Brain-computer interface multi-modal fusion has the potential to generate multiple commands in a highly reliable manner by alleviating the drawbacks associated with single modality. In the present work, a hybrid EEG-fNIRS BCI system—achieved through a fusion of concurrently recorded electroencephalography and functional near-infrared spectroscopy signals—is used to overcome the limitations of uni-modality and to achieve higher tasks classification. Although the hybrid approach enhances the performance of the system, the improvements are still modest due to the lack of availability of computational (...) approaches to fuse the two modalities. To overcome this, a novel approach is proposed using Multi-resolution singular value decomposition to achieve system- and feature-based fusion. The two approaches based up different features set are compared using the KNN and Tree classifiers. The results obtained through multiple datasets show that the proposed approach can effectively fuse both modalities with improvement in the classification accuracy. (shrink)

A passive brain–computer interface based upon functional near-infrared spectroscopy brain signals is used for earlier detection of human drowsiness during driving tasks. This BCI modality acquired hemodynamic signals of 13 healthy subjects from the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex of the brain. Drowsiness activity is recorded using a continuous-wave fNIRS system and eight channels over the right DPFC. During the experiment, sleep-deprived subjects drove a vehicle in a driving simulator while their cerebral oxygen regulation state was continuously measured. Vector phase analysis (...) was used as a classifier to detect drowsiness state along with sleep stage-based threshold criteria. Extensive training and testing with various feature sets and classifiers are done to justify the adaptation of threshold criteria for any subject without requiring recalibration. Three statistical features along with six VPA features were used. The average accuracies for the five classifiers are 90.9% for discriminant analysis, 92.5% for support vector machines, 92.3% for nearest neighbors, 92.4% for both decision trees, and ensembles over all subjects’ data. Trajectory slopes of CORE vector magnitude and angle: m and m are the best-performing features, along with ensemble classifier with the highest accuracy of 95.3% and minimum computation time of 40 ms. The statistical significance of the results is validated with a p-value of less than 0.05. The proposed passive BCI scheme demonstrates a promising technique for online drowsiness detection using VPA along with sleep stage classification. (shrink)

Volume 34, Issue 2-3, June - September 2024.

In this study, we aimed to investigate how prospective science teachers, who participated in a series of explicit-reflective activities for NOS teaching, understood "science in a social and cultural context" in the context of a biographical documentary film. We adopted a phenomenological approach. The data were analyzed descriptively by considering the aspects of nature of science and the levels of understanding as defined in Dilthey's hermeneutic approach. In this way, we determined participants’ levels of hermeneutic understanding regarding the nature of (...) science. The findings show that the participants regarded science within the framework of aspects of the consensus view blended with somewhat authentic interpretations and at a basic level of understanding from the point of view of hermeneutics. This finding highlights the importance of integrating the hermeneutic approach into the teaching process in understanding science. (shrink)

Every word of the Qur'an ensures the understanding of the divine will. The foundation signs in it were created for this purpose. Just like the punctuation marks that ensure the correct understanding of a Turkish sentence, the foundation marks in the Qur'an have assumed the same function. The signs of foundation, which give the opportunity to breathe by interrupting the recitation at the places where the mana is completed, and the signs of ibtida, which provides the recitation starting from the (...) appropriate place for the integrity of the meaning, have a significant importance in the authentic interpretation of the Qur'an. The scholar, who wrote very important works related to the field and brought an independent topic under the name of "Secâvend" to the science of recitation, undoubtedly Muhammad b. Tayfur es-Secavendi. According to him, it is considered obligatory to dwell on the foundation denoted by the remzi (م) in the mushafs. Because when vasl is performed in these places, the nature and meaning of the verse changes. Based on these reasons, a foundation is different from other types of foundations. In this study, the signs of the need for foundation were examined within the framework of the verse integrity, and it was analyzed why Secavendi considered it necessary to make a foundation, taking into account the possible meanings that may occur in the case of vasl. (shrink)

The necessity of having effective and socially sound networks is trivial. It is clear that information technology is now a necessary tool that has well understood advantages. The same technology carries negative side-effects. It is our social and ethical duty to examine the possibly negative side effects of IT, especially as IT becomes prevalent in a conservative society such as Kuwait. In our research Kuwait forms a case study as we try to understand what ethical theories underlie the attitude toward (...) one problematic aspect of IT, online pornography, in Muslim/Arab societies. In this paper we review several ethical theories and then present the results of experimental research aimed at determining the concepts that underlie the Kuwaiti response to pornography online. (shrink)

Mostly consists of works composed in Tibetan, with translations into Mongolian, on the Soyombo script.

Prince of philosophers -- The emergence of Islam -- Boy genius -- Court physician -- A traveling philosopher -- Death of an intellectual -- A lasting legacy.

Time and Fantasy in Narratives of Jihad: The Case of the Islami Jamiat-I-Tuleba in Karachi This article proposes an analytical framework for thinking about violence in the Islami Jamiat-i-Tuleba (IJT), the student organization of Jamaat e Islami (JI), Pakistan's longstanding Islamist party. It prioritises the intersection of the psychic and the social, and the role of politics, history and biography in mediating the modalities, narration and praxis of violence in the city of Karachi. The dominant explanations tend to emphasise political (...) instrumentalism, and structural and ideological factors, and to "Islamicise" the violence, collapsing Islamic rhetoric into an extemporization of conditions, ignoring the deep affective appeal of violence to individuals, and leaving unelaborated the role of intersecting national, local and individual contexts and temporalities in structuring political subjectivity and violent action. (shrink)

This manuscript draws on the moral norms arising from the nuanced accounts of epistemic (in)justice and social identity in relational autonomy to normatively assess and articulate the ethical problems associated with using AI in patient care in light of the Black Box problem. The article also describes how black-boxed AI may be used within the healthcare system. The manuscript highlights what needs to happen to align AI with the moral norms it draws on. Deeper thinking – from other backgrounds other (...) than decolonial scholarship and relational autonomy – about the impact of AI on the human experience needs to be done to appreciate any other barriers that may exist. Future studies can take up this task. (shrink)

Background Integrating artificial intelligence (AI) into healthcare has raised significant ethical concerns. In pharmacy practice, AI offers promising advances but also poses ethical challenges. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted in countries from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region on 501 pharmacy professionals. A 12-item online questionnaire assessed ethical concerns related to the adoption of AI in pharmacy practice. Demographic factors associated with ethical concerns were analyzed via SPSS v.27 software using appropriate statistical tests. Results Participants expressed concerns (...) about patient data privacy (58.9%), cybersecurity threats (58.9%), potential job displacement (62.9%), and lack of legal regulation (67.0%). Tech-savviness and basic AI understanding were correlated with higher concern scores (p < 0.001). Ethical implications include the need for informed consent, beneficence, justice, and transparency in the use of AI. Conclusion The findings emphasize the importance of ethical guidelines, education, and patient autonomy in adopting AI. Collaboration, data privacy, and equitable access are crucial to the responsible use of AI in pharmacy practice. (shrink)

This article seeks to determine whether PT Freeport Indonesia, an operating subsidiary of Freeport-McMoRan Copper and Gold Inc., has acted in environmentally and socially responsible ways in the context of its operations in Papua, Indonesia, and how well it has responded to the legacy left by its less responsible operations from 1973 until the mid-1990s. This objective is achieved by examining the company's impact on the resources and assets with which it comes into contact as part of its operations, as (...) well as through a historical review of the province of Papua and its incorporation into Indonesia, Freeport's entry into Papua, and the company's engagement with international and Indonesian politics. (shrink)

According to a recent wave of work by legal anti-positivists, legal norms are a subset of moral norms. This striking “one-system” view of law has rapidly become the dominant form of anti-positivism, but its implications have so far been little tested. This article argues that the one-system view leads systematically to untenable conclusions about what legal rights and obligations we have. For many clear legal norms, the view lacks the resources to explain the existence of corresponding moral norms. And its (...) criteria for distinguishing legal norms within morality imply an under- or over-inclusive set of legal norms. I stress the special difficulties that apply beyond obligations, in the case of privileges and powers, and I show that the view's problems do not only—or mainly—concern egregiously unjust law, or indeed morally defective law at all. I close with reflections on legal normativity and the prospects for different forms of anti-positivism. (shrink)

The _Epic of Gilgamesh_, a 3600-year 12-tablet collection, was looted from an Iraqi museum during the 1991 Gulf War, and fraudulently imported into the United States. In September, 2021, UNESCO facilitated its repatriation to Iraq, which is seen as an occasion to consolidate Iraq’s efforts to rebuild its legacy, since the _Epic of Gilgamesh_ is of immense cultural, historical and religious value for Iraq The current study examines the _Epic of Gilgamesh_ in the light of the ancient Sumerian and Akkadian (...) traditions. This collection of tablets carries a great legacy of the contemporary Babylonian and Mesopotamian beliefs and socio-religious values, also evident in the use of cuneiform and clay tablets, being ancient forms of writings. The study made use of content analysis and historical and analytical approaches to retrieve data through a documentation research design. The study found that the _Epic of Gilgamesh_ is not only a work of religious literature, but a treatise on civilization. On one hand it narrates the stories engrained in the Mesopotamian mythology, such as those of Ninsun, Shamash and Utnapishtim; on the other hand, owing to its content, literary style and tone, characterization and symbolism, this study would be a great contribution to relive the story of Gilgamesh from current literary, and socio-religious perspective and provide a comprehensive account of the legacy and inheritance that it brings in for the modern generation. (shrink)

One of the critical crises observed in human society, especially in the so-called advanced and industrial societies, is the spiritual crisis. Spirituality in various types of cultural and religious concepts is considered a spiritual path one in which can achieve something like a high level of consciousness, wisdom or union with God. In addition, self-esteem is a sense of worth. This feeling comes from the sum of our thoughts, feelings, emotions and experiences throughout life. Dignity also means honour and pride, (...) which has been mentioned many times in the Qur'an. In contrast to dignity, there is humiliation, which means lack of dignity in which one simply accepts defeat. Religious teachings, especially Islamic teachings, do not summarise dignity as wealth, luxury and the enjoyment of material possibilities, but interprets dignity as spirituality, and liberation from the shackles of worldliness, which give Muslims a moral identity. The main purpose of this study is to investigate the mediating role of moral identity between spiritual intelligence and self-esteem of Muslims. The statistical population includes 834 Muslim employees working in 20 branches of one Iranian university. Necessary data were collected by standard questionnaires. Pearson's correlation coefficient and regression analysis in SPSS software (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences) were used to analyse the data. According to the results of the analysis, there is a positive relationship between spiritual intelligence and self-esteem of Muslims. There is also a positive relationship between moral identity and self-esteem. Furthermore, moral identity plays a mediating role in the relationship between spiritual intelligence and self-esteem, and it strengthens this relationship. CONTRIBUTION: The present study proves the mediating role of ethical identity on the relationship between spiritual intelligence and self-esteem in an Islamic society. (shrink)

İslam’da Ahlak ve Ahlak Ekolleri adlı bu eser önsöz ve iki bölümden müteşekkildir. Yazar bu eserinde insanın temel niteliği olarak ele aldığı ahlakın İslam dinindeki yeri ve önemini, süreç içerisinde oluşan ekolleri, bireysel ve toplumsal açıdan konumunu ve değerini ortaya koymaya çalışmaktadır. Hassaten İslam düşünce tarihindeki sufilerin ahlak görüşleri iktibas edilerek hazırlanan bu eser, bu alanda çalışmalar yapacak kimseler için ele aldığı konular açısından okunmaya değer bir yapıt olarak karşımıza çıkmaktadır.

Let equation image denote the inverse limit of all finite cyclic groups. Let F, G and H be abelian groups with H ≤ G. Let FβH denote the abelian group , where +βis defined by +β = + β — β) for a certain β : F → G linear mod H meaning that β = 0 and β + β — β ∈ H for all a, b in F. In this paper we show that the following hold: The (...) additive group of any nonstandard model ℤ* of the ring ℤ is isomorphic to βH for a certain β : ℤ*+/H → equation image linear mod H. equation image is isomorphic to βH for some β : equation image/H →ℚ linear mod H, though equation image is not the additive group of any model of Th and the exact sequence H → equation image → equation image/H is not splitting. (shrink)

This article examines popular cinema’s interactions with digital culture, focusing on cinema and social structure. A product of technological and social developments, digital culture has introduced the creation of cyberspace, the emergence and spread of social media, and the formation of virtual communities. This article focuses on a specific period (1980 – 2010) to examine the evolution in cinema of portrayals of digital culture. The analysis includes four influential films: WarGames (1983, by John Badham), Perfect Blue (1997, by Satoshi Kon), (...) Pulse (2001, by Kiroshi Kurosawa), and Life in a Day (2011, by Kevin Macdonald, Loressa Clisby, and Tegan Bukowski). The article provides a guide to popular cinema's interaction with and use of the possibilities offered by digital culture, revealing how the four selected films reflect digital culture themes. Each film demonstrates different aspects and dynamics of digital culture at a particular time, offering a unique look at that period's social and technological landscape through its portrayal of technological developments, human relations, cultural values, and social norms. Each film evaluates the impact of the digitization process on cinema from different perspectives, depicting how cinema adapts and responds to technological changes. (shrink)

It is commonly thought that we depend fundamentally on the “evidence of the senses” for our empicial beliefs, including and most directly, our beliefs about our local environment, the spatial world around us. The ultimate evidence we have for our perceptual beliefs is provided in some way by perception or perceptual experience. But what is this evidence? There seem to be three main options: external factualism allows that the evidence include facts about the external world; internal factualism takes facts that (...) involve only the internal, mental world—like facts about one’s perceptual experiences or appearances—to count as one’s perceptual evidence; and non-factualism takes propositions, including false ones, to count as evidence—for example, propositional contents of appearances or seemings. We shall see that all these options face significant challenges. Some might conclude that perceptual beliefs can be justified without depending on evidence. Others might choose to accept skepticism: our perceptual beliefs are not justified. I shall end, however, by tentatively suggesting that there is a sort of internal fact that is a plausible candidate for perceptual evidence that has been overlooked. (shrink)

Until recently, scientific consensus held firm that genetically manipulated embryos created through methods including Mitochondrial Replacement Therapy or human germline genome editing should not be used to initiate a pregnancy. In countries that have relevant laws pertaining to heritable human germline modifications, the vast majority prohibit or restrict this practice. In the last several years, scholars have observed a transformation of scientific and policy restrictions with insistent calls for creating a regulatory pathway. Multiple stakeholders highlight the role of social consensus (...) and public engagement for governance of heritable human germline modifications. However, in the drive to gain public acceptance and lift restrictions, some proponents provide distorted or misleading narratives designed to influence public perception and incrementally shift the consensus. This article describes eight discrete strategies that proponents employ to influence framing, sway public opinion, and revise policymaking of human germline modifications in a manner that undermines honest engagement. (shrink)

Experiences like pains, pleasures, and emotions have affective phenomenal character: they feel pleasant or unpleasant. Imperativism proposes to explain affective phenomenal character by appeal to imperative content, a kind of intentional content that directs rather than describes. We argue that imperativism is on the right track, but has been developed in the wrong way. There are two varieties of imperativism on the market: first-order and higher-order. We show that neither is successful, and offer in their place a new theory: reflexive (...) imperativism. Our proposal is that an experience P feels pleasant in virtue of being constituted by a Command with reflexive imperative content, while an experience U feels unpleasant in virtue of being constituted by a Command with reflexive imperative content : More of P!Less of U! If you need a slogan: experiences have affective phenomenal character in virtue of commanding us Get more of me! Get less of me! (shrink)

The purpose of World Humanism: Cross-cultural Perspectives on Ethical Practices in Organizations is to discover what is distinctive about humanistic management practices around the world. It examines the nature and occurrence of humanistic management practices within businesses and other organizations across the world.

The paper provides an overview of the evolution of Social Sciences with a focus on the Post-1945 period, known for major strides towards scientific, analytical, nonpartisan, multi-disciplinary and comprehensive study and research in different fields of Social Sciences. The paper discusses the gradual growth of Social Sciences in Pakistan in terms of increase in number of persons engaged in teaching, research and practice in various domains of Social Sciences, institutional facilities and availability of funds. There is a discussion of the (...) major features of the research work done in Social Sciences in Pakistan and its weaknesses and deficiencies. The paper argues that Social Sciences have become important for societies like Pakistan that face different types of social and political conflicts. The rise of religious extremism, violence and terrorism also requires that we benefit from the work done in different fields of Social Sciences for understanding the dynamics of societal trends, issues and conflict and how to address them. The paper also reviews teaching and research being done in Pakistani universities, especially since 2005, when more funds became available for study and research in Social Sciences. The universities have vastly expanded their Doctoral and M.Phil. porgrammes but the imperative of quality is often neglected. (shrink)

The role of state in the contemporary global system is greatly shaped by its inner or domestic strength that include economic resilience, socio-political harmony and a stable constitutional political order. These attributes cannot be achieved by a state unless it assigns the highest priority to human and societal development and promotion of egalitarian socio-economic arrangements that provide equal opportunities to all citizens irrespective of ethnicity, language, religion, caste, region or gender. The focus is on transforming human resources into human capital (...) through education, learning of technology and skills, and health care. There is now a greater emphasis on good governance and a fair and transparent political management and delivery of basic services to the society. This covers policy making and implementation regarding a host of key issues. It is also important to ensure that the fruits of economic growth are fairly distributed in the society. The state must work towards removing socio-economic inequities and disparities among people and regions. This paper examines the major factors responsible for the growing emphasis in state policy on human and social development as well as the historical evolution of this change. It is argued that the political developments in the 1990s and later contributed most in creating a global awareness about human and societal developments. These include, inter alia, the end of the Cold War, the collapse of some states, the rise of religious and cultural extremism and terrorism and the efforts of the various organs and agencies of the United Nations to promote human development and social stability. The paper also identifies the major obstacles in the developing countries, especially in Pakistan, to socio-economic development and distributive justice. (shrink)

AimThe aim of this study was to determine the presence of depressive symptoms and understand the potential factors associated with these symptoms among physicians in Bangladesh during the COVID-19 pandemic.MethodsA cross-sectional study using an online survey was conducted in between April 21 and May 10, 2020, among physicians living in Bangladesh. Participants completed a series of demographic questions, COVID-19-related questions, and the Patient Health Questionnaire-9. Descriptive statistics, test statistics were performed to explore the association between physicians’ experience of depression symptoms (...) and other study variables. Stepwise binary logistic regression was followed while conducting the multivariable analysis.ResultA total of 390 physicians completed the survey. Of them, 283 were found to be experiencing depressive symptoms. Predictors which were significantly associated with depressive symptoms were gender, the presence of sleep disturbance, being highly exposed to media coverage about the pandemic, and fear around COVID-19 infection, being assaulted/humiliated by regulatory forces and by the general public, while traveling to and from the hospital and treating patients during the countrywide lockdown.ConclusionThe findings of this study demonstrate that there is a high prevalence of depressive symptom among physicians especially among female physicians in Bangladesh during the COVID-19 pandemic. Immediate, adequate and effective interventions addressing gender specific needs are required amid this ongoing crisis and beyond. (shrink)

The New Towns Movement began in England and later spread world-wide in response to the increasing concern felt at the deterioration of the quality of life in the large cities under the impact of industrialization. The New Towns, it was felt, would combine the advantages of life in the country with that of life in the city. They would be small communities of between 30.000 and 60.000 inhabitants. Their principal characteristics were to be a balanced economy and a well-defined pattern (...) of industrial, commercial and residential zones. (shrink)

Affective experiences such as pains, pleasures, and emotions have affective phenomenology: they feel pleasant. This type of phenomenology has a loopy regulatory profile: it often motivates us to act a certain way, and these actions typically end up regulating our affective experiences back. For example, the pleasure you get by tasting your morning coffee motivates you to drink more of it, and this in turn results in you obtaining another pleasant gustatory experience. In this article, we argue that reflexive imperativism (...) is the only intentionalist account of affective phenomenology—probably, the only account at all—that is able to make sense of its loopy regulatory profile. (shrink)