scholarly journals Cosmogenesis, Complexity, and Neo-Natural Faith in the Context of Astrobiology

Religions ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. 659
Author(s):  
Kelly C. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Western World ◽  
Basic Question ◽  
Logical Space ◽  
Moral Good ◽  
The Status ◽  
Traditional Approaches ◽  
Near Future ◽  
The Universe ◽  
Potential Use

It is fair to say that religion, and in particular the ways in which some Christian and Islamic thinkers have again begun to encroach on the domain of science (e.g., global warming, the teaching of evolution), has caused a great deal of consternation within the scientific and philosophical communities. An understandable reaction to these developments is to reject out of hand even the slightest taint of religion in these fields—a position that has now attained the status of orthodoxy, at least in the western world. This is curious on its face, given the fact that religion has clearly provided a sense of meaning and purpose for most of our fellow humans as long as there have been humans pondering such things. Moreover, it is probably not necessary, provided one is very careful what sort of faith one endorses. Thus, the basic question I wish to address here, albeit in a very preliminary fashion, is whether it may be possible to delineate a form of faith that can inspire and guide humanity without the metaphysical baggage that causes conflict with epistemically conservative disciplines like science. To that end, I examine one recent thread within cosmology that views the universe as creative in the sense that it is biased towards the production of ever-increasing complexity at its edges. If that is true, it gives those so inclined permission, as it were, to view the creation of complexity (including human culture and its products) as a moral good (perhaps even an imperative) without the assumption of supernatural entities with mysterious motives and goals. After arguing that there is indeed logical space for such a faith that does not impinge on the essential commitments of either science or philosophy (properly conceived) I will examine its potential use in framing some of the emerging debates concerning space exploration. The prospect of humanity venturing beyond our homeworld in the near future offers an excellent case study of this “neo-naturalism” in action for two basic reasons. First, it seems likely that such a massive and complex undertaking needs a motivational source beyond mere discovery and expansion. Second, a neo-natural faith may influence how we go about this, and not always in ways those steeped in more traditional approaches to religion would predict.

Precaution, Prediction, Proof, and Policy Assessment

2002 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 281-296 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen Dovers
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Policy Change ◽  
Policy Goals ◽  
The Status ◽  
National Competition ◽  
Policy Systems ◽  
Ecologically Sustainable ◽  
Near Future

The challenge of sustainable development—the ultimate goal of precaution—demands that we shift our focus away from individual environmental problems and toward long-term integration of environmental, social, and economic policy. It also elevates protection of ecosystem processes and biodiversity to the status of significant policy goals. In this article, the author argues for a new use of the precautionary principle, as a means to assess broad policy decisions to target indirect or systemic rather than direct threats to sustainability. He draws on a case study of two Australian policies: the National Strategy for Ecologically Sustainable Development (ESD), and the National Competition Policy (NCP). While the proposals are ambitious and may not be achievable in the near future, nonetheless, it is in the nature of institutional and policy systems that it is difficult to predict when opportunities for policy change will arise. It is crucial to develop and articulate strategies now, to be promoted during brief windows of opportunity for policy change.

scholarly journals A Historical Survey of Evolution in the Concept and Status of “Man” Greek to Modern Times

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (101) ◽  
pp. 235-254
Author(s):  
Muhammad Awais Shaukat ◽  
Humaira Ahmad
Keyword(s):  
Religious Tradition ◽  
Basic Question ◽  
Religious Traditions ◽  
Modern Times ◽  
The Status ◽  
Analytical Research ◽  
First Time ◽  
The Universe ◽  
Special Creation ◽  
Divine Guidance

Study of human nature has been one of the most important questions to which man has come across. Right from the period when man started thinking rationally, because of his curious and enquiring nature, he meditated about Universe, existence and nature of Man and his ultimate reality. The religious tradition claims that when Man first came to earth, he knew the answer to these questions in the light of divine guidance. It declared “Man” as the crown of all the creations and all the other things are created to serve him. The civilizations that didn’t have the luxury of divine guidance developed mythological explanations. It were the Greeks who for the first time developed an intellectual discourse to answer the basic question about the reality of Man and the Universe. The medieval period was dominated by religious traditions. All these traditions, though different from one another, seem to agree to the point that Man is a special creation and the center of the Universe with some amount of divinity attributed to him. But after Renaissance, this view changed radically and the status of “Man” shrunk to an animal only who was thought-to-be guided by his own instincts and who was through and through a profane creation. This research aims at studying the concept of “Man” in different civilizations and explores the evolution of this concept from Greek to Modern times through analytical research method.

Varied Responses to Human-Induced Seismicity in the City of Azle, Texas

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Sarmistha R. Majumdar
Keyword(s):  
State Government ◽  
Induced Seismicity ◽  
Oil And Gas ◽  
The United States ◽  
The State ◽  
Prior History ◽  
Small Community ◽  
Regulatory Policies ◽  
The Status

Fracking has helped to usher in an era of energy abundance in the United States. This advanced drilling procedure has helped the nation to attain the status of the largest producer of crude oil and natural gas in the world, but some of its negative externalities, such as human-induced seismicity, can no longer be ignored. The occurrence of earthquakes in communities located at proximity to disposal wells with no prior history of seismicity has shocked residents and have caused damages to properties. It has evoked individuals’ resentment against the practice of injection of fracking’s wastewater under pressure into underground disposal wells. Though the oil and gas companies have denied the existence of a link between such a practice and earthquakes and the local and state governments have delayed their responses to the unforeseen seismic events, the issue has gained in prominence among researchers, affected community residents, and the media. This case study has offered a glimpse into the varied responses of stakeholders to human-induced seismicity in a small city in the state of Texas. It is evident from this case study that although individuals’ complaints and protests from a small community may not be successful in bringing about statewide changes in regulatory policies on disposal of fracking’s wastewater, they can add to the public pressure on the state government to do something to address the problem in a state that supports fracking.

Turning Aliens into Socialists

2010 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 75-93
Author(s):  
Jessica Moberg
Keyword(s):  
Outer Space ◽  
The United States ◽  
Second World War ◽  
World War ◽  
History Of ◽  
Swedish History ◽  
Second World ◽  
The Universe ◽  
Highly Evolved

Immediately after the Second World War Sweden was struck by a wave of sightings of strange flying objects. In some cases these mass sightings resulted in panic, particularly after authorities failed to identify them. Decades later, these phenomena were interpreted by two members of the Swedish UFO movement, Erland Sandqvist and Gösta Rehn, as alien spaceships, or UFOs. Rehn argued that ‘[t]here is nothing so dramatic in the Swedish history of UFOs as this invasion of alien fly-things’ (Rehn 1969: 50). In this article the interpretation of such sightings proposed by these authors, namely that we are visited by extraterrestrials from outer space, is approached from the perspective of myth theory. According to this mythical theme, not only are we are not alone in the universe, but also the history of humankind has been shaped by encounters with more highly-evolved alien beings. In their modern day form, these kinds of ideas about aliens and UFOs originated in the United States. The reasoning of Sandqvist and Rehn exemplifies the localization process that took place as members of the Swedish UFO movement began to produce their own narratives about aliens and UFOs. The question I will address is: in what ways do these stories change in new contexts? Texts produced by the Swedish UFO movement are analyzed as a case study of this process.

Breaking the Shackles of Gender Stereotyping to Create New Norms: The Case of Zimbabwean Migrant Women in Mthatha Town

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sanction Madambi
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Gender Stereotyping ◽  
Personal Agency ◽  
Migrant Women ◽  
Host Countries ◽  
Qualitative Research Design ◽  
Norms And Values ◽  
Recent Case Study ◽  
Traditional Approaches

The migration of Zimbabweans into South Africa is shaped by several factors and processes. Traditionally, the decision to migrate was mostly based on family considerations (where gender stereotypic roles were a priority), although in some cases the migrants exercised individualism and personal agency. This led to migration trends that were male dominated. Current Zimbabwean migration trends reflect large volumes of women as the socio-economic crisis forces them to leave their country. These migrant women encounter a myriad of challenges in their host countries. This paper explores Zimbabwean women’s migration to the town of Mthatha in South Africa, highlighting their challenges and the strategies they employ to overcome these, as found in a recent case study. Applying a qualitative research design and using questionnaires and interviews to gather data from the 100 purposively sampled women, the study found that many Zimbabwean migrant women in Mthatha encountered numerous challenges. They lacked the required documents to live and work in South Africa, experienced exploitation and marriage constraints, and had broken ties with their families back in Zimbabwe. According to the study, these women managed to navigate these challenges, rising above the stereotypic norms and values that used to label them as non-productive citizens to superheroes who were supporting their families and the country’s economy—thus breaking the shackles of gender stereotyping to create new norms. These findings underline the importance of shifting from the traditional approaches to women migration and pursuing perspectives that present migration as a critical component of the process of social change and development to all migrants.

Statistical approach for describing failures and lifetimes of water mains

1998 ◽  
Vol 38 (6) ◽  
pp. 209-217 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jianhua Lei ◽  
Sveinung Sægrov
Keyword(s):  
Data Base ◽  
Ductile Iron ◽  
Counting Process ◽  
Statistical Approach ◽  
Process Models ◽  
Average Lifetime ◽  
Maintenance Practice ◽  
Water Mains ◽  
Near Future

This paper demonstrates the statistical approach for describing failures and lifetimes of water mains. The statistical approach is based on pipe inventory data and the maintenance data registered in the data base. The approach consists of data pre-processing and statistical analysis. Two classes of statistical models are applied, namely counting process models and lifetime models. With lifetime models, one can estimate the probability which a pipe will fail within a time horizon. With counting process models one can see the deteriorating (or improving) trend in time of a group of “identical” pipes and their rates of occurrence of failure (ROCOF). The case study with the data base from Trondheim municipality (Norway) demonstrates the applicability of the statistical approach and leads to the following results: 1). In the past 20 years, Trondheim municipality has experienced approximately 250 to 300 failures per year. However, the number of failures per year will significantly increase in the near future unless better maintenance practice is implemented now. 2). Unprotected ductile iron pipes have a higher probability of failures than other materials. The average lifetime of unprotected ductile iron pipes is approximately 30 to 40 years shorter than the lifetime of a cast iron pipe. 3). Pipes installed 1963 and 1975 are most likely to fail in the future; 4) The age of a pipe does not play a significant role for the remaining lifetime of the pipe; 5). After 2 to 3 failures, a pipe enters a fast-failure stage (i.e., frequent multiple between failures).

scholarly journals ArcGIS Urban: an application for plan assessment

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ellen Soward ◽  
Jianling Li
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
The United States ◽  
Spatial Context ◽  
Future Studies ◽  
Planning Profession ◽  
Gis Tools ◽  
Comprehensive Plans ◽  
Near Future ◽  
The City

AbstractMost cities in the United States rely on zoning to address important planning-related issues within their jurisdictions. Planners often use GIS tools to analyze these issues in a spatial context. ESRI’s ArcGIS Urban software seeks to provide the planning profession with a GIS-based solution for various challenges, including zoning’s impacts on the built environment and housing capacity.This research explores the use of ArcGIS Urban for assessing the existing zoning and comprehensive plans in meeting the projected residential growth in the near future using the City of Arlington, Texas as a case study. The exploration provides examples and lessons for how ArcGIS Urban might be used by planners to accomplish their tasks and highlights the capabilities and limitations of ArcGIS Urban in its current stand. The paper is concluded with some suggestions for future studies.

scholarly journals Taxonomy of Dark Energy Models

Universe ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (6) ◽  
pp. 163
Author(s):  
Verónica Motta ◽  
Miguel A. García-Aspeitia ◽  
Alberto Hernández-Almada ◽  
Juan Magaña ◽  
Tomás Verdugo
Keyword(s):  
Dark Energy ◽  
Cold Dark Matter ◽  
Accelerated Expansion ◽  
Energy Component ◽  
The Past ◽  
Energy Models ◽  
The Status ◽  
Expansion Of The Universe ◽  
The Universe ◽  
Unknown Component

The accelerated expansion of the Universe is one of the main discoveries of the past decades, indicating the presence of an unknown component: the dark energy. Evidence of its presence is being gathered by a succession of observational experiments with increasing precision in its measurements. However, the most accepted model for explaining the dynamic of our Universe, the so-called Lambda cold dark matter, faces several problems related to the nature of such energy component. This has led to a growing exploration of alternative models attempting to solve those drawbacks. In this review, we briefly summarize the characteristics of a (non-exhaustive) list of dark energy models as well as some of the most used cosmological samples. Next, we discuss how to constrain each model’s parameters using observational data. Finally, we summarize the status of dark energy modeling.

scholarly journals Discursive Strategies and Sequenced Institutional Change: The Case of Marriage Equality in the United States

2021 ◽  
pp. 003232172110205
Author(s):  
Giulia Mariani ◽  
Tània Verge
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Institutional Change ◽  
The United States ◽  
Marriage Equality ◽  
Agent Based ◽  
Discursive Strategies ◽  
Policy Debates ◽  
The Status ◽  
Private Actors

Building on historical and discursive institutionalism, this article examines the agent-based dynamics of gradual institutional change. Specifically, using marriage equality in the United States as a case study, we examine how actors’ ideational work enabled them to make use of the political and discursive opportunities afforded by multiple venues to legitimize the process of institutional change to take off sequentially through layering, displacement, and conversion. We also pay special attention to how the discursive strategies deployed by LGBT advocates, religious-conservative organizations and other private actors created new opportunities to influence policy debates and tip the scales to their preferred policy outcome. The sequential perspective adopted in this study allows problematizing traditional conceptualizations of which actors support or contest the status quo, as enduring oppositional dynamics lead them to perform both roles in subsequent phases of the institutional change process.

scholarly journals A Dieldrin Case Study: Another Evidence of an Obsolete Substance in the European Soil Environment

Agriculture ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 314
Author(s):  
Petros Tsiantas ◽  
Evangelia N. Tzanetou ◽  
Helen Karasali ◽  
Konstantinos M. Kasiotis
Keyword(s):  
Active Substance ◽  
Anthropogenic Activities ◽  
Carcinogenic Risk ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Soil Environment ◽  
Single Application ◽  
Environmental Concentration ◽  
Tandem Mass Spectrometric ◽  
Potential Use

Soil constitutes a central environmental compartment that, due to natural and anthropogenic activities, is a recipient of several contaminants. Among them, organochlorine pesticides are of major concern, even though they have been banned decades ago in the European Union, due to their persistence and the health effects they can elicit. In the presented work, a gas chromatographic tandem mass spectrometric (GC-MS/MS) developed method was applied to soil samples after the suspected and potential use of formulations containing organochlorine active substance. One soil sample was positive to dieldrin at 0.018 mg kg−1. Predicted environmental concentration in soil (PECsoil) considering a single application of this active substance potentially attributed the finding in its past use. The subsequent health risk assessment showed negligible non-carcinogenic risk and tolerable carcinogenic risk. The latter signifies that repetitive and prolonged sampling can unveil the pragmatic projection of persistent chemicals’ residues in the soil.

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