Limits of Quantum B-Algebras

Every set with a binary operation satisfying a true statement of propositional logic corresponds to a solution of the quantum Yang-Baxter equation. Quantum B-algebras and L-algebras are closely related to Yang-Baxter equation theory. In this paper, we study the categories with quantum B-algebras with morphisms of exact ones or spectral ones. We guarantee the existences of both direct limits and inverse limits.

Half-life of surgical truth in general surgery

Introduction Karl Popper’s hypothetico-deductive model contends that an assertion is true if it agrees with the facts, and that science progresses via paradigms held to be true until replaced by better approximations of reality. Our study aimed to estimate the half-life of surgical dogma. Methods The first 15 general surgery articles at 5-year intervals were extracted from the British Journal of Surgery since its inception in 1913. A statement summarising each article’s conclusion was formatted, and non-conducive articles were excluded (n=22). A total of 293 article statements were reviewed and marked as true or false by a cohort of 15 senior general surgeons, with a majority positive response denoting a true statement. Regression analysis of the relationship between perceived truth and time was performed. Results Median reviewer positive response rate was 49.5% (range 35.8–64.2%), with over 80% of responders in total agreement regarding 151 statements (51.5%) and deeming 137 (46.8%) currently true. Publication year correlated with percentage of true responses (rho 0.647, p=0.002). Linear modelling of true responses related to 5-year intervals (R2=0.398, p=0.002) estimated the annual rate of loss of truth to be 0.25%, equating to a half-life of 200.0 years. Conclusions Contrary to popular belief, it appears THAT surgical dogma does not lose its lustre for some seven generations. Regression line extrapolation is contentious but would suggest that the current era of surgical knowledge extends from 1769 – the days of John Hunter, the ‘father of modern surgery’ – to 2176, although relative rates of innovation may accelerate and move the nexus point.

Verbal content analysis for the study of Verisimilitude (V1) in the System for Analysis of Validity in Evaluation (SAVE)

In the SAVE Metaprotocol (López, et al, 2018), Verisimilitude (V1) refers to that which has the appearance of truth, possibility of being believed, and with "absence of subjective incredibility". Corresponding to this section is everything related to the analysis of the content of the verbal message and which gives internal coherence to the subject's statement. This phase is obtained directly through the interview with the subject, which we record in order to be able to carry out the content analysis later. It can be using a criterial, structural, or linguistic analysis, or simply employing a study of the communicative pattern. Some examples of content analysis are Statement Validity Analysis (SVA) with its Criteria-Based Content Analysis or CBCA and its validity list. The CBCA is composed of 19 criteria used to assess the content of the statements and which to date has been admitted as court evidence in cases of possible child sexual offense. It is administered together with a validity checklist and its value as evidence depends on the scope of application (Köhnken, Manzanero & Scott 2015). The instrument called Reality Monitoring (RM), like the previous one is a tool used to assess the credibility of the testimony and that focuses on the semantic aspects that differentiate a true statement from a false or not very credible one (Raye & Johnson, 1980). Although in this aspect, we should not make the mistake of confusing credibility with veracity, since when assessing a testimony the truth as such does not exist, and depends on the functioning of our memory, which is not like a tape recorder and is not static, but is constantly exposed to changes and distortions. According to this model, the origin of our memories comes from two basic sources: External Memories, generated from the perception of real situations; and Internal Memories, the product of our imagination. The unconscious reasoning process that our mind follows to decide which information comes from an external source and which forms an internal one is called Reality Monitoring. Four qualitative attributes allow us to differentiate between these two types of memories:

Good reasons for losers: lottery justification and social risk

Many goods are distributed by processes that involve randomness. In lotteries, randomness is used to promote fairness. When taking social risks, randomness is a feature of the process. The losers of such decisions ought to be given a reason why they should accept the outcome. Surprisingly, good reasons demand more than merely equal ex ante chances. What is also required is a true statement of the form: ‘the result could easily have gone the other way and you could have been the winner’. This rules in standard lotteries but rules out many lotteries based on merely epistemic probability.

Protein Knowledge of Older Adults and Identification of Subgroups with Poor Knowledge

The aim was to investigate the protein knowledge of community-dwelling older adults. A survey was conducted among 1825 adults aged ≥65 years and living in Finland, Netherlands, Poland, Spain and United Kingdom in 2017. Protein knowledge was measured with nine objective knowledge statements provided only to participants who indicated to know what the nutrient "protein" is (64.7% of sample). Demographic, socioeconomic and health determinants of poor protein knowledge were investigated using multiple logistic regression analyses. The sample was 49.6% female and 87.0% reported no walking difficulties. Participants scored best on the true statement "You need protein in the diet for repairing bones and muscles" (89.3% correct), and worst on the false statement "One meal per day with a good protein source is sufficient" (25.4% correct). Median knowledge score was 5.0 (scale 0–9) and poor knowledge was present in 49.4% of the sample. Males (Odds Ratio 1.57), those unable to walk for 5 min (2.66), not always making their own food decision (1.36) and having lower income (1.44) were more likely to have poor knowledge. Large differences were observed across countries. In conclusion, poor protein knowledge is present in about half of community-dwelling older adults. Communication strategies should be tailored to target the identified risk groups with poor knowledge.

Analysis of the frequency of verbal and vocal signs in true and false statements

The paper presents research aimed at analysing the frequency of verbal and vocal signs in a situation of false and true statements, by introducing a secondary task. The research involved 100 students (47 men and 53 women) of the master's studies of criminal investigation at the University of Criminal Investigation and Police Studies, aged 23-44. Students had the task, based on the observation of twenty selected videos (10 true statements and 10 false statements), to mark the frequency of each individual verbal and vocal sign, on a previously generated and prepared list. The results show that there is a statistically significant difference in terms of the frequency of all verbal and vocal signs in a false or true statement: response latency, speech hesitation, speech errors, speech rate, number of spoken words in the utterance, and length of utterance. Response latency, speech hesitation, and speech errors have higher median values in false utterances than in true ones, while speech rate, number of words spoken, and length of utterance show higher median values in true than false utterances.

Truthmakers and Easy Ontology

Sympathy has been growing for the idea that existence questions can be answered by ‘easy’ arguments. But some have suggested that an important project remains for ontology: not determining what exists, but rather what makes true those claims we accept. The question addressed here is: If we accept the easy approach to ontology, can we legitimately take on the truthmaker project? There are two versions of this project: one has the goal of giving a uniquely true statement of what the fundamental entities are, while the other takes it merely as a constraint on metaphysics to give some good account of what the truthmakers are for claims we accept. I will argue that, if we truly take on board some of the basic theses of easy ontology, we should have serious reservations about both of these projects.

Negation Polarizes Agreement Dynamics During Sentence Comprehension

In a forced-choice mouse-tracking paradigm, true and false statements (ranging from very true, to ambiguous, to very false) were tested in both affirmative and negated forms. Replicating prior research, mouse trajectories reveal subtle differences in a continuum of true to false statements. However, negation modifies this process, particularly for very true statements (i.e. Bread is not made from sand). The mouse trajectories were more curved with negated sentences, with end-points of the continuum of truth (very true and very false statements) having the greatest area under the curve. The proposed explanation is the pragmatic meaning of a negated statement such as “Gummie bears are not alive” is infelicitous, whereas a true statement “People live on Earth” is felicitous. This study reveals the online dynamics of processing these statements and possible confusion, particularly when very true statements contain a negation.

Cosmological aspects of unity of the affirmative (kataphatic) and negative (apophatic) theological perspective

Expressions of an affirmative and negative semantic determination are the basis of human linguistic communication. In order to communicate with one another, we must use true statements. We call true statements all those statements whose meaning is agreed upon by a large number of people. Each true statement consists of affirmative or negative statements, or both affirmative and negative statements. There are two ways of expression in the theological literature of theurgy, divine designation, and the many-faceted aspects of divine knowledge. The first way of expression is affirmative or cataphatic (gr. cataphaticή), and the second one is negative or apophatic (gr. ἀpophaticή). Although theological literature is full of problematic topics related to various aspects of affirmative and negative theological statements, we believe that for the sake of their fuller coverage it is necessary to include cosmological aspects in the discussion, since the cosmological dimension of existence is revealed as one of the basic assumptions of the theological problem of divine designation, which we find and in the theological tradition of the divine Dionysius the Areopagite. Finally, this theological aspect in contemporary theological studies of the various dimensions of affirmative and negative theology is particularly insufficient when considering its significance for the daily Christian life.

Truth

P. F. Strawson explained truth, as it applies to statements, by saying: ‘one who makes a statement or assertion makes a true statement if and only if things are as, in making the statement, he states them to be’. This explanation differs from others in taking a statement’s having a content (i.e. its saying that things are thus-and-so) to be a presupposition of an attribution of truth to it. This paper shows how this feature opens the way to a distinctive solution to the Liar Paradox and to a foundation for the axiomatic theories of truth now favoured by many logicians.