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Swami Vivekananda's legacy of service: a study of the Ramakrishna math and mission
No full textWas the concept of ‘social service’ rooted in Hindu traditions or did it originate from India’s encounter with the West? Did the Ramakrishna Math and Mission’s commitment to seva, later known as sadhana of service, owe more to Vivekananda than to Ramakrishna himself? This book offers a distinctive analysis of the Ramakrishna movement’s legacy of service by focusing on the continuities and discontinuities in the movement. It argues that the movement’s commitment to seva was shaped by complex and varied influences. The author examines the impact of individuals such as Vivekananda and other followers of Ramakrishna, and the interaction between Indian and western ideals. He also investigates the dramatic changes taking place in the delivery of organized philanthropy in societies disrupted by industrialization and colonization during the nineteenth century. Gwilym Beckerlegge emphasizes the ways in which social, economic, and political factors beyond the movement’s direct control, conspired to make ever-increasing demands on the Ramakrishna Math and Mission
Ramakrishna: a clinical investigation of mystical experience
No full textEste estudo busca questionar algumas das bases epistemológicas da psicologia clínica em relação à espiritualidade e à mística. Partindo da discussão entre Freud e o escritor Francês Romain Rolland a respeito do sentimento oceânico (baseado na correspondência entre eles no período de 1927 a 1931), abordaremos a compreensão da natureza ontológica da experiência de união com o universo (como descrito por Rolland) em um duplo vértice: tanto como um subproduto de dinâmicas psicológicas (inerentemente patológicas ou não) ou como uma experiência ontológica de alteridade, mais bem compreendida através de uma abordagem não psicológica que possa investigar seu significado em consonância ao registro da condição humana em si. Nessa última perspectiva, estaremos acompanhados da obra de Gilberto Safra, que em seus escritos evidencia uma preocupação com a busca de uma concepção antropológica que aborde o ser humano em toda sua complexidade, evitando o possível reducionismo psicológico de temas e áreas que possam se relacionar a outras categorias de experiência, como a religiosidade e a espiritualidade. Como eixo central dessa discussão, utilizaremos a vida do místico Indiano Ramakrishna Paramahansa (1836-1886) para ilustrar esses diferentes modos de se abordar a experiência espiritual. Ramakrishna foi uma das principais fontes das construções de Rolland acerca da religiosidade, levando o autor francês a escrever uma de suas principais biografias (A vida de Ramakrishna, 1929), que teve um importante impacto na recepção ocidental de concepções espirituais orientais. Contemplando exemplos da vida de Ramakrishna, através de uma leitura fenomenológica-hermenêutica da obra de Rolland (que abarcam desde sua infância até seu período como um famoso mestre espiritual na Índia), será apresentado, em cada um desses períodos, diferentes perspectivas de autores que consideram Ramakrishna tanto em uma chave psicológica-psicopatológica quanto em uma abordagem que inclua um registro espiritual não redutível a dinâmicas psíquicas em sua vida. Dentro desse estudo, nós percebemos que há uma limitação inerente às leituras exclusivamente psicológicas das experiências místicas, assim como uma há uma limitação das leituras exclusivamente espiritualistas. Assim, ao apresentar tal discussão nós pretendemos repensar a posição que a espiritualidade e a mística ocupam na prática clínica, tanto para reformular sua compreensão em psicoterapia quanto para expandir as concepções éticas e antropológicas subjacentes ao entendimento clínico da condição humanaThis study aims at questioning some of the epistemological basis of clinical psychology concerning mystical experience and spirituality. Focusing on the discussion between Freud and French author Romain Rolland regarding the oceanic feeling (based on their letters exchange from 1927 to 1931), we will question the comprehension of the ontological nature of the feeling of union with the universe (as described by Rolland) through a twofold bias: either as a by-product of psychological dynamics (inherently pathological or not) or as an ontological experience of alterity, better comprehended through a non-psychological approach that investigates its inner meaning regarding the human condition as such. In the latter perspective, we will be accompanied by the work of Brazilian author Gilberto Safra, whose clinical writings are concerned with an anthropological conception that approaches the human being in its own complexity, avoiding possible psychological reductionism of themes and issues that relate to other areas of experience, such as religiosity and spirituality. As the main axis of this discussion, we will utilize the life of Indian mystic Ramakrishna Paramahansa (1836-1886) to illustrate these two different ways of approaching spiritual experience. Ramakrishna has been himself one of the main sources of Rollands constructions on religiosity, leading the French author to write one of his main biographies (The life of Ramakrishna, 1929), which had an important impact on Western reception of Eastern spiritual conceptions. Contemplating examples from Ramakrishnas life through a phenomenological-hermeneutical reading of Rollands work (that range from his childhood to his period as a famous spiritual master in India), we will present, in each situation, different perspectives from authors that either consider Ramakrishna exclusively on a psychological-psychopathological note or through a perception of a spiritual dimension non-reducible to psychical dynamics inherent to his life and teachings. Within this framework, we have come to realize that there are inherent limitations on a solely psychological reading of mystical experience, as well as a limitation on an exclusively spiritual approach. Therefore, by presenting such discussion we intend to rethink the position mysticism and spirituality occupy in clinical practice, both to reformulate their understanding in psychotherapy and as a way of enlarging the anthropological conceptions inherent to clinical understanding of the human conditio
NMR spectroscopy: Systems, transfer functions, reachability and other system theoretic notions
No full textA survey of results is presented that show how system theoretic notions play an important role in NMR spectroscopy.</p
Tomographic Reconstruction of Defects in Composite Plates Using Genetic Algorithms with Cluster Analysis
No full textTomographic reconstruction of defects in composite plates is a complex procedure, as the elastic properties of the composites are direction-dependent also leading to the directional dependence of the wave velocities. Furthermore, at the interface of inhomogeneities a wave undergoes refraction, mode conversion, and beam skewing. A tomographic method for composite materials will have to deal with multiple elastic properties and ray bending. In the present approach, the genetic algorithm (GA), being an efficient optimization method, is used as a tool for reconstruction. The objective function of GA consists of three terms, viz. time-of-flight difference between the projection data and the data generated by the GA, the number of clusters in that data set, and the number of violation of bounds on variables. The laminate is considered thin, and Lamb waves are used as the source of radiation. A ray-tracing algorithm is used to determine the ray-paths, and an edge-detection algorithm is used to find out the boundary of the insert from the data created by the GA as it proceeds. This approach is successfully applied to simulated data sets, and the results are found to be quite encouraging
Stenchaetothrips indicus Ramakrishna & Margabandhu
No full textStenchaetothrips indicus (Ramakrishna & Margabandhu) (Figs 86–89) Fulmekiola indica Ramakrishna & Margabandhu, 1931: 1034 Anaphidothrips brasiliensis Hood, 1954: 212. Syn.n. Female macroptera. Body and legs clear yellow, abdominal segment X sometimes weakly shaded; antennal segments I–IV yellow, V weakly shaded near apex, VI–VII brown but VI usually paler at base; eyes with no pigmented facets; fore wing uniformly pale. Head with setae long (Fig. 86). Pronotum with 10– 20 setae in median area (Fig. 89). Metanotal sculpture typical of genus, without campaniform sensilla (Fig. 87). Tergites IV–VIII with little or no sculpture medially, posterior margins with no craspedum or teeth (Fig. 88); IX without anterior campaniform sensilla, median dorsal setae slender. Male macroptera. Similar to female; sternites III–V with transverse pore plate, VI–VIII with median pair of setae arising in front of margin; tergite IX median four pairs of setae arising in transverse row. Material studied. Queensland, Townsville, 1 female, 20.vii. 1968; Boigu Island, 1 female from Saccharum, 16.xi. 2009. New South Wales, 25km west of Mittagong, Bullio, 28 females, 6 males from Cymbopogon refractus leaves, 2.iv. 2010; Australian Capital Territory, Oakey Hill, 1 female, 1 male from Stipa sp., 3.iv. 2010. The following are essentially similar in structure but with a rather larger number of pronotal discal setae: Northern Territory, Darwin, one female, 20.xii. 1996; Thailand, Chiang Mai, 4 females from Cymbopogon, 28.i. 2005. Studied from BMNH, London: Thailand, Suphanburi, 2 females from Saccharum, vi. 1973. Pakistan, Rawalpindi, 1 female from Saccharum, 19.ix. 1980. Jamaica, Monynuck, 2 females from Saccharum, 26.i. 1965. Trinidad, near Arima, 3 females from grasses, xi. 1970. Comments. Although type material is not available, Bhatti (1982) indicated that S. sacchari (Kruger) from Java is possibly a senior synonym of indicus, a species that is widespread in India. Hood described brasiliensis from three females taken on Andropogon near Brasilia, and these have been compared with two females from Saccharum in Jamaica (Mound & Marullo, 1996). Moreover, as noted below, three females have now been studied from Trinidad, and these eight are the only specimens known from the Neotropics. Presumably, in common with S. biformis and S. minutus, this species has been introduced to that area from tropical Asia, possibly on sugar cane planting material. S. indicus is unique among the described species in the genus in lacking a comb of slender microtrichia on the posterior margin of tergite VIII in females. In this species, the posterior margin of tergite VIII bears a weak craspedum of small flat translucent lobes, but these vary in size and are not visible in all the available specimens, all of which are here interpreted as conspecific. The number of discal setae on the pronotum varies among the specimens studied, and females from Trinidad and Jamaica have an anterior pair of campaniform sensilla on tergite IX although these are not present in any of the other specimens listed above.Published as part of Mound, Laurence A., 2011, Grass-dependent Thysanoptera of the family Thripidae from Australia, pp. 1-40 in Zootaxa 3064 on page 35, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.20056
Scolothrips asura Ramakrishna & Margabhandu 1931
No full textScolothrips asura Ramakrishna & Margabhandu 1931: 1035 Scolothrips quadrinotata Han & Zhang 1982: 56 syn.n. Described from India, this strongly bicoloured species is sometimes taken from field crops, and is known from Thailand, Taiwan, Ryukyu Is (Japan), and northern Australia. There is nothing in the description of quadrinotata to distinguish it from asura, and Han (1997) indicated that he had described the species based on comparisons to details of setal lengths published by other authors, not by examining specimens. The head, metathorax, and abdominal segments I–II and VI–VIII are brown with bright red internal pigment in life. In contrast, the legs, pronotum and abdominal segments III–V are yellow, although segments IX–X vary from brownish yellow to brown. On the fore wing, the first dark band extends to the base of the wing and includes the clavus. The metanotal sculpture is similar to that of ochoa (Fig. 4), in contrast to the other species in the genus, but the antennae (Fig. 5) resemble those of typical Scolothrips species.Published as part of Mound, Laurence A., 2011, Species recognition in the genus Scolothrips (Thysanoptera, Thripidae), predators of leaf-feeding mites, pp. 45-53 in Zootaxa 2797 on page 47, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.20406
Building National Health Education Services
No full text This is the Eighth Annual Dorothy B. Nyswander Lecture and the first of these to be delivered by a former student of Dr. Nyswander. It was given in Berkeley on April 24, 1964 at the University of California School of Public Health. The lectureship was established in honor of Dr. Nyswander upon her retirement as Professor of Health Education at the University of California. Her “retirement” has been characterized by tremendous activity as a consultant in various parts of the world. At the time this lecture was delivered she had been in India for 3 years as a Ford Foundation adviser and had been working closely with the author in his capacity as director of the Central Health Education Bureau in India's Ministry of Health. Dr. Ramakrishna obtained his M.P.H. degree at Berkeley in 1955 under a World Health Organization fellowship. The following year he initiated the bureau which he still heads. </jats:p
Asterococcus ramakrishai Ramakrishna Ayyer
No full text<i>Asterococcus ramakrishai</i> (Ramakrishna Ayyer) <p>(Fig. 50)</p> <p> <i>Cerococcus ramakrishnae</i> Ramachandran & Ramakrishna Ayyar 1934: 86. <i>Nomen nudum.</i> <i>Cerococcus ramakrishnae</i> Ramakrishna Ayyar 1937: 148.</p> <p> <i>Asterococcus ramakrishnai</i> Lambdin 1983: 304 –306. Synonymy by Miller & Gimpel 1999: 216. Homonym. <i>Asterococcus ramakrishnai</i>; Miller & Gimpel 1999: 216 (Justified emendation).</p> <p> <b> Type details. <i>Cerococcus ramakrishnae</i>, INDIA</b> , Tamil Nadu, Coimbatore, on rootlets of <i>Ficus</i> sp., Ramakrishna, #335. <b>Depository: BMNH</b>: <b>lectotype</b> adf (designated by Miller & Gimpel 1999: 216) + 1/1 paralectotype adff.</p> <p> <b> Type details. <i>Asterococcus ramakrishnai,</i> INDIA</b> , Madras, Coimbatore, Bombay, on aerial roots of <i>Ficus</i> sp., 28.ix.1903, G. Compere. <b>Depository: USNM</b>: <b>holotype</b> adf (USNM; type no. 1385) and 2/3 <b>paratype</b> adff.</p> <p> <b>Material studied.</b> <i>C. ramakrishnae</i>: Lectotype + paralectotype ff: INDIA, Coimbatore, on aerial roots of <i>Ficus</i> sp. (Moraceae), no date, Ramakrisha #335 (BMNH): 2/4adff (p–vp—labelled Lectotype on sleeve but slides very poor).</p> <p> <b>Also</b>: <i>Cerococcus</i> sp.: INDIA, Rhamba, Lake Chilka, N.E. Madras, on aerial roots of <i>Ficus</i> sp., no date, Ind. Mus. Coll. (BMNH): 1/3adff (g); also same data but dated 5.iii.1910 (BMNH): 2/4adff (f—mounted from dried material by CJH). Also, dried material labelled with the same data as Lectotype but on <i>Ficus benghalensis</i>, and dated 24.x.1931 (BMNH); and Central Farm, Coimbatore, <i>Ficus religiosa</i>, 24.v.1931, T.V. Ramakrishna (BMNH).</p> <p>Note. Description made from Lake Chilka material.</p> <p> <b>Mounted material.</b> Body roundly pear-shaped, 1.9–2.0 mm long, 1.7–1.8 mm wide.</p> <p> <b>Dorsum.</b> Eight-shaped pores of 1 size, quite small, each 5 x 3 µm, occasional around margin but absent medially on cephalothorax; in 3 transverse bands across abdominal segments, perhaps on segments IV, VI and also just anterior to median plate; each line mainly 1 pore wide. Cribriform plates absent. Dorsal setae showing nothing distinctive. Tubular ducts narrow, with outer ductule 18–20 µm long; cup-shaped invagination without teeth; of 1 size only. Anal lobes distinctly sclerotized throughout, each lobe with a short sclerotized extension anteriorly (which can look like an anteroventral sclerotization but is dorsal!); each lobe about 80 µm long, with a long apical seta, all broken but at least 100 µm long; more apical fleshy setae on dorsal surface straight, and sharply pointed, each 12–16 µm long; more basal fleshy setae longer with a blunt apex, each 18–20 µm long; inner margin of each lobe with 5 or (more usually) 6 stoutly setose setae, each about 20 µm long; ventral seta near apex of each lobe absent; medioventral or outer margin setae 12 µm long; each lobe with 4 or 5 8-shaped pores in a line on each surface. Median anal plate 60–70 µm long, 45–55 µm wide at base, with a pointed, slightly serrate apex. Anal ring with 4 pairs of setae, each 75–85 µm long, narrowing gradually towards apex.</p> <p> <b>Venter.</b> Eight-shaped pores of 2 sizes: (i) a slightly larger pore than those on dorsum, each 6.0 x 3.5 µm, in a marginal band extending medially almost to each spiracle and with antennae lying within band, and (ii) a pore similar to the smaller pore on dorsum, sparse on each side of marginal band and in narrow bands, mainly 1 or 2 pores wide, across all abdominal segments. Simple pores very sparse, each 1.5 µm wide, most abundant on abdomen. Small bilocular pores oval, each about 3 µm widest, present medially on head and thorax. Spiracular disc-pores small, each about 3.0 µm wide with mainly 6–8 loculi, in a ring surrounding each spiracular atrium, and then in a short radial band 3–6 pores wide but widening and becoming denser as band reaches marginal band of 8- shaped pores, before narrowing again near margin; posterior band bifurcated; each band with 150+ disc pores; each apex with six to nine 8-shaped pores; also with 20–35 loculate pores near each antenna, each group often with an 8- shaped pore. Multilocular disc-pores large, each about 8 µm wide, of unusual structure, each with a divided central loculus, and 10 outer loculi; in transverse bands mainly 1 pore wide across 3 segments, with totals as follows: VII 0; VI 5–14; V 26–35, and IV 22–28; bands becoming 2 pores wide near margin. Tubular ducts similar to those on dorsum, fairly abundant marginally but absent outside of marginal band on cephalothorax although present in posterior abdominal segments. Ventral setae slightly more abundant than on dorsum but all setose and short; present in distinct segmental lines on abdominal segments; preanal setae each 40–45 µm long, companion setae short. Leg stubs absent but with dermal folds in this position. Antennae short, each 10–13 µm long, 15–18 µm wide; apex rounded without either a setal cavity or a cone-like extension. Clypeolabral shield 145 µm long. Spiracular peritremes each 25–27 µm wide. Anteroventral sclerotizations on anal lobes absent.</p> <p> <b>Comment</b>. Lambdin obviously discovered further slides not identified to species when he described <i>A. ramakrishnai</i> in 1983. The above description is basically similar to that of Lambdin (1983) but some differences were found: (i) no leg stubs could be detected. Lambdin illustrates a metathoracic leg stub, with a distinct claw but states in the text “Legs absent”. There do appear to be small dermal folds in the approximate position of the legs. (ii) Lambdin shows multilocular disc-pores in abdominal segment VII but none were in this position on the above material. (iii) The smaller ventral 8-shaped pores appeared to form transverse bands on all abdominal segments (only shown on segment IV and posteriorly).</p> <p>The following combination of character-states appear diagnostic: (i) anteroventral sclerotizations absent; (ii) five or six spinose setae present along inner margin of each anal lobe; (iii) dorsal fleshy setae on anal lobes rather spinose; (iv) tubular ducts on dorsum of one size only; (v) 8-shaped pores on dorsum all small and restricted to bands across abdominal segments IV, VI and VIII; (vi) cribriform plates absent; (vii) leg stubs absent; (viii) posterior stigmatic bands bifurcated; (ix) tubular ducts absent medially on venter of cephalothorax; (x) tubular ducts and 8-shaped pores on venter in a broad marginal band extending medially past each antenna; (xi) multilocular disc-pores unusually large (each about 8 Μm wide), with a divided or double inner loculus; (xii) multilocular disc-pores present only on abdominal segments IV–VI; (xiii) stigmatic pore bands short, not reaching dorsum; (xiv) spiracular disc pores each with mainly 6–8 loculi; (xv) spiracular disc-pores forming a ring or band around spiracular atrium, and (xvi) antennae without a cone-like apex or setal cavity.</p> <p> Most of these character-states are typical for adult females of species of <i>Asterococcus</i>. For a discussion of the differences between <i>Asterococcus</i> and <i>Antecerococcus</i>, see under <i>Antecerococcus ovoides</i> above.</p>Published as part of <i>Chris J. Hodgson & Douglas J. Williams, 2016, (Hemiptera: Sternorrhyncha, Coccomorpha) with particular reference to species from the Afrotropical, western Palaearctic and western Oriental Regions, with the revival of Antecerococcus Green and description of a new genus and fifteen new species, and with ten new synonomies, pp. 1-175 in Zootaxa 4091 (1)</i> on pages 140-142, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4091.1.1, <a href="http://zenodo.org/record/265332">http://zenodo.org/record/265332</a>
Mechanistic Studies on Covalent Assemblies of Metal-Mediated Hemi-Aminal Ethers
No full textThe use of reversible covalent bonding in a four-component assembly incorporating chiral alcohols was recently reported to give a method for determining the enantiomeric excess of the alcohols via CD spectroscopy. Experiments that probe the mechanism of this assembly, which consists of 2-formylpyridine (2-PA), dipicolylamine (DPA), Zn(II) and alcohols to yield zinc complexes of tren-like ligands, are presented. The studies focus upon the mechanism of conversion of a hemi-aminal (1) to a hemi-aminal ether (3), thereby incorporating the fourth component. It was found that molecular sieves along with 3 to 4 equivalents of alcohol are required to drive the conversion of 1 to 3. Attempts to isolate an intermediate in this reaction via addition of strong Lewis acids led to the discovery of a five-membered ring pyridinium salt (5), but upon exposure to Zn(II) and alcohols gave different products to the assembly. This was interpreted to support the intermediacy of an iminium species. Kinetic studies reveal that the conversion of 1 to 3 is zero-order in alcohol in large excesses of alcohol, supporting rate-determining formation of an intermediate prior to reaction with alcohol. Further, the magnitudes of the rate constants for interconversion of 1 and 3 are similar, supporting the notion that there are similar rate-determining steps (rds) for the forward and reverse reactions. Hammett plots show that the rds involves creation of a negative charge (interpreted as the loss of positive charge), supporting the notion that the decomplexation of Zn(II) from the assemblies to generate apo-forms of 1 and 3 is rate-determining. The individual mechanistic conclusions are combined to create a qualitative reaction coordinate diagram for the interconversion of 1 and 3.National Institutes of Health R01GM077437Welch Foundation F-1151, F-1390National Science Foundation CHE-1212971NIH GM059802Chemistr
Deposition and Characterisation of SnS Thin Films for Application in Photovoltaic Solar Cell Devices
No full textThin films of SnS have been deposited onto heated glass substrates using the thermal evaporation method and the chemical and physical properties of the layers determined and correlated to the deposition conditions and to post-deposition heat treatments. In particular scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray analysis, X-ray di.ractrometry and Raman studies were used to determine the material properties, transmittance and reflectance spectroscopy to determine the optical constants and 4-probe and van der Pauw measurements to determine the electrical properties. The results indicate that for a wide range of deposition conditions it is possible to produce high quality layers of SnS that are free from pin-holes and cracks, that are made of densely packed grains, and that adhere strongly to the substrate. For substrate temperatures between 280°C to 360°C it is possible to produce single phase SnS layers. The energy bandgap of these layers was in the range 1.3eV to 1.35eV, was direct, and had an optical absorption coefficient α > 105 cm-1 for photons with energies greater than the energy bandgap. The electrical properties indicate that all the layers are p-conductivity type with resistivities in the range 40Ωcm to 100Ωcm. Solar cell devices were fabricated in the superstrate and substrate configurations using n-type cadmium sulphide (CdS) and zinc indium diselenide (ZIS) buffer layers to partner the p-type SnS. The devices were investigated by measuring the I-V characteristics in the dark, to determine the predominant conduction mechanisms, the I-V characteristics under illumination to determine the open-circuit voltage V, the short circuit current density Jsc, the fill factor FF and solar conversion efficiency of the devices, C-V studies to determine the doping profile in the SnS and the built-in voltage at the junction and spectral response measurements to determine the minority carrier diffusion length in the p-SnS. Devices made with CdS as the n-type partner had a high density of interface states (1.36 x 1011 F C-1cm-2) with low photovoltaic parameters and a negative
band offset of -0.36 eV obtained (as measured using x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy). The best devices made were substrate configuration solar cells in which the back contact on glass was molybdenum and the bu.er layer was ZIS. These devices have Voc = 472 mV, Jsc = 16.1 mA/cm2 , FF = 0.38 and a solar conversion efficiency of 2.9%. This is a world record efficiency for SnS-based solar cells at the time of submission of this PhD thesis
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