Prometheus Research Papers - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Myth is a meta-language that shapes our cultures and the way we individually and collectively make sense of reality. This paper presents the methodologies of French anthropologist and sociologist Gilbert Durand as a way to unveil how... more

Myth is a meta-language that shapes our cultures and the way we individually and collectively make sense of reality. This paper presents the methodologies of French anthropologist and sociologist Gilbert Durand as a way to unveil how ancient myths contribute to the symbolic construction of societal leaders in times of crisis. To do so, it analyses the controversy of the selection of Time magazine’s Person of the Year, which confronted the figures of Julien Assange and Mark Zuckerberg. The myth analysis of their Wikipedia biographies will show that despite the fact these two personalities are considered almost opposites, the structure of the collective shared narratives about each of them follow the structure of the myth of Hermes, one shaping the grand narrative of the postmodern era. Realizing why and how the myth of Hermes promotes our contemporary leaders, sometimes apparent antagonists, contributes to better understanding of the unconscious drives of their symbolic construction, and enabling critical engagement with the rationales of their emergence.

ABSTRACT Private initiatives of voluntary certification standards appear to be an attractive alternative to top-down approaches in the field of ICH and development. Over the last 50 years, many different Indigenous communities have... more

ABSTRACT Private initiatives of voluntary certification standards appear to be an attractive alternative to top-down approaches in the field of ICH and development. Over the last 50 years, many different Indigenous communities have attempted to use certification trade marks to promote their ...

New technology-based firms (NTBFs) greatly contribute to the dynamic efficiency of the economic system. To perform this role, NTBFs need external financing. However, private financing of this type of firm is particularly subject to market... more

New technology-based firms (NTBFs) greatly contribute to the dynamic efficiency of the economic system. To perform this role, NTBFs need external financing. However, private financing of this type of firm is particularly subject to market inefficiencies. This seems to recommend policy intervention and NTBFs often find support through payment of direct public subsidies. When these are based on ex ante selective screening procedures of applicants and awarded competitively, direct public support may exert a positive effect on the performance of NTBFs beyond the amount of the subsidy. By picking promising projects, governments may signal the quality of a firm to third parties, thereby lowering information asymmetries. This paper contributes to the literature on the differing impact of various subsidies on firm performance by crossing the evaluation dimension (i.e. selective vs. automatic subsidies) with the dimension of the specific goal (R&D-enhancing vs. other measures) for which a subsidy may be implemented. Our results show that the evaluation mechanism and the goal of the subsidy are both important dimensions in the policy design domain and that selective R&D subsidies outperform other types of scheme in fostering NTBF performance.

Television's coverage of the tragic events of September 11 can be viewed and understood as a paradigmatic disaster marathon. The salience of the attack's visual images, their exclusivity on the screen for a protracted period, and the... more

Television's coverage of the tragic events of September 11 can be viewed and understood as a paradigmatic disaster marathon. The salience of the attack's visual images, their exclusivity on the screen for a protracted period, and the invisibility of their perpetrators enhanced the attack's effectiveness. The paper highlights a number of problems that the September 11 disaster marathon poses to the profession of journalism and to society, and points out possible remedies for the future. It ends with a short discussion of the ways in which television's coverage of the event both resembled and differed from the media-event model, and of theoretical aspects of its unique dimensions as a disaster marathon.

Will CRISPR usher in a new era of Promethean overreach? CRISPR makes gene editing widely available and cheap. Anti-play-god bioethicists fear that geneticists will play god and precipitate a backlash from nature that could be devastating.... more

Will CRISPR usher in a new era of Promethean overreach? CRISPR makes gene editing widely available and cheap. Anti-play-god bioethicists fear that geneticists will play god and precipitate a backlash from nature that could be devastating. In contrast to the anti-play-god bioethicists, this article recommends that laboratory science invoke the Precautionary Principle: pause at the yellow caution light, but then with constant risk-assessment proceed ahead.

This paper follows the traces of Prometheus in several Portuguese poems and philosophical essays published in the first half of the twentieth century. The analysis shows how these texts, despite their varied discursive and ideological... more

This paper follows the traces of Prometheus in several Portuguese poems and philosophical essays published in the first half of the twentieth century. The analysis shows how these texts, despite their varied discursive and ideological stance, significantly use the reference to Prometheus to stress the importance of spiritual values in the definition of humanness. Guerra Junqueiro’s poetic draft Prometeu Libertado [Prometheus Unbound] and Leonardo Coimbra’s philosophical narrative “Uma Fala de Espíritos” [“A Talk of Spirits”] recall the antithesis between the material world and the spiritual world represented by Prometheus and Christ, while depicting the future of humankind as a balanced reunion of both dimensions. Then, in the historical and political essay “Prometeu. Ensaio espiritual da Europa” [“Prometheus. Spiritual essay of Europe”], Almada Negreiros grants Prometheus a major spiritual significance in Western culture, and the suffering hero is also regarded as the symbol of human spiritual demands in the poem Canto de Prometeu [Prometheus’s Chant], by João de Barros.

This paper discusses the nature of the research priorities debate in Australia, and traces the working out of that debate over recent years. The discussion is embedded in an account of how the institutional structure developed to allocate... more

This paper discusses the nature of the research priorities debate in Australia, and traces the working out of that debate over recent years. The discussion is embedded in an account of how the institutional structure developed to allocate funds for research and how mechanisms were put in place to try to establish national research priorities. It is argued that the prioritising processes developed by the Australian Research Council (ARC) and the Australian Science and Technology Council (ASTEC) during the 1980s and early 1990s are adaptable enough for current and future use, but that by 1996–7, the possibility of a sustained effort to work out national research priorities appeared remote.

Hesiod and the Theogony’s protagonist, Zeus, are engaged in parallel programs. They both assimilate and co-opt competing, preexisting forces and material in order to reorganize their respective worlds—theogonic poetry and cosmos. Hesiod’s... more

Hesiod and the Theogony’s protagonist, Zeus, are engaged in parallel programs. They both assimilate and co-opt competing, preexisting forces and material in order to reorganize their respective worlds—theogonic poetry and cosmos. Hesiod’s poetics of incorporation are especially apparent in the story of Prometheus (507–616), where Hesiod synthesizes different strands of Prometheus’ mythic tradition. Seeming contradictions in the narrative are actually signs of Hesiod’s reworking of the story, meant to be perceptible to an audience. Likewise, Zeus’ politics of co-option brings rivals safely into his regime, culminating in his literal incorporation of Metis.