straightforwardness. The author has the exemplary courage to speak the truth. He has not spared anyone holding everyone to account. He refuses to treat the judiciary as the holy cow and explains how the independence and accountability of judges are complimentary and complementary to each other. He holds judges accountable both for their conduct as well as for their judgements which are extra-legal. He questions judicial delays which frustrate justice under a design. If his suggestions are followed, delays will be a thing of the past. Lawyers are totally mercenary defending the indefensible in the name of right to defend, and they try to bury justice forgetting their role as the officers of the court. He has also presented beautifully how the law changes colour with the status of the party making a mockery of the right to equality. The author bemoans that judges live in the bygone days with all the trappings of colonial power reflected in the way they are addressed ‘My Lord’.
