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The Middle East

On Zoroastrianism: The Sacred Fire, the Garment of Good Mind, & the Girdle of Righteousness

Originating from what is now northeastern Iran or southwestern Afghanistan, Zoroastrianism is one of the world’s oldest religions. Ahura Mazda, or the Wise Lord, is the ultimate entity; members believe he is the eternal source of light in both the menog (world of thought) and the getig (world of bones). Zoroastrians pray in front of a fire or other light source in order for members to “activate the connection between getig where…

European History History Italy Middle Eastern History The Middle East The World World History 4 March 2018

World War II

World War II was unquestionably the largest and most significant armed conflict in human history. While it may have officially begun when Adolf Hitler’s Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939, roots of conflict stemmed from the Paris Peace Conference of 1919 and the resulting Treaty of Versailles. Placing the full blame for the First World War on Germany, the treaty demanded heavy war reparations from the country. Because of this, the…

Digital Media The Middle East The World 5 March 2017

What is Participatory Media?

Participatory media is media in which actual participants are the ones who contribute to the body of knowledge through the process of collection, reporting, analysis and/or dissemination, rather than simply acting as consumers. Examples of this phenomenon are numerous and include video blogs, podcasts, tagging, message boards, music-photo-video sharing, and social networking. In particular, this type of media is produced on sites such as Wikipedia, Tumblr, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and the…

Political Science The Middle East 26 February 2017

American Policy in the Middle East

American policy in the Middle East through the Cold War (1947-1991) was largely motivated by the United States’ desire to check Soviet expansion and influence throughout the world. In the Middle East, this “meant preventing the Soviets from filling the void left by the end of Britain and France colonialism” (Beaver, Beaver and Wilsey, n.d.). Secondary to this issue, the United States has maintained a vested interest in the resources and facilities…