Search Results (61)

New theologies developed in tandem with evolutionary biology during the nineteenth century, which have been called metaphysical evolutionisms and evolutionary theologies. A subset of these theologies analyzed here were developed by thinkers who accepted biological science but rejected both biblical creationism and materialist science. Tools from the cognitive science of religion, including conceptual metaphor theory (CMT) and blending theory, also known as conceptual integration theory (CIT), can help to explain the development of these systems and their transformation between the nineteenth and the twentieth centuries. The analysis focuses on several stable and popular blends of ideas, which have continued with some alteration into the twenty-first century. The three blends evaluated here are Progressive Soul Evolution, Salvation is Evolution, and Evolution is Therapy. Major contributors to these blends are the theosophist and theologian Helena P. Blavatsky and psychologist Frederic W. H. Myers, both influenced by the spiritualist movement, particularly the ideas of the spiritualist and biologist Alfred Russel Wallace. The influence of these blends can be seen in the twentieth-century “Aquarian Frontier,” a group of 145 thinkers and organizations identified in 1975 by counterculture historian Theodore Roszak. Part of the appeal of these blends may be seen in their use of metaphors, including the Great Chain of Being and A Purposeful Life is a Journey. The application of the polysemic term evolution in a sense that does much of the theological work of salvation in Christianity can in part be explained by applying the principles of blending theory, including the vital relation “achieve a human scale,” as well as compressions of time and identity. These blends have been successful because they meet the needs of a population who are friendly towards science but disenchanted with traditional religions. The blends provide a satisfying new theology that extends beyond death for a subset of adherents, particularly in the New Age and spiritual but not religious (SBNR) movements, who combine the agency of self-directed “evolution” with the religious concepts of grace and transcendence. Full article

“Moral shocks” are unexpected events or pieces of information that so deeply challenge one’s basic values and sense of the world that they profoundly reorient a person’s understanding of life and even self. Yet those who experience significant moral shocks rarely participate in related activism and instead experience grief as highly privatized and apolitical, a reality that serves the status quo and most powerful. This article considers how religious resources can help metabolize private grief into public lament and catalyze political grievance. Analyzing the rise of gun control activism after an elementary school mass shooting in Nashville, Tennessee, I argue religious resources help metabolize moral shocks into social change in five significant ways: (1) cultivating practiced, purposeful pathos, (2) offering collective lament, (3) building networked resiliency materially and theologically, (4) risking new alliances of accompaniment, and (5) storying hope. This case analysis contributes to a broader claim for political theology: Christianity can be understood as a movement based on a moral shock. This framing then animates practices of care to accompany those in moral distress and help disciple grief into a movement of faith that resists death-dealing political and social policy. Full article

Living and dying well together in the Anthropocene, in the context of intensifying climate crises, global pandemics, and fast-paced hustle culture, is an increasingly daunting task. While many wellness movements call for strict regimes and vigorous activity, striving for largely unattainable bodily norms and longevity, an emerging trend centres on embracing natural processes and temporalities of resistance focused on relaxation, rest, and even decay. So-called ‘girl mossing’ and ‘girl rotting’ encourage women to be intentionally unproductive, and to spend time instead lying on a forest floor, staring up at a canopy of trees, caressing moss. Similarly, members of the ‘death positive’ and ‘new death’ movements advocate for sensorial connection with nature at the end of life, and for an embrace of practices of decay and decomposition. Both trends are dominated by women and influenced by Buddhist and Pagan traditions. They also exemplify spiritual complexity, particularly relating to biomedicine and consumerism. Examining these interconnected lifestyle and deathstyle movements, this article considers the uptake of ‘relational naturalism’ in contemporary societies as an antidote to the personal and planetary harms of neoliberal capitalism. Full article

Pulmonary homeostasis can be agitated either by external environmental insults or endogenous factors produced during respiratory/pulmonary diseases. The lungs counter these insults by initiating mechanisms of inflammation as a localized, non-specific first-line defense response. Cytokines are small signaling glycoprotein molecules that control the immune response. They are formed by numerous categories of cell types and induce the movement, growth, differentiation, and death of cells. During respiratory diseases, multiple proinflammatory cytokines play a crucial role in orchestrating chronic inflammation and structural changes in the respiratory tract by recruiting inflammatory cells and maintaining the release of growth factors to maintain inflammation. The issue aggravates when the inflammatory response is exaggerated and/or cytokine production becomes dysregulated. In such instances, unresolving and chronic inflammatory reactions and cytokine production accelerate airway remodeling and maladaptive outcomes. Pro-inflammatory cytokines generate these deleterious consequences through interactions with receptors, which in turn initiate a signal in the cell, triggering a response. The cytokine profile and inflammatory cascade seen in different pulmonary diseases vary and have become fundamental targets for advancement in new therapeutic strategies for lung diseases. There are considerable therapeutic approaches that target cytokine-mediated inflammation in pulmonary diseases; however, blocking specific cytokines may not contribute to clinical benefit. Alternatively, broad-spectrum anti-inflammatory approaches are more likely to be clinically effective. Herein, this comprehensive review of the literature identifies various cytokines (e.g., interleukins, chemokines, and growth factors) involved in pulmonary inflammation and the pathogenesis of respiratory diseases (e.g., asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary, lung cancer, pneumonia, and pulmonary fibrosis) and investigates targeted therapeutic treatment approaches. Full article

Urban air mobility (UAM) and drones can significantly improve traffic movement in saturated cities because the skies above them are not frequently used; furthermore, they do not require large-scale infrastructure, like roads and subways do. Thus, UAM vehicles and drones present themselves as new means of transportation in cities. They can be rapidly deployed if their operational safety is secured. However, to date, no precise numerical study has been conducted on the safety of UAM vehicles and drones. In this study, the accident rates of UAM vehicles and drones are predicted based on the accident rates of conventional aircraft. Additionally, control measures for UAM vehicles and drones are presented at a basic level. The results can be summarized as follows: First, in terms of accident rates, for a projected total UAM vehicle flight distance of 650 km and 177,147 h of flight in Seoul in 2035, 0.000221 crashes, 0.45 takeoff/landing accidents, and 0.0011446 deaths are expected. Second, if drones handle 0.5% of the logistics in Seoul in 2035, 38.35 crashes and 7.51 takeoff/landing accidents are projected per year. However, these numbers are plausible only if the infrastructure required for UAM vehicle and drone flights, such as taxiways and flight paths, is built similarly to that for large aircraft. Additionally, UAM vehicles and drones, as with large aircraft, can cause serious damage to facilities and human lives on the ground in the event of a crash. Therefore, thorough response mechanisms for crashes are required even if the crash probability is extremely low. Finally, integration with smart city systems is suggested to monitor UAM vehicle and drone flights and the safety of urban residents. The transportation services of smart cities include emergency dispatch and disaster notification services, which help in immediately notifying the degree of risk to potentially affected urban residents and facilities in the event of a UAM vehicle/drone crash or an emergency. The transportation services of smart cities are also typically equipped with accident handling processes. Therefore, integrating UAM and drone systems into smart city systems is highly recommended. Full article

People, in increasing numbers, are seeking orthodontic treatment to correct malocclusion, while some of them are suffering from orthodontically induced inflammatory root resorption (OIIRR). Recent evidence suggests that the immune-inflammatory response occurring during bone remodeling may be responsible for OIIRR. Ferroptosis, a new type of programmed cell death (PCD), has been found to have a close interrelation with inflammation during disease progression. While ferroptosis has been extensively studied in bone-related diseases, its role in OIIRR is poorly understood. Considering that the tooth root shares a lot of similar characteristics with bone, it is reasonable to hypothesize that ferroptosis contributes to the development of OIIRR. Nevertheless, direct evidence supporting this theory is currently lacking. In this review, we introduced ferroptosis and elucidated the mechanisms underlying orthodontic tooth movement (OTM) and OIIRR, with a special focus on the pivotal role inflammation plays in these processes. Additionally, we covered recent research exploring the connections between inflammation and ferroptosis. Lastly, we emphasized the important regulatory function of ferroptosis in bone homeostasis. Further investigations are required to clarify the modulation mechanisms of ferroptosis in OIIRR and to develop novel and potential therapeutic strategies for the management of OIIRR. Full article

Sōka-gakkai (also known as Soka Gakkai International or SGI) is a new religious movement that originated in Japan in 1930. For more than a half century, the religion was led by its president Daisaku Ikeda, who played a significant role in its growth from 1960 until his death in 2023. Although SGI is one of the largest new religions in the world—it claims to have over 12 million members in 192 countries—there has to date been very limited scholarly attention paid to the religion and Ikeda’s religious thoughts. The latter is particularly important given the fact that Ikeda has written extensively on the applicability and implications of the doctrines of the SGI in many global issues of the day, including peace, education, environment, and interreligious dialogue. Among a wide variety of issues which can be examined, the paper focuses on the following question: What are Ikeda’s religious thoughts, particularly his stance on religious pluralism and interreligious dialogue? In view of this question, this paper examines how his religious ideas are not immersed in any specific religion, but emphasizes the importance of pursuing interreligious dialogue while acknowledging other religions and cultural traditions. This paper also critically assesses whether Ikeda’s call for interfaith dialogue and collaborations with various religious groups is indeed taking place in the SGI’s commitment to fostering a culture of peace and understanding. It is hoped that the examination of Ikeda’s stance on religious pluralism and interreligious dialogue indirectly allows for the exploration of a religion that is largely unknown and misunderstood. Full article

In this paper, I provide a close examination of early Christian biographical sources through the heuristic lens of “home studies”, tracing a thread from the New Testament Gospels to martyrdom texts, the apocryphal Acts literature, Eusebius’ biography of Origen in his Church History, and finally, Athanasius’ Life of Antony. I demonstrate that the lens of home allows us to see that in each of these discrete groups of texts, Christ’s call to discipleship is understood to redefine and reconstitute the meaning of home and relatedly, family: to be “home” required a great deal of displacement and mobility as one forsook one’s biological family and household for the sake of obedience to the call of Christ. I argue that three topics, typically examined separately, are fruitfully brought together through the lens of home: (1) the shaping of ancient Christian identity formation, as expressed by the characters’ use of familial language to identify other members of the early Christian movement; (2) the mobile nature of the person who joins the movement, providing insights about the mobility and travel of many of its members; and (3) ancient Christian eschatological thought concerning the final dwelling of Christ-believers in some form of otherworldly home after death. Full article

Background/Objectives: Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder characterized by the loss of upper and lower motor neurons. Key factors contributing to neuronal death include mitochondrial energy damage, oxidative stress, and excitotoxicity. The frontal cortex is crucial for action initiation, planning, and voluntary movements whereas the spinal cord facilitates communication with the brain, walking, and reflexes. By investigating transcriptome data from the frontal cortex and spinal cord, we aim to elucidate common pathological mechanisms and pathways involved in ALS for understanding the disease progression and identifying potential therapeutic targets. Methods: In this study, we quantified gene and transcript expression patterns, predicted variants, and assessed their functional effects using computational tools. It also includes predicting variant-associated regulatory effects, constructing functional interaction networks, and performing a gene enrichment analysis. Results: We found novel genes for the upregulation of immune response, and the downregulation of metabolic-related and defective degradation processes in both the spinal cord and frontal cortex. Additionally, we observed the dysregulation of histone regulation and blood pressure-related genes specifically in the frontal cortex. Conclusions: These results highlight the distinct and shared molecular disruptions in ALS, emphasizing the critical roles of immune response and metabolic dysfunction in neuronal degeneration. Targeting these pathways may provide new therapeutic avenues to combat neurodegeneration and preserve neuronal health. Full article

Winter is the season of main concern for beekeepers since the temperature, humidity, and potential infection from mites and other diseases may lead the colony to death. As a consequence, beekeepers perform invasive checks on the colonies, exposing them to further harm. This paper proposes a novel design of an instrumented beehive involving color cameras placed inside the beehive and at the bottom of it, paving the way for new frontiers in beehive monitoring. The overall acquisition system is described focusing on design choices towards an effective solution for internal, contactless, and stress-free beehive monitoring. To validate our approach, we conducted an experimental campaign in 2023 and analyzed the collected images with YOLOv8 to understand if the proposed solution can be useful for beekeepers and what kind of information can be derived from this kind of monitoring, including the presence of Varroa destructor mites inside the beehive. We experimentally found that the observation point inside the beehive is the most challenging due to the frequent movements of the bees and the difficulties related to obtaining in-focus images. However, from these images, it is possible to find Varroa destructor mites. On the other hand, the observation point at the bottom of the beehive showed great potential for understanding the overall activity of the colony. Full article

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), tuberculosis (TB) remains a significant global health challenge, with approximately 10 million new cases and 1.4 million deaths reported in 2020. TB disproportionately affects low- and middle-income countries, where factors such as migrant population, malnutrition, type 2 diabetes, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) co-infection, and COVID-19 exacerbate its impact. TB also leads to substantial economic losses due to decreased productivity and high healthcare costs. Despite advances in treatments, TB remains a major public health issue, particularly in poorer regions. In Mexico, TB is considered a moderate-incidence disease, with higher prevalence in border states, mainly due to population displacements. Effective TB control requires collaboration between Mexico and the United States of America given the high cross-border human movement, like in the Baja California State that reported predominantly pulmonary TB cases. Effective management of TB involves rapid diagnosis and identification of antibiotic resistance. Techniques such as PCR, high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT), and/or Xpert MTB/RIF have enhanced diagnostic accuracy. Future perspectives about TB management focus on developing new drugs and vaccines to combat drug-resistant strains, and the comorbidities associated, which must be addressed to reinforce of health public programs. Full article

This article begins with a short reconstruction of the long-forgotten Death of God movement and its development of the concept of a Radical Theology during the 1960s in the United States of America and in Western Germany (The “Death of God” as a Signature of Secular Culture). In my view, protestant theology and the church have thus far failed to discuss Nietzsche’s proclamation of the “Death of God” as a genuine signature of modernity in a constructive way. In refusing the debate, they did not see the theological potential of the diagnostic and ambiguous metaphor “Death of God” as a “tremendous event still on its way”. With regard to a current perspective on Radical Theology (The Rise of Religious Fundamentalism and the Renaissance of Radical Theology), the intention is a creative and radical interpretation of this heretical concept as a step towards a modern religiosity after (the Death of) God which includes a new awareness of the finitude of human life and of its limitations. The theological symbol of the “Death of God” in my concept of “Heretical Religiosity” leads to a new approach to the theology of wisdom as symbolized in the Hebrew Bible by the book of Ecclesiastes (Heretical Religiosity: Radical Theology and Wisdom Literature in the Hebrew Bible). Full article

The motif of shame represents an interesting and hitherto neglected intersection in the discussion of the relationship between Nietzsche and Plato. The first part of the essay recapitulates the function of this motif in Nietzsche’s culminating texts (mainly Zarathustra and Gay Science), while the second part focuses on the motif of shame in Plato’s work, specifically the two extreme contexts of death (Apology, Crito) and love (Symposium). It turns out that for both authors, shame is a constitutive moral phenomenon that is thematized in relation to logos. Shame and logos thus stand in close and contrasting relation. Their tension is decisive for the life of the soul, for its upward movement (Plato) or gradation (Nietzsche). It is therefore not a simple subjugation of the “bad”, irrational element by the “good”, rational component of the soul that plays the central role but an interplay of irreducible, mutually demanding moments. The interpretation of their interplay has both historical and systematic importance—it sheds new light on the relationship between these seemingly opposing philosophers and contributes to answering the following question: what is there to be ashamed of? Full article

The early life movement patterns of long-lived, large raptors, such as the white-tailed eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla), remain largely unexplored. In this study, we have tracked 22 individuals of white-tailed eagles hatched in Denmark to investigate key parameters, including survival rates, causes of death, nest site fidelity, geographical distribution, and dispersal behaviors. Our analyses are based on approximately 340,000 GPS/GSM telemetry positions from the 22 individuals. We found that survival rates were lower in the first year of life, especially among females, but increased in subsequent years. The primary causes of death were wind turbine collisions and avian influenza. Movement analyses revealed that juvenile eagles frequented nest sites in August and September, with females showing earlier exploratory flights and dispersal. Both males and females spent most of their first calendar year near their nest sites. In the second calendar year, a significant proportion of their time was spent at well-known white-tailed eagle resting areas in Denmark, as well as visiting neighboring countries. Notably, one individual set a new distance record for a Danish GPS-tagged white-tailed eagle, venturing at least 1750 km away from its nest site to visit Sweden, Finland, Russia, and Norway. Our results, indicating that juvenile white-tailed eagles continue to utilize nest sites into September, suggest an extension of the recommended time period for nest protection zones provided by BirdLife Denmark (DOF). Full article

Resilient necrocapitalism and the zombie genre of representations of current dystopias are persistent in their political purpose in producing changes in the social order to benefit plutocracies around the world. It is through a thanatopolitical lens that we should view the successive losses of life, and this zombie genre has come to represent a dystopia that, for political purposes, is intended to produce changes in societies which have tolerated the violent deaths of women. This article focuses on contemporary Greece and proposes a theoretical framework where femicide is understood as a social phenomenon that reflects a global gendered necropolitical logic which equals genocide. Such theoretical assemblages have to be situated within intersectional imperatives and tacitly as the result of the capitalist terror state performed in an expansive and direct immediate death, exacerbated by the lingering slow social death of the welfare state. The article contends that the scripted hetero-patriarchal social order of the necrocapitalist state poses a unique political threat to societies. With the silence of the complicity of the state, what is necessary is the creation and spread of new political knowledge and new social movements as resilient political tactics of resistance. This article foregrounds an ecofeminist perspective on these issues and considers ways through which new pedagogies of hope can counter the gendered necropolitics of contemporary capitalism in Greece. Full article