Title of thesis: Middle Byzantine Silk in Context: Integrating the Textual and Material Evidence
Supervisor: Professor Leslie Brubaker
PhD Byzantine History, University of Birmingham, UK 2014. Thesis: Middle Byzantine Silk in Context: Integrating the Textual and Material Evidence. Supervisor: Professor Leslie Brubaker (Submitted Jan 2014; awaiting examination).
MA Anatolian Civilisations, Koç University, Istanbul, Turkey 2007. Thesis: The Imperial Silk Workshop in the Middle Byzantine Period. Supervisor: Paul Magdalino
MA International Relations, Carleton University, The Norman Paterson School, Ottawa, Canada, 1986. Thesis: Multilateral Energy Development Financing: An Examination Of The World Bank Energy Affiliate Proposal.
MBA, Finance, The Pennsylvania State University, USA, 1985. Dual degree with Escuela De Administracion De Negocios Para Graduados (ESAN) In Lima, Peru. Awarded Schaeffer Scholarship for highest merit.
BA, Economics And Geography, Bucknell University, Lewisburg, PA, USA, 1980. Graduated with honors.
Corporate Treasurer, UT Automotive, Division of United Technologies, Dearborn, MI
1995-1999. Treasurer of $3 billion diversified international automotive supplier with more than 90 manufacturing operations in 14 countries.
Carrier Corporation, Division of United Technologies
Deputy General Manager, Carrier Western Pacific Region, Guam, 1993-1994.
Product Planning Manager, Carrier Asia Pacific Operations HQ, Singapore, 1988-1993.
Financial Analyst, Ford Motor Credit Company, Dearborn, MI 1985-1988.
This work represents the most comprehensive investigation of silk in the middle Byzantine period to date. The current interpretation of silk as an imperial prerogative confined to elite use is poorly integrated with the body of evidence and lacks explanatory value. The difficult terminology and scattered mentions in written sources limits application of conventional research methods. Although a number of silk fragments survive in institutional collections, the lack of find and contextual information represents a formidable obstacle.
This dissertation redefines silk in Byzantium by demonstrating its social importance, contribution to technology development, and integration in the regional economy. Findings are based on intensive analysis of production and consumption data from parallel investigation of texts and textile fragments according to a common framework. To aid data collection and analysis, information technology tools involving relational database methods and digital imaging were devised for this purpose. The evidence suggests that the historical process involving silk was shaped by a continuing cycle of elite differentiation and imitative reproduction, which contributed to the transmission of the material and production in the region. From a broader perspective, this work demonstrates the relevance of textile studies to the interpretation of economic and social history.
Automatic Binding Point and Surface Helix Angle Measurement in Historic Weft-faced Compound Weave Figured Silks, co-authored with N. Patel, M. Flynn, A. Semenov, 12th International Conference on Machine Learning and Applications proceedings (ICMLA'13), 2013.
Application of Computer Vision to Analysis of Historic Silk Textiles, in: Textiles from the Nile Valley Conference, 2011, (ed.) C. Fluck, 2013.
Research in Progress: Application of Digital Image Processing to Analysis of AD 7th-12th Century Eastern Mediterranean Silk Textiles, Archaeological Textile Newsletter, Fall 2010, 48-52.
The Art of Making Mudmee, Sawaddi Magazine, Second Quarter 2004, 43-49.