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Japanese Vernacular Glossing Of Sinitic Buddhist Texts: Ninth Century Narrative Techniques And A Vivid Translation Of A Parable Of Self-Sacrifice
No full textThe earliest examples of translation in Japanese are found in glossed Sinitic Buddhist texts rendered into the vernacular via kanbun kundoku (‘Sinitic script, vernacular reading’). This chapter explores early Heian-period (794–1185 CE) narrative techniques used in a 9th-century Japanese translation of the Golden Light Sutra’s parable of Prince Mahāsattva, who sacrificed himself to feed a starving tigress and her cubs. The Japanese glossing upon the Sinitic sutra paints an intimate tale of the hero’s literal self-sacrifice and the pain of loss felt by his bereaved family as richly depicted through careful consideration of the source text. In particular, this study focuses on the morpho-syntactic representations of tense, aspect, modality, and mirativity found in the Japanese rendition that were mostly left to context in the Sinitic source text. In examining this vivid representation of early kanbun kundoku, this chapter argues that the vernacular glosses we find on early Heian Buddhist texts are evidence of acts of translation performed to bring the fantastic and inspirational stories therein to a domestic audience who were unable to fully access the source texts in their original Chinese
Three Kinds Of Topological Explanation In Science
No full textThe increasing prevalence of network models in science, especially when dealing with systems of high complexity, has led philosophers to take an interest in the notion of topological explanation. Network models work by mapping a physical phenomenon onto a mathematical graph (network) and then analyzing topological properties of the network such as node connectivity, clustering, and \u27small world\u27 features. How does topological explanation relate to scientific explanation more generally? Is topological explanation similar to other types of mathematical explanation in science? In this talk I propose a classification of topological explanation in science into three basic kinds. The first kind involves cases where the target phenomenon literally possesses the topological properties in question (for example, the early stages of a developing embryo). The second kind comprises the network modeling approach described above, in which the target phenomenon maps onto a mathematical graph, and the topological analysis pertains directly to the graph and only indirectly to the target phenomenon. The third kind involves cases in which data is collected about the target phenomenon, resulting in a multi-dimensional array of data points, and topological analysis is performed on this array. I use this threefold classification to draw some more general philosophical conclusions concerning how applied mathematics works in actual scientific practice
Implied Occlusion And Subset Underestimation Contribute To The Weak-Outnumber-Strong Numerosity Illusion
No full textFour experimental studies are reported using a total of 712 participants to investigate the basis of a recently reported numerosity illusion called “weak-outnumber-strong” (WOS). In the weak-outnumber-strong illusion, when equal numbers of white and gray dots (e.g., 50 of each) are intermixed against a darker gray background, the gray dots seem much more numerous than the white. Two principles seem to be supported by these new results: 1) Subsets of mixtures are generally underestimated; thus, in mixtures of red and green dots, both sets are underestimated (using a matching task) just as the white dots are in the weak-outnumber-strong illusion, but 2) the gray dots seem to be filled in as if partially occluded by the brighter white dots. This second principle is supported by manipulations of depth perception both by pictorial cues (partial occlusion) and by binocular cues (stereopsis), such that the illusion is abolished when the gray dots are depicted as closer than the white dots, but remains strong when they are depicted as lying behind the white dots. Finally, an online investigation of a prior false-floor hypothesis concerning the effect suggests that manipulations of relative contrast may affect the segmentation process, which produces the visual bias known as subset underestimation
Trump, Twitter, And Truth Judgments: The Effects Of “Disputed” Tags And Political Knowledge On The Judged Truthfulness Of Election Misinformation
No full textMisinformation has sown distrust in the legitimacy of American elections. Nowhere has this been more concerning than in the 2020 U.S. presidential election wherein Donald Trump falsely declared that it was stolen through fraud. Although social media platforms attempted to dispute Trump’s false claims by attaching soft moderation tags to his posts, little is known about the effectiveness of this strategy. We experimentally tested the use of “disputed” tags on Trump’s Twitter posts as a means of curbing election misinformation. Trump voters with high political knowledge judged election misinformation as more truthful when Trump’s claims included Twitter’s disputed tags compared to a control condition. Although Biden voters were largely unaffected by these soft moderation tags, third-party and non-voters were slightly less likely to judge election misinformation as true. Finally, little to no evidence was found for meaningful changes in beliefs about election fraud or fairness. These findings raise questions about the effectiveness of soft moderation tags in disputing highly prevalent or widely spread misinformation
Gendered Dimensions Of Psychological Suffering And Mental Distress In Sri Lanka
No full textPsychological distress and dysfunction are entangled in the norms and moral visions that govern everyday gendered relations. Three projects that concern everyday life in Sri Lanka offer illustrations of this entanglement. One addressed the high rate of suicide-like acts among rural girls. Such acts, which are rarely fatal, typically take place during familial conflicts about daughters’ sexual propriety. The second project focused on mothers with a child with severe autism. The women commonly reported that their in-laws believed that they had caused the child’s condition, and many had encountered severe marital strife. Moreover, every mother had struggled to find knowledgeable medical practitioners and suitable educational facilities. The third project focused on the developmental histories recounted by gay men and lesbians. During childhood and early adolescence, both boys and girls engaged in gender-atypical activities; neither peers nor adults objected to these activities. In their early teens, however, “feminine” boys became objects of ridicule by other boys and disapproval by their fathers. Later, as sexual feelings toward other boys emerged, boys experienced confusion and guilt. Some boys became deeply depressed; some engaged in self-injurious cutting; one made a suicide attempt. The lesbians, by contrast, said that “masculine” qualities (e.g., an interest in sports) were positively regarded throughout girlhood and adolescence. Most did not become sexually active as adolescents. The case examples illustrate some ways in which conventional cultural ideologies concerning women, as well as prejudicial moralities regarding same-sex desires, produce personal distress and disrupt family relations
Mu Daiko: Drumming Between East And West
No full textThis ethnographic study introduces Asian American taiko group Mu Daiko (now Ensō Daiko) through a look at three members and their original compositions. The group is well known for their emphasis on movement and theatricality and developed their own unique style in the American Midwest. This case study explores how Mu Daiko continues the tradition of Asian American taiko drumming while simultaneously innovating and pushing the art form in new directions. Furthermore, I examine how Mu Daiko operates within the larger North American taiko community, their social justice mission, and how the art form engages with, and is informed by, the larger Asian American movement
