REVISITING NATIONALISM - 1

Untitled by Ivana Stojakovic Via Flickr:

Today is Buddha Purnima.

अनन्त का छंद - 4

अनन्त का छंद – 4 प्रसन्न कुमार चौधरी मनुष्य का अस्तित्व क. सामान्य 45. मनुष्य के अस्तित्व की एक विलक्षणता यह है कि वह अपने विकसित मस्तिष्क के साथ जन्म ही नहीं ले सकता ।22 उसके मस्तिष्क का पूर्ण विकास जन्म के डेढ़-दो साल बाद जाकर सम्पन्न होता है । उसके अस्तित्व की इस विलक्षणता के कारण उसकी प्रोग्रेमिंग में एक फांक उत्पन्न हो जाती है । वह पूरी तरह नियोजित प्राणी नहीं है । नियोजन की यह कमी ही…

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“…people with mental illness are suffering.” – John Forbes Nash Jr., the mathematician who inspired “A Beautiful Mind” (rest in peace) [567x855] [OC] http://quotes-4u.tumblr.com/

MANDELA: A CELEBRATION

July 15 to 20, 2013

The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture will mark Nelson Mandela’s birthday and Nelson Mandela International Day (July 18) with six days of commemoration.

Mandela: A Celebration is a special...

A new question for the jury: Did my brain implant make me do it? « The Jury Room

We’ve written as lot about “brain malfunction” [aka “did my brain make me do it?”] defenses here but this is a new twist on the neurolaw question. Deep brain stimulation (“DBS”) is a well-accepted treatment for a number of serious and treatment resistant neurological conditions from Parkinson’s Disease to depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder. As effective as DBS can be, there are also concerns about how, in some patients, it changes one’s personality to cause “undesirable or even deviant behavior”. The behavioral/personality changes depend on the location of the deep brain stimulation (and the functions carried out by that portion of the brain). 

So. You have a condition for which everyday treatment is ineffective or causes side-effects worse than the condition itself. Your doctor suggests a brain implant to offer deep brain stimulation (DBS). You are unfortunately, one of those for whom DBS creates behavioral reactions and you do something illegal. Are you responsible? Or is it your brain implant? […]

The article is very complex and the ideas in it are provocative. We cannot do justice to the questions raised by these writers in a brief blog post. It’s a very serious question.

"When you agree to a cutting-edge treatment and you are informed that for some people, behavioral changes may occur, do you thereby accept responsibility for any actions you take under the influence of that treatment?

"Or, since the behavior is completely different than anything you have previously displayed  and is thus believed due to the treatment (which can be shut off) is it fair to deny responsibility?

"And if you encounter aberrant behavioral effects but decide to not shut off the DBS because you appreciate the ways in which it helps you function, are you then more responsible for any illegal act you committed since you are choosing to continue down the same path?"

Yes. This is a new question. Not, “did my brain make me do it?” but “did my brain implant make me do it?”. Ultimately, however, the larger question remains the same. Where does our personal responsibility end?

अनन्त का छंद - 6

अनन्त का छंद – 6 प्रसन्न कुमार चौधरी ग. ज्ञान 75. इस पूरे प्रकरण में ‘नॉलेज़’ शब्द के लिए ‘जानकारी’ की जगह आम तौर पर प्रचलित ‘ज्ञान’ शब्द का इस्तेमाल किया गया है । वैसे भारतीय चिन्तन परम्परा में ज्ञान का प्रयोग सार्विक भाव के उदय के लिए किया जाता रहा है । यह ज्ञान पूंजी कदापि नहीं हो सकती । इसे हासिल करने की कोई वैज्ञानिक-तार्किक विधि नहीं । इसी तरह जानकार और ज्ञानी में भी फ़र्क किया जाता है…

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