A Philology of Liberation: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as a Reader of the Classics

This paper explores the intellectual relationship between Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the classics, particularly the works of Plato, Sophocles, and Aeschylus. Recognizing Dr. King as a reader of the classics is significant for two reasons: the classics played a formative role in Dr. King\u27s development into a political activist and an intellectual of the first order; moreover, Dr. King shows us the way to read the classics. Dr. King did not read the classics in a pedantic or even academic manner, but for the purpose of liberation. Dr. King\u27s legacy, thus, is not merely his political accomplishments but also his example as a philologist of liberation

Domitian\u27s Lightning Bolts and Close Shaves In Pliny

Pliny\u27s portrayal of his public life under Domitian has often come under fire from both those who approach Pliny\u27sLettersfrom a historical perspective and those who study them as a literary production. This article reevaluates Pliny\u27s experiences in five significant areas: public speaking,amicitia, political promotion, threats of political persecution, and survival and reconciliation. In all of these circumstances, Pliny is found to be an honest narrator of his own political struggles under Domitian and an eloquent voice for his generation\u27s endurance

Saving the Life of a Foolish Poet: Tacitus on Marcus Lepidus, Thrasea Paetus, and Political Action under the Principate

This paper explores Tacitus\u27 representation of Thrasea Paetus. Preliminary to analyzing this portrayal, I discuss two passages often cited when exploring Tacitus\u27 political thought, Agricola 42.4 and Annales 4.20. I reject the former\u27s validity with regard to Thrasea and accept the latter as a starting point for comparing Tacitus\u27 depictions of Marcus Lepidus and Thrasea. Tacitus\u27 characterizations of Thrasea and Lepidus share the greatest resemblance in the trials of Antistius Sosianus and Clutorius Priscus, both of whom wrote verses offensive to the regime. Thrasea and Lepidus both came to the defense of their respective poet in an attempt to spare the poet\u27s life. In light of these trials, I conclude that Tacitus sought to reclaim the legacy of Thrasea and to cast him anew as a principled moderate rather than a reckless dissident

Counting Statistics and Dephasing Transition in an Electronic Mach-Zehnder Interferometer

It was recently suggested that a novel type of phase transition may occur in the visibility of electronic Mach-Zehnder Interferometers. Here, we present experimental evidence for the existence of this transition. The transition is induced by strongly non-Gaussian noise that originates from the strong coupling of a quantum point contact to the interferometer. We provide a transparent physical picture of the effect, by exploiting a close analogy to the neutrino-oscillations of particle physics. In addition, our experiment constitutes a probe of the singularity of the elusive full counting statistics of a quantum point contact.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figures (+Supplement 8 pages, 9 figures

Deepening the Universal Apostolic Preferences through Discernment at Xavier University

Following Fr. Arturo Sosa, S.J.’s promulgation of the Universal Apostolic Preferences (UAPs) and as part of Xavier University’s strategic planning, the Center for Mission and Identity invited faculty and staff to participate in a semester-long Discernment Group to learn about each of the UAPs and to brainstorm ways to deepen Xavier’s expression of each, resulting in a strategic proposal (one of the President\u27s Annual Goals). Based on the principles of Ignatian Communal Discernment, the Discernment Group met throughout the Fall 2019 semester in prayerful discussion and reflection and produced documents for each of the UAPs, which were then shared and vetted by the university community. The Discernment Group concluded with the creation of a document outline Xavier’s current best practices, next steps, and aspirational goals. The work of integrating the UAPs into the life of the Xavier University is an on-going effort, which is now guided by the document – a strategic plan for the decade. This discernment process may be effective for other Jesuit Catholic institutions seeking methods to advance the UAPs