scholarly journals Protect Others to Protect Myself: A Weakness of Western Countries in the Face of Current and Future Pandemics? Psychological and Neuroscientific Perspectives

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martial Mermillod ◽  
Tiffany Morisseau
Keyword(s):  
Brain Structures ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Social Variables ◽  
Research Perspective ◽  
Individual Perception ◽  
Cognitive Neurosciences ◽  
The Face ◽  
Holistic Perception ◽  
Number Of Publications ◽  
The Individual

The COVID-19 pandemic has generated a large number of publications in the medical and biological fields concerning the virus and its treatments, as well as in psychology, social sciences, and data sciences with regard to the spread of the virus. Surprisingly, far fewer neuroscientific articles have been published in this field of research and one might well ask whether the cognitive neurosciences have anything to say at all about this vital topic. In this article, we highlight a research perspective relating to differences in the individual perception of the pandemic in Western compared to Eastern countries. Although this problem is complex, multifaceted and subsumes many other social variables, we suggest that the cognitive neurosciences do have important and fundamental insights to contribute concerning the collective response observed within these populations. More precisely, we propose the hypothesis that differences in the propensity to adopt a holistic perception of contamination processes at the group level, involving brain structures that are also associated with perspective-taking and empathy such as, in particular, the medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC) and the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), could help explain the differences in the perception of the pandemic observed between Western and Eastern countries.

scholarly journals Competências dos Profissionais da Informação relacionadas à inovação a partir da produção científica

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Priscila Machado Borges Sena ◽  
Ana Paula Alves Soares ◽  
José Antonio Moreiro González ◽  
Ursula Blattmann
Keyword(s):  
Information Science ◽  
Scientific Production ◽  
University Education ◽  
Technological Innovations ◽  
Exploratory Research ◽  
Library Management ◽  
The Face ◽  
Information Professionals ◽  
Number Of Publications ◽  
The Individual

Reflecting on the competences of information professionals before the reality of the constant technological innovations of the 21st century becomes paramount, since when they are not included in conventional information units (archives, libraries and museums), they are in organizations that understand the information and knowledge as an essential subsidy for achieving economic and social prominence. In line with the thematic line "5 University education in information and documentation: evaluation, innovation and future horizons", this paper aimed to investigate the scientific production about the competencies of information professionals related to innovation. The research was carried out from the scientific production in Information Science in the Web of Science (WoS), Scopus, Library, Information Science & Technology Abstracts (LISTA), Library and Information Science Abstracts (LISA) databases. A descriptive exploratory research was carried out, starting from a bibliometric study of the data recovered in these international databases. The analysis portfolio consisted of 73 articles. In this way, we examined the authors with the highest number of publications, the ranking of scientific journals, the number of publications per year and the most cited articles. In relation to the journals that appear with the largest number of articles published, it is verified that the Library Review, New Library World and Library Management were the ones that appeared with publications between five and eight. Regarding the focus and scope of the periodicals, these were mostly about Librarianship, Information Science and Information and Communication Technology. As for the publication years, 2017 was the year with the highest number (20) of publications, followed by the years 2016 (12), 2015 and 2014 (9), and 2012 (1). As for the articles with the greatest number of citations, eight stood out for having between 49 and 96 citations. Their themes to some extent focused on the effect of technological innovations on the competences to be developed by information professionals, knowledge management, the importance of the individual and their informational needs, and the international and intercultural opportunities related to the curricula of Librarianship and Science of Information. It was verified that the researchers through their studies have made efforts to some extent to base the practices of the professionals of the information. To a great extent, in the studies analyzed, we noted the concern with the expansion of professional competencies in the face of the innovative and technological dynamics of contemporary society. On the other hand, it was also identified that although they treat the relevance of the professionals being innovators, theories were not found or formulated in this respect. This will be discussed in more detail in subsequent articles from this communication.

scholarly journals The problem of information hygiene and the relevance of late-antique ethics

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 399-406
Author(s):  
Alexander Pylkin ◽  
Vera Serkova ◽  
Maria Pylkina
Keyword(s):  
Brain Structures ◽  
Editorial Office ◽  
Late Antique ◽  
Active Growth ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
The Status ◽  
The Face ◽  
The One ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Concept Of Information

Today a completely new type of reality – «digital reality» – is being formed, which entails new challenges for individuals and society. Deep involvement in digital reality and the active use of its technical mediators creates a load on the psychophysics of the individual, which, especially in the stage of active growth, not only deforms behavioral patterns, but can also influence the formation of brain structures. Educational practices, through which society helped the individual to form their identity, lose their former certainty in the digital dimension. As a response to these challenges at the turn of the XX-XXI centuries, the concept of information hygiene was formed within the medical sciences, describing ways to minimize the destructive effects of the information environment. However, developed for a narrow field, this concept does not take into account the fact that psychophysical transformations under the influence of destructive influences of modern media threaten to destroy the basic constants of the human body. Positivist medicine, due to the specificity of its subject, does not see the eschatological horizon of the problem, on which the contours of our «posthuman future» are already clearly outlined. At this point, philosophy can and should recall that at the dawn of European civilization, medicine was inseparably an ethical program: a single set of practices – ascetic, hygienic, and mental-aimed not only at minimizing destructive influences but also at discovering and cultivating the individual's own humanity. Thus, in this article, the concept of information hygiene is thematized taking into account its historical and philosophical implications. On the one hand, it is intended to reflect the current specifics of the challenges, on the other – to take into account the experience of preventing destructive influences, practiced by late-antique philosophers in the status of «healers of the soul». For the empirical verification of this concept, the authors performed the following experiment. A group of first-year students were asked to spend a day without the Internet and describe their feelings and thoughts. The analysis of spontaneous ways to overcome deep involvement in digital reality allowed us to identify the most adequate forms of minimizing its destructive influences: avoidance of active leisure in the real world. These forms were in tune with the late-antique practices of self-care in the editorial office of the Epicurean school. This broader ethical consideration of information hygiene opens the way for theming a comprehensive approach to the problem of human survival in the face of digital reality

Married Life in the Middle Ages, 900-1300

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elisabeth van Houts
Keyword(s):  
Middle Ages ◽  
Married Couple ◽  
Self Determination ◽  
Emotional Life ◽  
Social And Emotional ◽  
Individual Agency ◽  
Married Life ◽  
The Face ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Individual

This book contains an analysis of the experience of married life by men and women in Christian medieval Europe c. 900–1300. The focus will be on the social and emotional life of the married couple rather than on the institutional history of marriage. The book consists of three parts: the first part (Getting Married) is devoted to the process of getting married and wedding celebrations, the second part (Married Life) discusses the married life of lay couples and clergy, their sexuality, and any remarriage, while the third part (Alternative Living) explores concubinage and polygyny as well as the single life in contrast to monogamous sexual unions. Four main themes are central to the book. First, the tension between patriarchal family strategies and the individual family member’s freedom of choice to marry and, if so, to what partner; second, the role played by the married priesthood in their quest to have individual agency and self-determination accepted in their own lives in the face of the growing imposition of clerical celibacy; third, the role played by women in helping society accept some degree of gender equality and self-determination to marry and in shaping the norms for married life incorporating these principles; fourth, the role played by emotion in the establishment of marriage and in married life at a time when sexual and spiritual love feature prominently in medieval literature.

Dilemmas of nudging in public health: an ethical analysis of a Danish pamphlet

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacob Busch ◽  
Emilie Kirstine Madsen ◽  
Antoinette Mary Fage-Butler ◽  
Marianne Kjær ◽  
Loni Ledderer
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Screening Programme ◽  
Screening Program ◽  
Ethical Analysis ◽  
Choice Making ◽  
The Face ◽  
Information Materials ◽  
The Individual ◽  
To Receive

Summary Nudging has been discussed in the context of public health, and ethical issues raised by nudging in public health contexts have been highlighted. In this article, we first identify types of nudging approaches and techniques that have been used in screening programmes, and ethical issues that have been associated with nudging: paternalism, limited autonomy and manipulation. We then identify nudging techniques used in a pamphlet developed for the Danish National Screening Program for Colorectal Cancer. These include framing, default nudge, use of hassle bias, authority nudge and priming. The pamphlet and the very offering of a screening programme can in themselves be considered nudges. Whether nudging strategies are ethically problematic depend on whether they are categorized as educative- or non-educative nudges. Educative nudges seek to affect people’s choice making by engaging their reflective capabilities. Non-educative nudges work by circumventing people’s reflective capabilities. Information materials are, on the face of it, meant to engage citizens’ reflective capacities. Recipients are likely to receive information materials with this expectation, and thus not expect to be affected in other ways. Non-educative nudges may therefore be particularly problematic in the context of information on screening, also as participating in screening does not always benefit the individual.

scholarly journals Graphene and Reproduction: A Love-Hate Relationship

Nanomaterials ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 547
Author(s):  
Marina Ramal-Sanchez ◽  
Antonella Fontana ◽  
Luca Valbonetti ◽  
Alessandra Ordinelli ◽  
Nicola Bernabò ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Graphene Oxide ◽  
Reproductive Function ◽  
Scientometric Analysis ◽  
Potential Toxicity ◽  
Good Tool ◽  
Vitro Fertilization ◽  
Number Of Publications ◽  
The Individual

Since its discovery, graphene and its multiple derivatives have been extensively used in many fields and with different applications, even in biomedicine. Numerous efforts have been made to elucidate the potential toxicity derived from their use, giving rise to an adequate number of publications with varied results. On this basis, the study of the reproductive function constitutes a good tool to evaluate not only the toxic effects derived from the use of these materials directly on the individual, but also the potential toxicity passed on to the offspring. By providing a detailed scientometric analysis, the present review provides an updated overview gathering all the research studies focused on the use of graphene and graphene-based materials in the reproductive field, highlighting the consequences and effects reported to date from experiments performed in vivo and in vitro and in different animal species (from Archea to mammals). Special attention is given to the oxidized form of graphene, graphene oxide, which has been recently investigated for its ability to increase the in vitro fertilization outcomes. Thus, the potential use of graphene oxide against infertility is hypothesized here, probably by engineering the spermatozoa and thus manipulating them in a safer and more efficient way.

scholarly journals The Impacts in Real Estate of Landscape Values: Evidence from Tuscany (Italy)

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 2236
Author(s):  
Francesco Riccioli ◽  
Roberto Fratini ◽  
Fabio Boncinelli
Keyword(s):  
Real Estate ◽  
House Prices ◽  
Spatial Econometric ◽  
The Real ◽  
The Real Estate ◽  
Landscape Values ◽  
Individual Perception ◽  
Real Estate Prices ◽  
The Aesthetic ◽  
The Individual

Using spatial econometric techniques and local spatial statistics, this study explores the relationships between the real estate values in Tuscany with the individual perception of satisfaction by landscape types. The analysis includes the usual territorial variables such as proximity to urban centres and roads. The landscape values are measured through a sample of respondents who expressed their aesthetic-visual perceptions of different types of land use. Results from a multivariate local Geary highlight that house prices are not spatial independent and that between the variables included in the analysis there is mainly a positive correlation. Specifically, the findings demonstrate a significant spatial dependence in real estate prices. The aesthetic values influence the real estate price throughout more a spatial indirect effect rather than the direct effect. Practically, house prices in specific areas are more influenced by aspects such as proximity to essential services. The results seem to show to live close to highly aesthetic environments not in these environments. The results relating to the distance from the main roads, however, seem counterintuitive. This result probably depends on the evidence that these areas suffer from greater traffic jam or pollution or they are preferred for alternative uses such as for locating industrial plants or big shopping centres rather than residential use. Therefore, these effects decrease house prices.

scholarly journals Healthy ageing, resilience and wellbeing

2017 ◽  
Vol 26 (6) ◽  
pp. 579-583 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. D. Cosco ◽  
K. Howse ◽  
C. Brayne
Keyword(s):  
Population Level ◽  
Healthy Ageing ◽  
Ageing Population ◽  
Environmental Resources ◽  
Great Achievement ◽  
Health Concept ◽  
Ageing Model ◽  
The Face ◽  
The Individual ◽  
High Level

The extension of life does not appear to be slowing, representing a great achievement for mankind as well as a challenge for ageing populations. As we move towards an increasingly older population we will need to find novel ways for individuals to make the best of the challenges they face, as the likelihood of encountering some form of adversity increases with age. Resilience theories share a common idea that individuals who manage to navigate adversity and maintain high levels of functioning demonstrate resilience. Traditional models of healthy ageing suggest that having a high level of functioning across a number of domains is a requirement. The addition of adversity to the healthy ageing model via resilience makes this concept much more accessible and more amenable to the ageing population. Through asset-based approaches, such as the invoking of individual, social and environmental resources, it is hoped that greater resilience can be fostered at a population level. Interventions aimed at fostering greater resilience may take many forms; however, there is great potential to increase social and environmental resources through public policy interventions. The wellbeing of the individual must be the focus of these efforts; quality of life is an integral component to the enjoyment of additional years and should not be overlooked. Therefore, it will become increasingly important to use resilience as a public health concept and to intervene through policy to foster greater resilience by increasing resources available to older people. Fostering wellbeing in the face of increasing adversity has significant implications for ageing individuals and society as a whole.

Mandible: evaluation of its morphology, aging process and sexual dimorphism for aesthetic treatment purpose

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 42-46
Author(s):  
Luiz Eduardo Toledo Avelar
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Dimorphism ◽  
Bone Structure ◽  
Individual Characteristics ◽  
Mandibular Angle ◽  
Fractional Analysis ◽  
The Face ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Dynamic Quality ◽  
Base Of The Skull

The mandible is the most important bone structure of the facial makeup. Its morphology differs with respect to genetic factors, sexual dimorphism, and age. Among its particular characteristics is the ability to adapt with its counterpart, the base of the skull, conferring a dynamic quality of this bone, by the mechanism of constant remodeling. In order to understand the involvement of the mandible in the evaluation of the lower third of the face, a fractional analysis of its parts is necessary considering morphological parameters of the mandibular angle. The purpose of this study is to demonstrate the importance of the mandible as an instrument in the analysis of the lower third of the face, allowing the accomplishment of aesthetic treatment, respecting the individual characteristics.

A Veiled Threat: Belcacemi and Oussar v Belgium

2018 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 190-200
Author(s):  
Jasper Doomen
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Law ◽  
Freedom Of Conscience ◽  
Unequal Treatment ◽  
The Face ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Full Face ◽  
The Right

The freedom of the individual can easily come into conflict with his or her obligation to integrate in society. The case of Belcacemi and Oussar v Belgium provides a good example. It is evident that some restrictions of citizens’ freedoms must be accepted for a state to function and, more basically, persist; as a consequence, it is acceptable that certain demands, incorporated in criminal law, are made of citizens. The issue of the extent to which such restrictions are justified has increasingly become a topic of discussion. The present case raises a number of important questions with respect to the right to wear a full-face veil in public if the societal norm is that the face should be visible, the most salient of which are whether women should be ‘protected’ from unequal treatment against their will and to what extent society may impose values on the individual. I will argue that Belgian law places unwarranted restrictions on citizens and that the values behind it testify to an outlook that is difficult to reconcile with the freedom of conscience and religion.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document