11,194 research outputs found
“The Cloud of Unseeing”: Myths Transformed and Pseudo-scientific Interpretations of the Book of Genesis
This paper, delivered at the Tolkien Seminar (Kalamazoo, MI) on May 9, 2018, traces the potential influence of popular late 19th-century Biblical commentaries on the Book of Genesis on Tolkien\u27s post Lord Of the Rings cosmologies, in particular the problem of the creation of the Sun and Moon
Unknowns and unknown unknowns: from dark sky to dark matter and dark energy
Answering well-known fundamental questions is usually regarded as the major
goal of science. Discovery of other unknown and fundamental questions is,
however, even more important. Recognition that "we didn't know anything" is the
basic scientific driver for the next generation. Cosmology indeed enjoys such
an exciting epoch. What is the composition of our universe? This is one of the
well-known fundamental questions that philosophers, astronomers and physicists
have tried to answer for centuries. Around the end of the last century,
cosmologists finally recognized that "We didn't know anything". Except for
atoms that comprise slightly less than 5% of the universe, our universe is
apparently dominated by unknown components; 23% is the known unknown (dark
matter), and 72% is the unknown unknown (dark energy). In the course of
answering a known fundamental question, we have discovered an unknown, even
more fundamental, question: "What is dark matter? What is dark energy?" There
are a variety of realistic particle physics models for dark matter, and its
experimental detection may be within reach. On the other hand, it is fair to
say that there is no widely accepted theoretical framework to describe the
nature of dark energy. This is exactly why astronomical observations will play
a key role in unveiling its nature. I will review our current understanding of
the "dark sky", and then present on-going Japanese project, SuMIRe, to discover
even more unexpected questions.Comment: 11 pages, 7 figures, to appear in the proceedings of SPIE
Astronomical Instrumentation "Observational frontiesr of astronomy for the
new decade", based on a plenary talk on June 28, 201
Idolatry and Mystery : Karl Barth's Protestant Doctrine of Mystery as a Challenge to Apophaticism
Open Access via the Brill AgreementPeer reviewedPublisher PD
Secular Atmospheres: Unveiling and Urban Space in Early 20th Century Iran
Drawing on sociological approaches to urbanism and secularization, as well as the affective turn in anthropology, this article explores the implementation of secular policies in Iran after the 1936 Unveiling Decree. I argue that constructing transparent social relations reflects the emergence of a new level of secular binds and relies upon the modalities of urban infrastructure and architecture. I find that modernization and secularization in Iran are interlinked by transformations in urban planning that tended to eliminate sites of ambiguity and to homogenize structures and forms of interaction in public and domestic spaces. The article makes use of autobiographical narratives that give witness to manifest changes in the urban atmosphere between the 1930s and 1950s. I will show how the Pahlavi regime took an active role in attempting to build a secular city by invoking segmentations and divisions in urban spaces to promote a secular atmosphere and limit religious ideas
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