scholarly journals Sequential choice effects predict prevalence-induced concept change

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert C Wilson
Keyword(s):  
Color Perception ◽  
Ethical Judgment ◽  
Threat Assessment ◽  
Sequential Choice ◽  
Sequential Effects ◽  
Concept Change ◽  
Definition Of

Prevalence-induced concept change is the process by which the definition of a concept can shift as the prevalence of that concept changes. In a series of beautiful experiments, Levari and colleagues (2018) demonstrated that prevalence-induced concept change occurs across a range of situations, from color perception to threat assessment to ethical judgment. Here we show that in all of these cases the extent of prevalence-induced concept change is accounted for by sequential effects in which previous stimuli and responses bias the upcoming categorization. Crucially, these sequential effects are always active, even when the prevalence is does not change. Thus, by modeling these effects, we were able to predict the magnitude of prevalence-induced concept change based on participants’ behavior when the prevalence is fixed. This suggests that sequential effects are the mechanism by which prevalence-induced concept change occurs.

scholarly journals Coup with Adjectives: Conceptual Stretching or Innovation in Comparative Research?

2019 ◽  
Vol 68 (4) ◽  
pp. 1014-1035 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leiv Marsteintredet ◽  
Andrés Malamud
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Comparative Research ◽  
Family Resemblance ◽  
Legal Process ◽  
Heated Debate ◽  
Concept Change ◽  
Definition Of

Was Brazil’s President Dilma Rousseff victim of a coup or removed through a legal process of impeachment? The heated debate on the 2016 ousting of Brazil’s president testifies to the growing controversy around the definition of coups. Focusing on Latin America, we show that the use of coups with adjectives have become more frequent in public and scholarly debates. Occurring at a time when coups are becoming rarer, we argue that this development is linked to prevalence-induced concept change, meaning that when instances of a concept become less prevalent, the understanding of the concept expands. The meaning of coups has expanded through a proliferation of adjectives. Coups with adjectives are not new, but recent usage changes the concept from a classic to a family resemblance structure. Although this strategy can avoid stretching and increase differentiation, we urge caution and warn against harmful consequences, whether conceptual, theoretical, or practical.

Guidelines to Conducting Threat Susceptibility and Identification Assessments of Pipelines Prior to Reactivation

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chad Bunch ◽  
Glenn Cameron ◽  
Rafael G. Mora
Keyword(s):  
Threat Assessment ◽  
Hazard Identification ◽  
Assessment Process ◽  
Prevention Measures ◽  
Regulatory Requirements ◽  
Operational Conditions ◽  
Industry Standards ◽  
Assessment Approach ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Identification Analysis

This paper provides guidelines to identify all threats and assess a pipeline’s susceptibility to those threats in order to select appropriate and effective mitigation, monitoring, and prevention measures prior to reactivating pipelines. The intent of this paper is to provide pipeline operators, consultants and regulatory agencies with a generic threat assessment approach that has to be customized to the pipeline-specific characteristics and conditions, and the regulatory requirements of its own jurisdiction. A literature review and authors’ experiences across the pipeline industry have identified the need for a generic, yet complete approach that guides pipeline integrity engineers in the methodologies that adequately and effectively assess threats prior to reactivation and that can be validated in a timely manner during the operations. Pipeline operators may be called on to reactivate pipelines that are facing challenges such as aging, changes in operational conditions, lack of maintenance and inconsistent integrity practices while facing constraints from increasing population density, higher pressure and flow throughput requirements of a competitive marketplace, and regulatory requirements insisting on higher levels of safety and protection of the environment. This paper was structured with the following components to assist the reader in conducting threat assessments: • Current regulations and recognized industry standards with respect to reactivating pipelines; • Definition of and differentiation between hazard and threat; • Hazard identification analysis for the known and potential situations, events and conditions; and • Threat susceptibility and identification analysis process for the known categories derived from the hazard identification process. A case study is described as an example of applying the guidelines to conduct threat susceptibility and identification assessments of a pipeline prior to its reactivation. The results from the threat susceptibility and identification assessment process can help operators, consultants and regulators in determining effective inspection, mitigation, prevention and monitoring measures.

scholarly journals Human Ageing is Associated with More Rigid Concept Spaces

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sean Devine ◽  
Cassandra Neumann ◽  
David Levari ◽  
Robert Wilson ◽  
Ben Eppinger
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Cognitive Deficit ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Younger Adults ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Human Ageing ◽  
Experimental Approaches ◽  
Concept Change ◽  
Definition Of

Abstract Prevalence-induced concept change describes a cognitive mechanism by which someone’s definition of a concept shifts as the prevalence of instances of that concept changes. The phenomenon has real-world implications because this sensitivity to environmental characteristics may lead to substantial biases in judgements. While prevalence-induced concept change has been established in young adults, it is unclear how it changes as a function of human ageing. In this cross-sectional study, we explore how prevalence-induced concept change affects older adults’ lower-level, perceptual, and higher-order, ethical, judgements. We find that older adults are less sensitive to prevalence-induced concept change than younger adults across domains. Using a combination of computational and experimental approaches, we demonstrate that these changes in judgements are sensitive to the pace with which the stimuli occur in the environment and are affected by the effort that subjects invest in order to make accurate decisions. Based on findings from three experiments we argue that older adults’ concept spaces are more rigid than those of younger adults. However, what appear as an age-related cognitive “deficit” may turn out to be beneficial because it makes older adults less susceptible to biases in judgments.  

scholarly journals The brain death definition and human organs transplantation in the light of the Catholic Church teaching

2016 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 55-59
Author(s):  
Joanna Dudzińska ◽  
Beata Dobrowolska
Keyword(s):  
Brain Death ◽  
Catholic Church ◽  
Ethical Judgment ◽  
Human Organ ◽  
Holy See ◽  
The Gift ◽  
Moral Certainty ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
The Brain ◽  
The Catholic Church

AbstractAim. The aim of this paper is to present the teaching of the Catholic Church regarding the brain death and the human organ transplantation.Material and methodology. The analysis of the official documents of the Holy See as well as the teaching and speeches of popes was made.Results and Conclusions. The Catholic Church supports transplants from deceased persons and considers donating their organs after death for transplantation as the gift of the greatest love. However, it is not unconditional acceptance. The most important conditions are: the patient’s informed consent for organ donation and a precise statement of the death of the donor. The currently used definition of brain death has been declared by the Church not only as sufficient but also as definitive criterion of the death of a man. In Christian ethics, this criterion allows an ethical judgment, which is called as moral certainty and provides the basis for an ethically proper action. It is also stressed that the donation of organs for transplantation must be altruistic. It is unacceptable to expect and to receive any payment for such an act.

scholarly journals Less Prevalence-induced Concept Change in Older Adults

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sean Devine ◽  
Cassandra Neumann ◽  
David Levari ◽  
Robert C Wilson ◽  
Ben Eppinger
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Ethical Decision ◽  
Ethical Decision Making ◽  
Response Times ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Younger Adults ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Experimental Approaches ◽  
Concept Change ◽  
Definition Of

Prevalence-induced concept change describes a cognitive mechanism by which someone’s definition of a concept shifts as the prevalence of instances of that concept changes. While this phenomenon has been established in young adults, it is unclear how it affects older adults. In this study, we explore how prevalence-induced concept change affects older adults’ lower-level, perceptual, and higher-order, ethical, decision-making. We find that older adults are less sensitive to prevalence-induced concept change than younger adults across both domains. Using a combination of computational and experimental approaches, we demonstrate that these age-related changes in judgements are driven by differences in response times between young and old adults, reflecting the time-sensitive and motivation-dependent nature of concept change. Overall, we argue that older adults’ concept spaces may be less flexible than younger adults’ in a changing world, which can make the elderly less sensitive to biases in their judgement.

Introductory paper

1966 ◽  
Vol 24 ◽  
pp. 3-5
Author(s):  
W. W. Morgan
Keyword(s):  
Line Intensity ◽  
Classification Scheme ◽  
Two Dimensional ◽  
Spectral Classification ◽  
Dimensional Array ◽  
Rr Lyrae ◽  
Metallic Line ◽  
Introductory Paper ◽  
Parameter Varying ◽  
Definition Of

1. The definition of “normal” stars in spectral classification changes with time; at the time of the publication of theYerkes Spectral Atlasthe term “normal” was applied to stars whose spectra could be fitted smoothly into a two-dimensional array. Thus, at that time, weak-lined spectra (RR Lyrae and HD 140283) would have been considered peculiar. At the present time we would tend to classify such spectra as “normal”—in a more complicated classification scheme which would have a parameter varying with metallic-line intensity within a specific spectral subdivision.

2.2. Working Group 2: Conceptual Definitions of Reference Coordinate Systems for Earth Dynamics

1975 ◽  
Vol 26 ◽  
pp. 21-26
Keyword(s):  
Coordinate System ◽  
Working Group ◽  
General Character ◽  
Coordinate Systems ◽  
Reference Coordinate System ◽  
Group 2 ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Earth Dynamics

An ideal definition of a reference coordinate system should meet the following general requirements:1. It should be as conceptually simple as possible, so its philosophy is well understood by the users.2. It should imply as few physical assumptions as possible. Wherever they are necessary, such assumptions should be of a very general character and, in particular, they should not be dependent upon astronomical and geophysical detailed theories.3. It should suggest a materialization that is dynamically stable and is accessible to observations with the required accuracy.

Symbiotic Stars at Optical, Infrared and Radio Wavelengths

1979 ◽  
Vol 46 ◽  
pp. 125-149 ◽  
Author(s):  
David A. Allen
Keyword(s):  
Temperature Regime ◽  
Type Star ◽  
Stellar Systems ◽  
Symbiotic Stars ◽  
Lower Excitation ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Original Type

No paper of this nature should begin without a definition of symbiotic stars. It was Paul Merrill who, borrowing on his botanical background, coined the termsymbioticto describe apparently single stellar systems which combine the TiO absorption of M giants (temperature regime ≲ 3500 K) with He II emission (temperature regime ≳ 100,000 K). He and Milton Humason had in 1932 first drawn attention to three such stars: AX Per, CI Cyg and RW Hya. At the conclusion of the Mount Wilson Ha emission survey nearly a dozen had been identified, and Z And had become their type star. The numbers slowly grew, as much because the definition widened to include lower-excitation specimens as because new examples of the original type were found. In 1970 Wackerling listed 30; this was the last compendium of symbiotic stars published.

Immunoferritin localization of intracellular antigens in positively stained frozen sections

1978 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
pp. 168-169
Author(s):  
K. T. Tokuyasu
Keyword(s):  
Surface Tension ◽  
Water Surface ◽  
Thin Layers ◽  
The Other ◽  
Positive Staining ◽  
Frozen Sections ◽  
The Past ◽  
Ultrathin Frozen Sections ◽  
Definition Of

During the past investigations of immunoferritin localization of intracellular antigens in ultrathin frozen sections, we found that the degree of negative staining required to delineate u1trastructural details was often too dense for the recognition of ferritin particles. The quality of positive staining of ultrathin frozen sections, on the other hand, has generally been far inferior to that attainable in conventional plastic embedded sections, particularly in the definition of membranes. As we discussed before, a main cause of this difficulty seemed to be the vulnerability of frozen sections to the damaging effects of air-water surface tension at the time of drying of the sections.Indeed, we found that the quality of positive staining is greatly improved when positively stained frozen sections are protected against the effects of surface tension by embedding them in thin layers of mechanically stable materials at the time of drying (unpublished).

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