The Monumental Barrows of the Period 700-1100 AD at the Russian North-West

Nicholas Petrov. The Monumental Barrows of the Period 700-11 AD in the Russian North-West The research deals with the monumental barrows erected in the Russian north-west in the period of 700-1100 AD, which Russian archaeological literature has traditionally named sopka-barrows. These sopka-barrows were analysed as original sacral and funeral structures and considered in the context of cultural processes under way in that region at the time. The position occupied by the sopka-barrows in the culture of the people who erected them was reconstructed on the basis of a synthesis of various kinds of sources - archaeological, written, folklore. The high barrows are not in fact a determining type of the sites of the so-called "culture of the sopka-barrows" in modern literature, which focuses rather on settlements near to which sopka-barrows are absent. Recent excavations have revealed the presence of "surface" burial places (cremation located on the top of the barrow repeatedly rather than only once) in the majority of the sopka-barrows. The materials only provide evidence about the sacrificial nature of the graves in the "body" of the sopka-barrows. They thus offer an embodiment of one element of the widespread views about the dead man's path to the world of the dead (mountain) which is traced in folklore texts. Special attention was paid to the question of the disappearance of the tradition of erecting sopka-barrows and to the nature of their role in the culture of the region during the period 1000-1200 AD. The functioning of the sopka-barrows as funeral monuments in the second millennium AD is also traced on the inlet inhumatios found in them.

Problem of Tragedy and Tragic Consciousness in Russia at the turn of the 19th Century

This project intertwines philosophical and historico-literary themes, taking as its starting point the concept of tragic consciousness inherent in the epoch of classicism. The research work makes use of ontological categories in order to describe the underlying principles of the image of the world which was created in philosophical and scientific theories of the 17th century as well as in contemporary drama. Using these categories brought Mr. Vilk to the conclusion that the classical picture of the world implied a certain dualism; not the Manichaean division between light and darkness but the discrimination between nature and absolute being, i.e. God. Mr. Vilk begins with an examination of the philosophical essence of French classical theatre of the XVII and XVIII centuries. The history of French classical tragedy can be divided into three periods: from the mid 17th to early 19th centuries when it triumphed all over France and exerted a powerful influence over almost all European countries; followed by the period of its rejection by the Romantics, who declared classicism to be "artificial and rational"; and finally our own century which has taken a more moderate line. Nevertheless, French classical tragedy has never fully recovered its status. Instead, it is ancient tragedy and the works of Shakespeare that are regarded to be the most adequate embodiment of the tragic. Consequently they still provoke a great number of new interpretations ranging from specialised literary criticism to more philosophical rumination. An important feature of classical tragedy is a system of rules and unities which reveals a hidden ontological structure of the world. The ontological picture of the dramatic world can be described in categories worked out by medieval philosophy - being, essence and existence. The first category is to be understood as a tendency toward permanency and stability (within eternity) connected with this or that fragment of dramatic reality. The second implies a certain set of permanent elements that make up the reality. And the third - existence - should be understood as "an act of being", as a realisation of permanently renewed processes of life. All of these categories can be found in every artistic reality but the accents put on one or another and their interrelations create different ontological perspectives. Mr. Vilk plots the movement of thought, expressed in both philosophical and scientific discourses, away from Aristotle's essential forms, and towards a prioritising of existence, and shows how new forms of literature and drama structured the world according to these evolving requirements. At the same time the world created in classical tragedy fully preserves another ontological paradigm - being - as a fundamental permanence. As far as the tragic hero's motivations are concerned this paradigm is revealed in the dedication of his whole self to some cause, and his oath of fidelity, attitudes which shape his behaviour. It may be the idea of the State, or personal honour, or something borrowed from the emotional sphere, passionate love. Mr. Vilk views the conflicting ambivalence of existence and being, duty as responsibility and duty as fidelity, as underlying the main conflict of classical tragedy of the 17th century. Having plotted the movement of the being/existence duality through its manifestations in 17th century tragedy, Mr. Vilk moves to the 18th century, when tragedy took a philosophical turn. A dualistic view of the world became supplanted by the Enlightenment idea of a natural law, rooted in nature. The main point of tragedy now was to reveal that such conflicts as might take place had an anti-rational nature, that they arose as the result of a kind of superstition caused by social reasons. These themes Mr. Vilk now pursues through Russian dramatists of the 18th and early 19th centuries. He begins with Sumarakov, whose philosophical thought has a religious bias. According to Sumarakov, the dualism of the divineness and naturalness of man is on the one hand an eternal paradox, and on the other, a moral challenge for humans to try to unite the two opposites. His early tragedies are not concerned with social evils or the triumph of natural feelings and human reason, but rather the tragic disharmony in the nature of man and the world. Mr Vilk turns next to the work of Kniazhnin. He is particularly keen to rescue his reputation from the judgements of critics who accuse him of being imitative, and in order to do so, analyses in detail the tragedy "Dido", in which Kniazhnin makes an attempt to revive the image of great heroes and city-founders. Aeneas represents the idea of the "being" of Troy, his destiny is the re-establishment of the city (the future Rome). The moral aspect behind this idea is faithfulness, he devotes himself to Gods. Dido is also the creator of a city, endowed with "natural powers" and abilities, but her creation is lacking internal stability grounded in "being". The unity of the two motives is only achieved through Dido's sacrifice of herself and her city to Aeneus. Mr Vilk's next subject is Kheraskov, whose peculiarity lies in the influence of free-mason mysticism on his work. This section deals with one of the most important philosophical assumptions contained in contemporary free-mason literature of the time - the idea of the trinitarian hierarchy inherent in man and the world: body - soul - spirit, and nature - law - grace. Finally, Mr. Vilk assess the work of Ozerov, the last major Russian tragedian. The tragedies which earned him fame, "Oedipus in Athens", "Fingal" and "Dmitri Donskoi", present a compromise between the Enlightenment's emphasis on harmony and ontological tragic conflict. But it is in "Polixene" that a real meeting of the Russian tradition with the age-old history of the genre takes place. The male and female characters of "Polixene" distinctly express the elements of "being" and "existence". Each of the participants of the conflict possesses some dominant characteristic personifying a certain indispensable part of the moral world, a certain "virtue". But their independent efforts are unable to overcome the ontological gap separating them. The end of the tragedy - Polixene's sacrificial self-immolation - paradoxically combines the glorification of each party involved in the conflict, and their condemnation. The final part of Mr. Vilk's research deals with the influence of "Polixene" upon subsequent dramatic art. In this respect Katenin's "Andromacha", inspired by "Polixene", is important to mention. In "Andromacha" a decisive divergence from the principles of the philosophical tragedy of Russian classicism and the ontology of classicism occurs: a new character appears as an independent personality, directed by his private interest. It was Katenin who was to become the intermediary between Pushkin and classical tragedy.

Method of Detecting System Function by Measuring Frequency Response

Methods of rapidly measuring an impedance spectrum of an energy storage device in-situ over a limited number of logarithmically distributed frequencies are described. An energy storage device is excited with a known input signal, and aresponse is measured to ascertain the impedance spectrum. An excitation signal is a limited time duration sum-of-sines consisting of a select number offrequencies. In one embodiment, magnitude and phase of each frequency ofinterest within the sum-of-sines is identified when the selected frequencies and sample rate are logarithmic integer steps greater than two. This technique requires a measurement with a duration of one period of the lowest frequency. In another embodiment, where selected frequencies are distributed in octave steps, the impedance spectrum can be determined using a captured time record that is reduced to a half-period of the lowest frequency.

Allocentric visual cues influence mental transformation of bodies

Identifying a human body stimulus involves mentally rotating an embodied spatial representation of one's body (motoric embodiment) and projecting it onto the stimulus (spatial embodiment). Interactions between these two processes (spatial and motoric embodiment) may thus reveal cues about the underlying reference frames. The allocentric visual reference frame, and hence the perceived orientation of the body relative to gravity, was modulated using the York Tumbling Room, a fully furnished cubic room with strong directional cues that can be rotated around a participant's roll axis. Sixteen participants were seated upright (relative to gravity) in the Tumbling Room and made judgments about body and hand stimuli that were presented in the frontal plane at orientations of 0°, 90°, 180° (upside down), or 270° relative to them. Body stimuli have an intrinsic visual polarity relative to the environment whereas hands do not. Simultaneously the room was oriented 0°, 90°, 180° (upside down), or 270° relative to gravity resulting in sixteen combinations of orientations. Body stimuli were more accurately identified when room and body stimuli were aligned. However, such congruency did not facilitate identifying hand stimuli. We conclude that static allocentric visual cues can affect embodiment and hence performance in an egocentric mental transformation task. Reaction times to identify either hands or bodies showed no dependence on room orientation.

Restoring tactile awareness through the rubber hand illusion in cervical spinal cord injury

BACKGROUND Bodily sensations are an important component of corporeal awareness. Spinal cord injury can leave affected body parts insentient and unmoving, leading to specific disturbances in the mental representation of one's own body and the sense of self. OBJECTIVE Here, we explored how illusions induced by multisensory stimulation influence immediate sensory signals and tactile awareness in patients with spinal cord injuries. METHODS The rubber hand illusion paradigm was applied to 2 patients with chronic and complete spinal cord injury of the sixth cervical spine, with severe somatosensory impairments in 2 of 5 fingers. RESULTS Both patients experienced a strong illusion of ownership of the rubber hand during synchronous, but not asynchronous, stroking. They also, spontaneously reported basic tactile sensations in their previously numb fingers. Tactile awareness from seeing the rubber hand was enhanced by progressively increasing the stimulation duration. CONCLUSIONS Multisensory illusions directly and specifically modulate the reemergence of sensory memories and enhance tactile sensation, despite (or as a result of) prior deafferentation. When sensory inputs are lost, and are later illusorily regained, the brain updates a coherent body image even several years after the body has become permanently unable to feel. This particular example of neural plasticity represents a significant opportunity to strengthen the sense of the self and the feelings of embodiment in patients with spinal cord injury.

Towards a taxonomy of common factors in psychotherapy-results of an expert survey

BACKGROUND: How change comes about is hotly debated in psychotherapy research. One camp considers 'non-specific' or 'common factors', shared by different therapy approaches, as essential, whereas researchers of the other camp consider specific techniques as the essential ingredients of change. This controversy, however, suffers from unclear terminology and logical inconsistencies. The Taxonomy Project therefore aims at contributing to the definition and conceptualization of common factors of psychotherapy by analyzing their differential associations to standard techniques. METHODS: A review identified 22 common factors discussed in psychotherapy research literature. We conducted a survey, in which 68 psychotherapy experts assessed how common factors are implemented by specific techniques. Using hierarchical linear models, we predicted each common factor by techniques and by experts' age, gender and allegiance to a therapy orientation. RESULTS: Common factors differed largely in their relevance for technique implementation. Patient engagement, Affective experiencing and Therapeutic alliance were judged most relevant. Common factors also differed with respect to how well they could be explained by the set of techniques. We present detailed profiles of all common factors by the (positively or negatively) associated techniques. There were indications of a biased taxonomy not covering the embodiment of psychotherapy (expressed by body-centred techniques such as progressive muscle relaxation, biofeedback training and hypnosis). Likewise, common factors did not adequately represent effective psychodynamic and systemic techniques. CONCLUSION: This taxonomic endeavour is a step towards a clarification of important core constructs of psychotherapy. KEY PRACTITIONER MESSAGE: This article relates standard techniques of psychotherapy (well known to practising therapists) to the change factors/change mechanisms discussed in psychotherapy theory. It gives a short review of the current debate on the mechanisms by which psychotherapy works. We provide detailed profiles of change mechanisms and how they may be generated by practice techniques.

Scintillation crystal including a rare earth halide, and a radiation detection apparatus including the scintillation crystal.

A scintillation crystal can include Ln(1-y)REyX3, wherein Ln represents a rare earth element, RE represents a different rare earth element, y has a value at 0-1, and X represents a halogen. In an embodiment, the scintillation crystal is doped with a Group 1 element, a Group 2 element, or a mixt. thereof, and the scintillation crystal is formed from a melt having a concn. of such elements or mixt. thereof of at least ∼0.02%. In another embodiment, the scintillation crystal can have unexpectedly improved proportionality and unexpectedly improved energy resoln. properties. In a further embodiment, a radiation detection app. can include the scintillation crystal, a photosensor, and an electronics device. Such a radiation detection app. can be useful in a variety of applications.

Die Integration von Tanz, Bewegung und Psychotherapie durch den Embodimentansatz

Die AutorInnen diskutieren die Frage der Integration von Tanz und Bewegung in die Psychotherapie. Wenn man die Entwicklungen in der Psychologie und Psychotherapieforschung betrachtet, insbesondere die neuere Forschung zum Embodiment der Kognition und die Wirkfaktorendiskussion in der Psychotherapie, eröffnen sich verschiedene solche Möglichkeiten. Unser Überblick macht deutlich, dass mit Tanz und Bewegung allgemeine psychotherapeutische Wirkmechanismen angesprochen werden können und die Forderungen, die sich aus der Embodimentperspektive ergeben, berücksichtigt würden. Ein Praxisbericht zur integrativen Therapie nach dem Zürcher Ressourcen Modell ZRM belegt die Machbarkeit und das Potenzial einer um Tanz und Bewegung erweiterten Psychotherapie.

Der Körper als Gefäß. Eine Studie zur visuellen Anthropologie des Alten Orients

The perception of the human body as container is widespread in cognitive linguistics, psychology and anthropology and is estimated to be universal. But what can we say about the specific context of the Hebrew Bible as well as Ancient-Near-Eastern texts and material culture, and more especially about anthropomorphic vessels in the Levant? Biblical, Egyptian and Mesopotamian texts compare the human body with pottery in order to emphasize its status of having been created (Geschöpflichkeit) on the one hand, and its fragility (Zerbrechlichkeit) on the other. Not in every case does the metaphor refer to an individual. Very often, however, it is used with relation to groups of people (nations) and requires particular caution when it comes to drawing a conclusion about the embodiment. The archaeological-iconographic record demonstrates that the human body, especially the female body, was imagined as a container. The fact that vessels in the shape of female bodies are the majority can partly be explained with the association between container and pregnancy. This essay aims at stimulating the discussion about embodiment in the Ancient Near East, concepts of emotion the body as a container in the Hebrew Bible, and its relation to the material culture.

El concepto de persona en el Scriptum super Sententiis Petri Lombardi de Santo Tomás

El Aquinate, en su Comentario a los cuatro libros de las Sentencias de Pedro Lombardo, se pregunta si es aplicable en el campo teológico la definición de persona sostenida por Boecio para iluminarla naturaleza de los sujetos trinitarios sin caer por ello en un politeísmo, y para afirmar además la encarnación del Verbo sin negar la doble naturaleza de Cristo. Teniendo en cuenta que dicha cuestión fue objeto de agudas controversias tanto antes como después del Concilio de Nicea, y que, luego de Boecio, también lo fue para los más destacados maestros medievales; es conveniente por tanto efectuar un breve seguimiento histórico del problema, deteniéndose así en los antecedentes más próximos a Santo Tomás, para luego, a partir del Scriptum super Sententiis Petri Lombardo, indagar sobre las razones que movieron al Aquinate a insistir sobre la aplicación del concepto de persona en el ámbito teológico.

Los cuerpos en la cultura, la cultura en los cuerpos : Sobre las [nuevas] formas de habitar la escuela

El trabajo que aquí presentamos se encuentra enmarcado en un proyecto de investigación en curso que se interroga sobre las características que presentan los dispositivos pedagógicos en emplazamientos urbanos de extrema pobreza y degradación ambiental del Partido de San Martín - Provincia de Buenos Aires. Específicamente nos ocupa la descripción de las formas que asume la vida escolar así como los modos en que los sujetos -docentes y estudiantes- experiencian dicha escolaridad en contextos de profunda fragmentación y desigualdad social. En este trabajo nos detendremos, específicamente, en los modos corporales de estar en la escuela, indagando las formas en que los estudiantes habitan el espacio y el tiempo escolar a partir de la perspectiva del Embodiment: la experiencia corporizada como punto de partida para analizar la participación humana en el mundo cultural (Csordas, T. 2011). Aquí presentaremos algunos avances de la investigación tomando como referencia empírica episodios observados en nuestro trabajo de campo en escuelas secundarias del conurbano bonaerense

El deporte y la actividad física como mediadores de modelos corporales : Género y sexualidad en el aprendizaje de las masculinidades

Este artículo parte del análisis de algunas contribuciones teóricas sobre la conceptualización del cuerpo en las sociedades contemporáneas, que nos permitirá dialogar con las experiencias reflexivas de un grupo de chicos sobre el aprendizaje de la(s) masculinidad(es)i en sus vidas. El énfasis fenomenológico y político del cuerpo en los estudios feministas -con la noción de corporización- ha sido fundamental para problematizar las variables encarnadas de género, raza, edad, clase social, (dis)capacidad, etc. que no sólo operan en una relación de poder sobre nuestros cuerpos, sino también como locus de agencia y resistencia. La teoría queer con la deconstrucción de la sexualidad normativa -gracias a la noción de performatividad- será clave para entender el papel fundamental que la sexualidad desempeña en la construcción de la(s) subjetividad(es). Los relatos de los chicos nos permitirán explorar el papel que la actividad física y el deporte tiene en sus vidas como mediadores en la construcción de subjetividades "masculinas", muchas veces como un espacio opresor de identidad de género y opción sexual, y abrir la reflexión a las visiones hegemónicas de cuerpo que median tanto la educación física en las escuelas, como en el deporte de competición y/o de elite, y sus representaciones en los mass media.

La re-construcción del sujeto. Procesos de agencia y subjetivación en las prácticas de corporización

Preguntarse en la actualidad sobre el tipo de corporeidad que se construye en la escuela primaria, problematiza una serie de nociones como ser subjetividad, sujeto, identidad, corporeidad etc. entre otros. Los cuales abordados desde enfoques pos estructuralistas y por feministas revierten ciertas categorías fijas y estables en función de la construcción de una corporeidad acorde a las necesidades de los sujetos posibles. Tal vez la antigua idea de la construcción del sujeto desde el "cuidado de si" atendiendo al cuidado del cuerpo desde la dietética (relación entre el cuidado y el régimen general de la existencia del cuerpo y del alma); la economía (relación entre el cuidado de uno mismo y la actividad social) y la erótica (relación entre el cuidado de uno mismo y la relación amorosa) merezca una reconsideración más acorde a los momentos actuales sin olvidar la esencia primaria, que es la construcción de sujetos libres. Sobre algunas de estas cuestiones se abre el debate en este artículo invitando a los lectores a reconsiderar la autorización y agencia de los sujetos corpóreos más allá de la pesada carga limitante de las estructuras sociales.

Cuerpo, arte, experiencia e investigación. "Problemas de corporalidad"

En este artículo comentaremos las principales discusiones surgidas en la Mesa N° 15 "Problemas de corporalidad" desarrollada en el IX Congreso Argentino y IV Latinoamericano de Educación Física y Ciencias, en la UNLP. En este grupo de trabajo se recibieron ponencias que versaron sobre la cuestión de la corporalidad en la práctica artística, incluyendo fundamentalmente reflexiones relativas a la danza, el teatro, la performance, la música, la danza-terapia y la educación corporal. Se puso énfasis en la generación de debates, discusiones y reflexiones que tocaran a todos los expositores o a grupos de ellos, posibilitando delimitar puntos de encuentro y divergencias entre sus enfoques. Las discusiones surgidas estuvieron atravesados por el hecho de que casi todos los trabajos compartían una característica: el ser producto de la reflexión sobre la propia práctica. Esto puso en el centro del debate las reflexiones sobre las relaciones entre experiencia e investigación, y los diálogos que se generan entre el hacer investigación desde y sobre la práctica

El deporte y la actividad física como mediadores de modelos corporales : Género y sexualidad en el aprendizaje de las masculinidades

Este artículo parte del análisis de algunas contribuciones teóricas sobre la conceptualización del cuerpo en las sociedades contemporáneas, que nos permitirá dialogar con las experiencias reflexivas de un grupo de chicos sobre el aprendizaje de la(s) masculinidad(es)i en sus vidas. El énfasis fenomenológico y político del cuerpo en los estudios feministas -con la noción de corporización- ha sido fundamental para problematizar las variables encarnadas de género, raza, edad, clase social, (dis)capacidad, etc. que no sólo operan en una relación de poder sobre nuestros cuerpos, sino también como locus de agencia y resistencia. La teoría queer con la deconstrucción de la sexualidad normativa -gracias a la noción de performatividad- será clave para entender el papel fundamental que la sexualidad desempeña en la construcción de la(s) subjetividad(es). Los relatos de los chicos nos permitirán explorar el papel que la actividad física y el deporte tiene en sus vidas como mediadores en la construcción de subjetividades "masculinas", muchas veces como un espacio opresor de identidad de género y opción sexual, y abrir la reflexión a las visiones hegemónicas de cuerpo que median tanto la educación física en las escuelas, como en el deporte de competición y/o de elite, y sus representaciones en los mass media.