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Issue 97 (January - February 2014)

Issue 97 (January - February 2014)

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Editorial: The Joyous Past and the Beautiful Future

31 December 2013 | The Fountain | Issue 97 (January - February 2014)

The past year was a busy one for The Fountain. Having completed two decades in publishing, we tried to value 2013 not only as an anniversary to celebrate, but also as a time to reflect on how we are perceived. We started off by revising our motto in the masthead from "A magazine of scientific and s…

Holy Days

31 December 2013 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 97 (January - February 2014)

On holy days, we reflect on the joyous past and the beautiful future yet to come. When the sun rises over our land, only then will it be our holy day... Alvarli Efe Holy days are days of joy and pleasure, especially for those who perceive their true meaning. On holy days, people seem to be mor…

Surface Tension and Life

31 December 2013 | Selim Selimoglu | Issue 97 (January - February 2014)

Do you know how a steel blade can float on the water? Or how can some insects stride on a pond? How do your contact lenses stay in position on your eyes? And how does water reach the higher parts of plants?

Charitable Trusts in Medieval Islam

31 December 2013 | Osman Senkaya | Issue 97 (January - February 2014)

All over the vast Islamic world, from the Atlantic to the Pacific, various services that are fundamentally important to society have been financed and maintained through charitable trusts. Godliness and virtue is not that you turn your faces towards east or west; but godliness and virtue is to…

Nasraddin Hodja's Pot and Reductio Ad Absurdum

31 December 2013 | Nathan Ruler | Issue 97 (January - February 2014)

From a children’s tale to Socrates and the Qur’an, the need for logic and sound reasoning is universal. Nasraddin Hodja is a well-known folktale character in the Middle East. He is famous for his wit, which is apparent in the wisdom-filled stories that have been ascribed to him for eight centu…

Interview with the Two Brain Lobes

31 December 2013 | Seth Mette | Issue 97 (January - February 2014)

If you want to know why some of us are so poetic, while others are strictly straightforward, then read on this unprecedented discussion and see how the Left Brain and the Right Brain discuss their differences. Moderator - Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. Tonight, we have two guests that hav…

The Human Skin and Its Web of Vessels

31 December 2013 | Omer Arifagaoglu | Issue 97 (January - February 2014)

We tend to overlook our skin, but it performs many vital functions for our bodies – including coming to our rescue in emergencies. Since it is designed to function within very precise limits, our body is very susceptible to small temperature changes. Since abnormalities in these changes occur…

Shawq and Ishtiyaq (Joyful Zeal and Yearning)

31 December 2013 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 97 (January - February 2014)

Zeal means turning to the Beloved with all inner and outer feelings, and locking out all appetites other than those one feels to meet with Him. In the context of yearning, it means one is overflowing with desires and wishes related to Him. Both zeal and yearning feed the spirit. Both are painful bu…

A Severe Case of Confusion

31 December 2013 | Sally Hannigen | Issue 97 (January - February 2014)

It was too early for Melanie to congratulate herself because the aliens would always be after her. They would always be looking over her shoulder, keeping track of what she did, trying to read her mind... Melanie rolled around in bed and looked at her digital clock. It read: 7:39 She groaned…

The Blessing of Anesthesia in Medical Practices

31 December 2013 | Haci Luy | Issue 97 (January - February 2014)

Before anasthesia, even routine surgeries were painful and dangerous. Its advent has allowed for amazing advances in public health and patient safety. Humanity has faced various kinds of health problems throughout history, and will be facing them until the end of time. Even someone who has not…

The Human's Unique Position in the Universe

31 December 2013 | Mehmet Necip Gumushanevi | Issue 97 (January - February 2014)

Can an apple move the earth? Physics says it can. The power that gave an apple the ability to move the world, also gave us humans the capacity to make use of the natural laws and be a true vicegerent on the earth. In a universal arrangement of objects, from the smallest to the largest, in term…

Childhood Education in the Anatolian Heritage

31 December 2013 | Ali Fethi Toprak | Issue 97 (January - February 2014)

In a globalized world, some regions - like Anatolia, which could be considered a bridge from east-to-west, past-to-future, and a melting pot for different cultures and religions - could pull from their centuries-long experience in child education to help others. Ali Fethi Toprak Child educatio…

Language, Meaning, and Purpose: Gulen's Perspective

31 December 2013 | Aalia Sohail Khan | Issue 97 (January - February 2014)

Language is not only a tool for describing facts and performing vocative functions – it also defines and constitutes our humanity. It "gives voice to our thoughts, it is the rhythm of our feelings, and the excitement of our hearts; it is the interpreter in our communication with God Almighty."

Human Cognition, the Final Frontier

31 December 2013 | Adem G. Aydin | Issue 97 (January - February 2014)

Despite advances in technology, computers still can’t come close to the power of the world’s most remarkable computer – the human brain. Computing machines have seen three phases: the tabulating phase, the programmable phase, and now the new era of computing, the cognitive phase [1]. Tabulatin…

Feast of Sacrifice Spreading The Spirit of Love, Care, and Sharing

31 December 2013 | Sr. Lilian Curaming | Issue 97 (January - February 2014)

On the Islamic Feast of Sacrifice, Christians and Muslims come together to celebrate abundance. Thursday, November 1st, 2012. A normally quiet afternoon at Tangaza College is suddenly vibrant. Life buzzes by the massive benjamina trees just in front of Pamoja Cafeteria. Tables are laden with p…

Addiction of Status

31 December 2013 | Hasan Aydinli | Issue 97 (January - February 2014)

Though less known than drug addictions, status addiction can cause serious harm to individuals and society. One of the essential mistakes some people who attain a certain status in our time make is their failure to see how transitory worldly positions are; they act as if this world is permanen…

Willpower and Being Tested With It

31 December 2013 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 97 (January - February 2014)

Question: What is the willpower and how are we being tested with it?" Willpower is considered as one of the four basic elements of what we call the mechanism of conscience. As expressed by Bediuzzaman in a beautiful phrase, willpower is "one's inclination or his or her practice in the direction of…

Science Square (Issue 97)

31 December 2013 | The Fountain | Issue 97 (January - February 2014)

A galaxy rapidly forming stars 700 million years after the Big Bang at redshift 7.51 Finkelstein S.L et al., Nature, October 2013 Astronomers have recently spotted a faint ray of light using the Hubble Space Telescope, a ten-meter telescope at Keck Observatory, located at the summit of Mauna Kea…

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