Classical methods such as limit equilibrium or limit analysis, dealing with the stability analysis of open cuts and trenches and calculation of critical excavation depth for them, do not fully satisfy the theoretical requirements for stability problems leading to different solutions depending on the adopted method. It is now appreciated that geomaterials exhibit considerable heterogeneity, caused by the lithological and inherent variation, which cannot be fully covered by simple methods. This paper highlights the uncertainty embedded in critical excavation depth calculation, arising from spatial variability of shear strength parameters, using Random Finite Di erence Method (RFDM) and Random Limit Equilibrium Method (RLEM). In the present study, the lognormally distributed undrained shear strength is considered spatially correlated throughout the domain. Surface cohesion value and the shear strength density were introduced as the deterministic parameters along with the coefficient of variation of undrained shear strength and its scale of uctuation as stochastic parameters, these parameters were studied to see their effect on uncertainty in critical excavation depth estimation. The results clearly demonstrated the uncertainty in critical excavation depth arising from the inherent variability of shear strength parameters using the RFDM results, however, RLEM did not prove to reflect such uncertainty efficiently due to local averaging in prescribed failure surfaces.

'Post-truth' has become a buzzword for numerous current crises: the fragmentation of the media landscape, the ongoing debate about 'fake news', the loss of trust in science, etc. Although these crises take place in society, it is claimed that the roots of post-truth can be traced back to the history of philosophy. Occasionally, it is asserted that Karl Popper's critical rationalism gave rise to post-truth: His rejection of verificationism has limited truth claims in the realm of science. Given the absence of infallible evidence and certainty, critical rationalism calls for challenging scientific authority. I argue that post-truth is compatible with critical rationalism from an epistemological point of view, considering that both positions are critical of certainty. However, in critical rationalism, fallibilism, responsibility, and the idea of criticism are combined, and in this respect, it offers a possible way to overcome the problems that are associated with post-truth. This treatment of the problems of post-truth results from the recognition of moral responsibility to take action on the basis of a hypothesis that remains open to revision.

The aim of this paper is to consider whether critical rationalism has any ideas which could usefully be applied to the internet.  Today we tend to take the internet for granted and it is easy to forget that it was only about two decades ago that it began to be used to any significant extent. Accordingly in section 1 of the paper, there is a brief consideration of the history of the internet.  At first sight this makes it looks implausible that any of Popper’s ideas could be applicable to the internet, since Popper died before the internet came into general use.  However, section 2 argues that Popper’s theory of World 3 does apply very well to the internet.  This application is significant because, as shown in section 3, it leads to the problem of misinformation, which is one of the most significant problems generated by the internet.  In section 4 there is an attempt to solve this problem using ideas taken from Popper’s epistemology. It is argued that there should be changes in education designed to prepare students for the internet age. Teaching in the internet age should focus on presenting to the students not just the accepted theories but also the evidence on which they are based. An illustration of how this might be done is given by considering an example from science teaching, namely the teaching of Newtonian mechanics in the last years of school or first years of university.

In this paper, I address the issue of the possible applicability of the ideas of Karl R. Popper’s social and political philosophy in the contemporary political life of postcolonial countries. Through reference to the reception of Popper’s philosophy in Central and Eastern Europe, I argue that Popper’s writings were effective in catalysing the political wholesale transformation by undermining Marxists’ pretensions to scientific status rather than through his anti-utopian and anti-revolutionary political recommendations. In the context of attempts to apply Popper’s ideas in postcolonial countries, especially Sub-Saharan Africa, I claim that the influence of Popper’s social thought on the politics of those countries may not be as effective as expected or desired.

Since Critical Rationalism is considered by some more of an attitude or mindset and by others a methodological approach to philosophical thinking and practical problem-solving, its application, or more accurately, its epistemological testing grounds, should be expected to be much more wide-ranging than they have been so far. With the exception of some published anthologies on Critical Rationalism and occasional nods to the legacy of Karl Popper’s falsificationist methodology, relatively few applicaions of a critical rational approach to contemporary theoretical debates in the social sciences have been published. I wish here to critically challenge the (optimistic) Hegelian and by extension the neoliberal view of the progress of American capitalism by reframing it with the Marxian notion of expropriation as applied to enslavement on plantations. The logic of enslavement as a process by which brutal exploitation has been practiced for centuries offers a falsifying test case of the rationality of capitalism and its promise of individual freedom of choice. This essay is an explicit exercise in the potential power of a version of Popperian critical rationalism being applied to the intersection of modern liberalism and capitalism, exploring the imbrication of a critical and rational analysis.

Artifacts are ubiquitous and influential in our world, but their nature and existence are controversial. Several theories have been proposed to explain the ontology of artifacts. Drawing on Popper's theory of three worlds, this paper suggests a metaphysics for artifacts along the line of a critical rationalist (CR) approach. This theory distinguishes between three realms of reality: the physical world (World 1), the mental world (World 2), and the world of objective knowledge (World 3). The paper argues that artifacts have different ontological components that correspond to these three realms, and that each component is real and causal. The paper shows how this perspective can account for the intentional and functional aspects of artifacts, as well as their dependence on plans that influence different realms of reality. The paper explains how this pluralistic ontology, compared to the rival theories, enables one to explain the relevant ontological problems of artifacts. The paper also explores how this proposal can lead to a research program encompassing a broader range of technologies, such as social artifacts. In sum, the paper suggests that Popper's three worlds theory provides a rich and comprehensive framework for understanding the metaphysics of artifacts.

Since two decades ago with the increase in dam construction projects in Iran, a major part of the ancient and historic sites of the country went under water. As mostly, do not exist desirable and sufficient relationship between Iranian Cultural Heritage, Handicraft and Tourism Organization (ICHHTO) and other organizations like Ministry of Energy, the budget allocated to the study of ar­chaeological sites behind dams (that will go under water) has been delayed and postponed. The consequences of this situation reveal as fast and emergency rescue excavations that in some cases certainly this haste greatly will reduce the quality of archaeological studies.From scientific and technical perspective and according to directors of dam excavation projects experience, generally believe that fast and emergency excavation it is not only and surest way to preserve and protect of ancient sites; why, given the little time and lack of adequate funding for dam archaeological projects, of course, excavations excavate only a small parts of the archaeological sites. Archaeological excavation experience carried out in several dams like, Seimareh, Sivand, Got­vand, etc, shows that more than one hundred archaeological sites have been surveyed and intro­duced behind the dams and only a handful of them were excavated in one or two seasons, which is only includes less than 10% of the sites and this method cannot be a good strategy for carrying out research projects. Using the boat for going to the sites for excavation, as well as other serious problems in this regard should be add to emergency excavation projects problems...

Fostering critical thinking among senior high school students in Colombia has been an unfulfilled goal. This undesirable situation has multiple causes: “critical thinking” has become a mere slogan and its meaning and scope have not been clearly specified despite being widely used in the different levels of the education system. Furthermore, the strategies designed to teach critical thinking lack creativity, reinforce rote learning and the sheer repetition of logic rules besides misallocating the goal of reasoning and argumentation by focusing only on rhetorical persuasion. Textbooks and core literature in critical thinking suggest that a critical thinker is someone who always has plenty of arguments to defend her beliefs besides being ready to address even destructive criticism. By contrast, critical rationalism emphasizes the importance of a humble approach, acknowledges error, and portrays a critical thinker as someone who is ready to test her most beloved theories against experience and to reject them in the light of the facts that contradict her beliefs and certainties. We consider that a pedagogical approach enriched with fallibilism might be central for a better education and endorse these views with the results of a case study conducted in Manizales, Colombia, which shows that teaching the basics of logic and argumentation by using the central tenets of critical rationalism fosters critical thinking among senior high school students

Excavation in urban plans influences the adjacent buildings and sometimes creates the irreparable damages. In this regard the effect of adjacent structure stiffness on the ground movement due to excavation is important. However, there are only a few studies in this area of research. In this paper, the interaction of excavation and its adjacent structure is studied using two famous finite elements codes (PLAXIS & SAP) and an elastoplastic constitutive model. For this purpose, the two excavation systems have been considered. The adjacent structure in the first system is a concrete bending frame. In the second system, instead of a real structure, an equivalent (in stiffness) elastic beam has been used. The achieved results indicate the considerable effect of adjacent structure on the ground movement due to excavation. In addition, the remarkable influence of excavation on internal forces of different members of structure is addressed. It is shown that the application of an equivalent elastic beam, which has the characteristic of simplicity and flexibility in consideration of different stiffness for a given building weight, can be used for evaluation of the interaction of excavation and its adjacent structure.