Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Money – Philosophy'

Includes abstract.
Includes bibliographical references (leaves 67-72).
This thesis examines the political idea of democratic money, within the historically specific capitalist democracy (Wood, 1995: 213), and critically evaluates counter claims to be democratizing money made by advocates of community currencies.

This thesis covers the uncertainty of empirical prediction. As opposed to objectivity, I will discuss the practicality of statistics. Practicality defined as "useful" in an unbiased sense, in relation to something in the external world that we care about. We want our model of prediction to give us unbiased inference whilst also being able to speak about something we care about. For the reasons explained, the inherent uncertainty of statistics undermines the unbiased inference for many methods. Bayesian Statistics, by valuing hypotheses is more plausible but ultimately cannot arrive at an unbiased inference. I posit the value theory of money as a concept that might be able to allow us to derive unbiased inferences from while still being something we care about. However, money is of instrumental value, ultimately being worth less than an object of “transcendental value.” Which I define as something that is worth more than money since money’s purpose is to help us achieve “transcendental value” under the value theory. Ultimately, as long as an individual has faith in a given hypothesis it will be worth more than any hypothesis valued with money. From there we undermine statistic’s practicality as it seems as though without the concept of money we have no manner of valuing hypotheses unbiasedly, and uncertainty undermines the “objective” inferences we might have been able to make.

Foucault speaks of the formation of an individual’s identity, or the process of becoming someone else, as a worthy game. For postmodernists, it is considered a life-long process of reconstruction and re-evaluation. The identities that are the focus of this research are psychiatrists, but also the self. This research follows previous post-graduate research that reflected on knowledge, power, space, surveillance, the body and organisational control. The major questions of this earlier research was; “What constituted normality in the work place and who were the arbiters of this normality” Chapter one of this work - Psychiatrists in Post-modernity, introduces the research project through the research questions, motivation for the project and the challenges to be met. Chapter two is a theoretical chapter that presents Post-modern Philosophical Perspective and discusses the history of development of post-modern thought in social research. Chapter three – History, Myth and Reality, places today’s psychiatry in Australia, in historical context. Chapter four – People, Politics and Purpose, considers the current state of mental health policy in Australia. Chapter five – Methodology and Methods, considers the methodological debate in the social sciences between qualitative and quantitative research methods. Chapter six – Outcomes and Interpretation presents an interpretation of the research interviews and discusses the connections and possible meanings of the stories told by psychiatrists, within the context of the post-modern philosophical perspective. Chapter seven – Post-modern Psychiatry considers the question: is there or can there be a post-modern psychiatry? It takes the interpretations, connections and meanings from Chapter six and locates them in the wider social context of the Australian National Mental Health Strategy

Since the late 1980s, efforts made by the international community to deal with the complex and global problem of money laundering have stimulated the creation and definition of the so-called 'international crime of money laundering', which is included in various United Nations and Council of Europe international treaties, as well as European Union Directives. The Central purpose of this thesis is to investigate if the main goal of effectiveness in the adaptation of the international crime of money laundering at the domestic level, might undermine other values that international law is seeking to protect, namely the guarantee of due process and the adequate protection of human rights principles. Then, if the adoption of any element of the crime shows to be inconsistent with civil rights and guarantees, to propose how deficiencies could be remedied.

This licentiate thesis consists of an introduction (‘kappa’) and three papers discussing various aspects of time as a commodity and the practice of valuing travel time. The first paper is an analysis of the properties of time as an economic resource taking into account literature on behavior with regard to time. The intent is to provide better understanding of the underlying assumption of transferability between time and money in the context of transportation. The second paper builds on the analysis in the first paper combined with the findings of a study of commuters travel experiences during disruptions in the train traffic on the Øresund strait between Sweden and Denmark. It contrasts the theoretical account of value of travel time with the experiences reported by commuters and argues that the view of travel time as strictly a disutility can be limiting from a planning perspective. Instead, it is argued that an alternative approach can be to make travel time ‘plannable’, meaning viewing travel time as time travellers can plan to spend in a certain way at a certain time. The third paper argues that the diversity of possible mobility solutions based on self-driving vehicles has been somewhat overlooked in the current literature on value of travel time. Thus, the complexity of valuing travel time for self-driving vehicles has not been fully addressed. The paper consists of a morphological analysis of the parameters that might impact value of travel time for self-driving vehicles and a deeper analysis of five plausible self-driving vehicle mobility concepts. It is claimed that not all such concepts can be easily mapped into transport modes and that it might be more appropriate to differentiate value of travel based on travel characteristics.
Denna licentiatavhandling består av en introduktion och treartiklar som på olika sätt berör värdering av restid. Vare sigvi vill det eller inte är vår vardag driven av och bunden av tid.Vi planerar vår tid, spenderar vår tid och stressar när tideninte räcker till. Det vi önskar, vill och måste göra tar tid; tidenvillkorar helt enkelt mycket i våra liv. Om det är så att vi villförflytta oss från en fysisk plats till en annan, kanske mellanhem och jobb eller skola, tar det tid. Den här specifika tiden,restiden, antas behövas på grund av behovet av att jobba, fikaeller handla, inte genom en önskan om att resa i sig (även omdet självklart finns resor vi gör för nöjes skull, där nöjet är självaresan). I och med att resan (och restiden) är nödvändig men intei sig önskvärd är det ett grundläggande antagande inom fältetför transportekonomi att människor vill minimera sin restid i såstor utsträckning som möjligt. Det är det här antagandet sommycket av planeringen och investeringarna i transporter grundarsig på. Genom att undersöka betalningsvilja hos resenärer kanman sätta ett monetärt värde på potentiellt insparad restid: tidblir pengar. Men är det verkligen så enkelt? Till att börja medär tid och pengar de facto inte samma sak. Vi kan inte sparatid på samma sätt som pengar utan sparad tid måste användasomedelbart. Det blir därmed rimligt att anta att vad man gör medden insparade tiden spelar roll eftersom tiden känns mer värd omden kan spenderas på något meningsfullt. Vad man har möjlighetatt göra beror ofta på sammanhanget och upplevs därför mindreflexibelt än när det gäller insparade pengar.Denna avhandling resonerar vidare kring frågor om förhållandetmellan tid och pengar, i synnerhet den vanligt förekommandeoch generellt accepterade monetära värderingen av restid. Tillviss del problematiserar avhandlingen antagandet att tid är pengar och frågar sig om inte för mycket fokus läggs på tidskvantitetframför tidskvalitet och att kan det vara värdefullt att reflekterakring vilka transportinvesteringar som detta gynnar. Syftet äratt undersöka om de vedertagna transportekonomiska modellersom tillämpas idag speglar sådant vi som samhälle värdesätteroch lyfta aspekter som möjligen förbises.Introduktionen till avhandlingen består av en metodologiskdiskussion kring filosofins roll i tvärvetenskapliga projekt, enöversiktlig teoretisk bakgrund till begrepp såsom rationalitetoch välfärdsekonomi och en genomgång av teman som på etteller annat sätt berör värdering av tid. Därefter sammanfattasartiklarna och introduktionen avslutas med slutsatser och ettavsnitt om möjliga framtida forskningsämnen.Den första artikeln i den här avhandlingen handlar om hurförhållandet mellan tid och pengar kan bättre förstås genom attutgå från tiden som det primära att värdesätta. Denna analysoch de insikter som analysen leder till kan därefter förklara ochbättre underbygga antaganden som görs vid modellering av beslutrörande tid. I artikeln analyseras egenskaper av tid i relation tillpengar som framkommit i beteendevetenskaplig och psykologiskforskning. I transportekonomi, likt traditionell mikroekonomi,utgår man från ett antagande om stabila rationella preferenser hosindivider. Givet skillnader mellan hur individer verkar resonerakring tid jämfört med pengar kan man dock ställa sig frågan omdet skulle kunna vara annorlunda att vara rationell med avseendepå tid jämfört med att vara rationell med avseende på pengar. Isynnerhet då det finns egenskaper hos tid som är så pass specifikaatt motsvarande egenskaper inte finns hos andra typer av objekteller varor. Sammantaget hävdar vi att det enkla förhållandetmellan tid och pengar inte är tillräckligt rättfärdigat i ljuset av defaktiska skillnaderna mellan tid och pengar som verkar föreligga.Den andra artikeln i avhandlingen rör upplevelser av restid ochförhållandet mellan upplevelsen och de teoretiska antagandenasom görs i transportekonomi. I artikeln analyserar vi upplevelser av restid hos resenärer som påverkades av det plötsliga införandetav identitetskontroller vid resor mellan Sverige och Danmark 2015.Mot bakgrund av en studie där upplevelserna dokumenteradesvisar vi på aspekter av restid som upplevs men inte speglas i vedertagnatransportekonomiska modeller. Artikeln delar upp dessaaspekter i tre kategorier: (i) aspekter rörande den faktiska restatiden och upplevelser av själva resan, (ii) kortsiktiga anpassningartill rådande omständigheter och (iii) långsiktiga anpassningar tillrådande omständigheter. Vi menar att restiden behöver sättasi ett vidare perspektiv genom att se resan och restiden i ettsammanhang där planering av vardagen är en förutsättning föratt få livet att gå ihop. Ett möjligt sådant perspektiv är att urplaneringssynpunkt sträva efter att göra tiden så ‘planerbar’ sommöjligt, alltså att underlätta individers långsiktiga och kortsiktigaplanering av både restid och resor, istället för att enkom serestid som onytta.I tredje artikeln tillämpas till viss del insikter om vad som skiljertid från pengar och dessa appliceras på värdering av restid försjälvkörande fordon. Värdet av restid beror traditionellt (blandannat) på transportmedel, det vill säga om resan görs med bil,buss eller tåg. Självkörande bilar har i litteraturen setts som ytterligareresslag, ofta en ny sorts bil. Vi menar dock att självkörandefordon kan mynna ut i många olika typer av transportmedel därvissa kommer att likna de vi har idag medan andra kommer attvara nya sett till resegenskaper. Givet att dessa egenskaper är relateradetill aspekter som påverkar resenärers värdering av restidkommer tiden alltså vara olika mycket värd. Värdering av restidför självkörande fordon bli därför mer komplext än att lägga tillett eller ens några ytterligare transportmedel. För att belysa dettagör vi i artikeln en så kallad morfologisk analys där vi spännerupp ett lösningsfält vi menar täcker in aspekter som påverkarvärderingen av restid för självkörande fordon. Sedan analyserarvi möjliga (och troliga) lösningar, där varje lösning motsvararett möjligt transportmedel, och menar att restidsvärdet för dessa lösningar rimligen bör skilja sig åt. Det leder oss till att föreslåatt ett alternativt sätt att segmentera restidsvärde skulle kunnavara att utgå från resegenskaper, snarare än transportmedel somsådana. Sådana resegenskaper skulle kunna vara privat/deladresa eller om resan sker efter tidtabell eller är “on-demand“.Sammanfattningsvis menar jag att monetär värdering av tidkan ses från tre perspektiv: (i) det linjära förhållandet mellan tidoch pengar som sådant, (ii) aggregeringen av individers insparaderestid till faktisk samhällsnytta och (iii) restidsförkortningarsplats i kostnadsnyttoanalys och transportplanering i allmänhet.Transportinvesteringar görs på lång sikt och de samhällsekonomiskakalkyler som ligger till grund för dessa investeringar behöverdärmed spegla både vårt förhållande till tid idag men även hur vikommer att förhålla oss till tiden i framtiden. Rimligen kommervi då ha lika mycket tid som idag, men kommer vårt förhållandetill tid vara detsamma?Slutligen föreslår jag i avhandlingen möjliga framtida temanatt undersöka vidare, såsom transporträttvisa, aggregering avväldigt små restidsvinster och förhållandet mellan risker ochtidsvinster.

QC 20200819

Orientador: Rosangela Ballini
Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Economia
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Resumo: Nesta tese buscamos compreender aspectos das dinâmicas dos fenômenos da aceitabilidade da moeda, da estrutura de taxas de juros e do processo inflacionário utilizando a abordagem dos sistemas dinâmicos complexos. Nossa justificativa é que o comportamento dos agentes econômicos ocorre de forma descentralizada e, ao menos em parte, delimitado por uma estrutura funcional que, por sua vez, também é sujeita a variação ao longo do tempo. Portanto, nossa abordagem deve considerar um fenômeno em processo e sujeito a não-linearidades. A tese está dividida em cinco capítulos. No primeiro nós expomos conceitos gerais sobre sistemas dinâmicos complexos, auto-organização, modelos baseados em agentes e lógica fuzzy e conjuntos probabilísticos. Explicitamos, assim, as características que atribuímos aos fenômenos estudados e o método empregado para análise. No segundo capítulo nós oferecemos uma teoria em processo para a emergência da aceitabilidade generalizada de uma moeda, assim como dois modelos para a demonstração das possibilidades deste processo. No terceiro capítulo nós observamos estudos sobre a dinâmica da estrutura das taxas de juros e sugerimos uma explicação para a diferença empiricamente observada entre a dinâmica das taxas de juros de curto e longo prazo. No quarto capítulo nós realizamos um estudo sobre a volatilidade e a persistência na série de variações percentuais do Índice de Preços ao Consumidor dos Estados Unidos. No capítulo final nós comparamos a abordagem do processo inflacionário da chamada nova síntese neoclássica com um modelo de dinâmica de preços fora do equilíbrio
Abstract: In this thesis we aim to understand aspects of the dynamics of the phenomena of the acceptability of the money, of the structure of interest rates and of the inflationary process using the approach of complex dynamic systems. Our explanation is that the behavior of the economic occurs in a decentralized manner, and at least partially delimited by a functional structure which, in turn, is also subject to variation over time. Therefore, our approach should consider a phenomenon in the process and subject to the nonlinearities. The thesis is divided into five chapters. At first chapter we expose the general concepts about complex dynamic systems, self-organization, agent-based models and fuzzy logic and probabilistic sets. Made explicit, so the characteristics we attribute to the phenomena studied and the analysis method. In the second chapter we offer a theory in process for the emergence of generalized acceptance of money, as well as two models for demonstrating the possibilities of this process. In the third chapter we observe dynamics studies of the structure of interest rates and suggest an explanation for the empirically observed differences between the dynamics of interest rates for short and long term. In the fourth chapter we perform a study on the volatility and persistence in the series of percentage changes in the Consumer Price Index of the United States. In the final chapter we compare the approach of the inflationary process of the so-called new neoclassical synthesis with a model of price dynamics out of balance
Doutorado
Teoria Economica
Doutor em Ciências Econômicas

Étude de la pensée philosophique et religieuse de Lamarck à propos de ses conceptions relatives à l'évolution du vivant. L’aspect religieux de sa pensée apparait plus précisément à travers les catégories métaphysiques abstraites de sa recherche explicative: la connaissance, la causalité (causalité accessible à l'expérience et finalité), le temps, la vie qui constituent les fondements d'intelligibilité du créé. Lamarck appréhende le monde vivant selon une progression de complexité et une diversification des formes au cours du temps, le temps cosmique étant à une échelle incommensurable par rapport à celle du temps biologique, ce qui rend les changements des formes biologiques imperceptibles. Pour Lamarck, les facteurs de transformation résident dans la transmission des caractères acquis associée à l'influence des circonstances, et dans un pouvoir de progression inhérent à la nature du vivant. Sa réflexion philosophique manifeste sa croyance en un créateur premier, en un au-delà du créé, en l'existence chez l'homme d'une âme immortelle parce qu'immatérielle. Pour lui, un principe métaphysique est la raison de l'organisation des conditionnements physiques en unités biologiques. Ainsi, Lamarck rejette le métaphysique dans l'observation empirique du savant qui ne s'intéresse qu'aux conditions physiques du fonctionnement des êtres, mais il pose sa réalité comme principe constitutif de l'essence des êtres dont il est le principe d'intégration des facteurs matériels multiples et divers en unités fonctionnelles vivantes. Cette réflexion à deux niveaux sur la réalité biologique constitue une ambiguïté de la pensée lamarckienne. Le thème principal de notre conclusion est de dégager la signification philosophique du "matérialisme" de Lamarck. Nous avons été conduite à qualifier sa pensée de "dualiste" puisque sa conception de l'être existant inclut simultanément les deux aspects sensible et spirituel, mais à deux plans différents du réel.

Qu'est-ce que le « milieu »? Que nous dit le milieu que ne nous dit ni l'espace, ni l'environnement, ni le monde? Etymologie signifiante que celle qui lie Ventre à l'autour, histoire problématique que celle d'un terme qui se retourne contre lui-même, contre ses origines physiques, au nom de l'irréductibilité du vivant dans sa relation constituante à son milieu. Une relation à la différence d'un rapport, présuppose que les termes mis en relation ne préexistent pas à leur mise en relation ; inutile donc de chercher qui de l'homme ou de son milieu détermine l'autre. Qu'est-ce qu'un individu vivant? Qu'est-ce qu'être en relation! Qu'est-ce qu'être-au-mz7/£w? La thèse proposée suppose que ces trois questions n'en sont qu'une. Le « mi-lieu », en tant qu'il désigne l'ambivalence de l'entre-deux, ne dit pas seulement quelque chose du vivant, il dit quelque chose de la philosophie. Contre ses âmes impatientes et sans histoire, trop pressées d'en finir avec les dualismes métaphysiques, nous voudrions montrer qu'il n'y a pas d'autre moyen de sortir du Deux que de s'y loger entre, au mi-lieu. Il faudra d'abord se rendre sensible à la prégnance du mi-lieu dans quelques textes canoniques, il faudra ensuite proposer une histoire du milieu, étant entendu que l'idée n'est pas le mot, ni le mot l'idée. Le nœud de l'analyse se concentrera sur le passage, devenu rupture, de la physique à la biologie. Il faudra être attentif à ce qu'on a pu nommer le Grand Dualisme du Monde et de la Vie. Faut-il s'y résigner?
What is the « milieu »? What more is there to the milieu than to space, to the environment, and to the world? The etymology that connects the "between" to the "around" is significant, as is problematic the history of a word that turns against its own self, against its physical origins, in the name of the irreducibility of the living being in its constituent relation to its milieu. A relation, as opposed to a link, presupposes that the terms brought into relation do not preexist to the interaction. It is therefore useless to seek who, of man or his milieu, determines the other. What is a living individual? What does it mean "being in relation"? What does it mean "being-to-the milieu"! This thesis assumes that these three questions are one. The "mi-lieu", designating the ambivalence of the "in-between", does not only speak of the living being, it also speaks of philosophy. Against the impatient souls without history rushing to put an end to metaphysical dualisms, we would like to show that there is no way out of the Two, other than to put oneself in between, in the mi-lieu (medium). At first, we will appreciate the pregnancy of the mi-lieu in some canonical texts. Then, we will propose a history of the milieu, given that the concept is not the word, and the word is not the concept. The core of the analysis lies in the transition, which became a breakdown, from physics to biology. Special attention will be given to what has been called the Great Dualism of the World and of Life. Do we have to surrender to it?

Le lieu fait l'objet de multiples recherches en architecture. L'histoire et la théorie de l'architecture nous montrent les changements de sens et d'importance à différentes époques de ce concept. Cette thèse propose une relecture du concept du lieu dans l'architecture contemporaine à travers les œuvres de Rafael Moneo et de Jacques Herzog & Pierre de Meuron. Le but est de montrer de quelle manière le bâti révèle et construit le lieu. Pour ce faire, sous le titre "Le lieu, une définition problématique", nous avons présenté les distinctions de lieu, de site, de paysage, de l'espace etc. Ainsi que les termes directement liés au lieu. Ensuite, les références théoriques ont été rassemblées sous le titre "Sur la théorie du lieu", à travers les auteurs comme Heidegger, Norberg-Schulz, Lynch, Ando, Gregotti, Rossi, Semper, Frampton etc. Nous avons résumé les idées principales pour chercher à constituer un corpus de notions aptes à travailler sur et par le lieu. A partir d'une revue de la littérature existante, nous avons choisi d'expliciter la construction du lieu dans l'architecture contemporaine. L'analyse des projets des architectes prenant en compte le lieu fut un moyen de révéler et de comprendre les processus à l'œuvre "Sur la construction du lieu". Cette partie fut divisée en deux chapitres complémentaires, l'un concernant les travaux de Moneo et l'autre ceux de Herzog et de Meuron. Elle étudie la dimension opératoire du sujet dans la discipline de l'architecture. Ainsi, l'approche consistant à mobiliser l'architecture contemporaine pour relire le lieu met en évidence l'existence d'un lien entre architecte et lieu, et une variabilité des rapports des matériaux à l'œuvre
The place is an object for research in architecture. Both history and architectural theory have shown that the meaning of place has changed over the history at different times. The thesis proposes a new approach to the study of place in contemporary architecture through the works of Rafael Moneo and Jacques Herzog & Pierre de Meuron. Our goal is to show how architecture reveals and constructs the place. For that purpose, under the title "The place, a problematic definition", we present the distinction between place, site, landscape and space as well as the terminology directly related to the place. Next, under "On the theory of place", a summary of our background research on authors such as Heidegger, Norberg-Schulz, Lynch, Ando, Gregotti, Rossi, Semper, Frampton etc. Is presented. We have summarized the main ideas of these theoreticians in order to constitute a corpus of concepts ready to work on and with the place. After reconsidering the literature, a choice has been made to explain the current relation between the contemporary architecture and the construction of the place. The analysis of the architects' projects is a way to reveal and understand the processes to work "On the Construction of the Place". This part is divided into two complementary chapters; one focusing on the work of Moneo and the other on the work of Herzog and Meuron. The part studies the operational dimension of the subject through the discipline of architecture. Therefore, the approach to use contemporary architecture as a vehicle to understand the concept of place showed the existence of a link between the architect and the place and a diversity of relationship between chosen materials

Les analyses développées dans cette thèse de doctorat visent à mettre en évidence le rôle éminemment politique de la monnaie. À la différence de ce que soutient la doxa néoclassique, la monnaie n'est pas neutre du point de vue économico-politique. Elle matérialise des rapports de force qui traversent toute la société et qui s’avèrent riches d’implications variées.La recherche se divise en trois parties : « Argent et capitalisme », « Argent et néocapitalisme », « Argent et postcapitalisme ». Elles sont précédées par une préface, dans laquelle j’expose ma démarche épistémologique, et par une introduction ontologique, dans laquelle je me place du point de vue de la projectualité sociétale de subjectivités qui luttent pour réinventer l’argent en fonction de leurs besoins et de leurs exigences. La première partie de la thèse, à travers une analyse croisée de l’oeuvre de Marx, de Simmel et de Keynes, se focalise sur les caractéristiques principales de la monnaie capitaliste : outil de domination, facteur de mobilisation des passions et vecteur de transformation sociale. La deuxième partie explore les aspects cruciaux de la crise néocapitaliste : le redéploiement global du régime d’accumulation, la financiarisation de la vie quotidienne et l’institution de l’euro. La troisième partie, après avoir envisagé les conditions d’une transition postcapitaliste, examine deux pratiques susceptibles de déclencher des processus nouveaux de subjectivation politique : les revendications d’un revenu social garanti et les expérimentations de circuits monétaires complémentaires. Les conclusions sociopolitiques esquissent enfin quelques pistes qui visent à articuler une théorie générale des monnaies du commun
The analyses developed in my doctoral dissertation intend to stress the eminently political function played by money. Unlike neoclassic economic theory, I argue that currency is not neutral in economic and political terms. It materializes the power relationships that influence society, producing effects of different nature. The research consists of three parts: “Money and capitalism”, “Money and neocapitalism”, “Money and postcapitalism”. They are introduced by a preface in which I present my epistemological approach and by an ontological introduction, in which I focus on the social projects of the subjectivities who struggle to reinvent money adapting it to their needs. The first part of the dissertation, through a reading of the works of Marx, Simmel and Keynes, focuses on the main features of capitalist money: a tool for domination, a mobiliser of passions and a vector of social transformation. The second part explores some key elements of the crisis of neocapitalism: the global redeployment of the regime of accumulation, financialization of everyday life and the institution of euro. The third part, after an evaluation of the conditions of postcapitalistic transition, examines two practices capable to trigger original processes of political subjectivation: claims for a guaranteed social income and experimenting complementary monetary circuits. Finally, in the socio-political conclusions I delineate some paths in order to articulate a general theory of the common’s coins

The contemporary society of the United States of America is becoming an increasingly stressful environment to live in. Our rapid advances and developments in virtual, electronic, and high-speed technology have led us to a lifestyle that operates more quickly. However, our attachment to such a face-paced lifestyle has unfortunately led us towards an increasingly stressful lifestyle. This research focuses on identifying our current society's perceptual outlook and illustrating how the practice of mindfulness can help reduce the anxieties, struggles, and mental flaws which cloud our perception. The intent of this thesis is to show how the practice of mindfulness is beneficial towards our mental health. The practice of mindfulness originated within the Buddhist tradition and has evolved into a new area of interest in the fields of mental health, psychology, philosophy, and humanities. Also, the connection between the practice of mindfulness, and the practice of authentic creativity, as demonstrated in playing the piano, is illuminated within this research. Authentic creativity thus serves as an enlightening metaphor for the elusive practice of mindfulness, and creates a more vivid understanding of the concept of mindfulness. For this thesis I have conducted a literature review in the areas of philosophy, religion, aesthetics and cognitive science. Also, I am actively participating in my research by personally practicing mindfulness and piano. Part of my methodology involves critical thinking on the personal level as I am writing journal entries about my views and thoughts concerning these processes.
B.A.
Bachelors
Arts and Humanities
Humanities

My dissertation offers an advancement of the Marxian theory of money, motivated by a methodological critique of monetary theory in general. As such, my dissertation is located within the philosophy and methodology of economics and the history of monetary thought, in addition to Marxian political economy. This intermingling of fields reflects both my research interests and my argument with respect to the current state of scholarship on Marx and money. Despite increasing acceptance of the compatibility of non-commodity money and Marxian political economy, a dualist social ontology has stunted attempts to theorize the relationship between money, value, and class. I base my development of a Marxian theory of money in a rejection of this dualism. In other words, I contribute a theoretical analysis of the relationship between money, value, and class informed by a critique of these dualist notions of economic reality. Accepting criticism, leveled by Keynesians among others, of the tendency to reduce money to the status of a mere veil, I further argue that the ontological privileging of a real economy over its monetary moments is prevalent across time and paradigms. This dichotomy between real economy and less-real money, which I call the \emph{realist dualism}, is thus more general than the classical dichotomy. As such, even fervent opponents of the classical dichotomy may reproduce their own ontological dualism between the real and merely monetary. After outlining the basic features and theoretical consequences of the realist dualism, I present examples of how this philosophical tendency shapes monetary theory and debate, both ancient and modern. Within the Marxian tradition, dependence on such a dualism has impeded attempts to theorize money in its relation to both (1) the economy in general and (2) its own manifold forms and functions. The distinction between real and less-real on a macroeconomic scale is repeated within the conceptualization of money itself, privileging real commodity money over symbolic and imaginary forms. I provide an alternative to this tendency, based on an overdeterminist understanding of the relationships between so-called imaginary, symbolic, and real/material aspects of money. This alternative ontology informs a critical and deconstructive reading of money within the Marxian tradition and a reframing of the problem of non-commodity money. In lieu of deriving a theory of non-commodity money from a logically and historically privileged notion of real commodity money, my general Marxian theory of money takes as its object the interaction between (1) the imaginary, symbolic, and real/material dimensions inherent to money in general and (2) class processes of value production, appropriation, and distribution. This project accepts that a specifically Marxian theory of money is not produced from the logic of supposedly real commodity money, but through the entry point of class.

碩士
醒吾科技大學
行銷與流通管理系所
104
Unethical sale tactics can easily occur in the marketing arena, such as exaggerating the features and benefits, not offering information, making verbal promises, announcing future price increasing, offering monetary bribe. Money was found to represent one’s achievement in society and is a symbol of success. If money is important to individuals, they are more likely to engage in unethical behavior. In addition, Moral philosophy essentially refers to the overall guiding ideology that individuals employ in viewing situations as right or wrong. Individuals’ moral philosophies, in turn, putatively influence their moral judgments. Due to students will be salespeople after graduate, it is essential to explore the students’ money value, moral philosophy, and ethical judgments regarding unethical sale tactics. The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of money value and moral philosophy on unethical sale tactics. Data were collected by questionnaire from a convenience sample of 470 students at H University in Taiwan. Data were analyzed by descriptive statistics, reliability and validity analysis as well as structure equation model (SEM) through SPSS /AMOS version 21.0 for windows. The findings show that money value has significantly positive influence on unethical sale tactics, especially for the students view money as a factor of success. Idealism has significantly negative influence on unethical sale tactics. However, relativism has no significant influence on unethical sale tactics. In addition, the male students are more likely to engage in unethical sale tactics than female students do. These findings can be references for management to plan appropriate activities to enhance corporate culture, and in turn to improve competitive advantages. In addition, the findings can also be references for educators to design appropriate courses and programs to enhance students’ the right money value, moral philosophy as well as the right marketing skills.

Ce mémoire a pour but de miner le projet libertarien d'une défense de la structure de la propriété libérale basée sur le principe de propriété de soi. Loin de nier le concept de propriété de soi, nous adoptons le principe associé à la pensée libertarienne et démontrons que l'adoption d'un tel principe nous mène à la restructuration du concept de propriété vers un concept qui est cohérent avec les valeurs égalitaristes et démocratiques. Nous espérons, ceci faisant, pouvoir montrer l'incohérence du projet libertarien, et fournir les outils nécessaires afin que les égalitaristes puissent défendre leurs idées en terrain libertarien.
The purpose of this thesis is to try and undermine the libertarian project of defending the liberal structure of ownership through its use of the principle of self-ownership. Far from denying the concept of self-ownership, we adopt the principle associated with libertarian thought and show that the adoption of such a principle leads us to a restructuring of the concept of ownership towards one that is coherent with egalitarian and democratic values. We hope that, by doing so, we are able to show the incoherence within libertarianism and give the tools necessary for egalitarians to defend their ideas on libertarian grounds.

Lifestyle sport has become a significant sociological phenomenon, with millions participating worldwide. Using windsurfing as a case study, this thesis focuses on core members of this subculture to discover their motivations for involvement and the degree to which they are willing to sacrifice other areas of their lives in order to participate. The thesis explores the contention that this level of sacrifice amounts to resistance to the dominant consumerist culture of our society. The study examines the way subculture members manifest an embodied critique of urban experience that takes place outside of that environment in natural spaces, using time that consumerist imperatives would have them in the earn-spend spiral dictated by that ideology. It does this through a twelve month ethnographic study, with the author as a complete participant, then as a participant observer, completing formal interviews with a number of selected core members of the subculture. Through interviewing and observation it became clear that it is only possible for subculture members to participate through the consumption of considerable quantities of the material objects associated with the activity. This means that participants are resisting consumerist culture through the consumption of consumer goods. This contradiction goes to the heart of the ways that consumerist ideology co-opts resistant behaviour. The study shows that windsurfers are resistant to consumerism in a number of ways. The rejection of traditional sporting values, the use of time in opposition to dominant practices, the rejection of wealth as the primary measure of success, and resisting cultural expectations are all manifestations of this resistance. The niche visual media of the subculture creates a dreamworld of natural perfection and freedom. The way that the visual culture mediates the paradox central to my thesis is by valourising a lifestyle, and those who adopt it, rather than selling consumer goods.

This study analyzes the experience of alienation from family and culture as portrayed in the personal narratives of francophone women. The authors appearing in this study are Assia Djebar and Marie Cardinal, from Algeria, Mariama Bâ and Ken Bugul, from Senegal, Marguerite Duras and Kim Lefèvre, from Vietnam, Calixthe Beyala, from Cameroon, Gabrielle Roy, from Canada, and Maryse Condé, from Guadeloupe. Alienation is deconstructed into the domains of blood, money, land, religion, education and history. The authors’ experiences of alienation in each domain are classified according to severity and cultural normativity. The study seeks to determine the manner in which alienation manifests in each domain, and to identify factors which aid or hinder recovery. Alienation in the domain of blood occurs as a result of warfare, illness, racism, ancestral trauma, and the rites of passage of menarche, loss of virginity, and menopause. Money-related alienation is linked to endemic classism, often caused by colonial influence. The authors experienced varying degrees of economic vulnerability to men, depending upon cultural and familial norms. Colonialism, warfare and environmental depending upon cultural and familial norms. Colonialism, warfare and environmental degradation all contribute to alienation in the domain of land. Women were found to be more susceptible to alienation in the domain of religion due to patriarchal religious constructs. In the domain of education, it was found that some alienation is inevitable for all students. Despite its inherent drawbacks, education provides tools for empowerment which are crucial for overcoming alienation. Alienation in the domain of history was found to hinder recovery due to infiltration of past trauma into the present, while empowerment in this domain fosters optimism and future-oriented thinking. Each domain offers opportunities for empowerment, and it is necessary to work within the domains to create a safe haven for recovery. Eight of the nine authors experienced at least a partial recovery from alienation. This was accomplished via cathartic release of negative emotions. Catharsis is achieved by shedding tears, talking, or writing about the negative experiences. The personal narrative was found to be especially helpful in promoting healing both for the author and the reading audience.
Classics and World Languages
D. Litt. et Phil. (French)

American jurisprudence currently applies two incompatible validity standards to determine which laws are enforceable. The natural law tradition evaluates validity by an uncertain standard of divine law, and its methodology relies on contradictory views of human reason. Legal positivism, on the other hand, relies on a methodology that commits the analytic fallacy, separates law from its application, and produces an incomplete model of law. These incompatible standards have created a schism in American jurisprudence that impairs the delivery of justice. This dissertation therefore formulates a new standard for legal validity. This new standard rejects the uncertainties and inconsistencies inherent in natural law theory. It also rejects the narrow linguistic methodology of legal positivism. In their stead, this dissertation adopts a pragmatic methodology that develops a standard for legal validity based on actual legal experience. This approach focuses on the operations of law and its effects upon ongoing human activities, and it evaluates legal principles by applying the experimental method to the social consequences they produce. Because legal history provides a long record of past experimentation with legal principles, legal history is an essential feature of this method. This new validity standard contains three principles. The principle of reason requires legal systems to respect every subject as a rational creature with a free will. The principle of reason also requires procedural due process to protect against the punishment of the innocent and the tyranny of the majority. Legal systems that respect their subjects' status as rational creatures with free wills permit their subjects to orient their own behavior. The principle of reason therefore requires substantive due process to ensure that laws provide dependable guideposts to individuals in orienting their behavior. The principle of consent recognizes that the legitimacy of law derives from the consent of those subject to its power. Common law custom, the doctrine of stare decisis, and legislation sanctioned by the subjects' legitimate representatives all evidence consent. The principle of autonomy establishes the authority of law. Laws must wield supremacy over political rulers, and political rulers must be subject to the same laws as other citizens. Political rulers may not arbitrarily alter the law to accord to their will. Legal history demonstrates that, in the absence of a validity standard based on these principles, legal systems will not treat their subjects as ends in themselves. They will inevitably treat their subjects as mere means to other ends. Once laws do this, men have no rest from evil.