Kuhn's impossibility proof and the moral element in scientific explanations

Thomas S. Kuhn and others have arrived at the conclusion that at certain stages of investigation scientists cannot have recourse to criteria by which to justify their choices and actions. From this they have inferred that the choices made at these stages cannot be justified, leaving the impression that scientists may not be responsible for acting in some (sound, right, correct) as opposed to other (wrong, unsound, incorrect) ways in those circumstances. Kuhn's judgment is that in the last analysis it is so called subjective aesthetic considerations that will determine the actions taken.In this paper I argue that Kuhn fails to consider criteria of justification not provided by some field of science itself. He appears even to reject the possibility of invoking such field-invariant (S. Toulmin's term) criteria. He also seems to reject recourse to metaphysical first principles, without even giving these a polite perusal. Finally he does not allow for any possible moral element within these types of human activities - i.e., people faced with dilemmas in or out of science.I end by indicating how we might approach the Kuhnean type of choices and actions from within a moral perspective. The notion of acting as guided by moral rules is rejected since in stress cases the same problems occur here as do with paradigm selections namely we are left without rules. I suggest that the moral element consists, broadly, in exerting the effort needed to find solutions, in moral integrity, conscientiousness or the like. Mainly, however, I argue that how this moral element is to be characterized (identified) will in such cases have to await the occurrence of the dilemma and its solution. That is its uniqueness. But it does not exclude the possibility that once these cases have emerged, they should be discovered to require a given approach, not another. This, in turn, allows that the actions to be taken be justifiable and even that those who face the situation are responsible to discover how to act under the circumstances.     

Peer Discussion and Client Motivation in Men's Domestic Violence Programs: An Australian Qualitative Interview Study

Abstract

Relationships Australia NSW and Baptist Community Services NSW & ACT, through its BCS LifeCare Counselling & Family Services program, collaborated to explore client perceptions of men's domestic violence programs. Recruitment targeted male clients and their female partners, across six locations in New South Wales, Australia. In total, 63 qualitative interviews were gathered from 28 participants, between 2007 and 2009, at program intake, program completion and 6-month follow-up. The focus of this article is on the 20 male interviews conducted with 14 participants at program completion (10) and at 6-month follow-up (10). Recurring themes from these interviews indicate the potentially disruptive effect of client dialogue on group dynamics. While positive group discussion has the potential to enhance client motivation, negative peer discussions, external to group sessions, can diminish group functioning and client motivation for these participants. The paradoxical nature of the group-intervention experience is explored in light of these accounts. Suggestions for men's domestic violence program facilitation and research are outlined.     

Incrementing Bipartite Digraph Edge-Connectivity

This paper solves the problem of increasing the edge-connectivity of a bipartite digraph by adding the smallest number of new edges that preserve bipartiteness. A natural application arises when we wish to reinforce a 2-dimensional square grid framework with cables. We actually solve the more general problem of covering a crossing family of sets with the smallest number of directed edges, where each new edge must join the blocks of a given bipartition of the elements. The smallest number of new edges is given by a min-max formula that has six infinite families of exceptional cases. We discuss a problem on network flows whose solution has a similar formula with three infinite families of exceptional cases. We also discuss a problem on arborescences whose solution has five infinite families of exceptions. We give an algorithm that increases the edge-connectivity of a bipartite digraph in the same time as the best-known algorithm for the problem without the bipartite constraint: O(km log n) for unweighted digraphs and O(nm log (n ²/m)) for weighted digraphs, where n, m and k are the number of vertices and edges of the given graph and the target connectivity, respectively.     

THE HAZARDOUS EFFECTS OF ANTIDUMPING

We investigate the extent to which antidumping actions eliminate trade altogether. Using quarterly 10‐digit HS‐level export data for products involved in U.S. antidumping cases we find that antidumping actions increase the hazard rate by more than 50%. We find strong evidence of investigation effects with the impact during the initiation and preliminary duty phases considerably larger than once final duties are imposed. There are also important differences with respect to the size of duties with cases with large duties experiencing very large investigation effects. We show the antidumping (AD)‐affected countries are less likely to return to the market even after the AD order is removed. (JEL F13, F14)     

Why Do Political Elites Fracture? The Unusual Case of the Yugoslav Communist Elite

After World War II, Yugoslavia as a state was reconstituted by a small communist elite. Since this was an ideocratic rule, ideology was taken seriously by the elite and treated enthusiastically. One of the elite’s initial goals was to speedily develop Yugoslavia, so that a Western level of economic development be achieved. Economic disparities among regions were also to have been overcome. For various reasons, this objective was never close to being achieved, although in certain periods economic development was strong. The elite tried to speed up growth by various incentives, including worker self-management. Failure to achieve this goal and various economic troubles first precipitated mutual acrimony within the elite along national lines, while at the next stage, it brought about ethnic segmentation of the elite itself. By 1972, the elite had dissolved into national, although still communist, elites. The major reasons for this process are found in the very failure to achieve the developmental goal, in the consociational nature of the political system, and in the nature of the political elites, which were national ones. Elite segmentation sheds important light on the dissolution of the Yugoslav state.     

On the convolution of normal and t random variables

The need for the convolution of normal and Student's t random variables arises in many areas. Since the 1930s, various authors have attempted to derive closed-form expressions for the probability density function (pdf) of the convolution, but with little success. Here, general closed-form expressions are derived for the pdf.     

Pointing as Epistemic Request: 12‐month‐olds Point to Receive New Information

Infants start pointing systematically to objects or events around their first birthday. It has been proposed that infants point to an event to share their appreciation of it with others. In this study, we tested another hypothesis, according to which infants’ pointing could also serve as an epistemic request directed to the adult. Thus, infants’ motivation for pointing could include the expectation that adults would provide new information about the referent. In two experiments, an adult reacted to 12‐month‐olds’ pointing gestures by exhibiting “Informing” or “Sharing” behavior. In response, infants pointed more frequently across trials in the Informing than in the Sharing condition. This suggests that the feedback that contained new information matched infants’ expectations more than mere attention sharing. Such a result is consistent with the idea that not just the comprehension but also the production of early communicative signals is tuned to assist infants’ learning from others.     

Using the Experience Sampling Method to Study Sexual Risk Behavior among Men Who Have Sex With Men (MSM)

Toward the goal of advancing understanding of rates of HIV transmission among men who have sex with men (MSM) populations, this article provides preliminary data on the use of the experience sampling method (ESM) in a sample of 165 MSM. Participants completed 6 weeks of experience sampling in two 3-week measurement bursts with a 3-week rest interval. Criterion validity of the random and retrospective daily assessments was supported by expected within-person correlations between sexual risk behavior and sexual arousal. Participants reported some sexual activity with a male partner on 18.62% of the days, condomless anal sex (CAS) on 6.52% of days, and not using condoms on 66.56% of days they had anal sex. Over half of the variability in CAS was at the within-person level, which suggests the significance of time varying contextual factors. Finally, CAS reports were relatively stable across the study, suggesting a lack of reactivity to the self-monitoring.