105 research outputs found
Primordialists and Constructionists: a typology of theories of religion
This article adopts categories from nationalism theory to classify theories of religion. Primordialist explanations are grounded in evolutionary psychology and emphasize the innate human demand for religion. Primordialists predict that religion does not decline in the modern era but will endure in perpetuity. Constructionist theories argue that religious demand is a human construct. Modernity initially energizes religion, but subsequently undermines it. Unpacking these ideal types is necessary in order to describe actual theorists of religion. Three distinctions within primordialism and constructionism are relevant. Namely those distinguishing: a) materialist from symbolist forms of constructionism; b) theories of origins from those pertaining to the reproduction of religion; and c) within reproduction, between theories of religious persistence and secularization. This typology helps to make sense of theories of religion by classifying them on the basis of their causal mechanisms, chronology and effects. In so doing, it opens up new sightlines for theory and research
Energy Flow in the Hadronic Final State of Diffractive and Non-Diffractive Deep-Inelastic Scattering at HERA
An investigation of the hadronic final state in diffractive and
non--diffractive deep--inelastic electron--proton scattering at HERA is
presented, where diffractive data are selected experimentally by demanding a
large gap in pseudo --rapidity around the proton remnant direction. The
transverse energy flow in the hadronic final state is evaluated using a set of
estimators which quantify topological properties. Using available Monte Carlo
QCD calculations, it is demonstrated that the final state in diffractive DIS
exhibits the features expected if the interaction is interpreted as the
scattering of an electron off a current quark with associated effects of
perturbative QCD. A model in which deep--inelastic diffraction is taken to be
the exchange of a pomeron with partonic structure is found to reproduce the
measurements well. Models for deep--inelastic scattering, in which a
sizeable diffractive contribution is present because of non--perturbative
effects in the production of the hadronic final state, reproduce the general
tendencies of the data but in all give a worse description.Comment: 22 pages, latex, 6 Figures appended as uuencoded fil
A Measurement of the Proton Structure Function
A measurement of the proton structure function is reported
for momentum transfer squared between 4.5 and 1600 and
for Bjorken between and 0.13 using data collected by the
HERA experiment H1 in 1993. It is observed that increases
significantly with decreasing , confirming our previous measurement made
with one tenth of the data available in this analysis. The dependence is
approximately logarithmic over the full kinematic range covered. The subsample
of deep inelastic events with a large pseudo-rapidity gap in the hadronic
energy flow close to the proton remnant is used to measure the "diffractive"
contribution to .Comment: 32 pages, ps, appended as compressed, uuencoded fil
The GEOTRACES Intermediate Data Product 2014
The GEOTRACES Intermediate Data Product 2014 (IDP2014) is the first publicly available data product of the international GEOTRACES programme, and contains data measured and quality controlled before the end of 2013. It consists of two parts: (1) a compilation of digital data for more than 200 trace elements and isotopes (TEIs) as well as classical hydrographic parameters, and (2) the eGEOTRACES Electronic Atlas providing a strongly inter-linked on-line atlas including more than 300 section plots and 90 animated 3D scenes. The IDP2014 covers the Atlantic, Arctic, and Indian oceans, exhibiting highest data density in the Atlantic. The TEI data in the IDP2014 are quality controlled by careful assessment of intercalibration results and multi-laboratory data comparisons at cross-over stations. The digital data are provided in several formats, including ASCII spreadsheet, Excel spreadsheet, netCDF, and Ocean Data View collection. In addition to the actual data values the IDP2014 also contains data quality flags and 1-? data error values where available. Quality flags and error values are useful for data filtering. Metadata about data originators, analytical methods and original publications related to the data are linked to the data in an easily accessible way. The eGEOTRACES Electronic Atlas is the visual representation of the IDP2014 data providing section plots and a new kind of animated 3D scenes. The basin-wide 3D scenes allow for viewing of data from many cruises at the same time, thereby providing quick overviews of large-scale tracer distributions. In addition, the 3D scenes provide geographical and bathymetric context that is crucial for the interpretation and assessment of observed tracer plumes, as well as for making inferences about controlling processes
Multi-wavelength observations of blazar AO 0235+164 in the 2008-2009 flaring state
The blazar AO 0235+164 (z = 0.94) has been one of the most active objects observed by Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT) since its launch in Summer 2008. In addition to the continuous coverage by Fermi, contemporaneous observations were carried out from the radio to γ-ray bands between 2008 September and 2009 February. In this paper, we summarize the rich multi-wavelength data collected during the campaign (including F-GAMMA, GASP-WEBT, Kanata, OVRO, RXTE, SMARTS, Swift, and other instruments), examine the cross-correlation between the light curves measured in the different energy bands, and interpret the resulting spectral energy distributions in the context of well-known blazar emission models. We find that the γ-ray activity is well correlated with a series of near-IR/optical flares, accompanied by an increase in the optical polarization degree. On the other hand, the X-ray light curve shows a distinct 20 day high state of unusually soft spectrum, which does not match the extrapolation of the optical/UV synchrotron spectrum. We tentatively interpret this feature as the bulk Compton emission by cold electrons contained in the jet, which requires an accretion disk corona with an effective covering factor of 19% at a distance of 100 R g. We model the broadband spectra with a leptonic model with external radiation dominated by the infrared emission from the dusty torus. © 2012. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved
HENVINET. Evaluation questionnaire - causal chain for phthalates.
The HENVINET consortium has developed a questionnaire to identify knowledge gaps in the state of the art in scientific knowledge. Literature reviews covered all elements that compose the causal chain of the different environmental health issues from emissions to exposures, to effects and to health impacts. Ultimately, the aim is to discuss the implications of these for policy and research.
In this evaluation we focus on the causeÂżeffect relationship between phthalates in the environment and endocrine disruption in humans. The questionnaire consists of two separate parts. In Part A, you will be asked to comments on the completeness and structure of a diagram illustrating our current understanding of the causeÂżeffect relationship. In Part B, you will be asked
to express your level of confidence in the scientistsÂż ability to predict the magnitude of a variety of effects of phthalates in the environment
Cortical pathology in multiple sclerosis detected by the T1/T2-weighted ratio from routine magnetic resonance imaging
Objective: In multiple sclerosis, neuropathological studies have shown widespread changes in the cerebral cortex. In vivo imaging is critical, because the histopathological substrate of most measurements is unknown. Methods: Using a novel magnetic resonance imaging analysis technique, based on the ratio of T1- and T2-weighted signal intensities, we studied the cerebral cortex of a large cohort of patients in early stages of multiple sclerosis. A total of 168 patients with clinically isolated syndrome or relapsingâremitting multiple sclerosis (Expanded Disability Status Scale: median = 1, range = 0â3.5) and 80 age- and sex-matched healthy controls were investigated. We also searched for the histopathological substrate of the T1/T2-weighted ratio by combining postmortem imaging and histopathology in 9 multiple sclerosis brain donors. Results: Patients showed lower T1/T2-weighted ratio values in parietal and occipital areas. The 4 most significant clusters appeared in the medial occipital and posterior cingulate cortex (each left and right). The decrease of the T1/T2-weighted ratio in the posterior cingulate was related to performance in attention. Analysis of the T1/T2-weighted ratio values of postmortem imaging yielded a strong correlation with dendrite density but none of the other parameters including myelin. Interpretation: The T1/T2-weighted ratio decreases in early stages of multiple sclerosis in a widespread manner, with a preponderance of posterior areas and with a contribution to attentional performance; it seems to reflect dendrite pathology. As the method is broadly available and applicable to available clinical scans, we believe that it is a promising candidate for studying and monitoring cortical pathology or therapeutic effects in multiple sclerosis. Ann Neurol 2017;82:519â529
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