5 meetings

Today I have attended 5 scheduled meetings.

2 meetings and a seminar

Today I have attended 2 scheduled meetings. Currently I am attending a Network for welfare research seminar featuring Tarjei Leer-Salvesen.

3 meetings

Today I have attended 3 scheduled meetings, This included the Spring´s third department leadership group meeting, and a meeting in the steering group for establishment of a candidate of psychology study.

3 meetings and a job interview

Today I have attended 3 scheduled meetings and a job interview.

#24

Today I have had an article writing day, mostly devoted to revision of my chapter "Nosology and semiotics", with some 100 words written net. Number of writing days is up to 24 (of these 7,5 were in March).

October publication date for 4 volume book set Bloomsbury Semiotics, zoosemiotics chapter

The planned publication date for the 4 volume book set Bloomsbury Semiotics, where I contribute with the chapter "Semiotics in ethology and zoology" in volume 2, "Semiotics in the natural and technical sciences", has been moved from July to October 20th this year.

4 abstracts submitted for 15th world congress of semiotics

I have just submitted the following 4 abstracts - all based on chapters, of which one has been published and three are forthcoming - for the 15th world congress of semiotics, which is to be held in Thessaloniki, Greece, August 30th to September 3rd:

Semiotics in ethology and zoology 

Morten Tønnessen 

Contribution to the panel “Semiotics in the disciplines: progress and priorities”  

KEYWORDS: zoosemiotics, ethology, zoology, Umwelt theory  

ABSTRACT 

Today, zoosemiotics is arguably the theoretically and empirically soundest approach to “taking the animal´s perspective”. The chapter on which this presentation is based (Tønnessen, forthcoming) presents semiotic studies in ethology and zoology, starting with foundational work and contemporary developments and proceeding to relevant methodologies and prospective future studies. The conception of zoosemiotics as a field of study has evolved considerably since Thomas Sebeok coined the term in 1963, and currently signifies a far more comprehensive field than what Sebeok’s original definition of zoosemiotics as “the scientific study of signalling behaviour in and across animal species” indicates (1963: 465). Given the contemporary notion of zoosemiotics, the semiotic study of animals cannot simply be understood as a synthesis between semiotics and ethology; it furthermore engages and intersects with ecology, cultural studies and other fields of study where animals appear in one form or another. In modern science, the agency and subjectivity of animals has tended to be neglected. More research is needed on how humans relate to animals, and more research is needed on how animals relate to humans, including by making further connections between semiotic studies of animals and phenomenology.    

REFERENCES 

Sebeok, T. A. (1963). Review. Language, 39: 448–466. 

Tønnessen, Morten, forthcoming. Semiotics in ethology and zoology. In: Bloomsbury Semiotics (4 volumes, ed. Jamin Pelkey), volume 2, Semiotics in the Natural and Technical Sciences (ed. Stéphanie Walsh Matthews). Bloomsbury Academic. 

***

Nosology and semiotics*  

Morten Tønnessen 

Professor of philosophy 

Department of social studies 

University of Stavanger Stavanger 

Norway

ABSTRACT 

Semiotic concepts such as ‘sign’ and ‘symptom’ have been applied in medicine ever since ancient Greece. On this background, a semiotic perspective on nosology may be relevant and informative, particularly regarding the recognition of diseases. This chapter provides an overview of key works in semiotics on the study of medicine in general and nosology in particular. It presents a biosemiotic perspective on human health, starting with the ‘Umwelt’, the organism´s subjectively experienced lifeworld, and ending with ‘endosemiosis’, the sign processes that are internal to the body and relate to somatic phenomena. The chapter contributes to biosemiotic medicine by commenting on how such an approach can be understood as process-based medicine, the way in which it can bridge human and animal health studies, and how it can be understood as involving a conception of the human being as a system of interrelated sign systems. It concludes by making remarks on how organ crosstalk can be understood within a biosemiotic framework.  

* This presentation builds on Tønnessen, forthcoming.  

KEYWORDS Biosemiotics, endosemiosis, biosemiotic medicine, One Health, nosology  

REFERENCE 

Tønnessen, Morten, forthcoming. Nosology and semiotics. In: Carlo Guido Musso & Adrian Covic (eds.), Organ Crosstalk in Acute Kidney Injury: Basic Concepts and Clinical Practices. Springer Nature.

***

Phenomenology and semiotics  

Morten Tønnessen 

Professor of philosophy 

Department of social studies 

University of Stavanger Stavanger 

Norway  

In the chapter on which this presentation is built (Sharov & Tønnessen 2021), we discuss the phenomenological tradition within philosophy with emphasis on representative phenomenological positions on subjectivity, sentience, consciousness and self-consciousness, and make the argument that giving phenomenology a biosemiotic grounding will make it more comprehensive. Even though both Husserl and Heidegger, two classics of phenomenology, acknowledged that animals have subjective lifeworlds, their respective phenomenologies were clearly anthropocentric. The same goes for most mainstream versions of contemporary phenomenology. Heidegger states this anthropocentric bias plainly when, after referring to the Umwelt theory of Jakob von Uexküll, he claims that animals are “poor in world”. The Umwelt theory offers an alternative, more pluralistic framework for phenomenology – a phenomenology beyond the human, with a biosemiotic basis. Von Uexküll’s Umwelt theory was discussed by Merleau-Ponty and has further inspired several contemporary philosophers within and beyond phenomenology. In the chapter we also discuss the relation between semiotics and phenomenology, including Peirce’s ideas and recent calls for a naturalized phenomenology. While modern phenomenology was from its inception programmatically presented as anti-naturalism, leading contemporary phenomenologists favour realignment between phenomenology and naturalism. With its roots in sign theory and biology, biosemiotics can contribute further to this endeavour, and be an important piece in the puzzle when realigning phenomenological studies of subjective experience and behaviour with natural science.  

KEYWORDS Phenomenology, lifeworld, biosemiotics, Umwelt theory, naturalized phenomenology  

REFERENCE 

Sharov A., Tønnessen M. (2021). Phenomenology. In: Semiotic Agency (Biosemiotics, vol 25). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-89484-9_9

***

Umwelt theory for practitioners: Semiotic guidelines for application in a more-than-human descriptive phenomenology  

Morten Tønnessen, 

Professor of philosophy, Department of social studies, University of Stavanger, Norway  

Contribution to the panel “Biosemiotics, Umwelt, and the lifeworld”   

ABSTRACT  

The chapter on which this presentation is based (Tønnessen, forthcoming) outlines a scientific method for conducting qualitative studies of human and animal lifeworlds by introducing a semiotically informed descriptive phenomenology that goes beyond the human. Descriptive phenomenology denotes a scientific method for describing lived experience based on phenomenological philosophy. Despite the fact that classics such as Husserl and Heidegger acknowledged the existence of animal lifeworlds, descriptive phenomenology in its current forms is typically only applicable to the study of human lifeworlds. Using the semiotically framed Umwelt theory of Jakob von Uexküll as foundation allows for the development of a novel version of descriptive phenomenology that is non-anthropocentric and pluralistic. A depiction of the theoretical basis for a more-than-human descriptive phenomenology is followed by a depiction of its methodological basis. The chapter concludes with a number of semiotic guidelines for practical application of Umwelt theory organized by relevant professions and settings of study. These include veterinarians and ethologists (in both wildlife and captive settings), zookeepers, anthropologists and social scientists. The guidelines are meant to facilitate studies of human-animal relations and interaction from an Umwelt perspective. This requires the use of interviews with experts and/or practitioners in combination with interaction with and participatory observation of animals.  

KEYWORDS Umwelt theory, applied Umwelt theory, descriptive phenomenology, animal phenomenology, human–animal phenomenology  

REFERENCE 

Tønnessen, forthcoming. Umwelt theory for practitioners: Semiotic guidelines for application in a more-than-human descriptive phenomenology. In Amir Biglari (ed), Open Semiotics. Paris: L’Harmattan.

Google Scholar: 708 citations

According to Google Scholar (cf. my profile), my research has by now attracted 708 citations (+8 since February 26th), including 175 in 2021 (+2) and 16 in 2022 (+6). My i10-index remains 27 and my h-index 15.

Second day of bachelor degree gathering

Today I attended and co-arranged the second of 2 days of our bachelor degree gathering at Department of social studies, which was attended by some 35 people at Sola Strand hotel.

First day of bachelor degree gathering

Today I am attending the first of 2 days of our bachelor degree gathering at Department of social studies, which is attended by some 35 people at Sola Strand hotel.

#23

Today I have had an article writing day, with some 600 words added to my second wasted growth article as I completed tables 5 and 6 and composed/designed a final table, Table 7. I also added to the table of contents. Number of writing days this Spring is up to 23.

A meeting

Today I have attended one scheduled Teams meeting, with UHR-HS and the Norwegian Directorate of Health.

4 meetings, 2 job interviews

Today I have attended 4 scheduled meetings and 2 job interviews. The meetings included the first "general meeting" (allmøte) at the department, about this years development interview which will commence in about 2 weeks. The meeting was attended by 36 people including those attending digitally.

5 meetings

Today I have attended 5 scheduled meetings. Love Mondays...

#22

Today I have had half an article writing day, with some 300 words added to my chapter "Nosology and semiotics". Number of writing days this Spring is up to 22.

#21,5

Today I have had half an article writing day, with some 500 words added to my second wasted growth article as I worked with table 5 and 6 and made a further figure (on IHDI). Number of writing days this Spring is up to 21,5.

3-hour guest lecture on semiotic agency given in ph.d. seminar at Universidade Positivo

Tonight I have given a guest lecture based on my own research and approach in the doctoral seminar "Tópicos Especiais em Gestão Ambiental e Sustentabilidade" (“Theoretical Foundations of Environmental Management and Policies – interdisciplinary and sustainable approaches”) at Universidade Positivo (a private university based in Curitiba, Brazil). The talk, titled "Semiotic agency: How studies of agency go beyond mechanism and facilitate interdisciplinary science", lasted for some 3 hours including a break, and was delivered by Zoom. It was attended by some 10 ph.d. students and teachers.

#21

Today I have had half an article writing day mostly devoted to my weekly meeting with my research assistant and our GDP article. Number of writing days this Spring is up to 21.

3 meetings

Today I have attended 3 scheduled meetings.

A meeting

Today I have attended 1 scheduled meeting.

3+1 meetings

Yesterday I had 3 scheduled and 1 impromptu meeting. This included the Spring´s second staff meeting, which was attended by some 30 people.

3 meetings

Today I have attended 3 scheduled meetings, including my weekly meeting with the office manager.

#20,5

Today I have had an article writing day devoted to revising my chapter "Nosology and semiotics" and, marginally, my book manuscript Captured, with some 500 words added to the texts altogether. Number of writing days this Spring is up to 20,5.

#19,5

Today I have had an article writing day with some 500 words altogether added to my second wasted growth article and the literature review article on GDP I am co-writing with Jan Karlstrøm. Number of writing days this Spring is up to 19,5 so far.

2 + 1 meetings including introduction for 2-day Polish delegation visit; NASS board meeting

Today I have attended 2 scheduled meetings and one impromptu meeting. The scheduled meetings included giving an introduction to the 2-day working visit of a Polish delegation in relation to our joint EEA-funded project "The integrated system of domestic violence prevention" (with about 15 people present) at Ydalir hotel, and chairing the board meeting of the Nordic Association for Semiotic Studies (NASS). 

2 meetings

Today I have attended 2 scheduled meetings.

5 meetings

Today I have attended 5 scheduled meetings. This included a meeting with Osnaide Izquierdo, head of department at University of Havana´s Department of sociology, who is visiting University of Stavanger this week along with three colleagues in relation to our bilateral CubaNor project.

Article on friluftsliv by Haaland & Tønnessen published

The article on friluftsliv which I have co-authored with Joakim Jiri Haaland, whose ph.d. I supervise, has been published.

Reference:

— Joakim Jiri Haaland & Morten Tønnessen 2022. Recreation in the outdoors – exploring the friluftsliv experience of adolescents at residential care. Child & Youth Services. Published online March 7th 2022. DOI: 10.1080/0145935X.2022.2044771

3 meetings

Today I have attended 3 scheduled meetings. This included welcoming guests from University of Havana in relation to our CubaNor project which is mostly focused on student exchange.

#18,5

Today I have had an article writing day devoted to revising my chapter "Nosology and semiotics", with some 600 words added to the text in the process. Number of writing days this Spring is up to 18,5.

UHR-HS working committee meeting; Ayan Handulle´s ph.d. defense

Today I have attended the working committee meeting of UHR-Helse og sosial, the health and social studies unit of Universities Norway. I am currently a deputy member of the working committee. I have also followed part of the ph.d. defense of Ayan Handulle and the department´s celebratory event on that occasion, and will later tonight attend her dissertation dinner.

#17,5

Today I have had an article writing day with some 500 words written altogether, primarily on my second wasted growth article, but also with work done on my third wasted growth article and the GDP review article I am co-writing with my research assistant. Number of writing days so far this Spring is up to 17,5.

A work lunch and a ph.d. supervision session

Today I have attended a scheduled work lunch and a ph.d. supervision session.

2 meetings and half a webinar

Today I have watched half a webinar and attended 2 scheduled meetings, including the first meeting this year of Norway´s Council for animal ethics (digital attendance).