20th century – Shamskm: A site to exchange knowledge and solutions

Commentary by Jo-Anne Hart: Will we have ISIS to thank for peace with Iran?

By Guest PostJuly 28, 2014Politics20th century, brown university, chinesische investoren, christian dreger, eu binnenmarkt, hidden champions, how dangerous, international studies, Iraq, isis, malcolm tully, margaret grey, prevent obesity, simple steps, space debris, strategie, syria, united states, watson customer engagement, watson institute

If there is any good news in the ISIS developments in Iraq, it is that the United States and Iran both want to see ISIS stopped and Iraq’s government stabilized. It’s possible, writes Jo-Anne Hart, that addressing the ISIS issue could lead to confidence-building between the United States and Iran. Hart is an adjunct professor of international studies at Brown University’s Watson Institute for International Studies.

While the recent military advance of ISIS (Islamic State in Iraq and Syria) in northern Iraq has stirred sudden concern — if not panic — in public commentaries in the United States, it is important to keep in mind several key points. (more…)

Decolonisation of British and French Empires

By Guest PostMay 7, 2014Politics20th century, british, cold war, damaging effects, election year, empire, Europe, french, heliothis subflexa, heliothis virescens, historian, pattern, revolutionizing politics, ruth edge, second world war, seong gyu lee, stan freck, university of exeter, world war

Britain’s impending withdrawal from Afghanistan and France’s recent dispatch of troops to the troubled Central African Republic are but the latest indicators of a long-standing pattern.

Since 1945 most British and French overseas security operations have taken place in places with current or past empire connections. Most of these actions occurred in the context of the contested end of imperial rule or decolonisation. Some were extraordinarily violent; others, far less so. (more…)

Challenging our past

By Guest PostNovember 19, 2013Culture20th century, african americans, african ancestry, arica coleman, blood stay pure, history, indiana university press, jim crow, mulatto, native american descent, native americans, negro, nottoway tribe, race relation, racial purity act, state of virginia, university of delaware, white schools

Book focuses on race relations between Native Americans, African Americans

It’s a rosy picture, to think of Native Americans and African Americans embracing one another over the course of our country’s history.

But that rosy picture has a dark side, one tainted by tense race relations little discussed in the academic literature, pop culture and history textbooks, according to the University of Delaware’s Arica Coleman. (more…)

Rainfall in South Pacific Was More Variable Before 20th Century

By Guest PostSeptember 14, 2013Science20th century, 50 year cycle, anthropogenic climate change, austin, bislama, cave formation, charles jackson, christopher maupin, climate modeler, dry periods, frederick taylor, good stone, hem gudfala ston, history of rainfall, hypothesis, island nation, jud partin, oxygen isotope level, oxygen isotopes, pacific convergence zone, pacific decadal variability, pdv, rainfall, rainfall in vanuatu, rainfall value, South Pacific, stalagmite, stalagmite data, university of texas, vanuatu

AUSTIN, Texas — A new reconstruction of climate in the South Pacific during the past 446 years shows rainfall varied much more dramatically before the start of the 20^thcentury than after. The finding, based on an analysis of a cave formation called a stalagmite from the island nation of Vanuatu, could force climate modelers to adjust their models. The models are adjusted to match the current levels of climate variability that are smaller now than they were in the recent past for this region.

“In this case, the present is not the key to the past, nor the future,” says Jud Partin, a research scientist associate at The University of Texas at Austin’s Institute for Geophysics who led the study. The institute is part of the Jackson School of Geosciences. “Instead, the past is the key to what may happen in the future.” (more…)

Jordanna Bailkin studies postwar Britain in new book ‘The Afterlife of Empire’

By Guest PostMarch 27, 2013Culture20th century, african, afterlife of empire, british children, british history, british perceptions, Britons, child care, decolonization, education, ghana, historical actors, jordanna bailkin, key domains, mental health, new book, nigeria, postwar britain, social phenomenon, welfare

Jordanna Bailkin is a University of Washington professor of history and author of the new book “The Afterlife of Empire.” She answered a few questions about the book for UW Today.

Q: What is the central concept behind this book?

A: I wanted to understand how Britain and Britons were affected by losing their empire, and how they were changed — often in deeply personal ways — by this process of decolonization. (more…)

Study Provides New Insights on Drought Predictions in East Africa

By Guest PostFebruary 4, 2013Environment20th century, aridity, atmospheric convection, charcoal, climate, climate model simulations, climate variability, columbia university, drought conditions, drought predictions, earth observatory, east africa, east african climate, eastern africa, el niño, famine, future predictions, geologic past, geologist, geopolitical significance, global warming, gulf of aden, historical fluctuations, historical patterns, horn of africa, humanitarian crisis, indian ocean, jason smerdon, jessica tierney, lake sediment cores, lamont-doherty, little brother, little ice age, long term shifts, medieval times, moisture balance, oceanographic institution, pacific, pacific ocean, paleoclimate record, paleorecord, pollen, precipitation, projections, rainfall, region, run off events, study, surface temperatures, temperature, warm sea surface, water isotopes, western indian ocean, whoi, woods hole

Research May Also Help Determine Effects of Global Warming in the Region

With more than 40 million people living under exceptional drought conditions in East Africa, the ability to make accurate predictions of drought has never been more important. In the aftermath of widespread famine and a humanitarian crisis caused by the 2010-2011 drought in the Horn of Africa—possibly the worst drought in 60 years— researchers are striving to determine whether drying trends will continue.

While it is clear that El Niño can affect precipitation in this region of East Africa, very little is known about the drivers of long-term shifts in rainfall. However, new research described in the journal Nature helps explain the mechanisms at work behind historical patterns of aridity in Eastern Africa over many decades, and the findings may help improve future predictions of drought and food security in the region. (more…)

Reconcilable Differences: Study Uncovers the Common Ground of Scientific Opposites

By Guest PostFebruary 1, 2013Science20th century, activity, austrian physicist, chaotic motion, classical, common ground, denys bondar, english scientist, experimental data, herschel rabitz, imperial college London, isaac newton, laws of motion, mathematical framework, mathematical model, microscopic particles, misha ivanov, novel theories, observed data, odds physics equations, operational dynamic modeling, paul ehrenfest, princeton model, princeton university, quantum elements, quantum mechanics, reconcilable differences, renan cabrera, robert gilmore, scientific laws, scientific opposites, shakespearean sounding crossroads, study, theoretical roof, theories, ukraine, uzhgorod national university

Searching for common elements in seemingly incompatible scientific theories may lead to the discovery of new ones that revolutionize our understanding of the world.

Such is the idea behind a mathematical framework Princeton University researchers developed that strips away the differences between scientific laws and theories to reveal how the ideas are compatible. In a recent report in the journal Physical Review Letters, the authors explain how the mathematical model finds common ground between the famously at-odds physics equations that govern classical and quantum mechanics. (more…)

Questions for Geoff Pullum: The ‘Grammar Gotcha’ and Political Speech

By Guest PostOctober 8, 2012Politics18th century, 19th century, 20th century, ad, american understanding, ann romney, attack, bad news, Barack Obama, blogger, brown university, bubble, bush speech, bushisms, candidate, chris christie, clint eastwood, contract, david orenstein, debate, edinburgh, egotism, english, geoff pullum, george bush, grammar gotcha, grammarian, language, language log, lindley murray, lingua franca, linguist, mark liberman, noreen malone, paul ryan, pearl harbor, pennslyvania, political speech, Politics, president roosevelt, presidential, psychological, publicity, reagan, republican, republican convention, rnc, robert lowth, scriptwriter, social, spontaneous speech, syntax, tampa, technical detail, technical knowledge, todd akin, tv, university, word choice

A long campaign season with genuine gaffes and alleged misstatements began its culmination with the first presidential debate. Like many citizens, linguist Geoff Pullum, a visiting professor at Brown, was watching.

Grammarian Geoff Pullum is the Gerard Visiting Professor of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences at Brown University and professor of general linguistics at the University of Edinburgh. He is also a frequent blogger on language and politics on Language Log and Lingua Franca.

In a conversation with David Orenstein, he cited several specious analyses of word choice and syntax that have been used unfairly against candidates. The often ill-informed critiques stand in stark contrast to the way people are typically inclined to overcome the misstatements of others as they extract understanding from clumsy speech. Pullum will be listening closely to the presidential and vice presidential debates. (more…)

Tag Archives: 20th century