Does one need evidence for belief in God?

It is commonly the case that sound, epistemological principles such as basic beliefs immediately become regarded as invalid when applied to theistic contexts. I will show that despite this, there is a strong sense of comparability between beliefs in God with beliefs in non-theistic beings and other commonly-held basic beliefs such as qualities of love and trust. To establish that both the belief in the existence of God and the existence of other beings and non-perceptual qualities are justified as evidence in the same way, I will have to establish that they are both what Plantinga calls properly basic beliefs. I will argue that this comparability makes it equally justifiable for the belief in God’s existence in itself to be basic, in the same way that it is with other commonly-held beliefs. This argument does however require strong grounds to prove its viability, so I will be examining and critiquing the arguments which allude to a contradiction of this conclusion. By carefully examining these arguments, I will ultimately attempt to provide further justification for Plantinga’s claim that the mere belief in God is sufficient to be regarded as evident to the self, without needing to be justified through logical arguments

Treatments for spasticity and pain in multiple sclerosis: a systematic review

Objectives: To identify the drug treatments currently available for the management of spasticity and pain in multiple sclerosis (MS), and to evaluate their clinical and cost-effectiveness. Data sources: Electronic bibliographic databases, National Research Register, MRC Clinical Trials Register and the US National Institutes of Health Clinical Trials Register. Review methods: Systematic searches identified 15 interventions for the treatment of spasticity and 15 interventions for treatment of pain. The quality and outcomes of the studies were evaluated. Reviews of the treatment of spasticity and pain when due to other aetiologies were also sought. Results: There is limited evidence of the effectiveness of four oral drugs for spasticity: baclofen, dantrolene, diazepam and tizanidine. Tizanidine appears to be no more effective than comparator drugs such as baclofen and has a slightly different side-effects profile. Despite claims that it causes less muscle weakness, there was very little evidence that tizanidine performed any better in this respect than other drugs, although it is more expensive. The findings of this review are consistent with reviews of the same treatments for spasticity derived from other aetiologies. There is good evidence that both botulinum toxin (BT) and intrathecal baclofen are effective in reducing spasticity, and both are associated with functional benefit. However, they are invasive, and substantially more expensive. None of the studies included in the review of pain were designed specifically to evaluate the alleviation of pain in patients with MS and there was no consistency regarding the use of validated outcome measures. It was suggested that, although expensive, the use of intrathecal baclofen may be associated with significant savings in hospitalisation costs in relation to bed-bound patients who are at risk of developing pressure sores, thus enhancing its cost-effectiveness. No studies of cost-effectiveness were identified in the review of pain. There is evidence, albeit limited, of the clinical effectiveness of baclofen, dantrolene, diazepam, tizanidine, intrathecal baclofen and BT and of the potential cost-effectiveness of intrathecal baclofen in the treatment of spasticity in MS. Conclusions: Many of the interventions identified are not licensed for the alleviation of pain or spasticity in MS and the lack of evidence relating to their effectiveness may also limit their widespread use. Indeed, forthcoming information relating to the use of cannabinoids in MS may result in there being better evidence of the effectiveness of new treatments than of any of the currently used drugs. It may therefore be of value to carry out double-blind randomised controlled trials of interventions used in current practice, where outcomes could include functional benefit and impact on quality of life. Further research into the development and validation of outcomes measures for pain and spasticity may also be useful, as perhaps would cost–utility studies

BS 502 Introduction to Biblical Studies

1. Required Course Texts deSilva, David A. An Introduction to the New Testament: Contexts, Methods and Ministry Formation. Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity, 2004 [hereafter abbreviated INT]. Willimon, William. Shaped by the Bible. Nashville: Abingdon, 1990. Thompson, David. Bible Study that Works. Nappanee, IN: Evangel, 1994. Bauer, David. Biblical Resources for Ministry. Nappanee, IN: Evangel, 1995. 2. Biblical Texts Assumed: It is assumed that students have access to at least two contemporary translations of the Bible, preferably the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV), Revised Standard Version (RSV), New International Version (NIV), English Standard Version (ESV), or New American Standard (NAS). The Living Bible, New Living Translation, The Message, the King James, and New King James, whatever their other merits, do not well serve the objectives of this course. See Comparisons of reading levels of several major translations, go to http://www.zondervanbibles.com/translations.htm. Recommended: Meeks, Wayne A. et al., eds. The HarperCollins Study Bible, New Revised Standard Version with Apocryphal/Deuterocanonical Books. New York: HarperCollins, 1993. 3. Web Resources Resources for Near Eastern, Mesopotamian and Biblical Studies: http://www.sas.upenn.edu/~ekondrat/neareast.html Bible History Online: http://www.bible-history.com/ Resource Pages for Biblical Studies: (http://www.torreys.org/bible/) New Testament Gateway (http://www.ntgateway.com) Exploring Ancient World Culture (Near East): http://eawc.evansville.edu/nepage.htmhttps://place.asburyseminary.edu/syllabi/2676/thumbnail.jp

BS 502 Introduction to Biblical Studies

deSilva, David A. An Introduction to the New Testament: Contexts, Methods and Ministry Formation. Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity, 2004 [hereafter abbreviated INT]. Willimon, William. Shaped by the Bible. Nashville: Abingdon, 1990. Thompson, David. Bible Study that Works. Nappanee, IN: Evangel, 1994. Bauer, David. Biblical Resources for Ministry. Nappanee, IN: Evangel, 1995.https://place.asburyseminary.edu/syllabi/2399/thumbnail.jp

Evolution and Cellular Resistance Mechanisms of the Immunity-Related GTPases

Members of the immunity-related (p47) GTPases (IRGs) are essential, interferon-inducible resistance factors active against a broad spectrum of important intracellular bacterial and protozoal pathogens including Toxoplasma gondii. Despite the strong, partially overlapping but non-redundant susceptibility phenotypes of mice genetically deficient for individual members of the family, little is known about molecular mechanisms of function and regulation of the IRG resistance system. This study demonstrates that IRG GTPases function in a system of direct, nucleotide-dependent regulatory interactions between family members. Spontaneous GTP-dependent homo-oligomerisation of the GKS subfamily member Irga6 leads to the activation of GTPase function in vitro. In vivo, accumulation of activated, GTP-bound GKS proteins at the parasitophorous vacuolar membrane is associated with the IFN-induced, cell autonomous destruction of avirulent Toxoplasma gondii. In contrast, direct GDP-dependent interactions of the unusual GMS subfamily members with the GKS proteins Irga6 and Irgb6 via the G-domains prevent premature activation of the resistance system in absence of infection. Lack of GMS GTPases results in spontaneous activation and aggregation of Irga6 and Irgb6 on endomembranes and hinders association with the parasitophorous vacuolar membrane upon infection with T. gondii. The three GMS GTPases are both necessary and sufficient to regulate Irga6 and Irgb6. No other interferon-inducible proteins are required for the regulation of the resting localisation of Irga6 and Irgb6 in the IFN-induced cell or for their infection-induced assembly on the membrane of the parasitophorous vacuole. Nucleotide binding is essential for the translocation from the resting localisation to the vacuole. Virulent Toxoplasma efficiently inhibited the recruitment of IRG proteins to the parasitophorous vacuole. These findings provide the first link between the enzymatic properties of IRG proteins as GTPases and their function in pathogen resistance. The IRG resistance GTPases are an ancient family that underwent extensive expansion and diversification as well as contraction in the euchordates - a feature characteristic for multigene families associated with pathogen resistance due to host-pathogen coevolution. Despite its essential role in resistance to vacuolar pathogens in mice, the IRG resistance system as such is not conserved in higher primates. While all other groups of mammals possess multiple divergent IRG genes, humans and higher primates contain a largely reduced set of typically three genes. All of these genes lack IFN-inducible elements in their putative promoters and are either significantly truncated, drastically damaged in the nucleotide binding domain or show testis-specific expression paralleling sexual maturity. Consequently, mice and humans must deploy their immune resources against vacuolar pathogens in radically different ways

A new form of a multicultural church for today\u27s multilingual context

https://place.asburyseminary.edu/ecommonsatsdissertations/2615/thumbnail.jp

Sargassum Infauna Community Structure in the Florida Straits and Gulf Stream

Community structure of Sargassum-associated organisms was examined from 11 sampling locations in the Florida Straits and Gulf Stream from May—September 2018 using a combination of modified shrimp trawls and dip nets. A total of 5413 organisms were collected from Sargassumhabitat representing 14 species from 10 families. A core group of organisms (Platynereis dumerilii, Litiopa melanostoma, Portunus sayi, Portunus spinimanus, Leander tenuicornis, and Latreutes fucorum) were found throughout the entirety of the geographic range surveyed. This core community was not found to vary significantly with increasing distance to shore (P=0.217) and latitude (P=0.217), nor did it correlate with environmental variables such as salinity (P=0.067), and temperature (P=0.193). However, community structure was found to vary with clump size (P=0.024), with larger clumps harboring more speciose communities. The Sargassumcommunity in the Florida Straits and Gulf Stream appears to provide habitat for a consistent core group of organisms. In turn, this stable group offers a sustainable food source for a variety of important, higher trophic level organisms that utilize Sargassumpatches for a food source, shelter, and breeding purposes

Interoperability enhancement of IoT devices using open web standards in a smart farming use case

Dissertation submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Geospatial TechnologiesSince its rst appearance the Internet of Things has been subject to constant evolution, development and change. Now it has stepped out of its infancy with billions of devices embedded in the world wide web. However, IoT providers mostly de ne their own data formats and protocols and there is still a lack of a common standard that connects these devices in an interoperable manner. There are several organisations dedicated to developing common standards for IoT devices and research is focusing on de ning an e ective standard to be used by embedded devices. Unsurprisingly, IoT has also found its way into the spatial web and into environmental monitoring and sensing platforms connected over the web by wireless sensor networks are now a common way to monitor natural phenomena. This study compares three open Web Standards in the use case of SEnviro for Agriculture, a full stack IoT for monitoring vineyards. The interoperability potential of the OGC's Sensor Observation Service and SensorThings API are evaluated by integrating Web Standard implementations for each standard and contrasting their qualitative and quantitative traits. In a further step the Mozilla Corporation's Web Thing API was implemented and evaluated in an environmental monitoring and Smart Farming context. The results of the study show that the SensorThings API proves to be the most adequate Web Standard for SEnviro and IoT applications for environmental monitoring and Smart Farming in terms of interoperability. It outperforms the contesting Web Standards in terms of exibility and scalability, which strongly impacts on developer and user experience

Using Oral History and Archival Exploration to Forge a Path to the Past: A GeneralSurvey of the Adult Education Opportunities Available to African American Adults inCincinnati, Ohio, 1930-1949

This paper provides a local history of African American adult education inCincinnati. It identifies two categories of learning opportunities: learning in thecommunity and learning by experience. This study also identifies AAAE’s liberaleducation platform as a major influence over those opportunities because it indirectlysupported Jim Crow racism. This history of African American adult education for manyyears suffered from what Franklin (1989) called the “conspiracy of silence” (p. 44) whichresulted in people of African descent being viewed ahistorically within adult education.This history has not been sufficiently explored (Neufeldt & McGee, 1990). Most of whatis available on African American adult education looks at institutions, agencies, leaders,and philosophies (Neufeldt & McGee, 1990; Peterson, 1996) but few include socio -historical observations about the African American learners from their perspectives. Toensure that adult learners’ voices are included in historical narratives, historians shouldnot just limit themselves to written sources but should also consider using oral history.The purpose of this oral history project was to provide a descriptive account of adulteducation for African Americans in Cincinnati, Ohio, during the 1930s and the 1940s.The following research questions were addressed: 1. What adult educationalopportunities were available to African Americans during this time period? 2. To whatextent were these opportunities influenced by racism