There is a question that has not been raised in the literature on Japan's regionalism: Why does it have a strong tendency toward making the boundary of the proposed East Asian community fluid? By looking back beyond the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere of the 1940s, a method hitherto untried, the paper shows that this Japanese propensity was also present in the first half of the twentieth century, especially in the 1920s and 1930s. Moreover, both then and now, Japan did (...) not and does not have a firm adherence to an ideology. These are two similarities between the pre-World War II period and the present (from the 1960s). On the other hand, Japan's present international situation is very different from its pre-World War II position. The paper uses the logic of the comparative method, which states that in two cases that are different in most aspects but the same in some, one or some of the similarities may explain the other similarity or similarities. It concludes that in both periods, the lack of a firm commitment to an ideology explains Japan's prejudice toward boundary fluidity. This explanation has the potential to contribute to a more comprehensive, if not yet a general theory of Japan's approach to regionalism because it applies not only to the present, but to the past as well. And it has to be stressed, the past refers not only to the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere of the 1940s but also to the decades before. (shrink)

The timing of the Japanese Government's acceptance of the United Nations multilateral treaties governing several environmental concerns indicates Japan's priorities: biodiversity, global warming, and depletion of the ozone layer. Banning transboundary movement of hazardous wastes is the least prioritized, as indicated by Japan's failure to accept the Ban Amendment to the Basel Convention. The Japanese Environment Agency's policy statements and budget allocations between 1985 and 2000, as well as other official statements and programs, likewise indicate the same priorities. Moreover, of (...) the three priorities, global warming is the top. (shrink)

The growing contradictions inherent in capitalism are concentrated, as though at a focal point, in the monetary field—the most, vulnerable point in the whole capitalist economy. The extended period of the general crisis of capitalism is punctuated by periodic bursts of monetary crisis.

In contemporary scientific discourse, interest in memory problems has increased significantly. This trend, in our opinion, is due to a number of factors, among which one of the leading places is «democratization» of history. This process began to a large extent under the influence of a violent wave of emancipation of peoples and ethnic groups, which began at the end of the twentieth century. It actualized the need to rethink the past and revive a large part of the cultural heritage (...) of a number of ethnic and ethno-regional communities.Growth of attention to memory studios was facilitated by globalization. Itsliberal-oriented universalist intentions led to the erosion of the foundations of national identity without deprecating sociality as such. The fluidity and rapid change in social standards that have become a logical consequence of this process have shown the urgent need to find those ideological landmarks that can provide certainty at least on a daily basis. Here, a person feels the need for group consolidation, which is perceived directly through participation in social practices. Such practices reproduce the identity of the group and at the same time broadcast a historically formed and established system of group values. The revival of local forms of identity, which takes place under the influence of globalization in the conditions of the rapidity of social standards, can be regarded as a completely positive phenomenon. Meanwhile, in cases of politicization of collective memories, such local groups can significantly undermine the stable development of national states. The purpose of the study is to reveal the value of collective memories in the process of forming and preserving group identity.The task of the paper was to identify the universal foundations of human sociality and to reveal the importance of collective memories in the process of formation and preservation of group identity. Methods. The methodological basis of the study was the multidisciplinary approach, which was combined with the principles of objectivity and impartiality. The basic place in the process of scientific understanding of the role of memory in the process of formation and preservation of group identity was played by general scientific principles and methods, namely: the principles of historical and logical unity, objectivity, integrity and comprehensiveness. Also were used such general scientific methods as analysis and synthesis, induction, analogy, retrospective,comparison, etc. Along with the mentioned methods were widely used methods of cultural, social and categorical analysis, as well as the principles of philosophical hermeneutics. Results In the course of the study, M. Halbwachs’es implicit conclusion about the key role of collective memories in the process of formation of collective identity was refuted, some aspects of collective memory theory developed by him were specified. In particular, the provision on the decisive role of collective memory in the process of formation of group identity was revised and the importance of social friendship in the process of formation of the social community was shown, the persistence and moral significance of which is determined by common memories.Memories provide the appearance of images that become the status of collective identity symbols, which contain behavioral patterns and moral teachings for members of the community. Common memories can be transmitted through direct communication that covers a limited social space, or to be executed in a ritual and/or text. Due to rites or texts reinterpretations, a significant part of the memorization that is important for the collective identity can remain unchanged for a long time. (shrink)

The most ancient monuments of ancient Christian art were found in catacombs located outside the cities. The Christian catacombs were a complex plexus of underground narrow galleries with numerous niches where the coffins of martyrs and bishops were placed. These niches formed a kind of rectangular chambers, the walls and surfaces of which were decorated with images. Thus, early Christian art begins with catacomb paintings.

From the earliest times, the very existence of Soviet power to combat religion and tirades, along with methods of economic and ideological pressure, actively using legal factors, is a rather strict system. Following the massive unveiling of solidarity and white army officials who were unable to leave the peninsula in November 1920, they began to form in the Crimea various branches of government, including their judicial system, which was published in a new regime of elements of legitimacy. However, the legal (...) system created on the peninsula was annexed to a radical political system, so when there were various problems, they were members of principles of political expediency, not morality and rights. (shrink)

En este artículo se intenta mostrar si se puede aplicar el concepto griego de epiméleia al pensamiento zoroastriano. Más en concreto, se abordan los temas del cuidado del mundo, el cuidado de la palabra y el cuidado del alma. Para ello se analizan algunas categorías fundamentales del mazdeísmo tales como menog, getic, paiman, daena, jorrah o fravarsi. La conclusión que se extrae es que sí es pertinente hablar de cuidado del mundo, cuidado de la palabra y cuidado de sí en (...) el ámbito zoroastra en particular y en el ámbito iranio en general. (shrink)

This exploratory study is focused on the perceptions of science communication practitioners about the activities of scientists and the audiences of the marine sciences outreach in Portugal. Using the qualitative method of thematic analysis and collecting data through semistructured interviews of 14 practitioners of diverse professions, backgrounds, ages, and stages of career, it was found that the role of marine scientists in this area is traditionally viewed as reduced, but with a slight improvement in the past 5 to 10 years. (...) Despite having a historical connection with and curiosity about the sea, audiences were considered to have a mostly utilitarian interest in the marine sciences. Most practitioners had a view of science communication connected to the knowledge deficit model, with a minority articulating a more dialogical model. Although there are signs of conflict between science communicators and scientists, the proliferation of training opportunities in science communication at the national level, the perceived increase of interest and participation of marine scientists in public communication in the past years, and the consolidation of science communicators as part of the scientific community offer positive prospects for the future of outreach of marine sciences in Portugal. (shrink)

Espera que te cuente. Tres jornadas en el itinerario filosófico de Reyes Mate -- En diálogo con Reyes Mate sobre justicia, memoria y democracia.

Bentley et al.--O’Brien bypass the relevance of emotions in decision-making, resulting in a possible over-simplification of behavioral types. We propose integrating emotions, both in the north-south axis (in relation to cognition) as well as in the west-east axis (in relation to social influence), by suggesting a Z axis, in charge of registering emotional depth and involvement.

Los 18 trabajos recogidos en este volumen tienen como telón de fondo una preocupación por la racionalidad occidental. Mucho se ha hablado de su crisis o de su fracaso. De ello se ha ocupado durante décadas la Escuela de Francfort, en sus distintas reencarnaciones, y, más recientemente, el pensamiento posmoderno. Lo que este libro pretende es enfrentarnos a la crisis de la razón pero desde un ángulo insólito, desde el pensamiento judío. El judaísmo hizo su experiencia de la modernidad. Sintió (...) que no tenía sitio. Algunos de los autores aquí estudiados tuvieron que plantearse, en el momento de su madurez, que había que elegir entre ser moderno o marginarse. Durante siglos, la mayoría optó por lo primero, es decir, por la asimilación. Hasta que algunos plantearon y decidieron seguir siendo judíos sin renunciar a filosofar. Con ello el judaísmo se convierte en un lugar privilegiado para valorar el pulso de la razón occidental. El judaísmo era el límite de la Ilustración. Así lo planteaban los ilustrados y así lo vivieron durante mucho tiempo los propios pensadores judíos. Hasta que les dio por pensar por sí mismos. En este libro se reconstruyen algunos de esos memorables episodios. (shrink)