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Issue 74 (March - April 2010)

Issue 74 (March - April 2010)

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Science Square

28 February 2010 | The Fountain | Issue 74 (March - April 2010)

The semantic roots of a word may open up new horizons which relate it to a broader frame of reference, a frame we normally would not connect with this word. This is also true for subsidiary meanings of a word, which are usually overshadowed by the primary meaning. The Arabic word for literature is…

Protecting of Life Forms Is a Moral Responsibility

28 February 2010 | Mustafa Tabanli | Issue 74 (March - April 2010)

Mary Evelyn Tucker: “Religions can offer a sense of hope, because more than anything, I think we all need to imagine a future that is sustainable.”There is one moral law that forms the corner stone of all of the world’s religions: “Thou shall not kill.” But does this law apply only to human beings…

On Their Faces and Backs

28 February 2010 | Mesut Sahin | Issue 74 (March - April 2010)

In numerous verses the Holy Qur’an makes reference to living organisms, and particularly to human physiology. The Qur’an does this in its own style, briefly mentioning some fundamental principles of the process or the phenomenon that it is referring to, without going into elaborate details. One of…

The Power of Literature

28 February 2010 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 74 (March - April 2010)

In the most general sense, literature is a discipline that studies elegant, measured, and harmonious words uttered or written in verse or prose in a form that is congruent with the conditions of time and usually in compliance with the rules of the language. The Arabic word for literature is adab, w…

Endocytosis: How Cells Eat

28 February 2010 | Hamdi Sener | Issue 74 (March - April 2010)

The smallest life forms that constitute our bodies, that is, cells, are fairly well organized structures. Even though the cytoplasm (i.e. the interior section of a cell) is extremely crowded and dynamic, cells never lose the coordination that keeps them alive, unless an external factor comes into p…

A True Understanding of Self for Self-Actualization

28 February 2010 | Zekeriya Ozsoy | Issue 74 (March - April 2010)

Psychologists have been using the concept of “self-actualization” to describe those who are immensely successful in realizing their potential (Maslow, 1943; Goldstein, 1934). The actualization of one’s potential strengths is regarded as a key issue for having a satisfying life. Even though the conc…

Renewers

28 February 2010 | Yasin Ceran | Issue 74 (March - April 2010)

If education is an act of “renewal” in beliefs, ideas, hopes, happiness, misery, and practices, a renewal that contributes towards the enhancement and betterment of an individual’s thoughts, feelings, and actions, then an educator is the one who breaths the excitement of the “renewal” into the sou…

Complementary Stories of the Cosmos Perspectives from Science and Religion

28 February 2010 | Mustafa Tabanli | Issue 74 (March - April 2010)

Where do we come from, why are we here and where are we going to? These are three fundamental questions that have preoccupied many civilizations throughout history. Today more than ever we have become aware of the significance of these questions. We continue our Matter&Beyond talks with Rev. Dr…

Istiqama (Straightforwardness)

28 February 2010 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 74 (March - April 2010)

People of truth have interpreted straightforwardness as avoiding all deviation and extremes, and as following in the footsteps of the Prophets, the faithful, the witnesses (of truth), and the righteous (in belief) in their religious deeds and daily lives. The verse: Those who declare: “Our Lord is…

Quantum-Inspired World of Computers: Science or Fiction?

28 February 2010 | Omer D. Ikramoglu | Issue 74 (March - April 2010)

When we draw even a simple line using a computer program, we usually ignore what our computer actually does in the background. It converts videos, images or texts into bits, the smallest building blocks of information, before doing any manipulation. In other words, a digital computer is unable to p…

Categorical Confusions Regarding Omnipotence of God

28 February 2010 | Nathan Ruler | Issue 74 (March - April 2010)

Judaism, Christianity and Islam, the three main monotheistic religions, describe God as an omnipotent, all-powerful agent. In other words, God has power over everything. If God is described in this way, then the following questions are raised immediately: Can God create a stone too heavy for him to…

Iron Oxide Nanoparticles and Surah Iron (Hadeed)

28 February 2010 | Kamil Ezgin | Issue 74 (March - April 2010)

Iron is a fundamental element prevalent in the component of various goods, such as products made of steel, cars, airplanes, ships, computers, furniture, and catalysts utilized in industry, colored pigments, magnetic materials and many biological molecules such as hemoglobin. Nanoscience and nanote…

Inside a Patient's Room

28 February 2010 | Gulsum Kucuksari | Issue 74 (March - April 2010)

Hospital chaplains often intersect a person’s life at the time of their most desperate need. An unwed mom watches the scene unfold, as her newborn leaves the hospital with adoptive parents. An elderly gentleman speaks of war’s atrocities witnessed on the battle field, firsthand. Anxious, desperate…

The Tiniest Captains of the Ocean

28 February 2010 | Ahmet Uysal | Issue 74 (March - April 2010)

The date of invention for compass still is not known with certainty. Some historians think that it was invented in China around 900 BC, while others claim that it was around 100 AD. The use of a magnetized needle as a navigation tool, however, was not until twelfth century. This brief information c…

Reflections on Noah's Ark

28 February 2010 | Sebnem Unlu | Issue 74 (March - April 2010)

As the titanic waves engulfed and threatened the Ark, an unseen “hand” guided and protected it; until its final destination to safety. The old cliché, “history repeats itself,” embedded in my mind. I felt this event recurs in different forms and contexts in our daily lives; and perhaps in the conti…

It's me, Peter, your Muscular System!

28 February 2010 | Irfan Yilmaz | Issue 74 (March - April 2010)

Dear Peter! I, your muscular system, would like to talk to you today; I allow you to walk and do all kinds of movements very easily. In the most recent essay of this department, the skeletal system, which works together with me, discussed how it protected your body and enabled you to stand straig…

Measure of Selflessness

28 February 2010 | Hikmet Isik | Issue 74 (March - April 2010)

Question: Do acts of selflessness conflict with reason? What is the measure of agreement we should seek between the two? Selflessness is when one relinquishes oneself from certain personal desires and aspirations, forgoing certain goals associated with property or wealth, and even values associate…

Barefoot Running

28 February 2010 | The Fountain | Issue 74 (March - April 2010)

Barefoot Running Original Article: Lieberman, D.E. et al., Nature 463, 531 (2010). The modern running shoe was not invented until the 1970s. However, the presumption that running barefoot is dangerous and causes pain could be wrong. To explain this phenomenon, scientists studied three groups of p…

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