Life Extension: Rolling the Technological Dice

The idea of radically extending average human life expectancy is an ancient one, but for most of human history exceedingly utopian. There is now, however, a revival of that idea, with some scientists and others arguing that it is possible and desirable. But the main problem with most of the life extension enthusiasm is that it is based almost entirely on the desire of some individuals to make it happen. The social consequences of success of such a venture are, however, either ignored altogether or dismissed on the grounds that any problems can be dealt with. In the end, none of our present human and social problems would be helped by radically longer lives and no obvious social benefits have been advanced to support it.

The Need for Death

‘Social precognition’ is the forerunner of new developments in science and technology such as extended life or immortality. While life-extension may have been neglected by philosophers or social scientists, it has been explored in depth by creative writers. They underline the threat of new kinds of inequality and of the conservatism of a society that protects the interests of the long-lived. They also question the quality of a longer life as likely to be lonely and empty rather than wise, peaceful and fulfilled.

农民工返乡的生命历程——以湖北沟村为表述对象

本文以湖北沟村为田野,在生命历程理论的视野下描述了农民工从外出务工至最终返乡的长期过程,并对不同出生组农民工的返乡历程进行了比较分析。在社会系统的宏观结构下,农民工个体依循着年龄的层级在一系列生命事件中不断反思自身角色并重新进行定位。但是由于社会化过程的差异,六七十年代出生的第一代农民工能够顺利地实现角色转换,而80后农民工在返乡过程中的调整却要经历较大的波折。     

西方领导研究百年回顾与展望

本文回顾了在西方领导研究的百年历史中涌现出的影响深远的重要理论成果,然后在此基础上概括出领导研究的范式及理论框架,提出了领导学研究中存在的重要问题,并展望了其未来的发展方向.     

大学宿舍生活对大学生心理健康发展的影响和作用

大学宿舍生活是大学生活中的重要组成部分,对大学生的心理健康发展有着不可忽视的重大影响和作用,和谐的大学宿舍生活对于大学生的心理健康发展有着积极的意义。但是,许多调查与研究表明,目前大学生宿舍中人际关系上存在着不少的问题。就大学宿舍生活人际关系的研究意义、宿舍人际关系现状的调查、造成大学宿舍人际关系问题的原因及如何营造和谐宿舍生活作简单论述。     

物质主义、社会联系与生命意义的权衡——大学生价值观标准的社会性别差异

本文以"新时期中国妇女社会地位调查研究"之"女大学生群体调查"的数据为样本,采用了结构方程的方法,探究了男女大学生在成功评价标准上的社会性别差异。研究发现:当评价对象为男性时,男性应答者更多地强调生活富足、身居要职等"物质主义"因子;而当评价对象为女性时,女性更多地强调"社会联系"和"生命意义"因子;研究继而通过引入"社会支持"因子和"社会性别观"因子作为控制变量来说明:这一性别差异并非"本质主义"的,而是在社会处境与性别观念的影响下出现的。     

空间视域下流动老人生活质量及其影响因素研究——基于成都市的调查

伴随城镇化和老龄化,空间转换过程中流动到大城市的老人在居住环境、经济状况、社会交往、社会参与等方面出现空间排异。年龄、同住人数、居住年限、是否农业户口等人口特征变量以及人均住房面积、个人月收入状况、自评健康状况、自评社会经济地位、社区满意度、邻里交往频率、社区参与情况等因素均显著影响流动老人的生活质量。基于此,建议政府广泛利用多种就业形式促进流动老人的人力资源开发,加快完善统一的社会保障体系提升老人异地养老保障水平,重视城市社区公共文化空间建设,组织开展多样化的社区活动,合理规划城市社区基本公共服务设施,保障并提高流动老人的生活质量。     

Human Rights in Policing: The Past,Present and Future

This article seeks to demonstrate, largely from practitioners’ perspectives, the growing evolution in understanding and implementation of meaningful human rights standards within the policing context. In the early 2000s, human rights were perceived and treated as a rather restrictive framework in UK policing. They are now more readily seen as a set of tools that guide and help the police to balance the views and interests of all parties to the criminal justice process. Human rights values enable police in the UK to better endeavour to do the right thing, ‘without fear or favour’.     

大学生生命道德教育的意义

目前,生命道德教育是高校德育工作的盲区和薄弱点。高校生命道德教育的核心是珍惜生命,注重生命的质量,提升生命价值。加强生命道德教育是回归教育本质的要求,是落实以人为本科学发展观的需要,是构建社会主义和谐社会的内在需求。     

关于警察出庭作证问题的调查分析

警察出庭作证是刑事诉讼改革中的重要问题。调查显示,造成警察不出庭的原因在于观念的误区、诉讼结构不合理、证据规则的缺失等。建立我国的警察出庭作证制度不仅必要,而且可行。可从克服立法和观念上的困难入手,调整诉讼结构,完善证据规则,构建配套措施。     

民营科技企业的融资困境与对策

民营科技企业是推动我国社会经济发展的重要力量。由于民营科技企业主要从事的是高新技术产业．具有“高投入、高风险、高收益”的特征，在进行研发和将科技成果产业化等过程中需要投入大量资金。目前，融资困难成为制约民营科技企业快速发展的主要因素之一。本文基于调查访问和数据分析，论证了民营科技企业的融资困境．以及影响企业融资的内在因素和外在因素，进而提出大力发展担保业、尽快完善风险投资机制等对策建议。     

基础研究源头创新的形成条件和绩效评价研究

基础研究源头创新能力已成为决定一个国家和民族科技发展水平的核心条件。近年来,我国基础研究源头创新能力不足表现日益明显,为解决国民经济和社会发展重大问题提供的科技支撑作用远远不够。通过对基础研究源头创新内涵的深入剖析,将基础研究源头创新分为重大科学发现、重大理论突破和重大技术及方法发明三种类型,阐述了三类源头创新在科学发展过程的出现阶段,并从激发因素、动力因素和保障因素三个方面总结了有助于基础研究源头创新的七大影响因素,最后指出了基础研究源头创新绩效评价需要妥善解决的若干问题。     

基于课堂观察的三环六步教研模式的实践——以中职英语教学为例

中职英语教研模式单一化,教师的专业发展主要靠自己的努力,缺少同伴专业的相互指导促进。结合课堂观察实例,讨论了中职英语教研方式的改进的现实需要、并借助案例分析介绍了以课堂观察为基础的中职英语三环六步这种创新型的教研模式,旨在优化教研组的教研模式,提升教师的研究能力,营造团队合作的氛围,优化中职英语课堂。     

基层自治:对社区公共事务和文化生活的管理——日本冲绳县言壳谷村区自治会的考察与分析

日本社会基层自治组织的性质、功能和活动内容在富有长期历史传统的基础上 ,又随着国家经济、政治和文化制度的变化而逐步演进发展。本文通过对日本冲绳县言壳谷村区自治会的实地考察和资料分析 ,力图取得一些有益的认识 ,以期对推进我国的基层组织和民主政治建设起到他山之石的作用。     

苏东剧变以来德国马克思主义研究现状

苏东解体东西德合并后,德国的马克思主义研究呈现出新的特点。研究者围绕着社会主义、资本主义和马克思主义展开了广泛的研究和讨论,召开了一系列的会议,出版了一系列文集。     

The Relationship Between High Education and Labor Market in Western Balkan Countries

This paper deals with the relationship between high education and labor market in Western Balkan countries. Having in mind that all these countries are in transitional process, suffering from poor economics, poor level of investments, and high unemployment rates, it would be wise that the governments and political elites put the quality of knowledge high on agenda, regarding it as the vital incentive instrument for economic and social development. All social and political subjects should be devoted to procuring good quality of knowledge, which is sensitive to the labor market＇s needs in all fields. This study attempts to find answer on the question why it is not so, making qualitative, quantitative, and empirical research. It analyzes the relationship between high education and labor market＇s needs, identifies main factors which influence this relationship, focusing on main influence of political interests and values. The paper presents rare good cases, as lessons from experience for the future.     

The Committee on Standards in Public Life: Twenty Years of the Nolan Principles 1995–2015

In his recent memoir, William Waldegrave wrote that no country run by John Major and Robin Butler was likely to be in much danger of systemic corruption. The fact remains that a quarter of a century ago, John Major, with the guidance and support of his cabinet secretary, decided to establish the Committee on Standards in Public Life under the chairmanship of Lord Nolan. The apparent prevalence of ‘sleaze’ issues in public life—most notably the ‘cash for questions’ scandals involving Tory MPs—provoked the decision. Lord Nolan's committee immediately enunciated seven principles of public life: honesty, accountability, integrity, selflessness, openness, opportunity and leadership. Over the years, many of the Committee's recommendations have been accepted. There is today vastly greater transparency. The principles have been widely accepted; it is clear the public expects that they should be observed by public servants, including, perhaps especially, MPs. Yet it is equally clear that there is a widespread and still deepening mood of public cynicism on standards matters. The Committee is determined to defend the Nolan principles, but without more help from the political class it will be like Mrs Nupkins in The Pickwick Papers: inculcating moral lessons of great importance and generally ignored.     

The contested nature of political leadership in the European Union: conceptual and methodological cross-fertilisation

Abstract

European leaders have struggled to find common responses to the polycrisis the EU is facing. This crisis of leadership makes it urgent that scholars provide a better understanding of the role and impact of leadership in EU politics and policy making. This article prepares the ground for a collection of contributions that addresses this need by strengthening old and building new bridges between the academic domains of European studies and leadership studies. It opens with a discussion of the contested concept of leadership in the context of the European polity and politics, challenging the conventional view that leadership is necessarily a matter of hierarchy. Moreover, it argues that rather than leaderless, the EU is an intensely ‘leaderful’ polity. Subsequently, this introduction identifies four key debates in contemporary EU leadership research and discusses the value and insights the contributions in this special issue bring to these debates.