At Christmas, God came into our ordinary world in the form of a child, and still today, God is at work through the ordinary stuff of life, if we train our eyes to see. In this daily devotional for Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany, Jill J. Duffield draws readers' attention to ten ordinary objects that appear in the biblical narratives of messianic prophesy and incarnation-objects we encounter in our own lives. Through objects such as gates, trees, cloth, light, and water, readers will find new meaning in the biblical account of Jesus' coming. By connecting everyday objects with biblical texts, Advent in Plain Sight prompts readers to see the near kingdom of heaven on earth and ponder what that divine proximity enables and asks them to do and be. Each daily devotional features a Scripture reading, prayer, and reflection, reminding Christians that God still dwells among us, even in the most ordinary places.

Since the mid-2000s, the European Union has made unprecedented strides toward the creation of a common energy policy. This book takes stock of these developments, evaluating how much progress has actually been made and what remains to be done, what factors explain these recent advances and their limitations.

This book provides a timely and comprehensive overview of the most recent developments in European Union energy and climate policy. With up-to date empirical analysis by more than a dozen leading experts and scholars from both Europe and the United States, this volume offers the most definitive assessment of this significant area of European integration and policymaking. Separate chapters address key issue areas, the policies of the leading EU member states, and themes that cut across policy and institutional boundaries.

The story is a historical fiction that chronicles the birth and rise of an ancient high king of Ireland who fought against the expanding Roman Empire. By the year 355 CE, the Roman Empire had expanded westward first conquering Gaul (France) and then Briton. The Romans then ventured northward in an attempt to conquer Alba (Scotland) before continuing westward to conquer the adjacent emerald isle called Eriu (Ireland). Torna knew from the moment he found the abandoned newborn baby in the deep forests that he was being protected and guided by the forest spirits for some great task. An abandoned newborn, found in the deep forests, reared by a poet, protected and guided by the forest spirits. Would the baby become savior for the people of Eriu and stop the Roman Empire from their ever-expanding reign of tyranny? Torna only knew that he and his wife were to do their part and raise the child as their own and they named him Niall. Niall's path was up to the spirits of the oak trees who were involved in the destiny of all.

Turbine engine blades are subject to extreme dynamic vibrational loads during normal operations. Harmonic forcing produced from periodic wakes created by fixed stators can excite blade resonant frequencies. Prolonged or repeated exposure to these forces can cause vibration-induced fatigue, otherwise known as High Cycle Fatigue (HCF). HCF effects are magnified by small material, manufacturing and geometrical irregularities among the blades, called mistuning. Structural mistuning can result in some blades experiencing stresses much higher than would be encountered in a perfect structure. Blade amplitude increases of over 100% have been observed in blades with natural frequencies less than 2% off their nominal value. Premature blade failures, operational costs and engine servicing all increase due to the HCF problem. This study offered a novel approach to characterize mistuning effects on forced vibration behavior of bladed disks. A model fan reduced in dynamic scale from an operational jet engine fan and with weak inter-blade coupling was fabricated.

Readers of Making Sense of the College Curriculum expecting a traditional academic publication full of numeric and related data will likely be disappointed with this volume, which is based on stories rather than numbers. The contributors include over 185 faculty members from eleven colleges and universities, representing all sectors of higher education, who share personal, humorous, powerful, and poignant stories about their experiences in a life that is more a calling than a profession. Collectively, these accounts help to answer the question of why developing a coherent undergraduate curriculum is so vexing to colleges and universities. Their stories also belie the public's and policymakers' belief that faculty members care more about their scholarship and research than their students and work far less than most people.

God is often at work through the ordinary: ordinary people, ordinary objects, ordinary grace. Through the ordinary, God communicates epiphanies, salvation, revelation, and reconciliation. It is through the mundane that we hear Gods quiet voice. In this devotion for the season of Lent, Jill J. Duffield draws readers attention to ten ordinary objects that Jesus would have encountered on his way to Jerusalem: dust, bread, the cross, coins, shoes, oil, coats, towels, thorns, and stones. In each object, readers will find meaning in the biblical account of Jesus final days. Each week, readers encounter a new object to consider through Scripture, prayer, and reflection. From Ash Wednesday to Easter, Lent in Plain Sight reminds Christians to open ourselves to the kingdom of God.