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Having a Wander through Whitechapel:Towards a Methodological Framework for a Therapeutic Urban Psychography
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Dark Patterns and Epistemic Ignorance: an Educational Crisis
Get PDFIn this paper, we discuss how online AI stimulates epistemic ignorance. Early visions of online information search and retrieval processes proposed a utopian and empowering space for individuals. Today’s crisis paradoxically presents us with an unprecedented accumulation of new information and access to it, yet also the colonisation of this knowledge by those who seek to erode critical thought. By ‘epistemic ignorance’, we mean the condition which is systematically created by the patterns of mis- and disinformation that prevent knowledge seekers from gaining verified knowledge. We argue not only has the ‘knower’ or knowledge seeker become the ‘known’ (sometimes without knowing it), their ability ‘to know’ is also intentionally manipulated by dark patterns. Moreover, their ‘known’ status allows for their subtle indoctrination, and erosion of criticality. This makes the crisis an educational one. To illustrate, we consider epistemic mechanisms on Facebook pertaining to the early stage of the Covid-19 pandemic. We contend these ‘dark AI patterns’ intentionally aim for systemic indoctrination, and affective indoctrination, by engaging in the construction of epistemic ignorance. Our focus is on the political agenda; which is common in the wider discussion of indoctrination in education. Many educational philosophers have taken a critical interest in the power of education to indoctrinate. The formal educational space is an effective vehicle to do so – and now the informal education we receive through social media is as well. Through algorithms, we are taught to think a certain way. This new crisis has not yet been considered an educational one, while in every moment, the coercive powers of online AI drive audiences towards greater uncritical acceptance of knowledge and information. Perhaps we can reverse the educational oppression with the introduction of ‘light patterns’
Interpreting the Indigenous and Imported Heritage of Medicinal and Culinary Plant Use in St. Vincent through the Gardens of John Nero and Alexander Anderson
Get PDFThis paper explores how two very different “heritage” gardens on the Caribbean island of St. Vincent hold a mirror to the rich and complex socio-cultural and botanical history of the wider Caribbean region, reflecting the different approaches to the historic cultivation and exploitation of indigenous and imported plant resources for culinary and medicinal ends. We start with a consideration of a small-scale gardening project in the village of Greiggs undertaken by John Nero, a Garifuna (“Black Carib”). This venture acts as a focus of a local community heritage and educational initiative, and attempts to reflect an emic view on the authenticity of Garifuna culinary and medicinal plant use. The second case, the botanical garden in Kingstown (one of the oldest botanical gardens in the New World and associated with the Scottish botanist Dr. Alexander Anderson d.1811) offers a distinct contrast, and is considered as a modernist, colonialist, and etic project, reflecting the botanical heritage of the Caribbean in the context of a global imperialist crossroads, and as a tool for a formalized scientific research. The two gardens differ in terms of scale, history, and cultural background but both are intimately connected to the themes of migration, colonization, resistance, and post-colonial socio-economic development seen through an ethnobotanical lens on this small and under-researched Caribbean island
Physical activity, mental health and wellbeing of adults within and during the easing of COVID-19 restrictions, in the United Kingdom and New Zealand
Get PDFPhysical activity (PA) participation was substantially reduced at the start of the COVID‐ 19 pandemic. The purpose of this study was to assess the association between PA, mental health, and wellbeing during and following the easing of COVID‐19 restrictions in the United Kingdom (UK) and New Zealand (NZ). In this study, 3363 adults completed online surveys within 2–6 weeks of initial COVID‐19 restrictions (April/May 2020) and once restrictions to human movement had been eased. Outcome measures included the International Physical Activity Questionnaire Short‐ Form, Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale‐9 (mental health) and World Health Organisation‐5 Wellbeing Index. There were no differences in PA, mental health or wellbeing between timepoints (p > 0.05). Individuals engaging in moderate or high volume of PA had significantly better mental health (−1.1 and −1.7 units, respectively) and wellbeing (11.4 and 18.6 units, respectively) than individuals who engaged in low PA (p < 0.001). Mental health was better once COVID‐19 restrictions were eased (p < 0.001). NZ had better mental health and wellbeing than the UK (p < 0.001). Participation in moderate‐to‐high volumes of PA was associated with better mental health and wellbeing, both during and following periods of COVID‐19 containment, compared to participation in low volumes of PA. Where applicable, during the current or future pandemic(s), moderate‐to‐high volumes of PA should be encouraged.</p
