Assemblages in the Venetian Lagoon: Humans, water and multiple historical flows

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Monica Porzionato
Keyword(s):  
Natural Environment ◽  
Social Reality ◽  
Assemblage Theory ◽  
Heterogenous Agents ◽  
Venetian Lagoon ◽  
As If

Since the dawn of its existence, and at times thanks to ambitious interventions, Venice and its lagoon have needed to be constantly protected from the various ways in which water has reclaimed its existence. This article asserts that the ways in which Venice approached the watery world imply a tendency to relate to the natural environment as if it was something humans ought to separate themselves from, rather than something towards which they could harmoniously relate. As a result of this mindset, the natural changes which made humans interventions necessary are most often phrased as events abruptly sprouted into being, and less as obvious consequences of pre-existing ecological alterations of the islands’ ecosystem throughout the centuries. In order to read these events differently, this article adopts assemblage theory as delineated in the work of Manuel DeLanda (2006], 2016), according to which history comprises a multiplicity of flows, each belonging to a specific social reality. As such, this article auspicates a way to read ecological alterations of the Venetian lagoon beyond the mere actions of humans and to see, instead, socio-natural changes as the result of intricate relations between heterogenous agents and forces.

scholarly journals Microscopy Used to Discover New, Cool Mineral!

2008 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen W. Carmichael
Keyword(s):  
Natural Environment ◽  
Rare Events ◽  
New Mineral ◽  
The Earth ◽  
As If

It is relatively infrequent these days for a novel mineral to be discovered in the natural environment (in this context, this implies on the Earth). On the rare events of such a discovery, the new mineral is typically found in milligram quantities. In an article by Ronald Peterson, William Nelson, Bruce Madu, and Herbert Shervell, they describe the discovery of kilograms of a mineral that had only been synthesized previously, but never before detected in the natural environment. As if that were not impressive enough, they went looking for this mineral because they thought it had been observed on Mars!

scholarly journals Unexpected Facets of Images of Officials by N. V. Gogol and V. F. Odoevsky

2021 ◽  
pp. 231-243
Author(s):  
Yu. N. Sytina
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Science Fiction ◽  
Social Role ◽  
Social Reality ◽  
Russian Literature ◽  
Behavioral Model ◽  
Dead Body ◽  
Important Place ◽  
Inner World ◽  
As If

The issues on the multifaceted images of officials in the Russian literature of the 1830- 1840s are considered. The results of a comparative analysis of the works of N. V. Gogol and V. F. Odoevsky are presented. Particular attention is paid to Poprishchin from the “Diary of a Madman” and the order Sevastyanich from “The Tale of a Dead Body Who Belongs to No One”. The author draws attention to the fact that the heroes go beyond the behavioral model, as if attributed to them by their social role. It is shown that poetry does not disappear from their existence; officials are capable of creativity and creation of their own works. The irreducibility of the images of officials is proved only to illustrate social reality, the striving for their individualization, drawing a rich inner world is emphasized. The novelty of the research is seen in the fact that unexpected facets of the images of officials in Gogol and Odoevsky are revealed in their relationship. The commonality of the writers’ worldviews and the similarity of their poetics are shown, which is manifested, in particular, in the fact that science fiction occupies an important place in the artistic world of works about officials.

scholarly journals Everything is True Here, Even if it Isn’t: the performance of belief online

2020 ◽  
Vol 22 ◽  
pp. 44
Author(s):  
Vivian Asimos
Keyword(s):  
Social Reality ◽  
Spiritual Experience ◽  
Primary Stage ◽  
True Story ◽  
The Everyday ◽  
Sliding Scale ◽  
Mythic Thinking ◽  
As If ◽  
The Way

The primary stage for contemporary horror storytelling online, the subreddit No Sleep, declares the most important rule for users: everything is true here, even if it isn’t. This rule dictates the way users typically interact both on the subreddit and elsewhere while writing and reading horror stories online. Users typically post ‘in character’, or write as if the narrative is a true story. This impacts not only the comments, but also the story itself. Users engage with a playful performance of belief, demonstrating that belief is not just an on/off switch – ludically immersing themselves in ontological realities beyond their own. Using fieldwork conducted at No Sleep, this paper seeks to demonstrate the playful performances of belief as something much greater than ‘simple play’, but a demonstration of the sliding scale possible in belief. The process is not necessarily about finding belief, or changing belief, but about the performance itself. The performance of belief creates a social reality for the community. It is a manipulation of belief, which creates a form of mythic thinking which can create a spiritual experience. Realistic supernatural stories bring the supernatural into the everyday, but also brings the everyday into the supernatural.

Knowing the Place for the First Time

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kai Erikson
Keyword(s):  
Deviant Behavior ◽  
Human Life ◽  
Social Reality ◽  
Social World ◽  
Sociological Perspective ◽  
The Social ◽  
First Time ◽  
As If ◽  
The Way

This chapter considers a third approach to the sociological perspective, which has to do with viewing a wholly familiar social reality in the way a newcomer, a stranger, might. It may be assumed that sociologists know more about the lay of their land than most others do. After all, they spend a significant amount of time investigating various corners of the social world, and to that extent they can be thought of as seasoned, knowing, and experienced about human life. At the same time, however, sociologists can be viewed as strangers to the lands they study, for it is one of their tasks to look at the social world almost as if they were seeing it for the first time. The chapter explains how sociologists may be newcomers to the locations they study and discusses the ways that they deal with deviant behavior.

scholarly journals Integralna ochrona środowiska w nauczaniu Jana Pawła II

2008 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 117-127
Author(s):  
Wojciech Bołoz
Keyword(s):  
Natural Resources ◽  
Natural Environment ◽  
Common Property ◽  
Ecological Crisis ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Human Environment ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Moral Construction ◽  
Human And Nature ◽  
As If

In his teaching John Paul II paid a lot of attention to the subject of environmental protection. His holistic concept incorporates the most important issues that relate to preservation of natural resources that still exist. Among many issues discussed by him the following seem to be of the highest importance. The ecological issue refers to all people irrespective of religious or political views. Natural environment degradation bears negative consequences which apply to everyone, the Pope regards his comments on the natural environment protection as the Church’s support for the peoples’ efforts in overcoming the growing ecological crisis. In John Paul’s II opinion, so-called “anthropological mistake” is the basis for thoughtless degradation of natural environment. A human being who discovers his ability to transform and, to some extent, to create the world through his own work believes he can disobediently rule the Earth and bring it under his absolute control. He acts as if the Earth did not have its own shape nor an intention previously indicated by God. God’s intention for the Earth may indeed be expanded by a human but it should not be fought against. Instead of being God’s co-worker in the act of creation a human tries to replace Him. As a consequence, nature, which is oppressed rather than ruled by a human, protests. Ecological crisis is seen as a consequence of troubled relationship between a human and nature. In this relationship a human is driven only by his own economical needs. He does not take into consideration the specificity of nature’s constituting components: natural resources, plants and animals. Another important reason for the environment crisis is inconsiderate output of natural resources as if they were to last forever. Natural environment exploitation is reprehensible. However, destruction of “human environment” is equally dangerous. Alike with the Earth, which should be used respectfully in accordance with its initial intention, a human ought to value his own “natural and moral construction he was equipped with”. According to the teaching of the Church, God gave the Earth with everything it consists for the use of all the people and nations, this sense of common property also bears common responsibility for the existing goods. Because it is a shared property, it should be of a public concern, therefore , every enterprise that makes use of natural resources is obliged to take care of the environment.

Veblen, Marshall and neoclassical economics

2021 ◽  
pp. 1468795X2110689
Author(s):  
Stephen Pratten
Keyword(s):  
Social Ontology ◽  
Social Reality ◽  
Neoclassical Economics ◽  
Specific Group ◽  
Thorstein Veblen ◽  
As If

Alfred Marshall is often depicted as a pioneer of neoclassical economics almost as if this is a label he embraces and promotes. Yet neoclassical economics is not a category Marshall deploys but a term Thorstein Veblen introduces in characterising Marshall. Veblen coins the term neoclassical to identify an ontological discrepancy in the work of a specific group of his contemporaries, a prominent figure among whom is Marshall. Veblen’s view is that Marshall and other neoclassicals discern features of social reality that suggest a tentative recognition of a causal processual social ontology of the type Veblen associates with modern evolutionary approaches and yet also remain staunchly committed to a taxonomic conception of science underpinned by a quite different set of ontological presuppositions. Veblen’s assessment of Marshall is brief and assertive. In this paper it is argued that the ontological discrepancy interpretation of Marshall, that Veblen first sketched, can convincingly be filled out, has substantial merit and is of importance in developing an adequate appreciation of Marshall.

scholarly journals Sign System Studies and Modern Socio-Anthropomorphism

2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 28-31
Author(s):  
Anton Vladimirovich Sukhoverkhov
Keyword(s):  
Everyday Life ◽  
Social Reality ◽  
Theoretical Studies ◽  
Sign Systems ◽  
Sign System ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Natural Belief ◽  
As If

AbstractThe article examines the individual and social, practical, and theoretical presumptions (“idols” and “beliefs”) that constitute the conscious and unconscious re-construction of the social reality and reality of different conventional sign systems that represent and are represented by society. It is shown that in everyday life and in theoretical studies, we quite often analyze sign systems as if they were autonomous and empirically “given” realities. The work explains how this “natural belief” originated and developed. It is argued that conventional sign systems cannot be reduced to the reality of material “sign vehicles” because in society, sign systems are both subjective and objective, internal and external, and process and object.

Random isn't real: How the patchy distribution of ecological rewards may generate “incentive hope”

2019 ◽  
Vol 42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laurel Symes ◽  
Thalia Wheatley
Keyword(s):  
Natural Environment ◽  
Random Distribution ◽  
Spatiotemporal Distribution ◽  
Patchy Distribution ◽  
Distribution Of Resources

AbstractAnselme & Güntürkün generate exciting new insights by integrating two disparate fields to explain why uncertain rewards produce strong motivational effects. Their conclusions are developed in a framework that assumes a random distribution of resources, uncommon in the natural environment. We argue that, by considering a realistically clumped spatiotemporal distribution of resources, their conclusions will be stronger and more complete.

Extreme self-sacrifice beyond fusion: Moral expansiveness and the special case of allyship

2018 ◽  
Vol 41 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Crimston ◽  
Matthew J. Hornsey
Keyword(s):  
General Theory ◽  
Biological Markers ◽  
Natural Environment ◽  
Relevant Dimension ◽  
Special Case

AbstractAs a general theory of extreme self-sacrifice, Whitehouse's article misses one relevant dimension: people's willingness to fight and die in support of entities not bound by biological markers or ancestral kinship (allyship). We discuss research on moral expansiveness, which highlights individuals’ capacity to self-sacrifice for targets that lie outside traditional in-group markers, including racial out-groups, animals, and the natural environment.

Improvement of an artificial test substrate technique for evaluation of em immunocytochemical labeling

1987 ◽  
Vol 45 ◽  
pp. 762-763
Author(s):  
G. D. Gagne ◽  
M. F. Miller
Keyword(s):  
Bovine Serum Albumin ◽  
Serum Albumin ◽  
Bovine Serum ◽  
Artificial Substrate ◽  
Chemical Fixation ◽  
As If

We recently described an artificial substrate system which could be used to optimize labeling parameters in EM immunocytochemistry (ICC). The system utilizes blocks of glutaraldehyde polymerized bovine serum albumin (BSA) into which an antigen is incorporated by a soaking procedure. The resulting antigen impregnated blocks can then be fixed and embedded as if they are pieces of tissue and the effects of fixation, embedding and other parameters on the ability of incorporated antigen to be immunocyto-chemically labeled can then be assessed. In developing this system further, we discovered that the BSA substrate can also be dried and then sectioned for immunolabeling with or without prior chemical fixation and without exposing the antigen to embedding reagents. The effects of fixation and embedding protocols can thus be evaluated separately.

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