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This paper presents a new method for generating artworks that extends the classical anamorphic archetype to use freeform reflective and refractive media and 3D surfaces instead of images. The methodology uses a mix of raytracing and surface deformation techniques to determine the proper deformation the object should undergo to be corrected by the optical tool once viewed by the observer in a specific location. Our approach also includes an optimization process that modifies the point of view and the location of the target image to avoid unwanted optical effects or occlusions. We successfully tested our technique on several practical examples and employed it to produce actual artworks. • A new method to construct anamorphic sculptures using general optical media. • Characterized the main problems arising in general anamorphosis. • A simple system to allow the artist to create anamorphic art installations. • We created real-world art installations in international exhibitions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Biopiracy has usually been discussed mostly in the context of the life sciences, sometimes in dialogue with legal debates or political implications. This paper provides a humanities perspective on contemporary discussions of biopiracy and biopatenting.Hypothesis: It proceeds from the hypothesis that contemporary debates and practices of biopiracy can be understood as harking back to colonial legacies, which systematically disregard "native" knowledge or seek to appropriate it for their own purposes.Results: Drawing on the work of Vandana Shiva, the present article seeks to redefine the notion of ownership of knowledge from a cultural studies perspective. Exploring the 2016 documentary film Seed: The Untold Story, it analyses counter-discourses to practices of biopiracy.Conclusion: The paper concludes that given the roots of biopiracy in colonial legacies, forms of resistance may need to appropriate colonialist epistemologies. One example of such appropriation is Vandana Shiva's own campaign, which casts seed ownership in the imagery and rhetoric of Mahatma Gandhi's fight against British colonialism in India. Finally, the article ends by suggesting that issues of biopiracy need to be seen in larger context. Drawing on the work of cultural philosopher Hans-Ulrich Gumbrecht, it argues that the problem of the twenty-first century may be a scramble for natural resources such as the right for clean water. Biopiracy is hence far from a debate linked only to specific cases in particular locales, but is part of a global epistemological and political framework, which has systematically disenfranchised communities of color and countries of the global South. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper provides an overview of recent research and publications on the integration of research data in Current Research Information Systems (CRIS) and addresses three related issues, i.e. the object of evaluation, identifier schemes and conservation. Our focus is on social sciences and humanities. As research data gradually become a crucial topic of scientific communication and evaluation, current research information systems must be able to consider and manage the great variety and granularity levels of data as sources and results of scientific research. More empirical and moreover conceptual work is needed to increase our understanding of the reality of research data and the way they can and should be used for the needs and objectives of research evaluation. The paper contributes to the debate on the evaluation of research data, especially in the environment of open science and open data, and will be helpful in implementing CRIS and research data policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on nuclear technologies has been largely driven by a detachment of the 'technical content' from the 'social context'. However, social studies of science and technology - also for the nuclear domain – emphasize that 'the social' and 'the technical' dimensions of technology development are inter-related and co-produced. In an effort to create links between nuclear research and innovation and society in mutually beneficial ways, the Belgian Nuclear Research Centre started fifteen years ago a ‘Programme of Integration of Social Aspects into nuclear research’ (PISA). In line with broader science-policy agendas (responsible research and innovation and technology assessment), this paper argues that the importance of such programmes is threefold. First, their multi-disciplinary basis and participatory character contribute to a better understanding of the interactions between science, technology and society, in general, and the complexity of nuclear technology assessment in particular. Second, their functioning as (self -)critical policy supportive research with outreach to society is an essential prerequisite for policies aiming at generating societal trust in the context of controversial issues related to nuclear technologies and exposure to ionising radiation. Third, such programmes create an enriching dynamic in the organisation itself, stimulating collective learning and transdisciplinarity. The paper illustrates with concrete examples these claims and concludes by discussing some key challenges that researchers face while engaging in work of this kind. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past half century, how we conceive of design research has changed significantly, as indeed have the boundaries of influence of the design profession. This paper takes an entirely personal perspective of the author and will discuss the change in the nature of design research through the lens of a career in design education and, especially, in the author's endeavours to develop design research as a respected discipline working with and alongside, science, social sciences and the arts and humanities. It will look at the social, economic and political drivers that have influenced design research in the UK but also globally, and at where this has taken design, in terms of research both within and beyond the design profession. • Traces developmental moves in design research. • Design research has moved from process and methods to systems and services. • Design research has moved from disciplines to challenges. • Design research can help us address complex global and local challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In this paper we apply an Environmental Extended Input–Output (EEIO) model to calculate the Carbon Footprint (CF) of the Norwegian University of Technology and Science (NTNU). Results show that the CF of NTNU is very significant with an average contribution of 4.6 tonnes per student. In particular, the purchase of large amounts of equipment and consumables for scientific use is found to be an important contributor to this. In the paper we also derive per-department CFs, enabled by the standardized structure of the financial accounting system used by the university. Results show large variations in the CF of the different faculties. Social Science and Humanities have a significantly lower CF per student compared to Natural Science, Engineering, and, in particular, the Faculty of Medicine. The single most important CF contributing input to the university is, however, allocated to the property department regarding the use of energy and other building related activities. Also, the CF structures of the departments/faculties show large differences that indicate that different mitigation strategies are needed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper considers how epistemic analyses (Birkin and Polesie, 2011; Foucault, 1970, 1990a, 1990b) may assist with the development of sustainability economics (Bartelmus, 2010; Baumgärtner and Quaas, 2010a, 2010b; and Söderbaum, 2011) and the capability approach (Ballet et al., 2011; Martins, 2011; Rauschmayer and Leßmann, 2011; Scerri, 2012). It was the French social theorist Michel Foucault (1926–1984) who coined the term “episteme” to refer to the “possibility of knowledge” that determines the development of thought and knowledge in a given period. For Foucault epistemes were the “buried” foundations of knowledge that his epistemic “archaeology” could unearth. In 2007, Foucault was identified as the most cited author of books in the humanities by Thomson Reuters' ISI Web of Science. This paper begins with a brief definition and description of epistemic analyses. A summary analysis of the Modern episteme and neoclassical economics is then provided and this is followed by outline evidence for the emerging episteme. Finally the opportunity is considered for the emerging episteme to reinforce and enhance sustainability economics and the capability approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract This paper proposes transparency and reflexivity as two principles to be incorporated in initiatives wherein data from multiple national contexts are integrated. The necessity of these principles is derived from an ongoing study tasked with identifying and describing national bibliographic databases for research output within the social sciences and humanities (SSH) in Europe. The study is carried out within the context of the COST Action "European Network for Research Evaluation in Social Sciences and Humanities" (ENRESSH). Within ENRESSH, it is emphasised that national bibliographic databases can be instrumental in enhancing the visibility of research within SSH. Hence, one of the aims of ENRESSH is to identify and describe currently existing databases and eventually design a roadmap for a European database that would include data on research output within SSH from different European countries. The study shows that there are considerable challenges in merely acquiring a basic description of the content of databases embedded in different national contexts. To make sense of the content it is necessary to acknowledge the role of context in information systems. Emphasising context, as will be shown, it is possible to elucidate the nature of the encountered challenges as well as to highlight aspects to be incorporated in designs of research information systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The German science and higher education system is characterized by federalism, multi-level governance and interwoven regulatory competences of different levels of government. Establishing binding standards and harmonized policies for German higher education institutions and non-university research institutions is a complex task that requires concerted action and co-operation between the federal and state governments. In 2013, the German Council of Science and Humanities recognized the need for research information (RI) standards in order to reduce the efforts in and to create an incentive for optimized RI management as well as to enhance the quality and informative value of RI. For this reason, the science council issued recommendations that called for the specification of the so-called research core dataset (RCD) – a set of standard definitions and concepts as well as data formats for RI – and recommended its (voluntary) implementation in the German science system in 2016. This paper is intended as a descriptive case report with the aim to provide insights from a national standardization project and to share experiences made during this project. Particular emphasis is on the support structures currently in place to facilitate the dissemination and implementation of the RCD in the federal and multi-level governed German science system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper submits the philosophical case for establishing ‘technosphere science’ that draws on results of many other disciplines, reaching from physics to the social sciences and humanities. I present claims about the type of entities that are studied by technosphere science and their causal relationships, and introduce central organizing concepts, such as ‘information’ and ‘function’. Agency is no longer seen as a property exclusive to humans, but as being distributed in networks of ontologically diverse entities. Technosphere science draws on various uses of the concept of ‘networks’ across disciplines, such as scaling laws and builds on a universal evolutionary framework that generalizes over biological evolution. In this perspective, the economy is the medium by which human action becomes functional relative to the reproduction and growth of the technosphere. I conclude with showing how human autonomy and ethical commitments remain possible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The European Reference Index for the Humanities and the Social Sciences (ERIH PLUS) may provide national and institutional CRIS systems with a well-defined, standardized and dynamic register of scholarly journals and series in the social sciences and humanities. The register goes beyond the coverage in commercial indexing services to provide a basis for standardizing the bibliographic data and making them available and comparable across different CRIS systems. The aims and organization of the ERIH PLUS project is presented for the first time at an international conference in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Growing evidence that human societies are on an unsustainable development path has led to widespread calls for a better understanding of the complex dynamics of the human–Earth system. The generation of such an understanding is a considerable challenge. It requires a substantial collaborative effort by a wide range of researchers from the natural and social sciences, engineering, the humanities, and the wider community. The extent to which the participants in this transdisciplinary endeavour manage to create shared understandings will be a critical factor in determining their eventual success. It will set a fundamental limit on their ability to communicate with one another, and hence the degree of integration that they can achieve. It will determine the usefulness of the insights that emerge from their efforts. In this paper it is suggested that the identification of ‘powerful ideas’, fundamental concepts that are both simple and generic, is an effective way to proceed. Empirical evidence from cognitive science and basic insights from information theory provide a framework for a discussion of the nature of such ideas, and of a practical approach to their formulation. It is argued that the collaborative construction of powerful ideas constitutes an efficient form of ‘focused dialogue’ that can support the rapid development of the required shared understandings. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Conflict and chaos are prevalent in health care, and perhaps especially in palliative care. Typically, our point of entry into our patients'' lives is often at the moment of conflict, discord, or intense suffering. Despite this, little in our formal training as clinicians teaches us how to be present for this suffering. Much has been written about the process of communication with regard to giving bad news, handling family meeting conflicts, and negotiating shifting goals of care, but little has been addressed about how to train the clinician to be present with the dissonance and suffering. In this paper, we explore how music, art, and literature teach us how to stay in moments of tension. In turn, lessons on how to learn to lean into the dissonance of many palliative care encounters are extrapolated. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper establishes the foundation of new systems’ Consolidity Theory using the Arithmetic Fuzzy Logic-Based Representation approach for investigating the internal behavior of systems operating in fully fuzzy environment. Consolidated systems are defined as being stable at the original state, but due to fuzzy variations in their inputs or parameters tend to react accordingly in a manner leading to maintaining their consolidity and strength, or vice versa. Under the new theory, systems are classified into consolidated, neutrally consolidated or unconsolidated type based on their output fuzziness reaction to combined input and parameters fuzziness action. The systems’ Consolidity Theory is demonstrated by several examples of mathematical functions of different dimensionalities, control theory and Predator-Prey populations’ dynamics. The suggested Consolidity Theory is illustrated to be an effective tool for revealing the inner property of systems and predicting their hidden behavior when operating in fully fuzzy environment. Monitoring and control of systems’ consolidity through forward and backward fuzziness tracking are suggested during systems’ operation, for avoiding their drifting to possible unwanted unconsolidated domains. It is shown that the analysis will lead at the end to determining the system’s consolidity index that could be regarded as a general basic internal property of the system. Such systems’ consolidity concept can also be defined far from fuzzy logic, and is applicable to the analysis and design of various types of linear, nonlinear, multivariable, dynamic, etc., systems in real life in the fields of basic sciences, evolutionary systems, engineering, biology, medicine, economics, finance, political and management sciences, social sciences, humanities, and education. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Recently, the scenario of international collaboration in scientific research has swiftly evolved with the gradual but impressive deployment of high bandwidth networks and Grid infrastructures towards what is currently called e-Science. So far, several scientific domains, such as Life Sciences, High Energy Physics, Computational Chemistry, Earth Science, etc. are benefiting of e-Infrastructures to tackle new global challenges, particularly those that have high societal and economic impact, with a truly multidisciplinary approach. Much less has been done, however, in the field of Humanities. In this paper we present some use cases of how the EU funded e-Infrastructures have been used to support both the Cultural Heritage community in reconstructing the sound of ancient musical instruments and the scientists belonging to the Earth Science domain to better understand the behavior of volcanoes close to eruptions translating the patterns of volcanic seismograms into a set of hearable sound waves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While economic and environmental aspects of civil engineering have attracted the greatest attention among contemporary academy, its social side has frequently been set aside. However, the social impact that infrastructures have is huge and its analysis and understanding are fundamental. At the same time, social aspects such as culture or human behaviour can have significant effects during the different stages of the lifecycle of infrastructures. Therefore, a better understanding of the connections between civil engineering and society can help to better adapt infrastructures to their contexts, as well as minimise their negative impacts; as a result, this understanding can bring about infrastructures that are more socially sustainable. The scarce studies that have assessed the connection between society and civil engineering have considered this relationship as unidirectional. The real scenario is not so simple. The analysis of this relationship needs to be interdisciplinary, and it is in this context that this paper addresses the analysis of infrastructures and of social sciences from a sociotechnical point of view. We draw on the interrelationships found to propose a conceptual framework with the main objective of providing both practitioners and academics with tools to carry out more sustainable and context-adapted decisions. We classify the fields of civil engineering and social sciences into several different subfields, namely six for infrastructures (transport, water, energy, environment, urban planning and buildings) and twelve for social sciences (culture and history, behaviour and mind, communication and interaction, socioeconomics, juridical sciences, life and health, politics, social problems, social groups, ethics and philosophy, arts and education and innovation). Afterwards, we review the existing literature at the intersection between the various categories. We conclude proposing a framework that can support decisions and actions made at different levels and working areas. The framework includes guidelines for a more holistic consideration of the interaction between infrastructures and society in key activities whereby an improved understanding of the effect of this relationship is often required. The guidelines provide a description of different key areas and can be applied to a wide variety of actions ranging from the development of university curricula to the social impact assessment of projects. Image 1 • The dual relationship between civil engineering and social sciences is studied. • Politics and vulnerability are the most studied social areas in civil engineering. • Transport is the most studied civil engineering area from a social perspective. • Infrastructure projects should consider social aspects during all their lifecycles. • A framework and future research directions are proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The potential applications of narrative within medical practice are attracting increased interest. In particular, personal narratives afford rich insights into how encounters with cancer and the associated provision of care are experienced, understood and represented. Such first-person accounts are practically useful in indicating improvements to cancer care and politically significant in providing a means to enable the patient voice and legitimising experiential knowledge alongside a biomedical paradigm. However, personal narratives are necessarily and always constructed in particular social and political contexts and through existing ‘meta-narratives’ relating to cancer, health, illness and a flourishing life. The present paper first examines work on personal cancer narratives to critically review the opportunities for narrative within cancer care. We then reflect on the crucial role of meta-narratives of cancer as framings within which personal narratives can be both enabled and constrained. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]