Abstract not available

The modern sciences are characterised by a methodological atheism. Even though religions offer what appear to be explanations of various facts about the world, such proposed explanations are not taken seriously within the sciences. Even if no natural explanation were available, it would be assumed that one exists. Is this merely a sign of atheistic prejudice, as some critics suggest? Or are there good reasons to exclude from science explanations that invoke a supernatural agent? My answer to this question has two parts. On the one hand, I concede the bare possibility that talk of divine action could constitute a potential explanation of some state of affairs, while noting that the conditions under which this would be true are unlikely ever to be fulfilled. On the other hand, I argue that a proposed explanation of this kind would rate poorly, when measured against our usual standards of explanatory virtue. Even if it were the only proposed explanation on offer, we would have good reason to seek an alternative.

This thesis explores ways to augment a model-based diagnostic program with a learning component, so that it speeds up as it solves problems. Several learning components are proposed, each exploiting a different kind of similarity between diagnostic examples. Through analysis and experiments, we explore the effect each learning component has on the performance of a model-based diagnostic program. We also analyze more abstractly the performance effects of Explanation-Based Generalization, a technology that is used in several of the proposed learning components.

No description available.

Those with an optimistic explanatory style have generally been linked with improved mental and physical health across a variety of chronic and serious conditions. The purpose of the current study was to examine the effects of explanatory style on sport related concussions. University varsity athletes (n = 348) from six interdependent team sports at two universities completed both the Attributional Style Questionnaire and the Sport History Questionnaire to examine personality variables and concussion rehabilitation. Overall, the findings indicated that explanatory style did not influence concussion recovery. However, it did effect concussion prevalence, with pessimists experiencing significantly more concussions. Furthermore, various gender differences were demonstrated for concussion prevalence and recovery. The current results help understand the psychology of concussions, as well as concussion prevention efforts and management strategies.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universiteit van Amsterdam, 1987. / Summary in Dutch. Includes indexes. Includes bibliographical references (p. 199-202).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Notre Dame, 2005. / Thesis directed by Michael DePaul for the Department of Philosophy. "July 2005." Includes bibliographical references (leaves 173-182).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of California, San Diego, 2007. / Title from first page of PDF file (viewed June 21, 2007). Available via ProQuest Digital Dissertations. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (p. 273-290).

Aristotle endorses a very striking doctrine connecting necessity with what seems to be a non-modal notion -- that of 'being or happening always'. He also forges a connection between the idea of 'happening by chance' and 'happening neither always nor for the most part'. These two connections form the subject of this essay. My guiding aim is to provide an account of what the 'always/necessary' doctrine involves and of why Aristotle might have held it. Reflection on the nature of the connection between 'by chance' and 'neither always nor for the most part' throws light on what Aristotle means by 'happening always', and, in consequence, on the nature of the link between 'always' and 'necessary'; it also suggests that the basis of this link is to be found in Aristotle's general conception of the natural world as the object of explanation and knowledge. The primary texts upon which discussion of these connections must focus are <u>De Caelo</u> I. 12 and the analysis of chance in <u>Physics</u> II. 4—6. I discuss these two texts in turn, after a opening chapter which surveys the evidence for Aristotle's acceptance of the 'always/necessary‘ doctrine and considers the nature of the restrictions which he places on it. Chapter 2 comprises a translation of and commentary on <u>Cael.</u> I. 12, together with a translation and discussion of its companion chapter, I. 10. In Chapter 3, I examine the nature of Aristotle's argument in I. 12, and criticise various interpretations which see it as evidence that Aristotle's 'always/necessary' doctrine rests on a distinctive conception of possibility. The translation of and commentary on <u>Phys.</u> II. 4-6 (Chapter 4) are followed in Chapter 5 by a discussion of issues relating to the association of chance with 'neither always nor for the most part'. The final chapter returns to the question of the connection between 'always' and 'of necessity'.

abstract: A recorded tutorial dialogue can produce positive learning gains, when observed and used to promote discussion between a pair of learners; however, this same effect does not typically occur when an leaner observes a tutorial dialogue by himself or herself. One potential approach to enhancing learning in the latter situation is by incorporating self-explanation prompts, a proven technique for encouraging students to engage in active learning and attend to the material in a meaningful way. This study examined whether learning from observing recorded tutorial dialogues could be made more effective by adding self-explanation prompts in computer-based learning environment. The research questions in this two-experiment study were (a) Do self-explanation prompts help support student learning while watching a recorded dialogue? and (b) Does collaboratively observing (in dyads) a tutorial dialogue with self-explanation prompts help support student learning while watching a recorded dialogue? In Experiment 1, 66 participants were randomly assigned as individuals to a physics lesson (a) with self-explanation prompts (Condition 1) or (b) without self-explanation prompts (Condition 2). In Experiment 2, 20 participants were randomly assigned in 10 pairs to the same physics lesson (a) with self-explanation prompts (Condition 1) or (b) without self-explanation prompts (Condition 2). Pretests and posttests were administered, as well as other surveys that measured motivation and system usability. Although supplemental analyses showed some significant differences among individual scale items or factors, neither primary results for Experiment 1 or Experiment 2 were significant for changes in posttest scores from pretest scores for learning, motivation, or system usability assessments. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Educational Technology 2018