Time, Transcendence in Islamic Thought and an Embrace of “Catholic Modernity”

2021 ◽  
Vol 75 (3/4) ◽  
pp. 429-440 ◽  
Author(s):  
Souleymane Bachir Diagne
Keyword(s):  
Life Time ◽  
Philosophy Of Time ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Creative Evolution ◽  
Western Modernity ◽  
Islamic Thought

Abstract Taylor characterizes Western modernity as being very inhospitable to the transcendent, yet also as opening an opportunity for a renewed engagement with the transcendent from within modernity. This debate is also vivid in Islam and I will reconstruct it by focusing on the concept of time (dahr). Some strains in Islam condemned the posture of maximizing the “flourishing of life” within the limits of (a life)time as dahriya because it would, in their eyes, constitute a rejection altogether of the transcendent. This position was seen as the quintessence of “the philosophers” (al Ghazali) and of Western modernity (al Afghani). Opposing this view, I will then explain how and why I can make a rapprochement between Charles Taylor’s proposal of a “Catholic modernity” and Islamic modernity through the lenses of Muhammad Iqbal’s philosophy of time. Through his analysis of the hadith “Do not vilify time, because time is God,” Iqbal shows that time (dahr) should not be considered as the antithesis of transcendence, but that in time, from within dahr, transcendence is present: in “creative evolution” (Bergson), life is not enclosed in immanence, but on the contrary God is manifesting himself under his name dahr.

Method for validating CT length measurement of cracks inside solder joints

2016 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tamás Garami ◽  
Oliver Krammer ◽  
Gábor Harsányi ◽  
Péter Martinek
Keyword(s):  
High Resolution ◽  
Crack Length ◽  
Solder Joints ◽  
Life Time ◽  
Percentage Error ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Lack Of Information ◽  
Length Measurements ◽  
Set Up ◽  
Ct Measurement

Purpose – This paper aims to develop a method to measure the length of cracks inside solder joints, which enables the validation of computed tomography (CT) crack length measurements. Design/methodology/approach – Cracks were formed inside solder joints intentionally by aging solder joints of 0603 size resistors with thermal shock (TS) test (−40 to +140°C, 2,000 cycles), and CT images were captured about them with different rotational increment (1/4, 1/2 and 1°) of sample projection. The length of cracks was also measured with our method, which is based on capturing high-resolution radiography X-ray images about the cracks in two perpendicular projection planes. The radiography results were compared to the CT measurements. The percentage error for the different CT rotational increment settings was calculated, and the optimal CT settings have been determined. Findings – The results have proven that reducing the rotational increment increases the sharpness of the captured images and the accuracy of crack length measurements. Nevertheless, the accuracy compared to high-resolution radiography measurements is only slightly better at 1/4° rotational increment than in the case of 1/2° rotational increment. It should be also noted that the 1/4° increment requires twice as much time for capturing the images as the 1/2° increment. So, the 1/2° rotational increment of sample projection is the optimal setting in our investigated case for measuring crack lengths. Practical implications – The developed method is applicable to find the optimal settings for CT crack length measurements, which provides faster analysation of large quantity samples used, e.g. at life-time tests. Originality/value – There is a lack of information in the literature regarding the optimisation of CT measurement set-up, e.g. a slightly larger value of the sample rotational increment can provide acceptable resolution with much faster processing time. Thus, the authors developed a method and performed research about optimising CT measurement parameters.

Genetic algorithm based automated threshold estimation in translation invariant wavelet transform for denoising PD signal

2015 ◽  
Vol 34 (4) ◽  
pp. 1252-1269 ◽  
Author(s):  
R.V. Maheswari ◽  
B. Vigneshwaran ◽  
L. Kalaivani
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Algorithm ◽  
Wavelet Transform ◽  
Computational Complexity ◽  
Condition Monitoring ◽  
Random Noise ◽  
Life Time ◽  
Discrete Wavelet ◽  
Statistical Parameters ◽  
Translation Invariant ◽  
Content Type

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the condition of insulation in high-voltage equipments using partial discharge (PD) measurements. It proposes the methods to eliminate several noises like white noise, random noise and discrete spectral interferences which severely pollutes the PD signals. The study aims to remove these noises from the PD signal effectively by preserving the signal features. Design/methodology/approach – This paper employs fast Fourier transform, discrete wavelet transform and translational invariant wavelet transform (TIWT) for denoising the PD signals. The simulated damped exponential pulse and damped oscillatory pulse with low- and high-level noises and a measured PD signal are considered for this analysis. The conventional wavelet denoising approach is also improved by estimating the automated global optimum threshold value using genetic algorithm (GA). The statistical parameters are evaluated and compared. Among these methods, GA-based TIWT approach provides robustness and reduces computational complexity. Findings – This paper provides effective condition monitoring of power apparatus using GA-based TIWT approach. This method provides the low value of mean square error, pulse amplitude distortion and also high reduction in noise level due to its robustness and reduced computational complexity. It suggests that this approach works well for both signals immersed in noise as well as for noise immersed in signals. Research limitations/implications – Because of the chosen PD signals, the research results may lack for multiple discharges. Therefore, researchers are encouraged to test the proposed propositions further. Practical implications – The paper includes implication for the development of online testing for equipment analysis and diagnostics during normal operating condition. Corrective actions can be planned and implemented, resulting in reduced unscheduled downtime. Social implications – This PD-based analysis often present well in advance of insulation failure, asset managers can monitor it over time and make informed strategic decisions regarding the repair or replacement of the equipment. These predictive diagnostics help society to prioritize investments before an unexpected outage occurs. Originality/value – This paper provides an enhanced study of condition monitoring of HV power apparatus by which life time of insulation can be increased by taking preventive measures.

China's Rippo of Zippo: expanding the costs of pirated intellectual property

2011 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-3
Author(s):  
A. D. Amar
Keyword(s):  
International Trade ◽  
Intellectual Property ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Life Time ◽  
Subject Area ◽  
Master's Level ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Trade Law ◽  
International Trade Law ◽  
Local Logic

Subject area International business; business ethics; international trade law; intellectual property Study level/applicability Undergraduate and Master's level courses in Business and Management, particularly with a focus on international trade. Case overview This case covers the issues that surround piracy of intellectual property by highlighting illegal manufacture and distribution of millions of Zippo brand windproof lighters and considers the seriousness of the large-scale theft of intellectual property by civilized nations. The focus of this case is on the additional victimization of the producers of genuine products, mostly European and American, who have the policy of life-time repair-or-replace warrantee, which by extension, although wrongly, becomes applicable to their counterfeits. Some micro and macro aspects are covered in detail, some are alluded to, while others are left out for the teachers of this case to justify considering the local logic and culture. Expected learning outcomes There are major lessons embedded in this case: first, intellectual piracy is not less than the theft of tangible property. Second, the problem of piracy carried out by large, civilized countries is really serious because of its huge size. Third, if the rights of those developing innovation are not protected and they cut their investments in R&D, the consequence will hurt all people in the world – emerging and developed. Supplementary materials Teaching note.

The evolution of cluster initiatives in Russia: the impacts of policy, life-time, proximity and innovative environment

foresight ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 87-120 ◽  
Author(s):  
Evgeniy Kutsenko ◽  
Ekaterina Islankina ◽  
Vasily Abashkin
Keyword(s):  
Life Time ◽  
Research Database ◽  
Cluster Policy ◽  
Regional Innovation ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Positive Externalities ◽  
The Government ◽  
Ambiguous Effect ◽  
Support Programmes ◽  
Innovative Capacity

Purpose This paper aims at assessing the impacts of the national cluster policy, cluster age, cluster development benchmarks of neighbouring regions and the cumulative level of regional innovative capacity on the quantity and quality of cluster initiatives in Russia. Design/methodology/approach Hypotheses’ testing was carried out by a series of calculations comparing the qualitative and quantitative characteristics of cluster initiatives; the number of new cluster initiatives to the number of neighbouring regions, where cluster initiatives had begun to develop earlier; and ranks of regions within the Russian regional innovation scoreboard to the quantity and quality characteristics of cluster initiatives therein. Findings The results of the study empirically confirm that the national cluster policy significantly influenced the emergence and advancement of cluster initiatives in Russia. The proximity to the regions, having previously launched cluster support programmes, also had an impact on the emergence of new cluster initiatives. The cluster initiatives’ age had an ambiguous effect on their performance. Finally, the level of regional innovative capacity was correlated only with the number of cluster initiatives localised therein. Practical implications The findings show that along with the direct effects of the national cluster policy for the government-supported clusters, there are positive externalities, e.g. the emergence of new cluster initiatives throughout the country. Originality/value The research database of 277 cluster initiatives has been drawn up as a part of the first national cluster mapping and covers almost a decade of clustering activity in Russia. The study analyses not only the cluster initiatives supported by the federal government but also those developed independently.

Multi-path selection based on fractional cuckoo search algorithm for QoS aware routing in MANET

Sensor Review ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 39 (2) ◽  
pp. 218-232 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rama Rao A. ◽  
Satyananda Reddy ◽  
Valli Kumari V.
Keyword(s):  
Ad Hoc ◽  
Search Algorithm ◽  
Life Time ◽  
Cuckoo Search ◽  
Cuckoo Search Algorithm ◽  
Path Selection ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Time Distance ◽  
Multiple Qos Constraints ◽  
Multiple Qos

Purpose Multimedia applications such as digital audio and video have stringent quality of service (QoS) requirement in mobile ad hoc network. To support wide range of QoS, complex routing protocols with multiple QoS constraints are necessary. In QoS routing, the basic problem is to find a path that satisfies multiple QoS constraints. Moreover, mobility, congestion and packet loss in dynamic topology of network also leads to QoS performance degradation of protocol. Design/methodology/approach In this paper, the authors proposed a multi-path selection scheme for QoS aware routing in mobile ad hoc network based on fractional cuckoo search algorithm (FCS-MQARP). Here, multiple QoS constraints energy, link life time, distance and delay are considered for path selection. Findings The experimentation of proposed FCS-MQARP is performed over existing QoS aware routing protocols AOMDV, MMQARP, CS-MQARP using measures such as normalized delay, energy and throughput. The extensive simulation study of the proposed FCS-based multipath selection shows that the proposed QoS aware routing protocol performs better than the existing routing protocol with maximal energy of 99.1501 and minimal delay of 0.0554. Originality/value This paper presents a hybrid optimization algorithm called the FCS algorithm for the multi-path selection. Also, a new fitness function is developed by considering the QoS constraints such as energy, link life time, distance and delay.

Shari’ah and economics: a generalized system approach

2017 ◽  
Vol 59 (6) ◽  
pp. 993-1012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Masudul Alam Choudhury ◽  
Muhammad Nazmul Hoque
Keyword(s):  
Islamic Law ◽  
Empirical Work ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Religious Institutions ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Applied Study ◽  
Generalized System ◽  
Islamic Thought ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Unity Of Knowledge

Purpose This paper aims to open the gateway of methodological abstraction and its application in an Islamic perspective in a way that has not been carried out before in Islamic literature. That is because of the absence of ontological and epistemological inquiry in Islamic erudition for a long time now. In the case of the Shari’ah and its induction of socioeconomic studies, the span of intellection and application ought to be premised on the ontological, epistemological, phenomenological and continuity attributes derived from the monotheistic law. This takes the formalism of organic inter-causal unity of being and becoming between the complementary good choices of life. The ontological monotheistic law of unity of knowledge is referred to as Tawhid in the Qur’an. Empirical work is done in support of the argument presented in this paper. Design/methodology/approach This paper is a formal contribution in the direction of developing a model of well-being based on the methodology of unity of knowledge arising from the Tawhidi epistemic foundation. In this regard, a methodologically interrelated theoretical and empirically applied study is accomplished to test the argumentation and hypothesis of endogenous systemic embedding of inter-variable causality between Shari’ah and economic and financial issues. Findings In spite of the epistemic approach to explain the embedding model of interrelationship between Islamic law and details of the socioeconomic field, Islamic scholarship and practice in all fields have remained oblivious to its epistemic roots. Consequently, as presently understood, Shari’ah and economics and the various socio-scientific specifics, as of Islamic finance and financial and religious institutions in these areas, could not make a generalized model of social well-being, one that can be simulated by inter-variable causal relations. Originality/value The paper conveys a critical conceptual idea to debate the scope and approach of Islamic Law, Shari’ah, on economic matters. The system-oriented approach is used to formulate a systems theory of integration between Shari’ah and economics. The results of the approach implemented in this study constitute a major contribution of this paper to scholarship in general and acts as a critique of traditional Islamic thought with respect to Shari’ah and economics.

The “ideograph” and the 漢字 hànzì

2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 271-292
Author(s):  
Edward McDonald
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Production ◽  
Detailed Knowledge ◽  
Chinese Characters ◽  
Writing System ◽  
Writing Systems ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Language And Culture ◽  
Western Modernity ◽  
Cultural Specificity ◽  
Cross Lingual

Abstract In the Anglophone sphere, according to popular and most academic understandings, the term “ideograph” is regarded as an unproblematic synonym of 漢字 hànzì ‘Chinese character.’ On graphological grounds, i.e. as applied to writing systems, it can easily be shown that the concept of “ideograph” is both theoretically incoherent and practically unfeasible (McDonald 2016); while historically it is clear that the notion was founded on an imperfect understanding of Chinese characters as a writing system, and grew out of a European obsession with the notion of a “universal character” at a particular historical moment (Mungello 1985; Saussy 2001). Nevertheless the concept has become deeply embedded in European understandings of Chinese language and culture, to the extent that it is, in effect, a valuable conceptual possession of Western modernity (Bush 2010), and promoted alike by those with a detailed knowledge of Chinese writing, such as H. G. Creel (1936), as by those in blissful ignorance of it, like Jacques Derrida (1967/1976). In the Sinophone sphere, while for most practical purposes, as well as in a large proportion of scholarly work, more grounded understandings of Chinese characters as a writing system operate either implicitly or explicitly, the traditional emphasis on characters as a link between civilization and the cosmos (O’Neill 2013), as well as a long tradition of pedagogical “just so stories” about the construction of individual characters (e.g., Zuo 2005), provide a key point of contact with Western notions of the “ideograph” as symbolizing not a word, but an idea or an object. The situation may thus be described involving a type of inversion of the phenomenon of faux amis or “false friends,” where two different words are understood as being more or less synonymous; or alternatively as an example of Lydia Liu’s (2004) notion of a cross-lingual “supersign” where two comparable terms exercise an influence on each other across linguistic and cultural boundaries. This article will attempt to trace the genealogy of these complex and overlapping notions, and see what differing understandings of Chinese characters have to tell us about notions of cultural specificity, cultural production, and cross-cultural (mis-)communication in the contemporary globalized world.

Political thought, modern Islamic

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew F. March
Keyword(s):  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
Political Thought ◽  
Islamic Law ◽  
The West ◽  
Western Modernity ◽  
Islamic Thought ◽  
Islamic Political Thought ◽  
The Status ◽  
Islamic Revivalism ◽  
Islamic Modernism

For Islamic thought, the problem of modernity is inseparable from the problem of the relative power imbalance between the West and the lands of Islam. The variety of intellectual trends within Islamic thought all have as their primary stimulus (in some form or another) the imperative of providing authentic ‘Islamic answers’ to the problems of Western colonialism and imperialism and the corresponding Muslim political and economic weakness. All of the main debates which form the contours of modern Islamic political thought – the relative status of reason versus revelation, the immutability versus the reformability of Islamic law, the moral status of national or regional versus pan-Islamic political membership, the status of non-Muslim states and relationships with non-Muslims, the legitimacy of democratic forms of rule, the laws of warfare and political violence, the place of technology – have taken place in reaction to Western ascendancy and hegemony. For the purposes of studying Islamic political thought it is therefore appropriate to date the onset of modernity as late as the mid-nineteenth century. We may thus mark the beginning of a distinctly modern Islamic political intellectual tradition with the school of Islamic Modernism. This movement represents the first attempt to deal with the challenge of Western ascendancy in a non-traditionalist or purely conservative manner. While Islamic Modernism never succeeded in creating a mass political consciousness or defending a coherent intellectual and political position between outright secularism and Islamic revivalism, it marks the break between late medieval traditionalism and twentieth-century Islamic fundamentalism. The latter movement – whether known as Revivalism, fundamentalism or Salafism – represents a rejection of Modernism’s attempts to reform Islamic law and willingness to borrow from the West in mundane matters, but possesses a mass character and intellectual vitality not characteristic of traditional scholastic Islam in the nineteenth century. Islamic Modernism emerged as an elite movement in the later part of the nineteenth century as an attempt to bridge Islamic theological and epistemological commitments with Western modernity. It was an attempt both to rehabilitate Islam as a source of knowledge, identity and inspiration for Muslims, and to allow Muslims to incorporate those cultural and intellectual aspects of European modernity seen as necessary for competing with Western political and economic power. The core tenet of Islamic Modernism was that Islam itself was not the cause of nineteenth-century Muslim stagnation, but that certain theological and canonical reforms were necessary to awaken Muslims from their submissiveness and quietism. Islamic Revivalism is the broad ideological trend which insists on the centrality of religion in all aspects of Muslim family, social, economic and political life. It emerged as an explicit rejection of both inter-war secularist trends and Islamic Modernism. For revivalists, the latter represent an apologetic, pro-Western betrayal of core Islamic commitments, although Revivalism in some manifestations shares Modernism’s rejection of what it perceives as the conservative, quietist, passive nature of traditional orthodox scholarship and the insistence on direct engagement with the Qur’an. While rejecting many of Modernism’s reforms and openness to change, and reverting to many of the doctrinal positions of the medieval legal schools, Revivalism has as its central raison d’être the provision of authentic ‘Islamic solutions’ to modern social problems and the weakness of Muslim lands; this aspiration to popular support and tangible results leaves Revivalism at times at odds with the self-restraint, caution and concern with methodology which characterized the medieval religious scholars.

Deformation mechanism during nanoindentation creep and corrosion resistance of Zn

2016 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-69 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dimitrios A. Dragatogiannis ◽  
Elias P. Koumoulos ◽  
Ioannis A Kartsonakis ◽  
Costas A. Charitidis
Keyword(s):  
Corrosion Resistance ◽  
Deformation Mechanism ◽  
Research Effort ◽  
Life Time ◽  
Creep Properties ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Nanomechanical Properties ◽  
Loading Rates ◽  
Fundamental Understanding ◽  
Experimental Approaches

Purpose – The study of nanoindentation as a reliable method to extract creep properties as well as for fundamental understanding of deformation mechanisms at small length scales is an open interesting field. The observed creep behavior is attributed to time-dependent plastic deformation based on loading rates. There is a lot of work in the field of nanoindentation in order to understand the dynamic effects on nanomechanical properties. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – The deformation mechanism is investigated under two experimental approaches (high and low loading rates, respectively) during nanoindentation. The effect of loading rate in the nanomechanical properties, during nanoindentation creep of zinc layer on hot dip galvanized (HDG) steel, is discussed through nanoindentation. Findings – Analysis of this research effort is emphasized on nanoindentation stress exponent, a critical parameter for the life time and reliability of nano/micro-materials and systems. The corrosion resistance was studied by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and localized EIS. Originality/value – The study of nanoindentation as a reliable method to extract creep properties as well as for fundamental understanding of deformation mechanisms at small length scales is an open interesting field. The observed creep behavior is attributed to time-dependent plastic deformation based on loading rates. The deformation mechanism is investigated under two experimental approaches (high and low loading rates, respectively) during nanoindentation. The effect of loading rate in the nanomechanical properties, during nanoindentation creep of zinc layer on HDGsteel, is discussed through nanoindentation. Analysis of this research effort is emphasized on nanoindentation stress exponent, a critical parameter for the life time and reliability of nano/micro- materials and systems. The corrosion resistance was studied by EIS and localized EIS.

Sustainable power density in electricity generation

2014 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giuliano Buceti
Keyword(s):  
Energy Density ◽  
Power Density ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Life Time ◽  
Energy Sources ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Pros And Cons ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Energy Options ◽  
Sustainable Power

Purpose – When comparing renewables with fossil fuels, emotional approaches are fuelled by the difficulties in defining a proper metric able to make consistent comparisons among energy sources. In literature several approaches have been proposed, all effective in some way but ineffective in others. Variables like energy density, prices, estimated resources, life time emissions, water use and waste, all come at the same time to form an unmanageable mix. This paper discuss the adoption of a shared metric to clarify the boundary conditions that limit the solutions can be operated and to define which scenarios are sustainable and which are not. Design/methodology/approach – Energy density and power density are the cornerstones of the physical limitations in the exploitation of the energy sources. On this basis, a novel classification of energy sources, volumetric and flowing, has been proposed and discussed in light of three parameters: abundance, power density and sustainability. Eventually, an extended definition of power density based on life-cycle assessment is adopted. Findings – Sustainable power density makes possible compare the different energy options and shows how limitation in land comes to be the root of all resources limitations. Originality/value – A definition of a unique parameter is proposed and pros and cons of all energy options are calculated and put in a single graphic providing new insights into the energy policy.

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