Me and my body : the relevance of the difference for the distinction between withdrawing life support and euthanasia

In this paper I discuss David Shaw’s claim that the body of a terminally ill person can be conceived as a kind of life-support, akin to an artificial ventilator. I claim that this position rests upon an untenable dualism between the mind and the body. Given that dualism continues to be attractive to some thinkers, I attempt to diagnose the reasons why it continues to be attractive, as well as to demonstrate its incoherence, drawing on some recent work in the philosophy of psychology. I conclude that, if my criticisms are sound, Shaw’s attempt to deny the distinction between withdrawal and euthanasia fails.

Desire in the winter’s pale : a hermeneutic interpretation of the experience of sexual desire in older age

The experience of sexual desire in older age remains an aspect of the ageing experience about which little is known; much less understood. To address this gap in knowledge, the purpose of this hermeneutic interpretive study was to describe and understand how sexual desire is experienced in a sample of 11 purposively selected men and six women aged between 62 and 92 years. The study was based on audio-taped interviews with participants who were willing to discuss their experiences of sexual desire. The study was guided by the philosophy of Paul Ricoeur through the process of interview transcription to the interpretation of the experience of sexual desire in older age. Participants’ narratives were analysed for emergent themes using a twofold methodology inspired by Ricoeur. The narratives provided first-hand accounts of the experience of sexual desire in an ageing context. Findings revealed that participants identified as a sexual being regardless of age and availability of sexual partner. Findings also revealed that sexual selfhood was acknowledged through physiological response, that sexual desire could be influenced by socio-cultural factors and experienced within an ethical relational domain. Major themes explicated during the study included the experience of health and wellbeing, experience of sexual response, experience of sexual inadequacy, being socialised and re-entering the social scene.

The unfinished landscape fractal geometry and the aesthetics of ecological design

During the late 20th century it was proposed that a design aesthetic reflecting current ecological concerns was required within the overall domain of the built environment and specifically within landscape design. To address this, some authors suggested various theoretical frameworks upon which such an aesthetic could be based. Within these frameworks there was an underlying theme that the patterns and processes of Nature may have the potential to form this aesthetic — an aesthetic based on fractal rather than Euclidean geometry. In order to understand how fractal geometry, described as the geometry of Nature, could become the referent for a design aesthetic, this research examines the mathematical concepts of fractal Geometry, and the underlying philosophical concepts behind the terms ‘Nature’ and ‘aesthetics’. The findings of this initial research meant that a new definition of Nature was required in order to overcome the barrier presented by the western philosophical Nature¯culture duality. This new definition of Nature is based on the type and use of energy. Similarly, it became clear that current usage of the term aesthetics has more in common with the term ‘style’ than with its correct philosophical meaning. The aesthetic philosophy of both art and the environment recognises different aesthetic criteria related to either the subject or the object, such as: aesthetic experience; aesthetic attitude; aesthetic value; aesthetic object; and aesthetic properties. Given these criteria, and the fact that the concept of aesthetics is still an active and ongoing philosophical discussion, this work focuses on the criteria of aesthetic properties and the aesthetic experience or response they engender. The examination of fractal geometry revealed that it is a geometry based on scale rather than on the location of a point within a three-dimensional space. This enables fractal geometry to describe the complex forms and patterns created through the processes of Wild Nature. Although fractal geometry has been used to analyse the patterns of built environments from a plan perspective, it became clear from the initial review of the literature that there was a total knowledge vacuum about the fractal properties of environments experienced every day by people as they move through them. To overcome this, 21 different landscapes that ranged from highly developed city centres to relatively untouched landscapes of Wild Nature have been analysed. Although this work shows that the fractal dimension can be used to differentiate between overall landscape forms, it also shows that by itself it cannot differentiate between all images analysed. To overcome this two further parameters based on the underlying structural geometry embedded within the landscape are discussed. These parameters are the Power Spectrum Median Amplitude and the Level of Isotropy within the Fourier Power Spectrum. Based on the detailed analysis of these parameters a greater understanding of the structural properties of landscapes has been gained. With this understanding, this research has moved the field of landscape design a step close to being able to articulate a new aesthetic for ecological design.

Worthless and undeserving? : problematising the subjectivities of single parenthood

A considerable body of knowledge has been constructed perpetuating the notion single parenthood is a significant problem for society, and while this is supported by specific research designs and sampling practices, it is also maintained by two key discourses. The first constitutes single parenthood as a deficit, while the second identifies it as a risk. In both cases, these discourses are operationalised by the philosophy of neo-liberalism, which envisions good citizenship as economic autonomy. Historically, it has been the convergence of the risk and deficit discourses that has constituted single parenthood as a social problem. More recently, however, risk discourses have come to dominate thinking about single parenthood. As a result, this thesis terms risk discourses as dominant discourses. As dominant discourses, risk sidelines or discounts other ways of thinking about single parenthood. While a few exceptions are notable, including some feminist, poststructural and family resilience scholars, most researchers appear unable to see past the positioning of these discourses and envision another way of being for parents who are single. This means that alternative subjectivities are obscured and have limited influence in this field of research. Because this thesis aimed to problematise dominant subjectivities of single parenthood, a poststructural Foucauldian framework has been utilized in order to document the discursive constructions of single parenthood through literature, insider discourses, and outsider discourses. For the purposes of this thesis, outsider discourses are constituted as those outside the subjectivities of single parenthood, such as media and research discourses. An examination of the Australian media has been undertaken over a one year period, the results of which form the basis for the analysis of media discourses of single parenthood. Parents who are single were also targeted for self selection into this project to provide insider discourses about single parenthood. This analysis explored how respondents negotiated the discourses of single parenthood and how they themselves used or rejected the subjectivities constructed for them via these discourses to constitute their own subjectivities. This thesis aimed to explore the role of discourses in the construction of individuals' subjectivities. Specifically, it draws attention to the way in which knowledge and power work through discourses to emphasize what is allowable, both publicly and privately, in relation to single parenthood. Most importantly, this thesis offers alternative subjectivities for single parenthood to facilitate new ways of thinking about parents who are single.

Australian higher education evaluation through assurance of learning

A collaborative research project conducted by five Australian universities inquired into the philosophy and motivation for Assurance of Learning (AoL) as a process of education evaluation. Associate Deans Teaching and Learning representing Business schools from twenty-five universities across Australia participated in telephone interviews. Data was analysed using NVIVO9. Results indicated that articulated rationale for AoL was both ensuring that students had acquired the attributes and skills the universities claimed they had, and the philosophy of continuous improvement. AoL was motivated both by ritualistic objectives to satisfy accreditation requirements and virtuous agendas for quality improvement. Closing-the-loop was emphasised, but was mostly wishful thinking for next steps beyond data collection and reporting. AoL was conceptualised as one element within the larger context of quality review, but there was no evidence of comprehensive frameworks or strategic plans.

The applicability of aesthetic knowledge in organizational decision making processes

We argue that aesthetic knowledge, which is a form of tacit knowledge of beauty and related concepts, is an important, yet under-researched, topic in the study of organizational decision making processes. The significance of aesthetic knowledge for decision making processes is derived from its universal application by humans to commonplace practices; its use as the basis of decision criteria in complex situations to which the effective application of logic and reason is difficult; and its role both in assisting cognition in general and in enabling the choice of solutions generated from rational decision making processes. Despite its importance, the empirical research examining the application of aesthetic knowledge in organizational decision making processes is limited. Further detailed study of aesthetic knowledge in the context of organizational decision making processes is required to extend the recent movement in the field aimed at examining the role that extrarational, human-centered factors play in organizational decisions.

Envisaging alternatives for practice : a study into the way concepts of sustain-ability can be explored within an interactive media arts practice

This practice-led study explores different ways the subject of sustain-ability can be addressed within an Interactive Media Arts practice. The exploration encompasses three creative projects, Charmed, Distracted and e. Menura superba. Grounded in an ecological philosophy inspired by vegetarianism and the critical design philosophy of defuturing, the work shows how such a philosophical position can guide the redirection of practice. The concern for sustain-ability within my practice, and more generally the question of Interactive Media Arts and sustain-ability, I refer to as a problématique. The objective of this study is not one of finding an answer or a truth to an instrumentally posed question, but to explore the complexities of the problématique through a program of practice and intellectual investigation. The aim being to redirect my practice and to find a renewed raison d’être for practice through a process of opening up, encountering, and discovering otherwise unknown possibilities for practice. In the context of sustain-ability, this opening up of possibilities can be considered a form of futuring. A futuring I argue is only possible if the things we take for granted as integral aspects of our being, practices and life worlds, are revealed in ways that estrange them, rendering them visible in ways that allow questioning and change.

The Socratic classroom : reflective thinking through collaborative inquiry

This book was written to serve two functions. First it is an exploration of what I have called Socratic pedagogy, a collaborative inquiry-based approach to teaching and learning suitable not only to formal educational settings such as the school classroom but to all educational settings. The term is intended to capture a variety of philosophical approaches to classroom practice that could broadly be described Socratic in form. The term ‘philosophy in schools’ is ambiguous and could refer to teaching university style philosophy to high school students or to the teaching of philosophy and logic or critical reasoning in senior years of high school. It is also used to describe the teaching of philosophy in schools generally. In the early and middle phases of schooling the term philosophy for children is often used. But this too is ambiguous as the name was adopted from Matthew Lipman’s Philosophy for Children curriculum that he and his colleagues at the Institute for the Advancement of Philosophy for Children developed. In Britain the term ‘philosophy with children’ is sometimes employed to mark two methods of teaching that have Socratic roots but have distinct differences, namely Philosophy for Children and Socratic Dialogue developed by Leonard Nelson. The use of the term Socratic pedagogy and its companion term Socratic classroom (to refer to the kind of classroom that employs Socratic teaching) avoids the problem of distinguishing between various approaches to philosophical inquiry in the Socratic tradition but also separates it from the ‘study of philosophy’, such as university style philosophy or other approaches which place little or no emphasis on collaborative inquiry based teaching and learning. The second function builds from the first. It is to develop an effective framework for understanding the relationship between what I call the generative, evaluative and connective aspects of communal dialogue, which I think are necessary to the Socratic notion of inquiry. In doing so it is hoped that this book offers some way to show how philosophy as inquiry can contribute to educational theory and practice, while also demonstrating how it can be an effective way to approach teaching and learning. This has meant striking a balance between speaking to philosophers and to teachers and educators together, with the view that both see the virtues of such a project. In the strictest sense this book is not philosophy of education, insofar as its chief focus is not on the analysis of concepts or formulation of definitions specific to education with the aim of formulating directives that guide educational practice. It relinquishes the role of philosopher as ‘spectator’, to one of philosopher ‘immersed in matter’ – in this case philosophical issues in education, specifically those related to philosophical inquiry, pedagogy and classroom practice. Put another way, it is a book about philosophical education.

Frame-rate stereopsis using non-parametric transforms and programmable logic

A frame-rate stereo vision system, based on non-parametric matching metrics, is described. Traditional metrics, such as normalized cross-correlation, are expensive in terms of logic. Non-parametric measures require only simple, parallelizable, functions such as comparators, counters and exclusive-or, and are thus very well suited to implementation in reprogrammable logic.

The product of text and 'Other' statements : discourse analysis and the critical use of Foucault

Much has been written on Michel Foucault’s reluctance to clearly delineate a research method, particularly with respect to genealogy (Harwood 2000; Meadmore, Hatcher, & McWilliam 2000; Tamboukou 1999). Foucault (1994, p. 288) himself disliked prescription stating, “I take care not to dictate how things should be” and wrote provocatively to disrupt equilibrium and certainty, so that “all those who speak for others or to others” no longer know what to do. It is doubtful, however, that Foucault ever intended for researchers to be stricken by that malaise to the point of being unwilling to make an intellectual commitment to methodological possibilities. Taking criticism of “Foucauldian” discourse analysis as a convenient point of departure to discuss the objectives of poststructural analyses of language, this paper develops what might be called a discursive analytic; a methodological plan to approach the analysis of discourses through the location of statements that function with constitutive effects.

Child rearing Inc : On the perils of political paralysis Down Under

In his 2007 PESA keynote address, Paul Smeyers discussed the increasing regulation of child-rearing through government intervention and the generation of “experts,” citing particular examples from Europe where cases of childhood obesity and parental neglect have stirred public opinion and political debate. In his paper (this issue), Smeyers touches on a number of tensions before concluding that child rearing qualifies as a practice in which liberal governments should be reluctant to intervene. In response, I draw on recent experiences in Australia and argue that certain tragic events of late are the result of an ethical, moral and social vacuum in which these tensions coalesce. While I agree with Smeyers that governments should be reluctant to “intervene” in the private domain of the family, I argue that there is a difference between intervention and support. In concluding, I maintain that if certain Western liberal democracies did a more comprehensive job of supporting children and their families through active social investment in primary school education, then both families and schools would be better equipped to deal with the challenges they now face.

Studying in Cuba, returning home to work : experiences of graduates from the English-speaking Caribbean

Cuba’s higher education scholarship program has received little attention in the literature on education and development. In this chapter, I discuss themes that emerge from my interviews with graduates from English-speaking Caribbean countries who studied in Cuba, as well as Cuban educators, on the nature of their academic programs and their subsequent careers. This facilitates exploration of a number of questions, including the following: 1. How, in the perceptions of scholarship students and graduates, have they experienced the philosophy of combing study, practical work, and research in the tertiary education curriculum in Cuban universities? 2. What impact does studying in Cuba appear to have on graduates after they return to their home countries? 3. How does the experience of the graduates throw light on the relationship between tertiary education and national development?

(Neo)Liberal doses of inequality : advance Australia where?

The relationship between social background and achievement has preoccupied educational researchers since the mid-20th century with major studies in the area reaching prominence in the late 60s. Despite five decades of research and innovation since, recent studies using OECD data have shown that the relationship is strengthening rather than weakening. In this paper, the systematic destabilisation of public education in Australia is examined as a philosophical problem stemming from a fundamental shift in political orientation, where “choice” and “aspiration” work to promote and disguise survivalism. The problem for education however extends far deeper than the inequity in Federal government funding. Whilst this is a major problem, critical scrutiny must also focus on what states can do to turn back aspects of their own education policy that work to exacerbate and entrench social disadvantage.

Regeneration reuse in the context of the waste management cycle of the built environment

This original study creates a philosophy of regeneration reuse, which is a conceptual framework that utilises construction and demolition waste products by building component, relocation and adaptive reuse. Case studies from the greater Brisbane, wider southeast Queensland region and greater London area are used to demonstrate the principles of regeneration reuse through research activities, analysis and evaluation. The regeneration reuse conceptual process draws upon assessing embodied carbon and sustainable benefits to deconstruct rather than destruct, and consider alternative options to waste treatment technologies in the built environment. The importance of waste management is examined, specifically the impacts of governance to the principles of regeneration reuse through analysis of legislation in the Australian and UK jurisdictions. Design process considerations when incorporating the principles of regeneration reuse are defined, and phasing and staging assessment explored to determine the most effective point of intervention in the design process to include waste management strategies.

On Presence, Collective Performance and Assumptions of Causality

The ways we assume, observe and model “presence” and its effects are the focus in this paper. Entities with selectively shared presences are the basis of any collective, and of attributions (such as “humorous”, “efficient” or “intelligent”). The subtleties of any joint presence can markedly influence potentials, perceptions and performance of the collective as demonstrated when a humorous tale is counterpoised with disciplined thought. Disciplines build on presences assumed known or knowable while fluid and interpretable presences pervade humor. Explorations in this paper allow considerations of collectives, causality and the philosophy of computing. Economics has long considered issues of collective action in ways circumscribed by assumptions about the presence of economic entities. Such entities are deemed rational but they are clearly not intelligent. To reach its potential, collective intelligence research needs more adequate considerations of alternate presences and their impacts.