Beyond the dichotomy of faith and reason: German idealism, philosophy of religion, and the modern idea of the university

This dissertation critically reconsiders the dichotomy drawn in modern philosophy between faith and reason, especially as formalized by the German Idealists. The latter, I suggest, continue to influence how the philosophy of religion is conceived and what it is considered to be capable of accomplishing. Though originally used to reconcile religious faith with the philosophical reason that had animated forceful skepticism, this dichotomy also underscores a tension between the conceptualization of a rational public good and private religious values within pluralistic societies. I focus on the efforts of Kant, Hegel, and F.W.J. Schelling to develop a philosophy of religion that distinguished philosophical reason and religious faith as distinct sources of theory while nevertheless establishing meaningful dialogue between each. The first chapter surveys Kant's and Hegel's philosophy of religion and argues that they struggled to maintain the otherness of religious faith relative to philosophical interpretation. The subsequent chapters each focus on a period of Schelling's intellectual development — his early criticisms of Kant, his mature rejection of German Idealism's subjective metaphysics, and his late philosophy of religion — as he developed an alternative philosophical approach to religion. This provides a means of exploring the challenges that a philosophy of religion must navigate to move beyond the problematic opposition of faith and reason. I conclude by considering the university as a promising context for reformulating this problematic dichotomy central to the philosophy of religion. The professional division of faculties embodies the abstract delineation of faith and reason and indicates the social and political dimension of such academic efforts. I argue that Schelling's contributions to the philosophy of religion point to the idea of the university as a vital framework for both reconsidering the opposition of faith and reason and moving beyond this schema in order to conceptualize effectively the contemporary conflicts between rational and religious authority within pluralistic societies

Strabismus surgery complications: prevention and management

Journal ArticleStrabismus surgery is increasingly becoming a subspecialty domain, especially with cyclovertical muscles, restricted muscles, or reoperations. While is impossible to completely eliminate complications from strabimus surgery, it is possible to minimize their occurrence and significance by proper prevention and management. In general, the best policy for avoiding poor outcomes from complicated surgery is to perform procedures only for which one has been fully trained and has the necessary experience. This update will describe intraoperative and postoperative complications of strabismus surgery, emphasizing their prevention and management

Adolescents Accounts of Growth Experiences in Youth Activities

Little theory and research exists on the developmental processes that occur during adolescents\u27 participation in extracurricular and community based-activities. As a step in that direction, we conducted 10 focus groups aimed at getting high school students\u27 descriptions of their growth experiences in these activities. The youth reported both personal and interpersonal processes of development. The personal experiences included experimentation and identity work, development of initiative skills such as learning to set goals and manage time, and learning strategies for emotional regulation. The interpersonal experiences included acquiring new peer relationships and knowledge, developing group social skills such as taking responsibility and how to work together as a team, and developing valuable connections to adults. Across domains, adolescents described themselves as the agents of their own development and change. Youth activities appear to be a context in which adolescents arc active producers of development

Establishing A Certified Financial Planner Program At A Regional University

This paper discusses the process of establishing a Certified Financial Planner™ program at a regional state university as well as the benefits of such a practical program for students.  In 2003 the financial planning curriculum at Eastern Illinois University became board registered by the Certified Financial Planner™ Board.  Students take five courses covering taxation, insurance, investments, retirement planning, and estate planning.  This curriculum satisfies the requirements to sit for the Certified Financial Planner™ [CFP®] exam.  Recent students of our program have obtained good jobs primarily in the area of retirement planning and investments

A High Resolution Study of the Slowly Contracting, Starless Core L1544

We present interferometric observations of N2H+(1--0) in the starless, dense core L1544 in Taurus. Red-shifted self-absorption, indicative of inward motions, is found toward the center of an elongated core. The data are fit by a non-spherical model consisting of two isothermal, rotating, centrally condensed layers. Through a hybrid global-individual fit to the spectra, we map the variation of infall speed at scales ~1400AU and find values ~0.08 km/s around the core center. The inward motions are small in comparison to thermal, rotational, and gravitational speeds but are large enough to suggest that L1544 is very close to forming a star.Comment: 11 pages, 2 figures Accepted for publication in Astrophysical Journal Letter

Envelope Structure of Starless Core L694-2 Derived from a Near-Infrared Extinction Map

We present a near-infrared extinction study of the dark globule L694-2, a starless core that shows strong evidence for inward motions in molecular line profiles. The J,H, and K band data were taken using the European Southern Observatory New Technology Telescope. The best fit simple spherical power law model has index p=2.6 +/- 0.2, over the 0.036--0.1 pc range in radius sampled in extinction. This power law slope is steeper than the value of p=2 for a singular isothermal sphere, the initial condition of the inside-out model for protostellar collapse. Including an additional extinction component along the line of sight further steepens the inferred profile. Fitting a Bonnor-Ebert sphere results in a super-critical value of the dimensionless radius xi_max=25 +/- 3. The unstable configuration of material may be related to the observed inward motions. The Bonnor-Ebert model matches the shape of the observed profile, but significantly underestimates the amount of extinction (by a factor of ~4). This discrepancy in normalization has also been found for the nearby protostellar core B335 (Harvey et al. 2001). A cylindrical density model with scale height H=0.0164+/- 0.002 pc viewed at a small inclination to the cylinder axis provides an equally good radial profile as a power law model, and reproduces the asymmetry of the core remarkably well. In addition, this model provides a basis for understanding the discrepancy in the normalization of the Bonnor-Ebert model, namely that L694-2 has prolate structure, with the full extent (mass) of the core being missed by assuming symmetry between the profiles in the plane of the sky and along the line-of-sight. If the core is sufficiently magnetized then fragmentation may be avoided, and later evolution might produce a protostar similar to B335.Comment: 38 pages, 7 figures, accepted to Astrophysical Journa