本書は、2013年4月1日から2015年3月31日までの2年間、『みすず』誌に連載された「日記」を一書にしたものである。大学人としての仕事や作家として執筆に追われながら、政治学者として世の動向を分析し 、皇室の動きを観察し、鉄道旅行をする。日常から時代を解読する試み。.

The growth of information acquisition, storage and retrieval capacity has led to the development of the practice of lifelogging, the undiscriminating collection of information concerning one’s life and behaviour. There are potential problems in this practice, but equally it could be empowering for the individual, and provide a new locus for the construction of an online identity. In this paper we look at the technological possibilities and constraints for lifelogging tools, and set out some of the most important privacy, identity (...) and empowerment-related issues. We argue that some of the privacy concerns are overblown, and that much research and commentary on lifelogging has made the unrealistic assumption that the information gathered is for private use, whereas, in a more socially-networked online world, much of it will have public functions and will be voluntarily released into the public domain. (shrink)

Shōwashi e no renketsu -- Higashi Ajia kara no me -- Tennō to iu jiba -- Watashi no kaikōki -- Jikokuhyō katate ni ekisoba o.

Principles of Brain Evolution (Striedter 2005) places little emphasis on natural selection. However, one cannot fully appreciate the diversity of brains across species, nor the evolutionary processes driving such diversity, without an understanding of the effects of natural selection. Had Striedter included more extensive discussions about natural selection, his text would have been more balanced and comprehensive.

The target article about the origin and evolution of the isocortex triggers questions about unresolved issues that still need to be dealt with, including: (1) the evolutionary scenario of the origin of the lateral isocortex, (2) the expansion of the dorsal pallium in nonmammals, and (3) the heterogeneity of the anterior dorsal ventricular ridge.

In the era of natural law, the foundation of the law was grounded upon something beyond the law itself, i.e., external factors such as a higher authority, nature, or even the reason and ontological essence of man. According to this reasoning, man has in effect been clandestinely elevated to an equal plain with God and operates in the external realm, essentially observing the world „from outside“. Thus, any attempt to provide a basis for legal decisions by such external factors depends (...) on an „observer„ who assumes a privileged position with respect to the law and its ground. Lawyers continue to maintain this position of interpreting the positive law by seeking the ground of the law outside of itself, i.e., the external factors such as the „source of laws“, the „intention of the author“, and the “fundamental norm“, for example. While simultaneously claiming to be under the rule of law, they paradoxically take the position of an external „observer“ who perceives the law “from outside”. This position leads us to aporia, or an insoluble contradiction, regarding external grounds. This paper proposes a means by which to emerge from the above aporia. Using the theory of social systems as its basis, the legal system is viewed as a closed system and „the ground of the law“ is by no means derived from external factors; rather, it can be stated only through an internal operation within the closed system itself. (shrink)

Spatial ability plays important roles in academic learning and everyday activities. A type of spatial thinking that is of particular significance to people's daily lives is cognitive mapping, that is, the process of acquiring, representing, and using knowledge about spatial environments. However, the skill of cognitive mapping shows large individual differences, and the task of spatial orientation and navigation poses great difficulty for some people. In this article, I look at the motivation and findings in the research into spatial knowledge (...) acquisition from an individual differences perspective. I also discuss major implications of the existence of large individual differences, particularly the possibility of improving cognitive mapping by training and adjusting navigation assistance to the wide variations in spatial aptitudes and preferences among people. (shrink)

In recent work MacPherson argues that the standard method of modeling belief logically, as a necessity operator in a modal logic, is doomed to fail. The problem with normal modal logics as logics of belief is that they treat believers as "ideal" in unrealistic ways (i.e., as omnidoxastic); however, similar problems re-emerge for candidate non-normal logics. The authors argue that logics used to model belief in artificial intelligence (AI) are also flawed in this way. But for AI systems, omnidoxasticity is (...) impossible because of their finite nature, and this fact can be exploited to produce operational models of fallible belief. The relevance of this point to various philosophical views about belief is discussed. (shrink)

While directors’ task boundaries are usually ambiguous, some of their activities or behaviors clearly constitute their formal duties, whereas others are usually perceived as organizational citizenship behavior. Applying identity theory, we present a theoretical model that demonstrates one of the key drivers for directors to engage in OCB with a focus on their role identity. We argue that an individual director’s role identity is one of the key factors that motivate directors to engage in OCB. Furthermore, we propose that two (...) board-level contingencies, board capital, and informal board hierarchy order, can moderate the effect of directors’ role-identity salience on their OCB. That is, low levels of board capital and directors’ higher positions in a board’s informal hierarchy enhance directors’ motivation to engage in OCB. (shrink)

The ethics in an information society is discussed from the combined viewpoint of Eastern and Western thoughts. The breakdown of a coherent self threatens the Western ethics and causes nihilism. Francisco Varela, one of the founders of Autopoiesis Theory, tackled this problem and proposed Enactive Cognitive Science by introducing Buddhist middle-way philosophy. Fundamental Informatics gives further insights into the problem, by proposing the concept of a hierarchical autopoietic system. Here the ethics can be described in relation to a community rather (...) than a coherent self. The philosophical bridge between East and West is expected to solve the ethical aporia in the 21st century. (shrink)