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Carathéodory’s Principle and the Second Law: adiabatic comparability and irrecoverability
No full textOn the possibility of act contractualism
No full textA well-known debate in normative ethics is that between proponents of Act Consequentialism and Rule Consequentialism. Given the structural similarities between Rule Consequentialism and existing forms of Contractualism, one might expect a similar debate to arise among contractualists. However, this is not the case. Some, following T. M. Scanlon, even argue that this question is ‘misconceived’—that there is something deeply mistaken about considering the possibility of an act-based form of contractualism. In this paper, I challenge this claim. I start by showing that the structural similarities between existing contractualist views and Rule Consequentialism suggest that one could formulate an act-based version of Contractualism. This view—Act Contractualism—has received almost no attention so far. Part of the explanation why rests on the thought that justification must involve rules or principles. The idea is that, since justification involves the use of reasons, and since reasons are best expressed through general principles, there is something conceptually mistaken in thinking that a contractualist theory can do without principles. However, I contend that, even if we accept that one cannot talk about reasons without talking about principles, we can meaningfully formulate an act-based contractualist view that takes the role of principles into account. I show that this view is not extensionally equivalent to Rule Contractualism, and that it is better supported by the contractualist rationale. I conclude by calling for more work to be done on Act Contractualism
Analysing feminist foreign policy: towards the next agenda
No full textOver the past two decades an exciting and enriching theoretical and empirical debate has emerged on feminist foreign policy (FFP). However, we contend that the first wave of the debate falls short in terms of explaining the causal mechanisms that might explain why FFP rises, endures and in some cases is abandoned. In an attempt to redress this and move the debate forwards in terms of agenda, we propose bringing FFP into conversation with foreign policy analysis in relation to three key issues. Firstly, we argue that FFP scholarship should adopt an explicit conception of the state, which we contend it currently does not do. Secondly, there is value added in opening up the ‘black box’ of the state and systematically exploring the effects that both domestic political and leader-focused factors could exert on the pursuit or rejection of FFPs. Thirdly, scholarship could shift in its emphasis from the articulation to the implementation of FFPs. The next agenda of scholarship on FFP could thus contribute to a greater understanding of the drivers of decision-making, conflict and cooperation in international relations, in an era in which gender has become a flashpoint for contestation between international actors
The political economy of megaprojects in Asia: state power, land control, financial flows, and dispossession
No full textThis book offers a comprehensive analysis of how the developmental goals of Asian states are reflected in large-scale projects and how various actors both realize and challenge these goals. The rise of Asian economies has spurred the proliferation of megaprojects through large-scale resource mobilization, necessitating varying degrees of state intervention. Despite neoliberal pressures, these projects remain linked to national developmental aspirations, driven by domestic, transnational, or combined pro-growth interests, and serve multiple political purposes. The book advances the argument that megaprojects embody the dynamics of multiscalar strategic relations that determine the process and outcome of urbanization. These projects create iconic landmarks, new towns, central business districts, and infrastructure, showcasing intertwined political and economic interests. By examining contemporary megaprojects in China, South Korea, Taiwan, India, Malaysia, and Turkey, the contributing authors reveal the complexity of urbanizing forces and their multiscalar nature in shaping the built environment and shed light on the intricate interplay of state strategies, economic needs, and sociopolitical forces that influence urban landscapes. This interdisciplinary work provides a nuanced understanding of the political economy underpinning Asian urbanization and contributes to ongoing debates on urban development, state-society relations, and the production of space in the context of globalization
The golden halo of defaults in simple choices
No full textDefaults are pervasive in consumer choice. The authors combine eye-tracking laboratory experiments with cognitive modeling to pinpoint the influence of defaults in the decision process and conduct naturalistic experiments with large preregistered samples to test the limits of defaults on consumer choices. Contrary to previous assumptions, in simple binary choices, default options did not potentiate rapid heuristic-based decisions but instead altered processes of attention and valuation. Model comparison indicated that defaults received a positive boost in value—a “golden halo”—that was large enough to increase hedonic choices when the default was hedonic, but had limited effects for utilitarian defaults or for when defaults were incongruent with background goals. The findings illustrate and quantify the mechanisms through which default options shape subsequent decisions in simple choices. Further, the authors establish boundary conditions for when defaults can and cannot be used to nudge consumer choice
An information-theoretic asset pricing model
No full textWe show that a non-parametric estimate of the pricing kernel, extracted using an information-theoretic approach, delivers smaller out-of-sample pricing errors and a better cross-sectional fit than leading multi-factor models. The information stochastic discount factor (I-SDF) identifies sources of risk not captured by standard factors, generating very large annual alphas (20–37%) and Sharpe ratio (1.1). The I-SDF extracted from a wide cross-section of equity portfolios is highly positively skewed and leptokurtic, and implies that about a third of the observed risk premia represent compensation for 2.5% tail events. The I-SDF offers a powerful benchmark relative to which competing theories and investment strategies can be evaluated
Denizenship and democratic equality
No full textDemocracy is assumed to require the equal political inclusion of denizens, as sustained political inequalities between members of society seemingly undermine the democratic ideal of equal freedom. This assumption is prominently expressed by Walzer’s Principle of Political Justice, according to which democratic institutions must attribute equal political rights to denizens in order to sustain their equal protection from domination and the recognition required for free agency. This paper rejects this influential assumption. We argue that denizenship constitutes a social position in which equal freedom can be enjoyed without political inclusion on equal terms to citizens. Many denizens are citizens somewhere else, and enjoy status, rights, and protections in virtue of their external citizenship, which can protect them from domination and provide them with the recognitional basis of self-respect. The cross-border relationships between denizens and their home country, as well as between the host country and the home country, must therefore be considered when evaluating claims to political inclusion. Accepting the democratic legitimacy of the partial political inclusion of denizens allows us to focus on the most pressing political claims, such as those of refugees and stateless persons. Partial inclusion schemes can also make less restrictive immigration policies more rational and desirable for citizens
Refusing algorithmic recognition
No full textThe Black Technical Object retraces and problematizes the entanglements between technology, data and race. Ramon Amaro’s genealogy of racial sorting argues that machine learning is preconditioned by a prototypical Whiteness that relegates Black beings as objects measured against a White norm. In raising salient questions about technological, political and legal agency – which intersect with various modes of critique of algorithmic governance – I explore three main contributions the book makes to international law. First, machine learning and algorithmic decision-making are increasingly deployed in different domains of international law. The Black Technical Object speaks to emergent strands of scholarship that map how these developments reconfigure and disrupt key legal concepts and categories. Second, both the individual ‘subject’ and the collective ‘public’ of (international) law come into formation differently through these technological systems. Amaro helps us engage with these modalities of subject-making and understand their lineages and political stakes. Finally, the book provides a distinct political perspective of refusal and resistance – a refusal of recognition to resist the reinforcement of racial constructs (re)produced in the digital space
Background matters, but not whether parents are immigrants: outcomes of children born in Denmark
No full textIn Europe, the children of migrants often have worse economic outcomes than those with local-born parents. This paper shows that children born in Denmark with immigrant parents (first-generation locals) have lower earnings, higher unemployment, less education, more welfare transfers, and more criminal convictions than children with local-born parents. However, when we condition on parental socioeconomic characteristics, first-generation locals generally perform as well or slightly better than the children of locals. While children of immigrants are more likely to come from deprived backgrounds, they do not experience substantially different outcomes conditional on parental background
Four ways to feminist research praxis: lessons from practice in AI ethics and policy research
No full textBackground: The last five years have been dizzying for anyone concerned with AI policymaking and regulation. This briefing describes four ways to enact feminist research praxis in technology policy research. Analysis: Drawing on lessons from the JUST AI Network in the United Kingdom and insights from both feminist and disability studies, this study critiques and redevelops relationships between discourse, knowledge, and institutional structures. Conclusions and Implications: To transform technology policy work, we must prioritize greater reflexivity, adopt networking approaches that channel resources to less-connected actors, and establish and sustain radical groupings and relationships to produce accessible futures, even when these efforts do not yield short-term benefits