A Survey of Memristive Threshold Logic Circuits

In this paper, we review the different memristive threshold logic (MTL) circuits that are inspired from the synaptic action of flow of neurotransmitters in the biological brain. Brain like generalisation ability and area minimisation of these threshold logic circuits aim towards crossing the Moores law boundaries at device, circuits and systems levels.Fast switching memory, signal processing, control systems, programmable logic, image processing, reconfigurable computing, and pattern recognition are identified as some of the potential applications of MTL systems. The physical realization of nanoscale devices with memristive behaviour from materials like TiO2, ferroelectrics, silicon, and polymers has accelerated research effort in these application areas inspiring the scientific community to pursue design of high speed, low cost, low power and high density neuromorphic architectures

Music, Myth and Motherland: Culturally Centered Music & Imagery

This study assessed ethnic identity in adults of Indian origin through Culturally Centered Music & Imagery (CCMI), a music-centered, psychotherapeutic technique that emphasizes socio-cultural context, identity and meaning. The purpose was to examine how participants’ native music, in the context of CCMI, could evoke identity-based imagery and assess ethnic identity in a globalized context. Five cisgender Indian men and women from Hindu backgrounds participated in one CCMI session each, including an interview and follow up discussions. The qualitative methodology of portraiture (Lawrence-Lightfoot, 1997) was used in this study. The results reveal how CCMI can access the cultural and ethnic unconscious, a relatively new area of consciousness in Jungian and GIM paradigms. The study also shows how CCMI can highlight the fluid and multiple nature of ethnic identity, revealing its intersection with other identities such as gender, sexual orientation, caste and religion. In addition, the data support the use of contextual and identity-based music selections in assisting participants to explore, recreate or gain a deeper understanding of their ethnic identity through image and metaphor. Major findings include new categories of ethnic identity such as Aesthetic, Ancestral, Philosophical, Mythological, Spiritual and Core Indian identities. Subthemes include experiences of Rebirth, Disconnection, Unconscious Divide, as well as other socio-cultural identities such as Kaleidoscopic, World Citizen and Global Nomad. These and other themes relate to American, global, spiritual, queer, socio-economic, caste, gendered, and individual contexts. The research also suggests that this technique may be effective in emotionally and psychologically supporting adults who are going through the process of immigration or acculturation

Book Review: Swami Vivekananda and the Modernisation of Hinduism

A review of Swami Vivekananda and the Modernisation of Hinduism by William Radice

Interdependence: Being Reformed by Students with Disabilities

Throughout my career in special education, I have reconsidered my beliefs about disability. As I have transitioned from a special educator to a teacher trainer in India to an assistant professor in a Christian college, I have looked beyond limitations and deficits of my students to see individual uniqueness. In this article, I share my lived experience of people with severe special needs ministering to me in India, explore the lived experiences of other disability advocates, and describe the implications this has for my teaching at a Christian college

Gender and Priesthood in the Hindu Traditions

In writing about Judaism, Norman Solomon has observed that the English language, which evolved in a very Christian atmosphere, is not value-neutral. Most scholars would agree that words are embedded in worldviews. To use a colloquial expression, they carry the baggage of social prejudices and articulate the perceptions on gender, race, religion, and age that have been part of popular culture at various time periods. It is not just that we project stereotypes on what we study, but we also use categories from our natal traditions to understand other cultures. At least initially we observe phenomena that our culture thinks of as important; later our observations and insights are processed through our language which almost always convey approximations at best. Concepts refracted through the lenses of other languages and cultures may take a life of their own; thus when systems of Buddhist meditation were explained in the Chinese language with words connected with Taoist literature, the Chan (and eventually Zen) forms of mediation evolved. As all of us know, issues such as monotheism or sacred books that have been traditionally thought of as central to the study of religion in the Judaeo-Christian traditions in the western modern world, or for that matter, the construction of religion itself, have proved problematic when projected on to other religious cultures

The Nature and Authority of Scripture: Implications for Hindu-Christian Dialogue

In a thoughtful series of reflections on the future of Hindu-Christian Dialogue, Klaus Klostermaier observes that there are few Hindus who are interested in (contemporary) Christian theology, and there are fewer still who have a desire to enter into dialogue with their Christian counterparts. Others have noted that, with few notable exceptions, the initiatives for dialogue in recent times have been from the Christian side. In an earlier study, I suggested, briefly, a few possible reasons for this lack of interest on the Hindu side. The memories of colonialism and its association with aggressive Christian missionary activity, misrepresentation of other religions, and the lack of genuine interest in the study and understanding of these traditions are not easily erased. There are still barriers of mistrust to overcome

Large-Scale Optical Neural Networks based on Photoelectric Multiplication

Recent success in deep neural networks has generated strong interest in hardware accelerators to improve speed and energy consumption. This paper presents a new type of photonic accelerator based on coherent detection that is scalable to large ($N \gtrsim 10^6$) networks and can be operated at high (GHz) speeds and very low (sub-aJ) energies per multiply-and-accumulate (MAC), using the massive spatial multiplexing enabled by standard free-space optical components. In contrast to previous approaches, both weights and inputs are optically encoded so that the network can be reprogrammed and trained on the fly. Simulations of the network using models for digit- and image-classification reveal a "standard quantum limit" for optical neural networks, set by photodetector shot noise. This bound, which can be as low as 50 zJ/MAC, suggests performance below the thermodynamic (Landauer) limit for digital irreversible computation is theoretically possible in this device. The proposed accelerator can implement both fully-connected and convolutional networks. We also present a scheme for back-propagation and training that can be performed in the same hardware. This architecture will enable a new class of ultra-low-energy processors for deep learning.Comment: Text: 10 pages, 5 figures, 1 table. Supplementary: 8 pages, 5, figures, 2 table

The Transformation of the Scholar as a Factor in Hindu-Christian Studies

A lively, varied range of scholarly activities is gathered today under the title of Hindu-Christian studies. Indeed, we find as many different approaches and interests surfacing in this field as can be found in other areas of theology and the study of religion. The wealth of material that deals with the study of the religions grouped loosely under the titles of Hinduism and Christianity is itself enormous and still growing. Now, in addition, many of us are documenting and predicting the relationships among these religions: monographs, collections of essays and, most recently, this journal, all offer us considerations of how the religions have interacted, how they are similar and differ, what the implications of the growing mutual information and respect are, etc

Quantum Mechanics of 'Conscious Energy'

This paper is aiming to investigate the physical substrate of conscious process. It will attempt to find out: How does conscious process establish relations between their external stimuli and internal stimuli in order to create reality? How does consciousness devoid of new sensory input result to its new quantum effects? And how does conscious process gain mass in brain? This paper will also try to locate the origins of consciousness at the level of neurons along with the quantum effects of conscious process