2199 research outputs found
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Information Processing in Bible Study Groups
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Information Processing in Bible Study Groups
No full texthttps://kent-islandora.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/acir/2011/Papers/17/thumbnail.jpgThis paper focuses on information processing in Christian Bible study groups through surveys of three Midwestern churches. By considering the significance of the small group as integral to the vitality of religious organizations, this paper will consider how these groups process information from sermons, books, and peers. This processing is considered in three parts: pre-discussion, local discussion, and post-discussion. Pre-discussion information processing includes all of the topic-specific information that members of these groups obtain prior to meeting as a group. This information is either unique to an individual or shared among many individuals in a group, and the nature of this information affects how it is used in actual discussion. Because of the religious nature of these groups, the paper will explore the authoritative nature of information used, and whether or not this nature affects processing of information. Results show that Bible study groups report a significantly larger than expected quantity of unique information, but also that this information is continuously corrected by what is considered biblically correct. It is concluded that members join Bible study groups primarily for spiritual and relational purposes, but that this purpose does not restrain members from debate and discussion. Keywords: Small groups, information processing, churches</p
Accordance Bible Software in Reading and Teaching: The Difference a Digital Text Makes
No full texthttps://kent-islandora.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/acir/2011/Papers/20/thumbnail.jpgThis presentation addresses two interrelated questions. First, what are the similarities and differences between the reading/interpretation and teaching/preaching of 1) printed Bibles, and 2) the digital texts in Accordance Bible software? And, second, what are the implications of these similarities and differences for theological education?</p
Access is Power: Financing the Second Crusade in France
No full texthttps://kent-islandora.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/acir/2011/Papers/21/thumbnail.jpgLet me begin by saying that as a medievalist, I am very happy to be in the company of such a diverse group of scholars. I would like to first offer some introductory comments on medieval land ownership. Then I will suggest an explanation for why historians have been slow to use land charters as a primary source for the history of the crusades. After setting the stage for the Second Crusade, I will then discuss some of the disputes that arose between monks and crusaders regarding property lines. And finally, I will conclude by arguing that access to and control over the written word—the ability to read and write—determined the outcome of many of these disputes.</p
The Digital Remains: Social Media and Practices of Online Grief
No full texthttps://kent-islandora.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/acir/2011/Papers/5/thumbnail.jpgWith an increasing number of social activities taking place online, an emotionally fraught and culturally complex question has surfaced regarding what happens to someone’s online content and identity after death. Social media sites are increasingly sophisticated in the development of tools and applications available for users to interact with each other online, but when it comes to virtual versions of bereavement, both the technical and cultural protocols for processing grief are still very much in the process of developing. This paper examines Facebook’s policy on the pages of site members who have died as a means of addressing online grief as a social phenomenon, as well as a point of access to tensions surrounding questions of online identity and computer-mediated communication. The background for this analysis is established with a brief discussion of traditional funerary practices in the United States1, before moving to a review of scholarship that addresses grief, and online grief specifically. Methodology for analysis of online discussions of Facebook’s policy is outlined, taking into account issues of how online identities are theorized and why blogs are specifically appropriate as a source of interpretation for examining online grief. Themes from these online discussions are identified in order to analyze how social media users understand practices of virtual bereavement, and more generally conceive of constructing online identities, relationships and communities. Analysis of online grief creates a space for understanding a social phenomenon as it is being formed, but also for consideration of what it means to construct, maintain and lose relationships and identities that are formed online.</p
Vincent Quevedo: Beyond Fashion
No full texthttps://kent-islandora.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/museumvideo/20/thumbnail.jpg"Beyond Fashion: Fiber and Fashion Art" at the Kent State University Museum.</p
The Conversing God: Exploring Trinitarian Information Transfer from the Perspective of Gordon Pask\u27s Conversation Theory
No full texthttps://kent-islandora.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/asir/vol1/iss1/6/thumbnail.jpgThe traditional Christian belief in the Trinity states that God exists in three persons: Father, Son, and Spirit, and that people were created in “the image of God.” This is understood to mean that humans reflect the nature of God and His ability to communicate. This ancient Christian concept has implications not only for theology, but also for communication within Christian communities. The goal of this paper is to explore the ability of a modern information theory to shed light on this doctrine and improve communication within the Church. This paper seeks to bridge the gap between ancient theology and modern theory by asking the following question: “Can Gordon Pask’s conversation theory serve as a framework for information transfer within the Trinity and within Christian religious communities?” The author’s perspective is that conversation theory can be used as a framework for exploring knowledge creation and sharing within the Trinity and subsequently within the Christian community. These new insights are based on Pask’s conceptualization of psychological and mechanical individuals, entailment meshes, and consciousness. As these concepts create new perspectives, they have significance for communities who model their communicating on Trinitarian theology. This discussion will be based on theoretical, theological, and biblical evidence which demonstrates that conversation theory is compatible Trinitarian theology. Conclusions include implications for the process of creating and sharing religious knowledge from the individual and the corporate perspective.</p
Synemin Isoforms Differentially Organize Cell Junctions and Desmin Filaments in Neonatal Cardiomyocytes
No full textIntermediate filaments (IFs) in cardiomyocytes consist primarily of desmin, surround myofibrils at Z disks, and transmit forces from the contracting myofilaments to the cell surface through costameres at the sarcolemma and desmosomes at intercalated disks. Synemin is a type IV IF protein that forms filaments with desmin and also binds α-actinin and vinculin. Here we examine the roles and expression of the α and β forms of synemin in developing rat cardiomyocytes. Quantitative PCR showed low levels of expression for both synemin mRNAs, which peaked at postnatal day 7. Synemin was concentrated at sites of cell–cell adhesion and at Z disks in neonatal cardiomyocytes. Overexpression of the individual isoforms showed that α-synemin preferentially localized to cell-cell junctions, whereas β-synemin was primarily at the level of Zdisks. An siRNA targeted to both synemin isoforms reduced protein expression in cardiomyocytes by 70% and resulted in a failure of desmin to align with Z disks and disrupted cell–cell junctions, with no effect on sarcomeric organization. Solubility assays showed that β-synemin was soluble and interacted with sarcomeric α-actinin by coimmunoprecipitation, while α-synemin and desmin were insoluble. We conclude that β-synemin mediates the association of desmin IFs with Z disks, whereas α-synemin stabilizes junctional complexes between cardiomyocytes.—Lund, L. M., Kerr, J. P., Lupinetti, J., Zhang, Y., Russell, M. A., Bloch, R. J., Bond, M. Synemin isoforms differentially organize cell junctions and desmin filaments in neonatal cardiomyocytes.</p
The Burr Fall 2011 Issue 2
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Comparing research methods currently taught at ELCA Lutheran Seminaries
No full texthttps://kent-islandora.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/acir/2011/Papers/19/thumbnail.jpgResearch components have been an integral part of ELCA Lutheran seminary classes for sermon preparation, congregational bible study to more formal academic training. Traditional commentaries, theological works, and exegetical research have been mainstays in biblical and theological studies. For many years print resources were the mainstay of use, even as technology advanced well into the late 1990’s. Today that model of research continues to erode with more advanced information delivery systems and methodologies being developed.</p