Here be monsters: a choreomaniac's companion to the danse macabre

Consider this a vade mecum: an invitation to “walk with me” through more or less uncanny terrains of worlds in the making in search, of(f) course, of monsters. The search will be delving into the areas of “creepypasta:” pieces of cursed prose and pictures that circulate online, waiting to contaminate and possess the next reader. Using a theoretical framework of posthuman and feminist theory, not least the work done by Jacques Derrida and Donna Haraway, this vade mecum asks what it might mean to engage ethically with that which is not supposed to exist, but which haunts us nonetheless. In other words: what does it mean to move, live and engage with spectres in digital times?     

The trouble with ‘women in computing’: a critical examination of the deployment of research on the gender gap in computer science

The pessimistic scenario for ‘women in information communications technology’ and for ‘women in technology’ generally is even more paradoxical and insidious with respect to ‘women in computing’. Studies within this field not only report insignificant improvement in the proportion of women in Western countries’ computing fields but also alert us of a declining trend. Moreover, that decline has been accompanied – or even preceded – by years of research and programs that have specifically focused on increasing women’s participation in computing; however, they have not had the expected effect. More surprisingly, there has been a significant increase in the representation of women in all other science-related fields and professions. Our aim is to provide some clues to fight the feeling of inexorability that may be entailed by the research on women in computing. We will argue that part of the problem is related to the static nature of the research deployed around the problem of ‘women in computing’, primarily, the research constructed around the ‘leaky pipeline’ metaphor. We provide a synthesis of the critiques this research has received in recent decades and highlight research trends that render other landscapes visible when studying ‘women in computing’. These trends help us question how we are conducting research within this field and urge us to problematise assumptions about computing and gender that we may paradoxically continue to reproduce even while denouncing the paucity of women in computing and studying the reasons for this state of affairs. In short, we present the need for different researchers’ eyes that allow different landscapes of women and computing to be seen and produced.     

The Effects of Blaming Others for Legislative Inaction on Individual and Collective Evaluations

Legislators commonly blame others for gridlock. We posit that legislators may engage in this type of rhetoric to minimize the individual reputational risks associated with legislative inaction or to boost the relative standing of their party. In a series of six survey experiments, we find that blaming others for inaction undermines voters’ evaluations of individual legislators who engage in this rhetorical strategy. This effect is particularly pronounced among out-partisans and independents. However, blaming rhetoric can also enhance the standing of the blamer’s party relative to the opposing party across all groups (including out-partisans), in large part by undermining the reputations of these other actors. Ultimately, we show that when an individual legislator engages in blaming rhetoric, the immediate net electoral effects are null. This suggests that coordinated efforts by a party to blame opponents may improve the party’s relative standing, while imposing few costs on those engaged in blaming.     

Taxing Digital Economy: A Critical View around the GloBE (Pillar Two)

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) proposal for taxation of digital economy constitutes one of the most ambitious projects in the field of taxation and may lead to the most significant reform to international tax rules in the 20th century. Based on a two-pillar approach, Pillar Two of the proposal suggests the adoption of Global Anti-Base Erosion (GloBE) provisions that are aimed at introducing a worldwide minimum tax. In this article, a critical analysis is based that the GloBE proposal suggests that it represents a shift in the OECD policy. As compared to base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS), it jeopardizes the tax sovereignty of jurisdictions and it raises fundamental challenges of implementation, both in terms of amendments to domestic law and conflicts with tax treaties.     

Communication uncertainty and the fictional role of organizational culture

This theoretical investigation aims to critically analyze the concept of organizational culture as an example of ＂organizational fiction＂. In order to benefit from unveiling organizational fictions, it is necessary to be aware of how illusion is linked to stability and predictability. It is here proposed to consider communicational uncertainties as positive qualities in flexible organizations, where communicative flows between organizational spheres and individual spaces of employees or managers engender new ideas and foster creativity. Thus, a strong organizational culture, especially in intercultural contexts, may be a barrier to organizational health, but a strong and unified corporate identity is necessary to guarantee organizational stability and cohesion. The solution is the interplay between stability and contingent openness toward external influences.     

人本行政裁量权之实现理路探析

人本行政裁量权的精义在于尊重与保障人权。实现人本行政裁量权的主要理路有：在实体上的利益衡量中行政主体应保障诸种利益的均衡;在程序上的裁量过程中行政主体应保障有效的利益沟通;在对行政裁量的司法审查中法院应保障权利的相应救济。     

《德意志意识形态》中“交往理论”的深层透析及其现实意义

"交往理论"是《德意志意识形态》中一个非常重要的理论。马克思和恩格斯在科学实践观的基础上对交往进行了系统阐述,并首次创建了马克思主义的交往理论。今天,我们重温"交往理论",对全面建设小康社会,构建社会主义和谐社会以及构建和谐世界,都具有重大的理论意义和实践意义。     

刑事数码摄影中应注意的问题

随着数字技术的发展，数码摄影应用于刑事摄影领域也是历史发展的必然。因为数码相机与传统相机存在本质区别，根据实际办案的需要．选择适当数码相机和数字图像存储格式，根据数码相机的原理及其特点，重新认识数码相机的参数，使数码相机在刑事技术中充分发挥其应有的作用。     

网络作品与传统著作权法的悖论——论知识产权保护方法的创新

网络作品和数据信息的繁荣发展对世界各国现行的知识产权制度提出了挑战。因为网络作品和数据信息的表现形式、传输特点、技术含量和经济价值的特殊性,使得其权利更容易被人侵犯,而在保护措施上具有更大的难度。本文笔者结合国内外的理论与实践对网络作品和数据信息的法律保护问题提出了一些看法,对著作权法保护、反不正当竞争法保护和特别法保护作了较为深入的分析,旨在为理论界的研讨和司法界的实务起抛砖引玉作用。     

跨文化交际与英语教学

学习一种语言,交际是目的,语言是方法,文化是背景。为达到此目的,我们不但要学习语言本身,而且更应该了解以文化为基础的交际形式。本文初步总结了中西方文化在语义、语用中的若干文化差异,以加深学习者对语言本质的理解,避免交际中的文化冲突,以期顺利地完成交际。同时,努力为从事英语教学的工作者提供一些思路,使他们在英语教学实践中选择更好的方法和策略,以适应现代英语教育的需求。