Michael Johns,:Moment of Grace: The American City in the 1950s
- Paperback 2011, ISBN: 9780520234352
Hardcover
New York City, New York: The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., 2011. Articles of note in this issue include: Let There Be Data-While Some Owners And Developers Might Be Reluctant, Mandatory En… More...
New York City, New York: The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., 2011. Articles of note in this issue include: Let There Be Data-While Some Owners And Developers Might Be Reluctant, Mandatory Energy Reporting Is The Future Of Green Building; People-Tom Darden, Executive Director Of The Make It Right Foundation, Gives The Lowdown On Progress In NOLA; Earthwatch-Faced With An Energy Gap From Shuttered Nuclear Plants, Germany Turns To Fossil Fuels; Products-Air Cooled Chillers, Variable Air Volume Systems, Premium Grass Seed, Recycled Plastic Furnishings, Packaged PV Systems, And More; Greening The Plant-Building Product Manufacturers Are Executing, And Measuring, Their Sustainable Practices; U.S. Land Port Of Entry-A Green Border Station Presents A Welcoming Respite In A Bleak Wetlands Landscape Between Canada And The U.S.; Park Street Clinical Labs-A 24 Hour Lab Facility In New Haven Supports An Adjacent Cancer Treatment Center; Mason Lane Farm Facility-Farmlands Use New Low Tech Barns For Vehicle Maintenance And Hay Storage; NRDC Expansion Prototype-The Natural Resources Defense Council's New LEED-Platinum Office Space Will Serve As A Prototype For Future Build Outs; Case Study Revisit-A Previously Published Project Is Analyzed Post Occupancy Performance; Code Green-Building Codes Are Increasingly Becoming The Minimum Sustainable Contruction Requirements. This book has 80 pages and is profusely illustrated.. Vol. 6, No. 4, July/August 2011. Pictorial Softcover{Magazine}. Very Good. 4to - over 9¾" - 12" tall., The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., 2011, Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers Pvt. Ltd. , 1990. First. Hardcover. New. 23 X 29. Numerous B/w Illustrations. India's cultural traditions have their origin in diverse sources embedded in the life style of various pre- and proto-historic communities occupying different parts of the sub-continent in the various periods of their existence. Despite high antiquity of several archaeological finds, one has to admit that the earliest recorded references of India's cultural philosophy and ideological concepts are found only in the textual data of Rgveda, which show an already developed stage of thought. The importance of Vedic philosophy and religious concepts especially those defining the form of divinities lies in the fact that they preserve in them the seeds of later Hinduism to a considerable extent. The Rgveda contains references to various types of divinities which have been classified into three broad groups viz., (i) Terrestrial deities like Prithvi, Soma, Agni, (ii) Atmospheric gods like Indra, Vayu, Maruts, Parjanya, and (iii) Heavenly divinities like Varuna, Dyaus, Asvins, Surya, Savitr, Mitra, Pusana and Visnu. Of these last five were regarded as different phases of sun's movements. Varuna, who has been extolled in many hymns, is also associated with the concept of Rta, i.e. the cosmic and moral order. The Rgveda mentions some goddess too like Prthivi, Usas or the dawn, ratri, Ila Bharati or Sarasvati. A few gods like Dyava-Prthivi (i.e. the sky and the earth) are vitally significant for later iconographic development. To propitiate these gods the Rgvedic people made offerings of milk, ghee grains, etc. through sacrificial oblations and chanted hymns in their praise which, undoubtedly, suggest presence of the elements of Bhakti (deep devotional urge) in the Vedic religion. The present work is conditioned by a kind of unconventional approach to the study of Vedic elements of iconic forms and concepts especially those mentioned in Rgveda, She feels that all gods of Hinduism are basically the gods of the Rgveda which changed their forms from time to time to meet the demand of the people. In her view these developments are well attested to by the literature of historical times, e.g. the Smrtis and the Puranas. According to Chawla the early idea of image-making can be traced back in the hymns of the Rgveda particularly in the poetic imagery of early Vedic seers. She agrees that most of the Vedic deities, no doubt, originally represented the forces of nature but in the course of time, during the Rgvedic age itself, she feels that iconic concepts in regard to at least some divinities had already come into vogue. The author had also located and analysed certain Vedic terms preserving in them clues pertaining to bodily features of some deities. The representation of form as reflected in the expressions like rupani pimsatu and rupam sukrtam, is an indication of some kind of artistic activity in Rgvedic times. Perhaps emergence of the concept of Tvastr, the divine craftsman/artist, was a result of constantly growing creative urge of Rgvedic societies. Dr. Chawla views the whole growth of Hindu iconography as a continuous process of development from the period of the Rgveda onwards under the cover of religious philosophies. Yet, she does not deny the role of Indus civilization and external mythological import. Jyotsna Chawla further invites our attention to the Iconographic parellelism between the concept of Dyava-Prthivi, the eternal parents, and the one reflected in the unified form available in the Puranic iconography of Ardhanarisvara. She traces the growth of the iconic forms of Rgvedic deities like Siva, Surya, Soma, Yama, Asvins, etc. in the later periods when the Puranas were compiled. She has beautifully analysed the Vedic symbolism and the attributes held by various gods in the form of vajra, pasa, danda, sruk and sruva in a logical manner., Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers Pvt. Ltd., 1990, Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers Pvt. Ltd. , 1990. First. Hardcover. New. 23 X 29. Numerous B/w Illustrations. India's cultural traditions have their origin in diverse sources embedded in the life style of various pre- and proto-historic communities occupying different parts of the sub-continent in the various periods of their existence. Despite high antiquity of several archaeological finds, one has to admit that the earliest recorded references of India's cultural philosophy and ideological concepts are found only in the textual data of Rgveda, which show an already developed stage of thought. The importance of Vedic philosophy and religious concepts especially those defining the form of divinities lies in the fact that they preserve in them the seeds of later Hinduism to a considerable extent. The Rgveda contains references to various types of divinities which have been classified into three broad groups viz., (i) Terrestrial deities like Prithvi, Soma, Agni, (ii) Atmospheric gods like Indra, Vayu, Maruts, Parjanya, and (iii) Heavenly divinities like Varuna, Dyaus, Asvins, Surya, Savitr, Mitra, Pusana and Visnu. Of these last five were regarded as different phases of sun's movements. Varuna, who has been extolled in many hymns, is also associated with the concept of Rta, i.e. the cosmic and moral order. The Rgveda mentions some goddess too like Prthivi, Usas or the dawn, ratri, Ila Bharati or Sarasvati. A few gods like Dyava-Prthivi (i.e. the sky and the earth) are vitally significant for later iconographic development. To propitiate these gods the Rgvedic people made offerings of milk, ghee grains, etc. through sacrificial oblations and chanted hymns in their praise which, undoubtedly, suggest presence of the elements of Bhakti (deep devotional urge) in the Vedic religion. The present work is conditioned by a kind of unconventional approach to the study of Vedic elements of iconic forms and concepts especially those mentioned in Rgveda, She feels that all gods of Hinduism are basically the gods of the Rgveda which changed their forms from time to time to meet the demand of the people. In her view these developments are well attested to by the literature of historical times, e.g. the Smrtis and the Puranas. According to Chawla the early idea of image-making can be traced back in the hymns of the Rgveda particularly in the poetic imagery of early Vedic seers. She agrees that most of the Vedic deities, no doubt, originally represented the forces of nature but in the course of time, during the Rgvedic age itself, she feels that iconic concepts in regard to at least some divinities had already come into vogue. The author had also located and analysed certain Vedic terms preserving in them clues pertaining to bodily features of some deities. The representation of form as reflected in the expressions like rupani pimsatu and rupam sukrtam, is an indication of some kind of artistic activity in Rgvedic times. Perhaps emergence of the concept of Tvastr, the divine craftsman/artist, was a result of constantly growing creative urge of Rgvedic societies. Dr. Chawla views the whole growth of Hindu iconography as a continuous process of development from the period of the Rgveda onwards under the cover of religious philosophies. Yet, she does not deny the role of Indus civilization and external mythological import. Jyotsna Chawla further invites our attention to the Iconographic parellelism between the concept of Dyava-Prthivi, the eternal parents, and the one reflected in the unified form available in the Puranic iconography of Ardhanarisvara. She traces the growth of the iconic forms of Rgvedic deities like Siva, Surya, Soma, Yama, Asvins, etc. in the later periods when the Puranas were compiled. She has beautifully analysed the Vedic symbolism and the attributes held by various gods in the form of vajra, pasa, danda, sruk and sruva in a logical manner., Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers Pvt. Ltd., 1990, University of California Press, December 2002. Hardcover. New. 'Moment of Grace 'tells the story of the American city in its remarkable heyday. Never before or after the 1950s were downtowns so exciting, neighborhoods so settled, or suburban dwellers so optimistic. Urban culture was at its peak: it was vital, urbane, conformist, and generating rebellion all at once. Capturing the mood of the '50s in superb historical photographs and mining delightfully varied sources--including urban critics, interviews with city residents, novels, songs, magazines, and newspapers--'Moment of Grace 'brings alive the downtowns, the neighborhoods, and the suburbs of the era. A rich historical reflection on a singular decade, the book also portrays the '50s as a critical turning point in American culture and economy. Michael Johns shows us exactly why city life never could or would be the same again. <BR>Giving a vivid sense of the lived experience of the day, Johns explores the '50s in cities such as New York, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Chicago, and Oakland, writing about fashion (which demanded the highest heels and pointiest breasts in history), nightlife, architecture, literature, business and economic trends, and teenage culture. He tells us what was for sale in the stores, who lived in the neighborhoods, what life was like for women in the brand-new suburbs, and much more. And he confronts difficult issues head-on. What did the loss of city jobs and the simultaneous success of the civil rights movement mean for black neighborhoods? What were the profound consequences of the rise of the suburbs for family life?<BR>In contrast to the vibrant cities of the '50s, the streets of today's downtowns are often empty if not suffused with melancholy. Johns uncovers the seeds of the transformation from the '50s to today, and at the same time, he paints a memorable picture of the American past. A geographer's exploration of city life in 1950s America, a vivid portrait of its downtowns, neighborhoods, and nascent suburbs. Johns sees the nineteen-fifties as not only the peak of sophisticated urbanity but also a period that contained the elements for urban strife to come. Very nice clean, tight copy free of any marks., University of California Press<