On becoming citizens of the \u27non-existent\u27: violence, document-production and Syrian war-time migration in Abkhazia

In this thesis, I look at the ways in which statehood comes to be defined, practiced, and performed through Syrian war-time migrants repatriation in Abkhazia, a small breakaway self-proclaimed state squeezed between Russia and Georgia.1I argue that while separatist states\u27 desires and aspirations towards statehood grant legitimacy to the modern nation-state system, they at once expose the fragility of its very order. An unrecognized state like Abkhazia still maneuvers within the system that it is locked out of, but the way that Abkhazia, like other unrecognized states, is shunned from the family of nations could reveal how constructed and hallucinatory the modern state-order is. In another sense, looking at Abkhazian state performativity, or the fictitious aura that arises from the notion of an Abkhazian nationality, can tell us about the taken-for-granted fictitious characters of other states. While I use the word fictitious here, it is important to acknowledge, as Trouillot reminds us, that the fictitious has very real, felt consequences in the everyday lives of people.2The point is not to make an anomaly out of Abkhazia because it is an unrecognized state because, ultimately, most administrative practices in that space are not different from other states and their own practices of make-believeness, a term coined by Yael Navaro-Yashin.3 In other words, what can the theatrical and ritualistic practices of Abkhazian statehood around the Syrian war-time migrants tell us about similar practices in other, both unrecognized and recognized, states? From here on, one can conjure questions on what it means for a state to be sovereign within a certain territory, as well as questions that delve deeper into how it is that subjects of states imagine (or feel) the entity and/or notion of the state to begin with. How does this state project manifest itself in the movement of people across (un)recognized borders, in document production, and in the rhetoric of war? My argument therefore also entails the problematization of a variety of taken-for-granted categories, including ethno-national categories, the classification of the refugee , the state, the nation, as well as that of war. The idea is that these categories, often considered problem categories stem from and float around the concept of the state . Yet, this thesis posits the prospect that the state is the problem category.4My thesis also branches from conceptualizing the corporeal practices of the state to include war-making and document production as nation-building practices. Both such practices also contribute to the generation of state-less peoples or refugees . This thesis is split into six parts, each of which I detail with its own abstract immediately below

Comparing internal and external impacts of sustainable innovation: an exploratory study

Sustainable business impact is growing within the field of impact assessment, however, the field, specifically in regard to Entrepreneurship, would benefit from theory based on comparisons of external and internal impacts of environmental and social innovation. This exploratory study bridges this gap by analyzing an aggregate of case studies of sustainable innovation. Significant differences were found in comparing forms of innovations where product focused innovations favored the environment and service or new business usage innovations favored society. Significant differences were also found in comparing external impacts where either a reduction of waste or an increase in clean energy favored environmental innovations while benefits for under-served populations or improvements in markets favored social innovations as expected. The comparison with the internal impacts showed an increase in revenue and sales favored both types of innovations yet a significant difference was still found between the two. Suggested theories for future research are provided

Comparing internal and external impacts of sustainable innovation: an exploratory study

Sustainable business impact is growing within the field of impact assessment, however, the field, specifically in regard to Entrepreneurship, would benefit from theory based on comparisons of external and internal impacts of environmental and social innovation. This exploratory study bridges this gap by analyzing an aggregate of case studies of sustainable innovation. Significant differences were found in comparing forms of innovations where product focused innovations favored the environment and service or new business usage innovations favored society. Significant differences were also found in comparing external impacts where either a reduction of waste or an increase in clean energy favored environmental innovations while benefits for under-served populations or improvements in markets favored social innovations as expected. The comparison with the internal impacts showed an increase in revenue and sales favored both types of innovations yet a significant difference was still found between the two. Suggested theories for future research are provided

Tanwir and Islamization: Rethinking the Struggle over Intellectual Inclusion in Egypt

The fourth of four volumes, this volume covers contemporary political and social issues in Egypt. The contributors include: Mona Abaza, Nadje Sadeg al-Ali, Iman Hamdy, Noha el-Mikawy, Reem Saad.https://fount.aucegypt.edu/faculty_book_chapters/2003/thumbnail.jp

Reducing Icy Conditions Over Bridges, Through Passive

Icy road conditions are a major cause for car crashes. 70% of all roads in the United States are 8 located in icy regions, and winter and snow related maintenance account for 20% of the roads 9 maintenance budgets (FHWA, 2017), Snow also reduces the average road speed by 30 to 40% on 10 roads. More than 450 people are killed each year in the United States due to icy conditions on 11 roads (icyroadsaftey.co, 2015) of which more than 10% of these deaths are caused by accidents 12 over icy bridges. Due to this, many innovative systems have been designed and used to prevent 13 bridge icing. Most of these systems either use heat sources to heat the bridges’ surfaces or 14 chemical spray to melt the ice that forms over bridges. Unfortunately, these systems are usually 15 costly and require regular maintenance. Many researchers contributed bridge icing to the fact that 16 bridges are suspended above ground resulting in bridge surfaces to freeze before adjacent roads, 17 thus bridge decks lose heat from both the top and bottom surfaces while roads gain some heat 18 from their contact with the ground. However, field monitoring and building simulation showed 19 that the thermal properties of bridge surfaces are the true determining factor as to why bridges 20 freeze before adjacent roads. Furthermore, icy bridge surfaces become dangerous when 1) the 21 bridge’s surface reaches freezing point before adjacent roads, and 2) the existence of water or 22 GSTF Journal of Engineering Technology (JET) Vol.5 No.1, 2018© The Author(s) 2018. This article is published with open access by the GSTFDOI: 10.5176/ 2251-3701_5. 1.109snow over bridges when adjacent roads are dry (preferential icing). This research presents 23 literature review related to bridge freezing. The research also used field observation of a 175-mile 24 highway section during a snowstorm to investigate icing conditions over bridges. This research 25 revealed that while bridges might freeze before roads during early night hours, dangerous icing 26 formation over bridges occurs when snow is shoveled against the bridges’ parapets after 27 snowstorms. Thus, when air temperature rises above freezing, the snow melts and the water runs 28 over the bridges’ surfaces. When temperature drops again below freezing later at night, water can 29 freeze over bridges and create dangerous icy conditions. This research suggests that a 30 combination of applying paint with higher absorptive and lower emissive materials over bridges, 31 along with better snow removal practices, will reduce the dangerous icy conditions over bridges 32 significantly

Women between economic liberalization and social deprivation: a case study in rural Egypt

After a century of colonial domination, followed by a period of national liberation, Egypt in the late 1970s has undergone new basic changes in its economic system. While most of the recent research on Egypt is related to the analysis of mere economic changes occurring in the period of the "open door policy", little attention has been given to the tremendous problems caused by these changes to social relations and to rural social life. This study, in analysing a specific case of a local setting in the eastern region of the Nile Delta, attempts to shed some light on the question of how changes in the 1970s and 1980s have reshaped gender relations in the Egyptian village-The study develops its specific scope alongside its concern with five basic problems of change in rural social life: The. 'traditional feminism' of peasant women might decline (1) while nevertheless non-monetarized relations in agriculture might continue to exist (2) Male migration to oil countries promotes a new process of 'feminization of agriculture'. (3) Modern Islamist images of the 'moslem sister' might lead to a general devaluation of the new spheres of women's public activities (4). The persistance then of 'magic' and popular culture might be a tool for the mastery of life for peasant women in their new marginal social positions (5).The study then draws evidence in three main domains: women's extended economic activities and labour relations - women's new extended spheres of social life, - peasant women's position towards popular culture practices

Color symbolism in Islamic book painting

Light plays a central role in the Quran. The contrast between light and dark demonstrates a pivotal conception in the Islamic faith. It is the difference between knowledge and ignorance, faith and infidelity, and right and wrong. As depicted by al-Ghazali, God is the source of the ultimate light, and by seeing that light a person reaches a state of revelation since only the faithful see that light. The ignorant or unfaithful live in darkness without the light of God or faith to guide them through life. Considering the importance of this concept in the Islamic faith, colors as the depiction of this light in different states must be considered as equally important. Muslims across the centuries dedicated a great deal of attention to colors, manifested in their glorious repertoire of architectural marvels. The same attention can be observed in works of art. Although the use of colors is a topic many scholars paid some attention to, it should be visited from a different angle. Usually colors are mentioned in a purely aesthetic or descriptive context to depict the range of artistic decoration in a work of art. Some scholars talk about colors in terms of availability of resources or from a utilitarian point of view. Articles or books that discuss color symbolism in Islamic art are rare. Many believe that the use of color was indeed a practical function of beautifying buildings or objects, but perhaps it was neglected based solely on misconception. Nasr in Islamic Art and Spirituality discussed the assumption that every artistic creation had a meaning and a purpose. The creation of this artistic universe with its particular genius, distinct characteristics, and formal homogeneity underlying distinctions of a cultural, geographical or temporal nature requires a cause, for no effect of such immense dimensions can be considered as simply a result of chance or the agglomeration of accidental historical factors. Art historians and critics, in their pursuit to study and understand Islamic art, covered the iconographic, aesthetic, historical, economic and political aspects but very few considered color symbolism as an important factor. Color was treated from an aesthetic point of view (i.e. as a decorative tool). The pigments, hues and quality of the color were always discussed under the decorative repertoire of the object of study. The meaning behind the chosen colors was rarely mentioned. According to Bloom and Blair, the lack of colored representation of architectural and decorative features in published books on Islamic painting directed the focus of many studies to form and design rather than color. Black and white illustrations were the norm in earlier publications and unless one gets the privilege of seeing the art object first hand, the variety and complexity of the colors used would not be grasped. In the study of book painting, the lack of colored plates in published articles and books might have led the focus of researchers to the composition of the paintings and the shading rather than the study of color, which diminished the value of the artwork in terms of artistic appreciation. Reading about color in a description does not have the same effect as seeing it. The trigger of emotional responses is achieved by direct exposure to color. The aim of this study is to analyze color symbolism in Islamic book paintings in order to attribute the colors employed to religious, cultural or spiritual notions in Islamic tradition. It is an attempt to interpret color in relation to the Islamic doctrine with its mystical elements. This thesis will be based on theoretical analysis of primary sources such as Quran, hadith and Sufi writings, and their practical interpretation in book paintings. The metaphorical use of color in Islamic poetry and Sufi treaties has been long established, hence relying on these literary sources constitutes a logical starting point. The interpretation of the paintings will be primarily based on the following texts: Nizami’s Hayft Paykar, different account of the mi\u27raj, hadiths, and studies of Muslim Scholars such as al-Ghazali, Ibn Arabi and Ibn Sina among others. Another important source of information for this study is the recent research by scholars such as Soucek, Schimmel, Cross, Blair and Bloom. They have contributed to the study of color symbolism in Islamic Art and their research has brought this field of study into the spotlight. Chapter one focuses on a study of the primary sources discussed earlier in relation to color symbolism. Chapter two examines the meaning of color in the Islamic tradition with reference to the different color theories developed by Muslim and contemporary scholars. Chapters three to five analyze Islamic book paintings in light of the Quran, hadith and Sufi writings. The focus will be on some selected paintings revolving around three main themes; the mi\u27raj, Haft Paykar and Majnun and Layla; chapter three discusses the mi\u27raj theme and prophetic depiction in book painting, chapter four explores the color symbolism in the tales of the seven pavilions in Nizami\u27s Haft Paykar. Chapter five examines the depiction of Qays or Majnun in different manuscripts. Interpreting the religious, poetic and fictional type of narrative in relation to book paintings will shed some light on the importance of color symbolism in Islamic art in general and not only limited to Sufi themed paintings. The manuscripts chosen varies in their area of production from Iran and Central Asia to Turkey and Baghdad. The variation of the geographical location of the paintings are considered strong supporting evidence in the presence of color symbolism in Islamic art. Of course the main focus would be on Persian manuscripts since manuscripts production reached its peak in that geographical location coupled with the time constrains of not being able to display the entire selection of my research

Properties and thermal stabilization of Nanocrystalline copper via solute additions of niobium

Nanocrystalline materials, those with grain size <100 nm, were found to have superior mechanical properties compared to their coarse-grained (CG) counterparts. However, these materials are not thermally stable because of having a high density of grain boundaries which increases their Gibbs free energy. Consequently, the nano-grains grow back to their original size in order to release this energy, which results in losing their exceptional properties. Hence, finding ways to stabilize these nano-grains is an utmost importance. Introducing solute to such systems was found to solve the instability issue. Two approaches can describe the mechanism in which the solute atoms prevent or minimize the grain growth, Kinetic Approach which is concerned with reducing the mobility of the grain boundaries by pinning them; and Thermodynamic Approach that works on reducing the energy of the system, hence eliminating the need for the grains to grow. Nanocrystalline (nc) Cu and Cu-1 at.% Nb are prepared via mechanical ball milling under argon. The microstructure and the properties of the as-milled and the annealed samples are characterized using XRD, TEM, Vickers Microhardness, Tensile tests, SEM, and Four-Point Probe technique. Only one atomic percent of Nb is found to enough to thermally stabilize the nanostructure of copper up to 1073 K, which represents 80% of its melting point. Solute drag and Zener pinning are found to be the main kinetic stabilization mechanisms that succeeded to keep the grain size in the nanoscale. In addition, the solute atoms substantially enhanced the strength and hardness of the nc Cu, along with maintaining a better ductility. Moreover, such small amount of Nb did not sacrifice the excellent electrical conductivity of copper. This approach of synthesizing and improving the thermal stability of nc materials is not necessarily limited to Cu and could be applied to other metals and alloys. This shall make a leap forward in the production of thermally-stable and ultra-tough nanocrystalline materials for many industrial applications, without affecting their inherent properties

A Survey on Ear Biometrics

Recognizing people by their ear has recently received significant attention in the literature. Several reasons account for this trend: first, ear recognition does not suffer from some problems associated with other non contact biometrics, such as face recognition; second, it is the most promising candidate for combination with the face in the context of multi-pose face recognition; and third, the ear can be used for human recognition in surveillance videos where the face may be occluded completely or in part. Further, the ear appears to degrade little with age. Even though, current ear detection and recognition systems have reached a certain level of maturity, their success is limited to controlled indoor conditions. In addition to variation in illumination, other open research problems include hair occlusion; earprint forensics; ear symmetry; ear classification; and ear individuality. This paper provides a detailed survey of research conducted in ear detection and recognition. It provides an up-to-date review of the existing literature revealing the current state-of-art for not only those who are working in this area but also for those who might exploit this new approach. Furthermore, it offers insights into some unsolved ear recognition problems as well as ear databases available for researchers

Streaming Current and Streaming Potential Induced by Water Flow Through Porous Media

This study was conducted to investigate analytically and experimentally the relationship between the rate of flow of water through porous material and the streaming current and streaming potential induced by this flow. The effect of dissolved salts in the permeating solution and the size of the soil particles was also investigated. Results and conclusions of this study are summarized as follows: A modified procedure using the appropriate delay to insure stead state conditions was used for the measurements of both streaming current and streaming potential. The flow-pressure relationship was the same irrespective of the counter electro-osmosis (resulting from the streaming potential) and the change in salt concentration. Flows through the samples tested thus followed Darcy\u27s Law. The rate of flow (at a constant salt concentration and soil particle diameter) is directly proportional to the induced streaming current and streaming potential. Emperical equations in the form of I = C1q and E = C2q are suggested. A decrease in both streaming current and streaming potential was observed with increase of salt concentrate in the permeating solution. Comparable results were obtained for simulated natural waters and NaCl and KCl solutions, provided that the conductance of the solution was taken as a parameter. A decrease in current and potential was observed with increase of soil particle diameter. a Relationships of the form α = bN and β = C log N + d are suggested to express the effects of particle size and salt concentration on the streaming current and the streaming potential induced by the flow. Induced streaming potential was found to increase with the decrease in temperature. The analytical relationships developed together with the experimental work could probably be used as the basis of a method for measuring the rate of flow through porous material