Interprétation du shivaïsme cachemirien non duel chez Eric Baret, Pierre Feuga, Daniel Odier : vecteur de l'émergence de nouvelles spiritualités tantriques

La présente recherche se focalise sur la production littéraire de trois auteurs francophones modernes : Éric Baret (1953-), Pierre Feuga (1942-2008) et Daniel Odier (1945-). En tant que figures de la néo-spiritualité, ces auteurs ont d'abord interprété le shivaïsme cachemirien non duel dans la zone francophone avant d'étendre leur activité à d'autres pays d'Europe et d'Amérique du Nord. Leur démarche s'inscrit dans un contexte culturel francophone qui jouit d'une longue tradition d'investigation de certaines formes philosophiques du yoga et d'études philosophiques du bouddhisme. Peu connu du public occidental, le shivaïsme cachemirien non duel est en train de devenir une pensée de référence dans les milieux de la néo-spiritualité, notamment grâce à l'interprétation donnée par les auteurs susmentionnés. Les trois auteurs se réfèrent aux mêmes traductions et commentaires écrits en français du shivaïsme cachemirien non duel, à savoir les travaux de la sanskritiste française Lilian Silburn qui a entre autres travaillé avec Lakshman Ji, grand érudit du Cachemire. Ils pratiquent et enseignent une technique corporelle (yoga, tai chi ou danse tandavà), ont voyagé en Asie, notamment en Inde et ont un ou plusieurs maîtres. Le présent travail se limite à une période historique précise de l'histoire des religions, à savoir les années 60 du 20e siècle jusqu'au milieu des années 10 du 21e siècle. Cette période suscite un regain d'intérêt et d'interrogation dans le paysage du religieux. Sur cette scène de la néo¬spiritualité, nous avons analysé les passerelles entre des sagesses orientales et des pensées occidentales et avons mis en avant la manière dont elles se sont greffées sur les enjeux liés au parcours personnel des trois auteurs. Le shivaïsme cachemirien non duel est une mystique et une philosophie qui relève de la pensée tantrique. Nous avons développé la question de la réception du tantrisme sur sol occidental depuis le début du 20e siècle puis montré les particularités tantriques issues du shivaïsme cachemirien non duel que les auteurs retenus ont développées. Nous avons choisi trois thèmes dans la production des auteurs pour parler de leur interprétation du shivaïsme cachemirien non duel. Il s'agit du voyage, du rêve et de la référence au Grand Oeuvre alchimique en tant que symbole de transformation de soi. Ces thèmes ont permis de faire ressortir quatre problématiques qui traversent la production littéraire et l'enseignement des auteurs, à savoir le féminin, la non-dualité, l'éveil et la question de l'union des deux principes, masculin et féminin. En reliant thèmes et problématiques, nous sommes parvenue à l'énoncé suivant : Le voyage ou la quête du féminin et de l'éveil Le rêve ou la quête de la non-dualité - Grand Oeuvre alchimique et tantrisme ou la quête de la non-dualité et l'union des deux principes. Nous sommes arrivées à la conclusion que les trois auteurs sont devenus des figures incontournables dans la recomposition du paysage de la néo-spiritualité en Occident, notamment en francophonie, et qu'ils ont grandement contribué à faire connaître la pensée tantrique du shivaïsme cachemirien non duel.

Metabolic syndrome and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease: Is insulin resistance the link?

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a disease composed of different risk factors such as obesity, type 2 diabetes or dyslipidemia. The prevalence of this syndrome is increasing worldwide in parallel with the rise in obesity. Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is now the most frequent chronic liver disease in western countries, affecting more than 30% of the general population. NAFLD encompasses a spectrum of liver manifestations ranging from simple steatosis to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), fibrosis and cirrhosis, which may ultimately progress to hepatocellular carcinoma. There is accumulating evidence supporting an association between NAFLD and MetS. Indeed, NAFLD is recognized as the liver manifestation of MetS. Insulin resistance is increasingly recognized as a key factor linking MetS and NAFLD. Insulin resistance is associated with excessive fat accumulation in ectopic tissues, such as the liver, and increased circulating free fatty acids, which can further promote inflammation and endoplasmic reticulum stress. This in turn aggravates and maintains the insulin resistant state, constituting a vicious cycle. Importantly, evidence shows that most of the patients developing NAFLD present at least one of the MetS traits. This review will define MetS and NAFLD, provide an overview of the common pathophysiological mechanisms linking MetS and NAFLD, and give a perspective regarding treatment of these ever growing metabolic diseases.

Exploring the link between flexible working and organizational performance

The expansion of flexible work experienced since the 1980s in developed economies is consistent with a more generic trend towards organizational flexibility, which many authors see as essential in order to compete in the dynamic global environment (Volberda, 1998). From this point of view, the changing demands of the environment have forced organizations to seek the ability to adapt rapidly and effectively as a means to be successful or even to survive. In the quest for flexibility, every area of the organization has been scrutinized in order to render it as ¿agile¿ as possible. In the human resources arena, this analysis has led to the definition of diverse ¿flexible working practices¿ (FWP) that describe a wide range of employment practices, which differ from the traditional full-time job with a fixed salary and a permanent contract. These practices have been described using other terms, such as ¿alternative¿ (Polivka, 1996; Powell & Mainiero, 1999), ¿non-standard¿ (Kalleberg, 2000), or ¿atypical¿ (De Grip, Hoevenberg, &m Willems, 1997), which coincide in denoting their divergence from the most traditional forms of employment. This article will show that quite different practices have been embraced by the common term ¿flexible working practices.¿ Subsequently, the results of empirical research regarding the implications for organizational performance of a number of flexible practices will be commented on.

A missing spatial link in institutional quality

History tells that institutions evolve gradually over time, pushing new ideas across borders and cultures. Globalisation is argued to accelerate this process. We examine the spatial links of different political institutions across borders. Applying various tests for spatial proximity, we do not find evidence of contemporaneous spatial links. This result is robust to various measures of distance and of cultural proximity across countries. Instead, when we analyse long run dynamics diffusion of institutions seems to occur only gradually.

Factors explaining urban transport systems in large European cities: A cross-sectional approach

The paper analyses the link between human capital and regional economic growth in the European Union. Using different indicat The importance of effective and efficient mobility in large cities is becoming essential for planners and citizens due to its impact in terms of social, economic and geographic development. The aim of this research is to determine factors explaining urban transport systems by estimating aggregate supply and demand equations for 45 large European cities. Supply and Demand equations are separately and jointly determined using OLS and SUR estimation models. On one hand, our findings suggest the importance of economic variables on the supply of public transport. On the other, we highlight the role of those factors influencing the generalized cost of transport as main drivers of demand for public transit. Additionally, regional variables are introduced to capture institutional heterogeneity in this service, and we find that regional patterns are powerful explanatory determinants of urban transportation systems in Europe.

Particle detector link system modifications in RE1/1 sector

The large hadron collider constructed at the European organization for nuclear research, CERN, is the world’s largest single measuring instrument ever built, and also currently the most powerful particle accelerator that exists. The large hadron collider includes six different experiment stations, one of which is called the compact muon solenoid, or the CMS. The main purpose of the CMS is to track and study residue particles from proton-proton collisions. The primary detectors utilized in the CMS are resistive plate chambers (RPCs). To obtain data from these detectors, a link system has been designed. The main idea of the link system is to receive data from the detector front-end electronics in parallel form, and to transmit it onwards in serial form, via an optical fiber. The system is mostly ready and in place. However, a problem has occurred with innermost RPC detectors, located in sector labeled RE1/1; transmission lines for parallel data suffer from signal integrity issues over long distances. As a solution to this, a new version of the link system has been devised, a one that fits in smaller space and can be located within the CMS, closer to the detectors. This RE1/1 link system has been so far completed only partially, with just the mechanical design and casing being done. In this thesis, link system electronics for RE1/1 sector has been designed, by modifying the existing link system concept to better meet the requirements of the RE1/1 sector. In addition to completion of the prototype of the RE1/1 link system electronics, some testing for the system has also been done, to ensure functionality of the design.

Trigger and data link system for CMS Resistive Plate Chambers at the LHC accelerator

The purpose of the work was to realize a high-speed digital data transfer system for RPC muon chambers in the CMS experiment on CERN’s new LHC accelerator. This large scale system took many years and many stages of prototyping to develop, and required the participation of tens of people. The system interfaces to Frontend Boards (FEB) at the 200,000-channel detector and to the trigger and readout electronics in the control room of the experiment. The distance between these two is about 80 metres and the speed required for the optic links was pushing the limits of available technology when the project was started. Here, as in many other aspects of the design, it was assumed that the features of readily available commercial components would develop in the course of the design work, just as they did. By choosing a high speed it was possible to multiplex the data from some the chambers into the same fibres to reduce the number of links needed. Further reduction was achieved by employing zero suppression and data compression, and a total of only 660 optical links were needed. Another requirement, which conflicted somewhat with choosing the components a late as possible was that the design needed to be radiation tolerant to an ionizing dose of 100 Gy and to a have a moderate tolerance to Single Event Effects (SEEs). This required some radiation test campaigns, and eventually led to ASICs being chosen for some of the critical parts. The system was made to be as reconfigurable as possible. The reconfiguration needs to be done from a distance as the electronics is not accessible except for some short and rare service breaks once the accelerator starts running. Therefore reconfigurable logic is extensively used, and the firmware development for the FPGAs constituted a sizable part of the work. Some special techniques needed to be used there too, to achieve the required radiation tolerance. The system has been demonstrated to work in several laboratory and beam tests, and now we are waiting to see it in action when the LHC will start running in the autumn 2008.

Daniel Hjort : sorgespel i fem akter med fyra tablåer

J. J. Wecksellin pääteosta Daniel Hjortia pidetään ainoana huomattavana suomalaisena näytelmänä, joka on syntynyt ennen Aleksis Kiven tuotantoa. Tämä historiallinen aatedraama sijoittuu kuningas Sigismundin ja Kaarle-herttuan taistelujen aikaiseen Turun linnaan. Näytelmä kuvaa sovittamatonta ristiriitaa, johon päähenkilö Daniel Hjort joutuu palvellessaan toisaalta kuningasta ja ajaessaan toisaalta kansan asiaa. Näytelmässä on vaikutteita Wecksellin esikuvilta Shakespearelta, Schilleriltä ja Victor Hugolta, mutta näytelmää on kiitetty myös omaperäisyydestä, sen elävästä, syvällisen psykologisesta henkilökuvauksesta ja draamallisesta voimasta. Näytelmä esitettiin ensimmäisen kerran Helsingin ruotsalaisessa teatterissa marraskuun 26. päivänä vuonna 1862, ja näytelmää on esitetty yhä nykypäiviin saakka.

Web services to link interlibrary software with OCLC WorldShare

Purpose - This article describes the use of web services to interconnect the GTBib interlibrary loan program with the OCLC WorldShare platform. Design/methodology/approach - We describe the current problem of duplication of procedures in libraries that have added their collections to the OCLC WorldCat catalogue in recent years and are therefore more likely to receive interlibrary loan requests through the WorldShare Platform. Findings - A solution that uses web services to insert and retrieve requests between the two systems is presented. Autonomous agents periodically check the status of the requests and keep them updated and synchronized. These agents also inform the library staff of any variation or inconsistency that is detected. Practical Implications - This technology reduces process management time by making it unnecessary to introduce the request data in both systems. Agents are used to check the consistency of statuses between the two systems, thus avoiding errors and omissions and improving the efficiency of the whole interlibrary loan process. Originality/value - This paper describes in detail the technical aspects of the solution as a reference for the development of future applications.

A reação de metátese de olefinas: reorganização e ciclização de compostos orgânicos

The olefin metathesis reaction allows the exchange of complex alkyl units between two olefins, with the formation of a new olefinic link and a sub-product olefin usually ethylene. This reaction has found extensive application in the last ten years with the development of the Grubbs and Schrock catalysts, in total synthesis of complex organic molecules, as opposed to the very important use in the petrochemical industry with relatively simple molecules. This review intends to trace a historical and mechanistic pathway from industry to academy, before illustrating the more recent advances.

Myoglobins: the link between discoloration and lipid oxidation in muscle and meat

Aerobic metabolism changes rapidly to glycolysis post-mortem resulting in a pH-decrease during the transformation of muscle in to meat affecting ligand binding and redox potential of the heme iron in myoglobin, the meat pigment. The "inorganic chemistry" of meat involves (i) redox-cycling between iron(II), iron(III), and iron(IV)/protein radicals; (ii) ligand exchange processes; and (iii) spin-equilibra with a change in coordination number for the heme iron. In addition to the function of myoglobin for oxygen storage, new physiological roles of myoglobin are currently being discovered, which notably find close parallels in the processes in fresh meat and nitrite-cured meat products. Myoglobin may be characterized as a bioreactor for small molecules like O2, NO, CO, CO2, H2O, and HNO with importance in bio-regulation and in protection against oxidative stress in vivo otherwise affecting lipids in membranes. Many of these processes may be recognised as colour changes in fresh meat and cured meat products under different atmospheric conditions, and could also be instructive for teaching purposes.

Parâmetros bioquímicos foliares das espécies Licania tomentosa (Benth.) e Bauhinia forficata (Link.) para avaliação da qualidade do ar

Foliar analysis of biochemical parameters were carried out in order to investigate the influence of air pollutants on two tropical tree species (Licania tomentosa (Benth.) and Bauhinia forfícata (Link.)). Special attention was given to tropospheric ozone due to the fact that concentration levels in the region were found to be up to 140 µg m-3 for a 4 h average time, which is well above the value that can cause injuries to orchides and tobacco (59 µg m-3). Other pollutants such as nitrogen and sulphur oxides were measured and their ambient concentrations were also associated to biochemical alterations in the investigated species.

Avaliação de procedimentos para quantificação espectrofotométrica de flavonoides totais em folhas de Bauhinia forficata Link

Interest in analytical methods for quality control of herbal drugs has grown sharply due to the scarcity of monographs in official manuals. Thus, the aim of the present study was to evaluate analytical procedures for quantitative determination of flavonoids from leaves of Bauhinia forficata Link (pata-de-vaca). Two procedures for quantification of total flavonoids (with and without acid hydrolysis) by spectrophotometry were tested. The proposed methods proved to be specific, sensitive, precise, accurate and robust, being suitable for routine laboratory use.

The harm principle and the greatest happiness principle: the missing link

In this article I present a possible solution for the classic problem of the apparent incompatibility between Mill's Greatest Happiness Principle and his Principle of Liberty arguing that in the other-regarding sphere the judgments of experience and knowledge accumulated through history have moral and legal force, whilst in the self-regarding sphere the judgments of the experienced people only have prudential value and the reason for this is the idea according to which each of us is a better judge than anyone else to decide what causes us pain and which kind of pleasure we prefer (the so-called epistemological argument). Considering that the Greatest Happiness Principle is nothing but the aggregate of each person's happiness, given the epistemological claim we conclude that, by leaving people free even to cause harm to themselves, we still would be maximizing happiness, so both principles (the Greatest Happiness Principle and the Principle of Liberty) could be compatible.