The Assyrian Heroic Epic Of Qa īne Gabbara: A Modern Poem In The Ancient Bardic Tradition

This work discusses a modern Assyrian epic, Qa īne Gabbara, in both its oral and written traditions, and examines its importance in marking continuity in culture, traditions and language. Building on an earlier study by Younan Hozaya, this essay shows how Qa īne Gabbara fits within the genre of heroic epic, thereby bringing new light to a vastly overlooked and understudied Assyrian cultural tradition

Harput, Turkey to Massachusetts: Immigration of Jacobite Christians

This essay falls into the category of rendering visible a community, the Jacobite Assyrians of Massachusetts, who have remained virtually unknown in the larger context of Middle Eastern Diaspora studies and American ethnic and cultural history. This brief study of the immigration of the Jacobite Christians originally from Harput, Turkey who settled in New England, shows a variety of distinct method(s) of identity preservation and transmission to subsequent generations, expecially in regard to personal and group identity structures. These people, sometimes referred to as “Jacobite Syrians” by early Western travelers and missionaries, identified themselves as the “sons of Asshur” in 1842 (Southgate 1856:87). This paper is a narrative of the community’s tribulations in their country of origin during the first half of the twentieth century, internal religious politics espoused by the church, as well as their life and establishment in American society

Ethno-cultural and Religious Identity of Syrian Orthodox Christians

Many Middle Eastern Christian groups identify or have been identified with pre­Islamic peoples in the Middle East: the Copts with Ancient Egypt, the Nestorians with Assyria, the Maronites with Phoenicians and some RumOrthodoxand other Christians with pre­Islamic Arab tribes. The concern of this study is the Syrian Orthodox Christians or Jacobite(s)(named after the 6th century Monophysite Christian bishop Yacoub Burd‘ono or Jacob Baradaeus of Urfa/Osrohene/Edessa), specifically those whose ancestry stems from the Tur Abdin region of Turkey, Diyarbekir, Mardin, Urfa, and Harput/Elazig. The introduction of the Ottoman milletsystem had divided the Middle East into ethno­religious communities, the Eastern Christian minorities being a classic example. Of the various groups, the Syrian Orthodox Christians (Suryaniler, Suryani Kadim, Asuriler) are a case in point to identity issues including creation, evolution, fabrication, denial, and assimilation caused by both internal and external influences. The identity of this community is a major point of contention among the laity and the clergy, as well as among non­Syrian Orthodox scholars of Middle Eastern Studies

Reconsidering UK Community Development Finance

The report includes ten case studies of community finance initiatives in the US and the EU. These highlight the different features of community finance organisations, their target group and their core activities in order to identify what aspects of their operation are integral to creating successful interventions in deprived communities. The objective of these case studies is to highlight particular aspects of their activities and operating environment that are instructive for CDF in the UK.Woodstock Institute provided case studies of US CDFIs

The Post-Arab Spring Geopolitical Instability And Its Effects On Middle East And North Africa

Founded on SMTs (Social Movement Theories), the current study aimed at analyzing the impact of Arab Spring uprisings on the geopolitical system of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. With an overview on the political and socioeconomic background of Arab Uprisings, the qualitative study focused on: a) determining the economic, political, and social consequences of the uprisings, especially aftermaths that have given rise to the notion of geopolitical instability in the region, and b) investigating the possible factors that will spread geopolitical instability across the MENA region. Given the comprehensiveness and magnitude, the case of the popular uprisings in the MENA region is assessed using qualitative analysis. The study indicates that, Arab Spring failed to bring optimistic changes, empowered political Islamism, spread religious radicalism, reduced state secularism, and led to the emergence of semi-theocratic regimes. It negatively affected public freedoms, minorities, rights of women, and democratization. The uprisings resulted in riots, civil wars, social militarization and neighborhood interference, empowered Iranian hegemony, anarchized petrodollar, created proxy wars, led to the revival of terrorist cells, and affected economies. The Arab Uprisings which sprung with dissatisfaction/deprivation among the masses against their respective regimes, and created conflicts across the MENA region channeled a mass movement on the basis of collective identities and informal networks. The study ultimately concluded that social movements have the potential to escalate to a full-fledged revolution if not tackled in an appropriate manner. This study proves that Arab Uprisings collectively and negatively impacted the political, social, security, interregional, economic, and financial systems of the MENA region

Some aspects of a code division multiple access local area network

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Thermal curing efficiency of geopolymer mortars

”Missouri is the fourth largest coal consumer in the U.S. with coal-fired power plants generate 81.3% of the electricity in the state which generate about 2.7 million tons of coal combustion residuals (CCRs) annually. The CCR, including fly ash, disposal issue is not limited to Missouri, rather it is a national issue with CCRs being the second largest waste stream in the U.S. Ninety million tons of fly ash are stored in landfills and ash ponds annually. Hence, using this waste product effectively is necessary. One of the emerging applications of fly ash is to use it as binder in geopolymer concrete. While geopolymer concrete possess attractive characteristics, there remain many questions to be answered before it can be widely adopted in the construction industry. Five geopolymer concrete mixtures with fly ash sourced from five power plants were investigated during the study. The physical and chemical properties of the fly ash were characterized using X-ray fluorescence, SEM, particle size distribution, and surface area. Different mixtures having different alkaline and silicate molarities were tested. The fresh properties of the concrete were determined. The compressive strengths of different specimens cured at five different temperatures of 30, 40, 55, 70, and 85 ⁰C for 4, 8, 16, 24, and 48 hours were determined. The compressive strength results indicate that the calcium content and ratio of silica to alumina played a pivotal role in the optimum curing conditions for geopolymer concrete. Energy efficiency of these mixtures were analyzed to determine the most energy-effective curing regime. Relatively higher calcium fly ashes performed most efficiently at ambient curing conditions while lower calcium fly ashes were performed much better at 70 ⁰C for 24 hours”--Abstract, page iv

A case of individual variation of the rhomboid muscles

During the routine gross anatomic dissection of a Turkish male cadaver; a variation of rhomboid muscles was observed on the left side. There were two rhomboid minors and three rhomboid majors coursing under the trapezius muscle. The origins of the upper and lower rhomboid minor muscles were C5, C6 and C7 vertebrae, respectively. Their insertions were to medial border of scapula, to upper part and to lower part of the spine of scapula, respectively. The origins of the upper, middle and lower rhomboid majors were C7, T1–T3 and T4–T5 vertebrae, respectively. Their insertions were to the 2/3 most inferior part of the medial border of scapula, from superior to inferior in sequence. In the examination of the literature, we could not observe such a variation of these muscles. In surgical procedures these types of variations have a clinical importance for intrathoracic muscle flap transfers and in cases with the paralysis of trapezius muscle

Isolated Abducens Palsy as the First Presenting Sign of Multiple Sclerosis

While brain stem involvement in multiple sclerosis (MS) is relatively common, isolated cranial nerve palsies are rare, especially when they represent the initial presenting sign of a new diagnosis of MS. This report describes a patient with no prior history of MS whose sole presenting sign was an isolated abducens palsy. An enhancing pontine lesion was found on MRI which correlated with his abducens palsy, and additional nonactive lesions on MRI led to a diagnosis of MS. This case demonstrates the importance of considering MS as part of the differential diagnosis of patients with isolated cranial nerve palsies

Guest Artist Series:Marcia Spence, Horn Dan Willett, Oboe Simon Sargon, Piano

Kemp Recital Hall Friday Evening October 8, 2004 6:00p.m