Sobre o lugar e a função do fantasma entre os anos de 1953 a 1964 do ensino de Lacan / Sur la place et la fonction du fantôme entre les années 1953 et 1964 dans l'enseignement de Lacan / About the place and function of the phantasm between the years of 1953 to 1964 of Lacan's teaching

O conceito de fantasma possui uma importância crucial para o enquadramento da experiência em psicanálise. Este artigo pretende situar o lugar e a função do fantasma neurótico na experiência analítica partindo da função da fala, tal como proposto por Lacan. Para tanto, selecionamos alguns textos e seminários de Lacan situados entre os anos de 1953 a 1964. Nossa hipótese de trabalho consiste na suposição de que, ao enquadrar uma realidade constituída inconscientemente enquanto resposta ao desejo do Outro, o fantasma serve para perpetuar ao neurótico um senso de ser idêntico a si mesmo à medida em que tende a promover um apagamento de contradições provenientes da posição que, como sujeito, ocupa em relação a este desejo. Ao ser concebida como irrupção de um objeto com valor de não-eu no enquadre fantasmático, a angústia produz um efeito reverso, constituindo, por conseguinte, tanto uma contraprova quanto um apoio na demonstração dessa hipótese.

Le concept de fantôme revêt une importance cruciale pour encadrer l'expérience en psychanalyse. Cet article veut situer la place et la fonction du fantasme névrotique dans l'expérience analytique à partir de la fonction de la parole, comme le propose Lacan. Pour cela, nous avons sélectionné quelques textes et séminaires de Lacan situés entre les années 1953 et 1964. Notre hypothèse de travail est qu'en encadrant une réalité inconsciemment constituée en réponse au désir de l'Autre, le fantôme sert à perpétuer chez le névrosé un sentiment d'être identique à lui-même dans la mesure où il tend à favoriser un effacement des contradictions nées de la position qu'il occupe, en tant que sujet, par rapport à ce désir. Conçue comme l'irruption d'un objet ayant valeur de non-moi dans le cadre fantasmatique, l'angoisse produit un effet inverse, constituant donc à la fois une contre-preuve et un support à la démonstration de cette hypothèse.

The concept of the phantasm holds a crucial importance for framing the experience in psychoanalysis. This article aims to situate the place and function of the neurotic phantasm in the analytical experience, starting from the function of speech as proposed by Lacan. To do so, we have selected some texts and seminars by Lacan between the years of 1953 to 1964. Our working hypothesis is that by framing an unconsciously constituted reality as a response to the Other's desire, the phantasm serves to perpetuate in the neurotic subject a sense of being identical to themselves as it tends to promote an erasure of contradictions arising from the subject's position in relation to this desire. When conceived as the irruption of an object with a non-ego value in the phantasmatic frame, anxiety produces a reverse effect, thereby constituting both a counterproof and a support in demonstrating this hypothesis.

Clarifying Human Dignity in Forensic Practice.

The notion of human dignity remains a relatively complex concept that has roots in classical Greek and Roman antiquity and links to religious teachings and Kantian philosophical notions. From the Latin dignitas, human dignity means worth and implies excellence and distinction. Human dignity, also found in 20th century constitutions and international declarations, has been considered in bioethics, general medicine, and psychiatry. The application of dignity to forensic psychiatry practice has received less attention. Through a review of texts in medicine and related fields, such as philosophy and anthropology, we aim to clarify the concept of human dignity and its application in forensic psychiatry practice. We first outline the historical origins of the term. We then consider several varieties of human dignity applied in medical ethics and psychiatry. We review individuals' lived experiences of indignity and dignity's place in forensic practice in different loci. We present recent scholarship related to human dignity and highlight the importance of dignity in forensic practice. Focusing on dignity in evaluator-evaluee and doctor-patient relationships should improve forensic work. Training in dignity-imbued forensic practice should remind us of the human dimensions of those we serve in the forensic arena.

My Silent Story: Conflicted Memories, Silences and Intergenerational Traumas.

This article aims to present the interdisciplinary project "My Story from Silence", conceived in 2022. The project represents a pioneering effort in assembling individuals from diverse communities, characterized by varying ethnic, national, and migratory backgrounds, along a historically dynamic border. Its primary objective was to provide a platform for these participants to articulate and share narratives previously shrouded in silence, offering insights into their historical pasts. Emphasizing reciprocal dialogue for the first time, the initiative fostered an environment where participants engaged in the dual act of narrating their own experiences and attentively listening to the narratives of others. These memories were explored in group workshops on both sides of the border. By combining elements of cultural anthropology fieldwork and analytical psychology, the workshops attempted to address hitherto unaddressed traumas and silent personal memories linked to major traumatic historical events such as fascism and Istrian exodus through the narratives of individuals. Three vignettes will illustrate the workshop dynamic and our Jungian understanding of it.

Cet article a pour objectif de présenter le projet interdisciplinaire « My Story from Silence ¼ conçu en 2022. Ce projet représente un effort pionnier dans le rassemblement d'individus de diverses communautés, caractérisées par des origines ethniques, nationales et migratoires diverses, le long d'une frontière historiquement dynamique. Son objectif principal était de fournir à ces participants un cadre pour exprimer et partager des récits auparavant enfermés dans le silence, offrant un éclairage sur leur passé historique. En mettant pour la première fois l'accent sur le dialogue réciproque, l'initiative a favorisé un environnement où les participants se sont impliqués dans un double acte; raconter leurs propres expériences et écouter attentivement les récits des autres. Ces souvenirs ont été explorés dans le cadre d'ateliers de groupe, des deux côtés de la frontière. En combinant des éléments de l'anthropologie culturelle de terrain et de la psychologie analytique, les ateliers ont tenté d'aborder des traumatismes jusque­là non traités et des souvenirs personnels silencieux liés à des événements historiques traumatisants majeurs tels que le fascisme et l'exode d'Istrie, à travers les récits d'individus. Trois vignettes illustrent la dynamique de l'atelier et notre compréhension jungienne de celle­ci. Les photographies à la fin de l'article fournissent des images d'une table ronde de clôture et de l'installation in situ dans la vieille ville de Koper­Capodistrie, en Slovénie, une ville bilingue au passé troublé dans la zone contestée de la frontière italo­slovène (ex­Yougoslavie).

Este artículo pretende presentar el proyecto interdisciplinario "Mi Historia desde el Silencio", concebido en 2022. El proyecto representa un esfuerzo pionero por reunir individuos de diversas comunidades, caracterizadas por distintos orígenes étnicos, nacionales y migratorios, a lo largo de una frontera históricamente dinámica. Su principal objetivo era proporcionar una plataforma para que los participantes pudieran articular y compartir narrativas previamente silenciadas, ofreciendo una comprensión de sus pasados históricos. Enfatizando por primera vez un diálogo recíproco, la iniciativa fomentó un entorno en el que los y las participantes se comprometieran tanto en el acto de narrar sus propias experiencias como en el de escuchar atentamente las narrativas de otros. Estas memorias se exploraron en talleres grupales a ambos lados de la frontera. Combinando elementos del trabajo de campo de la antropología cultural y de la psicología analítica, los talleres intentaron ­ a través de los relatos de cada participante ­ abordar traumas hasta entonces no abordados y memorias personales silenciadas vinculadas a importantes acontecimientos históricos traumáticos como el fascismo y el éxodo de Istria. Tres viñetas ilustrarán la dinámica del taller y nuestra comprensión Junguiana de la misma. Las fotografías que aparecen al final del artículo ofrecen imágenes de la mesa redonda de clausura y de la instalación en el casco antiguo de Koper­Capodistria (Eslovenia), una ciudad bilingüe con un pasado turbulento situada en la conflictiva zona fronteriza entre Italia y Eslovenia (antigua Yugoslavia).

Unpacking the Concept of Otherness: Philosophical and Psychological Perspectives.

Otherness is a complex and polysemic notion that is conceptualized in both philosophy and psychology. The paper examines otherness as a universal phenomenon of the human psyche that manifests in relation to oneself and interpersonal relationships with others. Philosophical ideas, including those of Hegel, Lévinas and Waldenfels, are introduced as providing essential theoretical background for psychological studies of otherness. The psychological section deals with otherness from various perspectives, with emphasis on internal processes of an individual, drawing on theories within psychoanalytical and intrapsychic traditions, as well as the intersection of otherness and identity. Otherness is introduced as a variable influencing complex individual and social processes, such as the perception of individuals and groups. Finally, a taxonomy of otherness is proposed that reflects the multifaceted nature of the concept and could help navigate the existing literature as well as guide new studies.

Surface and Latent Meanings in Male's Suicide Notes: A Two-Legged Qualitative Study.

This study aims to investigate the phenomenon of suicide, which is a global health problem, by utilizing suicide notes. Our main concern in this article is to understand why a person leaves suicide notes before committing suicide; indeed, this question may shed light on particular personal characteristics of the note-leavers. 12 documents containing suicide notes, belonging to Turkish males, were obtained from Prosecutor office. By using an inductive and interpretative method, firstly, we conducted a semantic level analysis; and subsequently, we deeply analyzed the data by conducting latent level analyses from a Lacanian point of view. At the end of this cumulative process, we labelled the latent themes as 'ambivalence of emotions', 'issues associated with separation' and 'issues associated with the Law'. Within the scope of those findings, a diagnostic discussion was provided. This discussion designated a picture of narcissism in addition to a psychotic structure, specifically paranoia.

The Effects of the Presence of Others on Risky Betting in a Laboratory Gambling Task Among High-Risk Gamblers: A Cross-over Randomized Controlled Trial.

We explored the effects of the presence of and cooperation with others on risky betting in a laboratory-based gambling task among high-risk gamblers. Specifically, we compared risky betting under solo, parallel, and cooperation conditions using a stratified randomized, cross-over design. Stratification was conducted according to participant age and gender. The participants were 40 Japanese adults (20 women, 20 men; mean age = 46, SD = 12.80). In the experiment, each participant conducted the Game of Dice Task (GDT) individually (solo condition), in parallel with another participant (parallel condition), and working together with another participant (cooperation condition). Linear mixed modeling results showed that when we controlled for previously specified covariates, there were no significant differences among the solo, parallel, and cooperation conditions regarding risky betting (parallel: estimates = 0.10, SE = 0.79, p = .900; cooperation: estimates = 0.95, SE = 0.79, p = .232). However, post-hoc analysis showed a significant difference between the solo and cooperation conditions regarding the number of times participants chose the riskiest bet (parallel: estimates = 0.18, SE = 0.52, p = .739; cooperation: estimates = 1.13, SE = 0.53, p = .035). Thus, we found that neither the presence of nor cooperation with others decreased risky betting in the GDT among high-risk gamblers. However, we did observe that participants displayed the riskiest betting behavior (i.e., selecting the single choice) in the GDT during the cooperation condition, compared with the solo condition.

Lesbian longings and the question of a queer repertoire in The "Other" Love Story.

In recent years, there has been an emerging critical discourse in South Asia that examines the changing contours of representational politics that could, in turn, be strategically mobilized to introduce an alternative idiom of same-sex love within a standard template of heterosexual storytelling. This has been complemented by an evaluation of alternative modes of sexual politics that need not necessarily conform to Western labels or paradigms of queer identities. Taking its cue from such discursive readings, this article demonstrates how Roopa Rao's web series, The "Other" Love Story (2016), revisits some of the dominant tropes, practices, and narrative conventions of the Hindi films, released in the 1990s, to create a counter-archive for the lesbian subject who, for the most part, was conspicuous by her very absence in the popular figurations of that period in South Asia. There is a perceptible strand of lingering nostalgia and artistic homage that undergirds such an experimental project that nevertheless also becomes a disruptive site for articulating an oppositional esthetics of romance. The subtlety and restraint of such a nuanced portrayal of dissident desires and queer intimacies thus not only resist the easy appropriations that women in the subcontinent are routinely subjected to (as veritable repositories of tradition and national identity) but also retrospectively reclaim a voice for an otherwise historically silenced discourse of sexuality for the masses.

The nonexistence of the Other and the contemporany symptoms of children / A inexistência do outro e os sintomas contemporâneos da criança

RESUMO: O objetivo deste artigo é discutir as mudanças apresentadas na sintomatologia das crianças no mundo contemporâneo, sintomatologia esta marcada pelas manifestações no corpo e pela primazia do gozo. Partindo da tese da inexistência do Outro, busca-se extrair suas consequências teóricas e clínicas para as manifestações do sofrimento na criança. Discutem-se a presença do gozo do Um separado do Outro e seu modo de manifestação nos sintomas das crianças. Evidencia-se a importância, no tratamento da criança, da constituição de um Outro que permita extrair o falasser de seu gozo solitário.

Abstract: This article aims to discuss the changes presented in children's symptomatology in the contemporary world. These symptoms are marked by manifestations in the body and the primacy of jouissance. Based on the thesis of the nonexistence of the Other, we seek to extract its theoretical and clinical consequences for the manifestations of suffering in children. The work discusses the presence of jouissance of the One separated from the Other and how it manifests in children's symptoms. It highlights the importance of the constitution of an Other that allows extracting the parlêtre from their solitary jouissance for the treatment of children.

Possibilities and paradoxes in medicine: love of order, loveless order and the order of love.

We have a desire to discover and create order, and our constitution, including our rational faculties, indicates that we are predisposed for such productivity. This affinity for order and the establishment of order is fundamental to humans and naturally also leaves its mark on the medical discipline. When this profession is made subject to criticism, frequently in terms of well-used reproofs such as reductionism, reification and de-humanisation, this systematising productivity is invariably involved in some way or other. It is, however, problematic that we rarely delve deeper and ask what order means, or reflect on its underlying, omnipresent and self-evident role. In order to approach this challenge, we initially and briefly place order in a conceptual and historical context. In what follows, we examine order explicitly, i.e. made an object of study, by taking a closer look at extensive multidisciplinary efforts to uncover the secrets of all its facets. Here we also try to identify some systems of order in medical science, including methodological and procedural order, which are indispensable as well as a source of problems. In the sections that follow, order is not defined as an explicit object of study, but comes to light in some exploratory and philosophising projects based on physics, mathematics and phenomenology . Each of these lets order and that which is ordered emerge in ways that may also shed light on opportunities and paradoxes in the medical domain. Key themes here include the Gordian knot of psyche - soma, the order of disorder and the patient as Other.

Recruitment Process in Salafi-Jihadist Groups in the Middle East (A Qualitative Study).

Studies on the psychology of terrorism and fundamentalism place great importance on the role of groups, with a central concept of "us" versus "them." The present study examines how and why Salafi-jihadist groups in the Middle East have attracted typical citizens. The participants in this qualitative study were unremarkable Kurdish people living near the western borders of Iran with an allegiance toward Salafi-jihadist groups. We selected 12 people for the purposes of this study. Findings indicate that "group adaptation" and "rejection of the other" are the two overarching themes pointed out by the participants. Group adaptation included four sub-themes: (a) Idealization of, plus identification and assimilation with the leader, (b) developing strong group bonds, (c) direct and nonhierarchical agency of the individual in the group, and (d) group hypnotic suggestion. The "rejection of the other" included two sub-themes: (a) in-group rejection (reducing legitimate Islam to Salafism) and (b) out-group rejection (rejection of non-Muslims). The results of the study highlight the importance of a sense of belonging to the group in the process of recruitment and assimilation of individuals into jihadist groups. Findings also indicate that the concepts of adaptation and rejection play a pivotal role in the formation of fundamentalist Salafi-jihadist groups and resultant violence. We discuss the implications of group analysis for possible ways to counterterrorism.

Primary Site Identification of Soft-Tissue Mass: Things to Know in MRI Assessment.

The spectrum of soft-tissue mass is varied, including neoplastic and nonneoplastic/inflammatory lesions. However, soft-tissue tumors have similar imaging findings and, therefore, the diagnosis of soft-tissue mass is challenging. Although careful assessment of the internal characteristics on imaging can often narrow the differential diagnoses, the differential diagnosis may be out of the question if identification of the soft-tissue mass origin is missed. The purpose of this article is to review the imaging findings and the essential anatomy to identify the primary site of the soft-tissue mass, and discuss the associated potential pitfalls. In order not to fall into a pitfall, recognition of characteristic imaging findings indicating the origin of the soft-tissue mass and anatomical knowledge of the normal tissue distribution are necessary. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 5 TECHNICAL EFFICACY STAGE: 3.

Esboço de uma Teoria Unificada da Angústia no Seminário 10 de Lacan / Outline of a Unified Theory of Anguish at Lacan's Seminar X / Esbozo de una Teoría Unificada de la Angustia en el Seminario 10 de Lacan

Este artigo propõe o esboço de uma teoria unificada da angústia no Seminário 10, visando fornecer uma chave de leitura que permita conectar entre si as diferentes formulações nas obras de Freud e Lacan. A ideia de unidade deve ser entendida no sentido estruturalista. Isso significa privilegiar as relações e não os termos, ou seja, encontrar a regra de composição do conjunto dos conceitos. Partindo do par de oposição angústia como falta da falta x angústia como sinal do desejo, demonstra-se que os afetos que formam os termos do par possuem uma relação: enquanto o primeiro seria condição de possibilidade do desejo, o segundo supõe um desejo constituído. Discute-se a existência de uma angústia relacionada ao gozo e de uma angústia relacionada ao desejo, demonstrando que o desdobramento da fórmula da angústia encontra respaldo no texto freudiano. Argumenta-se que o par de oposição lacaniano corresponde ao par freudiano angústia automática x sinal de angústia. Conclui-se que, apesar da pluralidade das definições, é possível encontrar uma lógica que as atravessa. (AU)

This article proposes the outline of a unified theory of anguish in Seminar 10, aiming to provide a reading key that allows to connect the different formulations in the works of Freud and Lacan. The idea of unity must be understood in the structuralist sense. This means privileging relationships and not terms, that is, finding the rule of composition of the set of concepts. Starting from the pair of opposites anguish as lack of lack x anguish as a sign of desire, it's shown that the affections that make up the terms of the pair have a relationship: while the first would be a condition for the possibility of desire, the second supposes a constituted desire. The existence of anguish related to jouissance and anguish related to desire is discussed, demonstrating that the unfolding of the anguish formula finds support in the Freudian text. It's argued that the Lacanian pair of opposites corresponds to the Freudian pair automatic anguish x sign of anguish. It's concluded that, despite the plurality of definitions, it's possible to find a logic that crosses them. (AU)

Este artículo propone el esbozo de una teoría unificada de la angustia en el Seminario 10, con el objetivo de proporcionar una clave de lectura que permita conectar las distintas formulaciones en las obras de Freud y Lacan. La idea de unidad debe entenderse en el sentido estructuralista. Esto significa privilegiar las relaciones y no los términos, es decir, encontrar la regla de composición del conjunto de conceptos. Tomando como punto de partida el par de oposición angustia como falta de la falta x angustia como señal de deseo, se demuestra que los afectos que componen los términos del par tienen una relación: mientras que el primer sería una condición de posibilidad del deseo, el segundo supone un deseo constituido. Se discute la existencia de la angustia relacionada con el goce y la angustia relacionada con el deseo, demostrando que el despliegue de la fórmula de la angustia encuentra apoyo en el texto freudiano. Se argumenta que el par de oposición lacaniano corresponde al par de oposición freudiano angustia automática x señal de angustia. Se concluye que, pese a la pluralidad de definiciones, es posible encontrar una lógica que las atravese. (AU)

Elucidating the Effect of Perceived Power on Destructive Responses during Romantic Conflicts.

Prior research has indicated that the people one loves the most, such as their romantic partners, ironically, are also the people toward whom they often direct destructive behaviors in times of conflict, and such destructive responses become one of the most challenging relationship problems. Identifying the conditions that promote destructive (vs. constructive) conflict-resolution strategies is a crucial gap requiring study to help individuals build healthier and happier relationships. Across three studies (total N = 728), we examined whether (a) power is related to direct destructive (vs. constructive) responses during romantic conflicts; (b) this effect was moderated by the seriousness of the conflict and the relationship's inclusiveness. In Study 1, participants involved in romantic relationships completed scales assessing interpersonal power, the conflict's seriousness, their relationship's inclusiveness, and conflict-resolution responses. In Studies 2-3, the participants were randomly assigned to complete an essay in which the conflict's seriousness and power were experimentally manipulated. Findings from hierarchical regression analyses consistently showed that power led to destructive (and lower constructive) responses. However, this only occurred when the participants faced severe conflicts and their partner was not central to their self-concept. An internal meta-analysis of the studies confirmed the reliability and significance of these relationships; |r's| =.13-37. Together, these results support the proposition that power asymmetries can threaten relationships by driving destructive responses during romantic conflicts, and untangle the conditions under which this happens. The conflict's seriousness and the inclusiveness of the relationship may be considered to provide skills that help individuals navigate their relationships' life challenges.

The Possibility/Impossibility of Ethical Community during the COVID-19 Pandemic: a Philosophical Reflection.

The outbreak of COVID-19 has raised a global concern and calls for an urgent response. During this perpetual time of epidemic crisis, philosophy has to stand on trial and provide a responsible justification for how it is still relevant and can be of used during this global crisis. In such a time of crisis like that of COVID-19, this paper offers a philosophical reflection from within the possibility/impossibility of community thinking in India, and the demand for an ethical responsivity and response-ability to act ethically towards the Other (autrui) to show that philosophy always already emerges from within the context of crisis. As an alternative outlook to the thinking of totalitarian singularity and individualism, community-in its possible and impossible making-can offer more meaningful engagement with the other human being by being responsible and extending care towards the Other. The thinking of a shared community life is the facticity of one's own being-together-in-common without the dismissal of individual differences as can be seen in the works of Jean-Luc Nancy, and there is an ethical demand that comes from the face-to-face ethical relationship with the Other as argued by Emmanuel Levinas.

Accuracy comparison across face recognition algorithms: Where are we on measuring race bias?

Previous generations of face recognition algorithms differ in accuracy for images of different races (race bias). Here, we present the possible underlying factors (data-driven and scenario modeling) and methodological considerations for assessing race bias in algorithms. We discuss data-driven factors (e.g., image quality, image population statistics, and algorithm architecture), and scenario modeling factors that consider the role of the "user" of the algorithm (e.g., threshold decisions and demographic constraints). To illustrate how these issues apply, we present data from four face recognition algorithms (a previous-generation algorithm and three deep convolutional neural networks, DCNNs) for East Asian and Caucasian faces. First, dataset difficulty affected both overall recognition accuracy and race bias, such that race bias increased with item difficulty. Second, for all four algorithms, the degree of bias varied depending on the identification decision threshold. To achieve equal false accept rates (FARs), East Asian faces required higher identification thresholds than Caucasian faces, for all algorithms. Third, demographic constraints on the formulation of the distributions used in the test, impacted estimates of algorithm accuracy. We conclude that race bias needs to be measured for individual applications and we provide a checklist for measuring this bias in face recognition algorithms.

Re-thinking the Narrative in Narrative Medicine: The Example of Post-War French Literature.

Medicine and the humanities have been exploring new ways to improve the quality of healthcare. One such collaboration is the practice of narrative medicine which uses literature to teach physicians to better meet their patients' needs. Narrative medicine, however, draws primarily from Anglophone literature, yet post-war French literature, philosophy and criticism have much to add to the theoretical and practical underpinnings of narrative medicine. As well, such scholarship provokes a number of questions that expose certain weaknesses in narrative medicine as it is practiced currently. As this paper demonstrates, drawing post-war French literature into narrative medicine opens new ways to think about life, narrative and the place of the patient in the modern healthcare system.

Exploring the Effect of Cooperation in Reducing Implicit Racial Bias and Its Relationship With Dispositional Empathy and Political Attitudes.

Previous research using immersive virtual reality (VR) has shown that after a short period of embodiment by White people in a Black virtual body, their implicit racial bias against Black people diminishes. Here we tested the effects of some socio-cognitive variables that could contribute to enhancing or reducing the implicit racial bias. The first aim of the study was to assess the beneficial effects of cooperation within a VR scenario, the second aim was to provide preliminary testing of the hypothesis that empathy and political attitudes could contribute to implicit bias about race, while the third aim was to explore the relationship between political attitudes and empathy. We had (Caucasian) participants embodied in a Black virtual body and engaged either in a cooperative (Coop group) or in a non-cooperative (Neutral group) activity with a confederate experimenter embodying another Black avatar. Before and after VR, we measured participants' implicit racial bias by means of Implicit Association Test (IAT) and their perceived closeness toward the confederate experimenter. Before VR we also assessed participants' political attitudes and empathy traits. Results revealed that, as compared to the Neutral group, the Coop group showed lower IAT scores after the social interaction. Interestingly, in the Neutral but not the Coop group the perceived closeness toward the confederate experimenter was associated with the initial racial bias: the more the participants reduced their distance, the more they reduced their IAT score. Moreover, reported traits of empathy and political attitudes significantly explained the variance observed in the initial implicit bias, with perspective-taking, empathic concern, and personal distress being significant predictors of the IAT scores. Finally, there was a relationship between political attitudes and empathy: the more participants considered themselves as left-wing voters, the higher their perspective-taking and empathic concern scores. We discuss these findings within the neuroscientific and social cognition field and encourage scholars from different domains to further explore whether and under which conditions a given manipulation for reducing racial bias could be efficiently transposed in VR.

Epilepsy as a key feature in two works of fantastic literature by Alfred Kubin and Hermann Weyl: With a brief review of epilepsy in fantastic literature.

Among the many literary works of all styles and types referring to epilepsy, fantastic literature forms a distinct and interesting subgroup. The article draws attention to two such works belonging to early 20th century German avant-garde where epilepsy is a key feature. Of the authors, Austrian Alfred Kubin (1877-1959) was a renowned artist and illustrator whose only published (and illustrated) novel "The Other Side" (1909) can be understood as the narrative of a complex epileptic experience, perhaps a dreamy state. Of the other author, Hermann Weyl (1893-1960), very little is known. He was a Jewish neuropsychiatrist who emigrated from Nazist Germany to Argentina in 1933. His only published literary work, the novella "The Epileptic" (1927), displays high literary ambitions. The topic epilepsy provided for him the desired access to the fantastic realm, and his professionality enabled him to address with great expertise aspects as diverse as postictal psychosis and social stigmatization. Both works are, thus, valuable contributions to the tradition of epilepsy in fantastic literature. A brief review of the latter includes Edgar Allan Poe, Victor Hugo, Charles Dickens, Gustav Meyrink, Mervin Peake, Russell Hoban, Eraldo Baldini, Haruki Murakami, Adam Fawer, and Christoph Ransmayr.