Bosphorus

into how these experiences are attributed meaning and fit within their particular life context of individual atheists. This presentation reminded me of the value in grounded theory approaches to phenomena, as her research provided further empirical data documenting processes of appraisal and attribution behind special experiences in atheists. Co-Editor Zuhâl Ağılkaya-Şahin, Psychology of Religion in Turkey In reflection, the overall conference experience in Turkey was first rate. The Turkish hospitality may be the stuff of legends (see 13 Things You’ll Only Understand If You’ve Been to Turkey), but it is no tall tale—it exists in reality. An organized boat tour of the Bosphorus strait ending in a five- course meal at a former Sultan’s palace were testament to that. The area to either side of the Bosphorus has been the meeting place of cultures, conquers (cultures again?), and continents, stretching far back into human history. This joining together continues today. Whether it is the sound of the Muslim call for prayer enticingly vibrating the secular-western ear drum, or the tattooed Muslim woman you observe bringing a mug of cold beer to her lips at a roadside café, Turkey is a great place for these meetings and contains a largely untapped stage for future research on atheism and secularity.…

In August 6th, 1956, I danced with Manuel in the dance organized in my village, at an orange grove that was placed near the public washing place. The walls had recently been whitewashed and the moon corroborated that whiteness. It seemed day to me, I swear it seemed day. The stars were placed by our waist, they were so many that started tickling us, wrapping us. I danced with Manuel as I was dancing with the eternity. I remember quite better his hot breathing in my neck than his awkward words he…

For starters, they both controlled important trade routes, Bosphorus strait for the Ottomans and the Silk Road was controlled by the Mongols. The Bosphorus strait is extremely important because it is the only sea route between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean. Similarly, the Silk Road has been an extraordinarily profitable trade route between the east and west. Another similarity between these two is their control of vast swaths of territory. At the peak of the Mongol Empire it controlled…

resuscitated in 1908 by the Young Turk development, which restored the constitution and the Ottoman Parliament. One of the Young Turks, Mustafa Kemal, was a youthful armed force officer who assumed a minor part in the 1908 transformation. Kemal would later impact the world forever by telling Turkish strengths at Gallipoli (1915) and driving his country to freedom from Allied occupation (1923). By 1908 the Ottoman Empire was disintegrating, a circumstance which pained the rulers and negotiators…

Europeans. The crusades have gained a romantic glow from modern times, that takes away from its bloody, gritty reality. The crusades history of Jerusalem is evident in churches as St. Anne’s, the church of the tomb of the Holy Sepulchre, which they rebuilt during the crusades. Easily the most successful of these campaigns was the First crusade (1096-1099). Palestine had been in muslim hands since the seventh century, Turks from beyond the caspian sea invaded the Near East, converted to…

main internal causes for the fall of Rome include the failing economy, high taxes, Romans were becoming lazy and comfortable, and Roman soldiers were not loyal to the emperors, but to the leaders of the military. Unlike the military of the Western Empire, Justinian took much pride in building a powerful military force, creating one of the most powerful and feared military programs in history . According to The Voluntaryist Reader, trade was successful in Byzantium and was of much importance .…

behind this event that marked the history books forever. How did the war begin? How did the U.S. get involved? What impact did it had? Leading causes to the war The Colonialist policy of the great powers: the imperialist countries had done with the territorial division of the African and Asian continent and a new correlation of forces began between industrial powers such as Germany, USA, Japan, Britain and France. The strategic points were that Germany wanted the colonies of Britain and subdue…

strong sense of alienation that he always felt in his own city and at home among his own people. He writes that he felt like an outsider in the poor and old neighborhood of Istanbul as well as in the affluent quarter of Nisantasi. On surface the book gives an account of Pamuk’s childhood, his upbringing, his love affairs, his reading interests, his parents, their issues, his late night walks around the city and finally ends with his decision to become a writer. But on a deeper level his each and…

declare war on Russia as a response to protect their allies and their own territory of Moldavia that was close to the Russian frontier. In the Battle of Poltava in 1709 the Ottomans annihilated the Russian army whose objective was to take the city of Moldavia. Consequently, afterward the battle the Russian and the Ottomans signed a military alliance and the Russians paid nearly 20,000 gold coins to the Empire due to aggression committed against it. Even though this alliances beneficiate both…

a bow and arrow from the sky above.” (Gods and monsters) The hero, Bellerophon, killed the Chimera by a bow and arrow and the monster became famous. “...frightful flying creatures with hooked beaks and claw who always left behind a loathsome stench, sickening to all living creatures” (Book pg 165). One time the gods wanted to punish Phineus, because he had revealed the future to the people. The punishment would be eternal hunger. Then the gods ordered the Harpies to swoop down from the sky…