980 research outputs found
Union in Obscurity: Ruth Burrowsâ Contributions to Developments in Mystical Theology
This thesis seeks to support and synthesize the claims of Carmelite Nun and contemporary author, Ruth Burrows. Across her writings, Burrows contends that a lack of flowering of the mystical life in the Church today results from a false typification of mysticism as both linear and bench-marked by sensible signs. Burrows argues this imbalanced view has stunted the spiritual growth of many, due to false expectations and discouragement. Rather, Burrows asserts that the normative experience of Divine Union is given both obscurely and intangibly (âlight offâ), whereas the sensible and conventional sense of mysticism is both rare and didactic in purpose (âlight onâ). Burrowsâ arguments are evaluated chiefly in dialogue with St. Thomas Aquinas and St. John of the Cross. Burrowsâ case for a didactic âLight Onâ mysticism is best understood as gratia gratis data, specifically as an expression of the prophetic charism. âLight Offâ is explored through a closer examination of St. John of the Crossâs writings, where a reconsideration of sensate imagery in light of his doctrine of obscure faith reveals a mystical marriage more in support of Burrowsâ conception. This claim is further strengthened when compared with St. Thomas Aquinasâ treatise on faith. An incarnational case for the two modes of mystical life is made through an analysis of St. Elizabeth of the Trinity (âLight onâ) and St. Therese of Lisieux (âLight offâ). Burrowsâ theology stands the test of scrutiny, though not without limitations: research remains to be done on the function of the Gifts and Fruits of the Holy Spirit in Burrowsâ mystical theology. Additionally, when pushed to its furthest limits, Burrowsâ commitment to obscure union risks a radical disjunct between the perceiver (the soul) and the object perceived (God Himself). Nonetheless, should spiritual theology undergo a ressourcement as did systematic and moral theology, the theology of Ruth Burrows offer important contributions
Auditory multistability and neurotransmitter concentrations in the human brain
Multistability in perception is a powerful tool for investigating sensoryâperceptual transformations, because it produces dissociations between sensory inputs and subjective experience. Spontaneous switching between different perceptual objects occurs during prolonged listening to a sound sequence of tone triplets or repeated words (termed auditory streaming and verbal transformations, respectively). We used these examples of auditory multistability to examine to what extent neurochemical and cognitive factors influence the observed idiosyncratic patterns of switching between perceptual objects. The concentrations of glutamateâglutamine (Glx) and Îł-aminobutyric acid (GABA) in brain regions were measured by magnetic resonance spectroscopy, while personality traits and executive functions were assessed using questionnaires and response inhibition tasks. Idiosyncratic patterns of perceptual switching in the two multistable stimulus configurations were identified using a multidimensional scaling (MDS) analysis. Intriguingly, although switching patterns within each individual differed between auditory streaming and verbal transformations, similar MDS dimensions were extracted separately from the two datasets. Individual switching patterns were significantly correlated with Glx and GABA concentrations in auditory cortex and inferior frontal cortex but not with the personality traits and executive functions. Our results suggest that auditory perceptual organization depends on the balance between neural excitation and inhibition in different brain regions. This article is part of the themed issue âAuditory and visual scene analysis'
Human behaviour and economic growth: a psychocultural perspective on local and regional development
A renewed emphasis on behavioural traits has emerged as a means of explaining regional and local differences in economic performance and development. Given this, the aim of this study is to identify distinct local psychocultural behavioural profiles and to examine the extent to which these are associated with economic growth. Combining theories of community culture and personality psychology into a holistic spatially-oriented perspective, the paper argues that the types of human behaviour found across local places emerges from the co-evolution of cultural and personality factors. An empirical analysis of localities in Great Britain identifies and explores three underlying psychocultural profiles: Diverse Extraversion; Inclusive Amenability and Individual Commitment. It is found that inclusive amenable and individually committed psychocultural behaviour generally appear to hold back local economic growth, with the exception of recessionary periods. The reverse relationship is somewhat the case for diverse extravert behaviour. It is concluded that a better understanding of the holistic relationship and co-evolution of the cultural and psychological behavioural make-up of localities and regions has the potential to provide new insights into expected development outcomes as well as the forms of policy intervention that are required within regions and localities, each of which has its own individual psychocultural character
Biocompatible packaging solutions for implantable electronic systems for medical applications
Our biocompatible packaging concept for implantable electronic systems combines biocompatibility, hermeticity and extreme miniaturization. In a first phase, all chips are encapsulated in order to realize a bi-directional diffusion barrier preventing body fluids to leach into the package causing corrosion, and preventing IC materials such as Cu to diffuse into the body, causing various adverse effects. Various clean room materials are tested with respect to their suitability as encapsulation material. In a second phase of the packaging process, all chips of the final device should be electrically connected, applying a biocompatible metallization scheme using eg. gold or platinum. Device assembly is the final packaging step, during which all system components will be interconnected. To provide sufficient mechanical support, all these components are embedded using a biocompatible elastomer such as PDMS
The Fading of the Mpox Outbreak Among Men Who Have Sex With Men: A Mathematical Modelling Study
BACKGROUND: In the Netherlands, the number of mpox cases started declining before mpox vaccination was initiated. Most cases were men who have sex with men (MSM). We investigated whether the decline in mpox could be attributed to infection-induced immunity or behavioural adaptations. METHODS: We developed a transmission model and accounted for possible behavioural adaptations: less casual partners and shorter time until MSM with mpox refrain from sexual contacts. RESULTS: Without behavioural adaptations, the peak in modelled cases matched observations, but the decline was less steep than observed. With behavioural adaptations in the model, we found a decline of 16-18% in numbers of casual partners in June and 13-22% in July 2022. Model results showed a halving of the time before refraining from sex. When mpox vaccination started, 57% of MSM with very high sexual activity in the model had been infected. Model scenarios revealed that the outbreak could have waned by November 2022 even without vaccination. CONCLUSIONS: The limited duration of the mpox outbreak in the Netherlands can be ascribed primarily to infection-induced immunity among MSM with high sexual activity levels. The decline was accelerated by behavioural adaptations. Immunity among those most sexually active is essential to impede mpox resurgence
Parity transitions in the superconducting ground state of hybrid InSb-Al Coulomb islands
The number of electrons in small metallic or semiconducting islands is
quantized. When tunnelling is enabled via opaque barriers this number can
change by an integer. In superconductors the addition is in units of two
electron charges (2e), reflecting that the Cooper pair condensate must have an
even parity. This ground state (GS) is foundational for all superconducting
qubit devices. Here, we study a hybrid superconducting-semiconducting island
and find three typical GS evolutions in a parallel magnetic field: a robust
2e-periodic even-parity GS, a transition to a 2e-periodic odd-parity GS,and a
transition from a 2e- to a 1e-periodic GS. The 2e-periodic odd-parity GS
persistent in gate-voltage occurs when a spin-resolved subgap state crosses
zero energy. For our 1e-periodic GSs we explicitly show the origin being a
single zero-energy state gapped from the continuum, i.e. compatible with an
Andreev bound states stabilized at zero energy or the presence of Majorana zero
modes
A dialogue game for multi-party goal-setting in health coaching
Goal-setting is a frequently adopted strategy in behaviour change coaching. When setting a goal, it is important that it is understood and agreed upon by all parties, and not simply accepted as-is. We present here a dialogue game for multi-party goal-setting, in which multiple health coaches can contribute in order to find a goal that is acceptable to both the patient, and the coaches themselves. Our proposed game incorporates three important aspects of goal-setting and health coaching, (1) coaches can query each other's proposed goals, (2) the patient takes ownership of the goal, and (3) the patient themselves can propose goals
New-onset atrial fibrillation is an independent predictor of in-hospital mortality in hospitalized heart failure patients: results of the EuroHeart Failure Survey
Aims The prognostic significance of atrial fibrillation (AF) in hospitalized patients with heart failure (HF) remains poorly understood. To evaluate in what way AF and its different modes of presentation affect the in-hospital mortality in patients admitted with HF. Methods and results The EuroHeart Failure Survey was conducted to ascertain how hospitalized HF patients are managed in Europe. The survey enrolled patients over a 6-week period in 115 hospitals from 24 countries. For this analysis, patients were categorized into three groups according to the type of AF, previous AF (patients known to have had AF prior to admission), new-onset AF (no previous AF with AF diagnosed during hospitalization), and no AF (no previous AF and no AF during hospitalization). Clinical variables, duration of hospitalization, and in-hospital survival status were assessed and compared among groups. Of the 10 701 patients included in the survey; 6027 (57%) had no AF, 3673 (34%) had previous AF, and 1001 (9%) had new-onset AF. Patients with new-onset AF had a longer stay in the intensive care unit (ICU) when compared with previous AF and no AF patients (mean 2.6 ± 5.3, 1.2 ± 3.5, and 1.5 ± 4.1 days, respectively; P < 0.001). In-hospital mortality was higher among patients with new-onset AF when compared with previous AF or no AF patients (12, 7, and 7% respectively; P < 0.001). After adjusting for multiple clinical variables, new-onset AF (not previous AF) was an independent predictor of in-hospital mortality (odds ratio 1.53, 95% CI 1.1-2.0). Conclusion In hospitalized patients with HF, new-onset AF is an independent predictor of in-hospital mortality and a longer ICU and hospital sta
Electric field tunable superconductor-semiconductor coupling in Majorana nanowires
We study the effect of external electric fields on
superconductor-semiconductor coupling by measuring the electron transport in
InSb semiconductor nanowires coupled to an epitaxially grown Al superconductor.
We find that the gate voltage induced electric fields can greatly modify the
coupling strength, which has consequences for the proximity induced
superconducting gap, effective g-factor, and spin-orbit coupling, which all
play a key role in understanding Majorana physics. We further show that level
repulsion due to spin-orbit coupling in a finite size system can lead to
seemingly stable zero bias conductance peaks, which mimic the behavior of
Majorana zero modes. Our results improve the understanding of realistic
Majorana nanowire systems.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figures, supplemental information as ancillary fil
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