Search results for "Astrology"

Three X-ray Flares Near Primary Eclipse of the RS CVn Binary XY UMa

2016

We report on an archival X-ray observation of the eclipsing RS CVn binary XY UMa ($\rm P_{orb}\approx$ 0.48d). In two $\emph{Chandra}$ ACIS observations spanning 200 ks and almost five orbital periods, three flares occurred. We find no evidence for eclipses in the X-ray flux. The flares took place around times of primary eclipse, with one flare occurring shortly ($<0.125\rm P_{orb}$) after a primary eclipse, and the other two happening shortly ($<0.05\rm P_{orb}$) before a primary eclipse. Two flares occurred within roughly one orbital period ($\Delta \phi\approx1.024\rm P_{orb}$) of each other. We analyze the light curve and spectra of the system, and investigate coronal length scales both…

The Chevroches zodiacal cap and its Burgundy relations

2009

AbstractThe excavation of an unexplored secondary agglomeration in Chevroches (France), from 2001 to 2002 has led to the discovery of a bronze dome of a type unknown in the Ancient world. It is inscribed with three lines in Greek transcribing Egyptian and Roman months, and the twelve signs of the Zodiac. This paper presents the first observations and some other finds from similar objects in Burgundy.

The Cultivation of Astronomy in Spanish Universities in the Latter Half of the 16th Century

2006

The four universities known to have taught mathematics in the 16th century in what is now known as Spain, were Salamanca, Valencia, Alcala, and, at the end of the century, Seville. In addition to being taught at university, astronomy was also taught in other institutions such as for example, the Casa de la Contratacion of Seville, the so-called Mathematics Academy of Madrid, certain naval academies and, towards the end of the century, certain Jesuit schools. At the University of Valencia, following the official foundation of the Estudi or center of learning in 1500, a chair of mathematics was set up in 1503, although we have no documentary evidence of the subjects taught there in the early …

Pedro Sánchez Ciruelo. A Commentary on Sacrobosco’s Tractatus de sphaera with a Defense of Astrology

2020

AbstractThis paper focuses on the figure of the Spanish scholar Pedro Sánchez Ciruelo (ca. 1470–1548), who published a commentary on Johannes de Sacrobosco’s Sphaera in 1498. The aim of this study is to analyze the defense of astrology that Ciruelo prepared for the preface of his commentary in order to show that this praise of astrology represents a significant part of the scholar’s intellectual interests, which remained constant throughout his career. It is possible to get a richer understanding of Ciruelo’s defenses of astrology in several of his works by placing them in their own specific context: the first one in the context of the prohibition of Simon de Phares’s activities in Paris in…

Updated orbital ephemeris of the ADC source X 1822-371: a stable orbital expansion over 40 years

2019

The source X 1822-371 is an eclipsing compact binary system with a period close to 5.57 hr and an orbital period derivative $\dot{P}_{\rm orb}$ of 1.51(7)$\times 10^{-10}$ s s$^{-1}$. The very large value of $\dot{P}_{\rm orb}$ is compatible with a super-Eddington mass transfer rate from the companion star, as suggested by X-ray and optical data. The XMM-Newton observation taken in 2017 allows us to update the orbital ephemeris and verify whether the orbital period derivative has been stable over the last 40 yr. We added to the X-ray eclipse arrival times from 1977 to 2008 two new values obtained from the RXTE and XMM-Newton observations performed in 2011 and 2017, respectively. We estimate…

Balance as Symbol and Object of Art

2014

The symbolic use of the balance is reviewed, covering mythology and religion, icons and arts, its use in astronomy and astrology as well as in literature and music. In Old Egypt many paintings show men’s height balances symbolically used for soul weighing. In Greece the fate balance was known. In the Roman Empire the symbolic use changed to justice fairness, and legitimacy of coins and this holds until modern time. In the Bible and the Koran fair weighing in trade are demanded. In the Book of Revelation the balance is symbol for misery. Michael archangel became guide of the deceased to the last judgement and weighed the poor sinner against his good deeds. In the witch balance the mass of th…

What Do You Need a Mathematician For? Martinus Hortensius ’s “Speech on the Dignity and Utility of the Mathematical Sciences ” (Amsterdam 1634)

2004

Send submissions to David E. Rowe, Fachbereich 17--Mathematik, Johannes Gutenberg University, D55099 Mainz, Germany. I n early modem Europe the term mathematical sciences was used to describe those fields of knowledge that depended on measure, number, and weight--reflecting the much-quoted passage from the Wisdom of Solomon 11, 20: "but thou hast ordered all things in measure and number and weight." This included astrology and architecture as well as arithmetic and astronomy. These scientiae or disciplinae mathematicae were generally subdivided into mathematicae purae, dealing with quantity, continuous and discrete as in geometry and arithmetic, and mathematicae mix tae or mediae, dealing n…

Monica Azzolini, The Duke and the Stars: Astrology and Politics in Renaissance Milan. Cambridge, MA and London: Harvard University Press, 2013. Pp. x…

2014

Bartomeu de Tresbens, metge i astròleg de Pere el Cerimomiós : aproximació biogràfica i diplomatari

2019

Aproximació biogràfica a Bartomeu de Tresbens, físic i astròleg al servei del rei Pere el Cerimoniós i del seu fill l'infant Joan, futur Joan I el Caçador. Ho fem a partir del conjunt de la documentació sobre aquest personatge que fins ara ha estat descoberta als arxius, fonamentalment a l'Arxiu de la Corona d'Aragó, i també a partir de les notícies que apareixen en el conjunt de les seves obres sobre astrologia. Hem situat Tresbens en els seus orígens occitans, així com en el context de les activitats econòmiques, polítiques i socials durant el temps que el tenim documentat en terres de la Corona d'Aragó, mostrant l'home que hi ha al darrere de la més important obra astrològica en català. …

From creationism to economics : how far should analyses of pseudoscience extend?

2017

Both the scientific and philosophical problems with classic pseudosciences such as astrology and creationism are well known, leading to institutions that are not structured to promote cognitive advancement. A focus on institutions, however, also encourages recognition of gray areas, such as parapsychology, which combines scientifically dubious claims with institutions that are comparable to most social sciences in their structure. Furthermore, institutional approaches to pseudoscience also raise questions about some academically mainstream fields such as economics. In such cases, pseudoscientific aspects of practice are harder to identify, highlighting the need to place analyses of pseudosc…