Vlucht uit Babel

Lampas ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 54 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bas van Bommel
Keyword(s):  
Modern World ◽  
World Language ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Universal Language ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Ultimate Failure ◽  
Pros And Cons ◽  
Widespread Belief ◽  
The One ◽  
National Languages

Abstract In the period from about 1890 to 1960, there was a widespread belief that a universal language would make an important contribution to both material progress and international understanding. Alongside artificial languages such as Esperanto and national languages such as English and French, for a long time Latin also received serious attention as a potential world language of the future. This article provides an analysis of the discussion held in the Netherlands about the pros and cons of Latin as a modern world language. On the one hand, this analysis shows that due to a unique combination of properties, strong arguments could be made in favour of Latin. On the other hand, both its notorious difficulty and the problems raised by attempts at modernising its archaic vocabulary complicated the candidacy of Latin as a future lingua franca. The article concludes that underlying the ultimate failure of Latin as a modern world language was a misguided attempt to reinvent Latin as a ‘living’ language. The paradoxical lesson this failure teaches is that it is not the ‘life’, but precisely the ‘death’ of the Latin language that is able to maintain it for contemporary use.

Meezan Bank: category leader in Islamic banking

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 1-23
Author(s):  
Amber Gul Rashid ◽  
Obaid Usmani ◽  
Lalarukh Ejaz ◽  
Hasan Faraz
Keyword(s):  
Banking Sector ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Subject Area ◽  
Islamic Banking ◽  
Main Theme ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Documentary Analysis ◽  
Doing Business ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Pros And Cons

Subject area Islamic Banking has been in the limelight since the recession of 2008. Although around for a long time, it is enjoying a renaissance of sorts. This case provides an introduction. Study level/applicability EMBA and/or MBA introduction to banking, senior semester undergraduate, specialization in Islamic Banking. Case overview This case is written in the form of an interview with Meezan Bank, one of the leading financial institutions in the Islamic banking sector. It is based on primary as well as secondary data obtained via interviews and documentary analysis. Expected learning outcomes This is an analytical case and not a decision-making one. The main theme of the case revolves around analysing what Islamic banking is, the challenges that Meezan has faced, the pros and cons of doing business this way and the future issues it can face. Supplementary materials Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email [email protected] to request teaching notes. Subject code CSS 7: Management Science.

Globalism and the universal language

English Today ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 3-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdulla Al-Dabbagh
Keyword(s):  
Common Language ◽  
Contemporary World ◽  
International Language ◽  
Artificial Languages ◽  
Universal Language ◽  
The Common ◽  
The One ◽  
European Thought ◽  
National Languages ◽  
First Time

Like so many other innovations, the idea of one common language for all mankind appeared for the first time, in European thought, during the Renaissance. It has been estimated that since then nearly ‘seven hundred such artificial languages’ have been tried. Undoubtedly, this had to do with the collapse of Latin as the common language of education, soon to be replaced by the various, rising national languages. Europe's great expansion overseas, in this epoch, also created the need for a unified vehicle of communication.In many ways, the world, and not just Europe, is now facing a similar challenge. While English has become the Latin of the contemporary world, such a position, one can say in the light of historical experience, has always been precarious. Whether English will be unanimously accepted as the one unifying, international language of the globe, whether it will share this role with one or more other languages, or whether an artificial language will be adopted for that purpose is the question that sooner or later we will all be facing.

Ontological study of information: identity and state

Kybernetes ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 43 (6) ◽  
pp. 882-894 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcin J. Schroeder
Keyword(s):  
General Concept ◽  
Philosophical Tradition ◽  
Object Identity ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Scientific Disciplines ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Mathematical Formalization ◽  
One And Many ◽  
The One ◽  
Concept Of Information

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate that sufficiently general concept of information encompassing multi-disciplinary scientific conceptualizations of this term can be useful for a discussion of the long standing philosophical problems. Design/methodology/approach – The author is using his concepts of information and its integration along with their mathematical formalization introduced in earlier publications to describe what constitutes an object, its identity and state. The concept of information used here is defined in terms of the categorical opposition of the one-and-many which plays a central role in philosophical tradition. Its formalization is closely related to formalisms of many theories involved in scientific disciplines. These features produce a common stage for philosophical discourse and scientific analysis. Findings – The formalism based on author's concept of information opens philosophical concepts such as object, identity and state to analysis consistent with scientific methodology. The analysis, consistent with modern physical theories, such as quantum mechanics, permits resolution paradoxal aspects of object's identity for long time puzzling philosophers. Originality/value – The approach to information applied here was introduced in earlier publications, but the analysis of the problems of identity in this context is novel and unprecedented. The author hopes, that even those who prefer different conceptualizations of information can benefit from the present exposition of author's analysis by considering it an example of bridging philosophical and scientific discourse.

scholarly journals OLD WORLD - NEW VALUES: THE CONCEPT OF TRADITIONAL VALUES IN POLITICAL AND RELIGIOUS DISCOURSES IN WESTERN EUROPE (CASES OF FRANCE AND GERMANY)

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 297-302
Author(s):  
E.S. Burmistrova
Keyword(s):  
Western Europe ◽  
Political Life ◽  
Modern World ◽  
Traditional Values ◽  
Old World ◽  
The Social ◽  
Migration Crisis ◽  
The One ◽  
National Languages ◽  
The Church

The activation of conservative forces, which has become a response to the challenges of globalization, has led to the actualization of the concept of traditional values in the social and political life of Western European countries. Not only the conservative and religious forces, but also liberals nowadays are including the concept of traditional values in their agenda. The author draws attention to the fact that the threat of a migration crisis became the impetus to address the problem of traditional values for the "old world". An attempt to analyze the discourse of the largest parties in Germany and France in relation to the problems of traditional values is undertaken in this article. Equal family, national languages and Christian values became the strongholds for Europeans. Attention is also paid to the tendency according to which the interest of Europeans in Christianity as a symbol of identity on the one hand, and floating indicators of religiosity on the other, force the church to change in accordance with the realities of the modern world. This process is considered by the author on the example of the largest churches in Germany.

Alkohol im Tank – Bio-Kraftstoffe und die Grenzen moderner Mobilität

2004 ◽  
Vol 34 (136) ◽  
pp. 455-468
Author(s):  
Hartwig Berger
Keyword(s):  
Third World ◽  
Fossil Fuel ◽  
Energy Resources ◽  
The Third ◽  
Political Conflicts ◽  
The Future ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Food Market ◽  
The One ◽  
The Third World

The article discusses the future of mobility in the light of energy resources. Fossil fuel will not be available for a long time - not to mention its growing environmental and political conflicts. In analysing the potential of biofuel it is argued that the high demands of modern mobility can hardly be fulfilled in the future. Furthermore, the change into using biofuel will probably lead to increasing conflicts between the fuel market and the food market, as well as to conflicts with regional agricultural networks in the third world. Petrol imperialism might be replaced by bio imperialism. Therefore, mobility on a solar base pursues a double strategy of raising efficiency on the one hand and strongly reducing mobility itself on the other.

Inter-country inequality as a dynamic process and the problem of post-industrial development

2018 ◽  
pp. 5-29 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. M. Grigoryev ◽  
V. A. Pavlyushina
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Political Institutions ◽  
Industrial Development ◽  
Modern World ◽  
New Approach ◽  
Development Level ◽  
The World ◽  
Long Time ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Post Industrial

The phenomenon of economic growth is studied by economists and statisticians in various aspects for a long time. Economic theory is devoted to assessing factors of growth in the tradition of R. Solow, R. Barrow, W. Easterly and others. During the last quarter of the century, however, the institutionalists, namely D. North, D. Wallis, B. Weingast as well as D. Acemoglu and J. Robinson, have shown the complexity of the problem of development on the part of socioeconomic and political institutions. As a result, solving the problem of how economic growth affects inequality between countries has proved extremely difficult. The modern world is very diverse in terms of development level, and the article offers a new approach to the formation of the idea of stylized facts using cluster analysis. The existing statistics allows to estimate on a unified basis the level of GDP production by 174 countries of the world for 1992—2016. The article presents a structured picture of the world: the distribution of countries in seven clusters, different in levels of development. During the period under review, there was a strong per capita GDP growth in PPP in the middle of the distribution, poverty in various countries declined markedly. At the same time, in 1992—2016, the difference increased not only between rich and poor groups of countries, but also between clusters.

Making it abstract, making it contestable: Gender/sex as a politicized concept

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claudia Mazzuca ◽  
Matteo Santarelli
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Main Question ◽  
Abstract Concepts ◽  
Biological Feature ◽  
Dynamic Approach ◽  
Cognitive Sciences ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Cultural Construct ◽  
Science Framework ◽  
The One

The concept of gender has been the battleground of scientific and political speculations for a long time. On the one hand, some accounts contended that gender is a biological feature, while on the other hand some scholars maintained that gender is a socio-cultural construct (e.g., Butler, 1990; Risman, 2004). Some of the questions that animated the debate on gender over history are: how many genders are there? Is gender rooted in our biological asset? Are gender and sex the same thing? All of these questions entwine one more crucial, and often overlooked interrogative. How is it possible for a concept to be the purview of so many disagreements and conceptual redefinitions? The question that this paper addresses is therefore not which specific account of gender is preferable. Rather, the main question we will address is how and why is even possible to disagree on how gender should be considered. To provide partial answers to these questions, we suggest that gender/sex (van Anders, 2015; Fausto-Sterling, 2019) is an illustrative example of politicized concepts. We show that no concepts are political in themselves; instead, some concepts are subjected to a process involving a progressive detachment from their supposed concrete referent (i.e., abstractness), a tension to generalizability (i.e., abstraction), a partial indeterminacy (i.e., vagueness), and the possibility of being contested (i.e., contestability). All of these features differentially contribute to what we call the politicization of a concept. In short, we will claim that in order to politicize a concept, a possible strategy is to evidence its more abstract facets, without denying its more embodied and perceptual components (Borghi et al., 2019). So, we will first outline how gender has been treated in psychological and philosophical discussions, to evidence its essentially contestable character thereby showing how it became a politicized concept. Then we will review some of the most influential accounts of political concepts, arguing that currently they need to be integrated with more sophisticated distinctions (e.g., Koselleck, 2004). The notions gained from the analyses of some of the most important accounts of political concepts in social sciences and philosophy will allow us to implement a more dynamic approach to political concepts. Specifically, when translated into the cognitive science framework, these reflections will help us clarifying some crucial aspects of the nature of politicized concepts. Bridging together social and cognitive sciences, we will show how politicized concepts are abstract concepts, or better abstract conceptualizations.

How Phillips saw the light

2020 ◽  
Vol 36 (8) ◽  
pp. 29-31
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Reading Time ◽  
Daily Basis ◽  
Business World ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Freak Show ◽  
The World ◽  
Pertinent Information ◽  
The One ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose Reviews the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoints practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies. Design/methodology/approach This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings The problem with developing a reputation of being something of an oracle in the business world is that all of a sudden, everyone expects you to pull off the trick of interpreting the future on a daily basis. Like a freak show circus act or one-hit wonder pop singer, people expect you to perform when they see you, and they expect you to perform the thing that made you famous, even if it is the one thing in the world you don’t want to do. And when you fail to deliver on these heightened expectations, you are dismissed as a one trick pony, however good that trick is in the first place. Originality/value The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

PROMETHEE-based ranking of project managers based on the five personality traits

Kybernetes ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 49 (4) ◽  
pp. 1083-1102
Author(s):  
Georgios N. Aretoulis ◽  
Jason Papathanasiou ◽  
Fani Antoniou
Keyword(s):  
Personality Traits ◽  
Questionnaire Survey ◽  
Multicriteria Decision Making ◽  
Project Managers ◽  
Preference Ranking ◽  
Infrastructure Projects ◽  
Public Infrastructure ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The One ◽  
Selection Of

Purpose This paper aims to rank and identify the most efficient project managers (PMs) based on personality traits, using Preference Ranking Organization METHod for Enrichment Evaluations (PROMETHEE) methodology. Design/methodology/approach The proposed methodology relies on the five personality traits. These were used as the selection criteria. A questionnaire survey among 82 experienced engineers was used to estimate the required weights per personality trait. A second two-part questionnaire survey aimed at recording the PMs profile and assess the performance of personality traits per PM. PMs with the most years of experience are selected to be ranked through Visual PROMETHEE. Findings The findings suggest that a competent PM is the one that scores low on the “Neuroticism” trait and high especially on the “Conscientiousness” trait. Research limitations/implications The research applied a psychometric test specifically designed for Greek people. Furthermore, the proposed methodology is based on the personality characteristics to rank the PMs and does not consider the technical skills. Furthermore, the type of project is not considered in the process of ranking PMs. Practical implications The findings could contribute in the selection of the best PM that maximizes the project team’s performance. Social implications Improved project team communication and collaboration leading to improved project performance through better communication and collaboration. This is an additional benefit for the society, especially in the delivery of public infrastructure projects. A lot of public infrastructure projects deviate largely as far as cost and schedule is concerned and this is an additional burden for public and society. Proper project management through efficient PMs would save people’s money and time. Originality/value Identification of the best PMbased on a combination of multicriteria decision-making and psychometric tests, which focus on personality traits.

scholarly journals On Performance of Sparse Fast Fourier Transform Algorithms Using the Aliasing Filter

Electronics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 1117
Author(s):  
Bin Li ◽  
Zhikang Jiang ◽  
Jie Chen
Keyword(s):  
Fourier Transform ◽  
Fast Fourier Transform ◽  
High Efficiency ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Long Time ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Binary Tree Search ◽  
The One ◽  
Sparse Fast Fourier Transform ◽  
L1 And L2

Computing the sparse fast Fourier transform (sFFT) has emerged as a critical topic for a long time because of its high efficiency and wide practicability. More than twenty different sFFT algorithms compute discrete Fourier transform (DFT) by their unique methods so far. In order to use them properly, the urgent topic of great concern is how to analyze and evaluate the performance of these algorithms in theory and practice. This paper mainly discusses the technology and performance of sFFT algorithms using the aliasing filter. In the first part, the paper introduces the three frameworks: the one-shot framework based on the compressed sensing (CS) solver, the peeling framework based on the bipartite graph and the iterative framework based on the binary tree search. Then, we obtain the conclusion of the performance of six corresponding algorithms: the sFFT-DT1.0, sFFT-DT2.0, sFFT-DT3.0, FFAST, R-FFAST, and DSFFT algorithms in theory. In the second part, we make two categories of experiments for computing the signals of different SNRs, different lengths, and different sparsities by a standard testing platform and record the run time, the percentage of the signal sampled, and the L0, L1, and L2 errors both in the exactly sparse case and the general sparse case. The results of these performance analyses are our guide to optimize these algorithms and use them selectively.

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