Early Mesoamerican Cities

Urbanization is a phenomenon that brings into focus a range of topics of broad interest to scholars. It is one of the central, enduring interests of anthropological archaeology. Because urbanization is a transformational process, it changes the relationships between social and cultural variables such as demography, economy, politics, and ideology. As one of a handful of cases in the ancient world where cities developed independently, Mesoamerica should play a major role in the global, comparative analysis of first-generation cities and urbanism in general. Yet most research focuses on later manifestations of urbanism in Mesoamerica, thereby perpetuating the fallacy that Mesoamerican cities developed relatively late in comparison to urban centers in the rest of the world. This volume presents new data, case studies, and models for approaching the subject of early Mesoamerican cities. It demonstrates how the study of urbanism in Mesoamerica, and all ancient civilizations, is entering a new and dynamic phase of scholarship.

Review: African Art and the Transformational Role of Museums

There was a time when Africa was thought to have no history, no philosophy, no civilizational culture and no artistic creativity or aesthetic sensibilities. This new book, African Art Reframed: Reflections and Dialogues on Museum Cultures by Bennetta Jules-Rosette and J.R. Osborn, re-evaluates this perception and argues that African art has come a long way in the last few decades, taking the reader through the transformational process that African art has undergone in that period, including the role of the museums and the collaborative work of agents across different sectors in the reframing of African art.

Exploring Transitions: Working in "the Space Between the no Longer and the Not Yet"

<p>This thesis uncovers a personal journey of reflective practice in Aotearoa / New Zealand. The focus for reflection is on my emerging role as a nurse facilitating transitions using a dialectical approach in the context of a private nursing practice. Transitions encompass: life changes, loss, and adjustment to changes in function. Dialectical nurse facilitation of transition (DNFT) is a way of exploring self in the transitional space between "the no longer and the not yet". In this facilitated process people potentially discover paradoxes, tensions, and creative energy, as they search for a way forward. The research design details a dialectical heuristic quest through journaling and reflecting on practice supervision and peer review, over a two year period. Exemplars written after reflecting on case notes reveal the lived experiences of participants Sophie, Grace, Rose, Faith, Lilo, and Charles (pseudonyms). These case reviews show the complexity of patterns for people undergoing transitions and nurse facilitation. A relational pattern for DNFT encompasses compassionate engagement, catalytic mirroring, and interconnectedness. A transitional pathway from impasse to transformation shows itself as the people I work with search for clarity about the nature and meaning of self. The transitional pathway is mirrored in practice supervision and peer review in my search for professional clarity and grounded-ness. This reveals a mutual transformational process going beyond the boundaries of feelings and reason, into the regions of the human energy field and spiritual essence of self. This integral approach finds resonance with nursing, Buddhist, and psycho-social philosophies and theories that posit human beings as the embodiment of spiritual energy. An exploration of literature encompasses nursing theories, facilitation, dialogue, loss, grief, spirituality and transition. These show how the patterns that I find, both resonate, and are divergent from extant knowledge. This thesis sheds light on the often hidden aspects of reflection and nursing practice and may support professional and personal growth. It also provides a basis for evaluative research on the effectiveness of DNFT in health care settings in the future. Discussions regarding the expansion of these reflective and praxis genres are included which may be of interest to nursing education and practice contexts.</p>

Exploring Transitions: Working in "the Space Between the no Longer and the Not Yet"

<p>This thesis uncovers a personal journey of reflective practice in Aotearoa / New Zealand. The focus for reflection is on my emerging role as a nurse facilitating transitions using a dialectical approach in the context of a private nursing practice. Transitions encompass: life changes, loss, and adjustment to changes in function. Dialectical nurse facilitation of transition (DNFT) is a way of exploring self in the transitional space between "the no longer and the not yet". In this facilitated process people potentially discover paradoxes, tensions, and creative energy, as they search for a way forward. The research design details a dialectical heuristic quest through journaling and reflecting on practice supervision and peer review, over a two year period. Exemplars written after reflecting on case notes reveal the lived experiences of participants Sophie, Grace, Rose, Faith, Lilo, and Charles (pseudonyms). These case reviews show the complexity of patterns for people undergoing transitions and nurse facilitation. A relational pattern for DNFT encompasses compassionate engagement, catalytic mirroring, and interconnectedness. A transitional pathway from impasse to transformation shows itself as the people I work with search for clarity about the nature and meaning of self. The transitional pathway is mirrored in practice supervision and peer review in my search for professional clarity and grounded-ness. This reveals a mutual transformational process going beyond the boundaries of feelings and reason, into the regions of the human energy field and spiritual essence of self. This integral approach finds resonance with nursing, Buddhist, and psycho-social philosophies and theories that posit human beings as the embodiment of spiritual energy. An exploration of literature encompasses nursing theories, facilitation, dialogue, loss, grief, spirituality and transition. These show how the patterns that I find, both resonate, and are divergent from extant knowledge. This thesis sheds light on the often hidden aspects of reflection and nursing practice and may support professional and personal growth. It also provides a basis for evaluative research on the effectiveness of DNFT in health care settings in the future. Discussions regarding the expansion of these reflective and praxis genres are included which may be of interest to nursing education and practice contexts.</p>

SCT: Theology today in Quebec: A time of transition

In 2015, three Quebec theological institutions undertook an institutional transformational process to address a long-term decline. The profile of Quebec theology was thus reassessed, both institutionally and in its understanding of its status, plan and future. This is true not only for the three institutions involved, but also for the entire community of university-level theologians and institutions. In this article, I will begin by connecting these transformations to the founding period of Quebec theology. I will then describe the restructuring that took place from 2015 to 2017 and explain its immediate impact. Comparing Quebec these institutional shifts to a debate about the situation theologians’ liberty with respect to Church magisterium in Austria (2011), I will emphasize the end of a fundamental tension between theologians and Church leadership in Quebec’s context, and the new problem that has replaced it in the context of the secular Academy. I will conclude by presenting some outcomes of the new configuration in three Quebec universities.

Humanism as the essence of the principle of religious tolerance (on the example of the Ideas of L. N. Tolstoy, F. M. Dostoevsky, and N. N. Pirogov)

During the period of globalization, various social strata comprise a new conceptual system. This ongoing transformational process prompts reconsideration of the fundamental concept of religious tolerance: it disintegrates and accretes with extraneous connotations. The worldwide growing religious fanaticism makes the problem of religious tolerance exceedingly acute. Its comprehension becomes relevant not only on the examples of countries, but also on the legacy of prominent representatives of different eras. The object of this research is the literary-philosophical heritage of L. N. Tolstoy, F. M. Dostoevsky, and N. N. Pirogov. The subject is the principle of religious tolerance in the worldview of the listed philosophers. Each of them demonstrates a superior example of humanism in the era of close interaction of various ethnic groups. The analysis of works of the three cultural figures indicates that despite the difference in worldviews, they all agreed upon the general humanistic essence of religious tolerance. The recognition of religious tolerance as a general cultural universal is based on their perception of the world as a single organism that does not unify various religious traditions, but rather constitute them into the &ldquo;unity of diversified&rdquo;. If L. N. Tolstoy elucidates humanistic nature of religious tolerance on the level of the individual, communities and entire humanity, then F. M. Dostoevsky has such reflections due to theme of war and peace. In combination with the &ldquo;cosmic&rdquo; worldview of N. N. Pirogov, these three views reveal different edges of religious tolerance based on the principle of complementarity. The study of humanistic ideas of the Russian philosophers may contribute to the creation of the methodological concept of religious tolerance as one of the fundamentals of the state domestic and foreign policy of the Russian Federation during the globalization era.

Exploration of the Tumor-Suppressive Immune Microenvironment by Integrated Analysis in EGFR-Mutant Lung Adenocarcinoma

BackgroundClinical evidence has shown that few non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients with epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations can benefit from immunotherapy. The tumor immune microenvironment (TIME) is a significant factor affecting the efficacy of immunotherapy. However, the TIME transformational process in EGFR-mutation patients is unknown.MethodsThe mRNA expression and mutation data and lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) clinical data were obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. Profiles describing the immune landscape of patients with EGFR mutations were characterized by differences in tumor mutation burden (TMB), ESTIMATE, CIBERSORT, and microenvironment cell populations-counter (MCP-counter).ResultsIn total, the TCGA data for 585 patients were analyzed. Among these patients, 98 had EGFR mutations. The TMB was lower in the EGFR group (3.94 mut/Mb) than in the KRAS mutation group (6.09 mut/Mb, P &lt; 0.001) and the entire LUAD (6.58 mut/Mb, P &lt; 0.001). The EGFR group had a lower population of activated immune cells and an even higher score of immunosuppressive cells. A further inter-group comparison showed that differences in the TMB and tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes were only found between patients with oncogenic mutations and unknown mutation. Meanwhile, there were more myeloid dendritic cells (DCs) in EGFR 19del than in L858R-mutation patients and in common mutation patents than in uncommon mutation patients (P &lt; 0.05). Additionally, we established a D score, where D = MCP-counter score for cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs)/MCP-counter score for myeloid DCs. Further analysis revealed that lower D scores indicated immune suppression and were negatively related to several immunotherapy biomarkers.ConclusionsThe TIME of EGFR mutant NSCLC was immunosuppressive. Myeloid DCs gradually increased in EGFR 19del, L858R, and uncommon mutations. The potential role of CTLs and DCs in the TIME of patients requires further investigation.

Towards rebirth in transformational psychology and practice: A Southern perspective.

In divergent world ecosystems, there is a desire for visible, integral ecological transformation pertaining to self, other, community and society; partly influenced by loss of identity both within and without the greater ecology. Notably, identity and impact of psychological practice remains a burning platform within the African context, thus growing the question – does Africa have anything to offer to redress the growing conversation of human disconnect, discard and dehumanisation through loss of identity. To redress, it becomes necessary to Rebirth through grounding to “Call” to cause transformation of self towards ecological healing. REBIRTH is an innovative transformational process grounded in the South, exploring the role of Africa, its norms and unique philosophy of Ubuntu-Botho as relevant practice towards inclusive transformation, catalysing social innovation. It is a creative experience reconnecting self, other, community and society to identity in Botho-Ubuntu beginning in the Southern relational path, and unfolds into the four voices of global exploration, towards inclusive transformation and authentic identity. The traditional African approach to rebirth promotes collective healing within a more holistic approach and the role of the community becomes apparent in the womb of the “Tribe” as point of entry - pointing towards a renewed civilisation in the world.