Language about salvation: an analysis of part of the vocabulary of the Old Testament

It may seem odd that, after many centuries of translation and exegesis, the meaning of a common Old Testament Hebrew word like HOSIA can still be taken as the subject of a doctoral dissertation. There are several answers to this charge. First, there have, broadly speaking, been only two approaches to the problem of the meaning of HOSIA, the one based on simple translation (e.g. 'HOSIA means "save "), and the other on comparative philology (e.g. 'the root of HOSIA means "spaciousness". Cf. Arabic wasia "be spacious "'). Even without analysing the obvious inadequacy of these two methods, it is clear that there is still room for a systematic definition of the meaning of HOSIA from within the Hebrew language. How is it distinguished, for example, from HISSIL which also 'means "save", and from HIRHIB whose root also 'means "spaciousness "? Monolingual definition, in terms of meaning-relations contracted within the language, and semantic components identifiable in lexical groups, is, to the best of my knowledge, unknown in the field of Old Testament Hebrew lexicography.This leads to a second, more general answer. The gap between the semantics of Biblical language and modern linguistic theory has still to be bridged. My interests in this direction began in 1961 at New College, Edinburgh, under the stimulus of Professor James Barr whose famous book on the subject was published in that year, and were further encouraged by Professor Chaim Rabin in Jerusalem, whose course in semantica mictra'it at the Hebrew University in 1962, in a way marked the beginning of a new era for the semantics of the Hebrew language. More recently, my participation in the activities of the Linguistic Section of the University of Newcastle upon Tyne Philosophical Society, and some valuable assistance from Professor John Lyons in the University of Edinburgh, have made me aware of the immense contribution still to be made by general linguistics to Old Testament lexicography and interpretation.In this short essay I have tried to work out a general semantic theory applicable to a religious text like the Old Testament. In the field of Biblical research, semanticists - and this includes philologists, lexicographers, exegetes and theologians - have a distinct advantage over their colleagues in other branches of linguistic science in having a closed literary corpus to work with. Our first step is to define this corpus and the context or contexts in which it has meaning (Chapter I). There are varieties of language within the corpus and distinctions must be drawn in terms of style or literary form (Chapter II). A third chapter presents some of the more important historical factors operating in the associative field to which HOSIA , HISSIL, etc. belong; while the next chapter is a synchronic analysis of the meaning of these terms as they are used in a selected variety of Old Testament Hebrew, namely language addressed to God. The results of this analysis can then be correlated, compared with the historical data, and set forth as dictionary definitions (Chapter V). A final chapter attempts to draw up a modest blue -print for semantic studies of Old Testament terms, based on the experience of handling the lexical material involved in the foregoing chapters.This outline suggests a third answer to the charge that there can hardly be anything left to say on the meaning of HOSIA: a problem like this cannot properly be studied in isolation. Questions about the context of the Old Testament, the nature of religious language, and the relation between "word -studies" and "concept- studies ", on which there is still a great deal to be said, arise at every stage. Which words belong to language about salvation and which do not? What is the relation between "the meaning of HOSIA and "the meaning of salvation"? How is it possible to move from semantic analysis to Biblical Theology? What theological norms are there in cases of diversity of meaning? In short, there are theological and religious issues in this kind of study which point beyond the relatively circumscribed context of linguistic description

In-Seasno Nitrogen Management for Corn Production

Water quality impairment related to nitrogen (N) continues to be a concern in Iowa, including the nitrate drinking water standard, USEPA proposed surface water quality nutrient criteria, and Gulf of Mexico hypoxia. Addressing these issues could include strict guidance for N input to corn and resultant N use practices that require very high level of management and risk, with unknown economic consequences. Rate of N application is an important management factor in corn production related to nitrate reaching surface water systems. Rate is also important in regard to economic return. While applying only the needed fertilizer N rate in a given year will not stop nitrate from leaving corn fields, nor necessarily achieve proposed water quality goals, it can result in reduced residual soil nitrate and help lessen corn production\u27s impact on water quality Therefore, it is possible that being able to assess corn N fertilization need differentially each season would improve corn N use efficiency and reduce nitrate susceptible to loss compared to application of an average agronomic rate each year

Effects of X-Linkage and Sex-Biased Gene Expression on the Rate of Adaptive Protein Evolution in Drosophila

Patterns of polymorphism and divergence in Drosophila protein-coding genes suggest that a considerable fraction of amino acid differences between species can be attributed to positive selection and that genes with sex-biased expression, that is, those expressed predominantly in one sex, have especially high rates of adaptive evolution. Previous studies, however, have been restricted to autosomal sex-biased genes and, thus, do not provide a complete picture of the evolutionary forces acting on sex-biased genes across the genome. To determine the effects of X-linkage on sex-biased gene evolution, we surveyed DNA sequence polymorphism and divergence in 45 X-linked genes, including 17 with male-biased expression, 13 with female-biased expression, and 15 with equal expression in the 2 sexes. Using both single- and multilocus tests for selection, we found evidence for adaptive evolution in both groups of sex-biased genes. The signal of adaptive evolution was particularly strong for X-linked male-biased genes. A comparison with data from 91 autosomal genes revealed a ‘‘fast-X’’ effect, in which the rate of adaptive evolution was greater for X-linked than for autosomal genes. This effect was strongest for male-biased genes but could be seen in the other groups as well. A genome-wide analysis of coding sequence divergence that accounted for sex-biased expression also uncovered a fast-X effect for male-biased and unbiased genes, suggesting that recessive beneficial mutations play an important role in adaptation.Organismic and Evolutionary Biolog

Virtualness and knowledge in teams: Managing the love triangle of organizations, individuals, and information technology

Information technology can facilitate the dissemination of knowledge across the organization- even to the point of making virtual teams a viable alternative to face-to-face work. However, unless managed, the combination of information technology and virtual work may serve to change the distribution of different types of knowledge across individuals, teams, and the organization. Implications include the possibility that information technology plays the role of a jealous mistress when it comes to the development and ownership of valuable knowledge in organizations; that is. information technology may destabilize the relationship between organizations and their employees when it comes to the transfer of knowledge. The paper advances theory and informs practice by illustrating the dynamics of knowledge development and transfer in more and less virtual teams

The Old Testament and Its Readers

The paper begins with personal memories of Porteous from the author and another New College alumnus. It then goes on to explore the notion of the meaning of Old Testament texts and the role of the reader (particularly the ‘ordinary reader’) in the process of understanding them. This takes in readings from the perspectives of feminism, liberation theology and postcolonialism; reception history and the ‘afterlife’ of texts; and a discussion of the criteria by which an interpretation of a text may be considered ‘correct’ or ‘incorrect’, and indeed if this is possible at all. A bibliography on this topic is appended

Phosphorus indexing for cropland: Overview and basic concepts of the Iowa phosphorus index

Excessive phosphorus (P) loss from soils impairs surface water resources. An assessment tool or index has been proposed to identify fields with high potential risk of P delivery. The P index integrates P source and transport factors into a decision making process that may lead to changes in current P management and soil conservation practices. The index recognizes that a single soil P threshold alone is not an appropriate evaluation factor because of the varying conditions across fields. Although most indices being developed in the United States include similar factors, source and transport characteristics are considered in various ways to best address the variable conditions across regions. The Iowa P index reflects conditions that predominate under grain-crop production systems, considers source factors in a multiplicative manner within three main transport mechanisms, and approximates loads of P likely to enter and become available to aquatic ecosystems. An erosional component considers sheet and rill erosion, P enrichment, total soil P, buffers, sediment delivery, distance to a stream, and the long term biotic availability of particulate P in lake ecosystems. A runoff component considers water runoff based on a modification of the runoff curve number (RCN), soil-test P (STP), rate, time, and method of P application. An internal drainage component considers the presence of tiles, water flow to tile lines, subsurface recharge from subsurface flow, and soil-test P. When the erosion risk is high, the index weighs particulate P loss heavily compared with dissolved P loss, and emphasizes long-term processes comparatively more than short-term processes. This P assessment tool helps identify alternative P and soil conservation management options for reducing total P delivery from fields to surface water resources

Rural and Frontier Mental and Behavioral Health Care: Barriers, Effective Policy Stategies, Best Practices

The current project was designed to build on earlier work and expand on issues identified in the New Freedom Commission’s report. Specifically, the project consisted of a series of unstructured interviews with more than thirty individuals involved in mental and behavioral health services in rural and frontier America. In addition, over 200 NARMH members responded to a series of questions regarding the current status of rural and frontier mental and behavioral health. The information accumulated through these two approaches was used to prepare the current report which focuses on the following areas: Barriers to mental and behavioral health service delivery in rural America Model programs and effective activities for rural America Model policy strategies for rural mental and behavioral health care delivery The role telehealth should play in service delivery to rural America The role that State Offices of Rural Health and other state and local organizations should play in service delivery to rural America In this report, findings regarding each of these issues will be considered separately. In each case, a comprehensive list of the points raised by respondents regarding the issue will be reported, followed by a brief discussion of that issue