A Critique of Poverty: Exploring the Underground of Social Philosophy

Poverty is the primary focus of this paper; more particularly, the critique of poverty and not its mere description. It would not be an overstatement to say that one of the common grounds for poverty theories is that they describe the poor as those who systematically experience their lives in privation, namely around having the minimum when it comes to needs such as housing, food, health, education, free time, etc. There is, therefore, a theoretical and socially accepted orientation that promotes the sedimentation of a deep affinity between poverty and the minimum. Based on this reasoning, what is set on the horizon is a kind of non-explicit acceptance that the overcoming of poverty can be achieved by granting the poor something beyond the minimum, however elementary that “something extra” may be. Thus, if the experience of poverty involves some sort of lack or privation, and if this condition can be fully filled by something that has already been socially produced, then what would justify the fact that some people are able to fully fill it while others (the poor) can only secure the bare minimum? In light of this, perhaps it would be better not to question the acceptable “minimum” but, rather, to ask: Why would the notion of poverty be guided by this normative criterion? Therefore, a way of describing my broader hypothesis on poverty would be to understand that it should be measured based on the level of denial of access to what has been socially produced. The further one is from accessing social wealth, the poorer one is. Finally, this tendency toward assimilation between poverty and the minimum engenders a depressive effect on demands for social change.

Decoding Emergency Settlement through Quantitative Analysis

By the end of 2020, more than 80 million people were forcibly displaced around the world; this represents about one percent of the global population. Many of the displaced found shelter in emergency settlements; whether in refugee camps, IDP camps or community settlements. Some of these settlements are transitory, while others have been consolidated into permanent habitats; some span the size of a city, while others are the size of a village; some are well structured, while others provide only the bare minimum needed by residents. Notwithstanding these variations, there is still a lack of understanding of the range, depth, scale, and scope of these settlements. There is also a need for comparative analysis between different types of emergency settlements, as they are still generalized as temporary encampments. The aim of the study is to identify the distinctiveness of each type of emergency settlement to demonstrate that one strategy for their planning and management will not fit all. It does so by reviewing the criteria for analyzing emergency settlements around the world by using a quantitative analysis methodology on a set of variables considered relevant for the characterization of each typology based on a set of 500 cases. The results indicate that each type of emergency settlement has different characteristics and topology, and identify which variables, being identical, influence each typology differently. The article also discusses the basis for better-informed decision-making about the medium and long-term policies applicable to individual settlements.

A Compact Road Weather Station

Road Weather Stations (RWS) have been extensively used for collecting information about slippery road conditions during the last thirty years. Recently, vehicle based mobile road condition monitors have challenged the fixed RWS. Both approaches have their advantages and can complete each other. Fixed RWS can provide accurate trend data whereas mobile condition monitors can cover the road sections between RWS. Nevertheless, a traditional RWS is a fairly expensive investment, typically 30 000 € or much more, and often includes a number of components not essential for the purpose of measuring and predicting road conditions. To reduce the total cost we have developed a bare minimum of a fixed RWS including only the essential sensor information like road surface state, friction, water and frozen layer thickness, air temperature, road surface temperature, dew point temperature, atmospheric pressure, wind speed and estimated ground temperature at -6 cm. The targeted end user price of the station is one third of the traditional price level. We report experiences with the first installations during 2020-2021.

B Discrepancies Hold Their Ground

This write-up aims at a comprehensive discussion of the status of the so-called B-anomalies, as well as their interpretation from an effective-theory point of view. The focus is on presenting facts and physics arguments using the bare minimum of equations and pointing instead to the relevant literature in each specific case.

І. Stravinsky’s orchestral writing of Neo-Classical and serial (late) periods: comparative analysis

Statement of the problem. Neo-Classical and serial (late) periods of I. Stravinsky’s creativity are marked by the shifts in his musical language, which found their reflection in his orchestral writing. “Universals” of style and genre (term of Savenko (2001: 105–163) retain their relevancy. Constant principles of orchestral writing (multi-figure composition, combinatorics and plastique) are used in different combinations. Analysis of recent research and publications. While there are numerous studies devoted to I. Stravinsky’s Neo-Classical and serial (late) periods, no works have composer’s orchestral thinking and orchestral writing as an object of special examination. Thus, scarce studies regarding aspects of composer’s orchestration become even more valuable: about orchestral texture (Schnittke, 1967; Schnittke, 1973, Savenko, 2001; Kashyrtsev, 2020), or interpretation of timbres (Savenko, 2001; Savenko, 2011, Kashyrtsev, 2020), or interconnection of orchestral and harmonically-modal thinking (Gurkov, 1987), or editions (Timofeev, 2014; Timofeev, 2019). The purpose of this article is an examination of specifics of I. Stravinsky’s orchestral writing from the standpoint of peculiarity of application of constant principles of orchestral writing (multi-figure composition, combinatorics and plastique) in the ballet “Jeu de cartes” and the Variations (Aldous Huxley in Memoriam). The novelty of the article is caused by: 1)reveal of beforementioned principles; 2) examination of their existence in evolutionary perspective; 3) bringing attention to relevant problems of orchestration in I. Stravinsky’s works of Neo-Classical and late periods of creativity; 4) formulation of original scholarly definition of the term “orchestral writing”. Methods. In this article stylistic method is used – to study evolutionary processes of composer’s style in dialectic unity of constant and innovative; functional – to examine specifics of functional organisation of orchestral texture; comparative – to reveal different ways in which constant principles of orchestral writing are used on different stages of composer’s evolution. Results and Conclusions. Constant principles of orchestral writing (multifigure composition, combinatorics and plastique), which have already emerged in the primary period, are present in the works of Neo-Classical and late periods in different configurations of their relations. In the ballet “Jeu de cartes” multi-figure composition loses its role in comparison to the early works and is applied hidden due to: 1) motive variants (with the motives being stressed by timbre, texture or register); 2) textural complementarity (which means that multiple figures are used in timbrally-textural algorithm); 3) creation of “protracted” melody, in which the role of motivic “formula” is reduced (which is typical for I. Stravinsky’s Neo-Classical period). At the same time, continuity emerging in Neo-Classical works meets the tendency towards discretion due to influence of such principles as combinatorics and plastique, which retain their relevancy, being realised in different variants in the conditions of functional “clarity” of a texture, as it is a trait of composer’s Neo-Classical musical idiom. The orchestral writing of the Variations (Aldous Huxley in Memoriam) is defined by the principle of combinatorics with the usage of plastique. Serial technique contributed to its reveal. At the same time, the role of multi-figure composition is reduced to a bare minimum, which was caused by rejection of melodic “formularity”.

EXOSEKETONS: A REHAB TECH CONSUMER’S UNEXPECTED MARCH TO ACTION

This paper is both a stakeholder perspectives as well as a ‘case study’ describing a journey from sudden disability to participant and investor in exoskeleton design. It tells of my experiences and opinions, as a successful fashion designer, when my life took a drastic turn on becoming paralysed from the waist down over the course of 24 hours, by a spinal tumour. Getting this diagnosis was ‘the worst day in my life’, and it was quickly followed by the ‘second worst’ when, in my determination to walk again, I received Knee Ankle Foot Orthotics (KAFOs) and was shocked to learn that this appeared to be the best technology solution available on the market ‘suitable’ for use in the community. Initial anger at the system for not being better, at the rehab team for their complacency, and at myself for allowing a feeling of helplessness to take over led to questions such as: what does this say about our society? and what are we all willing to accept, for ourselves and others? This is professional opinion and an essay about how we see ourselves and how others see us. The journey from pre-injury ‘consumer’ to post-injury ‘disabled’ person and learning that being labeled ‘disabled’ leads to the additional handicap of the narrow vision of “cost” taken by the mobility industry where innovative ideas are stripped down to the bare minimum with the excuse that patients are “lucky” to have what they have been “given”. Grappling with these labels and inequities and seeking a better outcome, I became an integral team member of an exoskeleton development team, leading to the design of The Next Generation Exoskeleton! This is MY story, the story of Chloe Angus. It is the story of inclusive, user focused design and is a call to include and respect the end users of all assistive device technology design early in the design process and it is being told from the perspective of a person having experience and success in the world of business. Article PDF Link: https://jps.library.utoronto.ca/index.php/cpoj/article/view/37250/28296 How To Cite: Angus C. Exoseketons: a rehab tech consumer’s unexpected march to action. Canadian Prosthetics & Orthotics Journal. 2021; Volume 4, Issue 2, No.2. https://doi.org/10.33137/cpoj.v4i2.37250 Corresponding Author: Chloe AngusChloe Angus Design, Vancouver, BC, Canada.E-Mail: [email protected] ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5468-3121

A virtue ethical approach to Public Policy: Promoting wellbeing through human capabilities.

<p><b>The best way to achieve wellbeing in a society is to tailor our policy settings to human capabilities. To do this, we need to adopt a form of virtue theory and apply a framework to policy problems which targets people’s capabilities, bringing them up to a minimum standard of wellbeing.</b></p> <p>Public policy should use distributive justice to deploy public goods to bring people up to a threshold of each capability. This is the bare minimum people need to live well. Justice should be balanced between what a government can realistically influence, with limitations to ensure that people’s freedoms are maintained without telling them how to live. </p> <p>The purpose of this is to reduce obstacles to wellbeing, particularly luck around wellbeing. This means that people can focus on their own functionings and moral actions without fear they will get so unlucky in life that they will never live well.</p>

A virtue ethical approach to Public Policy: Promoting wellbeing through human capabilities.

<p><b>The best way to achieve wellbeing in a society is to tailor our policy settings to human capabilities. To do this, we need to adopt a form of virtue theory and apply a framework to policy problems which targets people’s capabilities, bringing them up to a minimum standard of wellbeing.</b></p> <p>Public policy should use distributive justice to deploy public goods to bring people up to a threshold of each capability. This is the bare minimum people need to live well. Justice should be balanced between what a government can realistically influence, with limitations to ensure that people’s freedoms are maintained without telling them how to live. </p> <p>The purpose of this is to reduce obstacles to wellbeing, particularly luck around wellbeing. This means that people can focus on their own functionings and moral actions without fear they will get so unlucky in life that they will never live well.</p>

Consumers in Crisis – Emerging Marketing Challenges

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused significant disruptions in the life of consumers. Consumers have started to learn and live a “new normal” lifestyle, shifting to spending only on essentials, consuming home food as compared to eating out or ordering in, increased use of technologies for shopping, education, and entertainment, and focusing on health and family. This change in the behaviour of average consumers has redefined the basics of marketing. Businesses are struggling due to lockdowns, lack of labour, tightened spending by consumers, and lack of raw materials for their operations. Working from home, consumers have started using digital technologies to search, identify, and order their bare minimum essentials. The purpose of this research paper is to evaluate how marketers should redefine their marketing strategies to adapt to changing consumer behaviour. As consumer behaviour is changing because of COVID-19, marketers need to rethink their fundamental marketing campaigns, moving away from traditional in-store marketing techniques to using digital technologies to reach consumers at their homes. This research was conducted using a structured questionnaire sent out to marketing executives. The responses received were analysed using SmartPLS. The present study provides valuable insights to the marketers on the emerging strategies that need to be adopted. Marketers should comprehend the social and economic impact of the pandemic, invest in digital technologies to reach out to customers virtually, streamline their supply chain to take advantage of localisation, offer family-oriented products, adopt short-term pricing policies, and develop alliances with competition for economies of scale.

Limited, considered and sustainable consumption: The (non)consumption practices of UK minimalists

Minimalism is an increasingly popular lifestyle movement in western economies (predominantly in the USA, Japan and Europe) that involves voluntarily reducing consumption and limiting one’s possessions to a bare minimum. This is with the intention of making space for the ‘important’ (potentially immaterial) things that are seen to add meaning and value to one’s life. Drawing on interviews with minimalists in the UK, this article reveals that minimalists practice sustainable (non)consumption via limiting their consumption. This is achieved by actively buying less, using up and maintaining what is owned, and, when objects are acquired, only practising highly intentional, considered and (sometimes) ethical consumption. For some, such practices are predominantly based on strong ethical and environmental motivations or are seen as a positive ‘by-product’ of their minimalist lifestyles. Whilst for others, their motivations are primarily aligned to personal well-being. The article subsequently argues that the limited and considered practices of minimalist consumption can be seen as sustainable practices in outcome, if not always in intent.