分析“分析美学史”的价值——序刘悦笛的《分析美学史》

作为对分析哲学的令人欣喜的贡献,刘悦笛的《分析美学史》,有助于形成对20世纪西方社会中的哲学美学的整体进程的基本理解。刘悦笛的文本正确估价了分析哲学对于美学研究的贡献,其所追踪的历史进程横亘了整个20世纪。这项任务主要是通过从美学家的贡献到美学主题的贡献的诸章节来共同实现的,每章在介绍与总结的部分都提出了作者自己对于分析美学重要性的解释和评价。刘悦笛所选择的美学家们对于这部分析美学简史而言是毫无疑义的,因为他们形成了在这场运动当中的最重要的形象。这种选择代表了一种系统的结构,这对于非西方读者们更深入地理解分析美学具有特别的重要价值。在对历史的精细的组织与敏锐的洞见当中,刘悦笛所提供的坚实的基础,对于学者和学生们而言就像一个坚实的平台,可以由此去探索那些在分析美学史上提出令人瞩目的理念的人们的作品。     

Safe storage of dilute ethylene oxide mixtures in water

In the past industry has had to rely on a number of “rules of thumb” to provide a means of reasonable analysis for many design, operation, safety and similar issues. The lack of readily available computing facilities made the use of “rules of thumb” a necessary part of doing business in the hydrocarbon processing industry. And these “rules of thumb” have proven useful and allowed many tasks to be accomplished successfully. Today, however, availability of mainframe computers or desktop computing facilities has provided a tool that has decreased the need to rely on “rules of thumb.” And in many cases processing improvements can only be accomplished by replacing “rules of thumb” with more rigorous analysis. In the ethylene oxide producing/consuming industry a widely-used “rule of thumb” concerns the storage of ethylene oxide water solutions. A well-publicized “rule” stated that solutions in excess of 1-2 weight percent ethylene oxide in water should not be stored [1]. This “rule” is certainly valid in many situations. However, this guideline may be unnecessarily restrictive in other cases. The impact of several key process parameters impacts the amount of ethylene oxide in water than can be safely stored. This study will show that higher concentrations of ethylene oxide in water can be safely stored under the right circumstances. The study will also discuss the key variables that determine whether aqueous ethylene oxide solutions can be safely stored. Finally, a methodology used in determining how much ethylene oxide in water can be safely stored will be outlined.     

Volatility and stock price indexes

The stochastic approach to index numbers has been successfully applied to the estimation of inflation, the world interest rate and international competitiveness.?One distinct advantage of this approach is that it provides the whole distribution of the index, not simply one value. In this article, we extend the stochastic approach to the estimation of a stock market index. We demonstrate how this approach can be used to identify ‘redundant stocks’ that do not contribute significantly to the overall index.?For index tracking purposes, these stocks can be safely excluded.     

Requests for zoo visitors to undertake pro-wildlife behaviour: How many is too many?

Recognising the potential conservation impact, zoos regularly ask their visitors to undertake pro-wildlife behaviour. This paper presents the results of two studies undertaken to address the question: how often during a visit should visitors be asked? Study 1 sought to a) determine individuals' personal thresholds and b) the point where the number of different behaviours requested began affect visitors' experiences. Study 2 sought the same, but focused on requests for the same behaviour. Results suggest that few respondents' personal thresholds were crossed (2.5% in Study 1 and 9% in Study 2). In neither study did many respondents (2.5% in Study 1 and 2.8% in Study 2) feel that the number of requests negatively affect their overall zoo experience. While there are caveats, we conclude that there appears little cause for concern about asking zoo visitors on multiple occasions to act in support of wildlife. Indeed, such requests may improve experiences.     

Evaluating an Agricultural Extension Program Aimed at Improving Biodiversity in Alberta,Canada

We evaluate an agricultural extension program aimed at increasing on‐farm biodiversity in Alberta. Using reports prepared for program participants by the extension agency, customized surveys were used to collect data on whether recommended practices were adopted. Data were also collected from producers who were willing but unable to participate in the program due to its unexpected cancellation. A count model compared the number of practices adopted by participants and nonparticipants to evaluate the program's efficacy, and a probit model using participants’ adoption data were used to understand factors affecting adoption. Simple, low‐cost, and easily trialed practices were adopted at high rates, though some higher cost practices associated with observable benefits were also adopted at moderate or high rates. Farm‐specific characteristics, such as size, tenure, or group membership were also significantly linked to the likelihood of adoption. Results suggest that the extension program was successful in encouraging adoption of environmentally beneficial practices with caveats; project completion and quality were not verified, and decreasing marginal returns to extension efforts may have been realized within the small participant pool. Nous évaluons un programme d'éducation permanente en agriculture visant l'augmentation de la biodiversité fermière en Alberta. Utilisant des rapports préparés par les agences d'éducation pour les participants de programmes, des sondages individualisés ont servi à la collecte de données concernant l'adoption de pratiques recommandées. Des données ont aussi été recueillies auprès de producteurs qui auraient voulu participer mais qui n'ont pas profité du programme suivant son annulation inattendue. Un modèle de comptage a servi à comparer le nombre de pratiques adoptées par les participants et non‐participants pour évaluer l'efficacité du programme, et un modèle probit basé sur les données d'adoption par les participants a servi à comprendre les facteurs ayant un impact sur l'adoption. Les pratiques simples, peu coûteuses et faciles à tester ont été hautement adoptées. Certaines pratiques à coûts plus élevés, associées à des avantages observables, ont aussi vu des taux moyens et élevés d'adoption. Les caractéristiques spécifiques aux exploitations agricoles comme la taille, la longévité et l'adhésion à un groupe se sont aussi trouvées liées de façon significative aux probabilités d'adoption. Les résultats suggèrent que le programme d'éducation permanente a réussi à encourager l'adoption de pratiques bénéfiques pour l'environnement avec quelques bémols: la réalisation des projets et leur qualité n'ont pas fait l'objet de vérification, et la diminution des rendements marginaux en fonction des efforts d'éducation pourrait avoir été réalisée dans le cadre d'un petit bassin de participants.     

Endogenous Cartel Formation

This paper investigates the endogenous formation of cartels in a supergame framework in which cheating on the cartel agreement results in the ejection of only the defector from the cartel while collusion continue s amongst the non-cheating members. A more sophisticated notion of cartel stability than has been analysed hitherto is developed here, and it is shown that cartels are even less stable than they are generally believed to be. When firms produce heterogeneous goods and set prices, cartels comprising a small fraction of the industry's firms are shown to be viable. The emergence of two or more cartels within the same industry is seen not only to be a distinct possibility but also to be quite likely     

A conditional version of working's model

Working's (1943) model is shown to imply conditional Engel curves of the Working form when the income elasticity of demand for the group of goods as a whole is about unity.     

Endowment Origin,Demographic Effects,and Individual Preferences in Contests

In modern firms the use of contests as an incentive device is ubiquitous. Nonetheless, experimental research shows that in the laboratory subjects routinely make suboptimal decisions in contests even to the extent of making negative returns. The purpose of this study is to investigate how earning the endowment, demographic differences, and individual preferences impact behavior in contests. To this end, we conduct a laboratory experiment in which subjects expend costly resources (bids) to attain an award (prize). In line with other laboratory studies of contests, our results show that subjects overbid relative to theoretical predictions and incur substantial losses as a result. Making subjects earn their initial resource endowments mitigates overbidding and thus increases efficiency. Overbidding is linked to gender, with women bidding higher than men and having lower average earnings. Other demographic information, such as religiosity, and individual preferences, such as preferences toward winning and risk, also influence behavior in contests.