scholarly journals The Part of the Whole. Cosmology as an Empirical and Analytical Concept

2009 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
CATHARINA RAUDVERE

In the study of Old Norse religion, mythology and cosmology are two core concepts frequently used in inter-disciplinary discussions as to the content, changes and spread of the pre-Christian religion in Scandinavia. The article discusses the concept of cosmology in relation to religion and world-view, with examples from picture-stones and from mythological and heroic texts. Cosmology is not a criterion of religion, any more than the occurrence of an explicitly formulated cosmology necessarily implies that the aim in presenting a world-view is exclusively religious. We may be justified in looking closely at a body of material that is to be studies and asking ourselves where its systematicity is formulated: in the researcher’s argumentation, in a compiler like Snorri, or in the emic tradition? And not least, which individual narratives in the local tradition are singled out as cosmological? Hybrid forms are rarely identified by studying cosmologies as doctrinal systems. The representation of world-views can take other forms than systematised accounts, but then they are less easily accessible to research. In a discussion of the concept of cosmology, there may be good reason to ask what motifs in text and image recurring over a long time imply for different interpretations and what their ambivalence means for their analysis today. The as now, there is a wide range of possibilities when it comes to the interpretation of individual expressions. The explanatory value of concepts such as cosmology, or for that matter mythology, is sometimes obscure, since the terms are used to capture a particular type of empirical material rather than to answer an analytical question. Cosmology and mythology thus refer to a certain kind of content in narratives rather than to the normal meaning of the term cosmology, i.e. a coherent doctrine of the universe that takes into consideration both the spatial aspects of the word cosmos and systematic knowledge, logos.

Author(s):  
Лара Синельникова ◽  
Lara Sinel'nikova

The monograph presents the author's concept of interpretation of poetic texts. Voluminous typological matrix is formed based on a multidisciplinary approach that combines Philology, cognitive science, discourse studies and some other Humanities. New approaches to the analysis of poetic texts correlate with traditional concepts, with the ideas of linguistic poetics, which United linguists and literary critics on the way to a systematic knowledge of the language of poetry and the structure of the poetic text. The volume of empirical material contributes to objective conclusions about the evolution of poetic language and its means of expression and significantly complements the educational resource necessary for the formation of interdisciplinary educational competencies. The monograph is addressed to philologists, as well as representatives of other Humanities and a wide range of poetry lovers.


2008 ◽  
pp. 61-76
Author(s):  
A. Porshakov ◽  
A. Ponomarenko

The role of monetary factor in generating inflationary processes in Russia has stimulated various debates in social and scientific circles for a relatively long time. The authors show that identification of the specificity of relationship between money and inflation requires a complex approach based on statistical modeling and involving a wide range of indicators relevant for the price changes in the economy. As a result a model of inflation for Russia implying the decomposition of inflation dynamics into demand-side and supply-side factors is suggested. The main conclusion drawn is that during the recent years the volume of inflationary pressures in the Russian economy has been determined by the deviation of money supply from money demand, rather than by money supply alone. At the same time, monetary factor has a long-run spread over time impact on inflation.


Author(s):  
Dr. Jyotsna Sankpal ◽  
Dr. Jyotsna Takalikar

Rasa Shastra and Bhaishajya Kalpana is branch of the ancient Indian medical science based on herbs and herbo-mineral preparation. Tankana has been described under Uparasa Tankana, which is one among the Kshara Trayas has been used since very long time in Ayurveda. It has a wide range of therapeutic applications, including diseases like Varna (ulcers), Shvasa (asthma), Kasa (cough), Hrudya (beneficial to heart disease), Streepushpajanana (menstrual disorders) etc. It is used in the form of compound formulations like Parpati, Kupipakwa, Khalvee Rasayana, Churna, Vati, Lepa etc. In this paper Tankana Shodhana procedure, different synonyms, dose, Anupana, indications and different formulations containing Tankana Bhasma has been discussed.


Author(s):  
Simon Nicholls ◽  
Michael Pushkin ◽  
Vladimir Ashkenazy

An introduction by Boris de Schloezer gives the genesis of the final text in the section, the Preliminary Action, and explains its relation to Skryabin’s projected life-work, the Mystery. Section I: an effusion of Orthodox religious feeling from teenage years. Sections II-VII: Around 1900, an expression of rejection of God in the face of disillusion is followed by the text of the choral finale of the First Symphony, declaring faith in the power of art. An unfinished opera libretto, symbolic in narrative, expressing belief in Art’s power to seduce and persuade. Three notebooks develop a world view in which the world is the result of the self’s creative activity. The creation of art and of the universe are identical. There is a higher self, identical with divinity. Forgetfulness of individuality leads to freedom and universal consciousness. Section VIII: The literary poem written during the composition of the symphonic Poem of Ecstasy summarises the scenario developed in the notebooks. Life starts with the desire to create, delight in creative play meets opposition, the creative goal is achieved and disappointment sets in. The process is repeated until it is realized that the struggle is itself joyful and self-affirmation is achieved. Section IX: The text of the Preliminary Action is symbolic in structure. Primal Male and Female Principles emerge; the Female is identified with Death. Life arises from the union of energies. Struggle and bloodshed follow. The conclusion is an impulse towards unification, the synthesis of experience and dematerialisation. Both the complete first draft and the incomplete revision are included.


Author(s):  
David Fisher

There are eight columns in the Periodic Table. The eighth column is comprised of the rare gases, so-called because they are the rarest elements on earth. They are also called the inert or noble gases because, like nobility, they do no work. They are colorless, odorless, invisible gases which do not react with anything, and were thought to be unimportant until the early 1960s. Starting in that era, David Fisher has spent roughly fifty years doing research on these gases, publishing nearly a hundred papers in the scientific journals, applying them to problems in geophysics and cosmochemistry, and learning how other scientists have utilized them to change our ideas about the universe, the sun, and our own planet. Much Ado about (Practically) Nothing will cover this spectrum of ideas, interspersed with the author's own work which will serve to introduce each gas and the important work others have done with them. The rare gases have participated in a wide range of scientific advances-even revolutions-but no book has ever recorded the entire story. Fisher will range from the intricacies of the atomic nucleus and the tiniest of elementary particles, the neutrino, to the energy source of the stars; from the age of the earth to its future energies; from life on Mars to cancer here on earth. A whole panoply that has never before been told as an entity.


This survey of research on psychology in five volumes is a part of a series undertaken by the ICSSR since 1969, which covers various disciplines under social science. Volume Five of this survey, Explorations into Psyche and Psychology: Some Emerging Perspectives, examines the future of psychology in India. For a very long time, intellectual investments in understanding mental life have led to varied formulations about mind and its functions across the word. However, a critical reflection of the state of the disciplinary affairs indicates the dominance of Euro-American theories and methods, which offer an understanding coloured by a Western world view, which fails to do justice with many non-Western cultural settings. The chapters in this volume expand the scope of psychology to encompass indigenous knowledge available in the Indian tradition and invite engaging with emancipatory concerns as well as broadening the disciplinary base. The contributors situate the difference between the Eastern and Western conceptions of the mind in the practice of psychology. They look at this discipline as shaped by and shaping between systems like yoga. They also analyse animal behaviour through the lens of psychology and bring out insights about evolution of individual and social behaviour. This volume offers critique the contemporary psychological practices in India and offers a new perspective called ‘public psychology’ to construe and analyse the relationship between psychologists and their objects of study. Finally, some paradigmatic, pedagogical, and substantive issues are highlighted to restructure the practice of psychology in the Indian setting.


Universe ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (7) ◽  
pp. 233
Author(s):  
Ambra Nanni ◽  
Sergio Cristallo ◽  
Jacco Th. van Loon ◽  
Martin A. T. Groenewegen

Background: Most of the stars in the Universe will end their evolution by losing their envelope during the thermally pulsing asymptotic giant branch (TP-AGB) phase, enriching the interstellar medium of galaxies with heavy elements, partially condensed into dust grains formed in their extended circumstellar envelopes. Among these stars, carbon-rich TP-AGB stars (C-stars) are particularly relevant for the chemical enrichment of galaxies. We here investigated the role of the metallicity in the dust formation process from a theoretical viewpoint. Methods: We coupled an up-to-date description of dust growth and dust-driven wind, which included the time-averaged effect of shocks, with FRUITY stellar evolutionary tracks. We compared our predictions with observations of C-stars in our Galaxy, in the Magellanic Clouds (LMC and SMC) and in the Galactic Halo, characterised by metallicity between solar and 1/10 of solar. Results: Our models explained the variation of the gas and dust content around C-stars derived from the IRS Spitzer spectra. The wind speed of the C-stars at varying metallicity was well reproduced by our description. We predicted the wind speed at metallicity down to 1/10 of solar in a wide range of mass-loss rates.


Polymers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 1396
Author(s):  
Z. N. Diyana ◽  
R. Jumaidin ◽  
Mohd Zulkefli Selamat ◽  
Ihwan Ghazali ◽  
Norliza Julmohammad ◽  
...  

Thermoplastic starch composites have attracted significant attention due to the rise of environmental pollutions induced by the use of synthetic petroleum-based polymer materials. The degradation of traditional plastics requires an unusually long time, which may lead to high cost and secondary pollution. To solve these difficulties, more petroleum-based plastics should be substituted with sustainable bio-based plastics. Renewable and natural materials that are abundant in nature are potential candidates for a wide range of polymers, which can be used to replace their synthetic counterparts. This paper focuses on some aspects of biopolymers and their classes, providing a description of starch as a main component of biopolymers, composites, and potential applications of thermoplastics starch-based in packaging application. Currently, biopolymer composites blended with other components have exhibited several enhanced qualities. The same behavior is also observed when natural fibre is incorporated with biopolymers. However, it should be noted that the degree of compatibility between starch and other biopolymers extensively varies depending on the specific biopolymer. Although their efficacy is yet to reach the level of their fossil fuel counterparts, biopolymers have made a distinguishing mark, which will continue to inspire the creation of novel substances for many years to come.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick M. Woodward ◽  
Pavel Karen ◽  
John S. O. Evans ◽  
Thomas Vogt

This comprehensive textbook provides a modern, self-contained treatment for upper undergraduate and graduate level students. It emphasizes the links between structure, defects, bonding, and properties throughout, and provides an integrated treatment of a wide range of materials, including crystalline, amorphous, organic and nano- materials. Boxes on synthesis methods, characterization tools, and technological applications distil specific examples and support student understanding of materials and their design. The first six chapters cover the fundamentals of extended solids, while later chapters explore a specific property or class of material, building a coherent framework for students to master core concepts with confidence, and for instructors to easily tailor the coverage to fit their own single semester course. With mathematical details given only where they strengthen understanding, 400 original figures and over 330 problems for hands-on learning, this accessible textbook is ideal for courses in chemistry and materials science.


Author(s):  
Shuaibu Babaji Sanusi ◽  
Mohd Fadzelly Abu Bakar ◽  
Maryati Mohamed ◽  
Siti Fatimah Sabran ◽  
Muhammad Murtala Mainasara

The genus Nepenthes (Nepenthaceae) has been utilized in folk medicine for a long time in India and Southeast Asia countries. They are used in the treatment of leprosy, cholera, night blindness, gastrointestinal discomfort, dysentery, stomachache, and bed-wetting among others. This review highlights the ethnobotanical uses, phytochemicals, and pharmacological activities of both crude extracts and pure bioactive compounds of Nepenthes spp. The phytochemical compounds isolated from Nepenthes species include flavonoids, terpenoids, tannins, alkaloids, and steroids among other phytochemicals. A wide range of pharmacological activities was exhibited by the crude extracts and pure bioactive components such as antibacterial, antifungal, antimalarial antioxidant, antidiabetic, antiosteoporotic, anti-inflammatory, cytotoxicity, and hypolipidemic activities. This review revealed that many active compounds are present in Nepenthes spp. However, many pharmacological screenings such as anticancer, antiviral, wound healing, antihelminthic, antidiarrheal properties, among others have not been carried out yet. Therefore, more biological investigations and phytochemical screenings are required to fully explore the genus Nepenthes which may lead to development of new therapeutic agents.  


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