Articles on Vedanta school of philosophy.

Over 80% of the genes in the E. coli chromosome express fewer than a hundred copies each of their protein products per cell. It is argued here that transcription of these genes is neither constitutive nor regulated by protein factors, but rather, induced by the act of replication. The utility of such replication‐induced (RI) transcription to the temporal regulation of synthesis of determinate quantities of low copy number (LCN) proteins is described. It is suggested that RI transcription may be necessitated, (...) as well as facilitated, by the folding of the bacterial chromosome into a compact nucleoid. Mechanistic aspects of the induction of transcription by replication are discussed with respect to the modulation of transcriptional initiation by negative supercoiling effects, promoter methylation status and derepression. It is shown that RI transcription offers plausible explanations for the constancy of the C period of the E. coli cell cycle and the remarkable conservation of gene order in the chromosomes of enteric bacteria. Some experimental tests of the hypothesis are proposed. (shrink)

Transcription and DNA supercoiling are known to be linked by a cause‐effect relationship that operates in both directions. It is proposed here that this two‐way relationship may be exploited by the E. coli genome to facilitate constitutive transcription of supercoil‐sensitive genes by polymerase batteries made up of uniformly spaced RNA polymerase elongation complexes. Specifically, it is argued that (1) polymerases transcribing DNA in tandem cooperate to relax each other's transcription‐driven positive supercoils; and (2) negative supercoils driven upstream by elongation complexes (...) tend to be ‘harnessed’ and used to cooperatively (and periodically) initiate fresh transcription from promoters. Harnessing of transcription‐driven negative supercoils is thought to be achieved through the erection of protein barriers to the rotational upstream propagation of supercoils from transcription events. The possible relevance of such cooperation amongst polymerases to the activation of transcription by DNA‐binding protein factors is emphasized. Some testable predictions are made and implications are discussed. (shrink)

We propose that hyper‐inflammation (HYPi) is a ‘‘runaway’’ consequence of acute inflammation (ACUi) that arises more easily (and also abates less easily) in those who host a pre‐existing chronic inflammation (CHRi), because (i) most factors involved in generating an ACUi to limit viral proliferation are already present when there is an underlying CHRi, and also because (ii) anti‐inflammatory (AI) mechanisms for the abatement of ACUi (following containment of viral proliferation) are suppressed and desensitized where there is an underlying CHRi, with (...) this causing the ACUi to spiral into a HYPi. Stress, pollution, diet, and gut microbiomes (alterable in weeks through dietary changes) have an intimate and bidirectional cause‐effect relationship with CHRi. We propose that avoidance of CHRi‐promoting foods and adoption of CHRi‐suppressing foods could reduce susceptibility to HYPi, in Covid‐19 and in other viral diseases, such as influenza, which are characterized by episodic and unpredictable HYPi. (shrink)

This paper investigates how people conceive and evaluate nature through language, in a climate change context. With material consisting of 1,200 answers to open-ended questions in nationally representative surveys in Norway, we explore what semantic roles and values the respondents attribute to nature as well as to how they interact with the public debate about climate change. We observe that different conceptions and valuations of nature are tied to different perspectives on the climate change issue: some address the responsibilities of (...) causing climate change, others its consequences, and others yet its potential solutions. The study provides knowledge about the variety of conceptions of nature that can be mobilised by individuals and suggests that policy measures and public communication could benefit by taking this diversity into account. (shrink)

Guttorm Fløistad. therefore fundamentally misunderstand both freedom and force (power). They presuppose that words have a force or power that they do not have , that is, coercive power. In addition, of course, such laws express a lack of ...

This paper is a discussion of which kinds of knowledge Spinoza himself employs in developing the system of the Ethics. The problem is raised by Professor D. Savan and further discussed by G. H. R. Parkinson. The thesis is (1) that no occurrence of the first kind of knowledge is to be found in the Ethics (against Parkinson), (2) that the main part of the analysis in the Ethics is conducted on the level of the second kind of knowledge (in (...) agreement with Parkinson), and (3) that the third kind of knowledge occurs frequently and plays a most important role in the Ethics (in part against Parkinson). The relation between knowledge and language, the distinction between two types of imagination, or two ways of imagining things, the translation of knowledge of modes of extension into knowledge of the mind, and the relation between the second and third kind of knowledge are main parts of the argument. The third kind of knowledge derives its significance in the Ethics from the definitions and axioms, particularly in Part 1. These definitions and axioms form the basis of the whole system of the Ethics, and at least some of them, it is suggested, belong to the third kind of knowledge. (shrink)

This volume examines a variety of philosophical approaches that seek to formulate practical guidelines or norms for human actions and behavior in different areas of society, including politics, cultural traditions, the environment, business management, architecture, and medicine. Written by a team of international authors, this volume features thirteen surveys. It begins with an exploration of ethics in politics and cultural traditions. From genocide to the unequal distribution of wealth, it examines many of the harms that currently affect societies throughout the (...) world and considers a way that those in politics can follow to provide better care for all their populations. Next, the book looks at the relation between ethics and cultural traditions. It features a paper that examines the tension that often exists between the past and the present, with a special focus on the history of India. This volume also considers the idea of a universal system of ethics, presents a practical approach to value-based management in private and public organizations, and examines ethics in medicine. In addition, this volume includes coverage of a new type of ethics called Eco-ethica, proposed by the Japanese philosopher Tomonobu Imamichi, which seeks to answer the question of how men and women can live better or live together with each other in a systematized, technological age. (shrink)

Volume 1 in the new series, Philosophical Problems Today, contains articles on standard problems in European and American philosophy. Quine writes on truth and discusses various difficulties connected with the clear definition of the correspondence theory of truth. Strawson, in his articles on individuals, disputes the empiricist test for the status of entity of object. Sufficient identity-conditions are satisfied by a much wider range of objects. The concept of meaning is further extended and differentiated in the article by Habermas on (...) speech acts and actions. The notion of communicative action is central to his argument. The study of formalism, by Agazzi, is in an important sense also a study of meaning. Although for the most part developed within mathematics, formal ways of thinking have been a basic tenet within philosophy and science ever since Aristotle. In his article, Ricoeur observes that the present philosophy of history no longer engages in the speculative system building as presented in the philosophy of Hegel, Marx and Toynbee. Our philosophy of history is rather a critical reflection of various issues connected with the transmission of historical meaning. (shrink)

This paper is a presentation and discussion of Spinoza's view on the knower, or the mind, as an agent. The knower is on his view to be regarded as an active or generative complex cognitive experience. Imagination, reason and intuition are the cognitive principles. On account of their intrinsic relation to “the first law of nature”, that of selfpreservation, together with the thesis of the mind as constituted by ideas or knowledge, these principles function at the same time as moral (...) principles. Consequently, it makes sense to speak of an individual's moral attitude toward everything be knows. A discussion of imagination, reason and intuition mainly as cognitive principles is followed by some concluding remarks on the cognitive and moral relation between human beings: To know another human being is to know his knowledge. The moral attitude of individuals to each other is a function of their mutual knowledge of knowledge. (shrink)

This paper begins by critically examining the inadequacies of production culture in organizations based primarily on impersonal, professional relationships and argues that many of the ills of modern industry like absenteeism and interpersonal conflicts stem from this culture. The author suggests that the culture of community characterized by social competence, personal relationships, cooperation, care and recognition can best serve the real purpose of organizations than mere professionalism. Culture of community implies values-based management or ethical management whereby an indi vidual or (...) an organization is bound to accept certain norms for the well-being of the community. Thus, ethics ought to become a project for commitment to values which have gradually been eroded in our mass media society where religions no longer inspire men to live ethically. The author delves into Norwegian history and recalls the case of Hans Nielsen Hauge, whose inspirational leadership was summed up in his simple gospel: 'Fear of God, temperance and hard work'. Hauge's leadership style of management by building community cultures has, according to the author, great significance for modern enterprises. (shrink)