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The history of imperial dynasties in West Asia is replete with examples of remarkable urban foundations. Two notable instances are the Sasanian Ardašīr-xwarrah and the Abbasid Madīnat al-Salām, which can be classified as cosmic cities or heterotopias. This article examines the utopian foundations of these heterotopias. To this end, it analyzes four religious and imperial spaces: the representation of the earth and sky in the Zoroastrian cosmography, Yima's Vara according to the Avestan texts, Ardašīr-xwarrah, and finally, Madīnat al-Salām. This investigation aims to ascertain the extent to which the spatial characteristics of each of these spaces have been utilized in the production of the subsequent architectural forms. Similarly, it examines the development of the cosmological and eschatological paradise in relation to the Achaemenian and Sasanian royal gardens. The theoretical framework of this study is based on Michael Foucault's notion of heterotopia, which has been further developed by Henri Lefebvre's theory of space. The conceptual metaphor theory offers a cognitive linguistic foundation for elucidating the projections of utopias and heterotopias onto one another. To this end, the article focuses on the conceptual metaphor GOD IS A KING. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Hubble constant (⁠|$H_0$|⁠), a crucial parameter in cosmology, quantifies the expansion rate of the universe so its precise measurement is important to understand the fundamental dynamics of our evolving universe. One of the major limitations of measuring |$H_0$| using time-delay cosmography is the presence of the mass-sheet degeneracy (MSD) in the lens mass modelling. We propose and quantitatively assess the use of galaxy–galaxy shear measurements to break the MSD in the strong lensing mass modelling. We use stacked galaxy–galaxy lensing profiles and corresponding covariance matrices from Huang et al. to constrain the MSD in lens mass modelling with a highly flexible mass profile. Our analyses show that if ideally all galaxy–galaxy lensing measurements from the Hyper Suprime-Cam survey can be used to constrain the MSD, we can achieve |$\sim 10~{{\ \rm per\ cent}}$| precision on the MSD constraint. We forecast that galaxy–galaxy lensing measurements from Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST)-like surveys can in general constrain the MSD with |$\sim 1\,\mathrm{ per\,cent}-3~{{\ \rm per\ cent}}$| precision. Furthermore, if we push weak lensing measurements to a lower angular scale of |$\sim 0.04\,\rm Mpc$|⁠ , a survey like LSST can provide |$\sim 1~{{\ \rm per\ cent}}$| precision on the MSD constraint, enabling a measurement of |$H_0$| at the 1 per cent level. We demonstrate that galaxy–galaxy weak lensing can robustly constrain the MSD independent of stellar kinematics of the deflector, with wide-field survey data alone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multiply lensed images of a same source experience a relative time delay in the arrival of photons due to the path length difference and the different gravitational potentials the photons travel through. This effect can be used to measure absolute distances and the Hubble constant ( H 0 ) and is known as time-delay cosmography. The method is independent of the local distance ladder and early-universe physics and provides a precise and competitive measurement of H 0 . With upcoming observatories, time-delay cosmography can provide a 1% precision measurement of H 0 and can decisively shed light on the current reported 'Hubble tension'. This manuscript details the general methodology developed over the past decades in time-delay cosmography, discusses recent advances and results, and, foremost, provides a foundation and outlook for the next decade in providing accurate and ever more precise measurements with increased sample size and improved observational techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The standardizable nature of gravitationally lensed Type Ia supernovae (glSNe Ia) makes them an attractive target for time-delay cosmography, since a source with known luminosity breaks the mass sheet degeneracy. It is known that microlensing by stars in the lensing galaxy can add significant stochastic uncertainty to the unlensed luminosity, which is often much larger than the intrinsic scatter of the Type Ia population. In this work, we show how the temporal microlensing variations as the supernova (SN) disc expands can be used to improve the standardization of glSNe Ia. We find that SNe are standardizable if they do not cross caustics as they expand. We estimate that this will be the case for ≈6 doubly imaged systems and ≈0.3 quadruply imaged systems per year from the Vera Rubin Observatory (LSST). At the end of the 10 yr LSST survey, these systems should enable us to test for systematics in H 0 due to the mass sheet degeneracy at the |$1.00^{+0.07}_{-0.06}$| per cent level, or 1.8 ± 0.2 per cent if we can only extract time delays from the third of systems with counter-images brighter than i  = 24 mag. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antonino Saliba, a sixteenth century cartographer hailing from the Maltese island of Gozo, published a map in 1582 espousing his cosmology. Its popularity at the time is attested via the multiple editions and copies that were produced in Europe. Numerous sky phenomena, amongst them comets, are portrayed in the map. This study presents a detailed analysis of Saliba's treatment of these phenomena, following the first comprehensive translation of the map's text to English. It elucidates the sources that Saliba used, clarifying and shedding further light on the views he held. Where possible, the comets mentioned by Saliba are identified and explained. Besides showing how Saliba wholly conformed to the Aristotelian and Ptolemaic representation of the world, in which respect he was quite orthodox, it is also shown for the first time that his work is significantly derived from previous and contemporary sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the twelfth century, certain thinkers in the north of Europe were exalting human reason in a manner that had not been seen since the time of the ancient philosophers. Adelard of Bath, William of Conches, Thierry of Chartres and Peter Abelard all championed ratio in a way that seemed to challenge the hegemony of learning that rested securely with the authority of scripture, the testament of the Fathers and the canons of the established councils. In so doing, it represented a significantly different approach from the firmly established 'authors' (auctores) as certain scholars pursued their learning, and indeed even divine ascent, via other avenues. Even the visionary Hildegard von Bingen set enormous stock in rationality. This paper will discuss the use of reason for the anagogic ascent to the divine in order to trace its roots to a Platonic understanding of the universe in tandem with a highly positive anthropology that allowed for a bold reassessment of human capabilities, as well as a new appreciation of nature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cluster-scale strong lensing is a powerful tool for exploring the properties of dark matter and constraining cosmological models. However, due to the complex parameter space, pixelized strong lens modelling in galaxy clusters is computationally expensive, leading to the point-source approximation of strongly lensed extended images, potentially introducing systematic biases. Herein, as the first paper of the ClUsteR strong Lens modelIng for the Next-Generation observations (CURLING) program, we use lensing ray-tracing simulations to quantify the biases and uncertainties arising from the point-like image approximation for JWST -like observations. Our results indicate that the approximation works well for reconstructing the total cluster mass distribution, but can bias the magnification measurements near critical curves and the constraints on the cosmological parameters, the total matter density of the universe Ωm, and dark energy equation of state parameter w. To mitigate the biases, we propose incorporating the extended surface brightness distribution of lensed sources into the modelling. This approach reduces the bias in magnification from 46.2 per cent to 0.09 per cent for μ ∼ 1000. Furthermore, the median values of cosmological parameters align more closely with the fiducial model. In addition to the improved accuracy, we also demonstrate that the constraining power can be substantially enhanced. In conclusion, it is necessary to model cluster-scale strong lenses with pixelized multiple images, especially for estimating the intrinsic luminosity of highly magnified sources and accurate cosmography in the era of high-precision observations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we study the cosmic dynamics of varying vacuum models where the dark matter interacts with the vacuum energy. We consider the homogeneous and isotropic spacetime with spatial curvature and apply the dynamical system technique to the varying vacuum models by specifying the form of energy exchange rate (Q) between the dark energy and dark matter. Further, we utilize the cosmographic parameters and statefinder parameters in the terms of dynamical variables of the cosmological dynamical system to explore the cosmic dynamics of the universe. The Milne universe solution exists as a consequence of spatially curved geometry in the model. The models also yield radiation- matter- and dark energy-dominated phases in order and thus explain the late-time accelerated expansion of the universe. The strength of interaction terms will affect the existence of cosmological phases in the model but there will always be an attractor corresponding to the accelerating universe. We numerically solve the system to illustrate the evolution of cosmological quantities and dynamical variables in the models. The role of curvature is visible during the transition from the decelerated phase into the accelerating phase. The numerical solutions affirm that the cosmological parameters in the models are consistent with their corresponding observational values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper documents the resilience of fenye (分野, lit., "field allocation") and its applications through the nineteenth century in China. Despite literati (and eventually imperial) criticisms that the fenye system of correlative cosmography was outdated and unworthy of belief, fenye retained a sizeable audience through the close of the Qing period. At the top, the Qing imperial state continued to reference fenye correlations in its official communications late into the dynasty. In local society, literati looked to newly issued dynastic sources of astrological knowledge to update local gazetteers; in the nineteenth century, these trends were pronounced along frontier areas lacking longstanding gazetteer records. Finally, people engaged in the practice of fengshui looked to fenye knowledge to update the values and layout of the compass, the historical origins of which related to geomantic practices. In the Qing period, the compass was both theoretically and physically altered under the influence of Jesuit-introduced "Western Learning" (Xixue 西學). The paper contends that the status of fenye in pre-twentieth century China was seldom an allor-nothing proposition between a celebrated component of imperial orthodoxy and an outdated relic in inexorable decline: people critiqued fenye, used fenye, and updated fenye. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cosmography, as an integral branch of cosmology, strives to characterize the Universe without relying on pre-determined cosmological models. This model-independent approach utilizes Taylor series expansions around the current epoch, providing a direct correlation with cosmological observations and the potential to constrain theoretical models. Various observable quantities in cosmology can be described as different combinations of cosmographic parameters. Furthermore, one can apply cosmography to models with a varying speed of light. In this case, the Hubble parameter can be expressed by the same combination of cosmographic parameters for both the standard model and varying speed-of-light models. However, for the luminosity distance, the two models are represented by different combinations of cosmographic parameters. Hence, luminosity distance might provide a method to constrain the parameters in varying speed-of-light models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In exploring the dynamics of the Universe, modified gravity theories offer an alternative explanation for dark energy. Although the ΛCDM model has served as a foundational description for understanding the Universe, it also has its limitations. Our primary objective in this study is to overcome these shortcomings and reconstruct the ΛCDM Universe. We aim to achieve this by embedding the ΛCDM scenario within a modified gravity framework. Here, the investigation is conducted within the framework of novel non-minimal coupling of f(Q) gravity. A generic non-minimal form is considered, expressed in terms of two arbitrary functions f1(Q) and f2(Q). Analytic solutions are derived to mimic the ΛCDM paradigm. Finally, through cosmographic analysis, the models are validated against observational results.

Cosmography, as an integral branch of cosmology, strives to characterize the Universe without relying on pre-determined cosmological models. This model-independent approach utilizes Taylor series expansions around the current epoch, providing a direct correlation with cosmological observations and the potential to constrain theoretical models. Various observable quantities in cosmology can be described as different combinations of cosmographic parameters. Furthermore, one can apply cosmography to models with a varying speed of light. In this case, the Hubble parameter can be expressed by the same combination of cosmographic parameters for both the standard model and varying speed-of-light models. However, for the luminosity distance, the two models are represented by different combinations of cosmographic parameters. Hence, luminosity distance might provide a method to constrain the parameters in varying speed-of-light models.

Redshift drift is the phenomenon whereby the observed redshift between an emitter and observer comoving with the Hubble flow in an expanding FLRW universe will slowly evolve—on a timescale comparable to the Hubble time. In a previous article, three of the current authors performed a cosmographic analysis of the redshift drift in an FLRW universe, temporarily putting aside the issue of dynamics (the Friedmann equations). In the current article, we add dynamics while still remaining within the framework of an exact FLRW universe. We developed a suitable generic matter model and applied it to both standard FLRW and various dark energy models. Furthermore, we present an analysis of the utility of alternative cosmographic variables to describe the redshift drift data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the twin cities at the west and east edges of the world, Jābarṣā (Jābarṣ, Jābalṣā, Jāburṣā) and Jābalqā (Jābalq, Jābarqā), are somehow commonplace in Islamicate cosmographies throughout the medieval period, surprisingly little research exists on them. The main lines of the legend, as formulated by the medieval traditionalists and cosmographers, are as follows: there are two cities at the uttermost east and west parts of the inhabited world, where the sun rises and sets. The inhabitants suffer from the extreme heat and the noise made by the sun in its rising and setting; they have to hide in caves and make their own noise to be protected. In the various versions of the story, some elements lack or differ; the cities are often connected with other legends related to the edge of the world, such as Dhū l-Qarnayn, the Gog and Magog/Yājūj and Mājūj, Muḥammad's night journey, the remnants of the ʿĀd tribe, and so forth. The paper traces the origins of the legend, its formation and various formulations during the Islamic Middle Ages, the significant change it underwent in the late medieval Illuminationist (ishrāqī) philosophy, and finally its survival and fading away to a status of folktale utopia in Ottoman literature and scholarship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines the development of a new discourse on habitability in the sixteenth century, which breaks with the ancient notion that distinguished between habitable and uninhabitable spaces according to their climate and location. In it, a new conception of the world as completely habitable and exploitable is articulated, and the European ideal of a temperate climate as a reference to characterize the territories and inhabitants of various latitudes is put forward. I considered more than sixty texts related to cosmography, and a hundred maps and diagrams that were published and circulated as Europe expanded around the globe in the early modern period, and that exhibit new semantics and meanings about habitability. This study, through the analysis of these specific sources, aims to contribute to the debate on the origins of the Anthropocene and the political and imaginative logic that enables its development. The author suggests that the discursive pillars that shaped modern thinking about habitability were crucial in giving life to the ideas of extractivism, speculation, and unlimited connectivity that structures the Anthropocene. • The study contributes to our understanding of how this discourse about habitability helped to structure thinking about the planet as an infinite reservoir of resources. • The modern habitability discourse serves to interpret the Anthropocene. • The American continent played a role in breaking the old discourse of habitability and introducing a new definition of it. • The discourse of habitability of early modernity proclaims the possibility of inhabiting the whole world and that all spaces can be exploitable and profitable if they are populated. • The modern habitability discourse imposes the temperate European condition as the ideal for inhabiting the Earth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept of dark energy (DE) emerged as a result of confirming the accelerated expansion of the universe. Since then, numerous models have been developed to explore the origin and nature of DE. In this study, we investigate several recent cosmological models (Models 1–9) based on the parametrization of the DE equation of state. Our analysis focuses on a homogeneous, isotropic flat universe comprising DE, dark matter (DM), and radiation. We assume the separate conservation of the dark components (DE and DM) and radiation. By employing various parametrizations of ω D (z) , we derive the corresponding Hubble function E (z). To understand the cosmic expansion history of the universe in a model-independent manner, we employ cosmography as an approach. We express important cosmographic parameters such as deceleration, jerk, snap, and lerk parameters in terms of the Hubble rate E (z) and its derivative up to the fourth order. Additionally, we examine the statefinder parameter and O m diagnostics to distinguish between different types of DE models. Finally, we compare the physical interpretations of these diagnostic parameters with the standard Λ CDM model to assess the viability of each model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a novel approach to measuring the expansion rate and the geometry of the Universe, which combines time-delay cosmography in lens galaxy clusters with pure samples of 'cosmic chronometers' by probing the member galaxies. The former makes use of the measured time delays between the multiple images of time-varying sources strongly lensed by galaxy clusters, while the latter exploits the most massive and passive cluster member galaxies to measure the differential time evolution of the Universe. We applied two different statistical techniques, adopting realistic errors on the measured quantities, to assess the accuracy and the gain in precision on the values of the cosmological parameters. We demonstrate that the proposed combined method allows for a robust and accurate measurement of the value of the Hubble constant. In addition, this provides valuable information on the other cosmological parameters thanks to the complementarity between the two different probes in breaking parameter degeneracies. Finally, we showcased the immediate observational feasibility of the proposed joint method by taking advantage of the existing high-quality spectro-photometric data for several lens galaxy clusters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Acta Universitatis Lodziensis: Folia Litteraria Romanica is the property of Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Lodzkiego and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Acta Universitatis Lodziensis: Folia Litteraria Romanica is the property of Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Lodzkiego and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Strong gravitationally lensed supernovae (glSNe) are a powerful probe to obtain a measure of the expansion rate of the Universe, but they are also extremely rare. To date, only two glSNe with multiple images strongly lensed by galaxies have been found, but their short time delays make them unsuitable for cosmography. Here, we simulate a realistic catalogue of lensed supernovae and study the characteristics of the population of detectable systems for different surveys. Compared to previous studies, our simulations also account for the effect of microlensing and its impact on the glSNe yields. We show that the properties of glSNe in shallow surveys (such as the Zwicky Transient Facility) are determined by the need for large magnifications, which favours systems of four images with short time delays and low image separations. This picture is consistent with the properties of iPTF16geu and SN Zwicky, but is not representative of the population found in deeper surveys, which are limited by the volume of the Universe that is strongly lensed. For deeper surveys, such as the Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST), glSNe show longer time delays and greater angular separations, and the inclusion of microlensing results in 8  per cent of glSNe becoming demagnified under the detection threshold. In the 10 yr of the survey LSST should be able to find ≈180 systems, of which 70 will be suited for cosmography enabling a ≈1.2  per cent precision H 0 measurement with LSST glSNe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate the transition scale to homogeneity, R H, using as cosmic tracer the spectroscopic sample of blue galaxies from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). Considering the spatial distribution of the galaxy sample, we compute the two point correlation function ξ(r), the scaled counts in spheres |$\mathcal {N}(\lt r)$|⁠ , and the fractal dimension |$\mathcal {D}_2(r)$| to quantify the homogeneity scale in the Local Universe (0.04 < z < 0.20). The sample in analysis is compared with random and mock catalogues with the same geometry, and the same number of synthetic cosmic objects as the data set, to calculate the covariance matrix for the errors determination. The criteria adopted for the transition-to-homogeneity follows the literature, it is attained when |$\mathcal {D}_2(r)$| reaches the 1 per cent level of the limit value 3 (i.e. where it reaches 2.97) as the scale increases. We obtain R H = 70.33 ± 10.74 Mpc h−1, at the effective redshift z eff = 0.128, for a sample containing |$150\, 302$| SDSS blue galaxies with 0.04 < z < 0.20. Additionally, we perform robustness tests by analysing the homogeneity scale in sub-volumes of the original one, obtaining coherent results; we also check for a possible artefact in our procedure examining a homogeneous synthetic data set as a pseudo-data, verifying that such systematic is absent. Because our analyses concentrate in data at low redshifts, z < 0.20, we find interesting to use cosmography to calculate the radial comoving distances; therefore in this subject our analyses do not use fiducial cosmological model. For completeness, we evaluate the difference of the comoving distances estimation using cosmography and fiducial cosmology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fast radio bursts (FRBs) are millisecond-duration pulses occurring at cosmological distances that have emerged as prominent cosmological probes due to their dispersion measure (DM) evolution with redshift. In this work, we use cosmography, a model-independent approach to describe the evolution of the Universe, to introduce the cosmographic expansion of the DM– z relation. By fitting two different models for the intergalactic medium and host contributions to a sample of 23 well-localized FRBs, we estimate the kinematic parameters |$q_0=-0.59^{+0.20}_{-0.17}$|⁠ , |$j_0=1.08^{+0.62}_{-0.56}$|⁠ , s 0 = −2.1 ± 7.0, and H 0 = 69.4 ± 4.7 achieving a precision of 6 per cent and 7 per cent for the Hubble constant depending on the models used for contributions. Furthermore, we demonstrate that this approach can be used as an alternative and complementary cosmological model-independent method to revisit the long-standing 'Missing Baryons' problem in astrophysics by estimating that 82 per cent of the baryonic content of the Universe resides in the intergalactic medium, within 7 per cent and 8 per cent precision, according to the contribution models considered here. Our findings highlight the potential of FRBs as a valuable tool in cosmological research and underscore the importance of ongoing efforts to improve our understanding of these enigmatic events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of RumeliDE Journal of Language & Literature Research / RumeliDE Dil ve Edebiyat Araştırmaları Dergisi is the property of RumeliDE Uluslararasi Hakemli Dil & Edebiyat Arastirmalari Dergisi and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In the twelfth century, certain thinkers in the north of Europe were exalting human reason in a manner that had not been seen since the time of the ancient philosophers. Adelard of Bath, William of Conches, Thierry of Chartres and Peter Abelard all championed ratio in a way that seemed to challenge the hegemony of learning that rested securely with the authority of scripture, the testament of the Fathers and the canons of the established councils. In so doing, it represented a significantly different approach from the firmly established ‘authors’ (auctores) as certain scholars pursued their learning, and indeed even divine ascent, via other avenues. Even the visionary Hildegard von Bingen set enormous stock in rationality. This paper will discuss the use of reason for the anagogic ascent to the divine in order to trace its roots to a Platonic understanding of the universe in tandem with a highly positive anthropology that allowed for a bold reassessment of human capabilities, as well as a new appreciation of nature.

The continual expansion of developmental frontiers has impacted dramatically upon Indigenous health in Brazil. When the COVID-19 pandemic struck in Mato Grosso do Sul, its Indigenous populations were already living in circumstances of environmental degradation, food insecurity, racism, and structural violence. The synergistic interaction between the SARS-CoV-2 virus, other pathogens, and biosocial factors resulted in what Singer (2010) terms as ‘syndemics’. In the case of Mato Grosso do Sul, it brought about a substantial increase in the disease burden of Indigenous Peoples, where child malnutrition, obesity, hypertension, respiratory and parasitic diseases, and maternal mortality appear at higher rates than in the non-Indigenous population. This Research Article discusses the coping and participatory strategies that were employed by Indigenous Peoples early in the pandemic. Efforts by Indigenous Peoples to address the pandemic reveal ‘a clash’ between Indigenous and Colonial cosmographies with regard to notions of the body and health. Considering the Indigenous perspective on the relation between territoriality and health, the analysis highlights asymmetries of power and embodied vulnerabilities and the limits of the Anthropocene as a global perspective.

We examine the cosmic scenario of interacting Kaniadakis holographic dark energy in dynamical Chern–Simons modified gravity and the fractal universe. For this purpose, the Hubble, deceleration, coincidence, equation-of-state and jerk parameters have been evaluated in view of the redshift parameter. It is observed that deceleration parameter (q) evaluates the accelerated expansion of the universe in both gravities. The coincidence parameter (u) exhibits the transition of behavior from dark matter to dark energy era of the universe. The behavior of the equation-of-state parameter (ω θ) describes the quintessence and vacuum regions of the universe in both gravities for maximum choices of the interacting parameters. The jerk parameter shows the correspondence of the given model with Λ CDM model and other standard models in both gravities. All the parameters exhibit consistent behavior with the Planck 2018 data. We also analyze the dynamical stability in both frameworks by formulating dynamical models in the form of a system of differential equations and evaluating their corresponding critical points. Critical points of both models are stable and phase plots indicate attractor behavior that implies stability of the models. Further, stability conditions of both models signify the accelerating expansion of the universe. In addition, we discuss the thermodynamics of this model with the generalized second law and find its validity in both frameworks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, using the latest Pantheon+ sample of Type Ia supernovae, baryon acoustic oscillation measurements, and observational Hubble data, we carry out a joint constraint on the Hubble constant H 0, the spatial curvature ΩK, and the sound horizon at the end of the drag epoch r d. To be model-independent, four cosmography models—i.e., the Taylor series in terms of redshift y 1 = z /(1 + z), y 2 = arctan (z) , y 3 = ln (1 + z) , and the Padé approximants—are used without the assumption of a flat Universe. The results show that H 0 is anticorrelated with ΩK and r d, indicating that smaller ΩK or r d would be helpful in alleviating the Hubble tension. The values of H 0 and r d are consistent with the estimate derived from the Planck cosmic microwave background data based on the flat ΛCDM model, but H 0 is in 2.3 ∼ 3.0 σ tension with that obtained by Riess et al. in all these cosmographic approaches. Meanwhile, a flat Universe is preferred by the present observations under all approximations except the third order of y 1 and y 2 of the Taylor series. Furthermore, according to the values of the Bayesian evidence, we found that the flat ΛCDM remains to be the most favored model by the joint data sets, and the Padé approximant of order (2,2), the third order of y 3 and y 1 are the top three cosmographic expansions that fit the data sets best, while the Taylor series in terms of y 2 are essentially ruled out. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The longstanding search for the cosmological model that best describes the Universe has been made more intriguing since the recent discovery of the Hubble constant, H 0, tension observed between the value of H 0 from the Cosmic Microwave Background and from type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia). Hence, the commonly trusted flat Λ cold dark matter (ΛCDM) model is under investigation. In this scenario, cosmography is a very powerful technique to investigate the evolution of the Universe without any cosmological assumption, thus revealing tensions between observational data and predictions from cosmological models in a completely model-independent way. We here employ a robust cosmographic technique based on an orthogonal logarithmic polynomial expansion of the luminosity distance to fit quasars (QSOs) alone and QSOs combined with Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs), SNe Ia, and Baryon Acoustic Oscillations. To apply QSOs and GRBs as probes we use, respectively, the Risaliti–Lusso relation between ultraviolet and X-ray luminosities and the 'Dainotti GRB 3D relation' among the rest-frame end time of the X-ray plateau emission, its corresponding luminosity, and the peak prompt luminosity. We also correct QSOs and GRBs for selection biases and redshift evolution and we employ both the traditional Gaussian likelihood and the newly discovered best-fitting likelihoods for each probe investigated. This comprehensive analysis reveals a strong tension (⁠|$\gt 4 \, \sigma$|⁠) between our data sets and the flat ΛCDM model proving the power of both the cosmographic approach and high-redshift sources, such as QSOs and GRBs, which can probe the Universe at early epochs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Dürr-i meknūn (The Hidden Pearl) is one of the most fascinating and enigmatic works of fifteenth-century Ottoman literature. It consists of a digest of Islamic cosmology and cosmography engaging with a wide array of subjects, beginning with the Creation and concluding with the Last Judgement. The Dürr-i meknūn has long been attributed to the mystic and scholar Ahmed Bīcān and has accordingly been dated to between 1453 and 1466. However, building on the most recent research, which shows that Ahmed Bīcān could not possibly have penned the Dürr and that the text is in fact anonymous, this article provides a critical reading and new dating of the text by focusing on the apocalyptic prophecies found in Chapter 16. Using a novel methodology that integrates contextual and historical reading, with computations of Arabic gematria, my analysis demonstrates that the Dürr was composed in 1472–73, in anticipation of the Ottoman–Akkoyunlu confrontation at the Battle of Başkent, when fears were running high that the end of Ottoman rule was at hand. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses the artwork, "Wandering the Magnetosphere," explores the intricate network of physical forces and bio-geo-political time. It reports the features a living cosmography to depict movement across time and the relationship between Earth's internal energy and the solar energy of the cosmos.

At the end of the sixteenth century, a new conception of history appeared that Jean Bodin theorized in France as geographistory. Building on the discoveries of the New World and the subsequent onset of globalization, and drawing on Polybius's Histories as well as Stoic cosmopolitanism, geographistory aimed to impose a coherent and authentic order ("metre en ordre des choses tant désordonnees") on the puzzle of fortuitous historical events by appealing to the immanent and material nature of things, presented as a kind of Fortune through which events would realize their universal telos. Configured after the model of the destiny of the Roman Empire, which at his apogee dominated all the world urbi et orbi, the growing world's unity and universality would therefore providentially substitute for both God's miraculous intervention and the Aristotelian epic hero's action; which had failed in the eyes of Calvinists because of the historic fiasco of King Henri IV. In that respect, the poet Agrippa d'Aubigné hoped, with his Histoire universelle, to endow history with a new direction and progress (as Bacon and, still later, Bossuet will do) by methodically combining the parameters of time and space, in the manner of panoptic and rotating Baroque perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Redshift drift is the phenomenon whereby the observed redshift between an emitter and observer comoving with the Hubble flow in an expanding FLRW universe will slowly evolve—on a timescale comparable to the Hubble time. In a previous article, three of the current authors performed a cosmographic analysis of the redshift drift in an FLRW universe, temporarily putting aside the issue of dynamics (the Friedmann equations). In the current article, we add dynamics while still remaining within the framework of an exact FLRW universe. We developed a suitable generic matter model and applied it to both standard FLRW and various dark energy models. Furthermore, we present an analysis of the utility of alternative cosmographic variables to describe the redshift drift data.

The paper discusses the landscapes of Apollo, Hermes, Pan, and Demeter in the Homeric hymns, analysing how particular landscape representations articulate the gods’ functions and identities, their relationship to humanity and the structure of the Olympic cosmos. It is argued that an in-depth examination of the representation of landscape in Ancient literature reveals patterns of representation that contribute to a deeper understanding of the religious worldview of the ancient Greeks.

In the context of the Fab-Four theory of gravity in a Friedmann-Lemaître-Robertson-Walker background, in this work we use the cosmography approach to study a particular self-tuning filter solution focused on a zero-curvature fixed point to study the H 0 tension. In this scheme, the equations restrict the universe's evolution to certain scenarios, including radiation-like expansion, matter-like expansion, and late-time acceleration. Furthermore, we build the cosmographic series of the Fab-Four theory to obtain the kinematic parameters as the Hubble constant H 0 and the deceleration parameter q 0 for all the scenarios mentioned. Finally, we compare our results to find that it is possible to alleviate the current discrepancy on H 0 by considering specific requirements on the free parameters of the Fab-Four theory through a self-tuning filter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Oronce Finé composed in 1532, as result of the teaching program at the Collège Royal, his work Protomathesis: opus varium, a quadripartite mathematical compendium about practical arithmetic, theoretical and practical geometry, cosmography and gnomonics. Precisely the second book, De geometria, was translated into the Spanish language, Los dos libros de la geometría práctica de Oroncio Fineo Delfinate, [...] traducidos de latín en lengua española, in 1553, by Jerónimo Girava and Pedro Juan de Lastanosa. Based on the collation of both texts, the Latin original and the Spanish translation, this work analyzes the characteristics of the Spanish treatise and describes the translation techniques used by the translators in its textual formulation, which represents the first version made since Latin into a Romance language. Although, principally, the translators opt for an literally translation, the testimonials reflect the restructuring of the contents and, with them, the semantic amplitude, thanks to the use of different types of paraphrases and circumlocutions. Furthermore, they translate the Latinisms or recreate these with a gloss or binomial expressions to convey the meaning, but they also copy the Latinisms or translate the Greek voices, when these are terminologically appropriated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper retraces Guillaume Postel's (1510–1581) initial acquisition of a copy of Taqwīm al-Buldān (The Arrangement of Countries), a geographical treatise of the historian and geographer Abu'l-Fidā (672/1273–732/1331) and offers an analysis of his reading of the text through a careful examination of the manuscript itself, hitherto ignored by scholarship. After the introduction and the examination of the manuscript, I will discuss the use Postel made of the Arabic geography in his cosmographical writings advancing the hypothesis that Postel's cosmography somehow shares a similar approach to Abu'l-Fidā with respect to the concept of "tradition." Finally, by offering an analysis of a parallel to Postel's appropriation of Taqwīm al-Buldān , i.e., Hajji Ahmed's cordiform map, I will propose a new way to re-contextualize the surge of cosmographical works in sixteenth-century Europe, as, at least in part, a product of post-Mongol taḥqīq. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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In 1282, the Persian scholar, Quṭb al-Dīn al-Shīrāzī (d. 1311), included in a cosmographical work a description of a 'Greek' map of the Mediterranean. Rather than reproducing this map graphically, he placed a square grid over the image, listed the cells covered by the sea, and then itemised the toponyms according to their cell numbers. Once this pixelated map is created as he instructed, it is obvious that the 'Greek' map must have been an Italian portolan chart, featuring its unique elements: a realistic outline for the northern coast of Africa, especially the Gulf of Sirte, a simplistic rectangular form for the British Isles, a counterclockwise tilt, and a large size. With a toponymy that matches that on the oldest surviving portolan chart (the Carte Pisane, c.1270) and the next survivor (the Cortona chart), assigned to later that century, the 'Greek' map in Shīrāzī's possession in 1282 seems to be the second oldest portolan chart of which we have specific knowledge. This article recounts how a Persian cosmographer disseminated a cartographic image based on the direct observations of Christian pelagic mariners. This unexpected material evidence confirms that knowledge of those earliest accurate sea charts was not confined to the Latin world, even if such information exchanges were probably rare. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The biblical book of Job contains more extensive discussion of the cosmos and God's role in it than any other book in the Bible with the possible exception of Psalms. The main issue of the book is God's justice towards the sorely tried protagonist, Job. The major distinction between the book of Job and the thinking of the general ancient Near Eastern culture is the role of God's justice and wisdom in the operations of the cosmos. This paper will focus on the key passages about the cosmos in Job in order to define the specific message of the book concerning the relations of God and men to the world, and determine how the book of Job views a control of the world in the overall context of the book. First, we will consider the context and structure of the book. Then the passages about the cosmos and creation themselves will be summarized in an attempt to determine what they are communicating, especially in regard to God's control of the world. Finally, we will draw conclusions about the overall role that biblical creation imagery plays in the drama of Job. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]