The vernacular architecture of Doha,Qatar

SUMMARY: The urban history of the Gulf states has been largely neglected, with historical studies of Qatar focusing on its political and economic development. This article presents an overview of the vernacular architecture of Doha that incorporates non-elite buildings. The life histories of these buildings tell the story of Qatar's rapid development in the 20th century and the dramatic changes to the society and urban fabric of its capital. Rapid development threatens to destroy this aspect of Qatar's past, and we accordingly aim to record the diversity of the historic built environment of Doha.     

Federigo Enriques,Gaston Bachelard et Ferdinand Gonseth

The development and complexity of the debate about the conceptual structure of science in the XX^th century gave birth to a new discipline, the history of epistemology, with the aim of giving a critical history of our «epistemological heritage» with suitable methodologies of a historical and theoretical nature. A critical history of the philosophy of science on more «Wenden», besides the neo-positivistic and post-neo-positivistic ones; in Italy and France, in the first period of the XX^th century, developed a tradition of epistemological research in a neo-rationalistic sense with specific theoretical characteristics, particularly for the relevance assigned to the historicity of science. The Italian-French epistemology favored the study of the relationship between mathematical and physical thought, such as can be characterized as a really autonomous physical-mathematical epistemology; this different historical and epistemological approach, first elaborate by Federigo Enriques and then by Gaston Bachelard, Albert Lautman and Ferdinand Gonseth, allowed us to understand in the 30's the «implicit philosophy» in the works of Kurt Gödel and Hermann Weyl.     

南怀仁在华事迹考

比利时传教士南怀仁于康熙甲寅(1674)所制作的《坤舆全图》,现今珍藏在河北大学图书馆内.由于这幅地图保存的完整性和历史文献资料的重要参考性,引来了众多的中外学者.或对其图文鉴赏,或对其专业考察.为了使人们对南怀仁有一个更清楚的认识,了解他在华、尤其是在清康熙朝的史迹及其贡献,依据有关文献记载,特做介绍,以飨同仁.     

From Boatyard to Museum: 3D laser scanning and digital modelling of the Qatar Museums watercraft collection,Doha, Qatar

This article presents the results of a project to 3D laser scan and digitally model 14 watercraft from the Qatar Museums collection, comprising a range of regional vessels: most had not been surveyed previously. The project used the resulting point clouds generated 2D naval lines and orthographic records of the vessels in their current condition, and photorealistic 3D digital models for gallery display. This case study provides illustrative examples of the intermediate stages and final outputs. It assesses the pros and cons of 3D laser scanning as a survey technology for nautical scholars in terms of the time, cost, and skillset, as well as logistical considerations. It also compares the accuracy of traditional hand survey methods.     

Klaus G. Witz,The Supreme Wisdom of the Upanisads: An Introduction

Indo-Iranian Journal -     

Ruwayda: an historic urban settlement in north Qatar

SUMMARY: Ruwayda was first identified as an archaeological site in the 1970s and was excavated between 2009 and 2014. Despite a paucity of documentary evidence, this large settlement, which extends over an area of more than 90 hectares, contains a number of features indicative of an urban settlement including two mosques, a series of warehouses, a large multi-period fort, large courtyard houses interspersed with smaller, less substantial structures and a number of cemeteries. In addition to these buildings, there is also evidence for associated field systems and a walled garden.     

The Evolution of Administrative Systems in Kuwait,Saudi Arabia,and Qatar: The Challenge of Implementing Market Based Reforms

The dramatic plunge in oil prices since the second half of 2014 poses serious challenges for the oil dependent states of Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar, and revives their interest in accelerating the implementation of market‐based reforms such as outsourcing, privatization, and public–private partnerships. This article challenges the assumption that these reforms offer a panacea for administrative change, and argues that while they might appear to be a solution to the growing fiscal constraints in the three Gulf states, considerable administrative, cultural, economic, and political barriers hinder their effective implementation. The conclusion reached is that western labels of market‐based reforms offer limited options for the three states in the absence of strong political will to make fundamental reforms that could alter the state–society relations. It is suggested that further theorization of administrative change is required in cultural contexts, such as the Gulf region, where administration and society are intertwined, and where trying to minimize the role and size of the state, poses a direct threat to the political legitimacy of the ruling elites.