Anaximander's Rings

1988 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 49-51 ◽  
Author(s):  
István M. Bodnár

Anaximander is the first philosopher whose theory of the heavens is preserved in broad outlines. According to the sources the celestial bodies are huge rings of compressed air around the earth, each visible only where it is perforated by a tubular vent through which the fire contained in it can shine. Greatest and farthest of them is the sun, next comes the moon and under them there is the ring (or possibly rings) of the stars. It is a common practice to put and answer the following questions:(i) ‘…why he should have placed the stellar circles or rings closer to the earth than are the sun and the moon.’(ii) ‘…why these lower rings of stellar ρ do not obscure the brighter but more distant bodies.’

Author(s):  
Abdurezak Hashi Abdulahi

Numerous Qur’anic verses elucidate the structural design of the celestial bodies of the physical cosmos such as the Sun, the Moon, the Earth, the Stars, and the natural rules (sunan) governing such planets in the space. Though a large portion of the Qur’an illuminates the rules of the natural sciences, including the architectural design of the physical world, however, it emphasizes on the worth of signals beyond the scientific natural sciences. As such, the enduring attractive architectural design of the natural physics, the diversity of its subject matter and the expediency of its environmental climate, in the Qur’anic view, are not without philosophy and aim. Besides the functional consistency of the natural physics to serve humanity (taskhÊr), according to the Qur’an, the rules of nature are ayÉt, i.e., signboards, which indicate to ultimate destinations or goals. Hence, the architectural design of the natural physics is both purposive and evocative. Therefore, philosophy of natural physics, which is the study of the philosophical questions underlying the cosmological universe, is a field which the Qur’an required man to reflect upon. Similarly, scholars of philosophy of science agree on the necessity of exploring not only the sciences of the natural world but also its metaphysical indications, objectives and implications. This is because of the fact that, scientific findings and statements are no longer merely neutral accounts without meaningful signals and philosophy. Through analytical and textual methods, this paper attempts to examine the philosophy and objectives of the architectural design of natural physics from the Qur’anic perspective.


TOTOBUANG ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kahar Dwi Prihantono

The research analyzes literary stylistics of Seno Gumira Ajidarma’s short story, "Rembulan dalam Capucino ",by taking advantages of Lyotard’s postmodernismperspectives. By applying andescriptive method, the writer found postmodern storytelling stylistics involving at least seven postmodern styles, namely  fragmentation, sublim language play, pastiche, parody, kitsch, camp, and schizophrenia. Fragmentation wasfound in the style of merging separate fragments of rembulan and creating its new meanings.Sublime language play was seen on SGA trials to change something impossible to be possible. Pastiche style was seen in the quotation of Pablo Neruda's poem which expressed it took a glance to love someone and it took a very long time to forget someone. Parodic style was seen inthe exchange of “moon” for “soto Betawi” in Italian restaurant. Camp appeared in the elimination of characters’ names as in common short stories. Schizophrenia arose at SGA's story about a“moon”(rembulan) that could serve as a sign or symbol of shifted meaning between the marker and the mark. When the established meaning of the “moon”(rembulan) referred to the 'celestial bodies which surround the earth, shine at night by the reflection of the sun' and 'night beauty', SGA shifted its meaning as a burden of forgetting someone.Penelitian ini menganalisis stilistika sastra Seno Gumira Ajidarma (SGA) dalam cerita pendek “Rembulan dalam Capucino” dari sudut pandang postmodern Lyotard. Dengan menggunakan metode deskriptif, penulis menemukan kepostmodernan gaya SGA yang melibatkan sekurang-kurangnya tujuh gaya postmodernisme, yakni fragmentasi, permainan bahasa yang sublim, pastiche, parodi, kitsch, camp, dan skizofrenia. Gaya fragmentasi terlihat pada gaya penggabungan sejumlah fragmen terpisah tentang rembulan sehingga menciptakan makna baru. Permainan bahasa yang sublim tampak pada permainan SGA mengubah sesuatu yang tidak mungkin menjadi mungkin. Gaya pastiche terlihat pada pengutipan puisi Pablo Neruda yang menceritakan singkatnya mencintai seseorang dan lamanya waktu yang dibutuhkan untuk melupakan seseorang. Gaya parodi terlihat pada penukaran rembulan dengan soto Betawi di restoran Italia. Gaya kitsch, Gaya camp muncul pada peniadaan nama-nama tokoh selayaknya cerpen kebanyakan. Gaya skizofrenia muncul pada pengisahan SGA mengenai rembulan yang dapat dijadikansebagai tanda atau simbol makna yangbergeser antara penanda danpetandanya. Ketika makna rembulan yang telah mapan mengacu pada ‘benda langit yg mengitari bumi, bersinar pada malam hari karena pantulan sinar matahari’ dan ‘kecantikan malam’, SGA menggeser maknanya sebagai sebuah beban melupakan seseorang.


Among the celestial bodies the sun is certainly the first which should attract our notice. It is a fountain of light that illuminates the world! it is the cause of that heat which main­tains the productive power of nature, and makes the earth a fit habitation for man! it is the central body of the planetary system; and what renders a knowledge of its nature still more interesting to us is, that the numberless stars which compose the universe, appear, by the strictest analogy, to be similar bodies. Their innate light is so intense, that it reaches the eye of the observer from the remotest regions of space, and forcibly claims his notice. Now, if we are convinced that an inquiry into the nature and properties of the sun is highly worthy of our notice, we may also with great satisfaction reflect on the considerable progress that has already been made in our knowledge of this eminent body. It would require a long detail to enumerate all the various discoveries which have been made on this subject; I shall, therefore, content myself with giving only the most capital of them.


2013 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 135-146
Author(s):  
Aleksandar Tomic

Newton's formula for gravity force gives greather force intensity for atraction of the Moon by the Sun than atraction by the Earth. However, central body in lunar (primary) orbit is the Earth. So appeared paradox which were ignored from competent specialist, because the most important problem, determination of lunar orbit, was inmediately solved sufficiently by mathematical ingeniosity - introducing the Sun as dominant body in the three body system by Delaunay, 1860. On this way the lunar orbit paradox were not canceled. Vujicic made a owerview of principles of mechanics in year 1998, in critical consideration. As an example for application of corrected procedure he was obtained gravity law in some different form, which gave possibility to cancel paradox of lunar orbit. The formula of Vujicic, with our small adaptation, content two type of acceleration - related to inertial mass and related to gravity mass. So appears carried information on the origin of the Moon, and paradox cancels.


2020 ◽  
Vol 635 ◽  
pp. A156
Author(s):  
K. G. Strassmeier ◽  
I. Ilyin ◽  
E. Keles ◽  
M. Mallonn ◽  
A. Järvinen ◽  
...  

Context. Observations of the Earthshine off the Moon allow for the unique opportunity to measure the large-scale Earth atmosphere. Another opportunity is realized during a total lunar eclipse which, if seen from the Moon, is like a transit of the Earth in front of the Sun. Aims. We thus aim at transmission spectroscopy of an Earth transit by tracing the solar spectrum during the total lunar eclipse of January 21, 2019. Methods. Time series spectra of the Tycho crater were taken with the Potsdam Echelle Polarimetric and Spectroscopic Instrument (PEPSI) at the Large Binocular Telescope in its polarimetric mode in Stokes IQUV at a spectral resolution of 130 000 (0.06 Å). In particular, the spectra cover the red parts of the optical spectrum between 7419–9067 Å. The spectrograph’s exposure meter was used to obtain a light curve of the lunar eclipse. Results. The brightness of the Moon dimmed by 10.m75 during umbral eclipse. We found both branches of the O2 A-band almost completely saturated as well as a strong increase of H2O absorption during totality. A pseudo O2 emission feature remained at a wavelength of 7618 Å, but it is actually only a residual from different P-branch and R-branch absorptions. It nevertheless traces the eclipse. The deep penumbral spectra show significant excess absorption from the Na I 5890-Å doublet, the Ca II infrared triplet around 8600 Å, and the K I line at 7699 Å in addition to several hyper-fine-structure lines of Mn I and even from Ba II. The detections of the latter two elements are likely due to an untypical solar center-to-limb effect rather than Earth’s atmosphere. The absorption in Ca II and K I remained visible throughout umbral eclipse. Our radial velocities trace a wavelength dependent Rossiter-McLaughlin effect of the Earth eclipsing the Sun as seen from the Tycho crater and thereby confirm earlier observations. A small continuum polarization of the O2 A-band of 0.12% during umbral eclipse was detected at 6.3σ. No line polarization of the O2 A-band, or any other spectral-line feature, is detected outside nor inside eclipse. It places an upper limit of ≈0.2% on the degree of line polarization during transmission through Earth’s atmosphere and magnetosphere.


1997 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 185-206 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan Milbrath

AbstractAztec images of decapitated goddesses link the symbolism of astronomy with politics and the seasonal cycle. Rituals reenacting decapitation may refer to lunar events in the context of a solar calendar, providing evidence of a luni-solar calendar. Decapitation imagery also involves metaphors expressing the rivalry between the cults of the sun and the moon. Huitzilopochtli's decapitation of Coyolxauhqui can be interpreted as a symbol of political conquest linked to the triumph of the sun over the moon. Analysis of Coyolxauhqui's imagery and mythology indicates that she represents the full moon eclipsed by the sun. Details of the decapitation myth indicate specific links with seasonal transition and events taking place at dawn and at midnight. Other decapitated goddesses, often referred to as earth goddesses with “lunar connections,” belong to a complex of lunar deities representing the moon within the earth (the new moon). Cihuacoatl, a goddess of the new moon, takes on threatening quality when she assumes the form of a tzitzimime attacking the sun during a solar eclipse. The demonic new moon was greatly feared, for it could cause an eternal solar eclipse bringing the Aztec world to an end.


Apeiron ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Dirk L. Couprie

Abstract In this paper, three problems that have hardly been noticed or even gone unnoticed in the available literature in the cosmology of Philolaus are addressed. They have to do with the interrelationships of the orbits of the Earth, the Sun, and the Moon around the Central Fire and all three of them constitute potentially insurmountable obstacles within the context of the Philolaic system. The first difficulty is Werner Ekschmitt’s claim that the Philolaic system cannot account for the length of the day (νυχϑήμερον). It is shown that this problem can be solved with the help of the distinction between the synodic day and the sidereal day. The other two problems discussed in this paper are concerned with two hitherto unnoticed deficiencies in the explanation of lunar eclipses in the Philolaic system. The Philolaic system cannot account for long-lasting lunar eclipses and according to the internal logic of the system, during lunar eclipses the Moon enters the shadow of the Earth from the wrong side. It is almost unbelievable that nobody, from the Pythagoreans themselves up to recent authors, has noticed these two serious deficiencies, and especially the latter, in the cosmology of Philolaus the Pythagorean.


2010 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 1629-1633 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. K. Kachakhidze ◽  
R. Kiladze ◽  
N. Kachakhidze ◽  
V. Kukhianidze ◽  
G. Ramishvili

Abstract. It is acceptable that earthquakes certain exogenous (cosmic) triggering factors may exist in every seismoactive (s/a) region and in Caucasus among them. They have to correct earthquake occurring moment or play the triggering role in case when the region is at the limit of the critical value of the geological medium of course. Our aim is to reveal some exogenous factors possible to initiate earthquakes, on example of Caucasus s/a region, taking into account that the region is very complex by the point of view of the tectonic stress distribution. The compression stress directed from North to South (and vice versa) and the spread stress directed from East to West (and vice versa) are the main stresses acted in Caucasus region. No doubt that action of the smallest external stress may "work" as earthquakes triggering factor. In the presented work the Moon and the Sun perturbations are revealed as initiative agents of earthquakes when the directions of corresponding exogenous forces coincide with the directions of the compression stress or the spreading tectonic stress in the region.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 28-72
Author(s):  
Jane Mikkelson

Abstract The phoenix (ʿanqā) appears in the philosophy of Avicenna (d.1037) as his example of a “vain intelligible,” a fictional being that exists in the soul, but not in the world. This remarkable bird is notable (along with the Earth, the moon, the sun, and God) for being a species of one. In this essay, I read the poetry Bedil of Delhi (d.1720) in conversation with the philosophical system of Avicenna, arguing that the phoenix in Bedil’s own philosophical system functions as a key figuration that allows him simultaneously to articulate rigorous impersonal systematic ideas and to document his individual first-personal experiences of those ideas. The phoenix also plays a metaliterary role, allowing Bedil to reflect on this way of doing philosophy in the first person—a method founded on the lyric enrichment of Avicennan rationalism. Paying attention to the adjacencies between poetry and philosophy in Bedil, this essay traces the phoenix’s transformations from a famous philosophical example into one of Bedil’s most striking figurations in his arguments about imagination, mind, and self.


2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonio Fernando Bertachini de Almeida Prado

The present paper has the goal of developing a new criterion to search for orbits that minimize the fuel consumption for station-keeping maneuvers. This approach is based on the integral over the time of the perturbing forces. This integral measures the total variation of velocity caused by the perturbations in the spacecraft, which corresponds to the equivalent variation of velocity that an engine should deliver to the spacecraft to compensate the perturbations and to keep its orbit Keplerian all the time. This integral is a characteristic of the orbit and the set of perturbations considered and does not depend on the type of engine used. In this sense, this integral can be seen as a criterion to select the orbit of the spacecraft. When this value becomes larger, more consumption of fuel is required for the station keeping, and, in this sense, less interesting is the orbit. This concept can be applied to any perturbation. In the present research, as an example, the perturbation caused by a third body is considered. Then, numerical simulations considering the effects of the Sun and the Moon in a satellite around the Earth are shown to exemplify the method.


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