text:
6. The Liar paradox (redux)
I dealt with the Liar paradox previously, in my Future Logic[1], but now realize that more needs to be said about it. This paradox is especially difficult to deal with because it resorts to several different discursive 'tricks' simultaneously.
1. First approach
The statement "This proposition is false" looks conceivable offhand, until we realize that if we assume it to be true, then we must admit it to be indeed false, while if we assume it to be indeed false, then we must admit it to be true – all of which seems unconscionable. Obviously, there is a contradiction in such discourse, since nothing can be both true and false. But the question is: just what is causing it and how can it be resolved? We are not 'deducing' the fact of contradiction from a 'law of thought' – we are 'observing' the fact through our rational faculty. We cannot, either, 'deduce' the resolution of the contradiction from a 'law of thought' – we have to analyze the problem at hand very closely and creatively propose a satisfying solution to it, i.e. one which indeed puts our intellectual anxiety to rest. As we shall see, this is by no means a simple and straightforward matter.
The proposition "This proposition is false" is a double paradox, because: if it is true, then it is false; and if it is false, then it is true. Notice the circularity from true to false and from false to true. The implications we draw from the given proposition seem unavoidable at first sight. But we must to begin with wonder how we know these implications (the two if–then statements) to be true. How do we know that "it is true" implies "it is false," and that "it is false" implies "it is true"? Apparently, we are not 'deducing' these implications from some unstated proposition. We are, rather, using ad hoc rational insight of some sort – i.e. in a sense directly 'perceiving' (intellectually cognizing) the implications of the given proposition. But such rational insight, though in principle reliable, is clearly inductive, rather than deductive, in epistemological status. That is to say, it is trustworthy until and unless it is found for some reason to be incorrect. This means, there may be one or more errors in our thinking, here; it is not cast in stone. And indeed there must be some error(s), since it has led to double paradox. Therefore, we must look for it.
Perhaps use of the pronoun "it" is a problem, for it is a rather vague term. Let us therefore ask the question: more precisely what does the pronoun "it" refer us to, here?
At first sight, the "it" in "if it is true, then it is false; and if it is false, then it is true" refers to the whole given statement, "This proposition is false." In that event, we must reword the double paradox as follows: if 'this proposition is false' is true, then 'this proposition is false' is false; and if 'this proposition is false' is false, then 'this proposition is false' is true. Here, the subject of the two if–then statements is more clearly marked out as "this proposition is false," and so remains constant throughout. But this clarification reveals abnormal changes of predicate, from "true" to "false" and from "false" to "true," which cannot be readily be explained. Normally, we would say: if 'this proposition is false' is true, then 'this proposition is false' is true; and if 'this proposition is false' is false, then 'this proposition is false' is false. The reason we here reverse the predicates is that we consider the original proposition, "this proposition is false," as instructing such reversal.
However, whereas a proposition of the form "'this proposition is false' is true" is readily interpretable in the simpler form "this proposition is false," a proposition of the form "'this proposition is false' is false" cannot likewise be simplified. How would we express the double negation involved? As "this proposition is true"? Clearly, the meaning of the latter is not identical to that of the former, since the subject "this proposition" refers to different propositions in each case. So the formulation of the liar paradox in full form, i.e. as "if 'this proposition is false' is true, then 'this proposition is false' is false; and if 'this proposition is false' is false, then 'this proposition is false' is true," does not make possible the reproduction of the initial formula expressed in terms of the pronoun "it."
2. Second approach
Let us therefore try something else. If the pronoun "it" refers to the term "this proposition", then the double paradox should be reformulated as follows: if 'this proposition' is true, then 'this proposition' is false; and if 'this proposition' is false, then 'this proposition' is true. But doing that, we see that in each of these two if–then statements, though the subject ("this proposition") remains constant throughout, the predicate ("true" or "false," as the case may be) is not the same in the consequent as it was in the antecedent. There is no logical explanation for these inversions of the predicate. Normally, the truth of a proposition P does not imply its falsehood or vice versa.
We might be tempted to use the given "This proposition is false" as a premise to justify the inference from the said antecedents to the said consequents. We might try to formulate two apodoses, as follows:
If this proposition is true, then it is false (hypothesis),
and this proposition is false (given);
therefore, this proposition is true (putative conclusion).
If this proposition is false, then it is true (hypothesis),
Obviously, in the first case we have invalid inference, in that we try to deny the antecedent to deny the consequent, or to affirm the consequent to affirm the antecedent. In the second case, the putative conclusion does follow from the premises; but we can still wonder where the major premise (the hypothetical proposition) came from, so we are none the wiser. So, this approach too is useless – i.e. it proves nothing.
Alternatively, we might try formulating the following two syllogisms:
This proposition is false (given),
and this proposition is true (supposition);
therefore, this proposition is false (putative conclusion).
This proposition is false (given).
and this proposition is false (supposition);
Clearly, these arguments are not quite syllogistic in form; but they can be reworded a bit to produce syllogisms. The first two premises would then yield the conclusion "there is a proposition that is true and false" (3/RRI), which is self-contradictory (whence, one of the premises must be false); the second two premises, however, being one and the same proposition, would yield no syllogistic conclusion other than "there is a proposition that is false and false" (3/RRI), which is self-evident (and trivial). But these are not the conclusions we seek, which must concern "this proposition" and not merely "some proposition."
A better approach is to look upon the latter two arguments as follows. In the first case, the premises "this proposition is false" (given) and "this proposition is true" (supposition) seem to together imply "this proposition is both true and false;" and the latter paradoxical conclusion in turn indeed suggests that "this proposition is false," since contradiction is impossible. And in the second case, the premises "this proposition is false" (given) and "this proposition is false" (supposition) agree with each other that "this proposition is false," and so this is their logical conclusion. Since both arguments conclude with "this proposition is false," the latter must be the overall conclusion.
However, the latter result is not as conclusive as it seems, because upon closer scrutiny it is obvious that "this proposition is false" and "this proposition is true" do not refer to the same subject, since the predicate changes. The first "this proposition" refers to the proposition "this proposition is false" and the second "this proposition" refers to the proposition "this proposition is true." So, these two propositions in fact have different subjects as well as different predicates (viz. false and true, respectively). The subjects superficially look the same, because they are verbally expressed in identical words; but their underlying intent is not the same, since they refer to significantly different propositions (propositions with manifestly different, indeed contradictory, predicates). This means that when the predicate changes, the subject effectively changes too. When the predicate is "true," the subject means one thing; and when the predicate is "false," the subject means something else. Although the words "this proposition" are constant, their underlying intent varies. That is to say, the term "this proposition" does not have a uniform meaning throughout, and therefore cannot be used as a basis for the inferences above proposed.
3. Third approach
Let us now try another angle. If we examine our initial reasoning in terms of the pronoun "it" more carefully, we can see what is really happening in it. Given that 'this proposition is false' is true, we can more briefly say: 'this proposition is false.' Also, given 'this proposition is false' is false, we can by negation educe that 'this proposition is not false' is true, which means that 'this proposition is true' is true, or more briefly put: 'this proposition is true'[2]. In this way, we seem to argue, regarding the subject "this proposition is false," from 'it is true' to 'it is false', and from 'it is false' to 'it is true'. But in fact the use of the pronoun "it" or the term "this proposition" as abbreviated subject is a sleight of hand, for the underlying subject changes in the course of the second transition (that ending in "this proposition is true"). When abbreviation is used throughout, we seem to be talking about one and the same proposition throughout as being both true and false. But seeing that this is based on hidden equivocation, the paradoxes disappear.
It is interesting to note that when the reasoning is viewed more explicitly like that, the proposition "this proposition is true" also becomes paradoxical! We can argue: if 'this proposition is true' is true, then obviously 'this proposition is true'. And: if 'this proposition is true' is false, then its contradictory 'this proposition is not true' must be true, which means that 'this proposition is false' is true, i.e. more succinctly: 'this proposition is false'. Here, superficially, there seems to be no paradox, because we seem to argue, regarding the subject "this proposition is true," from 'it is true' to 'it is true', and from 'it is false' to 'it is false'. But if we look at the final conclusion, viz. "this proposition is false," we see that it corresponds to the liar paradox![3] And here again, the explanation of the double paradox is that the apparent subject "it" or "this proposition" changes significance in the course of drawing the implications.
Notice that, in both these lines of reasoning, the first leg is ordinary self-implication, mere tautology, while the second leg is the operative self-contradiction, the paradox. If the given proposition (whether "this proposition is false" or "this proposition is true") is true, we merely repeat the proposition as is (without need to add the predication "is true"). But if the given proposition is false, we cannot drop the additional predication (i.e. "is false") without changing the original proposition. Thus, we could say that the two propositions, "this proposition is false" or "this proposition is true," present no problem when taken as true; and it is only when they are hypothetically taken as false that the problem is created. So we could say that the way out of the liar paradox (and its positive analogue) is simply to accept the two claims as true, and not imagine them to be false!
We could furthermore, if we really want to, argue that "this proposition is false" and "this proposition is true" differ in that the former explicitly appears to put itself in doubt whereas the latter does not do so. On this basis, we could immediately reject the former and somewhat accept the latter, even while admitting that the latter is equally devoid of any useful information. That is to say, since the former appears 'more paradoxical' than the latter, the latter is to be preferred in extremis. But this, note well, ignores the equally insurmountable difficulties in it. It is better to resolutely reject both forms as vicious constructs.
4. Fourth approach
To grasp the illusoriness of the liar paradox, it is important to realize that the two forms, "this proposition is false" and "this proposition is true," are not each other's contradictory; and that, in fact, neither of them has a contradictory! This is a logical anomaly, a fatal flaw in the discourse of the liar paradox; for in principle, every well-formed and meaningful proposition is logically required to have a contradictory. If a propositional form lacks a contradictory form, it cannot be judged true or false, for such judgment depends on there being a choice. We do not even have to limit our propositions to the predicates "true" or "false" – any predicate X and its negation not-X would display the same property given the same said subject. That is, "this proposition is X" and "this proposition is not-X" are not each other's contradictory, and are therefore both equally deprived of contradictory.
We could, of course, remark that "this proposition is X" can be denied by "that proposition (i.e. the preceding one) is not X," or even introduce a symbol for the original proposition in the new proposition. In such case, although the subjects would be verbally different, their intents would surely be the same. But the form "that proposition is not X" is more akin to the form "'this proposition is X' is not X," in which the whole original proposition is given the role of subject and its predicate is given the role of predicate. However, though these two forms are somewhat equivalent in meaning to each other and to the original proposition, their logical behavior patterns are not identical with that of the original proposition, as we have already seen. The fact remains that "this proposition is not X" is not the contradictory of "this proposition is X."
Clearly, any proposition involving the special subject "this proposition" exhibits a very unusual property, and may be dismissed on that basis alone. The reason why such a proposition lacks a contradictory is that its subject refers to the proposition it happens to be in, and that proposition is evidently different when the predicate in it is the term "false" and when it is the term "true" (or more generally, any pair of predicates 'X' and 'not-X'). When the predicate changes, so does the subject; so the subject cannot be pinned-down, it is variable, it is not constant as it should be. The term "this proposition" has a different reference in each case, which depends on the predicate; consequently, each subject can only be associated with one predicate and never with the other (i.e. its negation).
From this we see that when at the beginning we thought, looking upon the statement "This proposition is false," that if we take it at its word, then it is must be regarded as false, and so we have to prefer to it "This proposition is not false," i.e. "This proposition is true," and so forth, we did not realize that we were in fact, due to the ambiguity inherent in the term "This proposition" or "it," changing its meaning at every turn. This change of meaning passes by unnoticed, because the term used is by its very nature not fixed. The pronouns "this" and "it" can be applied to anything and its opposite without such change of meaning being verbally signaled in them. They are not permanently attached to any object, but are merely contextual designations. In the technical terminology of linguistics, they are characterized as 'deictic' or 'indexical'.
Thus, it appears that the liar paradox arises, however we understand its terms, as a result of some sort of equivocation in the subject. Although we seem superficially to refer to one and the same subject in the antecedent and consequent of our if–then reasoning, there is in fact a covert change of meaning which once we become aware of it belies the initial appearance of contradiction. The suggested impossible implications are thus put in doubt, made incredible. The contradictions apparently produced are thus defused or dissolved, by virtue of our inability to make them stick.
5. Fifth approach
Another, and complementary, way to deal with the liar paradox is to point out the logical difficulty of self-reference. This is a tack many logicians have adopted, including me in my first foray into this topic in Future Logic. The argument proposed here is that the term "this proposition" refers to an object (viz. "This proposition is false" or "This proposition is true") which includes the term itself. A finger cannot point at itself, and "this" is the conceptual equivalent of a finger. Effectively, the expression "this" has no content when it is directed at itself or at a sentence including it. It is empty, without substance. It is as if nothing is said when we indulge in such self-reference.
Thus, "This proposition is X" (where X stands for false, or true, or indeed anything) is in fact meaningless; and a meaningless sentence cannot be true or false. Such a sentence can reasonably be described as neither true nor false, without breach of the law of the excluded middle, because neither of these logical evaluations is applicable to meaningless sentences. "This proposition is false" looks meaningful because its four constituents (i.e. "this," "proposition," "is" and "false") are separately normally meaningful. But in this particular combination, where one of the elements (viz. "this") does not refer to anything already existent, the sentence is found to be meaningless.
The apparent contradictions that self-reference produces help us to realize its meaninglessness. And it is through the intellectual realization of the meaninglessness of self-reference that we explain away and annul the apparent contradictions. On this basis, we can say that even though the sentence "This proposition is true" does not at first sight give rise to any paradox (as people think: "if it is true, it is true; and if it is false, it is false"), nevertheless, since it involves self-reference as much as "This proposition is false," it is equally meaningless and cannot be characterized as true or false. In fact, as I have shown above, "This proposition is true" does also give rise to double paradox.
Someone might object: What about the propositions: "this statement is self-referential" and "this statement is not self-referential"? Surely, we can say that these are meaningful and that the former is true while the latter is false! The retort to that objection is that the two propositions "this proposition refers to itself" and "this proposition does not refer to itself" are not mutual contradictories, because (just like in the liar paradox) their subjects differ radically, each referring to the proposition it is in and not to the other. Thus, while the positive version may seem more self-consistent than the negative one, and therefore to be preferred in extremis, they are in fact both fundamentally flawed, because (just like in the liar paradox) neither of them has a contradictory, and without the logical possibility of negating a discourse it is impossible to judge whether it is right or wrong.[4]
6. Sixth approach
Not long after the preceding reflections, I happened to come across another interesting example of paradoxical self-reference, namely "Disobey me!"[5] This involves the 'double bind' – if I obey it, I disobey it and if I disobey it, I obey it. To resolve this paradox, we need to first put the statement in more precise form, say: "you must disobey this command!" We can then disentangle the knot by realizing that the order being given has outwardly imperative form but inwardly lacks content. It does not define a specific, concrete action that is to be done or not-done. If we wished to obey it, or to disobey it, we would not know just what we are supposed to do or not-do! It is therefore an order that can neither be obeyed nor be disobeyed. Ruminating on this case led me to what I now believe is the trump card, which convincingly finalizes the resolution of the liar paradox, even as the preceding reflections all continue to be relevant.
It occurred to me then that this is precisely the problem with the liar paradox. It says "this proposition is false" – but it does not tell us anything about the world that can be judged as true or false. A 'proposition' is a statement that makes some claim about the world. If the statement makes no such claim, if it 'proposes' nothing, it cannot be logically assessed as true or false. If it refers to nothing – whether physical, mental or spiritual, perceptual, intuitive or conceptual – it has no meaning. A meaningless statement does not qualify as a 'proposition'. The attributes of 'true' or 'false' are not ordinary predicates, like 'white' or 'black', which can be attached to any subject and then judged to be truly or falsely attached. The attributes of 'true' or 'false' require a precise claim to be made before they can at all be used.
The truth of this explication can be seen with reference to the 'propositional forms' used in logic theory. Take, for example, "All X are Y." Such a propositional form cannot be judged true or false because it manifestly has no content. Only when such an abstraction is given some specific content, such as "All men are mortal," can we begin to ask whether it is true or false. A propositional form is too vague to count as a proposition. It does not tell us anything about the world, other than implying that there are (or even just that there may be) concrete propositions which have this form. Just as we cannot disobey or even obey an imperative without content, so we cannot judge a purely formal expression true or false.
The same applies to the liar paradox: like a formal proposition, it has no concrete content, and therefore cannot be judged true or false. The liar paradox has no content partly due to its having a self-referential subject ("this proposition"). But the truth is, even if its subject was not self-referential, it would still have insufficient content. This is so, because its predicate "false" (and likewise its opposite, "true") is not an ordinary predicate; it is more like a formal predicate. It can only be used if another, more concrete predicate has already been proposed for the subject at hand. For example, "this proposition is interesting" could be judged true or false (if it was not self-referential) because it already has a predicate (viz. "interesting"). Thus, the problem with the liar paradox is not only the self-reference it involves but also its lack of a predicate more concrete than the logical predicate "false" (or "true").
All this illustrates how the 'laws of thought' are not axioms in the sense of top premises in the knowledge enterprise from which we mechanically derive other premises. Rather the expression 'laws of thought' refers to recurring insights which provide us with some intellectual guidance but cannot by themselves determine the outcome. The individual in pursuit of knowledge, and in particular the logician, is driven by the obviousness or by the absurdity of a situation to look for creative solutions to problems. He or she must still think of possible solutions and test them.
From A Fortiori Logic, appendix 7.4.
[1] See there chapter 32.2. (See also Ruminations 5.1.)
[2] Some logicians have tried to deal with the liar paradox by denying that true and false are contradictory terms, i.e. that not-true = false and not-false = true. Such a claim is utter nonsense; the attempt to shunt aside the laws of non-contradiction of the excluded middle so as to resolve a paradox is self-contradiction in action.
[3] That 'this proposition is true' is implicitly (if only potentially) as paradoxical as 'this proposition is false' is, so far as I know, a new discovery. Note well how both paradoxes occur through quite ordinary eductions: viz. if 'P is Q' is affirmed, then P is Q; and if 'P is Q' is denied, then 'P is not Q' is affirmed, then P is not Q (where P stands for 'this proposition', and Q for 'false' or 'true' as the case may be).
[4] Another objection (which was actually put to me by a reader) would be propositions like "this statement has five words" and "this statement has six words" – even though they contain the demonstrative "this," the former looks true and the latter false! Here, we might in reply point out that though the propositions "this statement has five words" and "this statement does not have five words," seem to mean opposite things, they cannot be contradictories, since both appear true. Also compare: "this statement has five words" and "this statement does have five words" – the former is true while the latter is false, though both mean essentially the same. Clearly, the behavior of these propositions is far from normal, due to their unusual dependence on the wording used in them. On one level, we get the message of the proposition and count the number of words in it, and then check whether this number corresponds to the given number: if yes, the proposition is judged 'true', and if no, it is judged 'false'. But at the same time, we have to be keep track of the changing reference of the demonstrative "this," which complicates matters as already explained, and additionally in this particular context we must beware of the impact of wording. The Kneales give "What I am now saying is a sentence in English" as an example of "harmless self-reference" (p. 228).
[5] I found this example in Robert Maggiori's La philosophie au jour le jour (Paris: Flammarion, 1994); the author does not say whether it is his own invention or someone else's (p. 438).
Tags paradox liar eubulides


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text:
<?php

namespace PhpOffice\PhpWord\Tests\Writer\Word2007;

use PhpOffice\PhpWord\Shared\XMLWriter;

/**
 * Test class for PhpOffice\PhpWord\Writer\Word2007\Style subnamespace
 */
class StyleTest extends \PHPUnit_Framework_TestCase
{
    /**
     * Test empty styles
     */
    public function testEmptyStyles()
    {
        $styles = array(
            'Alignment', 'Cell', 'Font', 'Image', 'Indentation', 'LineNumbering',
            'Paragraph', 'Row', 'Section', 'Shading', 'Spacing', 'Tab', 'Table',
            'TextBox', 'Line', 'Shape', 'Frame', 'Outline', 'Fill', 'Shadow', 'Extrusion',
        );
        foreach ($styles as $style) {
            $objectClass = 'PhpOffice\\PhpWord\\Writer\\Word2007\\Style\\' . $style;
            $xmlWriter = new XMLWriter();
            $object = new $objectClass($xmlWriter);
            $object->write();

            $this->assertEquals('', $xmlWriter->getData());
        }
    }

    /**
     * Test method exceptions
     */
    public function testMethodExceptions()
    {
        $styles = array(
            'Frame'     => 'writeAlignment',
            'Line'      => 'writeStroke',
            'TextBox'   => 'writeBorder',
        );
        foreach ($styles as $style => $method) {
            $objectClass = 'PhpOffice\\PhpWord\\Writer\\Word2007\\Style\\' . $style;
            $xmlWriter = new XMLWriter();
            $object = new $objectClass($xmlWriter);
            $object->$method();

            $this->assertEquals('', $xmlWriter->getData());
        }
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


1] Mix 2 tablespoons olive oil, the Dijon mustard, the rosemary & parsley together in a small bowl. Add some freshly grinded pepper if you like ( I didn't).
2] Rub the seasoning onto the lamb. Leave overnight in the chiller.
3] Pre-heat oven to 200C. Roast for about 30 minutes or so. Rest for 5 to 10 minutes before carving into cutlets.
1] Heat some olive oil in a pan. Then add onions. Fry until onions began to colour.
2] Add the peppers now and stir for about 3 minutes or so to combine.
3] Add the sliced garlic now then stir for a couple of minutes. Add a little sugar & oregano.
4] Now put in the chopped tomatoes & mix quickly.
5] Quickly turn off the heat. Grind some black pepper over.


text:
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE: READY, STEADY, GO
THE EU'S 100 BILLION EURO QUESTION
PRODUCT CREATION - FROM SIMULATION TO INNOVATION
PRINTED ELECTRONICS IS ON ITS WAY
PLATFORM FOR TRENDSETTERS
EU LAYS THE FOUNDATIONS FOR SINGLE MARKET 4.0
RECOVERY IN SIGHT - ORDERS CONTINUE TO STAGNATE
EXPORTS SECURE SUCCESS
THE VALUE OF SHARING
IT ALL STARTED WITH CHINA
US TAX REFORM AND ITS IMPACT ON GERMANY'S MECHANICAL ENGINEERING SECTOR
© Fotolia | U. Gernhoefer
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Industrie 4.0 can only succeed with and within Europe. After a bumpy start, the EU's digital policies have got a lot underway and the member states are now working closely together.
By Kai Peters
The EU recognized the importance of digital technologies early. In particular Neelie Kroes, EU Commissioner for Digital Agenda from 2010 to 2014, made digitalization a priority of European politics. Her work laid the foundation for the digital single market in which the European legislation regulates important issues such as data protection and network safety.
Industrie 4.0 needs European rules
Despite Industrie 4.0 first being perceived as a national strategy, it quickly became apparent that the rules and the framework had to be set in Europe. However, the Commission and European Parliament initially struggled to recognize the digital transformation of the real industries and its physical goods and processes. The EU had previously rather concentrated on defending the rights of digital consumers and on taking the fight to internet and telecom giants. Which legal conditions should apply to the connected and autonomous systems, how important are machine and production data for companies, or how digital platforms develop in the B2B sector - all these questions were new ground for European politics, which either viewed them from a purely digital perspective, or not at all.
Industrie 4.0 successfully exported
In the meantime, this has changed: Firstly, the concept of Industrie 4.0 turned into a huge success beyond the borders of Germany: Against the backdrop of the economic crisis at that time, the originally German concept of a new, digitalized industry awoke great interest in Brussels and other EU member states. Secondly, Günther Oettinger, EU Commissioner for Digital Agenda, who recognized the importance of the digital transformation of industry, took the reins and addressed the shortcomings of the digital single market with the "Digitalization of the Industry" initiative.
Since then, important European debates on topics such as data access, cybersecurity or liability have been conducted with an increased focus on industrial aspects. The first impressions indicate that the industrial perspective will be more taken into account when drafting European regulation. And Industry 4.0 left its footprint on the European Research programmes, too; approximately 500 million euros are supposedly reserved for digital production and digital industry platforms.
Learning from each other
This development goes beyond legislation. Representatives of the national digital initiatives - alongside the Industrie 4.0 platform, "L'industrie du Future" in France or "Industria Conectada 4.0" in Spain, for example - regularly meet under the auspices of the EU Commission and attempt to coordinate their activities, learn from each other and start joint initiatives. This means that Europe has not only become the playing field for Industrie 4.0, but digitalization has created an opportunity for increased collaboration in Europe.
VDMA European Office | VDMAimpulse 03-2016: "Moments of truth for Oettinger's plan"
© VDMA
Kai Peters, VDMA European Office.
european single market digitalization
Industrie 4.0 News from Brussels

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Tupaja pospolita, tupaja, wiewiórecznik, wiewiórecznik pospolity (Tupaia glis) – gatunek ssaka z rodziny tupajowatych (Tupaiidae). Od czasu odkrycia tej rodziny tupaje były zaliczane do rzędu afrosorkowców (Afrosoricida) lub rodziny ryjkonosowatych (Macroscelididae). W 1920 roku Le Gros Clark na podstawie badań czaszki, mózgu i ogólnej budowy umieścił tupaje w rzędzie naczelnych (w 1945 tupaje zostały oficjalnie zaliczone do tego rzędu). W 1965 podano w wątpliwość ich dotychczasową klasyfikację ze względu na odmienny tryb życia od naczelnych. Obecnie tupaje tworzą osobny rząd i znajdują się między wysoko rozwiniętymi owadożernymi a prymitywnymi naczelnymi.

Zasięg występowania
Tupaja pospolita występuje na półwyspowej części Tajlandii i Malezji, na kilku wyspach u zachodnich, południowych i wschodnich wybrzeży oraz w archipelagu Lingga (Lingga i Singkep).

Taksonomia
Gatunek po raz pierwszy naukowo opisał w 1820 roku francuski przyrodnik Pierre-Médard Diard nadając mu nazwę Sorex glis. Jako miejsce typowe odłowu holotypu Diard wskazał wyspę Pinang, w Malezji.

Tupaia glis zawiera dużą liczbę synonimów, ale w miarę jak przeprowadzano bardziej szczegółowe badania wiele form zostało podniesionych do rangi odrębnych gatunków. Nawet po podniesieniu discolor, hypochrysa i ferruginea do odrębnych gatunków w oparciu o prace morfologiczne, kompleks gatunkowy T. glis może nadal zawierać wiele różnych form, więc jego taksonomia wymaga ponownej oceny. Autorzy Illustrated Checklist of the Mammals of the World uznają T. glis za gatunek monotypowy.

Etymologia
 Tupaia: malaj. nazwa tupai dla wiewiórki lub tupai.
 Glis: , gliris "koszatka, popielica, orzesznica".

Charakterystyka ogólna
Długość ciała (bez ogona) 135–210 mm, długość ogona 125–180 mm, długość ucha 15–17 mm, długość tylnej stopy 42–49 mm; masa ciała 90–190 g. Mały ssak o zmiennym ubarwieniu i puszystym ogonie. Grzbiet ma ochrowy, czerwonawy, oliwkowy, szarobrązowy do czarnego, sierść na brzuchu białawą, jasno- lub ciemnobrązową, czasami z jaśniejszymi smugami. Tupaja przypomina wiewiórkę z wydłużonym pyszczkiem. Na podgardlu i w okolicach odbytu ma gruczoły, które wydzielają oleistą substancję. Uzębienie ma takie jak owadożerne.

Długość życia
2–3 lata, w niewoli dłużej.

Środowisko życia
Tropikalne lasy, plantacje owoców oraz ogrody.

Tryb życia
Są aktywne w ciągu dnia i silnie terytorialne. Zagęszczenie osobników wynosi 2–12 na hektar (w zależności od dostępu do pożywienia). Areały osobnicze nie nakładają się na siebie, są znakowane moczem i wydzieliną ze specjalnych gruczołów (zapach utrzymuje się kilka dni). Źródłem silnego zapachu piżma jest mocz. Dzięki tym zapachowym śladom zwierzęta rozpoznają granice terytoriów, płeć osobnika oraz gotowość do godów. Osobniki tej samej płci (zarówno samce i samice), są natychmiast atakowane i przepędzane z terytorium. Po rozpoznaniu obcego zapachu, tupaja pospolita natychmiast znakuje to miejsce. Znakowanie dominującego osobnika działa odstraszająco. Eksperymenty przeprowadzone w niewoli pokazały, iż osobnik podległy ginie pod wpływem stresu, jeśli przebywa w tej samej klatce co dominant. Dominacja jednego osobnika nad drugim jest tak wielka, że nawet po umieszczeniu ich w innych klatkach, przy równoczesnym zachowaniu kontaktu wzrokowego między nimi, słabszy ginie po kilku tygodniach (mimo dostarczania odpowiedniej ilości pożywienia). Grupy rodzinne składają się z dorosłej pary i osobników młodocianych (do czasu osiągnięcia przez młode dojrzałości płciowej). Spotkania obojga partnerów są bardzo hałaśliwe. Oblizują sobie nawzajem pyszczki, obficie się przy tym śliniąc (rytuał ten może trwać nawet godzinę). Pary spędzają ze sobą prawie cały dzień, śpiąc ciasno zwinięte wokół siebie. Gniazdo budowane jest w pustych pędach bambusowych lub leżących pniach drzew (młode otrzymują własne gniazdo). Głównym pokarmem tupaj są owady, małe ssaki oraz owoce, liście i nasiona. Podczas jedzenia pokarm trzymają w przednich łapkach.

Rozród
Samica może wydawać na świat potomstwo przez cały rok. Ciąża u tupaj trwa 40–52 dni. Po tym okresie rodzi się 1–3 (najczęściej 2) nagich, ślepych i głuchych młodych. Masa urodzeniowa wynosi 13 g. Matka odwiedza je co 48 godzin i karmi przez kilka minut. Po 36 dniach młode przenoszą się do gniazda rodziców. Po osiągnięciu dojrzałości płciowej (w wieku 3 miesięcy), młode są przepędzane przez matkę i ojca.

Wrogowie
Do naturalnych wrogów tupai pospolitej należą węże, ptaki i drapieżne ssaki.

Zagrożenie i ochrona
W Czerwonej księdze gatunków zagrożonych Międzynarodowej Unii Ochrony Przyrody i Jej Zasobów został zaliczony do kategorii niskiego ryzyka LC.

Przypisy

Bibliografia

Ssaki Azji
Wiewióreczniki
Gatunki i podgatunki zwierząt nazwane w 1820 roku

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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Forum location: QI.com Forum Index > F Series General Ignorance
Spanish Lisp
310669. Fri Apr 04, 2008 10:52 am
Why do Spaniards lisp?
F: King Ferdinand
A: They don't. Or tho they thay.
Common Belief Is Urban Legend
Question: I was looking for information on the history/origin of Castilian Spanish and King Ferdinand. I was told (by my instructor, who is Cuban) this was because the King spoke with a lisp and all the people then copied him.
Answer: It's a great story, but it's just that: a story. More precisely it's an urban legend, one of those stories that is repeated so often that people come to believe it. Like many other legends, it has enough truth (some Spaniards indeed do speak with something resembling a lisp, at least to those who accustomed to the pronunciation of Latin American Spanish) to be believed, provided one doesn't examine the story too closely. (In this case, looking at the story more closely would make one wonder why Spaniards don't also pronounce the letter s with a so-called lisp.)
The fact is that all living languages evolve. And when one group of speakers is separated from another group, over time the two groups will part ways and develop their own peculiarities in pronunciation, grammar and vocabulary. Just as U.S. English differs from British English (both of which differ from Canadian and South African English, among others), so does the Spanish of Spain and various Latin American countries. Even within one country, including Spain, you'll hear regional variations in pronunciation. And that's all we're talking about with the "lisp." Some people in Spain (and even in a few parts of South America) pronounce the letter z roughly the same as the English "th" of "tooth," while others pronounce is like an "s." It's not a lisp; it's just a difference in pronunciation.
There isn't always a specific explanation of why language changes in the way it does. But there is a plausible explanation given for this change, according to a graduate student who wrote to this site after this question and answer were first published. Here's what he said:
"As a graduate student of the Spanish language and a Spaniard, being confronted with people who 'know' the origin of the 'lisp' found in most of Spain is one of my pet peeves. I have heard the 'lisping king' story many times, even from cultured people who are native Spanish speakers, though you will not hear it come from a Spaniard.
"Firstly, the ceceo is not a lisp. A lisp is the mispronunciation of the sibilant s sound. In Castilian Spanish, the sibilant s sound exists and is represented by the letter s. The ceceo comes in to represent the sounds made by the letters z and cfollowed by i or e.
"In medieval Castilian there were two sounds that eventually evolved into the ceceo, the ç (the cedilla) as in plaça and the z as in dezir. The cedilla made a /ts/ sound and the z a /dz/ sound. This gives more insight into why those similar sounds may have evolved into the ceceo."
http://spanish.about.com/cs/qa/a/q_lisp.htm
Any excuse for Alan's Spanish accent.
QI.com Forum Index > F Series General Ignorance


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Tag: journalism
When A. A. Gill ate mutton in Scotland
Eamonn Fitzgerald • Sunday, 28 January, 2018 • 0 Comments
It was October 2015 and it led to this memorable sentence: "Scotland remains the worst country in Europe to eat in if you're paying — and one of the finest if you're a guest."
Background: A. A. Gill was an English journalist who died of cancer in London in December 2016, at the age of 62. Adrian Anthony Gill was also an alcoholic who stopped drinking at 29 and he followed the Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) "12-step plan" to recovery. In tribute to the fellowship, he began using the name 'A. A.' Gill professionally. His finest writing is collected in The Best of A. A. Gill and it covers his observations on food, television, life and travel. In Scotland, he met Peggy McKenzie, "a retired gamekeeper's wife who was one of the most naturally in-tune, modestly perfect cooks." Both discovered a mutual passion for… mutton.
"I, like you, had forgotten mutton. With a great marketing and agri con, it was replaced by lamb. If you look at 19th-century cookbooks, you'll see very few recipes for lamb and hundreds for mutton. Wool is what made England its first fortune. Fluffy gold, sold to the merchants of Ghent. Sheep weren't slaughtered until they were four or five years old. The most valued were gelded rams. But today, wool has no value, and farmers want an immediate return on their animals, so the sooner they can slit their throats, the better. And the more they add value to young, tender meat, the better. Except it isn't better. Lamb is a bland, short, monoglot mouthful compared with mutton's eloquent, rich euphemistic flavour. We've been cheated by agri-expediency to eat an inferior, flannelly, infantilised alternative. In fact, we're led to believe that younger is better for all meat, when the opposite is the truth. Flavour, richness, intensity and complexity come with age. Mutton is the true, base taste of our national cuisine, and it's gone."
This is excellent journalistic writing. Staccato sentences that hit the reader between the eyes: "Wool is what made England its first fortune. Fluffy gold, sold to the merchants of Ghent." Factual and musical is his description of worthy wool as "Fluffy gold".
The tough choices facing killer Fords
Eamonn Fitzgerald • Wednesday, 17 May, 2017 • 0 Comments
"Lunch with the FT" is a weekend pleasure and last Saturday it was the turn of carmaker Bill Ford, great-grandson of Henry, to dine with Patti Waldmeir. In the print edition the mealtime was titled "Reinventing the wheel", while the online version is lengthier: "Motor chief Bill Ford on a Rust Belt reboot for the driverless age." Morsel:
"The autonomous age will also raise new ethical questions, says Ford: what would a self-driving car do when faced with the choice of crashing into 10 pedestrians or killing its occupant? Human drivers react as best they can. But autonomous cars will need to be told what to do. Will autonomous Fords choose to kill the driver to save 10 bystanders? Will Fords kill the driver, and Toyotas kill the crowd? Will Fords in Detroit do one thing and Fords in Shanghai do another?"
Lunch with the FT is always informative and entertaining, and as the paper says: "High quality global journalism requires investment."
Trump vs. Media
Eamonn Fitzgerald • Thursday, 19 January, 2017 • 0 Comments
In one of the most surreal moments of these strange times, the Columbia Journalism Review yesterday published "An open letter to Trump from the US press corps" written by a person called Kyle Pope. With no apparent sense of irony, Pope declared, "We will set higher standards for ourselves than ever before." After eight years of White House press sycophancy, this absurd statement can only be greeted with laughter.
Tom Kuntz is the opposite of Kyle Pope: realistic, honest, serious. His "Trump vs. Media Is Much More Than Meets the Eye" for Real Clear Investigates explains that it's not just the mainstream media that will be going to war with Donald Trump. The shock troops of the Fourth Estate gathering in Washington are part of regiments with names such Old and Blue, New and Blue, Red and New and Old and Red. Snippets:
"Aside from obvious factors — the mainstream media's liberal leanings and Trump's Twitter-centric, anti-elitist combativeness — this perfect storm of presidential-press combustibility reflects a striking transformation of the media landscape since the last White House transition, to President Obama in 2009.
The resulting dynamics seem a fair bet to make Richard Nixon's relationship with the press in the Watergate era look like a lovefest by comparison.
Every President has faced a press filled with sympathizers and skeptics. Trump may be the first in modern times to face serious fire from all sides. This has as much to do with rapidly evolving media as it does with the man."
Seconds out!
Bitter-sweet cake, in memory of AA Gill
Eamonn Fitzgerald • Sunday, 11 December, 2016 • 1 Comment
The great Sunday Times writer and critic, AA Gill, died at Charing Cross Hospital in London yesterday, shocking the journalistic community with the suddenness of his death. Only a few days earlier, Gill, 62, had finished what turned out to be his last article — an account of his search for a treatment that might have extended his life. His death robs British journalism of one of its most individual voices.
AA Gill was wholly politically incorrect and he delighted friend and foe with his observations: "There are many wonderful things about Egypt, but none of them is gastronomic. An Egyptian restaurant belongs on the same street as a Fijian ballet school, a Ukrainian tailor and a Nigerian interior decorator." RIP.
"Death lends everything a metaphoric imperative. Mundane objects become fetishes when the departed no longer need them, and breakfast conversations grow runic and wise from behind the shadows." — A.A. Gill
The future of journalism
Eamonn Fitzgerald • Friday, 27 February, 2015 • 0 Comments
If you haven't heard of The Dress meme yet, don't worry. You soon will. It all began with a simple photo of a dress posted on Tumblr yesterday that some people see as black and blue while others see as white and gold. In a world threatened by the nihilism of ISIS and Putin, there are serious issues to discuss, but at one point this morning BuzzFeed said the dress was accounting for more than half of its traffic. Such is journalism.
The other key story yesterday featured a llama drama in Arizona. Honest. You can't make this stuff up.
The long-form of Hector Camacho's vida macho
Those who despair for the future of journalism point to BuzzFeed listicles such as "14 Cats Who Think They're Sushi". This is the bottom of the barrel, right? But before we rush to judgment, it should be noted that the same BuzzFeed recently launched a long-form journalism section, which features some excellent writing, such as Amanda Petrusich's account of a python hunt in Florida. And it's not just the new players who are making use of digital devices, especially tablets, to present in-depth reportage. The Sydney Morning Herald has started a new section, Immerse, that highlights long-form writing published over the last 181 years.
Regardless of the format, good storytelling will always find an audience. But the storytellers still need to know their trade and the importance of beginning, middle and end: "Hector Luis Camacho was born to be a boxer, which is another way of saying he suffered. But Macho was also born to entertain, to turn suffering into a cross between 'Benny Hill' and 'Sábado Gigante' on Univision." That's from "Hector Camacho's Vida Macho" by Paul Solotaroff from the April issue of Men's Journal. The writing is superb: "Early in the 1990s, as his courage eroded and his taste for cocaine deepened, Macho became less a serious fighter than a burlesque hoofer who boxed. His ringwear, always a little outré (side-slit trunks showing lots of leg, head scarves cribbed from Carmen Miranda), turned bawdy and strange and not the least bit unusual at, say, a gay-pride parade on Folsom Street." The story is almost too tragic to be told, but the writing is compelling and the reader is rewarded with a beginning, middle and end that are not easily forgotten.
We unfortunately can't pay you for it, but we do reach 13 million readers a month
Eamonn Fitzgerald • Thursday, 7 March, 2013 • 0 Comments
"Thanks for responding. Maybe by the end of the week? 1,200 words? We unfortunately can't pay you for it, but we do reach 13 million readers a month. I understand if that's not a workable arrangement for you, I just wanted to see if you were interested.
Thanks so much again for your time. A great piece!"
So writes Olga Khazan, the Global Editor of The Atlantic, to Nate Thayer, journalist. Their exchange is documented by Thayer on his blog at A Day in the Life of a Freelance Journalist — 2013. Backstory: Khazan had read Thayer's 4,300-word story for North Korea News about "basketball diplomacy", and she was thinking of running a shorter version of the piece in The Atlantic. What makes Khazan's offer of zero so shocking is that there was a time, and not so long ago, either, when The Atlantic was offering Thayer $125,000 to write six articles a year for the magazine.
In a damage-limitation action, James Bennet, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, wrote about the Thayer incident saying "We're sorry we offended him," and Alexis C. Madrigal joined the debate with A Day in the Life of a Digital Editor, 2013, which clarifies the "reality" of the situation from The Atlantic perspective. Bottom line: "Anyway, the biz ain't what it used to be, but then again, for most people, it never really was. And, to you Mr. Thayer, all I can say is I wish I had a better answer."
There are no satisfactory answers anymore. As The Irish Examiner has just discovered, the old media model is broken and the rough contours of the new one are only now taking shape. Felix Salmon of Reuters put it best when he noted: "Digital journalism isn't really about writing, any more — not in the manner that freelance print journalists understand it, anyway. Instead, it's more about reading, and aggregating, and working in teams; doing all the work that used to happen in old print-magazine offices, but doing it on a vastly compressed timescale."
A terrible year for journalism is ending badly
Eamonn Fitzgerald • Friday, 7 December, 2012 • 1 Comment
Managing editor of Guardian/Obs has just emailed staff to say papers seeking SIXTY EIGHT compulsory redundancies.
— james robinson (@jamesro47) December 6, 2012
From the New York Post, which has abandoned ethics, to Newsweek, which is laying off staff, the journalism landscape is littered with bad news. In Germany, change-resistant publishers are trying to shake down Google, while in Britain the headline makers have been making horrid headlines: "The BBC has issued an unreserved apology for a Newsnight report which led to Lord McAlpine being wrongly implicated in the alleged sexual abuse of children at north Wales care homes."
Journalism in 2012 was replaced by the very worst aspects of Gawkism and HuffPostism.
The BBC is a Stickler for details. Except when it isn't.
Eamonn Fitzgerald • Monday, 12 November, 2012 • 0 Comments
"If all goes well we've got a Newsnight out tonight about a very senior political figure who is a paedophile." That's what Iain Overton tweeted on the morning of Friday, 2 November. It may yet go down in history as the tweet that sunk the BBC. Who is Iain Overton? He is the "Managing Editor" […]
The end of ink at Newsweek Inc.
Eamonn Fitzgerald • Friday, 19 October, 2012 • 0 Comments
"One day, we'll see movies with people reading magazines and newspapers on paper and chuckle. Part of me has come to see physical magazines and newspapers as, at this point, absurd. They are like Wile E Coyote suspended three feet over a cliff for a few seconds. They're still there; but there's nothing underneath; and […]
Slovenly Slate, ghastly Guardian, zany Zeit smear of Paul Ryan
Eamonn Fitzgerald • Wednesday, 15 August, 2012
The biased nature of what passes for journalism today was on full display yesterday when three media organs participated in a smear of Paul Ryan that would be laughable were it not so dreadful. First up was Slate, where the Andrew Sullivan lookalike, typealike Matthew Yglesias could not resist repackaging unsupported insider trading accusations leveled […]


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Executive Operations Technology
Hashtag Trending – Gates says US botched COVID-19 response; Snopes overwhelmed; Plague Inc. flips the script
ITBusiness Staff
Published: March 25th, 2020
Bill Gates says the US acted too late to avoid a lockdown; Snopes scales back due to overwhelming coronavirus misinformation; Plague Inc. flips the script on the virus.
Bill Gates says the US missed its chance to avoid coronavirus shutdown and businesses should stay closed from technology
Despite Donald Trump's constant assertions that the U.S. was ahead of the game and well prepared for the pandemic, evidence continues to pile up to the contrary. Now Bill Gates is chiming in, saying the US was too slow to take action. His comments, which stemmed from a TED Connects program, are now trending on Reddit, including comments about how the U.S. could have avoided the lockdown measures that are now inevitable, if only they had acted sooner. Gates says that everyone should have started taking this more seriously in January. He also suggested a shutdown of 6 to 10 weeks, while acknowledging that it would be disastrous to the economy.
Snopes forced to scale back fact-checking in face of overwhelming COVID-19 misinformation from technology
While the economy is taking a massive hit, another big side effect of this pandemic has been the outbreak of misinformation on the internet. Usually, independent fact-checkers like Snopes could be relied on to sift through the crap/mud (your choice) and set the truth straight. But the mass amount of misinformation has made it so even they cannot completely do their job, and it is trending on Reddit. In a blog post, the company wrote that it has made the decision to roll back its fact-checking efforts on its routine efforts to focus more intently on the pandemic. They went on to say that exhausting their staff is not the cure and that they will focus their efforts where they believe they will have the most impact.
And lastly, some lighter news, The creators of the mobile game Plague Inc. – whose premise was to create a disease powerful enough to avoid containment and infect the plane – decided that with everyone already dealing with a pandemic in real life, that they should flip the script, and it is trending on Bing. Now instead of creating a disease, users will be in charge of trying to contain an outbreak and get to live out their fantasies of beating this pandemic single-handedly. Additionally, the creators of the game, Ndemic Creations, donated $250,000 to fight COVID-19.
That's all the tech news that's trending right now. Hashtag Trending is a part of the ITWC Podcast network. Add us to your Alexa Flash Briefing or your Google Home daily briefing.
Microsoft warns critical vulnerability in Windows already being exploited
COVID-19: Provincial health hotlines and telehealth options
Executive Operations, Technology
hashtag trending, podcasts


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Climate Change Risk – Why is it heating up the Boardroom?
The world is rapidly transitioning to a low carbon economy. This is forcing companies to respond to these developments or risk being left behind. It is also forcing directors to adopt a more proactive approach to considering and disclosing foreseeable climate-related risks to the companies they oversee.
Why is climate change risk an important issue that boards need to proactively manage?
Ken Hayne warned this week, in his speech to the Centre for Policy Development's Roundtable on Climate and Sustainability, that directors have a legal duty to act on climate change risk, include it in corporate strategies and report on it to shareholders.
These remarks further reinforce an increasing body of thought, initially aired by Noel Hutley in his widely quoted opinion piece on director liability and climate risk, that a director's duty of care, skill and diligence could be breached by directors who fail to properly consider and disclose foreseeable climate-related risks to their business.
The fact that Hayne's remarks are now relatively mainstream shows how far things have come in the three years or so since Noel Hutley's opinion piece made national headlines.
Ken Hayne: "International opinion is now firmly behind the need for all entities with public debt or equity to respond to climate change issues in their governance, their strategy, their risk management and their metrics and targets and, importantly, to record their responses to the issues in their financial reports."
What are the climate-related risks that directors should consider?
Climate change is a recent and significant entrant in the risk register for companies. Directors who are mindful of their legal duty to act in the best interests of the company need to actively consider all foreseeable climate-related risks, or risk breaching their directors' duties.
The climate-related risks that directors should actively consider include:
Reputational risk – companies that engage in or support carbon intensive activities risk a loss of social licence and reputational damage. Activist shareholders, even when motivated by profit, can target companies with environmental issues because it perpetuates the negative spin. The 2019 Australian AGM season saw 8 of the ASX 50 face ESG-related activist shareholder resolutions (up again from last year). Successfully managing climate risks create opportunities for companies to avoid shareholder activism of this nature.
Stranded asset risk – companies with a business model that is dependent on carbon intensive activities run the risk that their assets will suffer from unanticipated or premature write-downs, devaluations, or conversion due to environment-related risks. This is likely to be of concern to directors of financiers who fund mining projects or directors of superannuation funds who invest in carbon intensive companies.
Physical risk – flooding, cyclones and fires are examples of primary climate-related risks that can wreak damage on companies which have a financial exposure to these events.
Litigation risk – the possibility of a company being sued for loss or harm suffered because of its adverse impact on the environment, cannot be ignored. Although Australia does not have a history of extensive climate change-related litigation, Volkswagen recently settled a lawsuit, on a no admissions basis, agreeing to pay up to A$127 million to Australian customers. This lawsuit followed allegations that Volkswagen engaged in misleading or deceptive conduct due to the installation of car software which represented its vehicles to be emitting fewer emissions than they were.
Regulatory risk – new laws may be introduced that impose greater compliance or economic burdens on brown asset companies, to a point where their financial viability is threatened. You need look no further than the financial services industry to see how this can emerge as a risk following a sustained period of regulatory and community scrutiny. In addition, obtaining regulatory approvals for activities that have an environmental impact, such as mining licences, may be subject to longer timeframes and rejections may become more frequent based on environmental concerns.
What guidelines do directors need to be across to help them mitigate risk?
Know your Australian law disclosure obligations
The reporting of financial information by Australian companies is regulated by the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth), the ASX Listing Rules, and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission Act 2001 (Cth). Directors will need to ensure they comply with their obligations under these laws to appropriately report climate change-related financial disclosures.
For example, ASX Listing Rule 4.10.3 (in conjunction with Guidance Note 9) requires that a company's annual report include a corporate governance statement that discloses the extent to which the company has followed the recommendations of the ASX Corporate Governance Council. Council Recommendation 7.4 denotes that any exposure to economic, environmental or social sustainability risks that a reasonable person would expect to materially affect share prices should be disclosed. Financial risk reporting by prudentially regulated entities is additionally governed by the Australian Prudential Standards, as published by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA).
Be aware of international governance principles and guidelines
In January 2019, the World Economic Forum released a set of principles to help boards navigate the risks and opportunities that climate change poses to business. Boards could improve their structures, processes and risk management frameworks to support their ability to assess the risks and opportunities that climate change poses to their company.
Familiarise yourself with the TCFD recommendations
In June 2017, the Financial Stability Board Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) released recommendations for voluntary climate-related financial disclosures. These recommendations provide a framework for investors and companies to appropriately assess and price climate-related risk and opportunities.
Although the recommendations of the TCFD are non-binding, they have been embraced by Australia's regulators as the preferred market standard for voluntary climate change-related disclosures. ASIC has this year strongly encouraged listed companies with material exposure to climate change to consider reporting voluntarily under the TCFD framework.
Keep abreast of Australian regulatory changes
The TCFD recommendations have not yet led to any change in Australia's laws. However, since their publication, APRA and ASIC have become increasingly focussed on the disclosure of climate change-related risks, culminating in the release by ASIC of Report 593: Climate Risk Disclosure by Australia's Listed Companies in September 2018. The report includes high-level recommendations encouraging listed companies to adopt a proactive approach to emerging risks, including climate change risk. It also notes that directors need to disclose meaningful and useful climate risk related information to investors.
ASIC has also published updates to the following regulatory guides on 12 August 2019:
Regulatory Guide 228 – Prospectuses: Effective disclosure for retail investors; and Regulatory Guide 247 – Effective disclosure in an operating and financial review.
The updated guidance encourages companies to, amongst other things, incorporate types of climate change risks developed by the TCFD into the list of common risks that may need to be disclosed in a prospectus (refer to Table 7 of RG 228). It also highlights climate change as a systemic risk that could impact an entity's financial prospects for future years and that may need to be disclosed in an operating and financial review (OFR), and reinforces that disclosures made outside the OFR (such as under the voluntary TCFD framework or in a sustainability report) should not be inconsistent with disclosures made in the OFR (refer to RG 247.66).
In August 2019, ASIC also updated ASIC information sheet (INFO 203) to include climate change risks as a relevant consideration for directors when determining key assumptions that underlie impairment calculations of a company.
In the coming year, ASIC has indicated that it will investigate climate change-related disclosure practices of select listed companies and continue to participate in discussions with industry and other stakeholders on these issues.
October 2019 also saw ASIC release its Director and officer oversight of non-financial risk report, where it found that boards' oversight of non-financial risks was less mature than required. It's not hard to see how climate risk will be relevant here.
APRA has also increased its scrutiny of how banks, insurers and superannuation trustees are managing the financial risks of climate change to their businesses. While APRA expects these climate risks to be assessed within existing prudential risk management standards CPS 220 and SPS 220, it has signalled that it wants to see continuous improvement in how regulated entities disclose and manage the financial risks of climate change to their businesses in the future.
Are there opportunities in managing the risks around climate change? Can climate change have a positive impact on your company?
On the opportunities side of the ledger, climate change offers companies new sources of revenues, particularly if they can successfully commercialise products or services that facilitate the global transition to a low carbon economy. Companies with strong sustainability credentials will also be more attractive from a credit perspective, particularly for ESG investors or asset managers with ESG mandates.
Boardrooms will need to pay attention to the temperature gauge
There is a prominent and rapid shift in the way that Australia is perceiving climate change risk. In the wake of this, directors are giving serious consideration to climate change risks when discharging their duty to act in the best interests of a company. Pressure from shareholders, activist groups, and society for companies to pay greater heed to climate change, accompanied by the new regulatory guidance on climate change related risks disclosure, will only increase the impetus for directors to consider these risks in the future.
Louise McCoach
Contact Louise


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Facebook Will 'Become A Mobile Company'
BY AList Staff
September 30, 2011, 12:00AM
Erick Tseng, head of mobile products at Facebook, was very complimentary of iOS 5, but had no word on its integration with Facebook. "I think it would be a great combination. I hope to see it soon," said Tseng.
On mobile growth, Tseng was less reticence. He noted that Facebook now has 800 million active users, and 350 million of them are on mobile, saying that in the next year or two, the majority of users will be on mobile phones.
The regions of Southeast Asia and Africa where most users connect to the Internet through their phones and not a PC, will help make the prediction a reality. "We're going to become a mobile company," Tseng said.
Oddly, Tseng avoided characterizing Facebook as a social network, calling it a 'platform' instead. "When I say platform, I truly mean platform," Tseng said, later elaborating, "We have one principle on the mobile team: Every phone should be social."
Tags: Facebook, iOS, Mobile, PC
Syndicate Has The Skillrex
Electronic Arts has kept a tight wrap over Syndicate for many, many months but now they're showing it off and it looks impressive. The song is set to is a custom remix by Skrillex called Syndicate.
Tags: EA, Syndicate
I Am Alive Still Kicking
I Am Alive was announced three years ago, but there's been barely anything shown of it since then. Now, it has emerged at a downloadable title coming this year, where the player must fight to survive in the remnants of Haventon.
Tags: I Am Alive
Feature: Heroes Come To Neverwinter
Wizards of the Coast has made a big business out of their Dungeons & Dragons brand and part of that has been smart, strategic launches of various sub-brands within the property. When you talk about the different universes of D&D, from Eberron to Spelljammer, none is bigger than Forgotten Realms. So the launch of Neverwinter, probably the most famous location within the Forgotten Realms, is a very big deal for the company and will include multiple elements from table-top role playing to books and multiple video games. We talked with Peter Banks, Director of Product Marketing for Atari, specifically about the video games but also more generally about the property of Neverwinter.
Tell us about the total upcoming product lineup for Neverwinter.
This was largely catalyzed when Wizard of the Coast wanted to launch the Neverwinter setting supplement for 4th edition D&D and they've been planning that for quite some time. They have the trade paperback from R.A. Salvatore, Atari has launched Heroes of Neverwinter onto Facebook which is going after the mainstream audience. There;s also the Cryptic title and that is an online PC title that's a spiritual sequel to Neverwinter Nights.
Talk to me about the excitement of taking Neverwinter into Fourth Edition D&D.
I think for us, it's taking the re-imagining of Neverwinter to a format for new players. For us players of table top games like Neverwinter Nights or through the Forgotten Realms novels or the Drizzt books, I think its something that people have a lot of fun with. As much as D&D is about crafting your own stories, we can take some of the shared experiences and transfer it to other media types. While we look at what are doing from a video games perspective; Wizards of the Coast concentrates on the overall experience and looking at this as the next generation of trans-media experiences – it's important to do it carefully, since people have attachments to the Forgotten Realms. In taking 4th edition specifically, one of the coolest parts is the new mechanic that lets us show the entire city of Neverwinter. It's something most Dungeon Masters can do, but we're not going to take the easy route – we're going to look at the changes over the last 150 years. They leveled Neverwinter and the Spell Plague came out and now there's these all these sort of forces vying for control.
In terms of taking it to the Facebook audience, 4th edition is perfect for the mass audience, since so much of it is designed and informed by gamers who are used to a video game mechanics, so it's a natural evolution transferring it to a Facebook game, but we also had to make some structural changes because it's designed to be played for 10 minutes not a few hours. It's challenging but it's something we've pulled off successfully.
Heroes of Neverwinter in action.
Why the decision to make the MMO game more story focused for groups, rather than being like an MMO?
From what I've seen, its a combination of the legacy of Neverwinter Nights and the online Neverwinter title — people play it differently, but at its heart, it's about having a group of friends and going on an adventure. The tool-set to let the players create was another thing that Cryptic wanted to do differently. They were successful with Champions Online and Star Trek Online, but they wanted to change things around to the things they do best: create beautiful worlds and make great stories.
As for Heroes of Neverwinter, I think there are somethings people took for granted [in social games] and now people are starting to question it. With Heroes of Neverwinter we're going into it by looking at what people say we have to put into a Facebook game and do away with those preconceptions.
Tell me about the importance of the storyline in the appeal of Neverwinter.
With a piece of content like Neverwinter, it's almost like it becomes a character in a novel. Every little detail paints more detail to where you're at. The story is about your heroes or protagonists, but the story is set on all these different cultural layers of the city and I think there's a beneficial historical aspect. And I think that's the advantage from trans-media; you can tell so many different stories over these thirty years of history and it can be evolved at the same time.
Talk to me about the cross promotional stuff, between the Salvatore book and the Wizards of the Coast tabletop game.
We're rolling out the Neverwinter campaign that has a lot of moving parts; during the middle of the MMO's development we sold Cryptic to Perfect World and we're still working with them to and get it competed. As a marketer, it's good to have a product or campaign when you know what you're promoting something great; it was so nice for us to work with a company with such a long term vision so we can integrate all these elements properly. There's a challenge that we're all working in different formats with different lead times. The book guys, they need a year and a half out to get everything printed. So getting on the level with that was both challenging and helpful to know about. We're all sharing the same logos and from there we moved very quickly to get our messaging squared away; the R.A. Salvatore books have a call out the PC product. With Heroes of Neverwinter is being integrated on its own timeline, it was challenging but it was a great to have so many different people working on it; but it was just a challenge finding out where it was a good idea to integrate.
I'm sure its a major challenge having to deal with fans who come from multiple levels of familiarity with the franchise.
On one hand you have to take care of the fans, on the other hand you have to keep innovating. The good thing is that we've been making Forgotten Realms games for some time, so being able to evolve that and still look to the past is natural.
What are some of the other ways you're looking to promote the game?
That's a cool and fun thing about this multimedia launch. We have one primary audience: D&D enthusiasts and once you go beyond that, you look at the different audiences for different platforms. There's the super engaged people at game hobby stores, trade paperbacks are at bookstores and at airports, there's the Cryptic title for core PC gamers, and then there's Heroes of Neverwinter and that's new territory with a broader audience so the funny thing with the campaign is that it's like a sun or a flower – the center is saturated but the other sectors are seeing their own concentration. The stuff that's new for us and new for me, it's just thinking about the new audience – we were so focused on the core gaming demographic the GameStop the Game Informers where the big game audiences will be, but at the same time, we have these dynamic tools with Facebook where you can see all the metrics, where users are getting in for the mass media. We can really make the game and change it so quickly. You can see we have a dedicated group of people and address those issues.
It leads into the whole idea of this games business going from a product to a service and we have experience from doing it in Test Drive Unlimited 2 and Star Trek Online and Champions Online so this is a natural evolution for us.
So just to specify, you're working with Wizards of the Coast, which is part of Hasbro, Cryptic which is owned by Perfect World, and then the WotC book publishing department . . .
Every asset from the media to the promotion, they need to be consistent and in line with the brand so building in those time lines is a complicated machine, but it's something every one of us regards as exciting.
It's interesting how Dungeons & Dragons has evolved from this Tolkien-esque world with a grab bag of other fantasy elements to something more unique and concrete on its own . . .
With that legacy, whether its Tolkien-esque or not, you have to drive everything into something new. The original creators were influenced by Tolkien, but they built their own world. It has elves and dwarves, but it was influenced by Jack Vance in that there are layers of mystery for a world that is sword and fantasy on the surface but then you realize how much gonzo there is. When you get into the settings like with Forgotten Realms that's something with its own unique story and character. As a DM, you can throw it all into your story as a gumbo.
Will be the focus in letting players know about this new Neverwinter game, because of the series great reputation?
I think it is for us, because Neverwinter is the most popular of the D&D settings. People love it from Neverwinter Nights to Drizzt and people are very familiar with the setting. D&D games have have often gone with generic settings like Mystara or Greyhawk. Wizards of the Coast acknowledges the generic settings, but you can make it a specific setting. So with Forgotten Realms, it's a way that they've made a world with a specific history for us to be able to tell a narrative story. Its good to put a steak in the ground, especially since multiple users have experienced it in different ways. It's a world with a history that lends itself to a large thing like this.
Anything you'd like to add about Heroes of Neverwinter?
I think for us, we're excited about Heroes of Neverwinter and it's the first time a deep campaign has come to Facebook, but we think the D&D players going to love it and the causal players will enjoy it too.
Will you possibly expand with modules for other D&D worlds?
You'll see more races and dungeons and and we're looking to evolve it, whether its more of that or new features for Heroes of Neverwinter. It was ever evolving and even through the beta its been changing, so you'll see.
Thanks Peter.
Can't wait to play D&D on Facebook Looking forward to the Neverwinter launch Join the discussion on Facebook.
Tags: Dungeons & Dragons, Facebook
Saints Row The Third's Confusing TV Spot
We have no idea what is going on in this trailer, but that may be the point. It's this weird combination of a local network programming vibe with carnage in the game.
Tags: Saints Row
BioWare: 'Adapt Or Die'
BioWare is now a huge division of EA, housing multiple prominent IPs and having seven offices worldwide. However, Bioware founders Greg Zeschuk and Ray Muzyka say that their size is no excuse for complacency.
"If we weren't adaptable we'd be dead. Like right now you will die if you're not adaptable," said Zeschuk. "The opportunities are greater than ever. Even when there's flux, that's when opportunity occurs, and if you're one of those people that grab that opportunity then that's a great place to be."
The pair pointed towards their recent efforts in social and free-to-play gaming between Wrath Of Heroes and Dragon Age: Legends on Facebook. "The thing about all the different business models on new platforms is they're not a threat if you approach them in terms of a unified experience for consumers. We look at it as an IP universe," said Muzyka. "Luckily Bioware and EA are changing really rapidly to accommodate the new industry. I mean, look at The Sims Social, on track to be the number one social game. Who would've have predicted that a few years ago, that EA, a traditional publisher, would do that "
Source: GamesIndustry.biz
Tags: BioWare, EA
Dragon Age II Polarizing Nature Caught BioWare Off-Guard
Dragon Age II was among the most divisive BioWare games ever made, resulting in a game that divided the fanbase over the changes. It even resulted in some demonstrative review-bombing on Metacritic and other sights, something BioWare co-founder Ray Muzyka did not expect.
"Our goal is to take all the feedback we get on any of our franchises and use it to make the next game in the franchise better," BioWare co-founder Ray Muzyka told Xbox World magazine in a new interview. "Dragon Age II was incredibly polarizing and it caught us off-guard, honestly. It appealed to a new fanbase and we were delighted by that, but we've heard fans who wanted more of the Origins experience. We have to take all that feedback and find a way to marry those together, so we can bring everyone on the journey with us."
Source: CVG
Tags: BioWare, Dragon Age II
Sony Launching 'Video Unlimited' Browser
Sony has announced that they are launching a new 'Video Unlimited – Preview' app for the PS3. It is designed to help users view the over 40,000 movies and shows on the PS Store more easily.
This app will have a more visual menu system that that Sony says will ease the process of finding videos by the genres, actors and directors. PlayStation Plus subscribers can download the preview app right now; general users will have access to it "in a few weeks."
Tags: PS3, Sony
Enrique Iglesias Rocking CityVille
Enrique Iglesias and Zynga have announced a new partnership. Starting October 4, players in CityVille can interact with a virtual Iglesias which can earn you virtual items, participate quests related to him and build Enrique's Euphoria Arena to unlock a preview of Enrique's newest music video in-game, I Like How it Feels.
"I love finding new and cool ways to connect with my fans," said Iglesias. "Bringing my Euphoria Tour to Zynga's CityVille not only helps me celebrate my tour with a massive global audience, but also gives fans who can't make it to see me live, a way to be part of the Euphoria experience."
"We're committed to continuing to bring players new reasons to play the games they love," said Scott Koenigsberg, director of business strategy for CityVille, Zynga. "Through this partnership with Enrique, we're bringing his Euphoria Tour to CityVille and giving fans and players a fun and playful way to connect with the artist by celebrating his lifestyle and hobbies — think Miami, speedboats, and airplanes."
Tags: Cityville, Zynga
Gears Of War Franchise Exceeds $1 Billion In Sales
Microsoft has confirmed that Gears of War 3 has sold 3 million copies in its first week, with the franchise being the first Xbox 360 exclusive franchise to eclipse the $1 billion sales milestone. Microsoft also notes that the game has racked up over 50 perfect review scores.
"Gears of War was the first killer app for Xbox 360, and the series has continued to contribute directly to the overall success of the platform ever since," said Microsoft corporate vice president Phil Spencer. "Gears of War 3 kicked off the biggest Christmas period in Xbox history, setting the standard for the kind of amazing, action-packed experiences gamers should expect on Xbox 360 this year."
Tags: Gears of War 3, Microsoft, Xbox 360


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Doctor Strange – Movie Review
The latest addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe is the adaptation of the well-known comic Doctor Strange and is directed by Scott Derrickson. The trailers and posters promised a refreshing experience, a new kind of hero and a visually stunning spectacle. Has it delivered? Let's find out.
When a top-notch neurosurgeon gets involved in a car accident, he loses the use of his hands. Determined not to lose his medical abilities, he seeks healing in a mysterious monastery in which he trains to be a sorcerer, and sees himself involved in a war that endangers human life.
Benedict Cumberbatch portrays this surgeon, Stephen Strange, in a quite unsurprising way, as it's inevitable to find traces of Sherlock Holmes in his performance. The doctor has the same arrogance as the detective, and the lots of funny one-liners are not enough to convince the viewers of the different nature of both characters. Cumberbatch's performance is indeed very good, though, since he achieves to capture the essence of the doctor and show his feelings correctly.
The rest of the cast is great, too. Rachel McAdams, while having a pretty uninteresting character, is able to deliver emotion and turn the scenes she stars in a joy to watch. Chiwetel Ejiofor does an excellent job as Mordo, too, but the highlight of the show was Mads Mikkelsen, whose portrayal of the villain works surprisingly great. He already proved his capability of being an awesome villain in the amazing Casino Royale, so I expected something more, though. His character has some bad dialogue every now and then and a lot of lack of depth, but there are some moments spread throughout the movie that are brilliant.
And the visuals… Oh, the visuals! Nothing short of jaw-dropping, the special effects in this film feel more like an experience by themselves than just a feature. Seeing buildings twist, turn and be transformed was the best part of the movie. To those viewers interested in these CGI-heavy effects, I would recommend watching the film in 3D, since it enhances those crazy sequences greatly, even if it adds nothing (sometimes it's even distracting) to the rest of the runtime.
My main problem with Doctor Strange is the pacing, as it's highly irregular, where action moments are all of a sudden interrupted with exposition-heavy scenes. These scenes were expected in a film with such an imaginative universe of sorcery, but they are incredibly dull most of the times, unfortunately. That pacing was heavily compromised to be able to include humour throughout the movie, which was very, very poorly balanced. Some emotional moments are ruined because of typical and bad jokes that simply put, don't work. But then the movie is plagued with boring exposition scenes that could have been improved with a couple of chuckle-worthy lines.
Probably this will become a trend in future Marvel movies, though, as it has worked properly most of the times, from Deadpool to Guardians of the Galaxy. However, I wish they could also consider doing non-humour-reliant films every now and then, it feels like they're forcing it too much, and in Doctor Strange, it just doesn't feel right. The first few scenes have a much more serious tone that fits the mood way better, it was a shame to see that sacrificed in favour of ineffective one-liners.
Many times, Marvel is avowed for making great movies, and while I believe that they do indeed know how to make awesome films (Guardians of the Galaxy, Civil War), we have witnessed pretty terrible ones too (Thor, Thor: The Dark World, Iron Man 2). Doctor Strange falls into the third category, into the pile of mediocre movies we've seen in the cinematic universe Marvel is building, together with The Avengers, Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Ant-Man.
All in all, this ends up being an Inception wannabe, with an enormous lack of substance that nothing else is able to overcome. Having great looks and a good cast is not enough to weigh down the script and pacing problems this film is flooded with, and while being an enjoyable experience, it is, unfortunately, too far from perfect. 6/10
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