Digital Commons Network^™

New Resource On Ancient Maya Writing Released

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

A new volume published under the Institute’s Research Press imprint is A Thematic Bibliography of Ancient Maya Writing, by Stephen D. Houston and Zachary Nelson. “Many people don’t know about the quantity of research on ancient Maya writing,” says Houston, a BYU professor of anthropology who is an authority on Maya writing. “In fact, the literature is overwhelmingly large. This bibliography provides a roadmap through that literature.”

Latest Review Rolls Off Press

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

The FARMS Review of Books has a long tradition of providing its readers with insightful and substantive reviews of books on the Book of Mormon, Mormon studies, and Christian studies, as well as those books that attack the beliefs of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The latest issue does not disappoint. It contains reviews and responses to 18 books or articles on diverse topics, such as ancient Nephite culture, the conversion of Alma, hidden ancient records, the temple, the LDS concept of the nature of God, and the ark of the covenant.

The Origins Of Democracy In Switzerland, Thomas Quinn Marabello

Swiss American Historical Society Review

Switzerland is one of the world’s oldest continuous democracies. Since the Middle Ages, Swiss cantons engaged in democracy at the local level, which led to the Federal Charter of 1291. This important document laid the foundations for the Swiss Confederacy, an alliance of cantons that eventually became a unified democratic nation in the heart of Europe. For over seven centuries, Swiss democracy has impacted people and institutions in Switzerland and elsewhere. America’s founders were well versed in Swiss political institutions and borrowed from them when creating the Constitution of the United States. As democracies come under attack and see their …

Man & Machine: A Narrative Of The Relationship Between World War Ii Fighter Advancement And Pilot Skill, Brian Burnett Ii

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

From 1938 until the end of World War II, the Curtiss P-40 fighter participated in the European, North Africa, and Pacific theaters of war. An aircraft’s success depends primarily upon the pilot’s expertise. Without skilled pilots, technology alone cannot win a war. Technological innovation still plays a crucial role in the success of a nation’s air force. Relative to technological developments, how impactful is a pilot’s skill on a fighter plane’s performance? My thesis structure is a deep look into each pilot’s experience and how victory was achieved with a plane that most military writings say is inferior. I investigate …

Wine, Culture, And Economics: The Barolo Model For Small Historical Wine Regions, Ravenna June Lee

Scripps Senior Theses

This thesis investigates the resurgence of the Barolo wine industry as a paradigm for small historical wine regions seeking to revitalize and assert their independence in the face of corporate domination. Employing a multidisciplinary approach, the study blends economic analysis with cultural preservation, focusing on the unique circumstances of the Barolo region.

The Italian section of the thesis delves into the preservation of wine culture, emphasizing the role of tradition in maintaining the passion for wine among future generations amidst the threats of globalization. This section contributes to the broader discourse on regional identity, economic sustainability, and the intricate interplay …

The Search For Freedom And Vengeance During The Golden Age Of Piracy, Haley Doby

Vulcan Historical Review

pp. 27-33

Houses That Try To Be Haunted: A Look At Ursuline Convent And The Lalaurie Mansion, Kallye Virginia Smith

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

New Orleans, Louisiana, has a reputation for being one of the most haunted cities in America. Two of the most supposedly “haunted” buildings in the city are the Ursuline Convent, said to be home to vampires, and the Lalaurie mansion, said to be home to ghosts. Whether or not these spaces qualify as “haunted” is irrelevant; what this thesis concerns itself with is why these spaces are still being discussed today. Both contain a long and storied past that date back to the early days of New Orleans, with the convent being around as early as the 1730s and the …

When We're Coming From What Would An Hiv Doula Do? On Pandemic Time(S), Alexandra Juhasz, Theodore Kerr, Jennifer Brier, Olivia Polk, Alex Fiahlo, Pato Hebert, Salonee Bhaman

Publications and Research

“When We’re Coming From” is a conversation across time and place among a group of writers and artists who are members of the What Would an HIV Doula Do? Collective. Seven of us have come together to have an asynchronous conversation about how our decades-long work to respond to the HIV/AIDS pandemic shapes our experience of the COVID-19 pandemic. Here we share six individual assessments of pandemic time to suggest ways that pandemics(s) shape our sense of time(s). What follows are our meditations on how and when we see ourselves, and the transitions of HIV/AIDS and COVID-19: “AIDS out of …

Forthcoming Publications

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

Astronomy, Papyrus, and Covenant, edited by John Gee
and Brian Hauglid, is volume 3 in the Book of Abraham
Series. It includes FARMS conference papers on the Book
of Abraham and its commonalities with ancient texts,
Abraham’s vision of the heavens, and the significance of
the Abrahamic covenant. Available autumn 2003.

Eat Your Invasives: A Practical And Historical Analysis Of Foraging For Invasive Foods, Grace Hartman

Honors Projects

This paper discusses both the historical and modern role of foraging and why people may decide to forage, as well as barriers new foragers may face and how they can be overcome. Furthermore, the paper discusses how foraging for invasive species can be used as a method of conservation and how simple foraging can be encouraged for this reason.

Mission Command In The Age Of Sail, Josh Weiss U.S. Navy

Naval War College Review

This article develops an analytical framework for mission command; proposes the full age of sail as an area for current military officers to mine for relevant lessons; and examines, through the mission-command lens, a case study from that era, involving a dispute between the British naval and land-force commanders in the Caribbean during the Hundred Days of Napoléon Bonaparte.

Russia’S Twenty-First-Century Naval Strategy—Combining Admiral Gorshkov With The Jeune École, Johannes Riber Royal Danish Navy

Naval War College Review

Both France after the Franco-Prussian War and post-Soviet Russia found themselves squeezed in multipolar worlds, with poor economies and loss of industrial power. Alongside Admiral Gorshkov’s continuing influence, modern Russian naval thinking has evolved toward an emphasis on smaller surface units with advanced capabilities—similar to the Jeune École concept—with implications for Western naval planning.

Forthcoming Publication

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

The FARMS Review (vol. 15, no. 1), edited by Daniel C. Peterson, contains reviews of a FARMS publication titled Uncovering the Original Text of the Book of Mormon: History and Findings of the Critical Text Project, Terryl L. Givens’s study of the Book of Mormon titled By the Hand of Mormon: The American Scripture That Launched a New World Religion (published by Oxford University Press), three books on the Book of Abraham, and an evangelical critique titled The New Mormon
Challenge, initially treated in the last Review. The FARMS Review (formerly FARMS Review of Books) also includes a study of …

Institute News

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

The Institute appreciates opportunities to facilitate meaningful scholarly discussion of Mormon studies. One recent instance was its cosponsorship of a conference titled “God, Humanity, and Revelation: Perspectives from Mormon Philosophy and History,” held at the Yale University Divinity School on 27–29 March. The event featured more than two dozen scholars and authors, including several Latter-day Saints. A report of the conference will appear in the next issue of Insights.

The Book Of Mormon At The Bar Of Dna “Evidence”

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

On 29 January a capacity crowd gathered in the Harold B. Lee Library auditorium to hear BYU biology professor Michael F. Whiting address the topic “Does DNA Evidence Refute the Authenticity of the Book of Mormon? Responding to the Critics.” The size of the audience suggested the great interest people have in the role and limitations of DNA research in unlocking the past, especially the religious past.

Forthcoming Publications

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

Journal of Book of Mormon Studies(vol. 13, nos. 1–2), edited by S. Kent Brown, is a special double issue devoted to the Hill Cumorah. Studies include the geologic history and archaeology of the area, early accounts of a cave in the hill, the Hill Cumorah Pageant (its history, music, and costuming), Latter-day Saint poetry, the Hill Cumorah Monument, a linguistic analysis of the name Cumorah, and the earliest photographs of the hill. Available December 2004.

Forthcoming Publications

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

Journal of Book of Mormon Studies(vol. 13, nos. 1–2), edited by S. Kent Brown, is a special double issue devoted to the Hill Cumorah. Studies include the geologic history and archaeology of the area, early accounts of a cave in the hill, the Hill Cumorah Pageant (its history, music, and costuming), Latter-day Saint poetry, the Hill Cumorah Monument, a linguistic analysis of the name Cumorah, and the earliest photographs of the hill. Available late fall 2004.

Historical Inquiry: Who Has The Power? Using Film To Introduce Students To Medieval Social Class Structures, Megan Todd, Janie Hubbard

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

Using film in the classroom to teach history has long been endorsed as an effective pedagogical method when the lessons’ purposes and goals are clearly supported with facts. This article, which includes a National Council for the Social Studies C3 inquiry-based lesson plan, is targeted for educators who aspire to help students understand basic European Medieval history and engage in critical thinking. Medieval history is listed in many U.S. state curriculum standards and international teaching benchmarks; thus, this lesson contributes a teaching-ready source, particularly to introduce students to historical concepts, geographies, and politics (i.e., power structures). Clips from A Knight’s …

Program Review: History Department, University Of Nebraska At Kearney Department Of History Faculty & Staff

Academic Program Reviews

No abstract provided.

‘Binding Of Isaac’ Focus Of Farms Conference, Lecture

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

Genesis 22 records that God commanded Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac upon an altar but intervened at the last moment, providing instead a ram for the actual sacrifice and greatly blessing Abraham for passing what has come to be viewed as the ultimate test of obedience to God’s will. The account, simple enough in outline, is nevertheless seen by different religious traditions as profoundly symbolic and even enigmatic, its moral and religious implications having spawned numerous interpretations.

The Still Unfathomed Trans+Oceanic, Daze Jefferies

The Goose

For centuries, violence against mermaids has coexisted alongside slippery sexualizations in much of Newfoundland’s folk and popular cultures. This is demonstrated most grievously in colonist Richard Whitbourne’s 1620 text, A Discourse and Discovery of Newfoundland. The fishy reality of simultaneous disposability and desirability also mirrors the life histories of trans women and sex workers in the capital port city of St. John’s. Imagining mermaids as trans and sex-working ancestors in a province that has been structured by ecologies of fish trade, this work of research-creation drifts through precarious survival in the North Atlantic.

Human Journeys In The Digital Age: Advances And Challenges In Digital Historical Migration Studies, Paul Longley Arthur, Isabel Smith

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Accelerations in migration, mobility, and processes of globalization in recent decades have intersected with parallel developments in information and communications technology (ICT). These advances have had profound influences on historical and cultural research. With reference to a diverse range of international projects, this paper outlines major directions and opportunities in the growing field of Digital Historical Migration Studies (DHMS). The “digital turn” brings opportunities for integrating data on macro and micro scales, and finding new ways to combine and explore tensions between quantitative and qualitative materials, and between external observations of migrants and migration and self-representations by migrants. The plural …

Lehi’S Epic Journey Detailed In New Book

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

The seamless blend of scholarship and artistry of the Maxwell Institute’s DVD documentary Journey of Faith continues in expanded form in the new book Journey of Faith: From Jerusalem to the Promised Land. Complemented by numerous additional threads of historical detail and scholarly insight, this visually stunning look at Lehi’s trek through the harsh Arabian desert reflects a synergistic collaboration of talented scholars, artists, and photographers seeking to illuminate an epic event in scriptural history and situate it in a real-world setting.

A History Of The Ottoman Atlas: The Material Culture Of Geographical Knowledge In The Ottoman Empire, Isin Taylan Cakmak

Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Dissertations

“A History of the Ottoman Atlas: The Material Culture of Geographical Knowledge in the Ottoman Empire” examines the material manifestations of scientific changes in the Ottoman reading world. Looking at the relationship between the atlas and geography, it argues that the transformation of the material form of the atlas informed Ottoman intellectuals’ understanding of the scope and methodology of geographical knowledge. Early Ottoman atlases adhered to centuries-old traditions of cosmographies and topographical histories, which were predominantly textual. This dissertation investigates the cartographical changes taking place against the backdrop of a manuscript culture and examines the visual and material changes in …

A Comparison Of Education In Post-Revolutionary Mexico And Post-Independence India, Yver Alonso Melchor-Hernandez

Dissertations

Comparison, Education, History, India, Mexico

Featured Publications

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

The Encyclopedia of Mormonism, published in 1992, is now available online at www.lib.byu.edu/spc/Macmillan/, or search Google for Encyclopedia of Mormonism. This valuable resource answers many questions about Church doctrine and history and is useful in any teaching situation. BYU Studies will be assisting the Harold B. Lee Library to add links and update content in coming months.

The Joseph Smith Papers Project, Ronald K. Esplin

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

The Joseph Smith Papers Project seeks to do for Joseph Smith what has been done (and is being done) for George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin and other important early Americans: Make their papers easily accessible and more intelligible by publishing them in a carefully prepared, comprehensive scholarly edition. Historians rely on documents to gain insight into the facts, relationships, and other realities of the past, the raw materials from which they construct their narratives and interpretations. The task of scholars functioning as documentary editors is to help readers and other scholars understand the documents without getting too much in …

Sustaining The Individual In The Collective: A Kantian Perspective For A Sustainable World, Zachary Vereb

Faculty and Student Publications

Individualist normative theories appear inadequate for the complex moral challenges of climate change. In climate ethics, this is especially notable with the relative marginalization of Kant. I argue that Kant's philosophy, understood through its historical and cosmopolitan dimensions, has untapped potential for the climate crisis. First, I situate Kant in climate ethics and evaluate his marginalization due to perceived individualism, interiority and anthropocentrism. Then, I explore aspects of Kant's historical and cosmopolitan writings, which present a global, future-orientated picture of humanity. Ultimately, Kant's philosophy offers a unique take on the climate deadlock capable of sustaining the individual in the collective.

Cartography, Territory And Empire Mapping The Alaska Boundary Dispute, 1821-1903, Michael Letzring

Arctic and Northern Studies

In the wake of the Klondike gold rush of 1898 a long-simmering dispute over the boundary between Alaska territory and British-America (Canada) rose to a boil. The disagreement between the United States and England was a combination of imperial arrogance, geographic ignorance, administrative neglect, and diplomatic brinksmanship. At every step the dispute was fueled by colonial cartography and served an eventual European/Euro-American hegemony over the indigenous Tlingit people. In this dissertation, a series of three papers will describe and analyze the precursors and resolution of the Alaska Boundary Dispute in part by employing novel methods of analysis of historical maps …

"Early North African Christianity: Turning Points In The Development Of The Church" [Review] /Eastman, David, Rodrigo Galiza

Andrews University Seminary Studies (AUSS)

This is a book review by Rodrigo Galiza.