Power, Labor, and the Dynamics of Change in Chacoan Political Economy

1997 ◽  
Vol 62 (1) ◽  
pp. 7-26 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dean J. Saitta

The organizational structure of the famous Chaco Phenomenon has long been debated by southwestern archaeologists. To better clarify the nature and dynamics of Chacoan organization we need to rethink the relationship between social power and the appropriation of surplus labor in middle-range societies. Drawing on the tradition of anthropological political economy, I outline a theoretical approach that allows for the relative autonomy of power and labor relations in human social life and models Chacoan political economy using a “thin definition” of communalism. Empirical patterns from the Chaco and post-Chaco eras in the northern Southwest are presented in support of a model of Chaco communalism and change dynamics. Suggestions for furthering a political economy of the Chaco Phenomenon that respects the difference or “otherness” of the past are also detailed.

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (9) ◽  
pp. 8-12
Author(s):  
Inna Zelenko ◽  

The article reflects the diversity of views on the concept of "legal axiom". It is clarified that there are lawyers who deny the existence of the concept of "axiom" in law. It is presented that some scholars identify legal axioms with legal customs in terms of content, formulation and existence, as well as methods of provision. It is revealed that legal axioms have common features and differences with legal presumptions. It is emphasized that the legal presumption and legal axiom are understood as true without evidence. It is considered that the difference between a legal presumption and a legal axiom lies in the difference of circumstances: they allow to consider them plausible; possibilities (impossibilities) of refutation; significance, content and form It is demonstrated that there are several approaches to the relationship of legal axioms with the principles of law. It has been found that the first group of scholars identify the principles of law and axioms. Attention is drawn to the fact that the second group of scholars notes that axioms are prerequisites for the principles of law. It is presented that the representatives of the third group distinguish between the concepts of principles of law and legal axioms. It has been shown that the complex interrelationships of principles and axioms are reflected in their dialectical unity, their ability to pass from one to another, and the disclosure of one phenomenon through another. It is noted that axioms are subject to change, so axioms and presumptions are closely interrelated and under certain conditions can replace each other. The definition of legal axioms has been further considered. Legal axioms are a multifaceted complex phenomenon of legal reality related to law, legal awareness and legal science. regularities, properties of special legal principles of law and serve to simplify legal regulation.


2015 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 218-222 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paulina Szyszka ◽  
Andrzej Mastalerz

Abstract Introduction. The snatch technique is a discipline in Olympic weightlifting. The lifter has to raise the barbell from the platform directly above their head in one movement. While reviewing the literature on biomechanical analysis of the techniques of weightlifting, one can find positions on the analysis of parameters, such as barbell track, horizontal displacement, and angular positions of the joints in the individual phases of the lifter's movement. Many texts concern female and male lifters taking part in World or European Championships. The parameters of the best competitors are outlined - mostly those who finish in the top five places in competition. Mostly these are parameters regarding male lifters, and less frequently those of female lifters. In the literature review, an overlooked aspect is that of the definition of the diversity of indicators as regards the snatch technique practiced by female lifters depending on score. Material and methods. In the research, registered snatch attempts during the World Championship were used. Videos were used by judges to establish a maximum weight limit for female lifters. The attempts were registered by two cameras and were later digitally processed by the APAS 2000 system. Barbell parameters, maximum speed, average of the bar, and the parameters of the lifter-bar collocation (horizontal displacement of barbell weights and height elevation) were assessed. Results. The analysed attempts show the margin of error for measurement of the average speed of the barbell as 0.03 m/s. The difference in maximum speed of analysed attempts is 15%. The height of clearance of the first-placed female lifter's barbell was 12.7 cm, 30 cm for the last-placed. Conclusions. The sporting level of weightlifting by female lifters influences the analysed biomechanical indicators of the snatch. Those indicators, which are similar in the case of both the World Championship winner and the female lifter who came last, may be described as the average speeds of the barbell. The high sporting level of female lifters performing heavy lifting is characterized by the clearance of the barbell.


1999 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 369-397 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samuel Hollander ◽  
Sandra Peart

Our concern is John Stuart Mill's methodological pronouncements, his actual practice, and the relationship between them. We argue that verification played a key role in Mill's method, both in principle and in practice. Our starting point is the celebrated declaration regarding verification in the essay On the Definition of Political Economy; and on the Method of Investigation Proper to It (1836/ 1967; hereafter Essay): “By the method à priori we mean … reasoning from an assumed hypothesis; which … is the essence of all science which admits of general reasoning at all. To verify the hypothesis itself à posteriori, that is, to examine whether the facts of any actual case are in accordance with it, is no part of the business of science at all, but of the application of science” (Mill 1836/1967, p. 325). The apparent position that the basic economic theory is impervious to predictive failure emerges also in a sharp criticism of the à posteriori method:


2011 ◽  
Vol 37 (4) ◽  
pp. 393-399 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alain Touraine

Two opposite statements must be rejected with the same rigor. First (1) is that a few countries have identified themselves with modernity by their scientific, technical and economic achievement and that the rest of the world, which is lagging behind the ‘advanced countries’, must follow in their footsteps and imitate their example. The article first of all sets out the falsity of such a statement, because there is not one but many western paths of modernization, and indicates that it is nothing but a colonialist ideology, which spread from European and American societies and cultures and destroyed all independent efforts of modernization in other countries, in particular China. The hegemony of the western capitalist model is more than challenged by other ways of modernization, for though the soviet model has failed, other countries are ‘emerging’ or have already emerged. Second (2) the opposite representation defends the idea of a complete multiculturalism including political regimes and human rights. It fights against the previous colonialist model and supports a total relativism. But this view makes impossible the communication between completely different countries and cultures and reciprocal fear leads to an extreme conflict between ‘civilizations’, such as S. Huntington has described. This view leads to the conclusion that war is inevitable if each civilization has a complete internal unity and a complete control on all its activities. But the world is not divided into various theocratic states: no single theocratic state commands the whole or the majority of Muslim population. The central problem remains real and difficult: how to combine unity and diversity, the difference between cultures and the capacity for them to communicate with each other? The most useful idea is to elaborate one general definition of modernity, as a culture which is based on universalistic principles. The western mode of modernization is not the only possible one; nor is it at all sure that the western process of separation of temporal and spiritual powers is the only possibility. We cannot assert that universalism must penetrate social life only through political institutions and citizenship. It is beyond any reasonable doubt that modernity, with its universalistic components, cannot be identified with only one type of social organization and cultural values.


ScienceRise ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 55-60
Author(s):  
Svitlana Pylypenko

Object of research: technology as a component of human social life in the context of the postmodern era. Investigated problem: determination of the features of the influence of technological processes on a person of the postmodern era, as a result of which the natural is replaced by an artificial one and the images of both man and the Earth change. Main scientific results: the study of the contradictions of the process of technologization in the postmodern era made it possible to determine the transformation processes taking place in the life of a person and society. This defines social reality, represented by various markers, among which technology is gaining in importance. The latter act as a composite, which provides new opportunities for determining the relationship between the elements of the "world - man - culture" system. It is not only about the emergence of new human figures, among which the technological man (Homo Technologicus) occupies a prominent place, but also the emergence of a new image of the Earth, where the natural is replaced by the technological. The scope of practical use of the research results: the research results can be used in teaching normative courses "Philosophical Anthropology", "Ethics", "Sociology" for students and undergraduates, graduate students of humanitarian and natural faculties. Innovative technological product: the plurality of existing technologies (economic, medical, educational, humanitarian, etc.) destroys the new European concept of culture and man, which were provided within the framework of the monoparadigm. The anthropological dimension of technology testifies that the latter are beginning to act as a condition for human expansion. This situation has a significant impact on the existentials of human existence. The scope of using the innovative technological product: the intensive technologization of the last decades not only provokes environmental risks and changes the state of the Earth, the natural reality of the Earth is replaced by an artificial one, which allows to conclude that the Earth is formed by a technological one.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tatyana Bystrova

This paper defines the criteria of effective infographics for education. Visualizing information, including that with the help of infographics, is one of the mechanisms to optimize the learning process both in traditional and online format. In the first part    of the paper, the author gives a theoretical definition of infographics as a contracted multi-level polysemantic thing. The methodological basis for discussion is provided by the cognitive approach in psyhology and philosophy (R. Arnheim, R. Solso, Y. Valkman) and visual studies (I. Itten, B. Latour, D.  Roem, H. Schiffman). Deriving  the properties of effective infographics, the author seeks to harmonize empirical  data and the results of theoretical studies. The infographic aspects formulated by E.Tafti, Priego, and F. Verbitsky are compared with the results of a survey by L. Harrison on the aesthetic properties of effective infographics. Features of infographics such as scalability, structure-based, focusing on the key points, visual simplicity, and emphasis on the relationship between elements, are by author defined. The difference between infographics and other graphical products is demonstrated. For education it is particularly important that the logic of a structure or image ensures the contraction of information. In turn, the contracted information looks compact and concise. ”Real” infographics have a visual clarity, presence of composition, colour, and image-bearing reference points. Systematic manner enhances the process of developing additional meanings. Aesthetics of the designer‘s infographics represent the reverse side of expediency and logic of a project decision. Th3e article concludes with a discussion of the need to use a cognitive approach to infographics by designers who create effective educational products. Keywords: design, graphic design, infographics, definition of infographics, infographics for the on-line course, participatory design, survey


Author(s):  
Kylie Jarrett

Central to Web 2.0 is the requirement for interactive systems to enable the participation of users in production and social interaction. Consequently, in order to critically explore the Web 2.0 phenomenon it is important to explore the relationship of interactivity to social power. This study firstly characterises interactivity in these media using Barry's (2001) framework differentiating interactivity from disciplining technologies as defined by Foucault. Contrary to Barry's model though, the analysis goes on to explore how interactivity may indeed function as a disciplining technology within the framework of a neo-liberal political economy.


1981 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 329-345 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rex Taylor ◽  
Graeme Ford

ABSTRACTThis paper is concerned with the nature, usage and potential of the concept of lifestyle. It concentrates on usage in social gerontology and specifically on the way in which it has been used by three teams of American researchers. Its overall aim is to discover guidelines for establishing the lifestyle concept on a sounder methodological footing.The paper begins with a discussion of diversity within the elderly population and it identifies the need for a systematic conceptual scheme for describing the social life of the individual. It examines the relationship between lifestyle and social class and concludes that they represent complementary rather than competing approaches. The paper goes on to explore three definitions of life-style - as structure, content and meaning - and compares and contrasts these three alternative approaches. The difference between ‘nominal’ and ‘real’ definitions is discussed and the paper ends with a summary account of the way in which the concept has been operationalized in a continuing British study.


2015 ◽  
Vol 370 (1683) ◽  
pp. 20150009 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shane J. Macfarlan ◽  
Henry F. Lyle

Reputations are a ubiquitous feature of human social life, and a large literature has been dedicated to explaining the relationship between prosocial reputations and cooperation in social dilemmas. However, humans form reputations in domains other than prosociality, such as economic competency that could affect cooperation. To date, no research has evaluated the relative effects of multiple reputation domains on cooperation. To bridge this gap, we analyse how prosocial and competency reputations affect cooperation in two Latin American communities (Bwa Mawego, Dominica, and Pucucanchita, Peru) across a number of social contexts (Dominica: labour contracting, labour exchange and conjugal partnership formation; Peru: agricultural and health advice network size). First, we examine the behavioural correlates of prosocial and competency reputations. Following, we analyse whether prosocial, competency, or both reputation domains explain the flow of cooperative benefits within the two communities. Our analyses suggest that (i) although some behaviours affect both reputation domains simultaneously, each reputation domain has a unique behavioural signature; and (ii) competency reputations affect cooperation across a greater number of social contexts compared to prosocial reputations. Results are contextualized with reference to the social markets in which behaviour is embedded and a call for greater theory development is stressed.


2012 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ulf Linderfalk

Abstract What, exactly, is it about jus cogens that distinguishes it from ordinary international law? In answering this question, international lawyers usually resort to the “the Legal-Consequences-as-Criterion Theory”: while ordinary international law can be rebutted or modified in accordance with the duly expressed will of states, jus cogens norms permit no derogation and allow modification only by the creation of a new norm having the same character. In the present essay, this theory is subjected to analysis and assessment. Section 2 inquires into the relationship between the Legal-Consequences-as-Criterion Theory and the general definition of jus cogens reflected in Article 53 of the 1969 Vienna Convention. As argued, Article 53 is entirely reliant upon the validity of the Legal-Consequences-as-Criterion Theory. Sections 3 and 4 inquire into the assumptions underlying this same Theory. As argued, the Theory does not provide good reasons for the distinction between jus cogens and ordinary international law.


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