20 research outputs found
A Systemic, Socioecological Approach for Community Resilience: The case study of the World Music School
No full textThis paper presents research and a discussion on aspects of community resilience informed by literature and the case study of the World Music School (WMS) focusing on the human community resilience impact through (and with) their immediate environments (both social and environmental).
The observation of our close environment and the links between human beings and our current environment suggest an emergent result, one of disconnection (Holt 2015). Despite using digital ecosystems (Vaidhyanathan 2018) services to sustain themselves, individuals are cognitively severed from the remaining link they could have with their close biophysical environment (Kesebir 2017). In addition to this phenomena, the individual can also be isolated among their peers, sharing increasing superficial connections and relationships with fewer deep interconnections. Consequently, such a social system shows signs of acute weakness in its resilience towards shocks and disturbances, with emergent sets of characteristics. Its weakest components being the less connected (Walker and Salt 2006)
Case study: observing the World music school Helsinki as a social ecological system to enhance community connectivity and resilience /
No full textThe World Music School community is a Non-Government Organisation (NGO) that teaches music and organises events internationally around dance and music activities. This case study investigates community connectivity and resilience development in the World Music School (WMS) Helsinki community of practice and the Shanghai WMS community of interest. Using a social ecological system approach, the community structures and relationships were explored and supported by the literature. In particular, the research focused on the feedback loops at different levels within each community structure. The WMS core activities are viewed as inclusive and human connectivity enhancers. Focusing on human connectivity, the research investigated the 'what' and 'why' of the NGO's involvement in building its community structure as it revealed what is essential for community resilience. This research discusses how connections between shocks and disturbances within the community systems were identified and the various outcomes when identifying and approaching acute weakness within the community structures. This case study examines how the WMS communities enhance community resilience across a complex social system starting at the individual level and then extending to physically close environmental relationships. These complex community structures provided a lens to focus on identifying the initial stages for resilient community connectivity. Observing these connections provided a basis for developing a synthesised model based on discussions in previous literature reviews. The processes involved with the model development included the critical roles, impacts and evolution of the World Music School community. This article argues that systemic change can happen when small but fundamental changes are longitudinally obtained through bottom-up approaches. The WMS communities have displayed the potential to make a difference towards connectivity and subsequent community resilience, beginning with the individual and extending to the overall social ecological system level
Nitrogen Tetroxide to Mixed Oxides of Nitrogen: History, Usage, Synthesis, and Composition Determination
No full textSince as early as the 1920s, dinitrogen tetroxide (N2O4) has been regarded as a promising oxidizer in rocket propulsion systems. In more recent times, its predecessor, mixed oxides of nitrogen (MON), remains a top contender among oxidizers, due to its unique characteristics such as low freezing temperature and compatibility with common spacecraft materials. Today, these N2O4- based oxidizers are the preferred choice in many upper stages, launch escape systems, reaction control systems, liquid apogee engines, and in-space primary propulsion systems. N2O4-based oxidizers are a key factor in rocket propulsion, and thoroughly understanding their history, development, characteristics, synthesis, and composition analysis are crucial for space exploration today and into the future.To fully understand and predict the physical properties of a MON sample, it is important to measure and quantify its chemical composition. The recommended method for MON composition analysis, as prescribed by the Department of Defense’s Defense Specification (MIL-SPEC) document on N2O4, involves the oxidation of NO and dinitrogen trioxide (N2O3) in the MON sample to determine their amounts. An equation unofficially called the “MIL-SPEC equation” is then used to determine the amount of NO needed to mix with N2O4to synthesize that particular MON sample. However, no explanation is given as to how the equation was derived, or its significance.This thesis aims to collect and organize key information on the synthesis, handling, and composition analysis of MON propellant. First, the history of development of N2O4-based oxidizers was researched, and current and future uses of N2O4and MON propellants were identified. Then a method for synthesis and composition analysis was devised and tested. Water contamination was expected of skewing the results, so the process of water contamination was examined analytically. Then a detailed derivation of the MIL-SPEC equation was conducted, to fully understand its mechanics. An attempt was then made to reverse-engineer an unexplained numerical value in the equation, labeled by the author as the “solubility factor”. Several derivations were provided with varying degrees of complexity, producing alternative solubility factors of varying accuracies. Finally, experimental data was applied to these derived, hypothetical solubility factors and the MIL-SPEC solubility factor, with the intent of determining whether improvements could be made to the MON composition determination process.The results suggest that the MIL-SPEC equation is sufficient for providing a relatively accurate measurement of the composition of a MON sample, while also being easy to implement, both in taking the necessary measurements and in conducting the numerical calculation. However, some minor adjustments to the equation could produce consistently more accurate composition measurements without adding any more difficulty or complication
John of Damascus and heresy : a basis for understanding modern heresy
No full textThis study investigates the understanding of heresy and the heretic according to Saint John of Damascus. For him, a heretic was any Christian who, by wilful choice, departs from the one orthodox tradition by adopting a personal opinion on the common faith which he intends to institute as sole truth. Our research is divided into two parts and aims to apply John of Damascus’ understanding of the recurring identity of the Christian heretic and his behaviour.
By using historical-theological, interdisciplinary and diachronical approaches, the author demonstrates through two case studies, namely, the Dutch Reformed Churches and Apartheid, and Kimbanguism, that this Church Father, who is the ‘seal of the patristic era,’ remains a relevant authority for our comprehension of heresy and the heretic
Abstract simplicity of locally compact Kac-Moody groups
No full textIn this paper, we establish that complete Kac-Moody groups over finite fields are abstractly simple. The proof makes essential use of Mathieu and Rousseau's construction of complete Kac-Moody groups over fields. This construction has the advantage that both real and imaginary root spaces of the Lie algebra lift to root subgroups over arbitrary fields. A key point in our proof is the fact, of independent interest, that both real and imaginary root subgroups are contracted by conjugation of positive powers of suitable Weyl group elements. © The Author 2014
A Systemic, Socio-Ecological Approach for Community Resilience: The Case Study Analysis Of The World Music School
No full textThis paper presents research and a discussion on aspects of community resilience informed by literature and the case studies of the World Music School (WMS) Helsinki community and the Shanghai WMS community of interest. Focus has been informed by issues of human community resilience, impacted through (and with) their immediate environments, both social and environmental. Based on discussion, feedback loops and observation, the question of our proximity to our environment and the links between human beings, seems to suggest an emergent result, being one of disconnection, however, what emergent combinations of these conditions are responsible? In a human centered paradigm, the disconnection of the individual, then of its community greatly reduces their capacity to operate as a resilient system. In an overall perspective of human and non-human, this disconnection or dis-integration, weakens simultaneously the socio-economic system, as well as the social-ecological system it is connected to or belongs to. An understanding of how connectivity organized itself was informed by Community of Practice (Wenger, 1998) and related literatures regarding the effects of resilience with NGOs (Robinson and Berkes, 2011; Berkes and Ross, 2013; Walker and Salt, 2012a; Aldrich and Meyer, 2015).
This research focuses on the critical roles, impacts and evolution for the World Music School as an NGO, teaching music and organizing events around dance and music. As an inclusive and connectivity enhancer, this work aims to investigate what and why of this NGO’s involvement in building community structure, including the inclusive of local diaspora leading to any supporting resilient subsystems within the overall social system. This research argues that the WMS communities bare the potentials to make a difference predominantly on individual level, and then on its close environment and subsequently enhancing the community resilience on the overall socio-ecological system level
A partnership for prosperity agency : a case study of InnerCHANGE South Africa
No full textPractical ways to serve African communities of poverty motivated this case study. It explores
how the church could be missional as an agent of prosperity in communities of poverty.
It reflects on partnership between a missional team, InnerCHANGE, with businesses in order
to provide jobs for ordinary people, especially the youth who are a marginalised section of our
society in terms of employment. This article uses a biblical interpretive framework from
Jeremiah 29:7 to reflect on the role of the church in society. The author interviewed
15 employment beneficiaries and 18 parents or guardians in order to learn how employment
has improved the quality of life of individuals, households and their community of residence.
The findings led to a reflection which captures successes as well as growth areas to be
considered by InnerCHANGE in its efforts to become an example of the church as a prosperity
agent in society.https://theologiaviatorum.org/am2021Science of Religion and Missiolog
Índice analítico de la revista Arte y Medicina (1952-1959)
No full textSome biographic data of Dr. Jean Francois Timothee Tuzet y Cerdiat are given. Jean Francois was a French man who settled down in Cuba, where he founded a journal aimed at facilitating the access of the Cuban doctors to universal culture. As a result of the revision of all the collection, entitled "Arte y Medicina", and in order to know everything that happened on its pages since May 1952, when it started to circulate, until it disappeared in March 1959, its most important formal and content aspects are reviewed and the papers published in each of its issues are described. This description presented as a bibliographic index is complemented with other iconographic, author and subject indexes
Christian leadership in a South African township community : a reflection on nepotism and its impact on society
No full textThe author reflects on the reality of nepotism in Christian leadership as he has observed in the
township of Soshanguve and many other African poverty-stricken communities he has lived
in. The leadership of churches in those areas seems to run in the family. This model tends to
have a disempowering effect on the other church members in terms of taking responsibility or
initiating projects that could expand the impact of the church beyond the borders of its walls.
This article recognises the positive impact of nepotism, but it mostly stresses on the negative
impact of nepotism on the democratisation of power in the church and society. It uses music,
a critical vehicle of knowledge acquisition in Africa, to stress upon the fact that Christian
leaders should be equipped to participate in the common good, help in the empowerment of
ordinary people around them, starting with their members and be altruistic, like Jesus, and
work beyond the boundaries of their families.http://www.hts.org.zaam2020Science of Religion and Missiolog
Migration to South Africa : a missional reflection of a refugee using Jeremiah 29:4–12 as an interpretive framework
No full textThis article is an auto-ethnographic reflection on the phenomenon of migration. The latter is
on the increase throughout the world. This article focusses on the context of South Africa
where there seems to be a negative perception of refugees in communities of poverty. It uses
Jeremiah 29:4–12 as an interpretative framework to, on the one hand, analyse the negative
perceptions of refugees and, on the other hand, propose ways refugees could be assets to their
host communities. The author is part of a missional team that serves in some South African
communities of poverty where refugees have experienced a great deal of discrimination. He
reflects on his status as a refugee and a mission worker to point out a constructive role a
refugee could play in society as a Christian. He refers to this role as good news agency. The
article alludes to practical examples where a constructive role in a community has led refugees
to be seen as assets to their communities. It concludes by stressing that the negative perception
of refugees in South African communities of poverty may be an implicit collective longing
local residents have for good news agents around them regardless of their countries of origin.https://theologiaviatorum.orgam2021Science of Religion and Missiolog
