850 research outputs found

    Undergraduate Catalog of Studies, 2023-2024

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    Undergraduate Catalog of Studies, 2023-2024

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    Undergraduate Catalog of Studies, 2022-2023

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    CHRIST AS DIALOGUE WITH CULTURE: REIMAGING THE CHURCH FOR INCARNATIONAL DISCIPLESHIP AND MINISTRY

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    God spoke, and Logos created. Increased polarization and divisiveness in USAmerican society and the resulting social pain and even violence inspired this project to pursue a healthier and restorative dialogue. If God’s spoken and incarnate Word originated human life and was and is the means of redeeming humans to life with God and one another, how might such a dialogical Christology impact a theology of dialogue capable of addressing brokenness in a culture? As action research, this project tested the potential for a theology of dialogue to impact perceptions as a precursor to altering behaviors through a presentation at Calvary Church in Naperville, Illinois, a culturally diverse and multi-national congregation. Identifying both the theological roots of divisive issues and what it means for the Church to be the dialogical Body of the dialogical Christ are steps this project took toward healing racial, ideological, and political division. The broader aspiration was to develop a theology of dialogue capable of bringing health to broken cultural dialogue through a reimaging of Christ for incarnational discipleship in the ecumenical Church. This dissertation presents the research project’s biblical, theological, and literary study; applied intervention; quantitative study of the intervention’s post-survey; and evaluation and conclusions. The discoveries and implications for the ecumenical Church and cultural dialogue are decisive as the study showed the theology of dialogue did impact the participants’ perceptions. The combined findings of the literature review and quantitative study offer potential for broader application in religious and non-religious contexts to move USAmerican dialogue from devastation to restoration. Christ is God’s dialogue with humanity as the Divine Logos and in-flesh Word through whom God speaks, hears, touches, and is touched. He is a bi-directional “through-word.” God’s dialogue, in-through-as Christ, continues in and through the dialogical Church as the present, embodied Christ in the culture

    A Survey on Event-based News Narrative Extraction

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    Narratives are fundamental to our understanding of the world, providing us with a natural structure for knowledge representation over time. Computational narrative extraction is a subfield of artificial intelligence that makes heavy use of information retrieval and natural language processing techniques. Despite the importance of computational narrative extraction, relatively little scholarly work exists on synthesizing previous research and strategizing future research in the area. In particular, this article focuses on extracting news narratives from an event-centric perspective. Extracting narratives from news data has multiple applications in understanding the evolving information landscape. This survey presents an extensive study of research in the area of event-based news narrative extraction. In particular, we screened over 900 articles that yielded 54 relevant articles. These articles are synthesized and organized by representation model, extraction criteria, and evaluation approaches. Based on the reviewed studies, we identify recent trends, open challenges, and potential research lines.Comment: 37 pages, 3 figures, to be published in the journal ACM CSU

    Power perception and conflict prevention in the Black Sea region: The EU, Russia and Turkey [védés előtt]

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    I. Research background and justification of the topic This research topic is important, because the knowledge of conflict prevention needs to be further developed. An example of this urgent need is the ongoing security crisis in the Black Sea region, which evolved in a war between Ukraine and Russia. The research selects three main topics, on which it derives results. The first one is the general knowledge of conflict prevention. The second one is the conceptualisation of power in international relations. The third one is the case study Black Sea region, with main regional competitors the EU, Russia and Turkey. This research suggests that a conflict is the result of power competition. Nevertheless, it remains unclear how power is perceived and how that relates to regional security conflicts and crises. Therefore, the research aims to identify the meaning of power in international relations, most specifically power perception by regional competitors, and its relation to conflict prevention. This research simultaneously develops new theory and new conceptualisation, and applies them to a case study. As a result, it aims to contribute both to the development of academic knowledge, and to the practical application in the case study of the Black Sea region. The author suggests that the research results could be used by EU diplomats for the purpose of the EU enhancing its role as a world leader in conflict prevention, but also for improving its position as a regional power in the Black Sea region. II. Methodology and methods ● Grounded theory method: it is an abductive methodology, in which a case study is applied and a new theory is constructed. ● The new theory is repetitively tested in developing the case study. ● The case study chapter identifies three regional competitors: the EU, Russia and Turkey. ● The expert interviews discuss the applicability of the theory of six power elements. It also discusses some of the areas of competition and cooperation. ● The applicability of the new theory to the foreign policy strategy of the EU is assessed through discourse analysis. ● The applicability of the new theory to the foreign policy strategies of Russia and Turkey is assessed through comparative content analysis. III. The findings of the dissertation ● New concept of power in IR: six power elements. ● New theory of conflict prevention: power perception and reaction of competition ● New empirical testing: for the case study Black Sea region, the new theory and the new concept have been tested. ● Through expert interviews including diplomats from the EEAS, researchers, academics I found the applicability of the six power elements concept. ● Through assessment of the foreign policy strategies, I applied the theory to the EU, Russia and Turkey. I found the specific power elements in which each of the regional competitors might trigger regional security crisis or conflict, based on their perception of power at a certain time. IV. Applicability These results contribute to the theory of conflict prevention in international relations. They are applicable to other regions, regional competitors, and time. The power elements might be adjusted differently for different IR actors in a different time and in a different region. The results are also practically applicable to EU diplomacy. Particularly, they might be useful in developing the next foreign policy strategy of the European Union by the European External Action Servic

    Data ethics : building trust : how digital technologies can serve humanity

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    Data is the magic word of the 21st century. As oil in the 20th century and electricity in the 19th century: For citizens, data means support in daily life in almost all activities, from watch to laptop, from kitchen to car, from mobile phone to politics. For business and politics, data means power, dominance, winning the race. Data can be used for good and bad, for services and hacking, for medicine and arms race. How can we build trust in this complex and ambiguous data world? How can digital technologies serve humanity? The 45 articles in this book represent a broad range of ethical reflections and recommendations in eight sections: a) Values, Trust and Law, b) AI, Robots and Humans, c) Health and Neuroscience, d) Religions for Digital Justice, e) Farming, Business, Finance, f) Security, War, Peace, g) Data Governance, Geopolitics, h) Media, Education, Communication. The authors and institutions come from all continents. The book serves as reading material for teachers, students, policy makers, politicians, business, hospitals, NGOs and religious organisations alike. It is an invitation for dialogue, debate and building trust! The book is a continuation of the volume “Cyber Ethics 4.0” published in 2018 by the same editors

    Experiences of counselors participating in an innovative project to develop a training program for specialized foster parents of youth (13–18 years)

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    BackgroundChildren placed in foster care represent a vulnerable and distressed group that requires a high level of care. However, good training programs designed to address specific problems presented in specialized foster care are not easily accessible due to logistical, economic and structural barriers. The lack of easy access and a strong desire to provide high-quality services inspired counselors from a specialized foster care center on the frontline to initiate an innovative, developmentally relevant and locally grounded training program.AimsThis study focuses on counselors’ experiences with the development of the training program and its impact on their work life.MethodA qualitative research design within a participatory approach framework was used to understand the experiences of the counselors. All the counselors employed in the department and the leaders (n = 14) participated in the study. Data were gathered from participants, including the lead and second authors, using a semi-structured interview, and analyzed using thematic analysis.ResultsThe analyses yielded three main categories: (i) Psychological Factors, (ii) Social Dynamics, and (iii) Leadership Style and Support. Each of the first two categories consisted of three subcategories. At the psychological level, the employees’ experiences reflected the psychological states and traits required to fuel the tasks required by the project. The social dynamics of working in a team influenced the work process and, in turn, were impacted by it. Lastly, leadership style and support provided the foundation for innovation to germinate and grow.ConclusionEngaging in a locally created training program was associated with a strong sense of collaboration and team spirit. Counselors reported high intrinsic motivation and a strong sense of personal pride and drive for their jobs. They were proactive in seeking colleagues with particular expertise and collaborated on project tasks despite differences. The leadership style reflected the presence of transformational leadership behaviors, signaling an organizational culture conducive to innovation. The study provides an example of how aligning employees’ personal aspirations with workplace goals and professional development can create a workplace in which employees feel it is enjoyable to go to work

    Construction and application of a landscape dynamics assessment tool

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    Landscapes are shaped and influenced by a dynamic balance of ecological processes and anthropogenic activity. Substantial changes may disrupt the natural balance of ecosystems, jeopardizing their capacity to provide essential services for the population. Landscape changes, often measured via land cover variations, are pointed out as a major cause of biodiversity loss and, thus, a central topic in Conservation Biology. Some authors warned that key concepts like ‘habitat loss and fragmentation’ are often misused, causing misinterpretations and erroneous conclusions. The central aim of this work is to develop an analytical method of assessing landscape dynamics and a conceptual framework capable of clarifying the spatial patterns of land transformation. The conceptual framework, the associated terminology, and the method called Landscape Dynamic Typology, were developed based on the landscape composition and configuration variations. To complement and enhance the methodological approach, two tools were built: i) LDTtool, an ArcGIS toolbox and ii) LDT4QGIS, a group of scripts for QGIS. The tools’ multiple features and settings were demonstrated in illustrative examples and case studies as distinct as grasslands preservation in Slovenia, invasive plants removal in a mountainous Natura 2000 site, or the characterization of montado loss in Portugal. The use of these software by other authors in urban studies in places like Romania and Indonesia further attests to their usefulness and acceptance by the community. Both tools are freely available and can be adapted to fulfil analysts’ needs. New versions will be released whenever a relevant update or improvement is implemented. In specialized or in more comprehensive approaches, complementing or complemented by other software, Landscape Dynamic Typology has shown to be useful in analytical procedures involving land use or land cover changes. By allowing iterative simulations, assisting in change detection and in spatial pattern classification and visualization, it contributes to more informed decision-making; CONSTRUÇÃO E APLICAÇÃO DE UMA FERRAMENTA DE AVALIAÇÃO DE DINÂMICAS DE PAISAGENS RESUMO: As paisagens são moldadas por um equilíbrio dinâmico de processos ecológicos e actividade antropogénica. Alterações substanciais podem perturbar o equilíbrio natural dos ecossistemas, diminuindo a sua capacidade para fornecer serviços essenciais à população. As alterações paisagísticas, geralmente medidas através da variação da ocupação do solo, são uma das principais causas da perda de biodiversidade e um tópico central em biologia da conservação. Alguns autores alertaram que conceitos como ‘perda e fragmentação de habitats’ são frequentemente mal aplicados, originando interpretações e conclusões erradas. O objectivo central deste trabalho é desenvolver uma estrutura conceptual para clarificar os padrões espaciais de transformação e um construir um método de análise de dinâmicas paisagísticas. O enquadramento conceptual, a terminologia associada e o método, Tipologia de Dinâmicas de Paisagem, foram desenvolvidos com base na variação da composição do mosaico de ocupação do solo. Para complementar a abordagem metodológica foram construídas duas ferramentas: i) LDTtool, uma toolbox para ArcGIS; e ii) LDT4QGIS, um grupo de scripts para QGIS. As suas funcionalidades foram demonstradas em exemplos e casos de estudo tão díspares como a conservação de prados na Eslovénia, remoção de plantas invasoras num sítio da Rede Natura 2000 em ambiente montanhoso ou a caracterização da perda de áreas de montado em Portugal. O uso deste software por outros autores, nomeadamente em estudos urbanos na Roménia e na Indonésia, atesta a sua usabilidade e aceitação pela comunidade. As ferramentas estão disponíveis gratuitamente e podem ser adaptadas para fazer face às necessidades do analista. Serão lançadas novas versões quando novas funcionalidades forem desenvolvidas. Em abordagens especializadas ou generalistas, a Tipologia de Dinâmicas de Paisagem, mostrou ser útil para procedimentos analíticos envolvendo alterações de ocupação do solo. Auxiliando na detecção de alterações, classificação e visualização de padrões espaciais e permitindo fazer simulações, contribui para uma tomada de decisão informada
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