Big Questions Research Articles

The One Big Question

The One Big Question

Engrams to Remember: A Conversation Between Johannes Gräff and Steve Ramirez.

JohannesGräff (JG): Steve, in preparation for this conversation, I pulled out the book "In search of memory" by Eric Kandel from my bookshelf. Obviously one big question is, given that this book was written more than 20years ago: Are we there yet? Have we found memory?

Das reformierte Fragerecht im Berliner Abgeordnetenhaus: wirklich eine Stärkung des Parlaments?

Berlin’s state parliament approved of a comprehensive reform of its question rights at the start of 2014: So-called big questions were abolished, and the oral questions were reduced to a spontaneous form . Since then, there have been only simple oral and written questions in the Berlin parliament which can be used by single parliamentarians and not by parlia- mentary party groups . Accompanying this reform, Members of Parliament got more finan- cial means to hire personal staff for their work . After the reform, oral questions were asked less often while there was a massive surge in the use of written questions . Moreover, Mem- bers of Parliament supporting the government asked more questions than before, and a focus on statistical and cost questions has become visible . All in all, there has been a trend towards frequent questioning and fast answering, at the expense of bigger question projects that serve developing concepts (in particular on the side of the opposition) . Whether or not the reform has led to a strengthening of parliament – which the reform proponents had advocated for – is open for discussion based on the findings presented here .

The Good Life Method: Reasoning Through the Big Questions of Happiness, Faith, and Meaning, by Meghan Sullivan and Paul Blaschko

The Good Life Method: Reasoning Through the Big Questions of Happiness, Faith, and Meaning, by Meghan Sullivan and Paul Blaschko

Project Delivery Models: Experiences from the Queensferry Project

Project delivery model impacts the results of the projects regardless the type. This paper discusses about the elements of a project delivery models used in Queensferry Crossing project and how such elements impacted the project in the planning, design, and construction phases in terms cost, quality, and time. This project is considered as one of the successful projects as the project was delivered on time, under the estimated budget with high quality of performance. This paper has investigated and documented the main reasons why the project was a successful in terms of cost, quality, and time. For gathering data, several ways have been followed such as literature study, document study interviews with two highly involved person from the project, workshops with the project team and the Queensferry Crossing site visit. This paper discusses four project delivery model elements to investigate the case project. Organization form has been studied to know the organization of the project was structured, Project structure has been studied to know how the project has been planned from the initiation to the completion and the Procurement been studied to learn more about the procurement process throughout the planning, design, and construction period. Lastly, the Agreement format of the project that has also been studied to know how different contracts has been used in the project. This paper also discusses lessons learned from the project. This study calls for future research on project delivery models and generate a big question whether the project delivery models should be situational or fixed for all projects which means once a project leads to success should the organization continue that model to the other projects too or not.

Experimental search for the QCD critical endpoint

The phase diagram of strong interaction has been a subject of intense theoretical and experimental research. One of the big questions in this regard is whether a critical endpoint is associated with the phase transition of strongly interacting matter. There have been rapid theoretical developments to answer this question. On the experimental side, a tremendous effort is put forward to hunt for the critical point in collisions of atomic nuclei. This article gives an experimental overview of some of the key results for critical point searches, mainly focusing on net-proton number fluctuations in nuclear collisions.

The relevance of hierarchical learning theory of Gagne in Nepal

After the eldest and the only central Tribhuvan University (TU) in Nepal, there are rest sixteen universities out of which some are regional and some other are related to particular stream of higher study. Reportedly in media and from different sources, TU alone is the faith of around eighty percent student of Nepalese students. Despite having science & technical, humanity & social sciences, management, law, agriculture and so on like opportunities of the studies in the Nepalese universities, now-a-days, a trend is in Nepal in the higher education level that the students prefer to go abroad. This is a big question mark on the learning pattern and the content of teaching for the stake holders and the government of Nepal. This research article tries to discuss on the relevant possible learning theory and some current different perspectives of higher education in Nepal from textbook and media sources giving focus on TU, thus, following the qualitative method. This study will help us an opportunity to discuss different learning theories among academic people in Nepal for qualitative teaching to cater the problems of Nepalese learners.

WILL CHAT GPT REPLACE HUMAN JOBS A BIG QUESTION?

If you don’t know what it is yet, then it is a cutting-edge AI tool released by OpenAI in November 2022, which gained 1 MILLION users in just five days; if we compare it with other big platforms like Netflix, Facebook and Instagram, it took them 3.5 Years, 10 Months and 2.5 months respectively to gain this much of audience attention and user base. It can do almost anything and can boil down tens of hours of work in just one click, and the explanation it gives is spectacular; the information is so precise that they are just as you would want and can directly use in your Project. It gives everything in a very systematic manner that will please you and save your life. Astonishingly, it can also write creative content for websites, articles, blogs, Emails, Tweets, and Essays, and you won’t believe it, Letters too; you have to write what you want it to do for you, and it would get the job Done. The revolutionary thing is that along with these many features, it can even write CODE in several different programming Languages such as Python, HTML, CSS, Javascript, Typescript, Ruby, SQL etc. It can also translate code from one language to another. It also explains the code and other concepts, exactly like a teacher.

Aleksandar Veliki, “sin boga Amona” / Alexander the Great, “son of god Amon”

Alexander the Great, one of the greatest rulers the world has ever seen, in his conquests, among other things, reached Egypt. The focus of this paper is on the influence that Egypt had on Alexander the Great and the influence that Alexander had on Egypt. Particular attention was paid to the writings of various historical sources about Alexander’s stay in Egypt. The Egyptian aspect of Alexander’s life is very important. This country influenced Alexander to get lost in his desires. One of the big questions the paper deals with is whether Alexander really believed that he was the son of the god Amon / Zeus. For the Egyptians, Alexander was the savior. For Alexander, Egypt was a picture of what he wanted to be, and what kind of relationship he wanted to have with people. For a man who did not lose battles, a man who crossed a great path to worship Amon, a man who came to the land he conquered and received treatment, not like a conqueror but a liberator it may not have been hard to believe that he was something more than a ruler himself. For Egypt, the new ruler was not cruel to them. He was their friend. So they accepted him and accepted those who came after him as their own. Alexandria in Egypt, what is considered one of the greatest achievements of Alexander’s conquests, was something new – the center of Hellenistic culture, far from Hellas. In addition to the topics mentioned in the paper, attention is paid to Alexander’s legacy in Egypt and his body in Alexandria as well. The aim of the paper is to review Alexander’s stay in Egypt. A good part of the work is seen through the prism of Alexander’s stay in the temple of the god Amon. The reason for this is the influence that “conversation with Amon” had on this great ruler, but also the fact that through the journey to the temple, Alexander wanted to show the Egyptians what kind of ruler he would be.

Big Reason: Public Discussion of Big Questions

Abstract By ‘big reason’ is meant reason that can (1) tackle life’s big questions, like whether God exists, and (2) address a big audience of virtually everyone by means of reasons that count across worldviews. The antithesis of big reason is small reason, the contention that any reasons and evidence in favor of a given worldview count only within the small audience of that worldview. Big reason promotes finding the truth, including the truth of Christianity, and thereby it promotes human flourishing. This article defends big reason by presenting a model of public reason and then applying this model to the evidence for Christianity from fulfilled Bible prophecies.

Paytm: Lack of a Cogent IPO Story?*

On 18 November 2021, Paytm, India’s leading digital payments and financial services company, went public, but its shares were listed at a surprising 9% discount from the initial price. This underperformance of Paytm’s highly anticipated ₹183 billion IPO, the largest in India, stunned the market despite the BSE Sensex index hitting an all-time high in October 2021 with a 50% increase over the previous year. While other unicorns like Zomato (thirty-eight times oversubscribed) and Nykaa (nearly eighty-two times oversubscribed) saw tremendous success in the capital market, Paytm struggled on the stock exchange. This raised questions about why a prominent brand with 3.33 billion customers could not effectively engage with stakeholders and failed to excite investors as Zomato and Nykaa did. Raghavendra Das, a communications consultant seeking to work with Paytm, assessed the company’s communication strategy and shared insights with MD and CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma. The big question now is, what steps should Paytm and Sharma take next?

Implementasi Metode Sima’I Tahfidz Al-Qur’an Dalam Meningkatkan Kemampuan Hafalan Al-Qur’an

The purpose of this study is to analyze the Implementation of the Sima'an Tahfidz Al-Qur'an Method in improving student memorization. This research was motivated by the decline in student memorization at SDIT Al-Barkah. In this case, it is necessary to have knowledge to improve the memorization of the Qur'an for students at SDIT Al-Barkah. The sima'an method is a method that is easy to use in reciting the Qur'an and is easy to practice in learning the tahfidz of the Qur'an. So that it can be a source of insight for teachers or guides of memorization of the Qur'an. The formulation of the problem in this study is how to improve the memorization of the Qur'an in students who have difficulty memorizing. From the big question above, there are several more questions, namely: How is the Implementation of the Siama'an Tahfidz Al-Qur'an method in improving the memorization of the Qur'an on BTAQ learning at SDIT Al-Barkah and what are the supporting and inhibiting factors in implementing the Qur'an tafidz method in improving the memorization of the Qur'an of students at SDIT Al-Barkah. This study used school research using observation techniques, interviews, and data analysis. The data technique used in this study is qualitative data. By using observation methods, interviews, and data analysis, researchers get the data they need. The results of this study show that: the Qur'an tahfidz sima'an method can make it easier for students to memorize the Qur'an and can improve students memorization of the Qur'an. By applying this method, students become excited in memorizing the Qur'an because it is very easy to apply in everyday life.

Annelids as models of germ cell and gonad regeneration.

Germ cells (reproductive cells and their progenitors) give rise to the next generation in sexually reproducing organisms. The loss or removal of germ cells often leads to sterility in established research organisms such as the fruit fly, nematodes, frog, and mouse. The failure to regenerate germ cells in these organisms reinforced the dogma of germline-soma barrier in which germ cells are set-aside during embryogenesis and cannot be replaced by somatic cells. However, in stark contrast, many animals including segmented worms (annelids), hydrozoans, planaria, sea stars, sea urchins, and tunicates can regenerate germ cells. Here I review germ cell and gonad regeneration in annelids, a rich history of research that dates back to the early 20th century in this highly regenerative group. Examples include annelids from across the annelid phylogeny, across developmental stages, and reproductive strategies. Adult annelids regenerate germ cells as a part of regeneration, grafting, and asexual reproduction. Annelids can also recover germ cells after ablation of germ cell progenitors in the embryos. I present a framework to investigate cellular sources of germ cell regeneration in annelids, and discuss the literature that supports different possibilities within this framework, where germ-soma separation may or may not be preserved. With contemporary genetic-lineage tracing and bioinformatics tools, and several genetically enabled annelid models, we are at the brink of answering the big questions that puzzled many for over more than a century.

Feminist cites: A review of feminist relations to and citations of the canon

What is a feminist citation of the canon in the study of religion? This article reflects on a triangular conversation in Ingie Hovland’s research between Hovland herself, Henny Dons (the Protestant feminist she is studying), and Ludwig Wittgenstein. In broader terms, Hovland uses this as an example of the triangular conversations that are convened in the study of religion between scholars, the people or texts they study, and academic canons. The article wrestles with three big questions: why one cites, who one cites, and how one cites. The author reviews a range of possible feminist responses to these questions and, in conclusion, argues for a feminist citation practice that claims the canon.

‘When you’ve got friends like mine’: Company as tragedy and the queer potentiality of friendship

My first experience with Company was the 2011 concert version, released in theatres across the nation the same month that marriage equality was passed in New York State. With so many people fighting so hard to get married, the answer to Company’s big question, ‘Should I get married?’, seemed obvious, and Bobby’s final outcome inevitable. However, as a queer, aromantic viewer who values the importance of friendship, the end was a tragedy: rather than celebrating his birthday with his friends, Bobby spent it alone, abandoning the relationships he had already cultivated for an empty romantic ideal. For a show about marriage, Company spends an inordinate amount of time showcasing friendship, such as Bobby’s platonic connection with Amy and his many birthday parties. Queer historians, such as Michel Foucault and Peter Nardi, have theorized the radical potentiality of friendship to undermine heteropatriarchal capitalism and build community. What does it mean to centre Company on friendship? What new possibilities could appear if we intentionally staged and read the show as a failure of community rather than a triumph of maturity? If we take Bobby’s final claim seriously – ‘Alone is alone, not alive’ – we are left condemning single people to less than full lives, including Sondheim, who spent most of his life ‘alone’, invested primarily in intense, deep and lasting friendships. A queer reading provides a liberatory if tragic analysis that Bobby was, in fact, never alone but instead, stuck in a society that undervalues community, friendship and chosen family.

The tensor of the exact circle: reconstructing geometry

Developing a theory for quantum gravity is one of the big open questions in theoretical high-energy physics. Recently, a tensor model approach has been considered that treats tensors as the generators of commutative non-associative algebras, which might be an appropriate interpretation of the canonical tensor model. In this approach, the non-associative algebra is assumed to be a low-energy description of the so-called associative closure, which gives the full description of spacetime including the high-energy modes. In the previous work it has been shown how to (re)construct a topological space with a measure on it, and one of the prominent examples that was used to develop the framework was the exact circle. In this work we will further investigate this example, and show that it is possible to reconstruct the full Riemannian geometry by reconstructing the metric tensor. Furthermore, it is demonstrated how diffeomorphisms behave in this formalism, firstly by considering a specific class of diffeomorphisms of the circle, namely the ellipses, and subsequently by performing an explicit diffeomorphism to ‘smoothen’ sets of points generated by the tensor rank decomposition.

Guppies: Small Fish to Answer Big Questions in Ecology and Evolution

If you have ever been to a pet store and stopped at the aquariums, you have most likely seen a guppy. Guppies come in diverse shapes and sizes. Some have large, beautiful fins, while others have bright-colored bodies. It turns out that guppies are not only popular with pet owners. Scientists find guppies to be fascinating because these fish are perfect for studying how species rapidly adapt to new environments. Next time you stop at a pet store, be sure to admire these small but interesting fish.

Survey: Are politics hurting recruitment and retention in red states?

As more state politicians take aim at tenure and diversity issues regarding higher education, the big question for college leaders is what impact these laws or restrictions will have on retaining staff and recruiting professors.

JEB@100: an interview with Monitoring Editor Monica Daley

Journal of Experimental Biology is celebrating 100 years of discovery in 2023 and, as part of our reflections, we are inviting Journal Editors to tell us their thoughts about the journal and to look to the future. In this Conversation, Monitoring Editor Monica Daley tells us why she thinks that understanding integration across systems and organizational scales is one of the big questions facing the field and why it is important to recognize failure as an opportunity.

Fostering Student Spirituality through Eschatological Understanding in the Frame of Christian Education

The lives of the younger generation continue to be attacked by the spirit of an increasingly secular and immoral era, and especially students. This study aims to provide an eschatological picture that boils down to ethical and moral values required to foster student spirituality. This study used a quantitative approach with instruments in the form of a questionnaire. Respondents were students of a state religious institute in the Sumatra region, with a sample size of 100 people being utilized. The data was analyzed using simple linear regression. From field tests, it was found that understanding values in eschatology affects students' spirituality by 74.3%, while 25.7% is influenced by other factors. The Apostle Paul's eschatology influenced his ethical actions and he was obedient to God, living according to God's will, living a life pleasing to God, and doing holy things with the hope of living forever with God in His eternal Kingdom. Spirituality, is a multifaceted quality involving a deep search for answers to life’s “big questions” and of course the end-times and eschatology are the greatest issue for Christians and critical aspects to learn about if spirituality is to be enhanced in students.