Constrained Multilevel Latent Class Models for the Analysis of Three-Way Three-Mode Binary Data

Probabilistic feature models (PFMs) can be used to explain binary rater judgements about the associations between two types of elements (e.g., objects and attributes) on the basis of binary latent features. In particular, to explain observed object-attribute associations PFMs assume that respondents classify both objects and attributes with respect to a, usually small, number of binary latent features, and that the observed object-attribute association is derived as a specific mapping of these classifications. Standard PFMs assume that the object-attribute association probability is the same according to all respondents, and that all observations are statistically independent. As both assumptions may be unrealistic, a multilevel latent class extension of PFMs is proposed which allows objects and/or attribute parameters to be different across latent rater classes, and which allows to model dependencies between associations with a common object (attribute) by assuming that the link between features and objects (attributes) is fixed across judgements. Formal relationships with existing multilevel latent class models for binary three-way data are described. As an illustration, the models are used to study rater differences in product perception and to investigate individual differences in the situational determinants of anger-related behavior.     

徐光启所译几何术语对傅兰雅科技翻译思想的跨时空注脚

傅兰雅的《译书事略》立足于动态语言观与可译性的辩证关系,详述了江南制造总局的译书之法,厘定了科技术语的翻译原则,是晚清科技翻译实践的经验总结和理论升华。徐光启译《几何原本》早于傅氏撰写《译书事略》近280年,但是徐氏对“平面图形”相关概念的处理以及对中国传统数学词汇的扬弃与傅氏对科技术语翻译的要求却是高度一致,是对傅氏翻译思想的跨时空注脚。翻译主体自身条件的差异和时代背景的不同又使得两人在具体问题的处理上稍有偏侧,若将徐、傅二人置于对方之境遇,恐怕前者亦会对我国的科技翻译实践进行理论总结,后者亦会对《几何原本》中的数学术语采取同样的处理方式,可谓两者易时易地亦然。     

论科学哲学中的对应规则

对应规则在科学哲学中是为了解决理论术语的经验意义问题而引发出来的。在逻辑经验主义的双语言模型中，对应规则赋予理论词汇以经验内容。在理论的还原解释中，对应规则起限制性条件、双向条件语句或恒等陈述作用。在科学实践中，从不同的角度可以将对应规则分为不同的类型。     

论"技术人工物"的三重性

技术是人类创建人工自然的中介手段和过程,"技术人工物"是在技术过程和劳动过程中生成的.它具有三重属性:物理结构性,社会功能性,技术过程性.技术人工物是合规律性与合目的性的统一,它的三重属性来源于人类的存在方式,即人以改变自然创建人工自然的方式生存,而每一个具体的"技术人工物"的产生,又源于亚里士多德的"四因说".     

社会突现论对社会因果的研究

社会突现论是基于系统论与心灵哲学等学科而发展起来的关于社会本质与社会现象解释的方法的一种新型整体主义理论。社会突现论认为,社会一方面由个体聚集突现而成,前者具有后者所不具有的特殊属性;另一方面,社会与个体属于不同的层次,前者不能化归为后者。社会突现论视域中的社会因果研究是以个体主义与整体主义之争为背景,对于社会层次是否具有因果效力的研究。社会突现论所关注的社会因果问题是某个社会事件是否能够作为不以个体意志为转移的因素对另一社会事件或社会中的个体产生影响。社会突现论认为,某个社会事件能够作为一个"独立"的因素影响其他的社会事件或社会中的个体。社会因果既与个体密切相关又不可化归为个体的属性。     

Aggregation of equivalence relations

Each ofn attributes partitions a set of items into equivalence classes. Aconsistent aggregator of then partitions is defined as an aggregate partition that satisfies an independence condition and a unanimity condition. It is shown that the class of consistent aggregators is precisely the class ofconjunctive aggregators. That is, for each consistent aggregator there is a nonempty subsetN of the attributes such that two items are equivalent in the aggregate partition if and only if they are equivalent with respect to each attribute inN.     

A New Class of Weighted Similarity Indices Using Polytomous Variables

We introduce new similarity measures between two subjects, with reference to variables with multiple categories. In contrast to traditionally used similarity indices, they also take into account the frequency of the categories of each attribute in the sample. This feature is useful when dealing with rare categories, since it makes sense to differently evaluate the pairwise presence of a rare category from the pairwise presence of a widespread one. A weighting criterion for each category derived from Shannon??s information theory is suggested. There are two versions of the weighted index: one for independent categorical variables and one for dependent variables. The suitability of the proposed indices is shown in this paper using both simulated and real world data sets.     

Recent Advances in Predictive (Machine) Learning

Prediction involves estimating the unknown value of an attribute of a system under study given the values of other measured attributes. In prediction (machine) learning the prediction rule is derived from data consisting of previously solved cases. Most methods for predictive learning were originated many years ago at the dawn of the computer age. Recently two new techniques have emerged that have revitalized the field. These are support vector machines and boosted decision trees. This paper provides an introduction to these two new methods tracing their respective ancestral roots to standard kernel methods and ordinary decision trees.     

Multidimensional Item Response Theory Models with Collateral Information as Poisson Regression Models

Multiple choice items on tests and Likert items on surveys are ubiquitous in educational, social and behavioral science research; however, methods for analyzing of such data can be problematic. Multidimensional item response theory models are proposed that yield structured Poisson regression models for the joint distribution of responses to items. The methodology presented here extends the approach described in Anderson, Verkuilen, and Peyton (2010) that used fully conditionally specified multinomial logistic regression models as item response functions. In this paper, covariates are added as predictors of the latent variables along with covariates as predictors of location parameters. Furthermore, the models presented here incorporate ordinal information of the response options thus allowing an empirical examination of assumptions regarding the ordering and the estimation of optimal scoring of the response options. To illustrate the methodology and flexibility of the models, data from a study on aggression in middle school (Espelage, Holt, and Henkel 2004) is analyzed. The models are fit to data using SAS.     

Splitting an Ordering into a Partition to Minimize Diameter

k consisting of k clusters, with k > 2. Bottom-up agglomerative approaches are also commonly used to construct partitions, and we discuss these in terms of worst-case performance for metric data sets. Our main contribution derives from a new restricted partition formulation that requires each cluster to be an interval of a given ordering of the objects being clustered. Dynamic programming can optimally split such an ordering into a partition P^k for a large class of objectives that includes min-diameter. We explore a variety of ordering heuristics and show that our algorithm, when combined with an appropriate ordering heuristic, outperforms traditional algorithms on both random and non-random data sets.     

1932年教育部化学讨论会:中国现代化学共同体形成的标志

1932年教育部召集化学讨论会的主要原因是国家对国防化学的需要,也兼顾了化学课程标准和化学译名.但是,其根本的动力仍然来自中国化学界内部交流的需要.参加讨论会的45位化学专家都曾留学欧美或日本,代表着国内主要的教育和学术机构.在这次讨论会上,与会者不仅以投票表决的方式约定了许多切实可行的议决案,而且发起组织了中国化学会.在讨论会议决案的形成和实施过程中,中国化学会都发挥了重要作用.这次讨论会不仅是中国化学界的第一次国内集会,也是中国现代化学共同体形成的标志.     

当代哲学视域下的逻辑哲学——普特南论逻辑和模糊性的哲学启示探析

形而上学实在论者认为不存在模糊对象,逻辑学家们在考虑模糊性问题时则面临语言的实际使用问题。如果模糊语言不能转化为理想语言但本身又是难以避免的,日常语言或者至少是包含不精确的语词的语言将会一直存在。哲学不能永远使其自身限制在假想语言的逻辑结构的理论之中。有关模糊性问题的讨论体现了当代哲学实用主义和分析哲学相结合的前景,标志着分析哲学的一个新的发展阶段,也蕴含了实用主义向新实用主义转变的趋势。     

Coherence of Our Best Scientific Theories

Putnam in Realism in mathematics and Elsewhere, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge (1975) infers from the success of a scientific theory to its approximate truth and the reference of its key term. Laudan in Philos Sci 49:19–49 (1981) objects that some past theories were successful, and yet their key terms did not refer, so they were not even approximately true. Kitcher in The advancement of science, Oxford University Press, New York (1993) replies that the past theories are approximately true because their working posits are true, although their idle posits are false. In contrast, I argue that successful theories which cohere with each other are approximately true, and that their key terms refer. My position is immune to Laudan’s counterexamples to Putnam’s inference and yields a solution to a problem with Kitcher’s position.     

tertium comparationis译名商榷

译名问题是一个不容忽视的问题，许多译名往往带有明显的翻译腔，这在很大程度上限制人们对该术语的理解。在一些文本翻译研究 方面的文献中， tertium comparationis 汉译名不仅译名不统一，且其译名并没有体现该术语的基本含义和特征。根据译名规范要求，结合翻 译研究的学科语境，在此基础上提出新的参考译名，希望通过该译名问题的探讨让人们意识到术语进一步规范的重要性和必要性，促进译名研 究甚至翻译研究的发展。     

Constructivism: A ‘Next’ Area of Scientific Development?

Radical Constructivism has been defined as an‘unconventional approach to the problem ofknowledge and knowing’. Its unconventionalityis summarised by its claim that it isimpossible to attribute unique meaning toexperience – as no mind-independent yardstick canbe assumed to exist against which to identifyuniqueness, and hence to produce knowledge andknowing. In other words, it is claimed thatthere is no ‘reality’ that is knowable to allindividual knowers. This claim appearsindefensible by itself, as it does not explainwhy the successes of traditional science appearas such. However, it is defensible in thecontext of numerous failures to achieve uniqueattributions, or of the history of science.Even so, what is missing are concrete methodsand research designs. This often leaves RadicalConstructivism to be critical only, toconcentrate on justifying the impossibility ofsuccess without contributing itself.Where this is the case it reduces scientiststo individuals considered unable to communicatewith others on public (and unique)attributions-who may do so only by borrowingmethods from previous approaches. It is arguedthat a more valuable contribution is possibleif Radical Constructivism is seen as a responseto the challenge defined by frequent failuresof traditional approaches. The latter may beextended such that the extensions converge toRadical Constructivism. Such extensions arebased on reported observations, rather than onexperiences in general, and are to beattributed meanings – uniquely as well asnon-uniquely – by way of a collective. The lattershould allow its ‘actors’ to restrict whatmaintains the collective to what is observableto others, as well as use the collective torestrict their own observations. The study ofcollectives thus allows for the study ofrestrictions or values, and hence for includingsubjective or constructivist experiences beyond(reportable) observations.     

Quantum Superpositions and the Representation of Physical Reality Beyond Measurement Outcomes and Mathematical Structures

In this paper we intend to discuss the importance of providing a physical representation of quantum superpositions which goes beyond the mere reference to mathematical structures and measurement outcomes. This proposal goes in the opposite direction to the project present in orthodox contemporary philosophy of physics which attempts to “bridge the gap” between the quantum formalism and common sense “classical reality”—precluding, right from the start, the possibility of interpreting quantum superpositions through non-classical notions. We will argue that in order to restate the problem of interpretation of quantum mechanics in truly ontological terms we require a radical revision of the problems and definitions addressed within the orthodox literature. On the one hand, we will discuss the need of providing a formal redefinition of superpositions which captures explicitly their contextual character. On the other hand, we will attempt to replace the focus on the measurement problem, which concentrates on the justification of measurement outcomes from “weird” superposed states, and introduce the superposition problem which focuses instead on the conceptual representation of superpositions themselves. In this respect, after presenting three necessary conditions for objective physical representation, we will provide arguments which show why the classical (actualist) representation of physics faces severe difficulties to solve the superposition problem. Finally, we will also argue that, if we are willing to abandon the (metaphysical) presupposition according to which ‘Actuality = Reality’, then there is plenty of room to construct a conceptual representation for quantum superpositions.     

From Permanence to Total Availability: A Quantum Conceptual Upgrade

We consider the classical concept of time of permanence and observe that its quantum equivalent is described by a bona fide self-adjoint operator. Its interpretation, by means of the spectral theorem, reveals that we have to abandon not only the idea that quantum entities would be characterizable in terms of spatial trajectories but, more generally, that they would possess the very attribute of spatiality. Consequently, a permanence time shouldn’t be interpreted as a “time” in quantum mechanics, but as a measure of the total availability of a quantum entity in participating to a process of creation of a spatial localization.     

科技英语文体中术语翻译的模糊处理原则

众所周知，为了避免理解过程中出现模棱两可或产生歧义，科技英语文体在表达上强调确切性、清晰性以及客观性。同样，科技术语翻译过程中也要尽可能地体现出对应译名表达上的科学性、逻辑性、准确性与严密性。也就是说，科技翻译中也同样要求做到表述确切、明白，尽量避免歧义。而事实上，从概念表述的角度来看，科技术语的对应译名在翻译转换过程中并不一定能够实现完全意义上的等值。因此，在科技术语翻译过程中有时也需要借助于相关的“模糊”处理原则来再现原文所负载的语义内涵。     

针灸在美国本土化的历程、特色与成因探究

针灸于19世纪上半叶传入美国,在20世纪70年代"针灸热"的影响之下,开始在美国流行.针灸在美国流行的五十年间,经历了三次热潮,完成了法律本土化、教育本土化、职业本土化和医学属性本土化四个层次的本土化.美国本土化针灸,有着重视生理解剖理论、关注情志生育疾病、存在多种学术流派、坚持中西合璧教育、开发新型针灸器材、割离针灸...