text:
History of video games/Platforms/GP2X Caanoo

Launch
The GP2X Cannoo was launched in 2010 for $150, though it was sometimes sold for $169. The system was well received by some open source enthusiasts, as well as a the broader public, though marketing of the device in the west was sparse.

Legacy
Due to increasing competition by smartphones, the GP2X Caanoo was discontinued in 2011. Retrospective media coverage of the device is sparse, but an AV Club article considered the device a forerunner of sorts to the emerging genre of open consoles that proliferated in the later 2010's.

GamePark Holdings (Then renamed to GPH) folded on March 23rd, 2013.

Compute
The GP2X Caanoo is powered by a MagicEyes Pollux VR3520F SOC, which is the exact same SOC powering the GP2X Wiz. The SOC contains an ARM926TEJ CPU clocked at 533 megahertz. Like the GP2X Wiz, it has built in 3D hardware capable of 1.33 million polygons a second.

The GP2x Caanoo has 128 megabytes of RAM clocked at 133 megahertz. This is double what is included on the preceding GP2X Wiz. However 16 megabytes of system RAM is reserved for use as video RAM.

Hardware
The GP2X Caanoo uses a OLED resistive touchscreen with a size of 3.5 inches and a resolution of 320 by 240 pixels.

The GP2X Caanoo has an SDHC card slot, which is more important then it is on the Wiz as the Caanoo has only 128 megabytes of internal storage which is exclusively used for system software.

A Wolfson Microelectronics WM1800 digital to analog converter is used for stereo audio.

The GP2X Caanoo contains a lithium polymer battery rated at 1,850 mAh. Battery life lasts between four hours and seven hours.

Software
The GP2X Caanoo runs GNU/Linux as an operating system.


text:
Sewing/Sewing utensils

Sewing needle
A sewing needle is essential for all sewing. There are many types of sewing needle, they vary depending on the project. Thicker needles are used for tough materials such as denim and leather, thinner for more delicate materials such as silk. Miller needles are a types of needle we're the eye as the same thickness as the rest of the needle and are useful for embroidery. For most sewing needles however the eye is slightly thicker than the shaft of the needle to make it easier to thread.

Thimble
Thimbles are a tool used for hand sewing. They are unnecessary if using a sewing machine. Thimbles worn on the middle of forefinger to protect the finger as it pushes the needle through fabric. They can be made of metal or leather. Some sewers use thimbles for all projects, while others avoid them unless absolutely necessary. They are most useful when dealing with thick fabric that is difficult to sew through.

Pins
Pins hold fabric in place while it is being sewn. They also are used in fitting garments.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Sewing/Sewing utensils


text:
History of video games/Platforms/Dingoo

A320
The Dingoo A320 was released in early 2009 in China. Shortly after release, the company split, and two slightly incompatible versions of the A320 were briefly made, causing great confusion emerging from their similarity and misinformation spread about the consoles.

The Dingoo A320 cost around $70-$100 US Dollars or 70 British pounds.

A330
The Dingoo A330 was released in mid 2010 and sold for about $110.

A380
The Dingoo A380 was released by December 2012 for $130, where it faced an increasingly competitive market.

Dingoo manufacturing ended sometime between 2013 and 2014.

Compute
The Dingoo A320 is powered by a Ingenic Semiconductor JZ4732 MIPS architecture CPU clocked at 360 megahertz.

The Dingoo A320 contains 32 megabytes of RAM clocked at 112 megahertz. Depending on the make, the original clock speed of the RAM is either 166 megahertz, or 133 megahertz.

Hardware
The Dingoo A320 has four gigabytes of built in flash storage. The system also supports expansion via a MiniSD card slot.

The Dingoo A320 uses a 2.8 inch screen with a resolution of 320 by 240 pixels, and supports AV output over an RCA cable.

The Dingoo has an internal microphone. The Dingoo has a built in FM radio and antenna.

The Dingoo has an internal battery rated at 3.7 volts and a capacity of either 1700 milliamp hours or 1800 milliamp hours for a run time of around seven hours.

Software
The Dingoo A320 runs µC/OS-II natively.

The Dingoo interface is similar to the Sony XrossMediaBar. The Dingoo can play flash animations.

A330 Technology
The Dingoo A330 is an upgraded HK model A320 with upgraded RAM and a new wireless receiver.

Compute
The Dingoo A330 is powered by a Ingenic Semiconductor JZ4732 CPU clocked at 336 megahertz.

The Dingoo A330 has 64 megabytes of RAM.

Hardware
The Dingoo A330 2.8 inch LCD has a resolution of 320 by 240 pixels.

The Dingoo A330 has four gigabytes of flash storage and a mini-SD card slot.

The Dingoo has a built in 2.4 gigahertz wireless receiver for use with a controller.

Software
The Dingoo A330 runs version 1.2 of the Native O/S.

Compute
The Dingoo A380 is powered by a Ingenic Semiconductor JZ4755 dual core CPU clocked at 500 megahertz.

The Dingoo A380 has 64 megabytes of RAM.

Hardware
The A380 has four gigabytes of integrated flash storage. The A380 has a TF Card slot for expandable storage.

The A380 LCD has a resolution of 400 by 240 pixels. The A380 has PAL only AV output.

The A380 has built radios for Wi-Fi and FM radio capable of receiving channels between 76 megahertz to 108 megahertz.

The A380 has a rechargeable lithium battery with four hours of battery life.

Software
Emulators for the A380 often ran worse then on the A320, making that model somewhat less popular.

title: History of video games/Platforms/Dingoo


text:
LMIs in Control/Applications/An LMI for the Kalman Filter

This is a An LMI for the Kalman Filter. The Kalman Filter is one of the most widely used state-estimation techniques. It has applications in multiple aspects of navigation (inertial, terrain-aided, stellar.)

The System
Continuous Time:

\begin{align} \dot x(t)&=Ax(t)+Bu(t)+w(t),\\ y(t)&=Cx(t)+v(t)\\ \end{align}$$

The process and sensor noises are given by $$ w(t) $$ and $$ v(t) $$ respectively.

Discrete Time:

\begin{align} x_{k+1} &= Ax_k+w_k\\ y_k &= Cx_k +v_k \end{align}$$

The process and sensor noises are given by $$ w_k $$ and $$ v_k $$ respectively.

The Data
The data required for the Kalman Filter include a model of the system that the states are trying to be output and a measurement that is the output of the system dynamics being estimated.

The Filter
The Filter and Estimator equations can be written as:

Continuous Time

\begin{align} \dot \hat{x}(t) &= A\hat{x}(t)+Bu(t)+L(y(t)-\hat{y}(t))\\ \end{align}$$

Discrete Time

\begin{align} \hat{x}_{k+1} &= A\hat{x}_k + L(C\hat{x}_k-y_k)\\ \end{align}$$

The Error
The error dynamics evolve according to the following expression

Continuous Time

\begin{align} \dot e(t)&=(A+LC)e(t)+w(t)+Lv(t)\\ \end{align}$$

Discrete Time

\begin{align} e_{k+1}&=(A+LC)e_k + w_k + Lv_k\\ \end{align}$$

The Optimization Problem
The Kalman Filtering (or LQE) problem is a Dual to the LQR problem. Replace the matrices $$ (A,B,Q,R,K) $$ from LQR with $$ (A^T,C^T,V_1,V_2,L^T). $$

The Kalman Filter chooses $$ L $$ to minimize the cost $$ J = E[e^Te]. $$ This cost can be thought of as the covariance of the state error between the actual and estimated state. When the state error covariance is low the filter has converged and the estimate is good.

The Luenberger or Kalman gain can be computed from $$ L = \Sigma C^TV_2^{-1} $$

The process and measurement noise covariances for the Kalman filter are given by

\begin{align} V_1 &= E[w(t)w(t)^T] \text{ aka: } Q\\ V_2 &= E[v(t)v(t)^T] \text{ aka: } R\\ \end{align}$$

The matrix $$ \Sigma $$ satisfies the following equality

$$ A\Sigma + \Sigma A^T + V_1 = \Sigma C^TV_2^{-1}C\Sigma $$

We also cover the discrete Kalman Filter formulation which is more useful for real-life computer implementations.

The discrete Kalman filter chooses the gain $$ L = A\Sigma C^T(C\Sigma C^T+V)^{-1} $$ where the PSDs of the process and sensor noises are given by

\begin{align} W &= E[w_kw_k^T] \text{ aka: } Q\\ V &= E[v_kv_k^T] \text{ aka: } R\\ \end{align}$$

The steady-state covariance of the error in the estimated state is given by $$\Sigma$$ and satisfies the following Riccati equation.

\begin{align} \Sigma = A\Sigma A^T+W-A\Sigma C^T (C\Sigma C^T+V)^{-1}C\Sigma A^T \end{align}$$

 * Objective: State Estimate Error Covariance
 * Variables: Observer Gains
 * Constraints: Dynamics of System to be Estimated

The LMI: H2-Optimal Control Full-State Feedback to LQR to Kalman Filter
The Kalman Filter is a dual to the LQR problem which has been shown to be equivalent to a special case of H2-static state feedback.

Start with the H2-Optimal Control Full-State Feedback.

The following are equivalent

\begin{align} 1. ||S(K,P)||_{H2} &< \gamma\\ \end{align}$$

\begin{align} 2. K &= ZX^{-1} \text{ for some } Z \text{ and } X > 0 \text{ where} \\ \end{align}$$

\begin{align} \begin{bmatrix}A & B_2\end{bmatrix} \begin{bmatrix} X\\ Z\\ \end{bmatrix} + \begin{bmatrix}X & Z^T\end{bmatrix} \begin{bmatrix} A^T\\ B_2^T\\ \end{bmatrix} + B_1B_1^T < 0 \\

\begin{bmatrix} X & (C_1X+D_{12}Z)^T\\ C_1X+D_{12}Z & W \end{bmatrix} > 0 \\ \text{Trace}(W) < \gamma^2 \end{align}$$

To solve the LQR problem using H2 optimal state-feedback control the following variable substitutions are required.

\begin{align} C_1 = \begin{bmatrix} Q^{1/2}\\ 0\\ \end{bmatrix}, D_{12} = \begin{bmatrix} R^{1/2}\\ 0\\ \end{bmatrix}, D_{11} = 0, \\ B_2 = B, B_1 = I \end{align}$$

Then

\begin{align} S(P,K) = \begin{bmatrix} A+B_2K & B_1\\ C_1+D_{12}K & D_{11}\\ \end{bmatrix} = \begin{bmatrix} A+BK& I\\ Q^{1/2}& 0 \\K & 0\\ \end{bmatrix} \end{align}$$

This results in the following LMI.

\begin{align} \begin{bmatrix}A & B_2\end{bmatrix} \begin{bmatrix} X\\ Z\\ \end{bmatrix} + \begin{bmatrix}X & Z^T\end{bmatrix} \begin{bmatrix} A^T\\ B_2^T\\ \end{bmatrix} + B_1B_1^T < 0 \\

\begin{bmatrix} X & (\begin{bmatrix} Q^{1/2}\\ 0\\ \end{bmatrix}X+\begin{bmatrix} R^{1/2}\\ 0\\ \end{bmatrix}Z)^T\\ \begin{bmatrix} Q^{1/2}\\ 0\\ \end{bmatrix}+\begin{bmatrix} R^{1/2}\\ 0\\ \end{bmatrix}Z & W \end{bmatrix} > 0 \\ TraceW < \gamma \\ \end{align}$$

To solve the Kalman Filtering problem using the LQR LMI replace $$A,B,Q,R,K$$ with $$A^T,C^T,V_1,V_2,$$ and $$L^T.$$ This results in the following LMI.

\begin{align} \begin{bmatrix}A^T & C^T\end{bmatrix} \begin{bmatrix} X\\ Z\\ \end{bmatrix} + \begin{bmatrix}X & Z^T\end{bmatrix} \begin{bmatrix} A\\ C\\ \end{bmatrix} + I < 0 \\

\begin{bmatrix} X & (\begin{bmatrix} V_1^{1/2}\\ 0\\ \end{bmatrix}X+\begin{bmatrix} V_2^{1/2}\\ 0\\ \end{bmatrix}Z)^T\\ \begin{bmatrix} V_1^{1/2}\\ 0\\ \end{bmatrix}+\begin{bmatrix} V_2^{1/2}\\ 0\\ \end{bmatrix}Z & W \end{bmatrix} > 0 \\ TraceW < \gamma \\ \end{align}$$

The discrete-time Kalman Filtering LMI is saved for another page as it requires derivation of the Discrete-Time LQR LMI problem which was not covered in class.

Conclusion:
The LMI for the Kalman Filter allows us to calculate the optimal gain for state estimation. It is shown that it can be found as a special case of the H2-optimal state feedback with the appropriate substitution of matrices. The LMI gives us a different way of computing the optimal Kalman gain.

Implementation
A link to CodeOcean or other online implementation of the LMI

Related LMIs
Links to other closely-related LMIs

 * H2OptimalObserver


text:
History of video games/Platforms/GamBros

History
A separate splinter company of GamePark, GamBros attempted to launch Dinkii in 2007. They then tried to launch the nXGP in 2009.

Dinkii
The Dinkii is almost certainly a rebranded version of the unreleased XGP kids.

Compute
The Dinkii uses a ARM940T clocked at 140 megahertz.

The Dinkii has eight megabytes of SDRAM.

Hardware
The Dinkii has two megabytes of NOR flash storage.

The Dinkii uses a 2.2 inch TFT LCD display with a resolution of 220 by 176 pixels. The Dinkii is capable of 16-bit stereo sound.

The Dinkii is powered by two AA batteries.

The Dinkii was available in "Snow White" and "Zet Black".

Software
The Dinkii runs GBOS.

nXGP Technology
The nXGP was said to be similar to the GamePark XGP.

Compute
The nXGP was supposed to be powered by an ARM11 CPU clocked at 667 megahertz.

The nXGP was supposed to have 128 megabytes of DDR RAM.

Hardware
The nXGP was set to have 2 gigabytes of NAND flash storage and an SD card slot.

The nXGP was supposed to have an 24bit 3.5 inch TFT LCD with a resolution of 320 by 240 pixels. The developer board has two RCA jacks.

The nXGP was supposed to have two vibration motors for force feedback.

The nXGP was supposed to have a microphone and three axis accelerometer.

Software
The nXGP was supposed to dual boot GPOS and Linux.

External Resources

 * Pyra Handheld boards - Photos of the nXGP console and devboard.


text:
History of video games/Platforms/XGP

History
The XGP was announced by 2005. The XGP was redesigned in 2006 and the XGP mini was also announced. The GamePark XGP kids was announced by September 7th, 2007.

XGP stands for Extreme Game Player.

The XGP was supposed to cost about $300. The XGP mini was supposed to cost about $150. The XGP Kids was supposed to cost about $75.

GamePark declared bankruptcy in 2007.

XGP Technology
The XGP is powered by a VRender 3D SoC with an ARM920T CPU clocked at 266 megahertz. The system was supposed to be able to render 1.5 million polygons a second, enabling a high end mobile 3D experience for the time. The system was to have 64 megabytes of DDR SDRAM. An upgrade to 128 megabytes was rumored, though both would have been impressive amounts for the time.

The XGP had impressive connectivity for the time, sporting radios for Wi-Fi b/g, WiBro, and a DMB TV tuner. The inclusion of WiBro in particular is notable as it would have made the XGP one of the first mobile game consoles without cell phone functionality capable of high speed mobile data access. The TV tuner is also indicative of the national roots of the console, as mobile TV over digital multimedia broadcasting (DMB) was relatively popular in South Korea. The four inch screen sported by the XGP, would have been considered rather large for a portable screen at the time, making the TV functionality of the console much more appealing.

The XGP was supposed to triple boot GPOS, Linux, and Windows CE.

XGP Mini Technology
The XGP Mini has 32 megabytes of RAM.

The XGP mini has a 2.2 inch display.

The XGP mini has no wireless connectivity.

XGP Kids Technology
The XGP Kids has an ARM 940T CPU clocked at 140 megahertz. The XGP Kids has eight megabytes of DDR RAM.

The XGP kids has two megabytes of NOR flash storage.

The XGP kids has a 2.2 inch display.

The XGP kids has no wireless connectivity.

The XGP Kids is powered by AA batteries.

The XGP kids only runs GPOS. This is likely in part to it's lower price and specifications.

title: History of video games/Platforms/XGP


text:
User:Yoconda.102/sandbox

Poem and Narratives
I would like to dedicate this book to family and friends Who share knowledge and

experiences in my daily life.

Epigraph
“She’s got some sort of notion in her head concerning the eternal rights of women”. By Kate Chopin

'''PREFACE Poem and Narratives''' This is a seed that many teachers have planted since I started at LaGuardia Community College in English classes. I’m grateful to them because they have made this job possible.

Introduction
I wrote this little chapter book about focusing on society's isolation and issues for my English class.

= Poem = The Pandemic hurts my feeling

Pandemic time has caused isolation

It makes me feel weird, it impacted my daily life

I look up at the sky in the hazy day and it reminds me,

I have to survive alone.

I don’t like to be in isolation, I do not know how to live like this!

Some aspects changed that now look normal.

I miss a little smile that made me feel happy;

I can’t see if a person is sad, or happy

I can’t see those expressions of kindness, empathy,

and the feeling of the individual and compassion.

I walk on the sidewalk,

with mask covering their face, and only seeing their eyes

Eyes with tears, eyes with disappointment, eyes with fear

My eyes can only look and empathize,

But my soul and heart want to hug and tell them everything is going to be okay.

My spirit cries out loud saying everything will be okay.

More computers, they said, more technology they pled,

Leading us to become soulless like robots and machines,

While others are hungry for love, and looking for where to find

like how a homeless person asks for bread.

Pandemic hits people’s lives and isolates us,

Who’s thirsty for love hoping to fly to stay close to the stars.

Those are bright to make them bright, here are some revelations about systematic and structural racism:

those complicated feelings are perfectly normal.

PLOT
When Covid-19 began to spread globally, government officials had put a mandated law to quarantine for fourteen days and a curfew law was also put in effect. As time passed, complete lock down which affected people’s activities and their daily lives, such as going to school, work, being with families and socializing.

As Covid-19 continued to spread globally, the media would report lives lost and also report positive results of people being contaminated. The media would constantly advise society to wear masks, social distance, stay 6 feet apart and to not have large gatherings. People also began to avoid each other because of the fear of catching the virus. According to the news, elderly was more vulnerable because of their weak immune system which led to that population being more isolated. Since the quarantine, it caused people to lose empathy for others.

During quarantine, society began using technology to keep themselves occupied. The population began to struggle with paying rent and their bills, causing more stress and anxiety. The pandemic had a huge effect on everyone globally, and the virus will continue to spread if the population does not follow the rules in place to slow down the spread. Society needs to return back to the way it was in order for individuals to begin to have feelings and empathy for those around them.

Analysis

The poem “The Pandemic Hurt My Feelings” describes the world’s current situation. It describes how globally people have become more isolated. In the poem it mentions how society is asking for more technology and doesn’t realize that we are being controlled by our latest

gadgets. The current young generation is losing the skill of how to communicate and not developing good social skills. Covid-19 has changed the lives of many people and will continue to change how society behaves towards each other.

= Chapter 2 =

Kate Chopin
Context for Kate Chopin’s “Story of an Hour”: Women in the Nineteen Century Kate Chopin “The story of an Hour” is based on the idea of female independence. It is assessing the concerns on how women are supposed to behave in the 19th century. The death of Louise’s husband shows how women were able to have independence, which was the only way it was able to happen. Regardless of Louise’s sorrow from her husband’s death, she still feels happy at the same time because she realizes she is independent and free. In the end of the story, shockingly Louise’s husband returns home, she is in great shock and heart stops and dies. She dies because of the joy that kills, happy to see her husband but, upset because her freedom is gone. In the 19th century the American society believed that women had to depend on their husbands. Women had to submit to their husband, maintain the household and adjust their lives to their husbands. Women also had no financial income and relied on their husbands for income as well. The “Story of An Hour” was published in 1885 when women started to show organized movements rising. And in the 1920 women were finally given the right to vote.

In the article “Women in the nineteen century “published in New York, Saturday, February 15, 1845, by Broadway Journal, it displayed that Margaret Fuller was an influential and a critical American writer activist who trusted that women have to get higher in education and talent to accomplish goals together with their husbands. Women should be partners and be able to comprehend their husbands. The author attempted to comprehend as women were living in times of oppression.

Women suffered all kinds of abuse, such as emotional abuse and physical abuse. Fuller believed in freedom, she indicates in the article that women were treated unfairly and like slaves. The middle and lower classes were more affected than the high class because women had to stay home, abide by the rules and do housework. Additionally, if they were slaves, they had to do field work. Men made decisions for the family and women were forced to follow those decisions even if they were wrong. Women couldn't argue toward the man’s decision. In the 19th century women were treated unfairly in society; men were controlling and manipulators in society. Fuller explained if women were able to have freedom and rights that they can be a support system towards their husband in order for them to accomplish their goal in America, some women could be free. Kate Chopin was a feminist of the 19th century as well as Fuller. Both Fuller and Chopin were known writers who taught women the necessity to change society toward the individual.

In conclusion, women in the 19th century suffered because at those times all men occupied essential strategic jobs in the government, and they were against women. Men created law to victimize women and did not use their power to fight for women’s rights. However, women were being educated in society and were passing it down to their children. Feminists made many changes; however, women do not get the same wages as men even though some women are more prepared than men. Women must continue to fight and stand up for their rights in order for them to be treated equally.

= The Story of An Hour =

1-. What does the Story of An Hour mean?
The title represents that Mrs. Mallard’s life is being lived in one whole hour. She is going through major changes in the story. In the time frame of an hour, Mrs. Mallard has a normal life and she’s shocked by her husband’s death. Then realizes that she is free and is living differently within that hour.

2.- What does it mean that Mrs. Mallard is happy that her husband has died? What does it tell us about her society?
Mrs. Mallard is happy that her husband has died because she enjoys the feeling of being free. This tells us that she lived in a society where men are dominant and women submit to their spouse.

3.- What does it mean when Mrs. Mallard is isolated in her room? What does it mean when she is isolated in her marriage? Can one be isolated when one is surrounded by people who care about oneself?
During the story Mrs. Mallard isolates herself in the room because she is mourning and weeping of her husband's death; however, while being in her room she looks outside the window and sees how beautiful it is outside. Freedom is represented because Mrs. Mallard is free and is viewing the positive side of her husband’s death. Mrs. Mallard goes through isolation and realizes that freedom can lead to her own personal self-growth.

4. Is Mrs. Mallard’s isolation caused by the role society imposes on her?
Mrs. Mallard’s isolation was caused by the role of society because Mrs. Mallard enjoyed the idea of being free and not oppressed by her husband even though she understood that even if she was out of love people would oppress each other. In the 19th century, women had to dedicate their life to their husbands, to raising a family, and to be able to take care of the home. By being able to isolate herself Ms. Mallard shows her freedom.

5. What does the ending have to tell us about what the community does/has done to Mrs. Mallard?
The ending shows that the community comforts Mrs. Mallard with her emotions. It shows that Mrs. Mallard is showing dependency on the community to comfort her. Even though she wants her freedom, the arrival of her husband causes her to get emotional and people around her to comfort her. By the community comforting her shows that women can’t be independent and need to rely on other individuals for their needs.

6. What does Mrs. Mallard's husband represent?
Her husband represents what society was in the 1800s. In those times, men were the dominant in that culture and women were obligated to abide by their husband. Her husband also represents a type of dictatorship, because when her husband passed away, Mrs. Mallard felt happy and free.

Tentative Thesis
In the narrative “The story of An Hour “by Kate Chopin the protagonist, Mrs. Mallard is like a bird in a cage. Ms. Mallard is being compared to a bird in a cage. She stares outside her window like a bird looks outside his cage to be able to fly and be free. The bird cage also displays her sorrow that she feels inside her heart. Ms. Mallard has lost her freedom when she got married and is not able to take care of herself because she is too focused on her husband’s wellbeing. In the beginning of the story, Mrs. Mallard receives a notice about her husband's death and is able to feel free and fulfilled. As compared to a caged bird, Ms. Mallard has a glimpse of freedom when she hears of her husband's death; however, then she realizes her husband is alive and no longer feels free.

Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour” dramatizes the expectations of society on married women.
The story is written in 1894 by Kate Chopin who expresses the expectations of society on married women. For example, a married woman gave her social status, however, she was obligated to care for him and follow his rules. In “The story of an Hour” Mrs. Mallard is a beautiful white young woman who has the characteristics of what a good woman is. Mrs. Mallard fulfills his expectations on what a good woman is. Even though she fulfills his expectations, Mrs. Mallard lost her identity because she is forced by society to meet the requirements of a good woman which leads to her being owned by her husband. Therefore, Mrs. Mallard doesn’t feel free and instead she feels trapped in her body and soul.

In those times parents encouraged their children to get married at any age in order to have social status. Social status represents wealth, good health and stability; in the story “Story of an Hour” Mrs. Mallard was married for many years which shows Mrs. Mallard had good stability and good social economic status. Even at the time of her death, she had doctors in her home indicating she had died from the joy that kills. As times changed women began to have more education, were able to fight for their rights and not be forced to be married. In today’s society people choose their partners based on who they care and love for. If women are not happy, they are entitled to a divorce. Also, nowadays couples share with each other, and grow together.

1- What is the irony of the joy that kills in “The Story of An Hour”?
The irony of the joy that kills in the story of an hour, Mrs. Mallard finds out that her husband was alive, and then dies because she is in distress that she lost her freedom. 2.- How does the story describe Louise's feelings toward marriage? Louise's views towards marriage are that she does not like the idea of being controlled. In the story it shows she enjoys freedom and dies because she is in distress of losing her freedom when she realizes her husband is alive.

3.- How does Louise feel towards her husband's death?
In the story it shows she mourns and weeps because of her husband’s death. However, she also enjoys the idea of having her freedom. The story shows that she looks outside the window and realizes how beautiful it is outside which represents freedom.

Imagenes https://commons.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Solitude#

Further reading

Other stories by Kate Chopin -The awakening, Female Sexuality

Other really good stories about women’s oppression

Dramatizations of “The Story of an Hour” https://ffh.films.com/id/3992/Kate_Chopin_Five_Stories_of_an_Hour.htm

More information on the roles of 19th century women in the U.S.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_women_in_the_United_States https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feminism

title: User:Yoconda.102/sandbox


text:
Issues in Interdisciplinarity 2020-21/Evidence in The Plastic Continent

Introduction
The Plastic continent also known as the eighth continent lies between California and Hawaii and is three times the size of France. It is made of 1,8 billions pieces of floating plastic greatly impacting the marine life. This is one of the biggest issues in environmental science and climate change. Evidence about this continent is brought by different fields as it is an interdisciplinary issue. We will see how scientific and sociological methods can conflict with each other on this issue.

Measurement
Due to its waterborne nature, measuring the plastic continent and determining its location has proved a difficult task. A variety of approaches have been used to estimate these properties, producing a wide range of results. Estimates of the area it covers range from the size of Texas to the size of Russia.

The existence of the patch was first theorised by a study researching the distribution of plastic in a patch in the Japan sea which extrapolated that a similar patch must exist in the pacific with a much higher density of plastic. This was based on analysis of wind and ocean current patterns.

There are studies which have surveyed plastic distribution on beaches because this is much easier than surveying the sea, although many factors such as current and beach structure affect this as well as plastic from beach users, so it is an unreliable method for inference about oceanic plastic distribution.

Trawling surveys at sea are more direct but due to the size of the ocean it is difficult to gather enough data for a reliable result.

Image surveys conducted using aircraft were able to assess much larger areas giving more reliable information but could only account for plastic larger than 50cm so were no use in analysing microplastics. Scientist have also monitored the wildlife near the patch. One study onː The plastic content in the diet of albatrosses from Pacific islands showed that there were two distinct zones of debris.

Evidence in Chemistry
Plastic is all over in our everyday life. Unfortunately, it is almost indestructible (a single plastic bag can take up to 1000 years to degrade) and really hard to recycle.

Toxic chemicals are released in the ocean from the decomposition of the plastic as hydrophobic organic pollutants. « Microplastics behave like little chemical sponges and all of these very toxic, persistent substances that are in the water will stick to the outside of the plastic in order to move from the aqueous environment to a more hydrophobic environment » according to Sherri Mason, environmental chemist. Those microplastics help to move those chemical products of the environment to organisms that ingest them. Those chemicals come from the chemical composition of the plastic produced by industrial companies. They contain chemical additives such as plasticisers, colorants or UV stabilisers. Evidence of this chemical pollution due to microplastics can be seen in the organisms of marine animals and birds that eat them thinking it is their natural food. Once they are ingested those microplastics can desorb and then are stored in the fat of those animals. Chemicals can affect the ability of marine organisms to store energy and therefore animals have a lower life expectancy.

Evidence in Biology
The food chain is disturbed by microplastics in the ocean. Turtles are found entangled in plastic bags or birds’ stomachs are found to be full of plastics. Dissections by biologists of hundreds of those species found dead near beaches or in the droppings of animals pointed out this excessive amount of microplastics. According to Greenpeace, around 1,5 million animals are victims of this plastic pollution in the oceans each year. Those ingestions of plastic have consequences on the health of those marine species such as inflammatory cellular responses or other diseases as necrosis, birth defects, cancers, effects on immune system due to alteration of gene expression... Those effects have been shown mostly through research conducted on dolphins.

Evidence of this plastic continent is also seen in the studies and researches into sediments. Depending on the weight of microplastics some sink and lead to a great amount of plastic on the sea floor. The investigation of plastic in the deep sea is difficult due to limited access. However, some have detected in samples microplastics from depths up to five kilometres with a new extraction technique using high density salt solutions to float the plastic and separate them from other solids.

Evidence in Economics
Plastic has been mass produced and is difficult to destroy so plastic waste is a big issue which economists have created models to explain.

Considering that international legislations forbid direct littering at sea, it is difficult for Economists to measure Plastic waste into the Ocean. However, light products usually make their way into the sea passing through rivers or helped by the wind. Therefore, to calculate Plastic in the Ocean, Economists decide to calculate inadequately managed waste in order to measure the amount of plastic but also the countries that pollute the most. They created an equation: ‘Inadequately managed plastic wastes = Plastic waste per capita x Inadequately managed waste % x population’ and it delivers results proving that in a Capitalist Economy like ours with growing GDP per capita, Plastic waste especially in the ocean is a growing problem. Moreover, these calculations are based on ‘very conservative estimates’, and the actual amount of Plastic waste is far greater than the one they used for the calculations.

Political Evidence
In addition to assessing the waste management of different countries, studies have used qualitative methods to determine debris' origin. One study reported a rapid increase in Asian bottles. Computer models of ocean currents have been used to predict the course plastic debris would follow and then from this determine its origin. All studies around this matter are liable to political bias.

The actual Laws
The territorial waters and the subsoil and airspace above and under it are up to 12 nautical miles away from the cost, the country which borders them has the right over these waters. The Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) is a maximum width of 200 miles beyond the baselines. In the EEZ, the coastal State has a sovereign right for the purposes of exploration and exploitation, conservation and management of natural resources, the seabed and their sub-surface. The State can for e.g. regulate fishing activities. Beyond the EEZ, in the high seas, the States no longer have rights. In these Seas, the concept of freedom governs. The only right that States have is the right of hot pursuit in High Seas if it began in the EEZ of the coastal State. Because the Plastic Continent is in the high Seas, no country could be sued for not taking care of it

Conclusion
The long-term impacts of oceanic plastic are unknown so extrapolation is necessary to assess its danger. It is waterborne so researching it causes technical challenges. Its dynamic nature means it is difficult to quantify and trace. There are many different methods of gathering evidence on it and the conflicting results they produce make it clear that an interdisciplinary approach is necessary to reach a consensus.

= References =


text:
User talk:Jerome Hubbard

--Pi zero (discuss • contribs) 12:39, 23 November 2020 (UTC)

title: User talk:Jerome Hubbard


text:
Issues in Interdisciplinarity 2020-21/Evidence in Hormonal Contraception

Introduction
Hormonal contraception exists in several forms, including oral pills, vaginal rings or skin patches, all sharing the same mechanism: they influence female hormone levels to prevent ovulation, with a wide application in birth control and treating menstrual symptoms.

Due to such broad usage, research considers evidence from multiple disciplines, including biology and psychology, when regarding the development of new or currently available contraception. This range of studies produces a variety of evidence which in itself presents interdisciplinary tensions. Therefore, an insight into such tensions between biology and psychology will better the understanding of hormonal contraception by policy makers and the general public, improving their everyday use and effectiveness.

Evidence in biology
Most of the biological evidence relating to hormonal contraceptives is produced through randomised control trials (RCTs), or large, non-comparative multi-centre registration studies. A problem in the field is that both these designs, although less so in RCTs, run the risk of producing biased evidence as the companies that manufacture the study contraceptive fund and undertake these studies themselves. Furthermore, the sampling frames consist of mostly Europeans or Americans, with research lasting only 365 days evaluating up to 8 menstrual cycles. Hence, long-term health effects of hormonal contraceptives are undocumented.

Within the discipline, evidence for hormonal contraception is varied. This is due to the fact that synthetic hormones affect bodily hormone production, leading to several physiological changes. This forces biological research to use several specialised methodologies to measure each effect.

One problematic assumption in the biological study of hormonal contraceptives is the application of self-reports to generate quantitative measurements. This links to the issue of inconsistently defined terminology such as “continuation,” “compliance”, “adherence,” “misuse”, “nonuse,” and “correct use”. The reliance of self-report studies on these unstandardised definitions produces conflicting evidence and limits the observation of negative outcomes.

Most importantly, biologists fail to capture the full complexity of contraceptives due to the general lack of research towards non-physiological effects of hormonal treatments, or menstruation-associated symptoms, participant satisfaction, and long-term health effects due to continuous contraceptive use. There is a preference within biology to consider only physical conditions in evidence. Many epidemiological case studies suggest increased risks of venous thromboembolism, ischemic stroke, and myocardial infarction, all of which are easily tested and objectively quantifiable conditions.

Evidence in psychology
“Literature testing psychological implications of commencing oral contraceptives has lagged behind research investigating physical risks.” - Kobey and Bunnk, 2012.

Despite this, the field pushes for a greater understanding of long-term consequences in hormonal contraception use. There is a heavier use of meta-analyses as the field takes advantage of previous psychological research. Alongside these meta-analyses the psychological evidence also focuses on the use of in-person interviews and population based studies; these aid in giving a longer-term perspective with a more qualitative approach.

The research conducted to review effects of hormonal contraception, formed over a larger time scale than biological research, not only analyses the impact at both a neurological or hormonal level, but also a behavioural level. This helps to diagnose sources of certain mental illnesses and the hormones used in contraception which serve to aggravate them.

Research methods also include subjective discussions on second wave feminism and the impact of contraception on the workforce due to a relation to women’s health and psychology. There exists further qualitative observation of the impact of hormones on primates, and qualitative studies relating to behavioural patterns in women. These studies carried out on primates and then women show an impact not only upon the physical health of the individual, though it is noted that these specifications fall more in line with biological research, but also upon levels of aggression and depression. However, primates may be considered sufficiently distant to humans that they yield uncertain evidence regarding possible human consequences.

Tensions
Differences in evidence type present one avenue in which tensions arise. Many biological studies are clinical, randomised-control trials, such as Osuga, Hayashi and Kanda’s 2020 study. Effects of hormonal contraception on a large sampling frame are numerically ‘scored’, with results statistically analysed; this produces primary evidence which is largely quantitative and removes any subjective aspect of personal experience. In psychology however, there is a focus on using reports and interviews to generate evidence; the emphasis is on personal experiences with contraception and impacts on mental health and sexual activity. Evidence such as this is gathered from more subjective, situational studies as opposed to the objective and statistical biological experiments.

Another tension arises within the differing uses of self-report based evidence. In biology, this evidence is treated as quantitative and generally not deeply evaluated; in many experiments abnormal personal experiences are excluded from calculations. This same self-reported data in psychological research is treated as qualitative evidence and is analysed to draw new conclusions, suggesting reasons for the abnormalities. The issue of unclear terminology regarding participant conditions in biological research further demonstrates this lack of focus on individual participant action. Alternatively, in psychology, this terminology is standardised as individual experiences are usually the focus of the research.

Furthermore, biological studies considering the safety of contraception may focus more on physical side-effects, such as abnormal bleeding. The mental side-effects considered in psychological studies may take longer to manifest themselves. As such, the evidence gathered in biology considers seemingly more physical or ‘tangible’ side-effects. This could mean that biological evidence is deemed more valid than its psychological counterpart; here another tension becomes apparent as there is a notion of necessity in biological research but not psychological.

Conclusion
In the development of hormonal contraceptives, there is greater focus on biological research when first considering drug viability, with psychological studies carried out following this. While hormonal contraception has been in use for over 50 years, suggesting high levels of biological research, the psychological effect of contraception on stress responses and emotional memory remains unexplored; it is only in recent years that this is being considered. This can be attributed to the fact that production of evidence in psychology is somewhat limited to studying patented products already in use, while biology is not. In order to overcome such limitations, an interdisciplinary study of contraception will be beneficial.

Regarding the study of long-term effects, longer research periods mean that psychological studies ‘lag’ significantly behind biological ones. Policy makers therefore may consider biological evidence a priority, and psychological evidence an afterthought. In light of this, when considering the viability of a contraceptive drug, there are ethical concerns testing for psychological effects in a substance not yet clinically trialled. However, the amount of time required for the long-term psychological study of contraceptives may mean that drug companies prefer to develop drugs after only clinical tests; this is concerning considering mental health is equally as important as physical. With this rising consideration regarding mental health, policy makers may take an interest in an interdisciplinary approach to hormonal contraception development.

Lastly, after considering current tensions, there is also some progress toward an interdisciplinary approach. Currently there is little use of the psychological perspective within biology, however in psychological meta-analyses there are references to biological evidence. This shows a promising interdisciplinary future within the study of hormonal contraception.


text:
Talk:Issues in Interdisciplinarity 2020-21/Evidence in Intelligence Testing

Log of Meetings
20.11.20 (Natasha, Benjamin)

We came up with a working title relating to AI. Brainstormed other ideas, and scheduled another meeting. Created a google docs folder.

22.11.20 (Natasha, Benjamin, Charlotte)

Talked more about our different ideas and added them to the google doc, decided to come to a final decision of the topic by the end of the week at the latest.

23.11.20 (Natasha, Benjamin, Charlotte)

Finalised our topic, talked about the structure and different sections. Assigned out the sections to the group.

30.11.20 (Natasha, Benjamin, Charley)

Exchanged findings and discussed potential areas of conflict between disciplines. Agreed on areas to focus on and which to forget. Each to continue researching topic and submit initial contributions this week. Next two weeks to be process of finalising introductions and conclusions.

06.12.20 (Natasha, Benjamin, Charley)

Online meeting to discuss how the project is going. We focused on the interdisciplinary conflict, how to link the topics together, and making sure we are completing the task in the way that meets the marking criteria. We are going to continue our individual sections and begin integrating the topics collaboratively through the intro/conclusion before finalising next week.

Measuring Intelligence in the Social Sciences Entry
I have just written a brief outline. Will return to add references and make changes, but just to give you both an idea of what this section will be saying so we have time to discuss and make all the necessary adjustments Xrcaatnp (discuss • contribs) 19:13, 2 December 2020 (UTC)

I have restructured this section and labelled it 'An Anthropological and Sociological Perspective' because I think the two offer a distinct way of looking at the issue of measuring intelligence which differs quite a lot from the others. I have rewritten it to make it more clear the point I am trying to make about these approaches and how their different take on it produces conflict, but will no doubt have to make some more changes again so that we can link it with the issue of computers. If you have ideas on how to do this feel free to make changes! (Will return to add references again). Xrcaatnp (discuss • contribs) 12:37, 5 December 2020 (UTC)

Measuring Intelligence in Computer Science Entry
I have added the topics for this section that I will be elaborating on over the weekend for reference incase they spark any other ideas/conflict ideas for you both. Camjo09 (discuss • contribs) 23:15, 3 December 2020 (UTC)

I just found a article on AI taking intelligence tests which I think may be useful for the conclusion conflict. I will summarise my reading before adding it into the main Wikibook tomorrow. Just to inform you guys to keep in mind if you begin any conclusion writing. Camjo09 (discuss • contribs) 18:11, 8 December 2020 (UTC)

General notes
As a question for thought - Do we need a clearer purpose of why we have chosen to identify this? Why is the fact we have identified conflict between different discipline's evidence in measuring intelligence a important issue? Why is it a important interdisciplinary issue I guess?

As discussed in last week's meeting I thought I would add in the rough idea conflict we arrived at: Issues between measuring intelligence by IQ and how that conflicts with cultural differences. Furthermore how that conflicts with the computing notion that humanity isn’t inherently needed to have intelligence, which seems to invalidate needing to accommodate the inherently human variable of culture as evidence in intelligence tests. Camjo09 (discuss • contribs) 23:15, 3 December 2020 (UTC)

--

Yeah you raise good points about being explicit about exactly what the issue is and why it is important. Perhaps we can talk about why it is important as a social issue - quite heavy debates exist around the issue of measuring intelligence, its purpose, its validity, and its consequences. The difficulty would be relating this to whether or not computers can be intelligent, so I don't know if maybe anyone has any ideas on angles we could take on that?

I think part of the conflict lies in, as we said, how we define intelligence. The 'Facts and Fallacies' chapter in the following book (https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/measuring-intelligence/9EFB4DAA867F73021C145B41D3F49015) provides a helpful outline for distinguishing between IQ, g and intelligence which I think helps to resolve such conflicts, to some degree. The debates over whether or not any particular test can be said to actually provide evidence for intelligence or not seems to heavily depend on distinguishing between these.

As I understand it, the issue of culture seems to relate primarily to the idea that understandings of what constitutes intelligence vary extensively between different cultures, and that different environments require and produce different kinds of mental abilities and strengths and thus produce qualitatively different forms of intelligence. "Cultures designate as “intelligent” the cognitive, social, and behavioral attributes that they value as adaptive to the requirements of living in those cultures." (Sternberg & Kaufman, 1998)... I suppose then the issue is whether computational notions of intelligence, and those measured by IQ, would meet criteria for notions of intelligence produced by very different cultures, as opposed to the more technological Western notions of intelligence? E.g. those that place more emphasis on social intelligence, moral wisdom, etc (many Eastern and African philosophies). Xrcaatnp (discuss • contribs) 18:06, 4 December 2020 (UTC)

--

In terms of computers, as discussed earlier I think the CS view on evidence of intelligence slots in nicely with the anthropological perspective as tests tend to be about natural behaviour, rather than reasoning which can be very subjective across cultures. This may offer a interdisciplinary solution to the social issue.

AI intelligence tests are measuring the replica of the same thing that stats/anthropology are measuring. So this is naturally a interdisciplinary issue as they are all conflicting ways of measuring the same thing. This needs to be solved which leads on to the next point that evidence in measuring intelligence is also a issue in CS as we will not know if AI has met its goals of replicating human intelligence until there is a agreed upon benchmark of evidence for human intelligence. So that plus the social issue are two issues we could mention briefly about why this is a important interdisciplinary topic.

I found this article - https://geneticliteracyproject.org/2017/11/16/measuring-intelligence-iq-problems-present/ - which has a interesting real-world case about 1900s America where IQ tests were used to prove eugenics and how today there is still research on the link between IQ and race. Might be something to briefly mention in why its a important social issue. Camjo09 (discuss • contribs) 12:14, 6 December 2020 (UTC)

--

I have attempted to reduce the word count in my own entry and both the intro and conclusion. I think we still have to reduce it by another couple of hundred words Xrcaatnp (discuss • contribs) 13:13, 13 December 2020 (UTC)

--

I cut down as much as I could in my section without compromising the main points as well as making slight adjustments to the intro and conclusions. I also slightly changed some wording in the computer section to reduce word count, if i messed the section up feel free to change it back. Radpebble (discuss • contribs) 15:17, 13 December 2020 (UTC)

Introduction and Conclusions
Do you think, as mentioned briefly in the meeting yesterday, that we should move the final paragraph under 'Measuring Intelligence in Psychology' to the introduction or to the conclusion? I think they are useful overall points. 94.6.204.149 (discuss) 11:54, 8 December 2020 (UTC) Xrcaatnp (discuss • contribs) 20:03, 11 December 2020 (UTC)

--

I altered paragraph slightly to have less overlap but we can move some of it to the introduction. Specifically the bit about intelligence being hard to define. As for what else should be in the intro, maybe we should briefly talk about the reason why its important to test intelligence, what the tensions are between the disciplines. Maybe we reserve the solution for the conclusion. Thoughts? Radpebble (discuss • contribs) 11:50, 9 December 2020 (UTC)

--

I think it makes sense to have an introduction outlining the conventional use of IQ and psychometric based testing to measure intelligence, along with the points you make in your section about concerns around their validity, and the contestability of definitions. The final summary section on the computer based testing seems like a good starting point for a conclusion, so maybe we could move that over to a 'Conclusion' section. If we have those sections as starting points, over the next week we could go along and make edits/additions as we see fit and check with eachother as we do so? Xrcaatnp (discuss • contribs) 15:38, 8 December 2020 (UTC) 94.6.204.149 (discuss) 15:29, 8 December 2020 (UTC)

--

For the introduction I think we need to address concretely why this is definitely a interdisciplinary conflict, rather than multidisciplinary. Any suggestions for that? Also I think briefly mentioning why its a important conflict to address in the intro, two examples being the knock on affect it has socially and also the difficulty it throws up in knowing if AI has met its goals without having a clear set of evidence of intelligence. But yes I agree with moving the computing summary over to conclusion - so focusing on possible ways to integrate the disciplines (where they compliment each other maybe) and then the conflicts between them there?Camjo09 (discuss • contribs) 17:47, 8 December 2020 (UTC)

--

I tried to make a start on an intro but don't hesitate to change or delete anything! Xrcaatnp (discuss • contribs) 09:54, 9 December 2020 (UTC)

--

I added a bit to the intro with a bit more context. I was also wondering if maybe we should add a line like this "This wikibooks chapter will address conventional testing in psychology and look at the interdisciplinary tensions that arise with the social sciences and computing." just to be very to the point but we may be going over the word limit. Radpebble (discuss • contribs) 14:32, 8 December 2020 (UTC)

--

I changed a few sentences in the intro to mention more explicitly the word evidence as the seminar leader pointed out that previous groups didn't follow the specific issue clearly enough. I also changed the part about how a interdisciplinary solution would be helpful as I thought it was important make it clear that we're looking at a interdisciplinary conflict/issue first and foremost - as the marking criteria mentions about being very direct to the topic. Basically I tried to make it more explicit that we are dealing with a interdisciplinary issue of conflicting ideas of what is evidence of intelligence in intelligence testing. I hope this makes sense and that my changes are ok?! Camjo09 (discuss • contribs) 14:25, 9 December 2020 (UTC)

--

Looks good to me!

In reference to reducing the word count, I had some potential ideas... I think the following sentences could be removed without compromising the overall intro: 1) The point about intelligence testing being useful for diagnosing learning disabilities. I think we can make the point that intelligence testing can have valuable practical uses without this. Primarily because this is a contested topic within education and one which we don't address enough. It seems like an area best to be avoided if we are only limited to mentioning it briefly in an intro?

2) The half-sentence 'some prioritising flexibility, others complexity'. Without this it could just be a simple straightfoward sentence: 'Different disicplines have conflicting views on what counts as evidence." It's succint and clear at least and cuts out a few words.

I will also go through and try to remove some words from my own section where possible so that we have room to finish off the conclusion! Xrcaatnp (discuss • contribs) 17:27, 9 December 2020 (UTC)

--

Sounds good yes :) I will also cut down my word count as I just added another section to mine to see if it inspired any more thoughts in either of you re conflicts. I will take out the least relevant information to cut it down once we have got the conclusion in place. Camjo09 (discuss • contribs) 01:40, 10 December 2020 (UTC)

--

I have made an attempt to make some more progress on the conclusion but I'm not sure that I have really addressed what we need to on evidence. Will keep thinking over it too. 94.6.204.149 (discuss) 19:56, 11 December 2020 (UTC) Sorry I keep contributing without logging into my account! Xrcaatnp (discuss • contribs) 20:02, 11 December 2020 (UTC)

--

I am not sure that the second paragraph of the conclusion is necessary as it seems to repeat the same kind of thing as the first paragraph just in a different way. Would it make sense to cut that out of the word count? Camjo09 (discuss • contribs) 16:00, 12 December 2020 (UTC)

--

Yeah sure! Feel free to cut out whatever seems unnecessary or repetitive Xrcaatnp (discuss • contribs) 18:11, 12 December 2020 (UTC)

--

I cut out a bit more of the conclusion because it repeated itself a bit (the part about moving towards a more interactive dynamic environment) because we already mention it in the second sentence talking about the perspectives. Radpebble (discuss • contribs) 14:39, 13 December 2020 (UTC)


text:
Issues in Interdisciplinarity 2020-21/Evidence in Transgenderism

Introduction
Transgenderism is the phenomenon whereby a person's gender identity does not correspond to the sex they were assigned at birth. Although this concept exists cross-culturally and throughout history, it is difficult to distinguish between the various terms used (e.g. transsexual, third gender) and their boundaries. Fluctuating definitions of the phenomenon are derived from different disciplines, in which evidence also takes various, conflicting forms. Psychology, biology and social anthropology tackle transgenderism from different perspectives, using various methodologies, research tools and frameworks. To formulate a comprehensive understanding of transgenderism and expand societal consciousness on the issue, it is important to identify the tensions and values behind evidence in each discipline.

Evidence in Biology
Biological studies on the causes of transgenderism involve different fields of the discipline: genetics, brain activity and biological factors; while employing different methodologies. In genetic research, biologists use heritability studies in families to see if inherited genes from previous generations could influence gender identity. Similarly, twin study designs are used as evidence. By comparing the concordance rate in DNA among monozygotic and dizygotic twins, they obtain data to estimate the genetic contribution of gender identity. Though this method is one of the most widely used, it yields some limitations as the instruments used to measure gender identity may be confused with gender expression.

Biologists also conduct molecular genetic studies to examine the consequences of prenatal hormone exposure, focusing on sex-hormones receptors that could be responsible for undermasculanisation-feminism. Studies typically investigate small sample sizes or individual genes, and conduct a statistical analysis to see which ones are overrepresented to draw conclusions. However, further work and replications in this area is needed before considering it as strong evidence.

Finally, biologists look for quantitative evidence in parts of the brain that account for sexual dimorphism. Typically, researchers compare brain structure and activity between cisgender and transgender people using various medical imaging techniques such as functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) and Positron Emission Tomography (PET). This examines if brain regions in transgender people resemble the genders they identify with, rather than the one they were assigned to. Studies show that it is indeed generally the case.

Evidence in Psychology
Psychological research into the cause of transgenderism tends to focus heavily on the experience of the individual, providing significant quantitative evidence by either quantifying qualitative evidence or using methodologies that rely on interviews and questionnaires, as well as observation.

Early methods of obtaining evidence were overwhelmingly case-study based, with the first research in 1949 from Cauldwell based entirely on one individual. This was useful in giving a snapshot of period typical attitudes to transgenderism as a mental immaturity brought on by a disruptive upbringing and genetic predisposition, whilst demonstrating an accurate qualitative account of personal experience. However, this methodology is not conducive to generating quantifiable evidence applicable to other individuals, hence the recent shift towards alternate methodologies.

Recent methods of obtaining evidence include experiments exploring the sociocultural backgrounds of transgender individuals and gender identity development during childhood. These methods are more conducive to establishing universal laws within the discipline as they generate large sets of quantitative data for evidence that can be studied to identify causal relationships. It has been found that children display knowledge of typical gender stereotypes long before they show a differentiation between sex based on genital information, highlighting psychology’s emphasis on the importance of ‘nurture’ over ‘nature’ and more biologically based theories. However these types of methodologies, despite rising ethical standards in recent years, tend to lack consideration for transgender individuals within the structure of the methodology, eg. continuing to use binary terms such as male and female within questionnaires. Therefore, there are still improvements to be made to the methodologies used in psychological research to collect evidence.

Evidence in Social Anthropology
The main evidence used by anthropologists is ethnographic evidence collected by methods like fieldwork, participant observation or interviews, which are predominantly qualitative. The data is then analysed using the framework of anthropological theories or positionalities, such as structuralism, feminist or queer theory.

Social anthropology’s evidence of transgenderism consists of analysing the lived experiences of transgender people through ethnography, and exploring the context-dependent existence of transgenderism and its expressions. It explains transgenderism as part of identity and often with a level of agency and performativity that other disciplines neglect because social anthropology uses evidence by relational methodologies. For example, the Travesti in Brazil are biologically male but acquire female body characteristics. However, although ethnographic research shows that they are viewed as women psychologically (similar to the view in scientific disciplines), the Travesti may not see themselves as transgender. The qualitative approach of social anthropology is important because the definition of transgenderism varies cross-culturally and temporally/ The Western male-female binary framework exemplifies this need for contextualisation of evidence as it is not universally applicable or correct, as demonstrated by various global ethnographic studies, or carry colonially-impacted ideas. Furthermore, queer theory suggests that gender is distinct from sex and can be socially constructed. Thus, notions of gender may vary cross-culturally, so queer theory can be used as a framework in social anthropology to explore the relation between gender, biological sex and transgenderism.

Social anthropology situates lived transgender experiences within their societal context (e.g. class, race), taking into account the impact of intersecting factors on transgenderism, gender binaries, or labels used in various societies, such as colonialism in the history of a society having an impact on cultural perception on gender or transgender issues. Reflexivity in social anthropology takes into account the positionality of the ethnographer and puts into question possible biases within their methodology, ethnographic evidence and analysis.

Integration of Evidence and Conclusion
By integrating evidence from the three disciplines, a more holistic understanding of transgenderism can be gained. In Biology, limitations of the twin study design (i.e. distinction between measurement of gender identity and expression) may be improved upon by using more subjective evidence from other disciplines. Psychology may use social experiments with participants in various age groups to distinguish between gender expression and identity, as childhood may be a key time in establishing stereotypes. Social anthropology may obtain evidence from individuals using interviews/testimony instead of quantitative evidence. Combining these through an interdisciplinary approach will give the most efficient use of evidence.

However, interdisciplinary tensions could stem from differences in methodologies used by social anthropology and scientific disciplines. Due to reliance on qualitative evidence such as interviews or observations by ethnographers in social anthropology, clashes in evidence may happen as quantitative evidence tends to hold more authority, potentially leading to a power imbalance across the disciplines or favouring evidence from natural sciences. However, by quantifying experiences, the subjectivity of transgender experiences cannot be captured. By reducing transgenderism to biological or psychological factors, there is loss of societal context and the variety of lived transgender experiences across cultures.

Causes of transgenderism are complex and it is unlikely that an exact set of explanations can be found within one discipline. In order to apply evidence to real life, it is important to be aware of why certain types of evidence are used, and what they measure and fail to capture. Awareness of these disciplinary tensions allows for a comprehensive, interdisciplinary application of evidence to be used in understanding transgenderism.


text:
Talk:Issues in Interdisciplinarity 2020-21/Evidence in Hormonal Contraception

=  Division of group work:  = Since the three of us live in the same accommodation we had the chance to meet several times in person to discuss the Wikibooks chapter. Even after 2 of us went back home for Christmas we continued meeting once or twice every week to work on the project via Zoom. This led us to do many things collaboratively, producing sections which have been written and extensively edited by the entire group and not any individual member. The fact that we met so frequently allowed us to better discuss topics face to face and reach better conclusions as the different perspective of each member in the group were better understood and heard. We also had a final call where we all went over the different sections in the book and did our final edits communally as well as reduced words.

Here is a general outline of what each group member did individually:

Ethan.dawson101:
 * Wrote “Evidence in Biology”
 * Wrote the introduction based on first draft written by Edgeofdawn
 * Wrote second paragraph in the Tensions section
 * Edited and restructures both Conclusion and Tensions sections with Edgeofdawn

Edgeofdawn:
 * Wrote the first outline of the introduction
 * Wrote main bulk of Tensions and conclusion section
 * Cut down words so that chapter fit max. wordcount of the assignment

Ocinweg
 * Wrote "Evidence in Psychology"
 * Reviewed the introduction written by Ethan.Dawson, and the conclusion written by EdgeOfDawn.
 * Finalised the conclusion, editing and adding a final paragraph.

= ''' Meeting 1: 23/11/2020, (15:00-16:00) Attended by Ocinweg, EdgeofDawn and Ethan.Dawson1010. ''' =

1) Discussed topics for the chapter.

2) Suggested ideas: Extra-terrestrials, over-population, sterilization, evidence in contraception.

- Evidence in contraception: Safety in contraception?

a) Biological evidence- Quantitative evidence, analysis via physical impact on the body.

b) Sociological evidence- Theological interpretations (qualitative evidence, case by case bases and dogma based analysis.)

c) Political evidence- Review of economic impacts, cultural deviations and feminist based interpretations/ qualitative evidence.

d) Feminist approach regarding the evidence for contraceptives - Discussed if Feminism is considered as a discipline and if we could use it as one.

e) https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=DImlYJ7NQycC&printsec=frontcover&dq=papers+on+the+safety+of+contraception&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjV1rbdgJntAhWRilwKHaY3AbIQ6AEwAHoECAUQAg#v=onepage&q=papers%20on%20the%20safety%20of%20contraception&f=false

f) https://www.nber.org/papers/w19493

More potential sources:
Higgins JA, Smith NK. The Sexual Acceptability of Contraception: Reviewing the Literature and Building a New Concept. J Sex Res. 2016;53(4-5):417-456. doi:10.1080/00224499.2015.113442 https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2015.113442

''' Work for next session : Research initial tensions within the topic, forms of evidence regarding safety, define safety in forms of contraception. Add information to discussion. '''

https://books.google.co.uk/books?hl=en&lr=&id=AHNsBAAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=interdisciplinary+tensions+contraception&ots=FO-wokKZI_&sig=RPJHsBdf41DXZH3DruliJbfNxao&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=interdisciplinary%20tensions%20contraception&f=false

= Meeting 2:26/11/2020 (13:00-14:00) Attended by Ocinweg, Ethan.Dawson1010 and EdgeofDawn. =

1) Further discussion of topics.

2) Reconsidering Over population (Power)- Discussing (biological) the power in the availability of contraceptives (indirect power), vs political bans (direct power).

3) Return to contraception- Biological perspective vs psychological perspective (hormonal impact) - Look at the concept from the place of a policy maker. Control trials vs course experimental methods. (Differences in the available forms of evidence)

4) Beginning to research biological perspectives vs psychological perspectives.

= Meeting 3: 27/11/2020 (15:00-16:30) Attended by Ocinweg, Ethan.Dawson101 and EdgeofDawn. =

1) Discussion on the scientific content within the biology header.

2) Discussion of division of labour between topics.

3) Clarification of our arguments.

4) Discussion of available sources and citations for the economics section.

= '''Meeting 4: 02/12/2020 (11:30-12:30) Attended by Ethan.Dawson101, EdgeofDawn, Ocinweg. ''' =

1) Recap of individual work done since last meeting.

2) Discussion of the relationship between our differing subjects within the topic.

3) Discussion of how best to redraft and address evidence within our subjects.

4) Psychology as filling in the gaps in research left by biology- Sexual disfunction and menstrual cycles for example.

5) Interest in the tendency for biological research to drop participants who abandoned the trial vs the tendency in psychology to ask why that individual did so.

= Meeting 5: 12/12/2020 (16:00-17:00) Attended by Ethan.Dawson1010 and EdgeofDawn. = In this meeting we discussed basically the Tensions and Conclusion. EdgeOfDawn had written a base first draft of both these sections and during the meeting discussed edits and new ideas the other members had thought of such as:
 * Moving section about the privilege of biology has as policy makers put it at a higher priority that psychology from tensions to conclusion.
 * Make the focus that biology has on only physical effects the "cause" of its privilege, thus link the two ideas better
 * Introduce more mentions of Interdisciplinarity and its benefits to the field
 * Introduce new argument on self rapport and the idea of quantitative vs qualitative evaluation of this self rapport as a way of producing evidence.
 * Talk about recent importance and focus in mental health
 * Bring back idea of meta-analysis and the argument we originally had but then had gotten rid of

= '''Meeting 6: 13/12/2020 (14:00-15:30) Attended by Ethan.Dawson1010, EdgeOfDawn, Ocinweg. ''' =

1) Review and group edit of the wikibook. 2) Review of Introduction and Conclusion. (most recent additions) 3) Discussion of submittal times and pdf format.

= '''Meeting 7: 14/12/2020 (11:30-12:30) Attended by Ethan.Dawson1010, EdgeOfDawn, Ocinweg. ''' = Final meeting on the Wikibooks chapter
 * 1) Reduce word count
 * 2) Add to discussion how the group work was divided
 * 3) Export Wikibooks as PDF and upload

= '''Initial planning: Evidence in Contraception. Wiki-books article by Ehan.Dawson1010, Ocinweg and EdgeOfDawn.''' -=

Introduction:
A definition of hormonal contraception, its uses, its general importance etc.

Define its separation from physical contraceptives such as condoms.

Should we focus on hormonal contraception used for preventing pregnancy or also its use in treating dysmenorrhea or mental health problems caused by female reproductive hormones?

Potential Introduction Draft (EdgeOfDawn)

Hormonal contraception works by… Contraceptive pills are not only for preventing pregnancies, but are widely used by young women for treating heavy flow and period associated pain and cramping (dysmenorrhea). Due to such a broad usage, it is imperative that several aspects, across multiple disciplines, are considered in regards to the development and improvement of new or currently available hormonal contraception. However, tensions between disciplines such as biology and psychology show…

Introduction Draft (Ethan.Dawson101)

Hormonal contraception nowadays exists in a variety of forms: birth control pills, vaginal ring, hormone-releasing contraceptive coils or contraceptive skin patch. However they all work on the same basis, they all alter and influence female hormone levels, with most of them stopping the ovaries from ovulating and releasing mature eggs.

Due to such it’s broad usage, research in the field considers several aspects regarding the development and improvement of new or currently available hormonal contraception. Thus, we see research on them in multiple disciplines such as Biology and Psychology. This multidisciplinary range of studies shows a variety in evidence which in itself presents many interdisciplinary tensions. Therefore, an insight into tensions between disciplines like Biology and Psychology will better the understanding of hormonal contraception by policy makers and the general populus, improving their everyday use and effectiveness.

Evidence in biology
Most of the biological research relating to hormonal contraceptives use randomized control trials (RCT) nowadays using computer-generated randomization schemes. Another main group of studies regarding hormonal contraceptives is composed of large non-comparative multi-center registration studies. Nonetheless, an important problem in the field is that both these designs (RCT’s less) run the risk of being biased due to the fact the companies that manufacture the contraceptive being tested fund, undertake, analyze and write up the results of such studies.

In terms of the population of these studies we find large variety with samples ranging from 40 up to 237,242, but with clinical trials of around 600. We also see how these populations are mostly European or American, limiting the applicability of the data. Simultaneously, most studies limit themselves to 365 days, and generally don’t document the long-term health effects of hormonal contraceptives.

Within the discipline of Biology we can generally evaluate evidence for hormonal contraceptives as being quite varied. This is due to the fact that exogenous administration of synthetic hormones can alter the hormonal secretions elsewhere in the body leading to modifications in multiple organ systems and physiologic processes. Thus, we see how Biology uses an large array of specialized methodologies to measure this plethora of non-contraceptive effects.

One of the most problematic methodological assumption in Biology affecting it’s production of evidence is it’s reliance on self-report measures as a valid quantitative measurement method. Biological research on hormonal contraceptives focuses greatly on participant adherence and compliance, evaluation of menstrual-associated symptoms and contraceptive use. Thereofore research relies greatly on interviewer-administered questionnaires, self-administered surveys and daily diaries. We find more of this vagueness of biological evidence in lack of well and consistently defined terminology. Researchers rarely use consistent terminology of words such as “continuation,” “compliance,” and “adherence,” or “misuse”, “nonuse,” and “correct use”. This variable terminology causes conflicting and equivocal data and limits to any related negative outcomes.

Furthermore, as a discipline biology fails to capture the full complexity of contraceptives due to the general lack of research towards non-physiological more qualitative non-contraceptive effects of hormonal contraceptives. There is a lack of attention directed towards menstruation-associated symptoms, participant satisfaction, and long-term health effects of continuous administration such as sexual disfunction. We can clearly note a preference within the discipline to look at physical conditions as evidence, due to is quantitative nature. We can find many epidemiologic studies showing an increased risk of venous thromboembolism, ischemic stroke, and myocardial infarction or even increased prothrombotic and cardiovascular risk, all of which are easily tested and subjectively quantifiable conditions. The same goes for the benefits of hormonal contraceptives such as reduced risk of ovarian and endometrial cancers, more favorable bleeding patterns, and improvement in menstruation-related symptoms

Version two
Most of the biological evidence relating to hormonal contraceptives is produced through randomized control trials (RCT) using computer-generated randomization schemes,[3] or we also find many large non-comparative multi-center registration studies.[4] Nonetheless, an important problem in the field is that both these designs, although regarding RCT’s this is less so, run the risk of being biased as the companies that manufacture the contraceptive being studied fund, undertake, analyze and write up the results of these studies.[4]

In terms of populations, we find a large variety of samples ranging from 40 [5] up to 237,242 [6], but with clinical trials not going above 600 participants, and with a mostly European or American demographic.[7][8] Generally, research doesn’t last more than 365 days with studies evaluating between 4 to 8 menstrual cycles. Hence the more long-term health effects of hormonal contraceptives are undocumented in biological studies.[3]

Within the discipline of biology, evidence for hormonal contraceptives is quite varied. This is due to the fact that synthetic hormones can effect the body’s own hormone production, potentially leading to several different physiological changes.[9] This forces biological research to use multiple specialized methodologies to measure this range of effects.

However, one problematic assumption in the biological study of hormonal contraceptives is in the application of self-reports as a valid quantitative measurement method. The reliance of biological research on interviewer-administered questionnaires, self-administered surveys and daily diaries is due to the field’s focus on participant adherence and compliance and evaluation of menstrual-associated symptoms.[8] Another major problem with this biological evidence is in the lack of well and consistently defined terminology such as “continuation,” “compliance”, “adherence,” “misuse”, “nonuse,” and “correct use”,[8] producing conflicting or equivocal data and limiting the observation of negative outcomes.

Most importantly, as a discipline, biology fails to capture the full complexity of contraceptives due to the general lack of research towards non-physiological, non-contraceptive effects of hormonal treatments. There is a lack of attention directed towards menstruation-associated symptoms, participant satisfaction, and long-term health effects like sexual disfunction of continuous administration of hormonal contraceptives.[3][10] There is a preference within biology to state physical conditions as evidence, due to it’s quantitative nature. Many epidemiologic case studies exist showing an increased risk of venous thromboembolism, ischemic stroke, and myocardial infarction,[9] all of which are easily tested and objectively quantifiable conditions.

Intial Plan:
A qualitative analysis of short-term risks and benefits of hormonal contraception.

Examples of studies: clinical biological trials, give an indication of the types of evidence that is used. Evidence is quantitative with an impersonal approach to participants.

http://apps.webofknowledge.com.libproxy.ucl.ac.uk/full_record.do?product=WOS&search_mode=GeneralSearch&qid=2&SID=E6ql38buHr6naWzXTiI&page=1&doc=9

http://apps.webofknowledge.com.libproxy.ucl.ac.uk/full_record.do?product=WOS&search_mode=GeneralSearch&qid=2&SID=E6ql38buHr6naWzXTiI&page=1&doc=8

These are randomised controlled trials - often used in studies to gain quantitative data of effectiveness. Not usually any scope or study of individual experiences as with psychology.

Evidence in psychology
“Literature testing psychological implications of commencing oral contraceptives has lagged behind research investigating physical risks.” Despite this, the field continues to push for a greater understanding of the long-term consequences of hormone use in contraception. It is because of this comparative lack of interest that we may identify a heavier use of meta-analysis (see  ) as the field takes advantage of previous research as opposed to the in-depth, case by case studies conducted by the traditional biological perspective.

The research conducted to review the possible effects of hormonal contraception, having been conducted over a larger time scale than its biological counterparts, identifies and analyses the impact that hormonal contraception has on both a neurological/hormonal level (I.e., its influence on natural female cycles and their level of attraction toward a possible mate) but also a purely behavioural level, helping to diagnose the source of certain mental illness and the differing hormones within contraception that serve to worsen/aggravate them.

Research methods, in the cases often utilized by meta-analyses of the topic, include discussions on second wave feminism and the impact of contraception on the workforce, qualitative observation of the impact of hormones within primates in accordance with the changes in their behaviour, and lastly in qualitative studies of the impact upon women in which the impact upon behavioural patterns was analysed as well as the mental health repercussions/consequences of the use of these contraceptives.

These studies carried out first on primates and then women, show a relevant impact not only upon the physical health of the individual, though it is noted that these specifications fall more in line with biological research, but also upon levels of both aggression and in some cases, depression. Revealing an increased tendency in women toward BPD (borderline personality disorder) and both an increased and decreased level of aggression in primates varying depending on species. This tendency within primates to vary in aggression levels speaks to the impact on human women and yet sufficiently distant to yield yet uncertain results and is for now too draw human consequences from.

Version two

“Literature testing psychological implications of commencing oral contraceptives has lagged behind research investigating physical risks.” [9] - Kobey and Bunnk, 2012.

Despite this, the field pushes for a greater understanding of long-term consequences in hormonal contraception use. There is a heavier use of meta-analyses as the field takes advantage of previous psychological research.[10] Alongside these meta-analyses the psychological evidence also focuses on the use of in-person interviews and population based studies; these aid in giving a longer-term perspective with a more qualitative approach.[11]

The research conducted to review effects of hormonal contraception, formed over a larger time scale than biological research, not only analyses the impact at both a neurological or hormonal level,[12] but also a behavioural level. This helps to diagnose sources of certain mental illnesses and the hormones used in contraception which serve to aggravate them.[13]

Research methods also include subjective discussions on second wave feminism and the impact of contraception on the workforce due to a relation to women’s health and psychology.[14] There exists further qualitative observation of the impact of hormones on primates,[13] and qualitative studies relating to behavioural patterns in women.[15] These studies carried out on primates and then women show an impact not only upon the physical health of the individual, though it is noted that these specifications fall more in line with biological research, but also upon levels of aggression and depression. However, primates may be considered sufficiently distant to humans that they yield uncertain evidence regarding possible human consequences.

Tensions
Differences in evidence type between biology and psychology present one avenue in which tensions arise. Many biological studies are clinical, randomised trials with a control group. (See ) They study and numerically ‘score’ effects of hormonal contraception on a large group of people, and run statistical analysis on their results; this produces primary evidence which is largely quantitative and removes the aspect of personal experience in regards to contraception use. On the other hand, a wider range of meta-analyses can be found in psychology, which is therefore secondary evidence. In addition, there is a focus on using reports and interviews from women about their personal experiences with contraception use and its impacts on their own mental well-being and sexual activity. Evidence such is this is gathered from more situational studies as opposed to the randomised, double-blind and statistical biological experiments.

In the development of hormonal contraceptives, there is greater focus on biological research – does the drug adequately effect the target, how much should a dosage be – when first considering if the drug is viable. Psychological studies testing the effects of hormonal contraception usage are usually carried out following this clinical testing. For example, while hormonal contraception has been in wide use for over 50 years, suggesting high levels of biological research into viable drugs, the effect of contraception on stress responses and emotional memory remains unexplored; it is only in recent years that such things are being considered. Furthermore, while there is increasing attention in the literature towards studying psychological effects (including sexual experience), the drugs studied are branded products already in use. In the case of studying long-term effects, longer research time periods also mean that psychological studies ‘lag’ significantly behind biological ones. Here, tension arises as biological evidence is considered a ‘priority’, while psychological evidence may be considered an afterthought.

When considering the viability of a contraceptive drug, there are of course ethical concerns when testing for psychological effects in a substance that has not yet been clinically trialled. However, the amount of time required for long-term psychological study of contraceptives may mean that drug companies prefer to develop drugs after completing only clinical trials; also a concern considering the importance of mental health is equally important as physical. As such it is difficult to consider both forms of evidence in a multidisciplinary approach to contraception development; instead, an interdisciplinary approach that brings together different aspects of each discipline’s evidence to reach a holistic judgement could be considered.

Tensions version 2
Differences in evidence type between biology and psychology present one avenue in which tensions arise. Many biological studies are clinical, randomised trials with a control group, such as Osuga, Hayashi and Kanda’s 2020 study. Effects of hormonal contraception on a large group of people are studied and numerically ‘scored’, and results are statistically analysed; this produces primary evidence which is largely quantitative and removes the aspect of personal experience in regards to contraception use. In psychology however, there is a focus on using reports and interviews from women to generate evidence; the emphasis is on their personal experiences with contraception use and its impacts on their own mental well-being and sexual activity. Evidence such is this is gathered from more situational studies as opposed to the randomised, double-blind and statistical biological experiments.

In the development of hormonal contraceptives, there is greater focus on biological research – does the drug adequately effect the target, how much should a dosage be – when first considering if the drug is viable. Psychological studies testing the effects of hormonal contraception usage are usually carried out following this clinical testing. For example, while hormonal contraception has been in wide use for over 50 years, suggesting high levels of biological research into viable drugs, the effect of contraception on stress responses and emotional memory remains unexplored; it is only in recent years that such things are being considered. Furthermore, while there is increasing attention in the literature towards studying psychological effects (including sexual experience), the drugs studied are branded products already in use. In the case of studying long-term effects, longer research time periods also mean that psychological studies ‘lag’ significantly behind biological ones. Here, tension arises as biological evidence is considered a ‘priority’, while psychological evidence may be considered an afterthought.

Furthermore, biological studies considering the safety of contraception may focus more on physical side effects of usage, such as bleeding.(Use one of Eric’s references here) The mental side effects considered in psychological studies are less apparent and may take longer to manifest themselves. Since the evidence gathered in biology is written about more physical and perhaps more tangible side-effects, this could mean that biological evidence is seen as more viable/valid than its psychological counterpart.

Conclusion:
When considering the viability of a contraceptive drug, there are of course ethical concerns when testing for psychological effects in a substance that has not yet been clinically trialled. However, the amount of time required for long-term psychological study of contraceptives may mean that drug companies prefer to develop drugs after completing only clinical trials; also a concern considering the importance of mental health is equally important as physical. As such it is difficult to consider both forms of evidence in a multidisciplinary approach to contraception development; instead, an interdisciplinary approach that brings together different aspects of each discipline’s evidence to reach a holistic judgement could be considered.

= References =


text:
Issues in Interdisciplinarity 2020-21/Truth in social media advertisement

 * Giulia, Deborah, Felix, Keene
 * Issue: Truth
 * Disciplines: Economics, psychology, philosophy
 * Case study: Advertising for Black Friday on social media