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The article describes human-made structures that have ceased to exist as "architectural ghosts." Topics include the aesthetics of architecture in relation to imaginary buildings, the relation of ruins to architectural ghosts, and photography of buildings that no longer exist. Also addressed are the notion of the appreciation of buildings, the views of philosopher Jenefer Robinson on the role of emotions in human reactions to architecture, and the views of philosopher Immanuel Kant in his book "Critique of Judgment" in relation to the thought of philosopher Paul Guyer.

My paper is an analysis of the use of the drug LSD as methodological tool to enter the phenomenological lifeworld of schizophrenics and design a place for their treatment. If the user has a completely different lifeworld (individuals with mental or physical disability), then how do we envisage the space they inhabit? It would be useful for the researcher, then, to embody the perception of the schizophrenic to create a space that would, at best, assist in healing and, at worst, not exacerbate their illness. This is like understanding the perceptions of someone from a different culture and, at the same time, reproducing that material culture in a way that would be understandable to individuals of that culture. Schutz, in The Phenomenology of the Social World, argues that an ‘intersubjective understanding’ of an individual's perception is not isolated in individuals but is embedded in their social relations. He argues that ‘we put ourselves in the place of the actor and identify our lived experience with his [sic]’. The researcher would not only have to be schizophrenic but also have to experience the interactions among people and space as a participant in the lifeworld of the schizophrenics. The use of LSD as a chemical technology allowed for ‘sympathetic embodiment’. The bodies of the researchers, on LSD, would act as a bridge between their ‘being’ and their patients’ ‘world’. ‘Osmond and Izumi experienced “space” … not [as] an abstract set of relations within which the lifeworld is structured [but] rather [as] the lived experience of the body-in-space … [i.e.] the primary relation from which all conceptions of space are constructed’ (Dovey 1999, p. 39). Researchers can then view (experience) their surroundings while understanding the institutional setting in which patients are treated and also understand the knowledge used by the patient to understand the ‘institutionally appropriate rules of conduct’. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Background. Research on contextual and neighborhood effects increasingly includes the built (physical) environment's influences on health and social well-being. A population-based study examined whether architectural features of the built environment theorized to promote observations and social interactions (e.g., porches, windows) predict Hispanic elders' psychological distress. Methods. Coding of built environment features of all 3,857 lots across 403 blocks in East Little Havana, Florida, and enumeration of elders in 16,000 households was followed by assessments of perceived social support and psychological distress in a representative sample of 273 low socioeconomic status (SES) Hispanic elders. Structural-equation modeling was used to assess relationships between block-level built environment features, elders' perceived social support, and psychological distress. Results. Architectural features of the front entrance such as porches that promote visibility from a building's exterior were positively associated with perceived social support. In contrast, architectural features such as window areas that promote visibility from a building's interior were negatively associated with perceived social support. Perceived social support in turn was associated with reduced psychological distress after controlling for demographics. Additionally, perceived social support mediated the relationship of built environment variables to psychological distress. Conclusions. Architectural features that facilitate direct, in-person interactions may be beneficial for Hispanic elders' mental health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Investigates whether the social intelligence of humans which enable us to develop an intentional profile of others in the course of explaining and predicting behavior, is a modular capacity. Modular view of mental architecture proposed by J. Fodor; Modularity of social intelligence; Issue of belief-fixation; Disability of autistic persons to perceive emotions; Ability of humans to respond to fiction.