Reframing Islamic Art for the 21st Century

<p>The celebrated Islamic galleries at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York reopened in 2011 as “Galleries for the Art of Arab Lands, Turkey, Iran, Central Asia, and Later South Asia.” Other major collections of Islamic art have been reorganized and reinstalled in Berlin, Cairo, Cleveland, Copenhagen, Detroit, Kuwait, London, Los Angeles, Paris, and Singapore, and new museums of Islamic art have been established in Doha, Qatar; Honolulu, Hawaii; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and Sharjah, U.A.E. In addition, the first museum in North America dedicated to Islamic art recently opened in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. This article explores this global phenomenon, identifying it as both a literal and conceptual “reframing of Islamic art for the 21st century,” setting the world stage for new developments in cultural understanding.</p><p><em><strong>Keywords:</strong></em> Islamic art, Metropolitan Museum of Art, “Art of Arab Lands, Turkey, Iran, Central Asia, and Later South Asia”</p>

The Relationship between Compulsions, Worry, and Academic Performance among United Arab Emirates University Students

<p>The cognitive approaches of obsessive-compulsive disorder consider negative appraisal of beliefs and thoughts to be the core factor for the onset of this disorder. The present study was aimed at investigating the relationship between compulsions and worries (anxious thoughts), and between compulsions and academic performance in a sample of 461 university students aged between 18 and 30 years (mean age=21.2 years). Male participants represented 31.2% of the total sample while female participants represented 68.8% of the sample. The Anxious Thoughts Inventory and the Compulsion Checklist were administered. Results showed that worries were positively related to compulsions. Meta-worry was the strongest predictor of compulsions. First-degree relatives of individuals with history of obsessive-compulsive symptoms significantly reported more symptoms of compulsions compared to their counterparts. Academic performance (GPA) was not related to compulsion but it was related to worry. Further, older participants expressed less social worry and less compulsive symptoms compared to younger ones. The results were discussed in relation to relevant theoretical framework and in light of findings of previous studies. This study will provide researchers, practitioners and readers with an understanding of the relationship between worry, academic performance and compulsions in this part of the world.</p><strong><em>Keywords</em></strong>: Compulsions, Meta-worry, Social Worry, Health Worry, Academic Performance

The Boom: Population and Urban Growth of Dubai City

<p>The total population of Dubai has grown by 1000% over the last 40 years alone. In 1975 the total population was 183,000 inhabitances, which increased in 2015 to about 2 million. This increase makes Dubai population one of the fastest growing in the world. In a related context, the guest workers (immigrants) have profoundly contributed to this population growth since they constituted 91% of the total population. Dubai is a good example of a rapidly developing city. Until 1955 Dubai was characterized by its slow growing economy. Its population lived in traditional houses made of palm fronds with poor infrastructure. In 1957 Dubai municipality was established and the first master plan was formed which resulted into the appearance of a road system and anew town center in addition to the construction of new modern buildings made of concrete blocks. These buildings started to emerge at that time. Nevertheless, the urban growth continued a slow pace. From 1975 to present the urban area expanded enormously, the rapid development of the city transforms Dubai from a small regional business, financial and leisure hub into a global center. During the last two decades Dubai built up area expanded like never before, the economic growth accelerated and so did the investment level, more development projects were planned to support the urban growth. The total built up area increased from only 54 square Kms in 1975 to 977 square Kms in 2015, as Dubai increased (1700 % in only 38 years) that high percentage make Dubai one of the fastest growing cities in the world.</p><p><em>Key Words</em>: Dubai. Economic boom, Guest workers, Asians, Infrastructure, Built up area, global business hub</p>

Exploiting On-Site and Off-Site Clients for Flash Floods in the Gulf

<p>The Gulf Cooperation Council is subject to torrential rain otherwise known as flash flooding. Records show that torrential rain have occurred in the Gulf Cooperation Council since 1989 until now. The purpose of this study is to present the framework of an integrated system made up of Geographic Information Systems, Remote Sensors, Wireless Sensor Networks, and Graphical User Interface Technologies to mitigate risks to Gulf Cooperation Council motorist caused by torrential rain. The methodology set out to use the integrated system to adopt behavioural patterns inherent in its component parts to provide a solution to torrential rain. Results after simulation report that the integrated system can reach high confidence levels set by its design. Results after framework simulation are based on testing the integrated components of the framework and not testing the integrated system in a live environment. The implication of the results is that it provides a framework for academics and practitioners to reconfigure into a suitable prototype for their needs when addressing torrential rainfall. The value of the article is that it showcases a unique solution to torrential rain.</p><p><strong><em>Keywords</em></strong>: Satellite, Wireless Sensors, Flash Floods, Geographic Information Systems</p>

Levels of Climate Change Awareness in the United Arab Emirates

<p>Any country’s ability to mitigate or adapt to climate change and global warming depends, to a large extent, on the availability of freely public information, knowledge, wide public awareness and information dissemination sources. Policies and actions initiated by environmental agencies to mitigate or adapt to climate change require the support of the general public and major stakeholders to be successful and effective. The aim of this cross-sectional study is to determine the level of public awareness with climate change and its spatial distribution among the population of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). A questionnaire was used to collect data, and a total of 4000 surveys were distributed throughout the seven emirates of the UAE using a systematic random sampling procedure. The study develops a climate change awareness index for the UAE based on the sample size overall awareness and the awareness of the anthropogenic causes of climate change. The results show an overall awareness level of approximately 57% indicating that more than 40% of the population lack knowledge and awareness with climate change and its impacts on the UAE society, economy and urban development. Furthermore, the Chi-Square results revealed that awareness about CCGW is lower among females in comparison to males. However, The Chi-Square results indicate that the level of awareness is almost uniform among the different emirates of the UAE, indicating that geography, economic activities and income has no significant impact on awareness levels. The study suggests that educational climate change programs and public awareness campaigns are highly needed to address the low awareness levels.</p><p><strong><em>Keyword</em></strong><em>s</em>: Climate change, Global warming, Public awareness, Education, Survey</p>

The Pleasures of Polyglossia in Emirati Cinema: Focus on ‘From A to B’ and ‘Abdullah’

<p>Polyglot films highlight the coexistence of multiple languages at the level of dialogue and narration. Even the notoriously monolingual Hollywood film industry has recently seen an increase in polyglot productions. Much of Europe’s polyglot cinema reflects on post-war migration. Hamid Naficy has coined the phrase “accented cinema” to define diasporic filmmaking, a closely related category. The present essay considers polyglot Emirati films as part of an increasingly popular global genre. It argues that the lack of a monolingual mandate is conducive to experiments with language choices, and that the polyglot genre serves best to emphasize efforts made to accommodate the diversity of cultures interacting in urban centers in the United Arab Emirates. Case studies of Ali F. Mostafa’s <em>From A to B</em> (2014) and Humaid Alsuwaidi’s <em>Abdullah</em> (2015) demonstrate the considerable contributions Emirati filmmakers have already made to a genre, which offers a powerful potential for cinema in the UAE. A comparative analysis identifies the extent to which each of the two films reveals elements inherent in three of the five sub-categories outlined by Chris Wahl.</p><p><em>Keywords</em>: Ali Mostafa; Emirati cinema; film analysis; Humaid Alsuwaidi; multilingualism; polyglot cinema </p>