Delegitimizing Strategies and Tactics in a Discourse of Political Scientists (on an Example of Publications of Cyril Rogov)

Offered article is devoted to a problem of studying of communicative repertoir of political scientists. The given problem is actual in connection with distinction of objectives which are pursued by politicians and political scientists, and as consequence, distinction of their communicative strategy and tactics used in professional work. A leading position a discourse of political scientists strategy and borrow tactics which have been directed on confirming of legality and illegality of political processes. The article describes the features of the implementation of delegitimizing strategies and tactics in the publications of one of the most authoritative Russian political scientists – Kirill Rogov. Delegitimization as macrostrategy is carried out through a number of private communicative strategy and tactics realizing them, in particular, T. van Leuven has allocated four basic ways of giving of illegality to actions of authority: it is 1) the link on authority; 2) an ethical assessment; 3) rationalization; 4) mythopoetics. All the listed strategy (though and with a different degree of rate) are used in Cyril Rogov’s publications. Results of research specify, that key, possessing the person attractiveness, as communicative tactics of delegitimization tactics of a moral assessment and tactics of analogy act tactics of the appeal to “impersonal” authority. As one of the main features of the argument of own positions Cyril Rogov actively uses the reference to realities of the Soviet epoch, spending thus analogy between events of the present and Stalin reprisals, and in such a way specifies on illegitimacy many political decisions and political events. In addition, all the delegitimizing strategies and tactics used by Kirill Rogov are distinguished by the variety of lexical and syntactic means used, as well as by their pronounced evaluativeness and metaphoricity.

Early Ethical Assessment: An Application to the Sustainability of Swine Body Scanners

An early ethics assessment method was used to evaluate sustainability goals and early findings from an automated body scanning technology for swine production. The project had twin goals of discovering potential pitfalls in the technology and exploring the applicability of the method, derived from the Ethical Matrix, as a tool to aid researchers in product design at very early stages in the research and development (R&D) process. This paper reports results on the second objective. Results of the evaluation workshop were coded and qualitatively analyzed. These results are reported and compared; the exercise is compared to the findings of other researchers using more traditional methods for ethical assessment on similar technologies, as well as standard social science methods for ascertaining economic sustainability and social acceptability of technological innovations. We conclude that the method has promise, especially for its applicability at very early stages in R&D, but that it does not substitute for analyses that occur at a much later stage in product or procedural development.

ON THE PROBLEM OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SECULARISM AND RELIGIOSITY

The purpose of the article is to study the relationship between secularism and religiosity, to reveal the internal structure of their contextual meaning. The first part of the article examines the place of the principle of secularism in the system of spiritual and religious values. Secularization, secular, and references to secularization in most cases may be unclear. Currently, there is no easy way to standardize each term by associating it with only one concept. But the fact that different terms have a single linguistic root should not hide that they work in different conceptual frameworks with different histories. Although they sometimes inform each other, we must distinguish between the scope of application, such as a reference to temporary life or secular life, Constitutions that separate religion from politics, and the possible collapse of religion. The second part reveals the place of the concept of religiosity in the system of philosophical knowledge. The inconsistency and multilevel nature of religious life can be traced from the earliest time, primarily in religious analysis. The problem of determining the qualitative state of a believing person, aspirations, values, optimality of human behavior is reflected in this ideological scientific search for determining her religiosity, classification of types religion, religious behavior. Therefore, to date, the authors have not been able to avoid, firstly, an ethical assessment of the situations under consideration, and secondly, not to link the analysis conducted with the tasks and activities of a religious organization. The problem of religiosity in the consciousness and behavior of people, radical changes took place in society, which led to the emergence of new religious trends and changes in traditional trends. The terms denoting the main phenomena in religious life have undergone changes following religious life.

ETHICAL EXAMINATION OF SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATIONS IN MEDICINE: FOREIGN EXPERIENCE AND RUSSIAN PRACTICE

Currently, much attention is paid to the correct presentation of the results of. This is not surprising, since international standards used for assessing the effectiveness of scientific clinical and pre-clinical studies in scientific publications activities are based on citation rates and the number of publications in peer-reviewed journals. This tradition originated in the UK and is the result of a struggle for grants in the scientific community. The Hirsch index (individual authors) type of assessment and the impact factor (journals) made it possible to quantitatively compare papers without referring to their content. The assessment of the latter was accomplished by editors of the journals, and it was assumed that it was objective. This method was consistent with the digitalization process, but it has not yet received an ethical assessment. This is happening not only because there is a fairly wide range of opinions on this issue in the scientific community [1], but also because moral plots are generally not referred to digital processes.

The Ethical Assessment of Autonomous Systems in Practice

This paper presents the findings of a study that used applied ethics to evaluate autonomous robotic systems practically. Using a theoretical tool developed by a team of researchers in 2017, which one of the authors contributed to, we conducted a study of four existing autonomous robotic systems in July 2020. The methods used to carry out the study and the results are highlighted by examining the specific example of ANYmal, an autonomous robotic system that is one component of the CERBERUS team that won first place in DARPA’s Subterranean Challenge Systems Competition in September 2021.

“Freely you have received, freely give”: A Socio-Ethical Analysis of Charismatic Engagements and Pentecostalism in Nigeria

The manifestation and demonstration of spiritual gifts have always generated a lot of argument among Christians and non-Christians in Nigerian society. While some people deny the reality of the gifts thereby camping with the cessationists, other parties submit to the continuation of the spiritual gifts among the contemporary Christians. However, in scholarship the discourse has taken different dimensions which include the theological, effectual, biblical and philosophical perspectives with little attention paid to the socio-ethical aspect of the matter which is the major concern of this paper. The work is premised on Thomas Hobbes’ Theory of Psychological Egoism, which emphasises the benefit or reward as the motivating factor for every action performed by man, this article intends to investigate the alleged commercialization of prophetic gifts among the Nigerian pastors and to determine whether this is the major cause for the increase of the demonstration of charismatic gifts in the country. Interviews were conducted with Christians and ministers for data collection; which were complemented with relevant literature. The paper pays attention to charismatic display and Pentecostalism, current level of charismata in Nigerian Pentecostal churches, encouraging factors of charismatic activities and socio-ethical assessment of the display of spiritual gifts in Nigeria’s churches, while Christian morally pertinent ways of demonstrating spiritual gifts in an ethical manner is recommended

Nudge strategies for behavior-based prevention and control of neglected tropical diseases: A scoping review and ethical assessment

Background Nudging, a strategy that uses subtle stimuli to direct people’s behavior, has recently been included as an effective and low-cost behavior change strategy in low- and middle- income countries (LMIC), targeting behavior-based prevention and control of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). The present scoping review aims to provide a timely overview of how nudge interventions have been applied within this field. In addition, the review proposes a framework for the ethical consideration of nudges for NTD prevention and control, or more broadly global health promotion. Methods A comprehensive search was performed in several databases: MEDLINE, PsycINFO, and Embase (Ovid), Web of Science Core Collection, CINAHL, ERIC and Econ.Lit (EBSCO), as well as registered trials and reviews in CENTRAL and PROSPERO to identify ongoing or unpublished studies. Additionally, studies were included through a handpicked search on websites of governmental nudge units and global health or development organizations. Results This scoping review identified 33 relevant studies, with only two studies targeting NTDs in particular, resulting in a total of 67 nudge strategies. Most nudges targeted handwashing behavior and were focused on general health practices rather than targeting a specific disease in particular. The most common nudge strategies were those targeting decision assistance, such as facilitating commitment and reminder actions. The majority of nudges were of moderate to high ethical standards, with the highest standards being those that had the most immediate and significant health benefits, and those implemented by agents in a trust relationship with the target audience. Conclusion Three key recommendations should inform research investigating nudge strategies in global health promotion in general. Firstly, future efforts should investigate the different opportunities that nudges present for targeting NTDs in particular, rather than relying solely on integrated health promotion approaches. Secondly, to apply robust study designs including rigorous process and impact evaluation which allow for a better understanding of ‘what works’ and ‘how it works’. Finally, to consider the ethical implications of implementing nudge strategies, specifically in LMIC.

Updates in deep learning research in ophthalmology

Ophthalmology has been one of the early adopters of artificial intelligence (AI) within the medical field. Deep learning (DL), in particular, has garnered significant attention due to the availability of large amounts of data and digitized ocular images. Currently, AI in Ophthalmology is mainly focused on improving disease classification and supporting decision-making when treating ophthalmic diseases such as diabetic retinopathy, age-related macular degeneration (AMD), glaucoma and retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). However, most of the DL systems (DLSs) developed thus far remain in the research stage and only a handful are able to achieve clinical translation. This phenomenon is due to a combination of factors including concerns over security and privacy, poor generalizability, trust and explainability issues, unfavorable end-user perceptions and uncertain economic value. Overcoming this challenge would require a combination approach. Firstly, emerging techniques such as federated learning (FL), generative adversarial networks (GANs), autonomous AI and blockchain will be playing an increasingly critical role to enhance privacy, collaboration and DLS performance. Next, compliance to reporting and regulatory guidelines, such as CONSORT-AI and STARD-AI, will be required to in order to improve transparency, minimize abuse and ensure reproducibility. Thirdly, frameworks will be required to obtain patient consent, perform ethical assessment and evaluate end-user perception. Lastly, proper health economic assessment (HEA) must be performed to provide financial visibility during the early phases of DLS development. This is necessary to manage resources prudently and guide the development of DLS.