309 research outputs found
Art, war and inheritance the aesthetics and politics of Ziad Rahbani - by Fadi Abdo Bardawil
No full textThesis (M.A.)--American University of Beirut, Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, 2002;"Advisor: Dr. Samir Khalaf, Professor, Social and Behavioral Sciences--Member of Committee: Dr. Ray Jureidini, Associate professor, Social and Behavioral ScieBibliography : leaves 139-144.This study is about Ziad Rahbani in an effort to elucidate the sociological processes by which an artist becomes recognized by artistic mediators and the public. This is particularly pertinent as a case study because Ziad Rahbani is a musician, playwrigh
Qur’an Translations in the Enlightenment & Sufism in Contemporary Literature. A Conversation with Ziad Elmarsafy
No full textZiad Elmarsafy is Senior Lecturer in the Department of English and Related Literature at the University of York, UK. He works on the modern and contemporary literatures of the Middle East and North Africa, as well as the relationship between literature and religion, philosophy and literary theory. He is the author of The Enlightenment Qur’an. The Politics of Translation and the Construction of Islam (Oneworld, Oxford, 2009) and Sufism in the Contemporary Arabic Novel (Edinburgh University P..
Orientalism: Legacies of a Performance
No full textBooks, as Catullus reminds us, have fates of their own. Our concern is with the fate of one book, Edward Said’s Orientalism. To many, this seminal work is an enduring touchstone, a founding text of the field of postcolonial studies and a book that continues to influence debates in literary and cultural studies, Middle Eastern studies, anthropology, art history, history and politics. To others, however, Orientalism has serious failings, not least in blaming the wrong people - namely, Orientalists - for the crimes of European imperialism. Thirty-five years after its first edition, popular and academic reactions to Orientalism continue to run the gamut from enthusiasm to apoplexy. Yet few assessments of this work ask the ‘so what?’ question, addressing the book’s contemporary relevance without lionizing or demonizing its author. This is our aim in Debating Orientalism. Bridging the gap between intellectual history and political engagement, the contributors to this volume interrogate Orientalism’s legacy with a view to moving the debate about this text beyond the Manichean limitations within which it has all too often been imprisoned. Too much ink has been spilled on what Orientalism got right or wrong - especially in its historical and political registers - and too little on taking stock of its impact and building on that to appraise its significance to current debates in multiple fields. This book seeks to consider Orientalism’s implications with a little less feeling, though no less commitment to understanding the value and political effects of engaged scholarship.</p
Adapting authoritarianism: institutions and co-optation in Egypt and Syria
No full textThis PhD thesis compares Egypt and Syria’s authoritarian political systems. While the tendency in social science political research treats Egypt and Syria as similarly authoritarian, this research emphasizes differences between the two systems with special reference to institutions and co-optation. Rather than reducibly understanding Egypt and Syria as sharing similar histories, institutional arrangements, or ascribing to the oft-repeated convention that “Syria is Egypt but 10 years behind,” this thesis focuses on how events and individual histories shaped each states current institutional strengthens and weaknesses. Specifically, it explains the how varying institutional politicization or de-politicization affects each state’s capabilities for co-opting elite and non-elite individuals.
Beginning with a theoretical framework that considers the limited utility of democratization and transition theoretical approaches, the work underscores the persistence and durability of authoritarianism. Chapter two details the politicized institutional divergence between Egypt and Syria that began in the 1970s. Chapter three and four examines how institutional politicization or de-politicization affects elite and non-elite individual co-optation in Egypt and Syria. Chapter five discusses the study’s general conclusions and theoretical implications.
This thesis’s argument is that Egypt and Syria co-opt elites and non-elites differently because of the varying degrees of institutional politicization in each governance system. Rather than view one country as more politically developed than the other, this work argues that Syria’s political institutions are more politicized than their Egyptian counterparts. Syria’s political arena is, thus, described as politicized-patrimonialism. Syria’s politicized-patrimonial arena produces uneven co-optation of elites and non-elites as they are diffused through competing institutions. Conversely, the Egyptian political arena remains highly personalized as weak institutions and individuals are manipulated and molded according to the president’s ruling clique. This is referred to as personalized-patrimonialism. As a consequence, Egypt’s political establishment demonstrates more flexibility in ad hoc altering and adapting its arena depending on the emergence of crises.
This study’s theoretical implications suggest that, contrary to modernization and democratization theory’s adage that institutions lead to a political development, politicized institutions within a patrimonial order actually hinder regime adaptation because consensus is harder to achieve and maintain. It is within this context that Egypt’s de-politicized institutional framework advantages its top political elite. In this reading of Egyptian and Syrian politics, Egypt’s personalized political arena is more adaptable than Syria’s. These conclusions do not indicate that political reform is a process underway in either state
α7β1 integrin regulation of skeletal muscle growth in response to mechanical stimulation
Full text linkThe α7β1 integrin has been proposed to serve as a mechanosensor and essential regulator of myofiber remodeling given its localization at the membrane and primary role in adhering the outer extracellular matrix to the inner actin cytoskeleton. However, additional work is necessary to affirm a primary role for the α7 integrin subunit in the regulation of skeletal muscle mass. The purpose of this dissertation was to 1) use gene expression profiling to reveal potential mechanisms by which the α7BX2 integrin can promote an increase in muscle mass post- eccentric exercise, 2) determine the extent to which the α7BX2 integrin contributes to an increase in muscle mass after chronic overload, and 3) determine the extent to which α7 integrin overexpression or integrin ligand (laminin-111, LM-111) binding can improve the anabolic response to loading in aged mice. Aim 1 used microarray analysis using RNA extracted from skeletal muscle of wild type (WT) or transgenic mice (MCK:α7BX2 integrin; α7Tg), under sedentary conditions and 3 hrs after an acute bout of downhill running. The results suggest that the α7β1 integrin initiates transcription of genes that allow for protection from stress and modulation of protein synthesis, both which may contribute to positive adaptations in skeletal muscle with mechanical stimulation. In Aim 2, WT and α7Tg mice were subjected to myotenectomy (MTE) of the gastrocnemius muscles and subsequent chronic mechanical loading (CML) for 1 day (1D) or 14 days (14D). The results suggest that the α7β1 integrin augments muscle mass and adaptation, and several changes may account for this observation, including a reduction in damage and stress, yes-associated protein (YAP) content, and increased phospho- 4E-BP1 on Ser65. In Aim 3, α7Tg overexpression was not sufficient to rescue the anabolic response to chronic loading in aged mice, yet injection of LM-111 significantly restored integrin localization at the membrane and the anabolic response to a mechanical stimulus. Overall, the studies in this dissertation suggest that the α7β1 integrin is an important regulator of muscle remodeling that leads to an increase in mass in response to mechanical strain, and that manipulation of the extracellular matrix within the microenvironment may provide a novel approach towards maintenance of mechanosensing and the anabolic response across the lifespan. These observations in mice provide impetus for assessment of the relationship between extracellular matrix protein composition and subsequent α7β1 integrin-mediated remodeling within human skeletal muscle.Submission published under a 24 month embargo labeled 'Closed Access', the embargo will last until 2019-05-01The student, Ziad Mahmassani, accepted the attached license on 2017-04-14 at 16:35.The student, Ziad Mahmassani, submitted this Dissertation for approval on 2017-04-14 at 16:36.This Dissertation was approved for publication on 2017-04-19 at 17:21.DSpace SAF Submission Ingestion Package generated from Vireo submission #10765 on 2017-08-10 at 14:30:39Made available in DSpace on 2017-08-10T19:51:55Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2
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POPULARIZING EGYPTIAN NATIONALISM: COLLOQUIAL CULTURE AND MEDIA CAPITALISM, 1870-1919 by
No full textRights Copyright © is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the University Libraries, University of Arizona. Further transmission, reproduction or presentation (such as public display or performance) of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SOME KINEMATIC PARAMETERS WITH THE
Full text linkThe aim of this study was to determine how the performance of the Egyptian high jumpers is depending on the kinematic parameters of a take-off phase. The sample of the study has been selected from competitors of the high jump event - three jumpers representing the Egyptian international athletic team. The researcher has studied the sample using a direct measurement by a synchronized 3D video system to measure the kinematic parameters. The researcher has found a relation between record level and vertical velocity components with improvement in technique and better fitness levels, thus the Egyptian jumpers can achieve further progress in their results. This raises optimism because Omer Samir (A2) is very young and his current record 2.02m gives hope for future World - Class. Key words High jump, kinematic parameters, take-off phase
The influence of network structures and information seeking uncertainty on information seeking behavior
No full textPeople utilize their social networks to get to resources, tangible or otherwise, that aid them in their everyday lives. Information scientists have shown that network characteristics of information structures can indeed influence human information searching and browsing behavior. However, we do not have enough detail on what particular network characteristics may influence information seeking behavior. There is an incomplete picture of the how network structures influence people’s information seeking interactions over time.
In this dissertation, I will look at some quantifiable behavioral dynamics of individuals who are seeking information using different social network structures over time. This research can shed light on our understanding of the interplay between human behavior and the environmental structures that people find themselves both being influenced by and influencing.
This study utilizes a custom-built Web-based tool that simulates an information-seeking scenario via various network structures and has participants utilize it to achieve a stated goal of collecting answers to questions from others in their network. The tool allows a finite amount of interactions, thus limiting the participants’ engagements to a defined set of allowable actions. As all participants go through the simulation, the system logs their actions over time and measurements are taken in timed intervals of certain information seeking behaviors of the participants and changes that they create in their network topologies. The participants run through two types of networks: one with a scale-free topology one node has a disproportionate high number of connections compared to the other nodes and another with two sub-networks connected to one another via two structural holes. Both networks differ significantly in structure, but are very similar in network density and in average node degree centrality.
This dissertation aims to contribute to the theories of information seeking in social network environments, as well as to social network theory as it pertains to human information behavior. From a practical standpoint, this dissertation aims at giving scholars another way to study human behavior through the lens of social networks by providing them with a sophisticated computer-mediated platform to collect log-based data of human behavior in simulated networked environments.Ph.D.Includes bibliographical referencesby Ziad Albert Matn
Regional computable general equilibrium models: A review
No full textComputable General Equilibrium (CGE) models are very popular for analyzing a wide range of policy issues. CGE applications vary from estimating the welfare impact of tax reform and alternative energy policies to the effect of foreign trade reforms, labour markets and employment. CGE models are commonly developed at the country level; however, modified versions of CGE, so called Regional CGE (RCGE) models, can be used at subnational disaggregation to examine impacts studied at the national counterparts on a specific region. RCGE models have grown in popularity as an alternative to the Input-Output (I-O) models, which are regularly used for regional analysis. RCGE models can provide comprehensive information, which make them more desirable analytical models for many researchers. Yet, RCGE models have not yet become a “go-to” for governmental policy practitioners when they are developing regional public policies. This paper reviews the current state of regional CGE models, describes their features, contributions and limitations and surveys some applications of the main three classes of RCGE models: region-specific, bottom-up, and top-down models. This paper concludes that the applications of RCGE are quite variable and flexible, with a new and more complex type of application to be developed with the advancement of computation economics. The paper offers recommendations on the micro, meso and macro conditions that are necessary to increase policy practitioners’ utilization of RCGE models
The Image of War in the Novel: The Last Resurrection of Batoul by Ziad Hamami
Full text linkتتناول هذه الدّراسة رواية " قيامة البتول الأخيرة" للروائيّ زياد حماميّ، بوصفها نصًّا أدبيًّا يعكس مآلات الثّورة السّوريّة، وما تخلّلها من عنف وقمع ومعاناة إنسانيّة عميقة. تنطلق الورقة من اعتبار الثّورة السّوريّة جزءًا من الحراك الأوسع المعروف بـ "الرّبيع العربيّ"، الذي لم يقتصر أثره على المجال السّياسيّ، بل امتد ليطال البنى الاجتماعيّة والنفسيّة والثقافيّة في المجتمعات العربيّة، ولا سيما المجتمع السّوري.
تسعى الدّراسة إلى تحليل الكيفيّة التي تمثّل بها الرّواية هذه التحوّلات من خلال منهج بنيويّ يتقاطع مع مقاربات نقديَّة أخرى، حيث تم التركيز على تفكيك البنية السّرديَّة والعناصر الفنيَّة الداخليَّة، إضافة إلى توظيف الرّموز والدّلالات التي اعتمدها الكاتب لإيصال رؤيته الإنسانيَّة والسّياسيَّة. وتبرز الرّواية الحرب والثّورة بوصفهما ظاهرتين مركّبتين، تتجاوزان الأطر العسكريَّة والسياسيَّة، لتطال بنية الذّات السّوريَّة، وتكشف عن التّصدّع الدّاخليَّ والانهيار القيميّ والاجتماعيّ. وتتحوّل "البندرة" – الحارة الحلبيَّة التي تحتل موقعًا مركزيًّا في النّصّ – إلى مسرح للتّحوّلات الدراماتيكيَّة التي تطال المجتمع والوعي الجمعيّ. وقد خلصت الدّراسة إلى أنّ قيامة البتول الأخيرة لا تقدّم سردًا تقريريًّا للواقع، بل تبني رؤية فنيَّة عميقة تمزج بين الواقعيَّة والتّكثيف الرّمزيّ، لتصوغ شهادة أدبيّة تنبض بالتوتّر والتمرّد، وتعكس تشظي الذّات وفقدان المعنى في زمن الفوضى والدّمار، ممّا يجعلها من أبرز الأعمال الأدبيَّة التي وثّقت مأساة الشّعب السّوريّ عبر رؤية جماليَّة ونقديَّة ناضجة.This study examines the novel The Last Resurrection of Al-Batoul by the novelist Ziad as a literary text that reflects the outcomes of the Syrian revolution and the profound violence, oppression, and human suffering it entailed. It considers the Syrian revolution as part of the broader movement known as the "Arab Spring," whose effects extended beyond the political sphere to social, psychological, and cultural structures of Arab societies, especially, the Syrian community. The research aims to analyze how the novel represents these transformations through a structuralist approach complemented by other critical perspectives, focusing on dismantling the narrative structure and internal artistic elements, as well as the use of symbols and significations employed by the author to convey his humanitarian and political vision. The novel highlights war and revolution as complex phenomena that transcend military and political frameworks to affect the Syrian self’s structure, revealing internal fragmentation and social and ethical collapse. The neighborhood of "Al-Bandara” a central locale in the text transforms into a stage for the dramatic changes impacting society and collective consciousness. The study concludes that The Last Resurrection of Al-Batoul does not offer a mere documentary narrative of reality but constructs a profound artistic vision blending realism and symbolic density to craft a literary testimony pulsating with tension and rebellion, reflecting the fragmentation of the self and loss of meaning amid chaos and destruction. This makes it one of the most significant literary works documenting the tragedy of the Syrian people through a mature aesthetic and critical perspectiv
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