The remarkable growth of mobile money observed among developing countries in the last two decades, has enabled extension of basic formal financial services to the unbanked population in predominantly cash-based economies. This development has been credited for its contribution to financial inclusion and stabilization of rural incomes through remittances, but little has been done to study its impact through purchase of goods and services. We expand the framework for analysing the impact of mobile money by building three new Keynesian DSGE (...) models with features to investigate how it affects the economy through the primary and secondary income channels. We also apply the ARDL bounds test approach to empirically study the impact of mobile money on income velocity of circulation in Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda. Our DSGE models enable us to predict that mobile money will have overall positive benefits to the economy and that the rural will take disproportionately larger share of the benefits. The primary income channel transmits the benefits of real and policy shocks evenly to all rural households through increase in wages, while the secondary income channel delivers higher benefits to the recipients of remittances in the rural. With regard to monetary policy the DSGE models show that mobile money integrates the rural economy more into the national economy, thus demanding relatively more aggressive policy reaction to real shocks, under the mobile money scenario. The empirical estimations reveal statistically significant positive relationship between mobile money and the income velocity of circulation, which points to the need for central banks to review money supply downwards to avoid inflationary outcomes. The increase in velocity also impairs the ability of governments to raise seigniorage, but on the other side, mobile money lends itself as an instrument of improving efficiency in revenue collection, therefore, governments need to embrace it. (shrink)

Sonically suspended in familiarity, memory, reflexivity and imagination the interwoven fields and methods of study in sound, listening, and ethnography have laid a vast environment ahead for contemporary composers. One that is rich for new meaning and new material. Further to novelty, I press into this in-between-space to offer a methodology to create work that interrogates structures of hierarchy, and histories of hegemonic practice. In this text, I suggest a path marked and signposted by radical (as in, intentionally against established (...) structure) shifts in thinking around ethnographic art practice that turn away from western, hegemonic and Eurocentric standards of research, consumption, listening, and sounding. I offer endarkened co-composition as such a methodology, and as an experience and experiment of presence. I present theory-through-practice: collaborative and participatory composition methods that rely on innate forms of Black and Indigenous storytelling as qualitative research methods. In dialogue with reflexive autoethnography, collaborative practice and storytelling, such a critical and anticolonial listening practice grounds endarkened co-composition as a generative method. An endarkened co-composition methodology considers a version of listening and composing that generates new thought, relationships, and at the furthest extent – new worlds. The research is presented with a portfolio of five multi-media works under the subtitles endarkened acoustemologies, notation, and performance. This includes: three cocomposed pieces (A Progeny of Perpetual Independence written for Piano, Viola, Cello, Double Bass and Soprano performed live, Three Gold Threads, written for electronics, piano and voice, composed for and presented as a short film, We Invoke the Black. To Rest, written for electronics and voice presented in a collaborative livestream performance) graphic score (More Powerful Than the Sun, and four iterations of interpretations) and photographs taken on 35mm film, digitised. (shrink)

This dissertation consists of a critical commentary anchored on the portfolio of publications consisting of six peer-reviewed papers selected for their breadth of coverage on library cataloguing issues and also for their evolutionary and futuristic outlook. The overall project traces the transformation of the work of the professional library cataloguer through examining advances in the past decade as documented in the prior publications, and charts the expansionary trajectory of the profession in light of the ongoing digital transition in libraries. The (...) critical commentary places cataloguing, the catalogue, the cataloguer, and catalogue librarianship in the evolutionary framework for library services, described in Michael Buckland’s 1992 publication Redesigning Library Services: A Manifesto, and subsequent extensions of this framework by other authors. Into this framework, a new “Blended” state, omitted as transitory between “Paper” and “Electronic” in Buckland’s framework, is inserted, and a new professional identity of the “Blended Cataloguer” is developed to take on the roles of data curator, knowledge creator, and information policymaker. A unified practice surrounding these new roles, the “Decomposition-Assembly Approach” is developed to describe a data processing methodology incorporating both traditional and digital library cataloguing skills. Beyond complementing the new Blended Cataloguer professional identity, this approach is also shown to represent a practical approach to “enrich and filter,” a theoretical model for digital library metadata developed by Alemu and Stevens (2015). The Blended Cataloguer practising the Decomposition-Assembly Approach represents a radical shift from the traditional standard-based practise, and provides a new evolutionary framework and practical model for current library cataloguers and metadata workers that will enable the development of foundational information infrastructure for future library services and provide leadership in shaping the broader information ecosystem. (shrink)

Healthcare expenditures account for approximately 9% of GDP in OECD countries and are on an upward trajectory (OECD, 2017). This significant financial burden, combined with an aging global population and increasing demand, emphasizes the imperative for sustained research and innovation to enhance health system efficacy. Key to this transformation are technological advancements, including digital health, which presents novel opportunities for improvement. Emerging digital health technologies, such as virtual consultations, complex imaging procedures, and electronic medical records, are fundamental to modern healthcare (...) infrastructures. However, significant gaps remain in the evaluation and understanding of these innovations, especially for nascent technological areas. This thesis addresses this subject, aiming to delineate how individuals and institutions can bolster their evaluative capabilities, strategic decision-making, and planning for the deployment of emerging digital healthcare technologies. The research methodology amalgamates theoretical exploration, literature scrutiny, and empirical examinations, presenting an integrated perspective that intersects the disciplines of Management & Decision Science, Technology & Innovation, and Health Economics & Outcomes Research. From an applied perspective, this research focuses on developing evidence within the context of pediatric healthcare in Canada — a context notably underrepresented in healthcare management research, despite its disproportionate per capita expenditure. Technologically, the predominant focus is on applications in virtual reality (VR) and three-dimensional (3D) printing and virtualization, though with the aspiration of ensuring the generalizability of results. The current thesis is structured to parallel the progression of the research itself, as three distinct phases; this begins with a comprehensive Background that contextualizes the initial intent, exploring the relationship between technology, innovation, and health outcomes. In this phase, each academic discipline is analyzed to identify base theoretical underpinnings for the research. The second phase of this work includes five empirical studies, each preceded by context-specific literature reviews for the respective technological domain, providing insight into the current state of evidence related to value-based assessment and economic evaluation in that area. Empirical studies included a randomized controlled trial and a cost consequences assessment of VR for pre-procedural preparation for medical imaging. Additionally, novel applications of 3D printing and virtualization are critically analyzed, accompanied by a multi-case study on the implementation of 3D printing in pediatrics, a cost-consequences study of applications for thoracoabdominal surgeries, and an outcomes study on the use of 3D virtualization in medical education during the COVID-19 pandemic. The final phase of this research includes the critical analysis and synthesis of findings into a proposal for a novel value-based assessment and decision-making framework specific to emerging health innovations; this framework integrates insights and resources for clinicians, administrators, and policymakers. The outcomes of this research are skewed toward Knowledge Users, but also aims to advance the theoretical basis for health technology assessment (HTA). (shrink)

Looked-after children (LAC) are classed as one of the most vulnerable populations in society. They also persistently demonstrate poor life trajectories in many areas. To date, the language difficulties of LAC have not received much attention; this is despite the issues of LAC’s language difficulties appearing in parliamentary and wider political discussion (e.g., Children and Social Work Act, 2017). Aim: The main focus of the current study is to investigate the language difficulties in LAC in a wider context and to (...) explore the associations between LAC’s language difficulties and their life trajectories, including educational attainment and social emotional behavioural difficulties (SEBD) or social, emotional and mental health needs (SEMH). The research addresses at a theoretical level the risk and protective factors for language development LAC experience. At a more practical level it is hoped the research will inform social care policies, legislation, and clinical practices. Method: A mixed methods design has been used encompassing three studies. The first study involved conducting a scoping review, the second phase involved analysing a large sample of quantitative data, and the third phase involved analysing semi-structured interviews with professionals who worked with LAC on a daily basis. This method allowed the investigation of language difficulties of LAC to take place in a wider context. This approach also enabled the collection of all available data sources to be considered. In the scoping review, a six-step framework methodology (Arksey & O’Malley, 2005) examined and summarised the extent, range, and nature of research activities and findings of language difficulties in LAC. In the quantitative data, a range of parametric tests (e.g., t-tests, ANOVA and Pearson’s correlation) were utilized as appropriate to compare language scores across the three language groups (green, amber and red groups), and the association between language difficulties in LAC and their life outcomes. In this stage, a multiple linear regression (MLR) approach was used to ask what combination of factors best predicted LAC’s poor language scores. In the qualitative study, thematic analysis was utilized (Braun & Clarke, 2006) to identify common themes alongside sub-themes pertinent to each research question. Findings: The combination of the three data sources revealed 4 main findings: (a) LAC are at higher risk of poor development of language skills across all areas of language including social pragmatics and related areas of verbal cognition; (b) there are specific demographic and environmental factors which relate to language development in LAC (e.g., OHC settings, maltreatment) although these relationships are likely to be complex and not picked up with routine data; (c) there is a link between language difficulties, educational, social, emotional and behavioural difficulties; (d) LAC face barriers accessing language assessment and intervention, but there are support strategies and systems relevant to LAC’s language difficulties. Conclusion: This study makes valuable contributions to the knowledge base regarding language difficulties in LAC and the association with language and LAC’s life outcomes. Implications for policymakers, local authorities, clinicians, and future research are reported. (shrink)

This chapter tracks the evolution and expansion of the international humanitarian sector during the Cold War period. It examines how the conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union spilled out beyond the confines of the diplomatic sphere and influenced violence and displacement across the Global South. During this period, I argue that there were three key phases of international humanitarian practice: 1) relief and the post-war reconstruction of Europe; 2) decolonisation and the emergence of the ‘Third World’; and (...) 3) global economic organisations and the rise of neoliberalism. Humanitarian practices became increasingly politicised in their logic and delivery as the Cold War intensified, as international organisations struggled to respond to the territorial instability prompted by decolonisation. This chapter demonstrates how organisational pressures, racial hierarchies, and ideological prejudices shaped humanitarian interventions during the Global Cold War. (shrink)

For many economists, including those who have made the most marked contribution to the development of the discipline, their work has to be understood in the context of the rhetorical strategy they were pursuing – what they wanted to persuade us of and how they wanted to do it. The paper identifies two fundamental rhetorical strategies of laissez-faire resting on entirely distinct ontological foundations. What distinguishes these two strategies is the way they articulate the individual with the general interest, how (...) they relate the micro to the macro. The two strategies discussed in the paper are characterised by the stance they take on a fundamental ontological issue, the way in which the things which appear to us in the world are related to the things or matters which compose them. A reductionist approach suggests that we can understand an entity at one level as a congeries. An entity in this view is just an aggregate of entities at a lower, substrate level – a purely external unity. The properties and behaviour of an entity can then be understood in terms of the properties and behaviour of the constituent lower-level components, taken in isolation. In this approach, phenomena at some level are regarded as having just the qualities enjoyed by its lower-level, substrate elements, writ large. The contrary, holistic, stance is to view the qualities of phenomena at one level as emergent at that level, and to assert that an entity can be understood as a product of the inter-relations between its component parts. We have, then, a pair of contrasted approaches: a polarity which is productive in the study of schools of thought, of competing methodologies, and of rhetorical strategies in economics. The paper applies this approach to the work of Smith, Keynes, Hayek, Lucas and Friedman. (shrink)

Dickens’s relationship with the Arts has confounded or silenced some of the most eminent critics from his day to ours. His own reticence on the topic likewise makes the idea of a book on Dickens and the Arts a little odd or dissonant. Though as this volume makes clear, he was well versed in a range of high and low arts, he was seemingly determined to embrace, if not the wrong side of the cultural track, metaphorically speaking, a different track. (...) The Introduction is structured around four broad areas which are key to an understanding of both the ideological underpinnings of shifting definitions of the Arts, and to an understanding of the reasons for Dickens’s complex relationship to the idea of the Arts: money/materialism; hierarchies of privilege; yardsticks of criticism or artistic judgement; the public good. There is an uneasy relationship between ‘the Arts’ and all four areas, between Dickens and all four, and between Dickens and the Arts understood via these frames, which are commonly invoked in discussions of the Arts. The contention of this volume is that, far from being a philistine who had no interest in the Arts, Dickens’s apparent reticence in an industrial age where the value and function of the Arts was uniquely important in public debate, masks a complex and sophisticated vision (if not theory) of the Arts in the modern era, which is, and was, ahead of its time. Dickens’s philosophy of art in fact works to complicate in subtle ways the idea of an opposition between idealist and integrationist views of the aesthetic, though its most characteristic thrust is integrationist. (shrink)

Misogyny is a significant but unspoken presence in organization studies, in terms of people’s experiences of work and as a theorised concept. In this essay we argue that our community should dare to name misogyny for its unique insight into the enduring patriarchal power relations that condition so many organizations and so much of our organization theory. We develop this argument in two ways: first, we suggest that misogyny provides a unique descriptive linguistic label for experiences of gendered hatred, violence, (...) and social policing; and second, a philosophical understanding of misogyny enables analysis, understanding, and challenges to the physical or symbolic violence that women experience in and around organizations as sites for the reproduction of patriarchy. Drawing on recent developments in feminist analytic philosophy, we follow the movement away from understanding misogyny-as-individual-emotions to misogyny-as-affective-practice. This allows us to frame two related concepts, organized and organizational misogyny, demonstrating the potential that misogyny brings to understanding individual experiences, collective affect, and influential social forces. Despite the discomfort produced by hate-based concepts such as misogyny, we conclude that their exclusion from organization studies has two effects: the continuing reproduction of violent hostility, and acceptance of a partial account of multiple forms of oppression and inequality. Our research agenda, founded on this need for naming such experiences, the significance of affect, and aggregated oppressions, demonstrates the potential contribution of misogyny to addressing these issues and finding some hope for change. (shrink)

AI research is being challenged with ensuring that autonomous agents learn to behave ethically, namely in alignment with moral values. Here, we propose a novel way of tackling the value alignment problem as a two-step process. The first step consists on formalising moral values and value aligned behaviour based on philosophical foundations. Our formalisation is compatible with the framework of (Multi-Objective) Reinforcement Learning, to ease the handling of an agent’s individual and ethical objectives. The second step consists in designing an (...) environment wherein an agent learns to behave ethically while pursuing its individual objective. We leverage on our theoretical results to introduce an algorithm that automates our two-step approach. In the cases where value-aligned behaviour is possible, our algorithm produces a learning environment for the agent wherein it will learn a value-aligned behaviour. (shrink)

The Thesis commences by considering Whitehead’s case for enlarging the breadth of the remit for the foundations of a philosophical cosmology, from the narrow abstraction of the single science of physics, to one which includes all the sciences including the social sciences and religion. The case includes Whitehead’s belief that failure to enact these changes will lead to the emasculation o f ‘science’ in its ability to contribute to the production of any philosophical cosmology. The contribution of broadening the remit (...) will be in the addition of the notion of value, for the new knowledge and understanding will be in terms of our experience of the cosmos, which represents the concrete facts available to us for the formulation of the general principles. Such a step is demonstrated as important in order to establish a ‘provisional realism’ based upon an organological philosophy. In order to achieve these goals Whitehead’s appeal to metaphysics is be traced as he establishes his ‘world view’. His recourse to metaphysics and an analysis of their nature and development in his philosophy of organism will be found to play a significant role in the development of his philosophy, as metaphysics are utilised in the main task of the philosophy which is recognised as elucidating the concept of nature as it presents itself to us. Whitehead’s method of investigation is based upon speculative philosophy which is a form of philosophical generalisation, and is considered as a means of achieving the aims and goals which Whitehead has set out. The consequence of Whitehead’s philosophy is seen as putting the world back together after the separation it suffered through the abstractions resulting from earlier scientific philosophical analysis. The dichotomy between mind and matter is removed while descriptions and explanations of life and consciousness are formulated. This is achieved through the construction of Whitehead’s philosophy of organism, the purpose of which is to reinstate purpose and meaning to our philosophical cosmology. As a result the philosophy offers insight into scientific investigations into the reality of the world, where science is part of the social totality which includes an integration of values. Chapter One of the thesis deals with the scientific and philosophical base from which Whitehead’s analysis commences. Chapter Two is the organological theory itself and Chapter Three is assessment, criticism and discussion derived from the thesis. (shrink)

Treating Cormac McCarthy's The Road as an ecocritical work, this article uses Heraclitus's arche of fire as a new methodological lens through which to examine the text. In particular, it asks how readers can derive hope from such a materialistically bleak novel. Heraclitus was a Presocratic philosopher from fifth century BCE Greece. He was a material monist, who claimed that fire was the principle element of the universe, or arche: the preserving and destroying element from which the cosmos came, to (...) which it will return, and by which it will be judged. This principality of fire is reflected in the supra-religious moralistic metaphor that “good guys” in The Road “carry the fire.” This interpretation challenges Daniel Luttrell's claim that fire in The Road aligns to the Promethean myth, demonstrating that Heraclitus's arche of fire may offer a more holistic interpretation of the metaphor, particularly when combined with Marcel D. DeCoste, Matthew Mullins, and Erik J. Wielenberg's theories of community as morality within The Road. Fire is shown to represent the intrinsic, ambiguous interconnectedness of humankind—and that the defining moral choice of The Road's inhabitants is simply whether they acknowledge it, both in terms of the community of humanity, and humanity's communion with nature. (shrink)

This article argues that John Locke’s defence of Natural Rights and private property are prerequisites in the rise of Achieved Celebrity. It addresses how the rights of private property are anterior to taking ‘the ordinary citizen’ as an object of attention capital.

By highlighting relations between experimental and theoretical work, this volume explores new ways of addressing the problem of concept composition, which is one of the central challenges in the study of language and cognition. An introductory chapter lays out the background to the problem. The subsequent chapters by leading scholars and younger researchers in psychology, linguistics and philosophy, aim to explain how meanings of different complex expressions are derived from simple lexical concepts, and to analyze how these meanings connect to (...) concept representations. This work demonstrates an important advance in the interdisciplinary study of concept composition, where points of convergence between cognitive psychology, linguistics and philosophy emerge and lead to new findings and theoretical insights. (shrink)

The main purpose of this paper is to examine the ‘existence theory’ proposed by Patrick Baert, Marcus Morgan, and Rin Ushiyama. To this end, it focuses on some key issues that could, and arguably should, be explored in more detail, especially if the authors decide to develop their project further, permitting them to establish a new interdisciplinary branch of inquiry. The comments and suggestions made in this paper are meant to be constructive, supporting the idea that Baert, Morgan, and Ushiyama’s (...) outline could, and should, be turned into a bold, systematic, and long-term research programme. More specifically, the in-depth analysis of Baert, Morgan, and Ushiyama’s theoretical framework demonstrates that their undertaking, which draws on central insights from both existentialism and phenomenology, contributes to bridging the disciplinary gap between philosophy and sociology. The paper concludes by asserting that Baert, Morgan, and Ushiyama’s model provides a solid foundation for an ambitious, but viable, project that may result in the creation of a new current of research, capable of generating valuable insights into the tension-laden confluence of existential milestones, existential ladders, and existential urgencies in the theatre of human life. (shrink)

This article considers the relationship between moral philosophy and constitutional theory through a detailed examination of the work of Jeremy Waldron—an unavoidable voice in contemporary constitutionalist debate. Through a rigorous, original and holistic deconstruction of his work and its philosophical implications, I argue that Waldron’s engagement with core philosophy within his constitutional scholarship is wholly problematic, containing a number of ambiguities and apparent inconsistencies. These issues, I suggest, may stem from an at times rather casual treatment of the realist/anti-realist issue (...) of core philosophy, perhaps owing something to his view that it is in fact safely irrelevant to his constitutional pursuits. In any case, this view, I argue, is misguided, and the problems which result are real: they not only create issues of theoretical consistency and clarity; they put Waldron’s constitutional theory in danger. Like all good tales, I suggest there are lessons to be learned from this: one must think, and think carefully, about the philosophical background of one’s work, and take care in setting this out in a clear, thorough and coherent way—the stakes are too high not to. With this in mind, this article also lays some groundwork for a path into constitutional theory firmly grounded in my own anti-realist moral scepticism. (shrink)

Accidental infringement of copyright is a pervasive and largely ignored problem. In the twenty-first century, it has become increasingly easy to infringe copyright unintentionally. When such accidental infringement occurs, copyright law holds the user strictly liable. Prior literature has questioned whether the strict liability standard is normatively defensible. In particular, prior literature has asked whether the strict liability standard ought to be reformed for economic reasons. This Article examines the accidental infringement problem from a new perspective. It considers whether it (...) is fair to hold copyright users strictly liable for accidental infringements of copyright. This Article argues that the strict liability standard is not fair because it results in copyright users being held liable for accidents for which they are not morally responsible. Using the moral philosophy literature on responsibility, this Article explores our intuitions surrounding copyright’s liability standard in order to better understand why strict liability in this context seems “harsh” and “inequitable.” In turn, this provides an argument for reforming copyright’s liability rule and adopting a negligence standard. This Article then argues that, within the United States, the proposed reform to copyright’s liability rule should be accomplished by modifications to the existing fair use doctrine. (shrink)

The main purpose of this article is to examine central issues discussed by Daniel Chernilo in his Debating Humanity: Towards a Philosophical Sociology (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2017). To this end, the analysis is divided into two parts. The first part, in addition to giving a brief overview of the book’s thematic structure, considers some of its key arguments. The second part scrutinizes its most controversial aspects and highlights its principal limitations. By way of conclusion, the paper argues that Chernilo’s (...) study is a powerful reminder of the fact that a truly comprehensive understanding of society requires a critical engagement with the concept of humanity. (shrink)

My focus in this chapter on the militant French philosopher, Alain Badiou, emerges from my work into the various ways that the Shoah has been incorporated into antisemitic ways of thinking. In what follows, I argue that Badiou’s thoughts on what he terms “uses of the word ‘Jew’”3 in general, as well as on the Shoah in particular, offers a series of continuities with what can be called the radical tradition of antisemitism—a tradition that reaches back at least as far (...) as Bruno Bauer’s anti-emancipationist, and avant le lettre, antisemitic texts of the 1840s. It simultaneously questions the notion of a sharp rupture between what have been termed “classical” and “new” antisemitism. It questions also the place of the Shoah in recent critical thinking within a dialectic of disavowal, dis-tinction, and repetition. (shrink)

In ‘The Human Condition’ Hannah Arendt presents a picture of what it is to be human based on the activities that we humans undertake. She distinguishes three forms of activity fundamental to our lives –labor, work and action. In her view the western intellectual tradition hasfailed to take proper account of the distinctions between the three activities. She considers that this way of categorising human actions is important to understanding the way that modern life has developed and seeks to describe (...) each one as fully as possible. Labor refers to the actions required to meet the unceasing need to satisfy our bodily needs. Work includes all those activities by which physical products are produced. It is through work that man transforms raw materials into tools and creates the human world we live in. However it is the third type of activity –action which promises to shine a different light on both the way organisations make use of Information and Communications Technology and the role current research methods play in developing our understanding of the potential value to be obtained by organisations from this technology. This paper presents Arendt’s analysis of these three human activities and then explores the implications for business research methods –in particular those applied within the Information Systems discipline. (shrink)

For many economists, including those who have made the most marked contribution to the development of the discipline, their work has to be understood in the context of the rhetorical strategy they were pursuing – what they wanted to persuade us of and how they wanted to do it. The paper identifies two fundamental rhetorical strategies of laissez-faire resting on entirely distinct ontological foundations. What distinguishes these two strategies is the way they articulate the individual with the general interest, how (...) they relate the micro to the macro. The two strategies discussed in the paper are characterised by the stance they take on a fundamental ontological issue, the way in which the things which appear to us in the world are related to the things or matters which compose them. A reductionist approach suggests that we can understand an entity at one level as a congeries. An entity in this view is just an aggregate of entities at a lower, substrate level – a purely external unity. The properties and behaviour of an entity can then be understood in terms of the properties and behaviour of the constituent lower-level components, taken in isolation. In this approach, phenomena at some level are regarded as having just the qualities enjoyed by its lower-level, substrate elements, writ large. The contrary, holistic, stance is to view the qualities of phenomena at one level as emergent at that level, and to assert that an entity can be understood as a product of the inter-relations between its component parts. We have, then, a pair of contrasted approaches: a polarity which is productive in the study of schools of thought, of competing methodologies, and of rhetorical strategies in economics. The paper applies this approach to the work of Smith, Keynes, Hayek, Lucas and Friedman. (shrink)

Accidental infringement of copyright is a pervasive and largely ignored problem. In the twenty-first century, it has become increasingly easy to infringe copyright unintentionally. When such accidental infringement occurs, copyright law holds the user strictly liable. Prior literature has questioned whether the strict liability standard is normatively defensible. In particular, prior literature has asked whether the strict liability standard ought to be reformed for economic reasons. This Article examines the accidental infringement problem from a new perspective. It considers whether it (...) is fair to hold copyright users strictly liable for accidental infringements of copyright. This Article argues that the strict liability standard is not fair because it results in copyright users being held liable for accidents for which they are not morally responsible. Using the moral philosophy literature on responsibility, this Article explores our intuitions surrounding copyright’s liability standard in order to better understand why strict liability in this context seems “harsh” and “inequitable.” In turn, this provides an argument for reforming copyright’s liability rule and adopting a negligence standard. This Article then argues that, within the United States, the proposed reform to copyright’s liability rule should be accomplished by modifications to the existing fair use doctrine. (shrink)

Accidental infringement of copyright is a pervasive and largely ignored problem. In the twenty-first century, it has become increasingly easy to infringe copyright unintentionally. When such accidental infringement occurs, copyright law holds the user strictly liable. Prior literature has questioned whether the strict liability standard is normatively defensible. In particular, prior literature has asked whether the strict liability standard ought to be reformed for economic reasons. This Article examines the accidental infringement problem from a new perspective. It considers whether it (...) is fair to hold copyright users strictly liable for accidental infringements of copyright. This Article argues that the strict liability standard is not fair because it results in copyright users being held liable for accidents for which they are not morally responsible. Using the moral philosophy literature on responsibility, this Article explores our intuitions surrounding copyright’s liability standard in order to better understand why strict liability in this context seems “harsh” and “inequitable.” In turn, this provides an argument for reforming copyright’s liability rule and adopting a negligence standard. This Article then argues that, within the United States, the proposed reform to copyright’s liability rule should be accomplished by modifications to the existing fair use doctrine. (shrink)

Resistance is a human right. This is why the preamble of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that people will be ‘compelled to have recourse, in the last resort, to rebellion’ if human rights are not respected, and why the defence of human rights framed in many United Nations resolutions supports resistance against colonialism and apartheid. It could not be otherwise. If your rights are violated, you must have a recourse. Normally this would be found in the law and (...) the courts but, when faced with severe and intransigent injustice, resistance is that recourse. But when others are resisting, and we are sympathetic to their aims, what should we do? The answer is surprising. (shrink)

This chapter provides a summary of the main intellectual contributions that the German sociologist and philosopher Jürgen Habermas has made to contemporary social theory. To this end, it is divided into six parts. The first part gives an overview of Habermas’s life and career. The second part offers a synopsis of Habermas’s principal areas of research, drawing attention to his key works. The third part sheds light on the epistemological assumptions underlying Habermas’s conception of critical theory. The fourth part explains (...) the central features of Habermas’s inter-pretation of three intellectual traditions that are crucial to his own theoretical project. The fifth part elucidates the core elements of Habermas’s plea for a paradigm shift –commonly known as the “linguistic turn”–in critical theory. The sixth part grapples with the main limitations and shortcomings of Habermas’s oeuvre, notably with regard to his theory of communicative action. (shrink)

Social theory is developing in response to the coronavirus (COVID) crisis. Fundamental questions about social justice in the relationship of individuals to society are raised by Delanty in his review of political philosophy, including Agamben, Foucault and Žižek. However, the focus on the libertarian critique of authoritarianism is not enough. The social democratic critique of neoliberalism lies at the centre of the contesting responses to the COVID crisis. A social democratic perspective on public health, democracy and state action is contrasted (...) with the anti-statists of left and right. This is addressed in debates on the relationship between science and governance, the place of crisis in theories of change and the conceptualisation of alternative forms of social formation. The crisis initiated by the pandemic, cascading through society, from health to economy, to polity and into violence, includes a contestation between social democratic and neoliberal visions of alternative forms of society. (shrink)

IS research is to some extent driven by practitioner concerns. Both practitioners and.Information Systems research has been dominated by the Cartesian worldview of duality. This has had the effect of narrowing the range of research questions addressed and focusing mainstream research on the application of scientific research methods. Heidegger’s ontology gives us an alternative view of the reality of human life. His analysis of tools in use is of particular interest for IS research. His concept of equipment can be directly (...) applied to Information and Communications Technology by both practitioners and researchers. The paper outlines some of the implications of this step for IS researchers. (shrink)

Purpose – To review and discuss Luciano Floridi’s 2019 book The Logic of Information: A Theory of Philosophy as Conceptual Design, the latest instalment in his philosophy of information (PI) tetralogy, particularly with respect to its implications for library and information studies (LIS). Design/methodology/approach – Nine scholars with research interests in philosophy and LIS read and responded to the book, raising critical and heuristic questions in the spirit of scholarly dialogue. Floridi responded to these questions. Findings – Floridi’s PI, including (...) this latest publication, is of interest to LIS scholars, and much insight can be gained by exploring this connection. It seems also that LIS has the potential to contribute to PI’s further development in some respects. Research implications – Floridi’s PI work is technical philosophy for which many LIS scholars do not have the training or patience to engage with, yet doing so is rewarding. This suggests a role for translational work between philosophy and LIS. Originality/value – The book symposium format, not yet seen in LIS, provides forum for sustained, multifaceted and generative dialogue around ideas. (shrink)

In this article we argue that the comics grid, the array of panels, can be understood as a specific technology of ‘revealing’ through ‘enframing’ and as such is the key element in comics technology. We propose Martin Heidegger’s conceptual framework (Gestell: literally, ‘the framework’), primarily discussed in his 1954 essay ‘The Question Concerning Technology’ (1982) as a strategy that can be used to engage critically with panel layout in graphic narratives, concluding that the role of the grid in comics and (...) the way that new technologies put that grid to work both in the production and consumption of comics means that comics embody the relationship between technology, storytelling and materiality. In an age in which most of the screens that dominate our information-filled lives are rectangular, we argue that the purpose of the grid is to manage a potentially overwhelming sublime space. (shrink)

A diagnosis of glioblastoma multiforme, a World Health Organisation grade IV brain tumour, is devastating for patients and their families who bear the impetus of caregiving. GBM caregivers act as de facto health professionals when their loved ones are discharged prematurely from hospitals. Faced with complex healthcare needs, GBM caregivers report the highest psychological burden, and highest unmet needs of all cancer caregivers. Despite this, they rarely accessed rehabilitation services. Researchers hardly engaged with their stories. The current research on GBM (...) caregiving is predominantly from a biomedical perspective, not only offering limited understandings of psychosocial experiences, but also, evidencing the need for caregiver stories in caregiving research. The researcher recruited 7 bereaved caregivers, who had previously narrated stories online about caring for their loved ones diagnosed with GBM and; consented to the use of their stories as research data. These stories covered a period of between 1-3+ years, throughout the illness trajectory and post-bereavement. The researcher further conducted email interviews focussed on the retrospective perspectives of sharing stories online. Participants provided feedback on the preliminary findings of the DNA. The findings consisted of multiple layers of interpretations drawn from social constructionism, narrative and feminist relational theories, beginning with subjective stories, collective story typologies and core narratives, thereby illuminating the relationships between GBM caregivers, the stories they narrated and the event of narrating stories online. An additional layer of interpretation served to shed light on the relational, dialogical, performative and hindsight perspectives of storytelling and the storytelling landscape. This research decentres the dominance of biomedicine in caregiving research to present a perspective from GBM caregivers using their own stories, in their own voices, so as to inform counselling psychology research and practice. (shrink)