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1
Wu, Qi. "A Dependent Variable Harmonically Coupled Chaotic System for a Pseudorandom bit Generator." MATEC Web of Conferences 173 (2018): 03074. http://dx.doi.org/10.1051/matecconf/201817303074.
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Coupling is a common approach for constructing new chaotic systems. In this paper, we present a novel way of coupling, which is utilized to construct a new chaotic system. Afterwards, a pseudorandom bit generator is proposed based on it. Next, we employ five statistic tests to evaluate the pseudo randomness of generated sequences. Linear complexity and cipher space are analyzed at last. All the results demonstrate that the proposed generator possesses excellent properties.
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Seo, J., and T. Kim. "COMPARISON OF PIXEL-BASED AND FEATURE-BASED APPROACH FOR SMALL OBJECT CHANGE DETECTION." International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences XLIII-B3-2021 (June 28, 2021): 353–57. http://dx.doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-xliii-b3-2021-353-2021.
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Abstract. Satellite image resolution has evolved to daily revisit and sub-meter GSD. Main targets of previous remote sensing were forest, vegetation, damage area by disasters, land use and land cover. Developments in satellite images have brought expectations on more sophisticated and various change detection of objects. Accordingly, we focused on unsupervised change detection of small objects, such as vehicles and ships. In this paper, existing change detection methods were applied to analyze their performances for pixel-based and feature-based change of small objects. We used KOMPSAT-3A images for tests. Firstly, we applied two change detection algorithms, MAD and IR-MAD, which are most well-known pixel-based change detection algorithms, to the images. We created a change magnitude map using the change detection methods. Thresholding was applied to determine change and non-change pixels. Next, the satellite images were transformed as 8-bit images for extracting feature points. We extracted feature points using SIFT and SURF methods to analyze feature-based change detection. We assumed to remove false alarms by eliminating feature points of non-changed objects. Therefore, we applied a feature-based matcher and matched feature points on identical image locations were eliminated. We used non-matched feature points for change/non-change analysis. We observed changes by creating a 5x5 size ROI around extracted feature points in the change/non-change map. We determined that change has occurred on feature points if the rate of change pixels with ROI was more than 50%. We analyzed the performance of pixel-based and feature-based change detection using ground truths. The F1-score, AUC value, and ROC were used to compare the performance of change detection. Performance showed that feature-based approaches performed better than pixel-based approaches.
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Clery, Daniel. "Magnet tests kick off bid for net fusion energy." Science 371, no. 6534 (March 11, 2021): 1091. http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.371.6534.1091.
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Singer, Jay, Raymond M. Hurley, and John P. Preece. "Effectiveness of Central Auditory Processing Tests With Children." American Journal of Audiology 7, no. 2 (October 1998): 73–84. http://dx.doi.org/10.1044/1059-0889(1998/015).
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The purpose of this investigation was to determine central auditory processing (CAP) individual test efficacy and test battery efficacy and to estimate the costs that are associated with the identification of a targeted sample. Ninety-one children with normal learning (NL) abilities and 147 children with a classroom learning disability (CLD) and presumed CAP disorders (CAPDs) ranging in age from 7 to 13 years were given a battery of seven CAP tests. The test battery consisted of: (1) Binaural Fusion Test (BFT), (2) Masking Level Difference (MLD) test, (3) Filtered Speech Test (FST), (4) Time Compressed Speech (TCS) test, (5) Dichotic Digits Test (DDT), (6) Staggered Spondaic Word (SSW) test, and (7) Pitch Pattern Test (PPT). We believe that this investigation is the first report regarding the assessment of the utility of CAP tests using clinical decision analysis (CDA). We determined that the BFT separated the two samples most effectively and that the FST was the next most effective. A test protocol with BFT and FST or BFT and MLD represented the best battery approach when hit rate, false positive rate, and cost factors were considered. However, if the intent is to be certain that a child with CLD has CAPD given a positive test result, then the BFT and MLD would be the test battery of choice.
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Wright, Blake. "Automated Mud Skid Holds Promise of Safety, Efficiency Improvements With Real-Time Fluid Monitoring." Journal of Petroleum Technology 73, no. 06 (June 1, 2021): 31–33. http://dx.doi.org/10.2118/0621-0031-jpt.
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As industry buzzwords go, “automation” has spent its time in oilfield vernacular climbing the ranks of widely used terms. It now resides as one of the go-to designations for signs of advancement in any number of disciplines. Its use has been tied most frequently with drilling operations as contractors look to keep employees out of harm’s way via a robotic take-over of most motion-intensive jobs on the rig’s drill floor—basically anything that grips, clamps, or spins. More recently, the term has moved away from the drill floor and into other well construction operations allowing for things such as remote, real-time measurements without the need for boots on the ground. For areas like west Texas and the Permian Basin shales, having the option for remote readouts and a component of automation that can allow for corrective actions should the need arise can go a long way in terms of safety and efficiency gains as well as better manpower application. Unsurprisingly, the area has become a solid testing ground for new, expanding efforts in automation. With dreams of new drilling-fluid-monitoring automation, Eric van Oort, a professor at The University of Texas at Austin and former Shell research scientist, and select students came up with a new way to automatically measure mud parameters such as viscosity without the use of a traditional viscometer. “The fact that we still use manual measurements, some of them now 90 years old, is quite puzzling in this day and age,” van Oort said. “The Marsh funnel, for instance, was introduced in the 1930s, and other mud tests go back to the 1950s and 1960s. These API measurements have served us well, but the question is, can you do something more now with modern measurement techniques and sensors? So, I started working on new ways of measuring the viscosity and density, and then later fluid loss and even solids and salinity in muds. That proved to be all very successful and promising.” Construction of a mud skid to house the equipment and sensors needed to conduct these tests in real time was the next step in the evolution of van Oort’s concept. That initial skid was a cannibalized and reworked version of a unit that was employed on Shell’s Rig 1, which the supermajor built for its in-house rig-automation research based in Pennsylvania. This early mud skid, considered the prototype of van Oort’s design, was abandoned before it was properly tested. “We generated quite a bit of IP [intellectual property], my students and I at UT,” he said. “The Shell skid hadn’t seen a significant amount of service, and it had some nice components that we could reuse. We took that skid apart and reconfigured it and put it out in the field with Pioneer Natural Resources for a set of field trials in the Permian. Those went well.” The field trial results were shared in a paper presented at the 2019 Unconventional Resources Technology Conference (URTEC 2019-964). The paper concluded that the pipe viscometer employed by the skid allows for the characterization of additional rheology parameters, which cannot be obtained with Couette-type viscometers, such as the critical Reynolds number, characterizing the transition from laminar into turbulent flow, and the friction factor in the turbulent flow regime.
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Velásquez-Zapata, Valeria, J. Mitch Elmore, Sagnik Banerjee, Karin S. Dorman, and Roger P. Wise. "Next-generation yeast-two-hybrid analysis with Y2H-SCORES identifies novel interactors of the MLA immune receptor." PLOS Computational Biology 17, no. 4 (April 2, 2021): e1008890. http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1008890.
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Protein-protein interaction networks are one of the most effective representations of cellular behavior. In order to build these models, high-throughput techniques are required. Next-generation interaction screening (NGIS) protocols that combine yeast two-hybrid (Y2H) with deep sequencing are promising approaches to generate interactome networks in any organism. However, challenges remain to mining reliable information from these screens and thus, limit its broader implementation. Here, we present a computational framework, designated Y2H-SCORES, for analyzing high-throughput Y2H screens. Y2H-SCORES considers key aspects of NGIS experimental design and important characteristics of the resulting data that distinguish it from RNA-seq expression datasets. Three quantitative ranking scores were implemented to identify interacting partners, comprising: 1) significant enrichment under selection for positive interactions, 2) degree of interaction specificity among multi-bait comparisons, and 3) selection of in-frame interactors. Using simulation and an empirical dataset, we provide a quantitative assessment to predict interacting partners under a wide range of experimental scenarios, facilitating independent confirmation by one-to-one bait-prey tests. Simulation of Y2H-NGIS enabled us to identify conditions that maximize detection of true interactors, which can be achieved with protocols such as prey library normalization, maintenance of larger culture volumes and replication of experimental treatments. Y2H-SCORES can be implemented in different yeast-based interaction screenings, with an equivalent or superior performance than existing methods. Proof-of-concept was demonstrated by discovery and validation of novel interactions between the barley nucleotide-binding leucine-rich repeat (NLR) immune receptor MLA6, and fourteen proteins, including those that function in signaling, transcriptional regulation, and intracellular trafficking.
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McVay, Michael C., Ralph D. Ellis, Bjorn Birgisson, Gary R. Consolazio, Sastry Putcha, and Sang Min Lee. "Load and Resistance Factor Design, Cost, and Risk: Designing a Drilled-Shaft Load Test Program in Florida Limestone." Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board 1849, no. 1 (January 2003): 98–106. http://dx.doi.org/10.3141/1849-12.
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Currently there are few if any guidelines on estimating the number of load tests in the design of drilled-shaft foundations in Florida limestone. For instance, for many sites there may be a similar number of field load tests but a significantly different number of design shafts. Moreover, little if any information exists on risk or reliability versus cost of drilled-shaft foundations or on the cost of field load testing. The collection of a large database of drilled-shaft tests (more than 25 with Osterberg and Statnamic devices), in situ laboratory data, drilled-shaft construction costs, and field load testing costs for Florida limestone is reported on. From the field load tests, the average unit skin friction for various sites was found, as well as the predicted values based on the Florida Department of Transportation recommended design approach. Next, using load and resistance factor design (LRFD), the resistance (ϕ) values were found for various reliabilities (risk or probability of failure). Once the factored design loads were known (from plans), drilled-shaft lengths were estimated on the basis of the computed LRFD ϕ-values for different reliabilities (i.e., risk). From the linear length of the designed shaft as well as the expected cost per meter, a plot of total foundation cost versus reliability (risk) was generated for each site. On the basis of the latter plot, acceptable risk, and the cost of field load testing (bid and itemized), the designer can identify the cost savings of load testing and the appropriate number of tests to be performed.
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Cheng, Na, Menglu Li, Le Zhao, Bo Zhang, Yuhua Yang, Chun-Hou Zheng, and Junfeng Xia. "Comparison and integration of computational methods for deleterious synonymous mutation prediction." Briefings in Bioinformatics 21, no. 3 (June 3, 2019): 970–81. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/bib/bbz047.
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Abstract Synonymous mutations do not change the encoded amino acids but may alter the structure or function of an mRNA in ways that impact gene function. Advances in next generation sequencing technologies have detected numerous synonymous mutations in the human genome. Several computational models have been proposed to predict deleterious synonymous mutations, which have greatly facilitated the development of this important field. Consequently, there is an urgent need to assess the state-of-the-art computational methods for deleterious synonymous mutation prediction to further advance the existing methodologies and to improve performance. In this regard, we systematically compared a total of 10 computational methods (including specific method for deleterious synonymous mutation and general method for single nucleotide mutation) in terms of the algorithms used, calculated features, performance evaluation and software usability. In addition, we constructed two carefully curated independent test datasets and accordingly assessed the robustness and scalability of these different computational methods for the identification of deleterious synonymous mutations. In an effort to improve predictive performance, we established an ensemble model, named Prediction of Deleterious Synonymous Mutation (PrDSM), which averages the ratings generated by the three most accurate predictors. Our benchmark tests demonstrated that the ensemble model PrDSM outperformed the reviewed tools for the prediction of deleterious synonymous mutations. Using the ensemble model, we developed an accessible online predictor, PrDSM, available at http://bioinfo.ahu.edu.cn:8080/PrDSM/. We hope that this comprehensive survey and the proposed strategy for building more accurate models can serve as a useful guide for inspiring future developments of computational methods for deleterious synonymous mutation prediction.
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Harima, Hayato, Michihito Sasaki, Yasuko Orba, Kosuke Okuya, Yongjin Qiu, Christida E. Wastika, Katendi Changula, et al. "Attenuated infection by a Pteropine orthoreovirus isolated from an Egyptian fruit bat in Zambia." PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases 15, no. 9 (September 7, 2021): e0009768. http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0009768.
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Background Pteropine orthoreovirus (PRV) is an emerging bat-borne zoonotic virus that causes severe respiratory illness in humans. Although PRVs have been identified in fruit bats and humans in Australia and Asia, little is known about the prevalence of PRV infection in Africa. Therefore, this study performed an PRV surveillance in fruit bats in Zambia. Methods Egyptian fruit bats (Rousettus aegyptiacus, n = 47) and straw-colored fruit bats (Eidolon helvum, n = 33) captured in Zambia in 2017–2018 were screened for PRV infection using RT-PCR and serum neutralization tests. The complete genome sequence of an isolated PRV strain was determined by next generation sequencing and subjected to BLAST and phylogenetic analyses. Replication capacity and pathogenicity of the strain were investigated using Vero E6 cell cultures and BALB/c mice, respectively. Results An PRV strain, tentatively named Nachunsulwe-57, was isolated from one Egyptian fruit bat. Serological assays demonstrated that 98% of sera (69/70) collected from Egyptian fruit bats (n = 37) and straw-colored fruit bats (n = 33) had neutralizing antibodies against PRV. Genetic analyses revealed that all 10 genome segments of Nachunsulwe-57 were closely related to a bat-derived Kasama strain found in Uganda. Nachunsulwe-57 showed less efficiency in viral growth and lower pathogenicity in mice than another PRV strain, Miyazaki-Bali/2007, isolated from a patient. Conclusions A high proportion of Egyptian fruit bats and straw-colored fruit bats were found to be seropositive to PRV in Zambia. Importantly, a new PRV strain (Nachunsulwe-57) was isolated from an Egyptian fruit bat in Zambia, which had relatively weak pathogenicity in mice. Taken together, our findings provide new epidemiological insights about PRV infection in bats and indicate the first isolation of an PRV strain that may have low pathogenicity to humans.
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Li, Fuyi, Yanan Wang, Chen Li, Tatiana T. Marquez-Lago, André Leier, Neil D. Rawlings, Gholamreza Haffari, et al. "Twenty years of bioinformatics research for protease-specific substrate and cleavage site prediction: a comprehensive revisit and benchmarking of existing methods." Briefings in Bioinformatics 20, no. 6 (August 29, 2018): 2150–66. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/bib/bby077.
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Abstract The roles of proteolytic cleavage have been intensively investigated and discussed during the past two decades. This irreversible chemical process has been frequently reported to influence a number of crucial biological processes (BPs), such as cell cycle, protein regulation and inflammation. A number of advanced studies have been published aiming at deciphering the mechanisms of proteolytic cleavage. Given its significance and the large number of functionally enriched substrates targeted by specific proteases, many computational approaches have been established for accurate prediction of protease-specific substrates and their cleavage sites. Consequently, there is an urgent need to systematically assess the state-of-the-art computational approaches for protease-specific cleavage site prediction to further advance the existing methodologies and to improve the prediction performance. With this goal in mind, in this article, we carefully evaluated a total of 19 computational methods (including 8 scoring function-based methods and 11 machine learning-based methods) in terms of their underlying algorithm, calculated features, performance evaluation and software usability. Then, extensive independent tests were performed to assess the robustness and scalability of the reviewed methods using our carefully prepared independent test data sets with 3641 cleavage sites (specific to 10 proteases). The comparative experimental results demonstrate that PROSPERous is the most accurate generic method for predicting eight protease-specific cleavage sites, while GPS-CCD and LabCaS outperformed other predictors for calpain-specific cleavage sites. Based on our review, we then outlined some potential ways to improve the prediction performance and ease the computational burden by applying ensemble learning, deep learning, positive unlabeled learning and parallel and distributed computing techniques. We anticipate that our study will serve as a practical and useful guide for interested readers to further advance next-generation bioinformatics tools for protease-specific cleavage site prediction.
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Kock, Anders Bredahl. "CONSISTENT AND CONSERVATIVE MODEL SELECTION WITH THE ADAPTIVE LASSO IN STATIONARY AND NONSTATIONARY AUTOREGRESSIONS." Econometric Theory 32, no. 1 (September 1, 2015): 243–59. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0266466615000304.
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We show that the adaptive Lasso is oracle efficient in stationary and nonstationary autoregressions. This means that it estimates parameters consistently, selects the correct sparsity pattern, and estimates the coefficients belonging to the relevant variables at the same asymptotic efficiency as if only these had been included in the model from the outset. In particular, this implies that it is able to discriminate between stationary and nonstationary autoregressions and it thereby constitutes an addition to the set of unit root tests. Next, and important in practice, we show that choosing the tuning parameter by Bayesian Information Criterion (BIC) results in consistent model selection.However, it is also shown that the adaptive Lasso has no power against shrinking alternatives of the form c/T if it is tuned to perform consistent model selection. We show that if the adaptive Lasso is tuned to perform conservative model selection it has power even against shrinking alternatives of this form and compare it to the plain Lasso.
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Overton, Kathleen, Seong-Jong Joo, and Philipp A. Stoeberl. "Benchmarking public school performance by unionized status." Benchmarking: An International Journal 23, no. 7 (October 3, 2016): 1626–42. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/bij-08-2014-0080.
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Purpose There are elevated debates on the role of teacher unions on the effectiveness of education in the USA. The purpose of this paper is to examine if the unionization of education has an impact on the comparative performance of public education in the USA. Design/methodology/approach The authors classify states into two groups such as highly unionized states and less unionized states for comparing their performance differences. The analyses consist of two stages. First, the authors apply data envelopment analysis (DEA) to the key performance indicators of the groups. Next, the authors use statistical analysis for confirming the statistical significance of the performance differences that may exist between two groups. Findings The authors have confirmed the adverse impact of unionization on public education using DEA models and non-parametric rank-sum tests. However, the authors are cautious for generalizing the finding due to the limitations described in the research limitation section. Research limitations/implications The finding is limited within the selection of the variables and model specification and requires additional studies using different variables and models. The authors hope that the study motivates researchers to conduct further studies in this area. Originality/value Major contributions of the study include a novel approach for measuring the performance of primary and secondary schools at the state level by classifying and choosing less or highly unionized states and suggesting insights for improvements.
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Moradi, Kh, A. A. Sabbagh Alvani, and D. Poelman. "Ionic Liquid-Assisted Hydrothermal Synthesis of a Biocompatible Filler for Photo-Curable Dental Composite: From Theory to Experiment." Materials 12, no. 14 (July 23, 2019): 2339. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ma12142339.
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Nanostructured hydroxyapatite (HA) is a new class of biocompatible fillers which has been recently utilized in bio hybrid materials by virtue of its excellent tissue bioactivity and biocompatibility. However, the need for higher thermal stability, solubility, surface bioactivity, radiopacity, and remineralization ability suggests a divalent cation substitution of HA for use in light curable dental restorative composites. In this work, structural and optical properties of Sr-doped hydroxyapatite were studied using first-principle calculations based on density functional theory (DFT). Next, Sr-doped hydroxyapatite (HA) was prepared via a new ionic liquid-assisted hydrothermal (ILH) route. Samples were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM)/energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), dynamic light scattering (DLS), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) surface area analysis, and cell viability. The obtained experimental data showed that the nucleation and crystal growth process controlled by [BMIM]Br molecules results in uniform products with small and regular particles and high specific surface areas. Finally, cytotoxicity tests showed that the as-prepared Sr-doped HA nanoparticles have good biocompatibility (≥91%), confirming their potential for use in photo-curable dental restorative composites.
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Bianchi, Sara. "Bio-Optimized Curcuma as Adjuvant Therapy of Osteoarthritis and Its Influence on Gene Regulation (Sirt1), Metabolic Inflammation and Associated Symptoms." Nutrition and Food Processing 4, no. 4 (June 25, 2021): 01–16. http://dx.doi.org/10.31579/2637-8914/052.
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Background and aim: Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic degenerative disease characterized by an inflammatory state and significant oxidative stress. As curcuma is known for its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities, it could be used as alternative therapy next to or together with the standard treatment. This treatment consists of analgesics, steroids or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) to reduce pain and inflammation related symptoms. The current study investigates the effect of bio-optimized curcuma on genetic (SIRT1) and metabolic regulation of inflammation and associated symptomatology in patients with osteoarthritis. Materials and methods: In the in vitro study, Hela human cells were seeded in 12-well plates, incubated with curcuma at different concentrations and incubated for 3, 6 and 24 hours. The targeted protein expression/phosphorylation was evaluated by immunoblotting, while cytotoxicity tests were performed by CellTiter-Blue Cell Viability Assay. In the in vivo study, a total of 33 patients were recruited and divided into 3 subgroups based on the treatment: standard treatment (ST), ST + curcuma and ST + curcuma + Vitamin D (2000UI). The health status (SF36) and osteoarthritis index (WOMAC score) were analyzed at 0; 1,5 and 3 months with blood sampling at 0 and 3 months for the evaluation of inflammation markers, 25 (OH) VitD and SIRT1. Results: in vitro data showed no statistically significant decrease (p>0.05) in the number of viable cells. The expression of SIRT1 and the activation of AMP activated protein kinase (AMPK) were significantly increased in all experimental groups compared with the control group (p<0.001). A significant increase in 25(OH) VitD values in the ST + curcuma + VitD group (p <0.007) and in SIRT1 in all groups taking curcuma (p <0.001) was shown. Also for IL-1 (p=0.031), IL-6 (p=0.031) and IFN-γ (p=0.013), all groups taking curcuma showed significantly lower inflammatory markers with no added value of vitamin D. Conclusions: Curcuma as an adjuvant to ST leads to a positive modulation of the SIRT1 pathway, a significant decline of blood inflammatory markers and a better osteoarthritis outcome. Osteoarthritis, a chronic degenerative disease characterized by an inflammatory state and significant oxidative stress Curcuma as alternative therapy next to or together with the standard treatment Effect of bio-optimized curcuma on genetic and metabolic regulation of inflammation Positive modulation of SIRT1 pathway, decline of blood inflammatory markers and a better OA outcome
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Tymoszewska, Aleksandra, and Tamara Aleksandrzak-Piekarczyk. "The Lactococcal dgkB (yecE) and dxsA Genes for Lipid Metabolism Are Involved in the Resistance to Cell Envelope-Acting Antimicrobials." International Journal of Molecular Sciences 22, no. 3 (January 20, 2021): 1014. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijms22031014.
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The emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria led to an urgent need for next-generation antimicrobial agents with novel mechanisms of action. The use of positively charged antimicrobial peptides that target cytoplasmic membrane is an especially promising strategy since essential functions and the conserved structure of the membrane hinder the development of bacterial resistance. Aureocin A53- and enterocin L50-like bacteriocins are highly cationic, membrane-targeting antimicrobial peptides that have potential as next-generation antibiotics. However, the mechanisms of resistance to these bacteriocins and cross-resistance against antibiotics must be examined before application to ensure their safe use. Here, in the model bacterium Lactococcus lactis, we studied the development of resistance to selected aureocin A53- and enterocin L50-like bacteriocins and its correlation with antibiotics. First, to generate spontaneous resistant mutants, L.lactis was exposed to bacteriocin BHT-B. Sequencing of their genomes revealed single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the dgkB (yecE) and dxsA genes encoding diacylglycerol kinase and 1-deoxy-D-xylulose 5-phosphate synthase, respectively. Then, selected mutants underwent susceptibility tests with a wide array of bacteriocins and antibiotics. The highest alterations in the sensitivity of studied mutants were seen in the presence of cytoplasmic membrane targeting bacteriocins (K411, Ent7, EntL50, WelM, SalC, nisin) and antibiotics (daptomycin and gramicidin) as well as lipid II cycle-blocking bacteriocins (nisin and Lcn972) and antibiotics (bacitracin). Interestingly, decreased via the SNPs accumulation sensitivity to membrane-active bacteriocins and antibiotics resulted in the concurrently increased vulnerability to bacitracin, carbenicillin, or chlortetracycline. It is suspected that SNPs may result in alterations to the efficiency of the nascent enzymes rather than a total loss of their function as neither deletion nor overexpression of dxsA restored the phenotype observed in spontaneous mutants.
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Fisher, P., A. Airey, and S. Brown. "Effect of pre-feeding and sodium fluoroacetate (1080) concentration on bait acceptance by house mice." Wildlife Research 36, no. 7 (2009): 627. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/wr09082.
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Context. In New Zealand, the aerial application of toxic baits containing sodium fluoroacetate (1080) can consistently achieve significant reductions in populations of multiple vertebrate pest species including brushtail possums (Trichosurus vulpecula), ship rats (Rattus rattus) and stoats (Mustela erminea). Reductions in house mouse (Mus musculus) populations by 1080 baiting appear less consistent, possibly due to low acceptance of 1080 bait by mice in field conditions. Aims. We tested the effect of pre-feeding and 1080 concentration on the acceptance of pellet food by mice. Methods. Wild-caught mice were individually housed and presented with a series of two-choice laboratory feeding tests, using estimates of the daily amount eaten to indicate relative acceptance of different types of pellet food. Key results. Pre-feeding mice on non-toxic food did not increase their subsequent acceptance of the same food containing 0.15% 1080. Mice showed low acceptance of food containing 0.08 and 0.15% 1080 (by weight), with similar mortality (25%). Acceptance of food containing 1.5% 1080 was also very low in comparison with non-toxic food, although mortality in mice was higher (~66%). In comparison with other concentrations, mice ate comparatively more of food containing 0.001% 1080 with no mortality, although the non-toxic food was still significantly favoured. Presentation of a choice between non-toxic food and food containing 0.08, 0.15 or 1.5% 1080 to mice was followed by a significant decrease in average total daily food intake over the following 2 days. In surviving mice this ‘drop feed’ effect was followed by an increase in average daily intake of non-toxic food over the next 3 days until normal daily intake levels were again reached. Conclusions. We suggest that wild mice can rapidly identify food containing 1080 and subsequently will avoid it. Implications. This feeding response partly explains the variable success of 1080 baiting operations against wild mouse populations (M. musculus) in New Zealand.
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Faal, Maryam, and Farshad Almasganj. "ECG Signal Modeling Using Volatility Properties: Its Application in Sleep Apnea Syndrome." Journal of Healthcare Engineering 2021 (July 7, 2021): 1–12. http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2021/4894501.
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This study presents and evaluates the mathematical model to estimate the mean and variance of single-lead ECG signals in sleep apnea syndrome. Our objective is to use the volatility property of the ECG signal for modeling. ECG signal is a stochastic signal whose mean and variance are time-varying. So, we propose to decompose this nonstationarity into two additive components; a homoscedastic Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) and a heteroscedastic time series in terms of Exponential Generalized Autoregressive Conditional Heteroskedasticity (EGARCH), where the former captures the linearity property and the latter the nonlinear characteristics of the ECG signal. First, ECG signals are segmented into one-minute segments. The heteroskedasticity property is then examined through various tests such as the ARCH/GARCH test, kurtosis, skewness, and histograms. Next, the ARIMA model is applied to signals as a linear model and EGARCH as a nonlinear model. The appropriate orders of models are estimated by using the Bayesian Information Criterion (BIC). We assess the effectiveness of our model in terms of mean square error (MSE), root mean square error (RMSE), mean absolute error (MAE), and mean absolute percentage error (MAPE). The data in this article is obtained from the Physionet Apnea-ECG database. Results show that the ARIMA-EGARCH model performs better than other models for modeling both apneic and normal ECG signals in sleep apnea syndrome.
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Ferreira, Luís Miguel D. F., Cristóvão Silva, and Susana Garrido Azevedo. "An environmental balanced scorecard for supply chain performance measurement (Env_BSC_4_SCPM)." Benchmarking: An International Journal 23, no. 6 (August 1, 2016): 1398–422. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/bij-08-2013-0087.
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Purpose – Companies need to excel in many areas to achieve a competitive advantage. This, together with pressure imposed by regulators and customers regarding sustainability concerns, leads companies to address sustainability in an integrated fashion across all management processes. The purpose of this paper is to suggest a model for the assessment of the environmental performance of a supply chain, based on four perspectives used in the balanced scorecard. Performance indicators are proposed based on the literature, as well as on the ISO 14031 and GRI standards, and were validated by a panel of experts. Design/methodology/approach – Based on a literature review on models for environmental performance management a novel model to assess the environmental performance of the supply chains (Env_BSC_4_SCPM) is proposed. Data collected from the first tier suppliers of an automotive industry case study are used to test the proposed model. Findings – The model developed was tested in a case study company, showing it ability to benchmark the company first tiers suppliers and products. The model is also useful as a decision support tool to define actions to be taken in order to improve the global environment performance of the supply chain. Research limitations/implications – The proposed model was developed to evaluate the environmental performance of supply chains. Nevertheless, the case study only takes account of the first tier suppliers, due to difficulties associated to data collecting for the other elements in the supply chain. Widening the frontiers, the next phase may include the application of this model to second, third and lower tier suppliers, as well as the final customer. Improvements in the model could also include the construction of a composite index to measure the environmental supply chain performance. Practical implications – The paper provides a model that can be used by practitioners to evaluate the environmental performance of their supply chain and to decide on actions to be taken to improve it. Originality/value – As stated by several authors, there has been limited research conducted in the field of environmental evaluation of supply chains. This paper proposes a novel model for the environmental performance of the supply chain and tests it using industrial empirical data.
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Xu, Baoyan, Ning Zhi, Gangqing Hu, Zhihong Wan, Sachiko Kajigaya, Keji Zhao, Qing Mao, and Neal S. Young. "Identification and Characterization of a Novel Parvovirus-Like Virus in Seronegative Hepatitis Patients by Next Generation Sequencing." Blood 120, no. 21 (November 16, 2012): 273. http://dx.doi.org/10.1182/blood.v120.21.273.273.
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Abstract Abstract 273 Seronegative hepatitis—non-hepatitis A, non-B, non-C, non-E—is poorly characterized but strongly associated with serious complications, especially aplastic anemia and fulminant hepatitis of childhood. Seronegative hepatitis is rare in the United States but more prevalent in Asia, constituting about 10–20% of acute cases. We applied next-generation sequencing to blood samples of patients from western China with seronegative hepatitis for virus discovery. A total of 92 plasma specimens were collected at Chongqing, China, between 1999 and 2007. Twenty-seven patients were diagnosed as having acute hepatitis by clinical and laboratory characteristics. Sixty-five patients had biopsy-proven chronic aggressive hepatitis, ten of which had cirrhosis. Serologic assays for hepatitis viruses A, B, C, E, HIV, Epstein-Barr virus and cytomegalovirus were all negative. Additional tests for antinuclear antibody, rheumatoid factor, anti-mitochondrial antibody also were normal. Ten plasma pools derived from 93 specimens of the patients were screened by Solexa deep sequencing. We discovered a 3780-bp contig present in all ten-pools that yielded tBLASTx E scores of 0.003 to 1.5 against parvoviruses. The sequence of the in silico assembled 3780-bp contig was confirmed by overlapping PCRs, indicating the contig that contained the nearly complete new virus genome indeed existed in the patient samples rather than being artificially generated by misassembly. The new virus is provisionally designated NIH-CQV. Further analysis revealed that the contig was composed of two major open reading frames (ORF). Protein Blast showed that ORF1 encoded a protein that contained a conserved P-loop NTPase domain, homologous to the replication-associated protein of bat circovirus (E score=4e-04). ORF2 was homologous to capsid protein of porcine parvovirus (E scores=7e-06). Phylogenetic analysis indicated that the NIH-CQV represents a new subfamily of parvovirus, located at the interface of Parvoviridae and Circoviridae (Figure 1). Prevalence of the NIH-CQV in hepatitis patients was investigated by qPCR. Sixty three out of 92 (69%) patient samples were positive, while all 45 healthy controls were negative. The average virus titer in the patients was 1.28 E4 copies/ul, and the highest one was 3.2 E4 copies/ul. Specific antibodies against NIH-CQV were sought by immunoblot using a recombinant capsid protein. No cross reactivity was detected between the capsid protein of NIH-CQV and other major human parvoviruses. Eighty five percent (78/92) of patients were positive for IgG, and 32% (29/92) of them were positive for IgM. In contrast, 78% (35/45) of healthy controls were positive for IgG and 16% (7/45) were positive for IgM. Viral particles were purified from IgM-positive patient plasma by ultracentrifugation through a 40% sucrose cushion and examined by electron microscopy: spherical, naked, parvovirus-like particles approximately 26–29 nm in diameter were visualized. There was no correlation between clinical diagnosis and the presence or absence of the viral DNA or specific antibodies. Although more work is needed to determine the etiologic role of NIH-CQV in human disease, our data indicate that a novel parvovirus-like virus is highly prevalent in a cohort of patients with seronegative hepatitis. Figure 1, whole-proteome tree of the new parvovirus and members of the families Parvoviridae and Circoviridae. Figure 1,. whole-proteome tree of the new parvovirus and members of the families Parvoviridae and Circoviridae. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
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Lucas Aguirre, Juan Carlos, German Antonio Giraldo Giraldo, and Misael Cortés Rodríguez. "Modeling of moisture sorption isotherm and evaluation of net isosteric heat for spray-dried fortified coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) powder." British Food Journal 123, no. 7 (February 22, 2021): 2349–64. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/bfj-11-2020-1017.
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PurposeIn order to understand interactions aw vs equilibrium moisture content (EMC) in fortified coconut powder, moisture sorption isotherms were constructed under different storage conditions in order to predict the changes in their physical, chemical and microbiological properties that occur during storage and processing, which are unique to each food.Design/methodology/approachFor which the moisture sorption isotherms were determined at three different temperatures (15, 25 and 35 °C), in a range of water activity from 0.1 to 0.90. Nine models, namely, the GAB, BET, Oswin, Smith, Halsey, Henderson, Chung and Pfost, Peleg and Caurie equations, were fitted to the sorption data. Various statistical tests were adopted as criteria to evaluate the fit performance of the models.FindingsOf the models tested, the Peleg model gave the best fit to experimental data (R2 = 0.997; RMSE = 0.276), across the full range of water activities and at different temperatures. Humidity of the monolayer (mo) was found between 2.54 and 2.34%, a fundamental parameter to define the storage and control conditions, given that it is considered the value at which the product is more stable. The net sorption isosteric heat (Qst) increased to maximum and then diminished with increased moisture content (Xw); maximum values were obtained in the Xw interval between 0.48 and 2.87% (db), being between 35.72 and 99.26 kJ/mol, where the maximum value indicates coverage of the strongest bond sites and higher adsorbate-adsorbent interaction.Originality/valueThese results provide reliable experimental data on water absorption isotherms of the CP + FAC important to determine optimal processing, storing and packaging conditions.
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Vu, An Nang, Anh Mai Tran, Nghi Tuyet Nguyen, Duyen My Ngoc Lam, Phong Pham Nam Le, Nhan Thuc Chi Ha, and Hieu Van Le. "Green one-step synthesis of cellulose nanocrystal/ ZnO nanohybrid with high photocatalytic activity." Science and Technology Development Journal - Natural Sciences 5, no. 3 (May 29, 2021): first. http://dx.doi.org/10.32508/stdjns.v5i3.924.
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In this work, nanohybrid of zinc oxide/ cellulose nanocrystals (ZnO/CNC) was successfully prepared by using a low cost and green method for photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue (MB). CNC had been derived through the hydrolysis reaction by citric/hydrochloric acid from the pure cellulose isolated from Vietnamese Nypa fruticans trunk. The obtained CNC with carboxyl groups could act as a stabilizing and supporting agent to anchor ZnO nanoparticles. The chemical and crystal structures, morphology, thermal and photocatalytic properties of the ZnO/CNC nanohybrid were characterized by FESEM, FTIR, XRD, FESEM, BET, EDX, TGA, DRS and photocatalytic tests. Analyses of FTIR spectra, XRD, and FESEM indicated that the ZnO nanocrystals with the size of 50 nm formed and loaded on the surface of CNC. The TGA analysis demonstrated that the ZnO loading sample (ZnO/CNC) had the thermal degradation onset temperature higher than that of neat CNC. ZnO/CNC cuold be absorpted ultraviolet light and have high value of specific surface area (SBET), based on the DRS spectra and the nitrogen adsorption – desorption isotherms analysis, respectively. ZnO/CNC displayed more photocatalytic activity than pure ZnO upon degradation of methylene blue due to strong interaction between the CNC and ZnO nanoparticles. The maximum degradation of MB was about 95% in 150 minutes for the ZnO/CNC.
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Recker, Mark W., and Karen L. Kier. "Potential Interaction between Clarithromycin and Warfarin." Annals of Pharmacotherapy 31, no. 9 (September 1997): 996–98. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/106002809703100907.
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Objective To report a possible drug interaction between clarithromycin and warfarin in a patient with chronic atrial fibrillation. Case Summary A patient with chronic atrial fibrillation was placed on warfarin therapy. International normalized ratios (INRs) ranged from 1.61 to 3.99 while the dosage was being adjusted during the first 5 months of warfarin therapy. The dosage was titrated to 20 mg/wk; laboratory tests obtained 2 weeks after this dosage was started indicated an INR of 2.1. The same dosage was continued. Clarithromycin 500 mg bid was started for an acute exacerbation of bronchitis 10 days after the last INR was obtained and was continued for 14 days of therapy. An INR obtained 3 days after completion of the clarithromycin therapy was 16.8. The warfarin was withheld and vitamin K 20 mg im was administered. The INR obtained the next day was 1.52. The warfarin was restarted and the dosage was titrated to between 22.5 and 25 mg/wk, with INRs ranging from 0.85 to 3.14. Discussion Many factors influence the metabolism of warfarin, including disease states, medications, age, and diet. Data collected in this case suggested clarithromycin may have contributed to the increase in the effect of warfarin. Inhibition of the cytochrome P450 oxidizing system appears to be the reason for the increase. Numerous drugs and disease states affect the rate at which this system metabolizes drugs. Conclusions The potential interaction between clarithromycin and warfarin warrants prudent monitoring of the INR during concurrent administration of these drugs. Warfarin dosages may need to be reduced during concurrent clarithromycin therapy to prevent bleeding complications. Further controlled clinical trials are needed to substantiate the interaction between clarithromycin and warfarin.
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El-Gamal, Dalia, Zachary A. Hing, Shaneice Mitchell, Taylor D. LaFollette, Paul J. Brennan, Joseph M. Flynn, Jeffrey A. Jones, et al. "A Novel Inhibitor of BET Family Bromodomains Demonstrates In Vivo and I n Vi tro Potency in B-Cell Malignancies." Blood 126, no. 23 (December 3, 2015): 318. http://dx.doi.org/10.1182/blood.v126.23.318.318.
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Abstract Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL) is a B-cell malignancy with aberrant activation of the B-cell receptor (BCR) pathway. Despite durable remissions with targeted therapies (e.g., ibrutinib) in CLL, it remains an incurable disease. Epigenetic modifications, including DNA methylation and dysregulation of chromatin regulators have been shown to contribute to the neoplastic phenotype and the differential biologic behavior of tumor cells, including leukemia. An additional layer of epigenetic complexity in cancer cells is the acquisition of super-enhancer regions enriched at genes with known oncogenic function including MYC and BCL2. Super-enhancers in multiple myeloma cells and other tumors have been found strongly enriched for binding of BRD4, a member of the human bromodomain and extraterminal (BET) domain family of proteins which includes BRD2, BRD3, BRD4, and the testis-specific member BRDT. BRD4 binds to acetylated lysines on histones and regulates the expression of important oncogenes (e.g., MYC and BCL2). We investigated the therapeutic benefit of BET inhibition in cell culture and in vivo disease models of leukemia/lymphoma using PLX51107, a novel BRD4 inhibitor with unique binding mode. Results: We report that BRD4 is significantly overexpressed in CLL patient-derived B-cells compared to B-cells from healthy donors on both transcript and protein level (p < .001). RNA-seq analysis of 55 CLL patients revealed expression of various BRD4 isoforms with marked abundance of BRD4-long and BRD4-short. Next we sought to investigate the anti-tumor activity of PLX51107 in multiple malignant B-cell lines and patient-derived CLL cells. PLX51107 inhibited cell growth in MEC1, OCI-Ly2 and OCI-Ly6 (p < .001) dose-dependently with IC50 of 1.0 ± 0.09, 1.2 ± 0.05, 1.8 ± 0.05 μM, respectively. Notably, PLX51107 antagonized CpG-induced increase in cell proliferation of primary CLL cells (p < .01) which was consistent with the downmodulation of MYC and MCL1 along with the accumulation of the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor p21 and IκBα (p < .005). Furthermore, the efficacy of PLX51107 to disrupt survival signaling from the microenvironment was investigated under co-culture conditions with two different bone marrow stroma cell lines, wherein PLX51107 treatment significantly induced cytotoxicity in B-CLL cells (p < .01) without affecting stromal cell viability. By employing microarray analysis we identified possible novel targets of BRD4 in CLL. Validation of those targets is currently ongoing. Particularly, Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTK) and phospholipase C gamma 2 (PLCG2) were markedly decreased with PLX51107 treatment (p < .005), thereby signifying potential therapeutic effect(s) for dual targeting of BRD4 and BCR-associated kinases to achieve deeper and durable responses in relapsed/refractory B-cell malignancies. Lastly, anti-tumor effects of BRD4 inhibition were evaluated in vivo using Eμ-TCL1 and cMYC/TCL1 adoptive transfer models of leukemia and lymphoma, respectively. In the Eμ-TCL1 engraftment model of aggressive CLL, PLX51107 treatment resulted in prolonged survival (p < .001) accompanied with decreased disease burden, lymphocyte infiltration and proliferation when compared to vehicle-treated mice. Next, the cMYC/TCL1 adoptive transfer mouse model was used to evaluate BRD4 inhibition in a highly penetrant, malignant leukemia/lymphoma phenotype analogous to high grade lymphoma wherein PLX51107 prolonged survival (p < .0001), decreased peripheral lymphocyte counts and neoplastic cell infiltration and proliferation in both spleen and lymph nodes. Conclusion: Collectively our findings reveal BRD4 as a valid and novel target for epigenetic therapy directed against core transcriptional programs in malignant/proliferating B-cells and provide support for use of PLX51107 as an effective treatment in clinical trials for relapsed/refractory CLL patients and related aggressive forms of B-cell malignancies, with the ultimate goal of improving the outcome of these patients. Disclosures Byrd: Acerta Pharma BV: Research Funding.
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Nedeljković, Marija, Jeanette Visser, Siska Valcke, and Erik Schlangen. "Physical Characterization of Dutch Fine Recycled Concrete Aggregates: A Comparative Study." Proceedings 34, no. 1 (November 18, 2019): 7. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/proceedings2019034007.
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In the Netherlands, yearly 20 Mt Construction- and Demolition waste (CDW) is being produced mainly consisting of concrete and masonry rubble. This is two third of the yearly production of concrete (33 Mt). Currently, less than 1 Mt/year of the 20 Mt/year CDW is recycled in new concrete (mainly as coarse recycled concrete aggregates). This preliminary study being part of a larger study, is aiming to increase that amount, amongst others by focusing on use of the fine recycled concrete aggregates. Fine recycled concrete aggregates (fRCA) appear promising for (partial) replacement of natural fine aggregates (sand) and cement in new concrete. Nevertheless, they can be expected to have adverse properties and components that may reduce the performance of the concrete. Their physical, chemical and mechanical properties, which thus may significantly differ from that of natural sand, are still far from being fully investigated. The present paper focusses on characterization of physical properties of fRCA for finding the most critical indicators for fRCA quality. The tests include particle size distribution, morphology, BET surface area, solid density and water absorption of individual and total fractions (0–0.25 mm, 0.25–4 mm and 0–4 mm). The tests are performed on three fRCAs with different origin. Natural river sand with 96 wt.% of SiO2 was also studied to provide a baseline for comparison. Experimental results showed that, on the one side, the particle size distribution, surface area and amounts of individual fractions of fRCAs are significantly different from that of natural sand and that there is a large difference between each other. This is caused by variations of the parent concrete properties and by the type of recycling technique and processes (one step or multiple steps crushing). On the other side, fRCAs have comparative solid densities, which were still lower than that of natural sand. It was also shown that difference in water absorption between fractions 0.25–4 mm and 0–4 mm is very small in all three fRCAs groups. The results of this study will be used for future correlations between investigated properties of fRCAs with properties of concretes with fRCAs. This will be investigated in the next stage of the project, such that these correlations can enable production of durable concretes with fRCAs and assist recyclers in optimization of their production processes based on quality control of fRCAs.
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Pandey, Bhavna, Prabir Bandyopadhyay, and Alain Guiette. "Impact of different sources of credit in creating extreme farmer distress in India." Benchmarking: An International Journal 26, no. 6 (August 5, 2019): 1676–91. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/bij-10-2018-0321.
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Purpose According to the published report by the National Sample Survey 2014 the data says that the incidence of indebtedness among households in the rural areas of Maharashtra, India, is almost twice that of other rural places in India. Around 64 percent of rural households are indebted in Maharashtra as against 31 percent other households in India. The purpose of this paper is to examine which source of credit is creating more distress among the farmers. Further the researchers also wanted to find out the reasons why the farmers choose private moneylender over the formal financial institutions. Design/methodology/approach To achieve the objective, the authors used the mixed method methodology. The qualitative study was done using the ethnography approach .In depth interviews were conducted and coded accordingly to find out the themes. The interviews conducted were semi structured and had open ended questions in it, followed by a structured questionnaire. Different statistical tests were also applied on the responses obtained from the questionnaire to check the reliability and validity of the interviews. This methodology gave a robustness to the findings of the study. Findings The results show that sources of loan play a major role in causing farmer distress in Maharashtra. The findings also show major reasons like grapevine bureaucracy, lengthy documentation, etc. as the major reasons for choosing private lenders over the formal financial institutions. The most interesting finding of the study was a phenomena observed during the field study. The borrowers first borrow from financial institutions for their credit needs, when they fail to repay the debt borrowed they again borrow money from the private money lenders and with this borrowed money they try repaying a part of the old existing loan in order to make themselves eligible for the next loan cycle. Research limitations/implications The limitation of the study is that due to time constraint only two districts with high number of farmer suicide could be visited. Given more time and fund a comparative study can be done among different states of India. Practical implications This study will help the policy makers in identifying the real cause of farmer distress. The motive behind the policies made by the government is very noble but the implementation of these policies is inadequate and without a strong research base. The paper will be able to highlight how much the state intervention is required at multiple levels in order to ensure that the benefits reaches to those who deserve it. Social implications It is imperative that we have yet not realized the gravity of the situation where people belonging from a community which is so essential to the economy are killing themselves because of lack of money. This is not just about the fact that the people who give us food are unable to access food themselves. Originality/value The paper contains significant information with regard to indebtedness. It focuses on the issue troubling the authorities the most. It provides the ground realities of the incidence of indebtedness in Maharashtra, one of the most distressed states of India. Lot of studies have been done in the past but very few studies have used mixed methodology to study this incidence of debt among the farmers of Maharashtra. This study also unveils a new phenomena of borrowing happening among the farmers of Maharashtra.
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O'Brien, Susan, Manish Patel, Brad S. Kahl, Steven M. Horwitz, Francine M. Foss, Pierluigi Porcu, Jennifer Sweeney, et al. "Duvelisib (IPI-145), a PI3K-δ,γ Inhibitor, Is Clinically Active in Patients with Relapsed/Refractory Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia." Blood 124, no. 21 (December 6, 2014): 3334. http://dx.doi.org/10.1182/blood.v124.21.3334.3334.
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Abstract Introduction: Signaling via PI3K-δ and PI3K-γ has distinct and complimentary effects on malignant B-cells and nonmalignant immune cells important in tumor immunity, and on the tumor microenvironment involved in the support and maintenance of B-cell neoplasms, including chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Duvelisib (IPI-145), a novel targeted oral PI3K-δ,γ inhibitor, is in development for the treatment of hematologic malignancies. An ongoing Phase 1 study has demonstrated substantial clinical activity in patient (pts) with relapsed/refractory (R/R) CLL, including those with poor prognostic risk factors. Methods: This study evaluated the safety, maximum tolerated dose (MTD), pharmacokinetics, and clinical activity of duvelisib administered in pts with advanced hematologic malignancies. Pharmacodynamic (PD) studies included peripheral blood (PB) flow cytometry to evaluate whether duvelisib inhibits phosphorylation of AKT (pAKT) and proliferation (Ki67) in CLL cells and serum sampling to evaluate modulation of cytokines and chemokines important for tumor microenvironment signaling. Genomic DNA was isolated from PB at baseline for Sanger sequencing of IGHV and next-generation sequencing of TP53. Following dose escalation, expansion cohorts enrolled CLL pts at 25 and 75 mg BID (MTD). Response was based on IWCLL (2008) criteria. Results: The median age of the R/R CLL pts (n=54) was 66 y (range 42-82), 78% of whom were male. Forty-four (81.5%) pts received ≥3 prior systemic therapies. The median time from prior therapy to first dose of duvelisib was 3.5 mo (range 0-39.1). Baseline cytopenias ≥ Grade 2 were neutropenia (41%), thrombocytopenia (31%) and anemia (26%). Of the pts with baseline tests for mutations associated with poor CLL prognosis, 49% (23/47) had TP53mut and/or cytogenetic (del)17p and 89% (31/35) had an unmutated IGHV. Duvelisib dosed at 25 mg BID provided an optimal biologic effect based on maximum pAKT inhibition in CLL cells (<24 hrs after a single dose) and reductions in serum cytokines and chemokines (by Cycle 1 Day 8) known to contribute to CLL growth and survival. In addition, median CLL cell proliferation index (Ki67) was reduced with duvelisib treatment by Cycle 2 Day 1 (at steady state). These PD effects were similar at higher doses (75 mg BID). On-target lymphocytosis had a rapid onset (maximum mean absolute lymphocyte count [ALC] by Cycle 1 Day 8) across the dose range evaluated (8 to 75 mg BID), returning to baseline (mean ALC) by Cycle 4 Day 1 (12 wks on treatment). In pts with baseline CT assessments, 83% (38/46) achieved >50% reduction in adenopathy by CT scan. The best overall response rate (ORR) by IWCLL criteria was 55% in 49 evaluable pts, including 1 complete response (CR) and 26 partial responses (PR). There were 21 pts with stable disease and 1 pt with progressive disease. Median time to response was 1.9 mo (range 1.7-8.3). The ORR was similar irrespective of dose (52%, ≤25 mg BID [n=29]; 60%, 75 mg BID [n=20]), or the presence of TP53mut/(del)17p (48% [n=23], including 1 CR) or unmutated IGHV (52%, n=31). Treatment emergent adverse events (AEs, all causality) were similar across the dose range and were predominantly Grade 1-2. With a median of 7.3 treatment cycles (range 1.0-30.8), the most common AEs ≥Grade 3 (≥10%, all causality) were transient cytopenias (neutropenia [31%] and thrombocytopenia [11%]), febrile neutropenia (15%), and pneumonia (11%). The most common reasons for treatment discontinuation were AEs (31%) and disease progression (24%). Conclusions: Pharmacodynamic studies in this ongoing investigation indicate duvelisib, an oral PI3K-δ,γ inhibitor, modulates pAKT in CLL cells, chemokines/cytokines involved in CLL cell survival, and CLL cell proliferation index (Ki67). Early resolution of lymphocytosis and objective lymph node responses suggest survival signals from the tumor microenvironment are affected by inhibition of PI3K-δ,γ pathways. Duvelisib continues to demonstrate clinical activity, with a best ORR of 55% (IWCLL) in a heavily pretreated R/R CLL population, including pts with poor prognostic features. The overall safety profile is generally well tolerated, consistent with underlying disease and suggests a favorable benefit-risk profile in this R/R CLL population. These results support the further development of duvelisib monotherapy, and a randomized Phase 3 study in pts with R/R CLL is ongoing. Disclosures Kahl: Infinity Pharmaceuticals: Consultancy, Research Funding. Horwitz:Research: Celgene, Millennium, Infinity, Kiowa-Kirin, Seattle Genetics, Spectrum: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding. Foss:Eisai, Celgene, Seattle Genetics: Consultancy, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau. Porcu:Actelion (e), Cutaneous Lymphoma Foundation (h), United States Cutaneous Lymphoma Consortium (h), Infinity (d), Celgene (d), : Consultancy, Employment, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding. Sweeney:Infinity Pharmaceuticals: Employment. Allen:Infinity Pharmaceuticals: Employment. Faia:Infinity Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment. Stern:Infinity Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Employment. Kelly:Infinity Pharmaceuticals: Employment. Flinn:Infinity Pharmaceuticals: Consultancy.
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Yu, Evan Y., Kevin F. Kuo, Rachel Hunter-Merrill, Roman Gulati, Heather H. Cheng, Jason Frederick Flamiatos, Teresa E. Gambol, Suzanne P. Hall, and Celestia S. Higano. "A pilot study of high-dose exisulind in men with biochemical relapse (BCR) of prostate cancer after definitive local therapy treated with intermittent androgen deprivation (IAD)." Journal of Clinical Oncology 31, no. 6_suppl (February 20, 2013): 209. http://dx.doi.org/10.1200/jco.2013.31.6_suppl.209.
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209 Background: Exisulind is an apoptotic drug shown in vitro to inhibit expression and function of the androgen receptor. At lower doses as a single agent and in combination with chemotherapy it has demonstrated limited efficacy. In this pilot study, the potential for high dose exisulind to prolong the duration of the off treatment interval of IAD was studied. Methods: Eligible patients (pts) underwent prior definitive local therapy, had BCR, and received at least one full prior cycle of IAD, defined as a 9-month on- and variable off-treatment period (terminated by reaching PSA threshold 1 ng/mL for radical prostatectomy and 4 ng/mL for radiation). Exisulind (250 mg po bid) was started 3 months before completing the 2nd on-treatment period and continued through the 2nd off treatment interval and other IAD cycles until castration resistance (CRPC). We used a Cox proportional hazards model to estimate the association between receiving exisulind and time to resuming AD for pts who initiated exisulind during their 2nd on-treatment period. The model controlled for 1st off-treatment duration. Results: Nineteen pts were enrolled and treated with exisulind. Median age was 62 (range 50-75) years. Median PSA at diagnosis was 11 (3.9-99) ng/mL and 5 (1-19.2) ng/mL at initiation of IAD. Median Gleason score was 8 (6-9). Median duration of exisulind treatment was 1.5 (0.5-7.7) yrs and median follow-up was 9.3 (1.1-10.1) yrs. In 9 evaluable pts, taking exisulind was associated with a non-significant prolongation of the off treatment interval (15% decreased risk of progressing to PSA threshold and the next AD cycle, HR 0.85, 95% CI 0.41, 1.75, p=0.654). Six pts (32%) required at least one dose hold, 9 (47%) underwent a dose reduction for toxicity, and 7 (37%) came off trial for drug toxicity. Most common adverse events were elevated liver function tests (53%) and fatigue (42%). Median time to CRPC was 5.5 (0.3-not reached) yrs. Conclusions: High-dose exisulind was poorly tolerated and did not clearly extend the duration of 2nd off-treatment intervals compared to the 1st. More potent contemporary agents may be more beneficial in this setting. Clinical trial information: NCT00283803.
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Kaplan, Daniel, and Chrysoula Dosiou. "Two Cases of Graves’ Hyperthyroidism Treated With Homeopathic Remedies Containing Herbal Extracts from Lycopus spp. and Melissa officinalis." Journal of the Endocrine Society 5, Supplement_1 (May 1, 2021): A971. http://dx.doi.org/10.1210/jendso/bvab048.1984.
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Abstract Background: Plant extracts from species of Lycopus (bugleweed) and Melissa officinalis (lemon balm) have long been used as folk remedies in the treatment of hyperthyroidism1. In vitro studies have shown that extracts from bugleweed and lemon balm inhibit stimulation of thyroid hormone production by both TSH and Graves’ antibodies1. An in vivo study in rats showed that oral bugleweed extract alters extra-thyroidal T4 conversion2. Case 1: A 64 year-old woman presented for routine examination and was found to have a TSH of 0.01 mIU/L on 6/6/2016. Labs the next month showed FT4 1.4ng/dL (0.8-1.8) and FT3 4.7pg/mL (2.3-4.2). TSI was elevated to 275% (Normal<140%), consistent with Graves’. She did not have symptoms of hyperthyroidism. The patient’s cat had been treated for hyperthyroidism with Thyrosoothe (TS), a formulation containing extracts from bugleweed and lemon balm. After being diagnosed with hyperthyroidism, the patient began taking TS. On 9/12/16 the patient’s labs were improved with TSH 0.02mIU/L, FT4 0.88 ng/dL (0.8-1.8) and Total T3 86 (76-181). Three months later, the patient’s TSH was 1.89 with normal FT4, Total T3 and TSI. She took TS for 9 months. Her thyroid function tests have remained normal since starting TS, without the need for any other anti-thyroid medications. Case 2: A 46 year-old female presented with periorbital edema in July 2018 and was referred to an ophthalmologist, who diagnosed her with thyroid eye disease. She was also complaining of palpitations and “jitteriness”. She was found to be hyperthyroid on labs and was treated with methimazole (MMI) between August 2018 and February 2019, requiring doses of up to 10mg BID. In March 2019 she stopped MMI due to transaminitis and began taking a thyroid tincture containing bugleweed and lemon balm extract. She has remained euthyroid on the herbal tincture, her transaminitis has resolved, and she has not required any further anti-thyroid medication. Her TSI, which was 0.84 IU/L (Normal<0.55) in May 2019, normalized to 0.36 IU/L in June 2020, after 15 months on this tincture, which she is still taking. Conclusion: In vitro and rat studies of bugleweed and lemon balm extract have demonstrated anti-thyroidal effects. This is the first report of the use of these plant extracts in the treatment of two patients with Graves’ disease, in whom it led to restoration of euthyroidism and normalization of TSI titers. Further study of the anti-thyroidal effects of bugleweed and lemon balm in humans is warranted to evaluate its potential role as an adjunctive therapy in Graves’ disease.References: 1. Auf’Mkolk, M., et al. “Extracts and Auto-Oxidized Constituents of Certain Plants Inhibit the Receptor-Binding and the Biological Activity of Graves’ Igs*.” Endocrinology, vol. 116, no. 5, May 1985, pp. 1687–93. 2. Winterhoff, H., et al. “Endocrine Effects of Lycopus Europaeus L. Following Oral Application.” Arzneim. Forsch., vol. I, no. 44, 1944.
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Intlekofer, Andrew M., Venkatraman E. Sheshan, Ross L. Levine, Andrew D. Zelenetz, Julie Teruya-Feldstein, Ahmet Dogan, Maria Lia Palomba, et al. "Profiling Genomic Alterations Of Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma (DLBCL) At Diagnosis, Relapse, and Transformation, Using a Novel Clinical Diagnostic Targeted Sequencing Platform." Blood 122, no. 21 (November 15, 2013): 1761. http://dx.doi.org/10.1182/blood.v122.21.1761.1761.
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Abstract Whole genome and exome sequencing studies have identified numerous genomic alterations in DLBCL, but these methods have limited applicability for the clinical care of lymphoma patients due to cost, specific tissue requirements, and laborious bioinformatic analysis. FoundationOne-Heme (FOH) is a novel next-generation sequencing platform designed to provide targeted assessment of the genomic landscape of hematologic malignancies, including identification of mutations within specific genes, copy number changes, and translocations. FOH can be performed on small quantities of formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue, detect rare variants due to extensive depth of sequencing coverage, and rapidly provide results via streamlined bioinformatic interpretation. Here we report the first experience using this novel platform to evaluate the genetic landscape of DLBCL. Genomic DNA and total RNA were isolated from FFPE tissue on a cohort of 53 cases of DLBCL, including de novo (n=30), relapsed/refractory (n=12), and large cell transformation from low-grade lymphoma (n=11). The cohort included 25 cases with combined MYC and BCL2 overexpression by IHC (criteria for positivity: >40% MYC, >70% BCL2), of which only one had a known translocation involving MYC. Adaptor ligated sequencing libraries were captured by solution hybridization using two custom bait sets targeting 374 cancer-related genes and 24 genes frequently rearranged for DNA-seq, and 258 frequently-rearranged genes for RNA-seq. All captured libraries were sequenced to high depth (Illumina HiSeq), averaging >658x for DNA and >20,000,000 total pairs for RNA, to enable the sensitive and specific detection of genomic alterations. Significant non-synonomous variants were identified as mutations from the COSMIC database, amplifications of established oncogenes, or homozygous deletions and/or clear loss-of-function mutations of known tumor suppressors. The DNA sequencing component of FOH detected translocations in BCL2, BCL6, and MYC, while the RNA sequencing component detected fusion transcripts involving BLC6 and MYC, in agreement with independent cytogenetic analysis via karyotype and FISH where available. The assay detected copy number alterations of 44 different genes, most commonly amplification of REL (15%) or loss of CDKN2A/CDKN2B (17%). The most frequent alterations of known significance are detailed in Figure 1. The most commonly altered gene was CDKN2A, exhibiting either homozygous deletion or loss of function mutation in 28% of cases. Chromatin modifying factors (e.g. MLL2, CREBBP, EZH2) represented the most frequently altered biologic category with alterations occurring in >50% of cases. Recurrent alterations in components of the Notch pathway (NOTCH1/2/4, FBXW7, SPEN), each predicted to activate the pathway, were identified in 23% of cases. Cell-of-origin was determined as per the Hans model using IHC for CD10, BCL6, and IRF4/MUM1; CD79B mutations were detected exclusively in non-GCB and EZH2 mutations were found exclusively in GCB-phenotype cases. Furthermore, IHC MYC+/BCL2+ de novo DLBCL cases (n=11) exhibited more frequent hypermutation of PIM1 (46%) compared with the 19 cases of IHC MYC-/BCL2- de novo DLBCL (11%). When comparing the various clinical categories, we found that mutations in tumor suppressors were significantly more common in relapsed/refractory than de novo DLBCL (47% vs 75%, p=0.02). Alterations in TP53 were most frequently observed in transformed lymphoma (55%). Our results demonstrate the feasibility of using a targeted next-generation sequencing platform on FFPE clinical specimens from patients with DLBCL as a means of providing an integrated analysis of gene mutations, copy number alterations, and translocations. This streamlined approach combines multiple molecular and cytogenetic tests into a single platform and uses a small amount of tissue to perform a multifaceted assessment of genomic alterations with potential diagnostic, prognostic, and therapeutic implications. Future efforts will be directed at analyzing additional cases of DLBCL to better establish the biologic and clinical significance of the observed genetic alterations, and to prospectively incorporate this novel platform to select patients for mechanism-based targeted therapy. Disclosures: Intlekofer: Foundation Medicine, Inc: Consultancy. Levine:Foundation Medicine, Inc: Consultancy. Zelenetz:Foundation Medicine, Inc: Consultancy. Palomba:Foundation Medicine, Inc: Consultancy. van den Brink:Foundation Medicine, Inc: Consultancy. Brennan:Foundation Medicine, Inc: Employment. Young:Foundation Medicine, Inc: Employment. He:Foundation Medicine, Inc: Employment. Nahas:Foundation Medicine, Inc: Employment. Yelensky:Foundation Medicine, Inc: Employment. Otto:Foundation Medicine, Inc: Employment. Lipson:Foundation Medicine, Inc: Employment. Stephens:Foundation Medicine, Inc: Employment. Miller:Foundation Medicine, Inc: Employment. Younes:Foundation Medicine, Inc: Consultancy.
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Memon, Qurban Ali. "NEURAL NETWORK-BASED DOUBLE ENCRYPTION FOR JPEG2000 IMAGES." Journal of Information and Communication Technology, May 31, 2017. http://dx.doi.org/10.32890/jict2017.16.1.8226.
Full textAbstract:
The JPEG2000 is the more efficient next generation coding standard than the current JPEG standard. It can code files witless visual loss, and the file format is less likely to be affected by system file or bit errors. On the encryption side, the current 128-bit image encryption schemes are reported to be vulnerable to brute force. So there is a need for stronger schemes that not only utilize the efficient coding structure of the JPEG2000, but also apply stronger encryption with better key management. This research investigated a two-layer 256-bit encryption technique proposed for the JPEG2000 compatible images. In the first step, the technique used a multilayer neural network with a 128-bit key to generate single layer encrypted sequences. The second step used a cellular neural network with a different 128-bit key to finally generate a two-layer encrypted image. The projected advantages were compatible with the JPEG2000, 256-bit long key, managing each 128-bit key at separate physical locations, and flexible to opt for a single or a two-layer encryption. In order to test the proposed encryption technique for robustness, randomness tests on random sequences, correlation and histogram tests on encrypted images were conducted. The results show that random sequences pass the NIST statistical tests and the 0/1 balancedness test; the bit sequences are decorrelated, and the histogram of the resulting encrypted images is fairly uniform with the statistical properties of those of the white noise.
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Ndaw, Babacar Alasane, Ousmane Ndiaye, Mamadou Sanghar´e, and Cheikh Thi´ecoumba Gueye. "A New Statistical Test for PRNG Based on the Attendance’s Law." Journal of Advances in Mathematics and Computer Science, March 10, 2021, 37–46. http://dx.doi.org/10.9734/jamcs/2021/v36i130328.
Full textAbstract:
One family of the cryptographic primitives is random Number Generators (RNG) which have several applications in cryptography such that password generation, nonce generation, Initialisation vector for Stream Cipher, keystream. Recently they are also used to randomise encryption and signature schemes.
A pseudo-random number generator (PRNG) or a pseudo-random bit generator (PRBG) is a deterministic algorithm that produces numbers whose distribution is on the one hand indistinguishable from uniform ie. that the probabilities of appearance of the different symbols are equal and that these appearances are all independent. On the other hand, the next output of a PRNG must be unpredictable from all its previous outputs. Indeed, A set of statistical tests for randomness has been proposed in the literature and by NIST to evaluate the security of random(pseudo) bit or block. Unfortunately there are non-random binary streams that pass these standardized tests.
In this pap er, as outcome, we intro duce on the one hand a new statistical test in a static contextcalled attendance’s law and on the other hand a distinguisher based on this new attendance’s law.
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Chiara, Matteo, Anna Maria D’Erchia, Carmela Gissi, Caterina Manzari, Antonio Parisi, Nicoletta Resta, Federico Zambelli, et al. "Next generation sequencing of SARS-CoV-2 genomes: challenges, applications and opportunities." Briefings in Bioinformatics, December 7, 2020. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/bib/bbaa297.
Full textAbstract:
Abstract Various next generation sequencing (NGS) based strategies have been successfully used in the recent past for tracing origins and understanding the evolution of infectious agents, investigating the spread and transmission chains of outbreaks, as well as facilitating the development of effective and rapid molecular diagnostic tests and contributing to the hunt for treatments and vaccines. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic poses one of the greatest global threats in modern history and has already caused severe social and economic costs. The development of efficient and rapid sequencing methods to reconstruct the genomic sequence of SARS-CoV-2, the etiological agent of COVID-19, has been fundamental for the design of diagnostic molecular tests and to devise effective measures and strategies to mitigate the diffusion of the pandemic. Diverse approaches and sequencing methods can, as testified by the number of available sequences, be applied to SARS-CoV-2 genomes. However, each technology and sequencing approach has its own advantages and limitations. In the current review, we will provide a brief, but hopefully comprehensive, account of currently available platforms and methodological approaches for the sequencing of SARS-CoV-2 genomes. We also present an outline of current repositories and databases that provide access to SARS-CoV-2 genomic data and associated metadata. Finally, we offer general advice and guidelines for the appropriate sharing and deposition of SARS-CoV-2 data and metadata, and suggest that more efficient and standardized integration of current and future SARS-CoV-2-related data would greatly facilitate the struggle against this new pathogen. We hope that our ‘vademecum’ for the production and handling of SARS-CoV-2-related sequencing data, will contribute to this objective.
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Huang, Jie, Stefano Pallotti, Qianling Zhou, Marcus Kleber, Xiaomeng Xin, Daniel A. King, and Valerio Napolioni. "PERHAPS: Paired-End short Reads-based HAPlotyping from next-generation Sequencing data." Briefings in Bioinformatics, December 8, 2020. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/bib/bbaa320.
Full textAbstract:
Abstract The identification of rare haplotypes may greatly expand our knowledge in the genetic architecture of both complex and monogenic traits. To this aim, we developed PERHAPS (Paired-End short Reads-based HAPlotyping from next-generation Sequencing data), a new and simple approach to directly call haplotypes from short-read, paired-end Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) data. To benchmark this method, we considered the APOE classic polymorphism (*1/*2/*3/*4), since it represents one of the best examples of functional polymorphism arising from the haplotype combination of two Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs). We leveraged the big Whole Exome Sequencing (WES) and SNP-array data obtained from the multi-ethnic UK BioBank (UKBB, N=48,855). By applying PERHAPS, based on piecing together the paired-end reads according to their FASTQ-labels, we extracted the haplotype data, along with their frequencies and the individual diplotype. Concordance rates between WES directly called diplotypes and the ones generated through statistical pre-phasing and imputation of SNP-array data are extremely high (>99%), either when stratifying the sample by SNP-array genotyping batch or self-reported ethnic group. Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium tests and the comparison of obtained haplotype frequencies with the ones available from the 1000 Genome Project further supported the reliability of PERHAPS. Notably, we were able to determine the existence of the rare APOE*1 haplotype in two unrelated African subjects from UKBB, supporting its presence at appreciable frequency (approximatively 0.5%) in the African Yoruba population. Despite acknowledging some technical shortcomings, PERHAPS represents a novel and simple approach that will partly overcome the limitations in direct haplotype calling from short read-based sequencing.
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Lalon, Raad Mozib, and Nusrat Jahan. "Predicting Economic Performance of Bangladesh using Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) model." Journal of Applied Finance & Banking, January 22, 2021, 129–48. http://dx.doi.org/10.47260/jafb/1125.
Full textAbstract:
This paper attempts to forecast the economic performance of Bangladesh measured with annual GDP data using an Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) Model followed by test of goodness of fit using AIC (Akaike Information Criterion) and BIC (Bayesian Information Criterion) index value among six ARIMA models along with several diagnostic tests such as plotting ACF (Autocorrelation Function), PACF (Partial Autocorrelation Function) and performing Unit Root Test of the Residuals estimated by the selected forecasting ARIMA model. We have found the appropriate ARIMA (1,0,1) model useful in predicting the GDP growth of Bangladesh for next couple of years adopting Box-Jenkins approach to construct the ARIMA (p,r,q) model using the GDP data of Bangladesh provided in the World Bank Data stream from 1961 to 2019. JEL classification numbers: B22, B23, C53. Keywords: GDP growth, ACF, PACF, Stationary, ARIMA (p,r,q) model, Forecasting.
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Masten, Ric. "Wrestling with Prostate Cancer." M/C Journal 4, no. 3 (June 1, 2001). http://dx.doi.org/10.5204/mcj.1918.
Full textAbstract:
February 15, 1999 THE DIGITAL EXAM digital was such a sanitary hi-tech word until my urologist snuck up from behind and gave me the bird shocked and taken back I try to ignore the painful experience by pondering the conundrum of homosexuality there had to be more to it than that "You can get dressed now" was the good doctor’s way of saying "Pull up your pants, Dude, and I’ll see you back in my office." but his casual demeanor seemed to exude foreboding "There is a stiffness in the gland demanding further examination. I’d like to schedule a blood test, ultrasound and biopsy." the doctor’s lips kept moving but I couldn’t hear him through the sheet of white fear that guillotined between us CANCER! The big C! Me? I spent the rest of that day up to my genitals in the grave I was digging. Hamlet gazing full into the face of the skull "Alas poor Yorick, I knew him well, Horatio. Before scalpel took gland. Back when he sang in a bass baritone." desperate for encouragement I turn to the illustrated brochure the informative flyer detailing the upcoming procedure where in the ultrasound and biopsy probe resembled the head of a black water moccasin baring its fang "Dang!" says I jumping back relief came 36 hours later something about the PSA blood test the prostate specific-antigen results leading the doctor to now suspect infection prescribing an antibiotic of course five weeks from now the FOLLOW-UP APPOINTMENT! and as the date approaches tension will build like in those Mel Gibson Lethal Weapon films when you know there’s a snake in the grass and Danny Glover isn’t there to cover your ass *** April 2, 1999 As it turns out, at the follow-up appointment, things had worsened so the biopsy and bone scan were re-scheduled and it was discovered that I do have incurable metastatic advanced prostate cancer. Of course the doctor is most optimistic about all the new and miraculous treatments available. But before I go into that, I want you to know that I find myself experiencing a strange and wonderful kind of peace. Hell, I’ve lived 70 years already — done exactly what I wanted to do with my life. All worthwhile dreams have come true. Made my living since 1968 as a "Performance Poet" — Billie Barbara and I have been together for 47 years — growing closer with each passing day. We have four great kids, five neat and nifty grandchildren. All things considered, I’ve been truly blessed and whether my departure date is next year or 15 years from now I’m determined not to wreck my life by doing a lousy job with my death. LIKE HAROLD / LIKE HOWARD like Harold I don’t want to blow my death I don’t want to see a lifetime of pluck and courage rubbed out by five weeks of whiny fractious behavior granted Harold’s was a scary way to go from diagnosis to last breath the cancer moving fast but five weeks of bitching and moaning was more than enough to erase every trace of a man I have wanted to emulate his wife sending word that even she can’t remember what he was like before his undignified departure no — I don’t want to go like Harold like Howard let me come swimming up out of the deepening coma face serene as if seen through undisturbed water breaking the surface to eagerly take the hand of bedside well wishers unexpected behavior I must admit as Howard has always been a world class hypochondriac second only to me the two of us able to sit for hours discussing the subtle shade of a mole turning each other on with long drawn out organ recitals in the end one would have thought such a legendary self centered soul would cower and fold up completely like Harold but no — when my time comes let me go sweetly like Howard *** April 7, 1999 The treatment was decided upon. Next Monday, the good Doctor is going to pit my apricots. From here on the Sultan can rest easy when Masten hangs with his harem. Prognosis good. No more testosterone - no more growth. Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m not looking forward to giving up the family jewels. I must say that over the years they’ve done me proud and to be totally honest I don’t think Billie Barbara will be all that disappointed either. I’m told that Viagra will help in this area., However, I’m also told that the drug is very expensive. Something like twelve bucks a pop. But hell, Billie Barbara and I can afford twenty four dollars a year.. Some thoughts the morning of— Yesterday I did a program for the Unitarian Society of Livermore. About 60 people. I had a bet with the fellow who introduced me, that at least 7 out of the 60 would come up after the reading (which would include my recent prostate musings) and share a personal war story about prostate cancer. I was right. Exactly 7 approached with an encouraging tale about themselves, a husband, a brother, a son. I was told to prepare myself for hot flashes and water retention. To which Billie Barbara said "Join the club!" I ended the presentation with one of those inspirational poetic moments. A hot flash, if you will. "It just occurred to me," I said, " I’m going to get rich selling a bumper sticker I just thought of — REAL MEN DON’T NEED BALLS A couple of days after the event The Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula is referred to as CHOMP, and the afternoon of April 12th I must say this august institution certainly lived up to it’s name. The waiting room in the Out Patient Wing is an event unto itself. Patients huddled together with friends and family, everyone speaking in hushed voices. The doomed keeping a wary eye on the ominous swinging doors, where a big tough looking nurse appeared from time to time shouting: NEXT! Actually the woman was quite sweet and mild mannered, enunciating each patient’s name in a calm friendly manner. But waiting to have done to me what was going to be done to me - the chilling word "NEXT!" is what I heard and "Out Patient Wing" certainly seemed a misnomer to me. Wasn’t the "Out-Patient Wing" where you went to have splinters removed? Of course I knew better, because in the pre-op interview the young interviewer, upon reading "Bilateral Orchiectomy" winced visibly, exclaiming under her breath "Bummer!" I recently came across this haiku — bilateral orchiectomy the sound a patient makes when he learns what it is Our daughter April lives in New York and couldn’t join the Waiting Room rooting section so as her stand in she sent her best friend Molly Williams. Now, Molly works as a veterinarian in a local animal shelter and a when I told her my operation was supposed to take no more than half an hour, she laughed: "Heck Ric, I’ll do it in five minutes and not even use gloves." NEXT! My turn to be led through those swinging doors, pitifully looking back over my shoulder. Wife, family and friends, bravely giving me the thumbs up. Things blur and run together after that. I do remember telling the nurse who was prepping me that I was afraid of being put to sleep. "Not to worry" she said, I’d have a chance to express these fears to the anesthetist before the operation would begin. And as promised the man did drop by to assure me that I would get a little something to ease my anxiety before he put me under. When the moment finally arrived, he said that I might feel a slight prick as he gave me the relaxant. Of course, that is the last thing I remember - the prick! Obviously, I‘d been suckered in by the mask man’s modus operandi. On the other side of this I surface to begin the waiting. WAITING for the catheter to be removed — for the incision to heal — WAITING to see if the pain subsides and I can loose the cane — WAITING to learn if my PSA will respond to treatment. Waiting—waiting—waiting—and I’ve never been a cheerful waiter. *** May 7, 1999 The doctor tells me I must keep taking Casodex— one a day at eleven dollars a cap - for the rest of my life. And no more doctor freebees. No wonder the listed side effect of this pricey medication is depression. But the recent funk I’ve fallen into is much deeper than dollars and cents. In the past I’ve had my share of operations and illnesses and always during the recuperation I could look forward to being my old self again. But not this time .... Not this time. Funny bumper stickers can only hold reality at bay for a short while. And anyway Billie had me remove the homemade REAL MEN DON’T NEED BALLS bumper sticker from the back of our car — She didn’t like the dirty looks she got while driving around town alone. *** Eight months later BILATERAL ORCHECTOMY never could look up words in the dictionary in a high school assignment writing an autobiography I described my self as a unique person scribbled in the margin the teachers correction fairly chortled "unique" not "eunuch" how could he have known that one day I would actually become a misspelling backed against the wall by advanced prostate cancer I chose the operation over the enormous ongoing expense of chemical castration "No big deal." I thought at the time what’s the difference they both add up to the same thing but in the movies these days during the hot gratuitous sex scene I yawn…bored... wishing they’d quit dicking around and get on with the plot and on TV the buxom cuties that titillate around the products certainly arn’t selling me anything I realize now that although it would probably kill them the guys who went chemical still have an option I don’t philosophically I’m the same person but biologically I ‘m like the picture puzzle our family traditionally puts together over the holidays the French impressionist rendition of a flower shop interior in all it’s bright colorful confusion this season I didn’t work the puzzle quite as enthusiastically... and for good reason this year I know pieces are missing where the orchids used to be "So?" says I to myself "You’re still here to smell the roses." *** January 13, 2000 Real bad news! At the third routine follow-up appointment. My urologist informs me that my PSA has started rising again. The orchectomy and Casodex are no longer keeping the cancer in remission. In the vernacular, I have become "hormone refractory" and there was nothing more he, as a urologist could do for me. An appointment with a local oncologist was arranged and another bone scan scheduled. The "T" word having finally been said the ostrich pulled his head from the sand and began looking around. Knowing what I know now, I’m still annoyed at my urologist for not telling me when I was first diagnosed to either join a support group and radically change my diet or find another urologist. I immediately did both - becoming vegan and finding help on-line as well as at the local Prostate Cancer Support Group. This during the endless eighteen day wait before the oncologist could fit me in. *** IRON SOCKS time now for a bit of reverse prejudice I once purchased some stockings called "Iron Socks" guaranteed to last for five years they lasted ten! but when I went back for another pair the clerk had never heard of them as a cancer survivor… so far in an over populated world I consider the multi-billion dollar medical and pharmaceutical industries realizing that there is absolutely no incentive to come up with a permanent cure *** From here on, I’ll let the poems document the part of the journey that brings us up to the present. A place where I can say — spiritually speaking, that the best thing that ever happened to me is metastatic hormone refractory advanced prostate cancer. *** SUPPORT GROUPS included in this close fraternity... in this room full of brotherly love I wonder where I’ve been for the last 11 months no — that’s not quite right… I know where I’ve been I’ve been in denial after the shock of diagnosis the rude indignity of castration the quick fix of a Casodex why would I want to hang out with a bunch of old duffers dying of prostate cancer? ignoring the fact that everybody dies we all know it but few of us believe it those who do, however rack up more precious moments than the entire citizenry of the fools paradise not to mention studies showing that those who do choose to join a support group on average live years longer than the stiff upper lip recluse and while I’m on the subject I wonder where I’d be without the internet and the dear supportive spirits met there in cyber-space a place where aid care and concern are not determined by age, gender, race, physical appearance, economic situation or geological location and this from a die-hard like me who not ten years ago held the computer in great disdain convinced that poetry should be composed on the back of envelopes with a blunt pencil while riding on trains thank god I’m past these hang-ups because without a support system I doubt if this recent malignant flare-up could have been withstood how terrifying… the thought of being at my writing desk alone… disconnected typing out memos to myself on my dead father’s ancient Underwood *** PC SPES in the sea that is me the hormone blockade fails my urologist handing me over to a young oncologist who recently began practicing locally having retired from the stainless steel and white enamel of the high tech Stanford medical machine in the examination room numbly thumbing through a magazine I wait expecting to be treated like a link of sausage another appointment ground out in a fifteen minute interval what I got was an 18th century throw back a hands-on horse and buggy physician with seemingly all the time in the world it was decided that for the next three weeks (between blood tests) all treatment would cease to determine how my PSA was behaving this done, at the next appointment the next step would be decided upon and after more than an hour of genial give and take with every question answered all options covered it was I who stood up first to go for me a most unique experience in the annals of the modern medicine show however condemned to three weeks in limbo knowing the cancer was growing had me going online reaching out into cyberspace to see what I could find and what I found was PC SPES a botanical herbal alternative medicine well documented and researched but not approved by the FDA aware that the treatment was not one my doctor had mentioned (I have since learned that to do so would make him legally vulnerable) I decided to give it a try on my own sending off for a ten day supply taking the first dose as close after the second blood test as I could two days later back in the doctors office I confess expecting a slap on the wrist instead I receive a bouquet for holding off until after the second PSA then taking the PC SPES container from my hand and like a Native American medicine man he holds it high over his head shaking it "Okay then, this approach gets the first ride!" at the receptionist desk scheduling my next appointment I thought about how difficult it must be out here on the frontier practicing medicine with your hands tied *** PREJUDICE "It's a jungle out there!" Dr. J. George Taylor was fond of saying "And all chiropractors are quacks! Manipulating pocket pickers!" the old physician exposing his daughter to a prejudice so infectious I suspect it became part of her DNA and she a wannabe doctor herself infects me her son with the notion that if it wasn’t performed or prescribed by a licensed M.D. it had to be Medicine Show hoopla or snake oil elixir certainly today’s countless array of practitioners and patent remedies has both of them spinning in their grave but Ma you and Grandpa never heard the words hormone-refractory even the great white hunters of our prestigious cancer clinics don't know how to stop the tiger that is stalking me and so with a PSA rising again to 11.9 I get my oncologist to let me try PC SPES a Chinese herbal formula yes, the desperate do become gullible me, reading and re-reading the promotional material dutifully dosing myself between blood tests and this against the smirk of disapproval mother and grandfather wagging their heads in unison: "It won’t work." "It won’t work." having condemned myself beforehand the moment of truth finally arrives I pace the floor nervously the doctor appears at the door "How does it feel to be a man with a PSA falling to 4.8?" it seems that for the time being at least the tiger is content to play a waiting game which is simply great! Mother tell Grandpa I just may escape our families bigotry before it’s too late *** HELPLINE HARRY "Hi, how are you?" these days I'm never sure how to field routine grounders like this am I simply being greeted? or does the greeter actually want a list of grisly medical details my wife says it's easy she just waits to see if the "How is he?" is followed by a hushed "I mean… really?" for the former a simple "Fine, and how are you?" will do for the latter the news isn't great indications are that the miracle herbal treatment is beginning to fail my oncologist offering up a confusing array of clinical trials and treatments that flirt seductively but speak in a foreign language I don't fully understand so Harry, once again I call on you a savvy old tanker who has maneuvered his battle scared machine through years of malignant mine fields and metastatic mortar attacks true five star Generals know much about winning wars and such but the Command Post is usually so far removed from the front lines I suspect they haven't a clue as to what the dog-faces are going through down here in the trenches it's the seasoned campaigners who have my ear the tough tenacious lovable old survivors like you *** "POOR DEVIL!" in my early twenties I went along with Dylan Thomas boasting that I wanted to go out not gently but raging shaking my fist staring death down however this daring statement was somewhat revised when in my forties I realized that death does the staring I do the down so I began hoping it would happen to me like it happened to the sentry in all those John Wayne Fort Apache movies found dead in the morning face down — an arrow in the back "Poor devil." the Sergeant always said "Never knew what hit him." at the time I liked that... the end taking me completely by surprise the bravado left in the hands of a hard drinking Welshman still wet behind the ears older and wiser now over seventy and with a terminal disease the only thing right about what the Sergeant said was the "Poor devil" part "Poor devil" never used an opening to tell loved ones he loved them never seized the opportunity to give praise for the sun rise or drink in a sunset moment after moment passing him by while he marched through life staring straight ahead believing in tomorrow "Poor devil!" how much fuller richer and pleasing life becomes when you are lucky enough to see the arrow coming *** END LINE (Dedicated to Jim Fulks.) I’ve always been a yin / yang - life / death - up / down clear / blur - front / back kind of guy my own peculiar duality being philosopher slash hypochondriac win win characteristics when you’ve been diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer finally the hypochondriac has something more than windmills to tilt with the philosopher arming himself with exactly the proper petard an anonymous statement found in an e-mail message beneath the signature of a cancer survivor’s name a perfect end line wily and wise quote: I ask God: "How much time do I have before I die?" "Enough to make a difference." God replies *** STRUM lived experience taught them most of what they know so MD's treating men diagnosed with androgen-independent advanced prostate cancer tend to put us on death row and taking the past into account this negativity is understandable… these good hearted doctors watching us come and go honestly doing what they can like kindly prison guards attempting to make the life we have left as pleasant as possible to be otherwise a physician would have to be a bit delusional evangelical even… to work so diligently for and believe so completely in the last minute reprieve for those of us confined on cell block PC doing time with an executioner stalking it is exhilarating to find an oncologist willing to fly in the face of history refusing to call the likes of me "Dead man walking." *** BAG OF WOE there are always moments when I can almost hear the reader asking: "How can you use that as grist for your poetry mill? How can you dwell on such private property, at least without masking the details?" well... for the feedback of course the war stories that my stories prompt you to tell but perhaps the question can best be answered by the ‘bag of woe’ parable the "Once Upon a Time" tale about the troubled village of Contrary its harried citizens and the magical mystical miracle worker who showed up one dreary day saying: I am aware of your torment and woe and I am here to lighten your load! he then instructed the beleaguered citizens to go home and rummage through their harried lives bag up your troubles he said both large and small stuff them all in a sack and drag them down to the town square and stack them around on the wall and when everyone was back and every bag was there the magical mystical miracle worker said: "It’s true, just as I promised. You won’t have to take your sack of troubles home leave it behind when you go however, you will have to take along somebody’s bag of woe so the citizens of Contrary all went to find their own bag and shouldering the load discovered that it was magically and mystically much easier to carry --- End ---
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Ghanim Al-Ani, Ban. "Statistical modeling of the novel COVID-19 epidemic in Iraq." Epidemiologic Methods 10, s1 (February 1, 2021). http://dx.doi.org/10.1515/em-2020-0025.
Full textAbstract:
Abstract Objectives This study aimed to apply three of the most important nonlinear growth models (Gompertz, Richards, and Weibull) to study the daily cumulative number of COVID-19 cases in Iraq during the period from 13th of March, 2020 to 22nd of July, 2020. Methods Using the nonlinear least squares method, the three growth models were estimated in addition to calculating some related measures in this study using the “nonlinear regression” tool available in Minitab-17, and the initial values of the parameters were deduced from the transformation to the simple linear regression equation. Comparison of these models was made using some statistics (F-test, AIC, BIC, AICc and WIC). Results The results indicate that the Weibull model is the best adequate model for studying the cumulative daily number of COVID-19 cases in Iraq according to some criteria such as having the highest F and lowest values for RMSE, bias, MAE, AIC, BIC, AICc and WIC with no any violations of the assumptions for the model’s residuals (independent, normal distribution and homogeneity variance). The overall model test and tests of the estimated parameters showed that the Weibull model was statistically significant for describing the study data. Conclusions From the Weibull model predictions, the number of cumulative confirmed cases of novel coronavirus in Iraq will increase by a range of 101,396 (95% PI: 99,989 to 102,923) to 114,907 (95% PI: 112,251 to 117,566) in the next 24 days (23rd of July to 15th of August 15, 2020). From the inflection points in the Weibull curve, the peak date when the growth rate will be maximum, is 7th of July, 2020, and at this time the daily cumulative cases become 67,338. Using the nonlinear least squares method, the models were estimated and some related measures were calculated in this study using the “nonlinear regression” tool available in Minitab-17, and the initial values of the parameters were obtained from the transformation to the simple linear regression model.
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Furnival-Adams, Joanna E. C., Soromane Camara, Mark Rowland, Alphonsine A. Koffi, Ludovic P. Ahoua Alou, Welbeck A. Oumbouke, and Raphael N’Guessan. "Indoor use of attractive toxic sugar bait in combination with long-lasting insecticidal net against pyrethroid-resistant Anopheles gambiae: an experimental hut trial in Mbé, central Côte d’Ivoire." Malaria Journal 19, no. 1 (January 7, 2020). http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12936-019-3095-1.
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Abstract Background Indoor attractive toxic sugar bait (ATSB) has potential as a supplementary vector-control and resistance-management tool, offering an alternative mode of insecticide delivery to current core vector-control interventions, with potential to deliver novel insecticides. Given the high long-lasting insecticidal bed net (LLIN) coverage across Africa, it is crucial that the efficacy of indoor ATSB in combination with LLINs is established before it is considered for wider use in public health. Methods An experimental hut trial to evaluate the efficacy of indoor ATSB traps treated with 4% boric acid (BA ATSB) or 1% chlorfenapyr (CFP ATSB) in combination with untreated nets or LLINs (holed or intact), took place at the M’bé field station in central Côte d’Ivoire against pyrethroid resistant Anopheles gambiae sensu lato. Results The addition of ATSB to LLINs increased the mortality rates of wild pyrethroid-resistant An. gambiae from 19% with LLIN alone to 28% with added BA ATSB and to 39% with added CFP ATSB (p < 0.001). Anopheles gambiae mortality with combined ATSB and untreated net was similar to that of combined ATSB and LLIN regardless of which insecticide was used in the ATSB. The presence of holes in the LLIN did not significantly affect ATSB-induced An. gambiae mortality. Comparative tests against pyrethroid resistant and susceptible strains using oral application of ATSB treated with pyrethroid demonstrated 66% higher survival rate among pyrethroid-resistant mosquitoes. Conclusion Indoor ATSB traps in combination with LLINs enhanced the control of pyrethroid-resistant An. gambiae. However, many host-seeking An. gambiae entering experimental huts with indoor ATSB exited into the verandah trap without sugar feeding when restricted from a host by a LLIN. Although ATSB has potential for making effective use of classes of insecticide otherwise unsuited to vector control, it does not exempt potential selection of resistance via this route.
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Kai Jie, Chuah, Mohd Zaidi Jaafar, and Wan Rosli Wan Sulaiman. "FOAM STABILITY PERFORMANCE ENHANCED WITH RICE HUSK ASH NANOPARTICLES." Jurnal Teknologi 81, no. 4 (June 25, 2019). http://dx.doi.org/10.11113/jt.v81.13536.
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Rice husk ash (RHA) has been recently used as a source of silica (SiO2) production due to its high silica content. Besides, high purity silica nano-powder has been successfully synthesized from RHA and employed in various industries including electronic component manufacturing and fillers in polymers. Meanwhile, silica nanoparticles has been widely used in the application of Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR). This is due to its ability in enhancing the foam stability besides modifying the wettability of the rocks in the formation. However, the synthesis of silica nanoparticles from RHA for the application in big scale operation such as EOR using conventional method is energy and time consuming. Therefore, the objective of this work is to study the effectiveness of using nano-sized rice husk ash (nano-RHA) as an additive to stabilize normal gas generated surfactant foam used in EOR. In order to decrease the size of the RHA into nano range, planetary ball mill was used in both dry grinding and wet grinding. Different surfactants including anionic and non-ionic were then used to study the polydispersity index of the dispersion and the hydrodynamic diameter using dynamic light scattering in dilute suspension. Besides, the nano-RHA was also characterized using FESEM, EDX, XRD and the change in specific area after grinding process was studied using BET. The foamability of different surfactants were then studied using minor concentration of nano-RHA. Next, the concentration of the nano-RHA was varied from 0.1wt% to 0.9wt% in normal gas bulk foam stability test using the suitable surfactant, the texture of foam was observed as well. Apart from that, the effect of oil on bulk foam was also studied. Finally, the result was compared using pure silica nanoparticles as the foam addictive at the same variation of concentrations. Dispersion stability tests showed that both anionic and non-ionic surfactants can be used to disperse nano-RHA in water. Moreover, in the presence of 0.9wt% of nano-RHA concentration, the bulk foam stability test results revealed that the sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) bulk foam half-life increased by 17.9% without the presence of oil, and gave an increment of 20.7% half-life in the presence of oil. Therefore, the study showed a potential of utilizing nano-RHA in stabilizing bulk foam.
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Pargman, Daniel. "The Fabric of Virtual Reality." M/C Journal 3, no. 5 (October 1, 2000). http://dx.doi.org/10.5204/mcj.1877.
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Introduction -- Making Sense of the (Virtual) World Computer games are never "just games". Computer games are models of reality and if they were not, we would never be able to understand them. Models serve three functions; they capture important, critical features of that which is to be represented while ignoring the irrelevant, they are appropriate for the person and they are appropriate for the task -- thereby enhancing the ability to make judgements and discover relevant regularities and structures (Norman 1993). Despite the inherently unvisualisable nature of computer code -- the flexible material of which all software constructs are built -- computer code is still the most "salient" ingredient in computer games. Less salient are those assumptions that are "built into" the software. By filtering out those parts of reality that are deemed irrelevant or unnecessary, different sorts of assumptions, different sorts of bias are automatically built into the software, reified in the very computer code (Friedman 1995, Friedman and Nissenbaum 1997). Here I will analyse some of the built-in structures that constitute the fabric of a special sort of game, a MUD. A MUD is an Internet-accessible "multi-participant, user-extensible virtual reality whose user interface is entirely textual" (Curtis, 1992). The specific MUD in question is a nine-year old Swedish-language adventure MUD called SvenskMUD ("SwedishMUD") that is run by Lysator, the academic computer club at Linköping University, Sweden. I have done field studies of SvenskMUD over a period of three and a half years (Pargman, forthcoming 2000). How is the SvenskMUD adventure world structured and what are the rules that are built into the fabric of this computer game? I will describe some of the ways in which danger and death, good and evil, courage, rewards and wealth are handled in the game. I will conclude the paper with a short analysis of the purpose of configuring the player according to those structures. Revocable Deaths Characters (personae/avatars) in SvenskMUD can be divided into two categories, players and magicians. Making a career as a player to a large part involves solving quests and killing "monsters" in the game. The magicians are all ex-players who have "graduated" and gone beyond playing the game of SvenskMUD. They have become the administrators, managers and programmers of SvenskMUD. A watchful eye is kept on the magicians by "God", the creator, owner and ultimate custodian of SvenskMUD. My own first battle in the game, in a sunlit graveyard with a small mouse, is an example of a bit-sized danger suitable for newcomers, or "newbies". I correctly guessed that the mouse was a suitably weak opponent for my newborn character, but still had to "tickle" the mouse on its belly (a euphemism for hitting it without much force) 50 times before I managed to kill it. Other parts of this epic battle included 45 failed attempts of mine to "tickle" the mouse, 39 successful "tickles" of the mouse and finally a wild chase around the graveyard before I caught up with the mouse, cornered it and managed to kill it and end the fight. Although I was successful in my endeavour, I was also more than half dead after my run-in with the mouse and had to spend quite some time engaged in more peaceful occupations before I was completely healed. It was only later that I learned that you can improve your odds considerably by using weapons and armour when you fight... Should a SvenskMUD player fail in his (or less often, her) risky and adventurous career and die, that does not constitute an insurmountable problem. Should such a thing pass, the player's ghost only has to find the way back to a church in one of the villages. In the church, the player is reincarnated, albeit with some loss of game-related abilities and experience. The way the unfortunate event of an occasional death is handled is part of the meta-rules of SvenskMUD. The meta-rules are the implicit, underlying rules that represent the values, practices and concerns that shape the frame from which the "ordinary" specific rules operate. Meta-rules are part of the "world view that directs the game action and represents the implicit philosophy or ideals by which the world operates" (Fine 1983, 76). Despite the adventure setting with all its hints of medieval lawlessness and unknown dangers lurking, SvenskMUD is in fact a very caring and forgiving environment. The ultimate proof of SvenskMUD's forgiveness is the revocable character of death itself. Fair Dangers Another SvenskMUD meta-rule is that dangers (and death) should be "fair". This fairness is extended so as to warn players explicitly of dangers. Before a dangerous monster is encountered, the player receives plenty of warnings: You are standing in the dark woods. You feel a little afraid. East of you is a small dark lake in the woods. There are three visible ways from here: east, north and south. It would be foolish to direct my character to go east in this situation without being adequately prepared for encountering and taking on something dangerous in battle. Those preparations should include a readiness to flee if the expected danger proves to be superior. If, in the example above, a player willingly and knowingly directs a character to walk east, that player has to face the consequences of this action. But if another player is very cautious and has no reason to suspect a deadly danger lurking behind the corner, it is not considered "fair" if that player's character dies or is hurt in such a way that it results in damage that has far-reaching consequences within the game. The dangerous monsters that roam the SvenskMUD world are restricted to roam only "dangerous" areas and it is considered good manners to warn players in some way when they enter such an area. Part of learning how to play SvenskMUD successfully becomes a matter of understanding different cues, such as the transition from a safe area to a dangerous one, or the different levels of danger signalled by different situations. Should they not know it in advance, players quickly learn that it is not advisable to enter the "Valley of Ultimate Evil" unless they have reached a very high level in the game and are prepared to take on any dangers that come their way. As with all other meta-rules, both players and magicians internalise this rule to such an extent that it becomes unquestionable and any transgression (such as a dangerous monster roaming around in a village, killing newbie characters who happen to stray its way) would immediately render complaints from players and corresponding actions on behalf of the magicians to rectify the situation. Meta-Rules as "Folk Ideas" Fine (1983, 76-8) enumerates four meta-rules that Dundes (1971) has described and applies them to the fantasy role-playing games he has studied. Dundes's term for these meta-rules is "folk ideas" and they reflect existing North American (and Western European) cultural beliefs. Fine shows that these folk ideas capture core beliefs or central values of the fantasy role-playing games he studied. Three of Dundes's four folk ideas are also directly applicable to SvenskMUD. Unlimited Wealth The first folk idea is the principle of unlimited good. There is no end to growth or wealth. For that reason, treasure found in a dungeon doesn't need a rationale for being there. This folk idea is related to the modernist concept of constant, unlimited progress. "Some referees even 'restock' their dungeons when players have found a particular treasure so that the next time someone enters that room (and kills the dragon or other beasties guarding it) they, too, will be rewarded" (Fine 1983, 76). To restock all treasures and reawaken all killed monsters at regular intervals is standard procedure in SvenskMUD and all other adventure MUDs. The technical term is that the game "resets". The reason why a MUD resets at regular intervals is that, while the MUD itself is finite, there is no end to the number of players who want their share of treasures and other goodies. The handbook for SvenskMUD magicians contains "design guidelines" for creating quests: You have to invent a small story about your quest. The typical scenario is that someone needs help with something. It is good if you can get the story together in such a way that it is possible to explain why it can be solved several times, since the quest will be solved, once for each prospective magician. Perhaps a small spectacle a short while after (while the player is pondering the reward) that in some way restore things in such a way that it can be solved again. (Tolke 1993, my translation) Good and Evil The second folk idea is that the world is a battleground between good and evil. In fantasy literature or a role-playing game there is often no in-between and very seldom any doubt whether someone encountered is good or evil, as "referees often express the alignment [moral character] of nonplayer characters through stereotyped facial features or symbolic colours" (Fine 1983, 77). "Good and evil" certainly exists as a structuring resource for the SvenskMUD world, but interestingly the players are not able to be described discretely in these terms. As distinct from role-playing games, a SvenskMUD player is not created with different alignments (good, evil or neutral). All players are instead neutral and they acquire an alignment as they go along, playing SvenskMUD -- the game. If a player kills a lot of mice and cute rabbits, that player will turn first wicked and then evil. If a player instead kills trolls and orcs, that player first turns good and then saint-like. Despite the potential fluidity of alignment in SvenskMUD, some players cultivate an aura of being good or evil and position themselves in opposition to each other. This is most apparent with two of the guilds (associations) in SvenskMUD, the Necromancer's guild and the Light order's guild. Courage Begets Rewards The third folk idea is the importance of courage. Dangers and death operate in a "fair" way, as should treasures and rewards. The SvenskMUD world is structured both so as not to harm or kill players "needlessly", and in such a way that it conveys the message "no guts, no glory" to the players. In different places in the MUD (usually close to a church, where new players start), there are "easy" areas with bit-sized dangers and rewards for beginners. My battle with the mouse was an example of such a danger/reward. A small coin or an empty bottle that can be returned for a small finder's fee are examples of other bit-sized rewards: The third folk idea is the importance of courage. Dangers and death operate in a "fair" way, as should treasures and rewards. The SvenskMUD world is structured both so as not to harm or kill players "needlessly", and in such a way that it conveys the message "no guts, no glory" to the players. In different places in the MUD (usually close to a church, where new players start), there are "easy" areas with bit-sized dangers and rewards for beginners. My battle with the mouse was an example of such a danger/reward. A small coin or an empty bottle that can be returned for a small finder's fee are examples of other bit-sized rewards: More experienced characters gain experience points (xps) and rise in levels only by seeking out and overcoming danger and "there is a positive correlation between the danger in a setting and its payoff in treasure" (Fine 1983, 78). Just as it would be "unfair" to die without adequate warning, so would it be (perceived to be) grossly unfair to seek out and overcome dangerous monsters or situations without being adequately rewarded. And conversely, it would be perceived to be unfair if someone "stumbled over the treasure" without having deserved it, i.e. if someone was rewarded without having performed an appropriately difficult task. Taken from the information on etiquette in an adventure MUD, Reid's quote is a good example of this: It's really bad form to steal someone else's kill. Someone has been working on the Cosmicly Invulnerable Utterly Unstoppable Massively Powerful Space Demon for ages, leaves to get healed, and in the interim, some dweeb comes along and whacks the Demon and gets all it's [sic] stuff and tons of xps [experience points]. This really sucks as the other person has spent lots of time and money in expectation of the benefits from killing the monster. The graceful thing to do is to give em [sic] all the stuff from the corpse and compensation for the money spent on healing. This is still a profit to you as you got all the xps and spent practically no time killing it. (Reid 1999, 122, my emphasis) The User Illusion An important objective of the magicians in SvenskMUD is to describe everything that a player experiences in the SvenskMUD world in game-related terms. The game is regarded as a stage where the players are supposed to see only what is in front of, but not behind the scenes. A consistent use of game-related terms and game-related explanations support the suspension of disbelief and engrossment in the SvenskMUD fantasy world. The main activity of the MUD users should be to enter into the game and guide their characters through a fascinating (and, as much as possible and on its own terms, believable) fantasy world. The guiding principle is therefore that the player should never be reminded of the fact that the SvenskMUD world is not for real, that SvenskMUD is only a game or a computer program. From this perspective, the worst thing players can encounter in SvenskMUD is a breakdown of the user illusion, a situation that instantly transports a person from the SvenskMUD world and leaves that person sitting in front of a computer screen. Error messages, e.g. the feared "you have encountered a bug [in the program]", are an example of this. If a magician decides to change the SvenskMUD world, that magician is supposed to do the very best to explain the change by using game-related jargon. This is reminiscent of the advice to "work within the system": "wherever possible, things that can be done within the framework of the experiential level should be. The result will be smoother operation and greater harmony among the user community" (Morningstar and Farmer 1991, 294). If for some reason a shop has to be moved from one village to another, a satisfactory explanation must be given, e.g. a fire occurring in the old shop or the old shop being closed due to competition (perhaps from the "new", relocated shop). Explanations that involve supernatural forces or magic are also fine in a fantasy world. Explanations that remind the player of the fact that the SvenskMUD world is not for real ("I moved the shop to Eriksros, because all magicians decided that it would be so much better to have it there"), or even worse, that SvenskMUD is a computer program ("I moved the program shop.c to another catalogue in the file structure") are to be avoided at all costs. Part of socialising magicians becomes teaching them to express themselves in this way even when they know better about the machinations of SvenskMud. There are several examples of ingenious and imaginative ways to render difficult-to-explain phenomena understandable in game-related terms: There was a simple problem that appeared at times that made the computer [that SvenskMUD runs on] run a little slower, and as time went by the problem got worse. I could fix the problem easily when I saw it and I did that at times. After I had fixed the problem the game went noticeably faster for the players that were logged in. For those occasions, I made up a message and displayed it to everyone who was in the system: "Linus reaches into the nether regions and cranks a little faster". (Interview with Linus Tolke, "God" in SvenskMUD) When a monster is killed in the game, it rots away (disappears) after a while. However, originally, weapons and armour that the monster wielded did not disappear; a lucky player could find valuable objects and take them without having "deserved" them. This specific characteristic of the game was deemed to be a problem, not least because it furthered a virtual inflation in the game that tended to decrease the value of "honestly" collected weapons and loot. The problem was discussed at a meeting of the SvenskMUD magicians that I attended. It was decided that when a monster is killed and the character that killed it does not take the loot, the loot should disappear ("rot") together with the monster. But how should this be explained to the players in a suitable way if they approach a magician to complain about the change, a change that in their opinion was for the worse? At the meeting it was suggested that from now on, all weapons and shields were forged with a cheaper, weaker metal. Not only would objects of this metal "rot" away together with the monster that wielded them, but it was also suggested that all weapons in the whole game should in fact be worn down as time goes by. (Not to worry, new ones appear in all the pre-designated places every time the game resets.) Conclusion -- Configuring the Player SvenskMUD can easily be perceived as a "blooming buzzing confusion" for a new player and my own first explorations in SvenskMUD often left me confused even as I was led from one enlightenment to the next. Not everyone feels inclined to take up the challenge to make sense of a world where you have to learn everything anew, including how to walk and how to talk. On the other hand, in the game world, much is settled for the best, and a crack in a subterranean cave is always exactly big enough to squeeze through... The process of becoming part of the community of SvenskMUD players is inexorably connected to learning to become an expert in the activities of that community, i.e. of playing SvenskMUD (Wenger 1998). A player who wants to program in SvenskMUD (thereby altering the fabric of the virtual world) will acquire many of the relevant concepts before actually becoming a magician, just by playing and exploring the game of SvenskMUD. Even if the user illusion succeeds in always hiding the computer code from the player, the whole SvenskMUD world constitutes a reflection of that underlying computer code. An implicit understanding of the computer code is developed through extended use of SvenskMUD. The relationship between the SvenskMUD world and the underlying computer code is in this sense analogous to the relationship between the lived-in world and the rules of physics that govern the world. All around us children "prepare themselves" to learn the subject of physics in school by throwing balls up in the air (gravity) and by pulling carts or sledges (friction). By playing SvenskMUD, a player will become accustomed to many of the concepts that govern the SvenskMUD world and will come to understand the goals, symbols, procedures and values of SvenskMUD. This process bears many similarities to the "primary socialisation" of a child into a member of society, a socialisation that serves "to make appear as necessity what is in fact a bundle of contingencies" (Berger and Luckmann 1966, 155). This is the purpose of configuring the player and it is intimately connected to the re-growth of SvenskMUD magicians and the survival of SvenskMUD itself over time. However, it is not the only possible outcome of the SvenskMUD socialisation process. The traditional function of trials and quests in fantasy literature is to teach the hero, usually through a number of external or internal encounters with evil or doubt, to make the right, moral choices. By excelling at these tests, the protagonist shows his or her worthiness and by extension also stresses and perhaps imputes these values in the reader (Dalquist et al. 1991). Adventure MUDs could thus socialise adolescents and reinforce common moral values in society; "the fantasy hero is the perfectly socialised and exemplary subject of a society" (53, my translation). My point here is not that SvenskMUD differs from other adventure MUDs. I would imagine that most of my observations are general to adventure MUDs and that many are applicable also to other computer games. My purpose here has rather been to present a perspective on how an adventure MUD is structured, to trace the meaning of that structure beyond the game itself and to suggest a purpose behind that organisation. I encourage others to question built-in bias and underlying assumptions of computer games (and other systems) in future studies. References Berger, P., and T. Luckmann. The Social Construction of Reality: A Treatise in the Sociology of Knowledge. London: Penguin, 1966. Curtis, P. "MUDding: Social Phenomena in Text-Based Virtual Realities." High Noon on the Electronic Frontier. Ed. P. Ludlow. Cambridge, MA: MIT P, 1996. 13 Oct. 2000 <http://www.ibiblio.org/pub/academic/computer-science/virtual-reality/communications/papers/muds/muds/Mudding-Social-Phenomena.txt>. Dalquist, U., T. Lööv, and F. Miegel. "Trollkarlens lärlingar: Fantasykulturen och manlig identitetsutveckling [The Wizard's Apprentices: Fantasy Culture and Male Identity Development]." Att förstå ungdom [Understanding Youth]. Ed. A. Löfgren and M. Norell. Stockholm/Stehag: Brutus Östlings Bokförlag Symposion, 1991. Dundes, A. "Folk Ideas as Units of World View." Toward New Perspectives in Folklore. Ed. A. Paredes and R. Bauman. Austin: U of Texas P, 1971. Fine, G.A. Shared Fantasy: Role-Playing Games as Social Worlds. Chicago: U of Chicago P, 1983. Friedman, B. and H. Nissenbaum. "Bias in Computer Systems." Human Values and the Design of Computer Technology. Ed. B. Friedman. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge UP, 1997. Friedman, T. "Making Sense of Software: Computer Games and Interactive Textuality." Cybersociety: Computer-Mediated Communication and Community. Ed. S. Jones. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 1995. Morningstar, C. and F. R. Farmer. "The Lessons of Lucasfilm's Habitat." Cyberspace: The First Steps. Ed. M. Benedikt. Cambridge: MA, MIT P, 1991. 13 Oct. 2000 <http://www.communities.com/company/papers/lessons.php>. Norman, D. Things That Make Us Smart: Defending Human Attributes in the Age of the Machine. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley, 1993. Pargman, D. "Code Begets Community: On Social and Technical Aspects of Managing a Virtual Community." Ph.D. dissertation. Dept. of Communication Studies, Linköping University, Sweden, forthcoming, December 2000. Reid, E. "Hierarchy and Power: Social Control in Cyberspace." Communities in Cyberspace. Ed. M. Smith and P. Kollock. London, England: Routledge, 1999. Tolke, L. Handbok för SvenskMudmagiker: ett hjälpmedel för byggarna i SvenskMUD [Handbook for SvenskMudmagicians: An Aid for the Builders in SvenskMUD]. Printed and distributed by the author in a limited edition, 1993. Wenger, E. Communities of Practice: Learning, Meaning and Identity. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge UP, 1998. Citation reference for this article MLA style: Daniel Pargman. "The Fabric of Virtual Reality -- Courage, Rewards and Death in an Adventure MUD." M/C: A Journal of Media and Culture 3.5 (2000). [your date of access] <http://www.api-network.com/mc/0010/mud.php>. Chicago style: Daniel Pargman, "The Fabric of Virtual Reality -- Courage, Rewards and Death in an Adventure MUD," M/C: A Journal of Media and Culture 3, no. 5 (2000), <http://www.api-network.com/mc/0010/mud.php> ([your date of access]). APA style: Daniel Pargman. (2000) The Fabric of Virtual Reality -- Courage, Rewards and Death in an Adventure MUD. M/C: A Journal of Media and Culture 3(5). <http://www.api-network.com/mc/0010/mud.php> ([your date of access]).
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Place, Fiona. "Amniocentesis and Motherhood: How Prenatal Testing Shapes Our Cultural Understandings of Pregnancy and Disability." M/C Journal 11, no. 3 (July 2, 2008). http://dx.doi.org/10.5204/mcj.53.
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There are days when having a child with Down syndrome can mean losing all hope of being an ordinary mother: a mother with run of the mill concerns, a mother with run of the mill routines. I know. I’ve had such days. I’ve also found that sharing these feelings with other mothers, even those who have a child with a disability, isn’t always easy. Or straightforward. In part I believe my difficulty sharing my experience with other mothers is because the motherhood issues surrounding the birth of a child with Down syndrome are qualitatively different to those experienced by mothers who give birth to children with other disabilities. Disabilities such as autism or cerebral palsy. The mother who has a child with autism or cerebral palsy is usually viewed as a victim - as having had no choice – of life having dealt her a cruel blow. There are after all no prenatal tests that can currently pick up these defects. That she may not see herself as a victim or her child as a victim often goes unreported, instead in the eyes of the popular media to give birth to a child with a disability is seen as a personal tragedy – a story of suffering and endurance. In other words disability is to be avoided if at all possible and women are expected to take advantage of the advances in reproductive medicine – to choose a genetically correct pregnancy – thus improving their lives and the lives of their offspring. Within this context it is not surprising then that the mother of a child with Down syndrome is likely to be seen as having brought the suffering on herself – of having had choices – tests such as amniocentesis and CVS – but of having failed to take control, failed to prevent the suffering of her child. But how informative are tests such as pre-implantation diagnosis, CVS or amniocentesis? How meaningful? More importantly, how safe is it to assume lives are being improved? Could it be, for example, that some lives are now harder rather than easier? As one mother who has grappled with the issues surrounding prenatal testing and disability I would like to share with you our family’s experience and hopefully illuminate some of the more complex and troubling issues these technological advances have the capacity to create. Fraser’s Pregnancy I fell pregnant with Fraser in 1995 at the age of thirty-seven. I was already the mother of a fifteen-month old and just as I had during his pregnancy – I took the routine maternal serum alpha-fetoprotein blood screen for chromosomal abnormalities at sixteen weeks. It showed I was at high risk of having a child with Down syndrome. However as I’d had a similarly high-risk reading in my first pregnancy I wasn’t particularly worried. The risk with Fraser appeared slightly higher, but other than knowing we would have to find time to see the genetic counsellor again, I didn’t dwell on it. As it happened Christopher and I sat in the same office with the same counsellor and once again listened to the risks. A normal foetus, as you both know, has 46 chromosomes in each cell. But given your high AFP reading Fiona, there is a significant risk that instead of 46 there could be 47 chromosomes in each cell. Each cell could be carrying an extra copy of chromosome 21. And as you both know, she continued her voice deepening; Trisomy 21 is associated with mild to severe intellectual disability. It also increases the risk of childhood leukaemia; certain cardiac disorders and is associated with other genetic disorders such as Hirschsprung’s disease. We listened and just as we’d done the first time – decided to have a coffee in the hospital café. This time for some reason the tone was different, this time we could feel the high-octane spiel, feel the pressure pound through our bodies, pulsate through our veins – we should take the test, we should take the test, we should take the test. We were, were we not, intelligent, well-educated and responsible human beings? Surely we could understand the need to invade, the need to extract a sample of amniotic fluid? Surely there were no ifs and buts this time? Surely we realised we had been very lucky with our first pregnancy; surely we understood the need for certainty; for reliable and accurate information this time? We did and we didn’t. We knew for example, that even if we ruled out the possibility of Down syndrome there was no guarantee our baby would be normal. We’d done our research. We knew that of all the children born with an intellectual disability only twenty five percent have a parentally detectable chromosomal disorder such as Down syndrome. In other words, the majority of mothers who give birth to a child with an intellectual disability will have received perfectly normal, utterly reassuring amniocentesis results. They will have put themselves at risk and will have been rewarded with good results. They will have been expecting a baby they could cherish, a baby they could feel proud of – a baby they could love. Our Decision Should we relent this time? Should we accept the professional advice? We talked and we talked. We knew if we agreed to the amniocentesis it would only rule out Down syndrome – or a less common chromosomal disorder such as Trisomy 18 or Trisomy 13. But little else. Four thousand other known birth defects would still remain. Defects such as attention deficit disorder, cleft lip, cleft palate, clubfoot, congenital cardiac disorder, cystic fibrosis, epilepsy, ... would not magically disappear by agreeing to the test. Neither would the possibility of giving birth to a child with autism or cerebral palsy. Or a child with vision, hearing or speech impairment. Neurological problems, skin problems or behavioural difficulties... We were however strongly aware the drive to have a normal child was expected of us. That we were making our decision at a time when social and economic imperatives dictated that we should want the best. The best partner, the best career, the best house ... the best baby. I had already agreed to a blood test and an ultrasound, so why not an amniocentesis? Why stop now? Why not proceed with a test most women over the age of thirty-five consider essential? What was wrong with me? Put simply, the test didn’t engage me. It seemed too specific. Too focused. Plus there was also a far larger obstacle. I knew if I agreed to the test and the words chromosomal disorder were to appear – a certain set of assumptions, an as yet unspoken trajectory would swiftly emerge. And I wasn’t sure I would be able to follow its course. Beyond the Test I knew if the test results came back positive I would be expected to terminate immediately. To abort my affected foetus. The fact I could find it difficult to fall pregnant again after the termination or that any future foetus may also be affected by a birth defect would make little difference. Out the four thousand known birth defects it would be considered imperative not to proceed with this particular one. And following on from that logic it would be assumed that the how – the business of termination – would be of little importance to me given the perceived gravity of the situation. I would want to solve the problem by removing it. No matter what. Before the procedure (as it would be referred to) the staff would want to reassure me, would want to comfort me – and in soothing voices tell me that yes; yes of course this procedure is in your best interests. You and your baby shouldn’t be made to suffer, not now or ever. You’re doing the right thing, they would reassure me, you are. But what would be left as unsaid would be the unavoidable realities of termination. On the elected day, during what would be the twenty-second week of my pregnancy, I would have to consent to the induction of labour. Simultaneously, I would also be expected to consent to a foetal intra-cardiac injection of potassium chloride to ensure the delivery of a dead baby. I would be advised to give birth to a dead baby because it would be considered better if I didn’t hear the baby cry. Better if I didn’t see the tiny creature breathe. Or try to breathe. The staff would also prefer I consent, would prefer I minimised everyone else’s distress. Then after the event I would be left alone. Left alone to my own devices. Left alone with no baby. I would be promised a tiny set of foot and handprints as a memento of my once vibrant pregnancy. And expected to be grateful, to be thankful, for the successful elimination of a pending disaster. But while I knew the staff would mean well, would believe they were doing the right thing for me, I knew it wasn’t the road for me. That I just couldn’t do it. We spent considerably longer in the hospital café the second time. And even though we tried to keep things light, we were both subdued. Both tense. My risk of having a baby with Down syndrome had come back as 1:120. Yes it was slightly higher than my first pregnancy (1:150), but did it mean anything? Our conversation was full of bumps and long winding trails. My Sister’s Experience of Disability Perhaps the prospect of having a child with Down syndrome didn’t terrify me because my sister had a disability. Not that we ever really referred to it as such, it was only ever Alison’s epilepsy. And although it was uncontrollable for most of her childhood, my mother tried to make her life as normal as possible. She was allowed to ride a bike, climb trees and swim. But it wasn’t easy for my mother because even though she wanted my sister to live a normal life there were no support services. Only a somewhat pessimistic neurologist. No one made the link between my sister’s declining school performance and her epilepsy. That she would lose the thread of a conversation because of a brief petit mal, a brief moment when she wouldn’t know what was going on. Or that repeated grand mal seizures took away her capacity for abstract thought and made her more and more concrete in her thinking. But despite the lack of support my mother worked long and hard to bring up a daughter who could hold down a full time job and live independently. She refused to let her use her epilepsy as an excuse. So much so that even today I still find it difficult to say my sister had a disability. I didn’t grow up with the word and my sister herself rarely used it to describe herself. Not surprisingly she went into the field herself working at first as a residential worker in a special school for disabled children and later as a rehabilitation counsellor for the Royal Blind Society. Premature Babies I couldn’t understand why a baby with Down syndrome was something to be avoided at all costs while a baby who was born prematurely and likely to emerge from the labour-intensive incubator process with severe life-long disabilities was cherished, welcomed and saved no matter what the expense. Other than being normal to begin with – where was the difference? Perhaps it was the possibility the premature baby might emerge unscathed. That hope remained. That there was a real possibility the intense and expensive process of saving the baby might not cause any damage. Whereas with Down syndrome the damage was done. The damage was known. I don’t know. Perhaps even with Down syndrome I felt there could be hope. Hope that the child might only be mildly intellectually disabled. Might not experience any of the serious medical complications. And that new and innovative treatments would be discovered in their lifetime. I just couldn’t accept the conventional wisdom. Couldn’t accept the need to test. And after approaching the decision from this angle, that angle and every other angle we could think of we both felt there was little more to say. And returned to our genetic counsellor. The Pressure to Conform Welcome back, she smiled. I’d like to introduce you to Dr M. I nodded politely in the doctor’s direction while immediately trying to discern if Christopher felt as caught off guard as I did. You’ll be pleased to know Dr M can perform the test today, she informed us. Dr M nodded and reached out to shake my hand. It’s a bit of a squeeze, she told me, but I can fit you in at around four. And don’t worry; she reassured me, that’s what we’re here for. I was shocked the heavy artillery had been called in. The pressure to conform, the pressure to say yes had been dramatically heightened by the presence of a doctor in the room. I could also sense the two women wanted to talk to me alone. That they wanted to talk woman to woman, that they thought if they could get me on my own I would agree, I would understand. That it must be the male who was the stumbling block. The problem. But I could also tell they were unsure; Christopher was after all a doctor, a member of the medical profession, one of them. Surely, they reasoned, surely he must understand why I must take the test. I didn’t want to talk to them alone. In part, because I felt the decision was as much Christopher’s as it was mine. Perhaps a little more mine, but one I wanted to make together. And much to their dismay I declined both the talk and the amniocentesis. Well, if you change your mind we’re here the counsellor reassured me. I nodded and as I left I made a point of looking each woman in the eye while shaking her hand firmly. Thank you, but no thank you, I reassured them. I wanted the baby I’d felt kick. I wanted him or her no matter what. After that day the whole issue pretty much faded, in part because soon after I developed a heart problem, a tachycardia and was fairly restricted in what I could do. I worried about the baby but more because of the medication I had to take rather than any genetic issue to do with its well being. The Birth Despite my heart condition the birth went well. And I was able to labour naturally with little intervention. I knew however, that all was not right. My first glimmer of recognition happened as I was giving birth to Fraser. He didn't push against me, he didn't thrust apart the walls of my birth canal, didn’t cause me to feel as though I was about to splinter. He was soft and floppy. Yet while I can tell you I knew something was wrong, knew instinctively – at another level I didn't have a clue. So I waited. Waited for his Apgar score. Waited to hear what the standard assessment of newborn viability would reveal. How the individual scores for activity (muscle tone), pulse (heart rate), grimace (reflex response), appearance (colour) and respiration (breathing) would add up. I knew the purpose of the Apgar test was to determine quickly whether or not Fraser needed immediate medical care – with scores below 3 generally regarded as critically low, 4 to 6 fairly low, and over 7 generally normal. Fraser scored 8 immediately after birth and 9 five minutes later. His markers of viability were fine. However all was not fine and within minutes he received a tentative diagnosis – whispers and murmurs placing a virtual sticker on his forehead. Whispers and murmurs immediately setting him apart from the normal neonate. Whispers and murmurs of concern. He was not a baby they wanted anything to do with – an experience they wanted anything to do with. In a very matter of fact voice the midwife asked me if I had had an amniocentesis. I said no, and thankfully because I was still feeling the effects of the gas, the bluntness and insensitivity of her question didn't hit me. To tell the truth it didn't hit me until years later. At the time it registered as a negative and intrusive question – certainly not the sort you want to be answering moments after giving birth – in the midst of a time that should be about the celebration of a new life. And while I can remember how much I disliked the tenor of her voice, disliked the objectifying of my son, I too had already begun a process of defining, of recognising. I had already noted he was floppy and too red. But I guess the real moment of recognition came when he was handed to me and as a way of making conversation I suggested to Christopher our baby had downsy little eyes. At the time Christopher didn’t respond. And I remember feeling slightly miffed. But it wasn’t until years later that I realised his silence had been not because he hadn’t wanted to chat but because at that moment he’d let his dread, fear and sadness of what I was suggesting go straight over my head. Unconsciously though – even then – I knew my son had Down syndrome, but I couldn't take it in, couldn't feel my way there, I needed time. But time is rarely an option in hospital and the paediatrician (who we knew from the birth of our first son) was paged immediately. Disability and the Medical Paradigm From the perspective of the medical staff I was holding a neonate who was displaying some of the 50 signs and symptoms suggestive of Trisomy 21. Of Down syndrome. I too could see them as I remembered bits and pieces from my 1970s nursing text Whaley and Wong. Remembered a list that now seems so de-personalised, so harsh and objectifying. Flat faceSmall headFlat bridge of the noseSmaller than normal, low-set noseSmall mouth, causing the tongue to stick out and look unusually largeUpward slanting eyesExtra folds of skin at the inside corner of each eyeRounded cheeksSmall, misshapened earsSmall, wide handsA deep crease across the center of each palmA malformed fifth fingerA wide space between the big and second toesUnusual creases on the soles of the feetOverly-flexible joints (as in people who are double-jointed)Shorter than normal height Christopher and I awaited the arrival of the paediatrician without the benefits of privacy, only able to guess at what the other was thinking. We only had the briefest of moments alone when they transferred me to my room and Christopher was able to tell me that the staff thought our son had what I had blurted out. I remember being totally devastated and searching his face, trying to gauge how he felt. But there was no time for us to talk because as soon as he had uttered the words Down syndrome the paediatrician entered the room and it was immediately apparent he perceived our birth outcome a disaster. You’re both professionals he said, you both know what we are thinking. But he couldn’t bring himself to say the words, say Down syndrome, and instead went on about the need for chromosomal testing and the likelihood of a positive result. The gist, the message about our son was that while he would walk, might even talk, he would never cook, never understand danger and never live independently, never, never, never... Fraser was only an hour or so old and he’d already been judged, already been found wanting. Creating Fraser’s Cultural Identity The staff wanted me to accept his diagnosis and prognosis. I on the other hand wanted to de-medicalise the way in which his existence was being shaped. I didn’t want to know right then and there about the disability services to which I would be entitled, the possible medical complications I might face. And in a small attempt to create a different kind of space, a social space that could afford my son an identity that wasn’t focused on his genetic make-up, I requested it not be assumed by the staff that he had Down syndrome until the results of the blood tests were known – knowing full well they wouldn’t be available until after I’d left hospital. Over the next few days Fraser had to spend some time in the neonatal intensive care unit because of an unrelated medical problem. His initial redness turning out to be a symptom of polycythemia (too many red blood cells). And in many ways this helped me to become his mother – to concentrate on looking after him in the same way you would any sick baby. Yet while I was deeply confident I was also deeply ashamed. Deeply ashamed I had given birth to a baby with a flaw, a defect. And processing the emotions was made doubly difficult because I felt many people thought I should have had prenatal testing – that it was my choice to have Fraser and therefore my fault, my problem. Fortunately however these feelings of dejection were equally matched by a passionate belief he belonged in our family, and that if he could belong and be included in our lives then there was no reason why he couldn’t be included in the lives of others. How Prenatal Testing Shapes Our Lives It is now twelve years since I gave birth to Fraser yet even today talking about our lives can still mean having to talk about the test – having to explain why I didn’t agree to an amniocentesis. Usually this is fairly straightforward, and fairly painless, but not always. Women have and still do openly challenge my decision. Why didn’t I take control? Aren’t I a feminist? What sort of a message do I think I am sending to younger women? Initially, I wasn’t able to fathom how anyone could perceive the issue as being so simple – take test, no Down syndrome. And it wasn’t until I saw the film Gattaca in 1997 that I began to understand how it could seem such a straightforward issue. Gattaca explores a world in which genetic discrimination has been taken to its logical conclusion – a world in which babies are screened at birth and labeled as either valids or in-valids according to their DNA status. Valids have every opportunity open to them while in-valids can only do menial work. It is a culture in which pre-implantation screening and prenatal testing are considered givens. Essential. And to challenge such discrimination foolish – however in the film the main character Vincent does just that and despite his in-valid status and its inherent obstacles he achieves his dream of becoming an astronaut. The film is essentially a thriller – Vincent at all times at risk of his true DNA status being revealed. The fear and loathing of imperfection is palpable. For me the tone of the film was a revelation and for the first time I could see my decision through the eyes of others. Feel the shock and horror of what must appear an irrational and irresponsible decision. Understand how if I am not either religious or anti-abortion – my objection must seem all the more strange. The film made it clear to me that if you don’t question the genes as destiny paradigm, the disability as suffering paradigm then you probably won’t think to question the prenatal tests are routine and essential paradigm. That you will simply accept the conventional medical wisdom – that certain genetic configurations are not only avoidable, but best avoided. Paradoxically, this understanding has made mothering Fraser, including Fraser easier and more enjoyable. Because I understand the grounds on which he was to have been excluded and how out of tune I am with the conventional thinking surrounding pregnancy and disability – I am so much freer to mother and to feel proud of my son. I Would Like to Share with You What Fraser Can Do He canget dressed (as long as the clothes are already turned the right side out and have no buttons!) understand most of what mum and dad sayplay with his brothers on the computermake a cup of coffee for mumfasten his own seatbeltwait in the car line with his brothersswim in the surf and catch waves on his boogie boardcompete in the school swimming carnivaldraw for hours at a time (you can see his art if you click here) Heis the first child with Down syndrome to attend his schoolloves the Simpsons, Futurama and Star Wars begs mum or dad to take him to the DVD store on the weekendsloves sausages, Coke and salmon rissottoenjoys life is always in the now Having fun with Photo Booth His brothers Aidan and Harrison Brotherly Love – a photo taken by Persia (right) and exhibited in Local Eyes. It also appeared in The Fitz Files (Sun-Herald 30 Mar. 2008) What Excites Me Today as a Mother I love that there is now hope. That there is not just hope of a new test, a reliable non-invasive prenatal test, but hope regarding novel treatments – of medications that may assist children with Down syndrome with speech and memory. And an increasingly vocal minority who want to talk about how including children in mainstream schools enhances their development, how children with Down syndrome can, can, can … like Persia and Tyler for example. That perhaps in the not too distant future there will be a change in the way Down syndrome is perceived – that if Fraser can, if our family can – then perhaps mothering a child with Down syndrome will be considered culturally acceptable. That the nexus between genetics and destiny will be weakened in the sense of needing to choose one foetus over another, but strengthened by using genetic understandings to enhance and assist the lives of all individuals no matter what their genetic make-up. And perhaps one day Down syndrome will be considered a condition with which you can conceive. Can imagine. Can live. And not an experience to be avoided at all costs.
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Ensminger, David Allen. "Populating the Ambient Space of Texts: The Intimate Graffiti of Doodles. Proposals Toward a Theory." M/C Journal 13, no. 2 (March 9, 2010). http://dx.doi.org/10.5204/mcj.219.
Full textAbstract:
In a media saturated world, doodles have recently received the kind of attention usually reserved for coverage of racy extra marital affairs, corrupt governance, and product malfunction. Former British Prime Minister Blair’s private doodling at a World Economic Forum meeting in 2005 raised suspicions that he, according to one keen graphologist, struggled “to maintain control in a confusing world," which infers he was attempting to cohere a scattershot, fragmentary series of events (Spiegel). However, placid-faced Microsoft CEO Bill Gates, who sat nearby, actually scrawled the doodles. In this case, perhaps the scrawls mimicked the ambience in the room: Gates might have been ‘tuning’–registering the ‘white noise’ of the participants, letting his unconscious dictate doodles as a way to cope with the dissonance trekking in with the officialspeak. The doodles may have documented and registered the space between words, acting like deposits from his gestalt.Sometimes the most intriguing doodles co-exist with printed texts. This includes common vernacular graffiti that lines public and private books and magazines. Such graffiti exposes tensions in the role of readers as well as horror vacui: a fear of unused, empty space. Yet, school children fingering fresh pages and stiff book spines for the first few times often consider their book pages as sanctioned, discreet, and inviolable. The book is an object of financial and cultural investment, or imbued both with mystique and ideologies. Yet, in the e-book era, the old-fashioned, physical page is a relic of sorts, a holdover from coarse papyrus culled from wetland sage, linking us to the First Dynasty in Egypt. Some might consider the page as a vessel for typography, a mere framing device for text. The margins may reflect a perimeter of nothingness, an invisible borderland that doodles render visible by inhabiting them. Perhaps the margins are a bare landscape, like unmarred flat sand in a black and white panchromatic photo with unique tonal signature and distinct grain. Perhaps the margins are a mute locality, a space where words have evaporated, or a yet-to-be-explored environment, or an ambient field. Then comes the doodle, an icon of vernacular art.As a modern folklorist, I have studied and explored vernacular art at length, especially forms that may challenge and fissure aesthetic, cultural, and social mores, even within my own field. For instance, I contend that Grandma Prisbrey’s “Bottle Village,” featuring millions of artfully arranged pencils, bottles, and dolls culled from dumps in Southern California, is a syncretic culturescape with underlying feminist symbolism, not merely the product of trauma and hoarding (Ensminger). Recently, I flew to Oregon to deliver a paper on Mexican-American gravesite traditions. In a quest for increased multicultural tolerance, I argued that inexpensive dimestore objects left on Catholic immigrant graves do not represent a messy landscape of trinkets but unique spiritual environments with links to customs 3,000 years old. For me, doodles represent a variation on graffiti-style art with cultural antecedents stretching back throughout history, ranging from ancient scrawls on Greek ruins to contemporary park benches (with chiseled names, dates, and symbols), public bathroom latrinalia, and spray can aerosol art, including ‘bombing’ and ‘tagging’ hailed as “Spectacular Vernaculars” by Russell Potter (1995). Noted folklorist Alan Dundes mused on the meaning of latrinalia in Here I Sit – A Study of American Latrinalia (1966), which has inspired pop culture books and web pages for the preservation and discussion of such art (see for instance, www.itsallinthehead.com/gallery1.html). Older texts such as Classic American Graffiti by Allen Walker Read (1935), originally intended for “students of linguistics, folk-lore, abnormal psychology,” reveal the field’s longstanding interest in marginal, crude, and profane graffiti.Yet, to my knowledge, a monograph on doodles has yet to be published by a folklorist, perhaps because the art form is reconsidered too idiosyncratic, too private, the difference between jots and doodles too blurry for a taxonomy and not the domain of identifiable folk groups. In addition, the doodles in texts often remain hidden until single readers encounter them. No broad public interaction is likely, unless a library text circulates freely, which may not occur after doodles are discovered. In essence, the books become tainted, infected goods. Whereas latrinalia speaks openly and irreverently, doodles feature a different scale and audience.Doodles in texts may represent a kind of speaking from the ‘margin’s margins,’ revealing the reader-cum-writer’s idiosyncratic, self-meaningful, and stylised hieroglyphics from the ambient margins of one’s consciousness set forth in the ambient margins of the page. The original page itself is an ambient territory that allows the meaning of the text to take effect. When those liminal spaces (both between and betwixt, in which the rules of page format, design, style, and typography are abandoned) are altered by the presence of doodles, the formerly blank, surplus, and soft spaces of the page offer messages coterminous with the text, often allowing readers to speak, however haphazardly and unconsciously, with and against the triggering text. The bleached whiteness can become a crowded milieu in the hands of a reader re-scripting the ambient territory. If the book is borrowed, then the margins are also an intimate negotiation with shared or public space. The cryptic residue of the doodler now resides, waiting, for the city of eyes.Throughout history, both admired artists and Presidents regularly doodled. Famed Italian Renaissance painter Filippo Lippi avoided strenuous studying by doodling in his books (Van Cleave 44). Both sides of the American political spectrum have produced plentiful inky depictions as well: roughshod Democratic President Johnson drew flags and pagodas; former Hollywood fantasy fulfiller turned politician Republican President Reagan’s specialty was western themes, recalling tropes both from his actor period and his duration acting as President; meanwhile, former law student turned current President, Barack Obama, has sketched members of Congress and the Senate for charity auctions. These doodles are rich fodder for both psychologists and cross-discipline analysts that propose theories regarding the automatic writing and self-styled miniature pictures of civic leaders. Doodles allow graphologists to navigate and determine the internal, cognitive fabric of the maker. To critics, they exist as mere trifles and offer nothing more than an iota of insight; doodles are not uncanny offerings from the recesses of memory, like bite-sized Rorschach tests, but simply sloppy scrawls of the bored.Ambient music theory may shed some light. Timothy Morton argues that Brian Eno designed to make music that evoked “space whose quality had become minimally significant” and “deconstruct the opposition … between figure and ground.” In fact, doodles may yield the same attributes as well. After a doodle is inserted into texts, the typography loses its primacy. There is a merging of the horizons. The text of the author can conflate with the text of the reader in an uneasy dance of meaning: the page becomes an interface revealing a landscape of signs and symbols with multiple intelligences–one manufactured and condoned, the other vernacular and unsanctioned. A fixed end or beginning between the two no longer exists. The ambient space allows potential energies to hover at the edge, ready to illustrate a tension zone and occupy the page. The blank spaces keep inviting responses. An emergent discourse is always in waiting, always threatening to overspill the text’s intended meaning. In fact, the doodles may carry more weight than the intended text: the hierarchy between authorship and readership may topple.Resistant reading may take shape during these bouts. The doodle is an invasion and signals the geography of disruption, even when innocuous. It is a leveling tool. As doodlers place it alongside official discourse, they move away from positions of passivity, being mere consumers, and claim their own autonomy and agency. The space becomes co-determinant as boundaries are blurred. The destiny of the original text’s meaning is deferred. The habitus of the reader becomes embodied in the scrawl, and the next reader must negotiate and navigate the cultural capital of this new author. As such, the doodle constitutes an alternative authority and economy of meaning within the text.Recent studies indicate doodling, often regarded as behavior that announces a person’s boredom and withdrawal, is actually a very special tool to prevent memory loss. Jackie Andrade, an expert from the School of Psychology at the University of Plymouth, maintains that doodling actually “offsets the effects of selective memory blockade,” which yields a surprising result (quoted in “Doodling Gets”). Doodlers exhibit 29% more memory recall than those who passively listen, frozen in an unequal bond with the speaker/lecturer. Students that doodle actually retain more information and are likely more productive due to their active listening. They adeptly absorb information while students who stare patiently or daydream falter.Furthermore, in a 2006 paper, Andrew Kear argues that “doodling is a way in which students, consciously or not, stake a claim of personal agency and challenge some the values inherent in the education system” (2). As a teacher concerned with the engagement of students, he asked for three classes to submit their doodles. Letting them submit any two-dimensional graphic or text made during a class (even if made from body fluid), he soon discovered examples of “acts of resistance” in “student-initiated effort[s] to carve out a sense of place within the educational institution” (6). Not simply an ennui-prone teenager or a proto-surrealist trying to render some automatic writing from the fringes of cognition, a student doodling may represent contested space both in terms of the page itself and the ambience of the environment. The doodle indicates tension, and according to Kear, reflects students reclaiming “their own self-recognized voice” (6).In a widely referenced 1966 article (known as the “doodle” article) intended to describe the paragraph organisational styles of different cultures, Robert Kaplan used five doodles to investigate a writer’s thought patterns, which are rooted in cultural values. Now considered rather problematic by some critics after being adopted by educators for teacher-training materials, Kaplan’s doodles-as-models suggest, “English speakers develop their ideas in a linear, hierarchal fashion and ‘Orientals’ in a non-liner, spiral fashion…” (Severino 45). In turn, when used as pedagogical tools, these graphics, intentionally or not, may lead an “ethnocentric, assimilationist stance” (45). In this case, doodles likely shape the discourse of English as Second Language instruction. Doodles also represent a unique kind of “finger trace,” not unlike prints from the tips of a person’s fingers and snowflakes. Such symbol systems might be used for “a means of lightweight authentication,” according to Christopher Varenhorst of MIT (1). Doodles, he posits, can be used as “passdoodles"–a means by which a program can “quickly identify users.” They are singular expressions that are quirky and hard to duplicate; thus, doodles could serve as substitute methods of verifying people who desire devices that can safeguard their privacy without users having to rely on an ever-increasing number of passwords. Doodles may represent one such key. For many years, psychologists and psychiatrists have used doodles as therapeutic tools in their treatment of children that have endured hardship, ailments, and assault. They may indicate conditions, explain various symptoms and pathologies, and reveal patterns that otherwise may go unnoticed. For instance, doodles may “reflect a specific physical illness and point to family stress, accidents, difficult sibling relationships, and trauma” (Lowe 307). Lowe reports that children who create a doodle featuring their own caricature on the far side of the page, distant from an image of parent figures on the same page, may be experiencing detachment, while the portrayal of a father figure with “jagged teeth” may indicate a menace. What may be difficult to investigate in a doctor’s office conversation or clinical overview may, in fact, be gleaned from “the evaluation of a child’s spontaneous doodle” (307). So, if children are suffering physically or psychologically and unable to express themselves in a fully conscious and articulate way, doodles may reveal their “self-concept” and how they feel about their bodies; therefore, such creative and descriptive inroads are important diagnostic tools (307). Austrian born researcher Erich Guttman and his cohort Walter MacLay both pioneered art therapy in England during the mid-twentieth century. They posited doodles might offer some insight into the condition of schizophrenics. Guttman was intrigued by both the paintings associated with the Surrealist movement and the pioneering, much-debated work of Sigmund Freud too. Although Guttman mostly studied professionally trained artists who suffered from delusions and other conditions, he also collected a variety of art from patients, including those undergoing mescaline therapy, which alters a person’s consciousness. In a stroke of luck, they were able to convince a newspaper editor at the Evening Standard to provide them over 9,000 doodles that were provided by readers for a contest, each coded with the person’s name, age, and occupation. This invaluable data let the academicians compare the work of those hospitalised with the larger population. Their results, released in 1938, contain several key declarations and remain significant contributions to the field. Subsequently, Francis Reitman recounted them in his own book Psychotic Art: Doodles “release the censor of the conscious mind,” allowing a person to “relax, which to creative people was indispensable to production.”No appropriate descriptive terminology could be agreed upon.“Doodles are not communications,” for the meaning is only apparent when analysed individually.Doodles are “self-meaningful.” (37) Doodles, the authors also established, could be divided into this taxonomy: “stereotypy, ornamental details, movements, figures, faces and animals” or those “depicting scenes, medley, and mixtures” (37). The authors also noted that practitioners from the Jungian school of psychology often used “spontaneously produced drawings” that were quite “doodle-like in nature” in their own discussions (37). As a modern folklorist, I venture that doodles offer rich potential for our discipline as well. At this stage, I am offering a series of dictums, especially in regards to doodles that are commonly found adjacent to text in books and magazines, notebooks and journals, that may be expanded upon and investigated further. Doodles allow the reader to repopulate the text with ideogram-like expressions that are highly personalised, even inscrutable, like ambient sounds.Doodles re-purpose the text. The text no longer is unidirectional. The text becomes a point of convergence between writer and reader. The doodling allows for such a conversation, bilateral flow, or “talking back” to the text.Doodles reveal a secret language–informal codes that hearken back to the “lively, spontaneous, and charged with feeling” works of child art or naïve art that Victor Sanua discusses as being replaced in a child’s later years by art that is “stilted, formal, and conforming” (62).Doodling animates blank margins, the dead space of the text adjacent to the script, making such places ripe for spontaneous, fertile, and exploratory markings.Doodling reveals a democratic, participatory ethos. No text is too sacred, no narrative too inviolable. Anything can be reworked by the intimate graffiti of the reader. The authority of the book is not fixed; readers negotiate and form a second intelligence imprinted over the top of the original text, blurring modes of power.Doodles reveal liminal moments. Since the reader in unmonitored, he or she can express thoughts that may be considered marginal or taboo by the next reader. The original subject of the book itself does not restrict the reader. Thus, within the margins of the page, a brief suspension of boundaries and borders, authority and power, occurs. The reader hides in anonymity, free to reroute the meaning of the book. Doodling may convey a reader’s infantalism. Every book can become a picture book. This art can be the route returning a reader to the ambience of childhood.Doodling may constitute Illuminated/Painted Texts in reverse, commemorating the significance of the object in hitherto unexpected forms and revealing the reader’s codex. William Blake adorned his own poems by illuminating the skin/page that held his living verse; common readers may do so too, in naïve, nomadic, and primitive forms. Doodling demarcates tension zones, yielding social-historical insights into eras while offering psychological glimpses and displaying aesthetic values of readers-cum-writers.Doodling reveals margins as inter-zones, replete with psychogeography. While the typography is sanctioned, legitimate, normalised, and official discourse (“chartered” and “manacled,” to hijack lines from William Blake), the margins are a vernacular depository, a terminus, allowing readers a sense of agency and autonomy. The doodled page becomes a visible reminder and signifier: all pages are potentially “contested” spaces. Whereas graffiti often allows a writer to hide anonymously in the light in a city besieged by multiple conflicting texts, doodles allow a reader-cum-writer’s imprint to live in the cocoon of a formerly fossilised text, waiting for the light. Upon being opened, the book, now a chimera, truly breathes. Further exploration and analysis should likely consider several issues. What truly constitutes and shapes the role of agent and reader? Is the reader an agent all the time, or only when offering resistant readings through doodles? How is a doodler’s agency mediated by the author or the format of texts in forms that I have to map? Lastly, if, as I have argued, the ambient space allows potential energies to hover at the edge, ready to illustrate a tension zone and occupy the page, what occurs in the age of digital or e-books? Will these platforms signal an age of acquiescence to manufactured products or signal era of vernacular responses, somehow hitched to html code and PDF file infiltration? Will bytes totally replace type soon in the future, shaping unforeseen actions by doodlers? Attached Figures Figure One presents the intimate graffiti of my grandfather, found in the 1907 edition of his McGuffey’s Eclectic Spelling Book. The depiction is simple, even crude, revealing a figure found on the adjacent page to Lesson 248, “Of Characters Used in Punctuation,” which lists the perfunctory functions of commas, semicolons, periods, and so forth. This doodle may offset the routine, rote, and rather humdrum memorisation of such grammatical tools. The smiling figure may embody and signify joy on an otherwise machine-made bare page, a space where my grandfather illustrated his desires (to lighten a mood, to ease dissatisfaction?). Historians Joe Austin and Michael Willard examine how youth have been historically left without legitimate spaces in which to live out their autonomy outside of adult surveillance. For instance, graffiti often found on walls and trains may reflect a sad reality: young people are pushed to appropriate “nomadic, temporary, abandoned, illegal, or otherwise unwatched spaces within the landscape” (14). Indeed, book graffiti, like the graffiti found on surfaces throughout cities, may offer youth a sense of appropriation, authorship, agency, and autonomy: they take the page of the book, commit their writing or illustration to the page, discover some freedom, and feel temporarily independent even while they are young and disempowered. Figure Two depicts the doodles of experimental filmmaker Jim Fetterley (Animal Charm productions) during his tenure as a student at the Art Institute of Chicago in the early 1990s. His two doodles flank the text of “Lady Lazarus” by Sylvia Plath, regarded by most readers as an autobiographical poem that addresses her own suicide attempts. The story of Lazarus is grounded in the Biblical story of John Lazarus of Bethany, who was resurrected from the dead. The poem also alludes to the Holocaust (“Nazi Lampshades”), the folklore surrounding cats (“And like the cat I have nine times to die”), and impending omens of death (“eye pits “ … “sour breath”). The lower doodle seems to signify a motorised tank-like machine, replete with a furnace or engine compartment on top that bellows smoke. Such ominous images, saturated with potential cartoon-like violence, may link to the World War II references in the poem. Meanwhile, the upper doodle seems to be curiously insect-like, and Fetterley’s name can be found within the illustration, just like Plath’s poem is self-reflexive and addresses her own plight. Most viewers might find the image a bit more lighthearted than the poem, a caricature of something biomorphic and surreal, but not very lethal. Again, perhaps this is a counter-message to the weight of the poem, a way to balance the mood and tone, or it may well represent the larval-like apparition that haunts the very thoughts of Plath in the poem: the impending disease of her mind, as understood by the wary reader. References Austin, Joe, and Michael Willard. “Introduction: Angels of History, Demons of Culture.” Eds. Joe Austion and Michael Willard. Generations of Youth: Youth Cultures and History in Twentieth-Century America. New York: NYU Press, 1998. “Doodling Gets Its Due: Those Tiny Artworks May Aid Memory.” World Science 2 March 2009. 15 Jan. 2009 ‹http://www.world-science.net/othernews/090302_doodle›. Dundes, Alan. “Here I Sit – A Study of American Latrinalia.” Papers of the Kroeber Anthropological Society 34: 91-105. Ensminger, David. “All Bottle Up: Reinterpreting the Culturescape of Grandma Prisbey.” Adironack Review 9.3 (Fall 2008). ‹http://adirondackreview.homestead.com/ensminger2.html›. Kear, Andrew. “Drawings in the Margins: Doodling in Class an Act of Reclamation.” Graduate Student Conference. University of Toronto, 2006. ‹http://gradstudentconference.oise.utoronto.ca/documents/185/Drawing%20in%20the%20Margins.doc›. Lowe, Sheila R. The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Handwriting Analysis. New York: Alpha Books, 1999. Morton, Timothy. “‘Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star’ as an Ambient Poem; a Study of Dialectical Image; with Some Remarks on Coleridge and Wordsworth.” Romantic Circles Praxis Series (2001). 6 Jan. 2009 ‹http://www.rc.umd.edu/praxis/ecology/morton/morton.html›. Potter, Russell A. Spectacular Vernaculars: Hip Hop and the Politics of Postmodernism. Albany: State University of New York, 1995. Read, Allen Walker. Classic American Graffiti: Lexical Evidence from Folk Epigraphy in Western North America. Waukesha, Wisconsin: Maledicta Press, 1997. Reitman, Francis. Psychotic Art. London: Routledge, 1999. Sanua, Victor. “The World of Mystery and Wonder of the Schizophrenic Patient.” International Journal of Social Psychiatry 8 (1961): 62-65. Severino, Carol. “The ‘Doodles’ in Context: Qualifying Claims about Contrastive Rhetoric.” The Writing Center Journal 14.1 (Fall 1993): 44-62. Van Cleave, Claire. Master Drawings of the Italian Rennaissance. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard UP, 2007. Varenhost, Christopher. Passdoodles: A Lightweight Authentication Method. Research Science Institute. Cambridge, Mass.: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2004.
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Reid, Christy. "Journey of a Deaf-Blind Woman." M/C Journal 13, no. 3 (June 30, 2010). http://dx.doi.org/10.5204/mcj.264.
Full textAbstract:
I sat alone on the beach under the shade of a big umbrella. My husband, Bill, and our three children were in the condo taking a break from the Florida sunshine. Dreamily, I gazed at the vast Gulf of Mexico, the brilliant blue sky stretching endlessly above. I was sitting about 50 feet from the surf, but I couldn't actually see the waves hitting the beach; I was almost blind. It was a windy day in late May and I loved feeling the ocean breeze sweeping over me. I imagined I could hear the waves crashing onto the surf, but the sound was only a memory. I was totally deaf. Although I had a cochlear implant and could hear the waves, the cry of sea gulls, and many other sounds with the technology, I wasn't wearing it at the moment and everything I heard was in my mind. As a child, my understanding of speech was better and my vision was clearer. My diagnosis was optic atrophy at age 5 and my vision gradually degenerated over the years. For unknown reasons, nerve damage caused hearing loss and during my teens, my hearing grew worse and worse until by the time I was ready for college, I was profoundly deaf. I chose to attend Gallaudet University because my high school teachers and my parents felt I would receive better services as a deaf and blind student. I feel it was a very good decision; when I entered Gallaudet, it was like entering a new and exhilarating world. Before attending Gallaudet, while I struggled to cope with hearing loss combined with severely low vision, my world grew smaller and smaller, not being able to communicate efficiently with others. At Gallaudet, I suddenly found I could communicate with almost anybody I met on campus using sign language. Thus, my self-confidence and independence grew as I proceeded to get a college education.It wasn't an easy route to follow. I didn't know Braille at the time and depended on using a CCTV (closed captioned television) electronic aid which magnified text, enabling me to read all my college books. I also relied on the assistance of a class aid who interpreted all my teachers' lectures and class discussions because I was unable to see people's signing unless they signed right in front of my face. It was slow going and often frustrating, trying to keep involved socially and keeping up with my coursework but when I was 13 years old, my vision specialist teacher who had worked with me from 5th grade until I graduated from high school, wrote a note for me saying, "Anything worthwhile seldom comes easy." The phrase stuck in my mind and I tried to follow this philosophy. In 1989 after 7 years of persistence, I graduated with a Bachelor's of Arts degree in psychology. With the B.A. in hand and having developed good communication skills with deaf and deaf-blind people using sign language and ASL (American Sign Language), I was ready to face the world. But I wasn't exactly ready; I knew I wanted a professional job working with deaf-blind people and the way to get there was to earn a master's degree. I applied for admission into Gallaudet's graduate school and was accepted into the vocational rehabilitation counselling program. While I thoroughly enjoyed graduate school experience, I got to work with my class mates one-on-one more often and there were a lot more hands-on activities, it became obvious to me that I wasn't prepared for graduate school. I needed to learn Braille and how to use Braille technology; my vision had worsened a lot since starting college. In addition, I needed a break from school and needed to gain experience in the working world. After completing one and a half years and earning 15 credit hours in the master's program, I left Gallaudet and found a job in Baltimore, Maryland.The job was with a new program for adults who were visually and hearing impaired and mentally disabled. My job was assisting the clients with independent living and work related skills. Most of the other staff were deaf, communicating via ASL. By then, I was skilled using tactile signing, putting my hand on the back of the signer's hand to follow movements by touch, and I made friends with co-workers. I felt grown up and independent working full-time, living in my own apartment, using the subway train and bus to travel to and from work. I didn't have any serious problems living on my own. There was a supermarket up the road to which I could walk or ride a bus. But I needed a taxi ride back to the apartment when I had more groceries than I could carry. I would leave a sign I made out of cardboard and wrote my address in big black numbers, on my apartment door to help the driver find my place. I used a white cane and upon moving to Baltimore, an Orientation and Mobility (O and M) teacher who worked with blind people, showing them how to travel in the city, taught me the route to my work place using the subway and bus. Thus, I was independent and knew my way to work as well as to a nearby shopping mall. One day as I stood on the subway station platform holding my white cane, waiting for my train, the opposite train pulled in. As I stood watching passengers hurrying to board, knowing my train would arrive soon on the other side, a woman ran up to me and started pulling my arm. I handed her my notebook and black marker I used for communicating with people in the public, telling her I couldn't hear and would she please write in large print? She frantically scribbled something, but I couldn't read the note. She then gave me back the pen and pad, grabbed my arm again and started pulling me towards the train. I refused to budge, gesturing towards the opposite tracks, clearly indicating I was waiting for the other train. Finally, she let go, dashed into the train before the doors closed. I watched the train pull away, sadly reflecting that some people who wanted to help, just didn't understand how to approach disabled people. As a deaf-blind traveller, it was my duty to help educate the general public how to assist disabled persons in a humane way. After I established my new life for a few months, Bill was offered a position in the same program and moved to Baltimore to join me. He had worked at the Helen Keller National Centre in New York where I met him while doing a summer internship there three years before. I was thrilled when he got the job working beside me and we got to know each other on a daily basis. We had been dating since we met although I was in college and he was working and living in New York and then Cleveland, Ohio. Bill being hearing and sighted, was skilled in sign language and communication techniques with deaf-blind people. He had a wonderful attitude towards disabled people and made me feel like a normal person who was capable of doing things. We shared a lot and were very comfortable with each other. After nearly six months together in Baltimore, we married in May 1992, several weeks before my 28th birthday.After our first year of marriage living in Maryland, Bill and I moved to Little Rock, Arkansas. We wanted to live closer to my family and parents, Ron and Judy Cummings, who lived in Poplar Bluff, Missouri, 176 miles north of Little Rock. I wanted to go back to school and entered the deaf education program at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock with the goal of becoming a teacher for deaf-blind students. I never dreamed I would have a deaf-blind child of my own one day. My vision and hearing loss were caused by nerve damage and no one else in my family nor Bill's had a similar disability.I was pregnant with our first child when I entered UALR. In spite of my growing belly, I enjoyed the teacher training experience. I worked with a deaf-blind 12-year-old student and her teacher at the Arkansas School for the Deaf; observed two energetic four-year-olds in the pre-school program. But when my son, Joe was born in June 1994, my world changed once again. School became less important and motherhood became the ultimate. As a deaf-blind person, I wanted to be the best mom within my abilities.I decided that establishing good communication with my child was an important aspect of being a deaf-blind mom. Bill was in full agreement and we would set Joe on the kitchen table in his infant carrier, reciting together in sign language, "The three Bears". I could see Joe's tiny fists and feet wave excitedly in the air as he watched us signing children's stories. I would encourage Joe to hold my fingers while I signed to him, trying to establish a tactile signing relationship. But he was almost two years old when he finally understood that he needed to sign into my hands. We were sitting at the table and I had a bag of cookies. I refused to give him one until he made the sign for "cookie" in my hand. I quickly rewarded him with a cookie and he got three or four each time he made the sign in my hand. Today at 16, Joe is an expert finger speller and can effectively communicate with me and his younger deaf-blind brother, Ben.When Joe was two and a half, I decided to explore a cochlear implant. It was 1996 and we were living in Poplar Bluff by then. My cousin, who was studying audiology, told me that people using cochlear implants were able to understand sound so well they didn't need good vision. I made an appointment with the St. Louis cochlear implant program and after being evaluated, I decided to go ahead. I am glad I have a cochlear implant. After months of practice I learned to use the new sound and was eventually able to understand many environmental sounds. I never regained the ability of understanding speech, though, but I could hear people's voices very clearly, the sound of laughter, birds singing, and many more. Being able to hear my children's voices is especially wonderful, even when they get noisy and I get a headache. That fall I went to Leader Dogs School for the Blind (LDSB) where I met Milo, a large yellow Labrador retriever. At LDSB I learned how to care for and work with a dog guide. Having Milo as my companion and guide was like stepping into another new and wonderful world of independence. With Milo, I could walk briskly and feel secure. Milo was a big help as a deaf-blind mom, too. With Milo's guiding help, it was wonderful following my children while they rode tricycles or bikes and the whole family enjoyed going out for walks together. Our second son, Ben, was born in February 1999. He was a perfectly healthy little boy and Bill and I were looking forward to raising two sons. Joe was four and a half years old when Ben was born and was fascinated in his new brother. But when Ben was 5 months old, he was diagnosed with Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis (LCH), a rare childhood disease and in some cases, fatal. It was a long, scary road we followed as Ben received treatment at the children's hospital in St. Louis which involved making the 150 mile trip almost weekly for chemotherapy and doctor check-ups. Through it all, Ben was a happy little boy, in spite of the terrible rash that affected his scalp and diaper area, a symptom of LCH. Bill and I knew that we had to do everything possible to help Ben. When he was a year old, his condition seemed stable enough for me to feel comfortable leaving my family for two months to study Braille and learn new technology skills at a program in Kansas City. My vision had deteriorated to a point where I could no longer use a CCTV.Bill's mom, Marie Reid, who lived in Cleveland, Ohio, made a special trip to stay at our home in Poplar Bluff to help Bill with the boys while I was gone. I was successful at the program, learning Braille, making a change from magnification to Braille technology. Upon returning home, I began looking for a job and found employment as a deaf-blind specialist in a new project in Mississippi. The job was in Tupelo and we moved to northern Mississippi, settling into a new life. We transferred Ben's treatment to St. Judes Children's hospital located in Memphis, 94 miles west of Tupelo. I went to work and Bill stayed home with the boys, which worked well. When Ben had to go to St. Judes every three weeks for chemotherapy, Bill was able to drive him. The treatment was successful, the rash had disappeared and there were no traces of LCH in Ben's blood tests. But when he was almost 3 years old, he was diagnosed with optic atrophy, the same eye disease I suffered from and an audiologist detected signs of inner ear hearing loss.Shocked at the news that our little son would grow up legally blind and perhaps become deaf, Bill and I had to rethink our future. We knew we wanted Ben to have a good life and as a deaf-blind child, he needed quality services. We chose to move to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania because I knew there were good services for deaf-blind people and I could function independently as a stay-home mom. In addition, Cleveland, Ohio, where Marie Reid and several of Bill's siblings lived, was a two hour's drive from Pittsburgh and living near family was important to us. With regret, I left my job opportunity and new friends and we re-located to Pittsburgh. We lived on a quiet street near Squirrel Hill and enrolled Joe into a near-by Catholic school. Ben received excellent early intervention services through the Pittsburgh public school, beginning Braille, using a white cane and tactile signing. The Pennsylvania services for the blind generously purchased a wonderful computer system and Braille display for me to use at home. I was able to communicate with Joe's and Ben's teachers and other contacts using e-mail. Ben's Braille teacher provided us with several print/Braille books which I read to the boys while Ben touched the tactile pictures. I made friends in the deaf and deaf-blind community and our family attended social events. Besides the social benefits of a deaf community, Pittsburgh offered a wonderful interpreting service and I was able to take Ben to doctor appointments knowing an interpreter would meet me at the hospital to assist with communication. I also found people who were willing to help me as volunteer SSPs (support Service Providers), persons whose role is to assist a deaf-blind person in any way, such as shopping, going to the bank, etc. Thus, I was able to function quite independently while Bill worked. Perhaps Bill and I were a bit crazy; after all, we had enough on our plate with a deaf-blind son and a deaf-blind mom, but love is a mysterious thing. In October 2003, Tim was born and our family was complete. Having two school-aged children and a baby on my hands was too much for me to handle alone. Bill was working and busy with culinary arts school. We realized we needed more help with the children, plus the high cost of living in the city was a struggle for us. We decided for the family's best interest, it would be better to move back to Poplar Bluff. After Joe and Ben were out of school in June, my mom flew out to Pittsburgh to escort them back to her home while Bill finished his externship for his culinary arts degree and in the late summer of 2004, we packed up our apartment, said good-bye to Pittsburgh, and drove to Missouri. The move was a good decision in many ways. Poplar Bluff, a rural town in south-eastern Missouri, has been my hometown since I was 10 years old. My extended family live there and the boys are thriving growing up among their cousins. Ben is receiving Braille and sign language services at public school and reads Braille faster than me!While both Bill and I are deeply satisfied knowing our children are happy, we have made personal sacrifices. Bill has given up his career satisfaction as a professional cook, needing to help look after the children and house. I have given up the benefits of city life such as interpreting and SSP services, not to mention the social benefits of a deaf community. But the children's well-being comes first, and I have found ways to fulfil my needs by getting involved with on-line groups for deaf-blind people, including writers and poets. I have taken a great interest in writing, especially children's stories and hope to establish a career as a writer. While I work on my computer, Bill keeps busy engaging the boys in various projects. They have built a screened-in tree house in the backyard where Ben and Tim like to sleep during warm summer nights.“It's almost 5 o'clock," Bill signed into my hand, rousing me from my thoughts. Time to prepare for our homeward journey the next day to Poplar Bluff, Missouri.Christy and Family
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Green, Lelia. "Being a Bad Vegan." M/C Journal 22, no. 2 (April 24, 2019). http://dx.doi.org/10.5204/mcj.1512.
Full textAbstract:
According to The Betoota Advocate (Parker), a CSIRO (Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation) paper has recently established that “it takes roughly seven minutes on average for a vegan to tell you that they’re vegan” (qtd. in Harrington et al. 135). For such a statement to have currency as a joke means that it is grounded in a shared experience of being vegan on the one hand, and of encountering vegans on the other. Why should vegans feel such a need to justify themselves? I recognise the observation as being true of me, and this article is one way to explore this perspective: writing to find out what I currently only intuit. As Richardson notes (516), writing is “a way of ‘knowing’—a method of discovery and analysis. By writing in different ways, we discover new aspects of our topic and our relationship to it. Form and content are inseparable” (qtd. in Wall 151).Autoethnography, the qualitative research methodology used for this article, is etymologically derived from Greek to indicate a process for exploring the self (autos) and the cultural (“ethno” from ethnos—nation, tribe, people, class) using a shared, understood, approach (“graphy” from graphia, writing). It relies upon critical engagement with and synthesising of the personal. In Wall’s words, this methodological analysis of human experience “says that what I know matters” (148). The autoethnographic investigation (Riggins; Sparkes) reported here interrogates the experience of “being judged” as a vegan: firstly, by myself; secondly, by other vegans; and ultimately by the wider society. As Ellis notes, autoethnography is “research, writing, story and method that connect the autobiographical and personal to the cultural, social and political. Autoethnographic forms feature concrete action, emotion, embodiment, self-consciousness, and introspection” (xix).Introspection is important because researchers’ stories of their observations are interwoven with self-reflexive critique and analysis: “illustrative materials are meant to give a sense of what the observed world is really like, while the researcher’s interpretations are meant to represent a more detached conceptualization of that reality” (Strauss and Corbin 22). Leaving aside Gans’s view that this form of enquiry represents the “climax of the preoccupation with self […] an autobiography written by sociologists” (542), an autoethnography generally has the added advantage of protecting against Glendon and Stanton’s concern that interpretive studies “are often of too short a duration to be able to provide sufficiently large samples of behaviour” (209). In my case, I have twelve years of experience of identifying as a vegan to draw upon.My experience is that being vegan is a contested activity with a significant range of variation that partly reflects the different initial motivations for adopting this increasingly mainstream identity. Greenebaum notes that “ethical vegans differentiate between those who ‘eat’ vegan (health vegans) and those who ‘live’ vegan (ethical vegans)”, going on to suggest that these differences create “hierarchies and boundaries between vegans” (131). As Greenebaum acknowledges, there is sometimes a need to balance competing priorities: “an environmental vegan […] may purchase leather products over polyvinyl chloride (PVC), thinking that leather is a better choice for the environment” (130). Harrington et al. similarly critique vegan motivations as encompassing “a selfless pursuit for those who cared for other beings (animals)” to “a concern about impacts that affect all humans (environment), and an interest mostly in the self (individual health …)” (144). Wright identifies a fourth group of vegans: those searching for a means of dietary inclusivity (2). I have known Orthodox Jewish households that have adopted veganism because it is compatible with keeping Kosher, while many strict Hindus are vegan and some observant Muslims may also follow suit, to avoid meat that is not Halal certified.The Challenge of the EverydayAlthough my initial vegan promptings were firmly at the selfish end of an altruism spectrum, my experience is that motivation is not static. Being a vegan for any reason increasingly primes awareness of more altruistic motivations “at the intersection of a diversity of concerns [… promoting] a spread and expansion of meaning to view food choices holistically” (Harrington et al. 144). Even so, everyday life offers a range of temptations and challenges that require constant juggling and, sometimes, a string of justifications: to oneself, and to others. I identify as a bit of a bad vegan, and not simply because I embrace the possibility that “honey is a gray area” (Greenebaum, quoting her participant Jason, 139). I’m also flexible around wine, for example, and don’t ask too many questions about whether the wine I drink is refined using milk, or egg-shells or even (yuk!) fish bladders. The point is, there are an infinite number of acid tests as to what constitutes “a real vegan”, encouraging inter-vegan judgmentality. Some slight definitional slippage aligns with Singer and Mason’s argument, however, that vegans should avoid worrying about “trivial infractions of the ethical guidelines […] Personal purity isn’t really the issue. Not supporting animal abuse – and persuading others not to support it – is. Giving people the impression that it is virtually impossible to be vegan doesn’t help animals at all” (Singer and Mason 258–9).If I were to accept a definition of non-vegan, possibly because I have a leather handbag among other infractions, that would feel inauthentic. The term “vegan” helpfully labels my approach to food and drink. Others also find it useful as a shorthand for dietary preferences (except for the small but significant minority who muddle veganism with being gluten free). From the point of view of dietary prohibitions I’m a particularly strict vegan, apart from honey. I know people who make exceptions for line-caught fish, or the eggs from garden-roaming happy chooks, but I don’t. I increasingly understand the perspectives of those who have a more radical conception of veganism than I do, however: whose vision and understanding is that “behind every meal of meat is an absence: the death of the animal whose place the meat takes. The ‘absent referent’ is that which separates the meat eater from the animal and the animal from the end product [… keeping] something from being seen as having been someone” (Adams 14). The concept of the global suffering of animals inherent in the figures: “31.1 billion each year, 85.2 million each day, 3.5 million each hour, 59,170 each minute” (Adams dedication) is appalling; as well as being an under-representation of the current situation since the globe has had almost two further decades of population growth and rising “living standards”.Whatever the motivations, it’s easy to imagine that the different branches of veganism have more in common than divides them. Being a vegan of any kind helps someone identify with other variations upon the theme. For example, even though my views on animal rights did not motivate my choice to become vegan, once I stopped seeing other sentient creatures as a handy food source I began to construct them differently. I gradually realised that, as a species, we were committing the most extraordinary atrocities on a global scale in treating animals as disposable commodities without rights or feelings. The large-scale production of what we like to term “meat and poultry” is almost unadulterated animal suffering, whereas the by-catch (“waste products”) of commercial fishing represents an extraordinary disregard of the rights to life of other creatures and, as Cole and Morgan note, “The number of aquatic animals slaughtered is not recorded, their individual deaths being subsumed by aggregate weight statistics” (135). Even if we did accept that humans have the right to consume some animals some of the time, should the netting of a given weight of edible fish really entail the death of many, many time more weight of living creatures that will be “wasted”: the so-called by-catch? Such wanton destruction has increasingly visible impacts upon complex food chains, and the ecosystems that sustain us all.The Vegan Threat to the Status QuoExamining the evidence for the broader community being biased against vegetarians and vegans, MacInnis and Hodson identify that these groups are “clear targets of relatively more negative attitudes” (727) towards them than other minority groups. Indeed, “only drug addicts were evaluated more negatively than vegetarians and vegans” (726). While “vegans were evaluated more negatively than vegetarians” (732), there was a hierarchy in negative evaluations according to the underlying motivation for someone adopting veganism or vegetarianism. People motivated by personal health received the least negative evaluations from the general population followed by those who were motivated by the environment. The greatest opprobrium was reserved for vegans who were motivated by animal rights (732). MacInnis and Hodson reason that this antipathy is because “vegetarians and vegans represent strong threats to the status quo, given that prevailing cultural norms favour meat-eating” (722). Also implied here is that fact that eating meat is itself a cultural norm associated with masculinity (Rothgerber).Adams’s work links the unthinking, normative exploitation of animals to the unthinking, normative exploitation of women, a situation so aligned that it is often expressed through the use of a common metaphor: “‘meat’ becomes a term to express women’s oppression, used equally by patriarchy and feminists, who say that women are ‘pieces of meat’” (2002, 59). Rothberger further interrogates the relationship between masculinity and meat by exploring gender in relation to strategies for “meat eating justification”, reflecting a 1992 United States study that showed, of all people reporting that they were vegetarian, 68% were women and 32% men (Smart, 1995). Rothberger’s argument is that:Following a vegetarian diet or deliberately reducing meat intake violates the spirit of Western hegemonic masculinity, with its socially prescribed norms of stoicism, practicality, seeking dominance, and being powerful, strong, tough, robust and invulnerable […] Such individuals have basically cast aside a relatively hidden male privilege—the freedom and ability to eat without criticism and scrutiny, something that studies have shown women lack. (371)Noting that “to raise concerns about the injustices of factory farming and to feel compelled by them would seem emotional, weak and sensitive—feminine characteristics” (366), Rothberger sets the scene for me to note two items of popular culture which achieved cut-through in my personal life. The evidence for this is, in terms of all the pro-vegan materials I encounter, these were two of a small number that I shared on social media. In line with Rothberger’s observations, both are oppositional to hegemonic masculinity:one represents a feminised, mother and child exchange that captures the moment when a child realises the “absent referent” of the dead animal in the octopus on his plate—https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SrU03da2arE;while the other is a sentimentalised and sympathetic recording of cattle luxuriating in their first taste of pastureland after a long period of confinement—https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=huT5__BqY_U.Seeing cows behaving like pets does call attention to the artificial distinction between “companion animals” and other animals. As Cole and Stewart note, “the naming of other animals is useful for human beings, while it is dangerous, and frequently lethal, for other animals. This is because the words we use to name other animals are saturated with common sense knowledge claims about those animals that legitimate their habitual use for humans” (13). Thus a cat, in Western culture, has a very different life trajectory to a cow. Adams notes the contrary case where the companion animal is used as a referent for a threatened human:Child sexual abusers often use threats and/or violence against companion animals to achieve compliance from their victims. Batterers harm or kill a companion animal as a warning to their partner that she could be next; as a way of further separating her from meaningful relationships; to demonstrate his power and her powerlessness. (Adams 57)For children who are still at a stage where animals are creatures of fascination and potential friends, who may be growing up with Charlotte’s Web (White) or Peter Rabbit (Potter), the mental gymnastics of suspending identification with these fellow creatures are harder because empathy and imagination are more active and the ingrained habit of eating without thinking has not had so long to develop. Indeed, children often understand domestic animals as “members of the family”, as illustrated by an interview with Kani, a 10-year old participant in one of my research projects. “In the absence of her extended family overseas, Kani adds her pets to [the list of] those with whom she shares her family life: ‘And my mum and my uncle and then our cat Dobby. I named it [for Harry Potter’s house elf] ...and the goldfish. The goldfish are Twinkle, Glitter, Glow and Bobby’” (Green and Stevenson). Such perceptions may well filter through to children having a different understanding of animals-as-food, even though Cole and Stewart note that “children enter into an adult culture habituated to [the] banal conceptualization of other animals according to their (dis)utilities” (21).Evidence-Based VeganismThose M/C Journal readers who know me personally will understand that one reason why I embrace the “bad vegan” label, is that I’m no more obviously a pin-up for healthy veganism than I am for ethical or environmental veganism. In particular, my BMI (Body Mass Index) is significantly outside the “healthy” range. Even so, I attribute a dramatic change in my capacity for stamina-based activity to my embrace of veganism. A high-speed recap of the evidence would include: in 2009 I embarked on a week-long 500km Great Vic bike ride; in 2012 I successfully completed a Machu Picchu trek at high altitude; by 2013 I was ready for my first half marathon (reprised in 2014, and 2017); in 2014 I cycled from Surfers’ Paradise to Noosa—somewhat less successfully than in my 2009 venture, but even so; in 2016 I completed the Oxfam 50km in 24 hours (plus a half hour, if I’m honest); and in 2017 I completed the 227km Portuguese Camino; in 2018 I jogged an average of over 3km per day, every day, up until 20 September... Apart from indicating that I live an extremely fortunate life, these activities seem to me to demonstrate that becoming vegan in 2007 has conferred a huge health benefit. In particular, I cannot identify similar metamorphoses in the lives of my 50-to-60-something year-old empty-nester friends. My most notable physical feat pre-veganism was the irregular completion of Perth’s annual 12km City-to-Surf fun run.Although I’m a vegan for health reasons, I didn’t suddenly wake up one day and decide that this was now my future: I had to be coaxed and cajoled into looking at my food preferences very differently. This process entailed my enrolling in a night school-type evening course, the Coronary Health Improvement Program: 16 x 3 hour sessions over eight weeks. Its sibling course is now available online as the Complete Health Improvement Program. The first lesson of the eight weeks convincingly demonstrated that what is good for coronary health is also good for health in general, which I found persuasive and reassuring given the propensity to cancer evident in my family tree. In the generation above me, my parents each had three siblings so I have a sample of eight immediate family to draw upon. Six of these either have cancer at the moment, or have died from cancer, with the cancers concerned including breast (1), prostate (2), lung (1), pancreas (1) and brain (1). A seventh close relative passed away before her health service could deliver a diagnosis for her extraordinarily elevated eosinophil levels (100x normal rates of that particular kind of white blood cell: potentially a blood cancer, I think). The eighth relative in that generation is my “bad vegan” uncle who has been mainly plant-based in his dietary choices since 2004. At 73, he is still working three days per week as a dentist and planning a 240 km trek in Italy as his main 2019 holiday. That’s the kind of future I’m hoping for too, when I grow up.And yet, one can read volumes of health literature without stumbling upon Professor T. Colin Campbell’s early research findings via his work on rodents and rodent cells that: “nutrition [was] far more important in controlling cancer promotion than the dose of the initiating carcinogen” and that “nutrients from animal-based foods increased tumor development while nutrients from plant-based foods decreased tumor development” (66, italics in original). Plant was already an eminent scientist at the point where she developed breast cancer, but she noted her amazement at learning “precisely how much has been discovered already [that] has not filtered through to the public” (18). The reason for the lack of visible research in this area is not so much its absence, but more likely its political sensitivity in an era of Big Food. As Harrington et al.’s respondent Samantha noted, “I think the meat lobby’s much bigger than the vegetable lobby” (147). These arguments are addressed in greater depth in Green et al.My initiating research question—Why do I feel the need to justify being vegan?—can clearly be answered in a wide variety of ways. Veganism disrupts the status quo: it questions both the appropriateness of humanity’s systematic torturing of other species for food, and the risks that those animal-based foods pose for the long-term health of human populations. It offends many vested interests from Big Food to accepted notions of animal welfare to the conventional teachings of the health industry. Identifying as a vegan represents an outcome of one or more of a wide range of motivations, some of which are more clearly self-serving (read “bad”); while others are more easily identified as altruistic (read “good”). After a decade or more of personal experimentation in this space, I’m proud to identify as a “bad vegan”. It’s been a great choice personally and, I hope, for some other creatures whose planet I share.ReferencesAdams, Carol. The Sexual Politics of Meat: A Feminist-Vegetarian Critical Theory. New York: Continuum, 1990.Campbell, T. Colin, and Thomas M. Cambell. The China Study: Startling Implications for Diet, Weight Loss and Long-Term Health. Dallas: BenBella Books, 2005.Cole, Matthew, and Karen Morgan. “Vegaphobia: Derogatory Discourses of Veganism and the Reproduction of Speciesism in UK National Newspaper.” British Journal of Sociology 62 (2011): 134–53.———, and Kate Stewart. Our Children and Other Animals: The Cultural Construction of Human-Animal Relations in Childhood. Farnham: Ashgate, 2014.Ellis, Carolyn. The Ethnographic I: A Methodological Novel about Autoethnography. Oxford: Altamira Press, 2004.Gans, Herbert J. “Participant Observation in the Era of ‘Ethnography’.” Journal of Contemporary Ethnography 28.5 (1999): 540–48.Glendon, A. Ian, and Neville Stanton. “Perspectives on Safety Culture.” Safety Science 34.1-3 (2000): 193–214.Green, Lelia, Leesa Costello, and Julie Dare. “Veganism, Health Expectancy, and the Communication of Sustainability.” Australian Journal of Communication 37.3 (2010): 87–102.———, and Kylie Stevenson. “A Ten-Year-Old’s Use of Creative Content to Construct an Alternative Future for Herself.” M/C Journal 20.1 (2017). 13 Apr. 2019 <http://journal.media-culture.org.au/index.php/mcjournal/article/view/1211>.Greenebaum, Jessica. (2012). “Veganism, Identity and the Quest for Authenticity.” Food, Culture and Society 15.1 (2012): 129–44.Harrington, Stephen, Christie Collis, and OzgurDedehayir. “It’s Not (Just) about the F-ckin’ Animals: Why Veganism Is Changing, and Why That Matters.” Alternative Food Politics: From the Margins to the Mainstream. Eds. Michelle Phillipov and Katherine Kirkwood. New York: Routledge, 2019. 135–50.MacInnes, Cara. C., and Gordon Hodson. “It Ain’t Easy Eating Greens: Evidence of Bias Toward Vegetarians and Vegans from Both Source and Target.” Group Processes and Intergroup Relations 20.6 (2015): 721–44.Parker, Errol. “Study Finds the Easiest Way to Tell If Someone Is Vegan Is to Wait until They Inevitably Tell You.” The Betoota Advocate 2017. 10 Apr. 2019 <https://www.betootaadvocate.com/humans-of-betoota/study-finds-easiest-way-tell-someone-vegan-wait-inevitably-tell/>.Plant, Jane A. Your Life in Your Hands: Understand, Prevent and Overcome Breast Cancer and Ovarian Cancer. 4th ed. London: Virgin Books, 2007.Potter, Beatrix. The Tale of Peter Rabbit. London: Frederick Warne and Co, 1902.Richardson, Laurel. “Writing: A Method of Inquiry.” Handbook of Qualitative Research. Eds. Norman K. Denzon and Yvonne S. Lincoln. Thousand Oaks: Sage, 1994. 516–29.Riggins, Stephen Harold. “Fieldwork in the Living Room: An Autoethnographic Essay.” The Socialness of Things: Essays on the Socio-Semiotics of Objects. Ed. Stephen Harold Riggins. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter, 1994. 101–50.Rothgerber, Hank. “Real Men Don’t Eat (Vegetable) Quiche: Masculinity and the Justification of Meat Consumption.” Psychology of Men and Masculinity 14 (1994): 363–75.Singer, Peter, and Jim Mason. The Ethics of What We Eat. Melbourne: Text Publishing Company.Smart, Joanne. “The Gender Gap.” Vegetarian Times 210 (1995): 74–81.Sparkes, Andrew C. “Autoethnography: ‘Self-Indulgence or Something More?’” Ethnographically Speaking: Auto-Ethnography, Literature and Aesthetics. Eds. Arthur P. Bochner and Carolyn C. Ellis. Oxford: Altamira Press, 2002. 209–32.Strauss, Anselm, and Juliet Corbin. Basics of Qualitative Research: Grounded Theory Procedures and Techniques. London: Sage, 1990.Wall, Sarah. “An Autoethnography on Learning about Autoethnography.” International Journal of Qualitative Methods 5 (2006): 146–60.White, Elwyn B. Charlotte’s Web. New York: Harper and Brothers, 1952.Wright, Laura. The Vegan Studies Project: Food, Animals and Gender in the Age of Terror. Athens: U of Georgia Press, 2015.
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Craig, Jen Ann. "The Agitated Shell: Thinspiration and the Gothic Experience of Eating Disorders." M/C Journal 17, no. 4 (July 24, 2014). http://dx.doi.org/10.5204/mcj.848.
Full textAbstract:
Until the mid 1980s, Bordo writes, anorexia was considered only in pathological terms (45-69). Since then, many theorists such as Malson and Orbach have described how the anorexic individual is formed in and out of culture, and how, according to this line of argument, eating disorders exist in a spectrum of “dis-order” that primarily affects women. This theoretical approach, however, has been criticised for leaving open the possibility of a more general pathologising of female media consumers (Bray 421). There has been some argument, too, about how to read the agency of the anorexic individual: about whether she or he is protesting against or operating “as if in collusion with,” as Bordo puts it (177), the system of power relations that orients us, as she writes, to the external gaze (27). Ferreday argues that what results from this “spectacular regime of looking” (148) is that western discourse has abjected not only the condition of anorexia but also the anorectic, which in practical terms means that, among other measures, the websites and blogs of anorectics are constantly being removed from the Internet (Dias 36). How, then, might anorexia operate in relation to itself?In the clinical fields the subjectivity of the anorectic has become an important area of study. Norwegian eating disorder specialist Skårderud has discussed what he calls an anorectic’s “impaired mentalisation,” which describes a difficulty, as a result of transgenerationally transmitted attachment patterns, in regulating the self in terms of “understanding other people’s mind, one’s own mind and also minding one’s own body” (86). He explains: “Not being able to feel themselves from within, the patients are forced to experience the self from without” (86). While a Foucauldian approach to eating disorders like Bordo’s might be considered a useful tool for analysing this externalised aspect of the anorexic predicament, anorectics’ difficulty with feeling “themselves from within” remains unexamined in this model. Ferreday has described the efforts, in more recent discourse, to engage with the subjective experience of “anorexic embodiment” (140). She is conscious, however, that an enduring preoccupation with “the relation between bodies and images” has made the relations between embodied selves “almost entirely under-theorized”, and an understanding of the lived experience of eating disorders too often reduced to the totalising representations of “abject spectacle” or “heroic myth” (153). In this context Ferreday has welcomed the publication of Warin’s ethnographic study Abject Relations: Everyday Worlds of Anorexia for providing a point of access to the subjective experience of anorectics. One important aspect of Warin’s findings, though, remains unremarked upon in Ferreday’s review: this is Warin’s astonishing conclusion from her investigations that anorexic practices successfully “removed the threat of abjection” for her participants (127). It is exactly at this point in the current debate about eating disorders and subjectivity, and the role of abjection in that subjectivity, that I wish to draw upon the Gothic. As Hogle maintains, abjection has a significant role to play in the Gothic. Like Warin, he refers to Kristeva’s notion of the abject when he describes the “throwing off” whereby we might achieve, in Hogle’s paraphrasing of Kristeva, “a oneness with ourselves instead of an otherness from ourselves in ourselves” (“Ghost” 498-499). He describes how the Gothic becomes a “site of ‘abjection’” (“Cristabel” 22), where it “depicts and enacts these very processes of abjection, where fundamental interactions of contrary states and categories are cast off into antiquated and ‘othered’ beings” (“Ghost” 499). This plays out, he writes, in a process of what he calls a “re-faking of fakery” that serves “both to conceal and confront some of the more basic conflicts in Western culture” (“Ghost” 500). Here, Hogle might be describing how the abject anorexic body functions in the “spectacular regime of looking” that comprises western discourse, as Ferreday has portrayed it. Skårderud, however, as noted above, has suggested that the difficulty experienced by those with eating disorders is a difficulty that involves a regulation of the self that is understood to occur prior to the more organised possibility of casting off contrary states onto “othered” beings. In short, the eating disordered individual seems to be already an embodied site of abjection, which suggests, in light of Hogle’s work on abjection in the Gothic, that eating disordered experience might be understood as in some way analogous to an experience of the Gothic. Following Budgeon, who has stressed the importance of engaging with individual “accounts of embodiment” as means of moving beyond the current representation-bound impasses in our thinking about eating disorders (51), in this paper I will be touching briefly on “pro-ana” or pro-anorexic Internet material before proceeding to a more detailed analysis of Marya Hornbacher's Wasted: A Memoir of Anorexia and Bulimia. Punter, drawing on trauma theorists Abraham and Torok through Derrida, writes that “Gothic tests what it might be like to be a shell […] a shell which has been filled to the brim with something that looks like ourselves but is irremediably other, to the point that we are driven out, exiled from our home, removed from the body” (Pathologies16). In response, I will be suggesting that the eating disordered voice enacts the Gothic by dramatising “what it might be like to be a shell” since that embodied voice finds itself to be the site of abjection: the site where behind its distractingly visible “shell”, the ego, using anorexic idealisation, is compelled to use anorexic practices that “throw off” in an effort to achieve an ever-elusive sense of oneness. Due to Punter's long familiarity and shared vocabulary with a wide range of post-Freudian psychoanalytic theory, I will be particularly referring to his evocations of the Gothic, which he has characterised as a “kind of cultural threshold” (Introduction 9), to demonstrate how an examination of eating disordered experience alongside the Gothic might promise a more nuanced access to eating disordered subjectivity than has been available hitherto. Marya Hornbacher maintains in her memoir Wasted that anorectics, far from hating food, are in fact thinking about it constantly (151). If anorectics always think about food, the visual content of their Internet sites might seem to suggest otherwise: that their thoughts are mostly occupied by bodies—particularly thin, emaciated bodies—which form the material that these sites call “thinspiration” for the “pro-ana” writer and reader. Thinspiration, although not yet recognised by the Oxford English Dictionary, is understood to designate inspiring words or images of thinness that, further to Hornbacher's observations, might be understood as helping the food-obsessed anorectic to manage that obsession. Many pro-ana sites have their own thinspiration pages which, aside from the disturbing frame of the pro-ana verbal content that can include specifying dangerous techniques for abstaining, vomiting and purging, might be little more distressing to a viewer than any readily accessible fashion imagery. On the pro-ana site, however, whether mixed among the seemingly ordinary images or in a section all on its own,the spectre of the walking dead will often intrude. A “pro ana thinspiration” Google image search might yield, similarly, a small cadaverous corner to the purportedly inspiring imagery. It might also yield a tweeted response, from a pro-ana tweeter, to what might have been similar images of thinspiration which, far from affording inspiration, seem to have prompted intense anxiety: “I see the pictures I put up, then I see the morning thinspo everyone tweets, and I just feel gross ..[sic]”. This admission of despair sends a fearful, anxious affect loose among the otherwise serene uniformity of the “thinspo” imagery from which it had ricocheted, apparently, in the first place. Thinspiration, it seems, might threaten just as often as it assists the eating disordered subject to achieve self-regulation through their anorexic practices and, as this screen shot suggests, the voice can offer the researcher a small but potent insight into the drama of the eating disordered struggle.Psychologists Goldsmith and Widseth have stated that Hornbacher’s Wasted “gives the reader a feel for what it is like to live in an anorexic client’s head” (32). Although the book was a bestseller, newspaper reviews, on the whole, were ambivalent. There was a sense of danger inherent in the turbulent, “lurid” details (Zitin), and unresolved nature of the narrative (MacDonald). Goldsmith and Widseth even refer to Hornbacher's reported relapse and rehospitalisation that followed a “re-immersing” in “the narrative” of her own book (32). Kilgour has observed that the Gothic is a space where effects come into being without agents and creations prosper without their creators (221). While Radcliffe's novels might tend to contradict this claim, it is important to note that it is at the borders between explication and a seeming impossibility of explication that the Gothic imaginary draws its power. Miles, for example, has argued that Radcliffe is concerned not so much with dispelling the supernatural per se but with “‘equivocal phenomena of the mind’” (99-102). In Wasted, Hornbacher writes of her fear of “unsafe” foods whose uncanny abilities include the way they “will not travel through my body in the usual biological fashion but will magically make me grow” (20). Clearly, Hornbacher is not referring here to reasoned premises. Her sense, however, of the ambiguous nature of foodstuffs bears an important relation to Radcliffe's “equivocal phenomena”, and indeed the border-defying aspects of Kristevan abjection. In Abject Relations, Warin discovered that her anorexic participants shared what seemed to be magical beliefs in the ability of foodstuffs to penetrate the body through skin or through the nose via smells (106-127). The specific irrationality of these beliefs were not at issue except that they prompted the means, such as the washing of hands after touching food or shoving towels under doors to impede the intrusion of smells that, along with the anorexic practices of starving, purging and vomiting, served to protect these participants from abjection. When Hornbacher describes her experience of bulimia, the force, textures and sheer weight of the food that she eats in unimaginable, enormous quantities so that it bursts the sewer and floods the basement as vomit (223) become all the more disconcerting when the disgusting effects, whose course through the sewer system cannot be ignored, are preceded by evocations of occasions when she anxiously searches for, buys, consumes and vomits or purges food: “one day you find yourself walking along, and you impulsively stop in a restaurant, order an enormous dinner, and puke in the woods” (120-1). Hornbacher’s eating disorder in fact is figured as an insidious double: “It and I live in an uncomfortable state of mutual antagonism. That is, to me, a far cry better than once upon a time, when it and I shared a bed, a brain, a body” (4). This sense of the diabolical double is most evident when the narrative is traversed by the desperation of an agitated protagonist who seems to be continually moving between the constricted upper spaces of dormitories, rooms and bathrooms, and gaping, sewerage filled basements, and whose identity as either the original or the double to that original is difficult to determine. For Hornbacher, even at the end of her memoir when she is presented as almost recovered from her eating disorders, the protagonist not only continues to be doubled, but also exists in fragments: she speaks to herself "as if [she] were a horse", speaking "severely to [her] heart" who will pull her down "by the hair" into a nightmarish sleep (288-289). Punter has elaborated on the way dream landscapes in the Gothic open space into paradoxically constricted but labyrinthine infinities that serve to complicate what he has referred to as the two dimensions of our quotidian experience (Pathologies 123). In Wasted, beds give way to icy depths of watery sleeps, and numerous mirrors either fragment the body into parts or alienated other selves, or yield so that the narrator might step, suddenly, into “the neverworld” (10). Out of the two in the doubling, it is not so much the eating disorder—the “It”—but the “I” that becomes most monstrous as occasionally this “I” escapes onto the empty streets where, glimpsed crouching, anxious and confused in a beam of headlights, she reminds us of Frankenstein’s creature on the mountainsides or in the wastes since, as her capacity to articulate is lost in that moment, she becomes an “othered” object in the landscape (173). When, one winter, Hornbacher develops an obsession with running up and down the hall at her school at five am, she sprouts fine fur all over her translucent white skin and begins “to look a bit haunted” (109); later, in a moment of horrifying self-awareness, she realises that she “looked like a monster, most of [her] hair gone, [her] skin the gray color of rotten meat” (266). Punter writes that it is in the “dizzying heights and depths” of the Gothic that such agitation can become frantic: “in vertigo, the sense that there is indeed nowhere to go, not up, not down, and also that staying where you are has its own imponderable but terrible dangers” (Pathologies 10). Hornbacher states that the “worst night of [her] entire life” was spent with “the old familiar adrenaline rush pumping through [her] [….] running through the town, stopping here and there and eating and throwing up in alleyways and eating and blacking out” (273). This ceaseless, anxious, movement, where it is not clear who or what is doing the pursuing, but clear that it is a flight from the condition of abjection, is echoed in the very structure of Hornbacher’s memoir, which moves back and forth in time, seemingly at random, always searching for the decisive event that might, at last, explain or give a definitive beginning point to her disorders. Not only is the “beginning” of the disorders—an ultimate explanation or initiating event—sought but never found, but the narrative also concludes with an Afterword in which the narrator is, demonstrably, yet to recover, and even as she lies in bed next to her husband, is unable to rest (289). As Punter writes: “In Gothic, we do not directly ask, What happened? We ask, Where are we, where have we come from—not in the sense of a birth question, but as a question of how it is that we have ‘come adrift’” (Pathologies 209)—a question which, as Hornbacher finds, she is unable to answer, but nonetheless is obsessed with pursuing—to the point where the entire narrative seems to participate in the very pursuit that comprises the agitated perambulations of her eating disordered body. Although the narrator in Hornbacher’s Wasted, is strikingly alone—even at the end of the memoir, when she is represented as married, her husband is little more than a comforting body—throughout the text she is haunted by the a/effects of others. Hornbacher’s family is shown to be a community where the principle of nurturing is turned on its head. The narrator’s earliest evocation of herself presents a monstrous inversion of the expected maternal relationship: “My mother was unable to breast-feed me because it made her feel as if she were being devoured” (12). The mother’s drive to restrict her own eating is implicated in the narrator’s earliest difficulties with food, and the mother’s denials and evasions make it all the harder for the narrator to make any sense of her own experience (156). A fear of becoming fat haunts all of the family on her mother’s side (137, 240-1); the father, conversely, is figured in terms of excess (22). When the two grandmothers care for the narrator, behind their contradictory attentions towards the young Hornbacher—one to put her on a diet, the other to feed her up (24)—lies a dearth of biographical material. The narrator’s attempts to make sense of her predicament, where her assertion, “there were no events in my life that were overly traumatic” (195), sounds the edges of this void and only serves to signal that this discomforting contested empty space is traversed, as Punter might suggest, by “the hidden narrative of abuse” (Pathologies 15). Certainly the vague awareness of a great-grandmother who, “a hefty person, was mocked” (98) hints at the kind of emotional trauma that might be considered too abject to be remembered. Punter observes that in the Gothic we are in the wake of the effects of events that we cannot know have even happened (Pathologies 208), and the remains of history that assault us “are not to be obviously or readily learned from; for they are the remains of the body, they are the imaginary products of vulnerability and fragility, they are the ‘remains’ of that which still ‘remains to us’; or not” (Pathologies 12). Hornbacher’s sense of disassociation from her self as a body, and the specificity of her own feelings, which she is only ever able to describe as “pissed or fine” (203), evokes an over-smooth shell, like the idealised images of thinspiration that both belie and reveal their anxious nether sides. Even at the conclusion of the memoir, the narrator still does not “yet” know what it might mean for her to be “well” or “normal” (283). Hornbacher writes: “I always had this mental image of me, spilling out of the shell of my skin, flooding the room with tears” (25). In eating disorders, the self, which has never been whole and entire, or self-regulated in Skårderud’s terms, struggles to self-regulate against the ever threatening encroachment of the abject in a way that suggests essentially Gothic scenarios; in eating disordered self-narratives like Hornbacher’s Wasted, this struggle is evident in the very Gothic dynamics of the text. Without the Gothic, which affords us a means of perceiving eating disordered subjectivity in all of its detailed and dramatic dimensions—a subjectivity that theorists to date have found difficult to grasp—neither the abjection inherent in the “spilling” nor the anxious idealisation of the very somatic sense of the ego in the “shell” in Hornbacher's statement can be, I would suggest, sufficiently understood. ReferencesAbraham, Nicolas, Maria Torok, and Nicholas T. Rand. The Shell and the Kernel: Renewals of Psychoanalysis. Tr. Nicholas T. Rand. Vol. 1, Chicago: U of Chicago P, 1994. Bordo, Susan. Unbearable Weight: Feminism, Western Culture, and the Body. Berkeley: U of California P, 1993. Bray, Abigail. “The Anorexic Body: Reading Disorders.” Cultural Studies 10.3 (1996): 413-29. Budgeon, Shelley. “Identity as an Embodied Event.” Body and Society 9.1 (2003): 35-55. Dias, Karen. “The Ana Sanctuary: Women's Pro-Anorexia Narratives in Cyberspace.” Journal of International Women's Studies 4.2 (2003): 31-45. Ferreday, Debra. “Anorexia and Abjection: A Review Essay.” Body and Society 18.2 (2012): 139-55. Goldsmith, Barbara L., and Jane C. Widseth. “Digesting Wasted.” Journal of College Student Psychotherapy 15.1 (2000): 31-34. Hogle, Jerrold E. “‘Cristabel’ as Gothic: The Abjection of Instability.” Gothic Studies 7.1 (2005): 18-28. Hogle, Jerrold E. “The Gothic Ghost of the Counterfeit and the Progress of Abjection.” A New Companion to the Gothic. Ed. David Punter. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell, 2012: 496-509. Hornbacher, Marya. Wasted: A Memoir of Anorexia and Bulimia, New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1998. Kilgour, Maggie. The Rise of the Gothic Novel. London: Routledge, 1995. MacDonald, Marianne. “Her Parents Always Argued at Meal Times. So, Perched in Her High Chair, She Decided Not to Eat. At all. Marianne MacDonald reviews Wasted: Coming Back from an Addiction to Starvation.” The Observer: Books, 22 Mar. 1998: 016. Malson, Helen. “Womæn under Erasure: Anorexic Bodies in Postmodern Context.” Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology 9.2 (1999): 137-53. Orbach, Susie. Bodies. London: Profile Books, 2009. Orbach, Susie. Hunger Strike: The Anorectic’s Struggle as a Metaphor for Our Age. New York: Norton, 1986. Punter, David. Gothic Pathologies: The Text, the Body and the Law. Houndsmill: MacMillan P, 1998. Punter, David. Introduction. A New Companion to the Gothic. Ed. David Punter. Chichester: Wiley- Blackwell, 2012: 1-9. Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus (the 1818 Text). Ed. James Rieger. Indianapolis: Bobbs-Merrill, 1974. Skårderud, Finn. “Bruch Revisited and Revised.” European Eating Disorders Review 17.2 (2009): 83-88. Warin, Megan. Abject Relations: Everyday Worlds of Anorexia. New Brunswick: Rutgers U P, 2010. Zitin, Abigail. “The Hungry Mind.” The Village Voice: Books, 3 Feb. 1998: 135.
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Dutton, Jacqueline. "Counterculture and Alternative Media in Utopian Contexts: A Slice of Life from the Rainbow Region." M/C Journal 17, no. 6 (November 3, 2014). http://dx.doi.org/10.5204/mcj.927.
Full textAbstract:
Introduction Utopia has always been countercultural, and ever since technological progress has allowed, utopia has been using alternative media to promote and strengthen its underpinning ideals. In this article, I am seeking to clarify the connections between counterculture and alternative media in utopian contexts to demonstrate their reciprocity, then draw together these threads through reference to a well-known figure of the Rainbow Region–Rusty Miller. His trajectory from iconic surfer and Aquarian reporter to mediator for utopian politics and ideals in the Rainbow Region encompasses in a single identity the three elements underpinning this study. In concluding, I will turn to Rusty’s Byron Guide, questioning its classification as alternative or mainstream media, and whether Byron Bay is represented as countercultural and utopian in this long-running and ongoing publication. Counterculture and Alternative Media in Utopian Contexts Counterculture is an umbrella that enfolds utopia, among many other genres and practices. It has been most often situated in the 1960s and 1970s as a new form of social movement embodying youth resistance to the technocratic mainstream and its norms of gender, sexuality, politics, music, and language (Roszak). Many scholars of counterculture underscore its utopian impulses both in the projection of better societies where the social goals are achieved, and in the withdrawal from mainstream society into intentional communities (Yinger 194-6; McKay 5; Berger). Before exploring further the connections between counterculture and alternative media, I want to define the scope of countercultural utopian contexts in general, and the Rainbow Region in particular. Utopia is a neologism created by Sir Thomas More almost 500 years ago to designate the island community that demonstrates order, harmony, justice, hope and desire in the right balance so that it seems like an ideal land. This imaginary place described in Utopia (1516) as a counterpoint to the social, political and religious shortcomings of contemporary 16th century British society, has attracted accusations of heresy (Molner), and been used as a pejorative term, an insult to denigrate political projects that seem farfetched or subversive, especially during the 19th century. Almost every study of utopian theory, literature and practice points to a dissatisfaction with the status quo, which inspires writers, politicians, architects, artists, individuals and communities to rail against it (see for example Davis, Moylan, Suvin, Levitas, Jameson). Kingsley Widmer’s book Counterings: Utopian Dialectics in Contemporary Contexts reiterates what many scholars have stated when he writes that utopias should be understood in terms of what they are countering. Lyman Tower Sargent defines utopia as “a non-existent society described in considerable detail and normally located in time and space” and utopianism as “social dreaming” (9), to which I would add that both indicate an improvement on the alternatives, and may indeed be striving to represent the best place imaginable. Utopian contexts, by extension, are those situations where the “social dreaming” is enhanced through human agency, good governance, just laws, education, and work, rather than being a divinely ordained state of nature (Schaer et al). In this way, utopian contexts are explicitly countercultural through their very conception, as human agency is required and their emphasis is on social change. These modes of resistance against dominant paradigms are most evident in attempts to realise textual projections of a better society in countercultural communal experiments. Almost immediately after its publication, More’s Utopia became the model for Bishop Vasco de Quiroga’s communitarian hospital-town Santa Fe de la Laguna in Michoacan, Mexico, established in the 1530s as a counterculture to the oppressive enslavement and massacres of the Purhépecha people by Nuno Guzmán (Green). The countercultural thrust of the 1960s and 1970s provided many utopian contexts, perhaps most readily identifiable as the intentional communities that spawned and flourished, especially in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand (Metcalf, Shared Lives). They were often inspired by texts such as Charles A. Reich’s The Greening of America (1970) and Ernest Callenbach’s Ecotopia (1975), and this convergence of textual practices and alternative lifestyles can be seen in the development of Australia’s own Rainbow Region. Located in northern New South Wales, the geographical area of the Northern Rivers that has come to be known as the Rainbow Region encompasses Byron Bay, Nimbin, Mullumbimby, Bangalow, Clunes, Dunoon, Federal, with Lismore as the region’s largest town. But more evocative than these place names are the “rivers and creeks, vivid green hills, fruit and nut farms […] bounded by subtropical beaches and rainforest mountains” (Wilson 1). Utopian by nature, and recognised as such by the indigenous Bundjalung people who inhabited it before the white settlers, whalers and dairy farmers moved in, the Rainbow Region became utopian through culture–or indeed counterculture–during the 1973 Aquarius Festival in Nimbin when the hippies of Mullumbimby and the surfers of Byron Bay were joined by up to 10,000 people seeking alternative ways of being in the world. When the party was over, many Aquarians stayed on to form intentional communities in the beautiful region, like Tuntable Falls, Nimbin’s first and largest such cooperative (Metcalf, From Utopian Dreaming to Communal Reality 74-83). In utopian contexts, from the Renaissance to the 1970s and beyond, counterculture has underpinned and alternative media has circulated the aims and ideals of the communities of resistance. The early utopian context of the Anabaptist movement has been dubbed as countercultural by Sigrun Haude: “During the reign of the Münster (1534-5) Anabaptists erected not only a religious but also a social and political counterculture to the existing order” (240). And it was this Protestant Reformation that John Downing calls the first real media war, with conflicting movements using pamphlets produced on the new technology of the Gutenberg press to disseminate their ideas (144). What is striking here is the confluence of ideas and practices at this time–countercultural ideals are articulated, published, and disseminated, printing presses make this possible, and utopian activists realise how mass media can be used and abused, exploited and censored. Twentieth century countercultural movements drew on the lessons learnt from historical uprising and revolutions, understanding the importance of getting the word out through their own forms of media which, given the subversive nature of the messages, were essentially alternative, according to the criteria proposed by Chris Atton: alternative media may be understood as a radical challenge to the professionalized and institutionalized practices of the mainstream media. Alternative media privileges a journalism that is closely wedded to notions of social responsibility, replacing an ideology of “objectivity” with overt advocacy and oppositional practices. Its practices emphasize first person, eyewitness accounts by participants; a reworking of the populist approaches of tabloid newspapers to recover a “radical popular” style of reporting; collective and antihierarchical forms of organization which eschew demarcation and specialization–and which importantly suggest an inclusive, radical form of civic journalism. (267) Nick Couldry goes further to point out the utopian processes required to identify agencies of change, including alternative media, which he defines as “practices of symbolic production which contest (in some way) media power itself–that is, the concentration of symbolic power in media institutions” (25). Alternative media’s orientation towards oppositional and contestatory practices demonstrates clear parallels between its ambitions and those of counterculture in utopian contexts. From the 1960s onwards, the upsurge in alternative newspaper numbers is commensurate with the blossoming of the counterculture and increased utopian contexts; Susan Forde describes it thus: “a huge resurgence in the popularity of publications throughout the ‘counter-culture’ days of the 1960s and 1970s” (“Monitoring the Establishment”, 114). The nexus of counterculture and alternative media in such utopian contexts is documented in texts like Roger Streitmatter’s Voices of Revolution and Bob Osterlag’s People’s Movements, People’s Press. Like the utopian newspapers that came out of 18th and 19th century intentional communities, many of the new alternative press served to educate, socialise, promote and represent the special interests of the founders and followers of the countercultural movements, often focusing on the philosophy and ideals underpinning these communities rather than the everyday events (see also Frobert). The radical press in Australia was also gaining ground, with OZ in Australia from 1963-1969, and then from 1967-1973 in London. Magazines launched by Philip Frazer like The Digger, Go-Set, Revolution and High Times, and university student newspapers were the main avenues for youth and alternative expression on the Vietnam war and conscription, gay and lesbian rights, racism, feminism and ecological activism (Forde, Challenging the News; Cock & Perry). Nimbin 1973: Rusty Miller and The Byron Express The 1973 Aquarius Festival of counterculture in Nimbin (12-23 May) was a utopian context that had an alternative media life of its own before it arrived in the Rainbow Region–in student publications like Tharnuka and newsletters distributed via the Aquarius Foundation. There were other voices that announced the coming of the Aquarius Festival to Nimbin and reported on its impact, like The Digger from Melbourne and the local paper, The Northern Star. During the Festival, the Nimbin Good Times first appeared as the daily bulletin and continues today with the original masthead drawn by the Festival’s co-organiser, Graeme Dunstan. Some interesting work has been done on this area, ranging from general studies of the Rainbow Region (Wilson; Munro-Clark) to articles analysing its alternative press (Ward & van Vuuren; Martin & Ellis), but to date, there has been no focus on the Rainbow Region’s first alternative newspaper, The Byron Express. Co-edited by Rusty Miller and David Guthrie, this paper presented and mediated the aims and desires of the Aquarian movement. Though short-lived, as only 7 issues were published from 15 February 1973 to September 1973, The Byron Express left a permanent printed vestige of the Aquarian counterculture movement’s activism and ideals from an independent regional perspective. Miller’s credentials for starting up the newspaper are clear–he has always been a trailblazer, mixing “smarts” with surfing and environmental politics. After graduating from a Bachelor of Arts in history from San Diego State College, he first set foot in Byron Bay during his two semesters with the inaugural Chapman College affiliated University of the Seven Seas in 1965-6. Returning to his hometown of Encinitas, he co-founded the Surf Research accessory company with legendary Californian surfer Mike Doyle, and launched Waxmate, the first specially formulated surf wax in 1967 (Davis, Witzig & James; Warshaw 217), selling his interest in the business soon after to spend a couple of years “living the counterculture life on the Hawaiian Island of Kauai” (Davis, Witzig & James), before heading back to Byron Bay via Bells Beach in 1970 (Miller & Shantz) and Sydney, where he worked as an advertising salesman and writer with Tracks surfing magazine (Martin & Ellis). In 1971, he was one of the first to ride the now famous waves of Uluwatu in Bali, and is captured with Steven Cooney in the iconic publicity image for Albe Falzon’s 1971 film, Morning Of The Earth. The champion surfer from the US knew a thing or two about counterculture, alternative media, advertising and business when he found his new utopian context in Byron Bay. Miller and Guthrie’s front-page editorial of the inaugural issue of The Byron Express, published on 15 February 1973, with the byline “for a higher shire”, expressed the countercultural (cl)aims of the publication. Land use, property development and the lack of concern that some people in Byron had for their impact on the environment and people of the region were a prime target: With this first issue of the Byron Express, we hope to explain that the area is badly in need of a focal point. The transitions of present are vast and moving fast. The land is being sold and resold. Lots of money is coming into the area in the way of developments […] caravan parts, hotels, businesses and real estate. Many of the trips incoming are not exactly “concerned” as to what long term effect such developments might have on the environment and its people. We hope to serve as a focus of concern and service, a centre for expression and reflection. We would ask your contributions in vocal and written form. We are ready for some sock it to ya criticism… and hope you would grab us upon the street to tell us how you feel…The mission of this alternative newspaper is thereby defined by the need for a “focal point” that inscribes the voices of the community in a freely accessible narrative, recorded in print for posterity. Although this first issue contains no mention of the Aquarius Festival, there were already rumours circulating about it, as organisers Graeme Dunstan and Johnny Allen had been up to Main Arm, Mullumbimby and Nimbin on reconnaissance missions beginning in September 1972. Instead, there was an article on “Mullumbimby Man–Close to the Land” by Nicholas Shand, who would go on to found the community-based weekly newspaper The Echo in 1986, then called The Brunswick Valley Echo and still going strong. Another by Bob McTavish asked whether there could be a better form of government; there was a surf story, and a soul food section with a recipe for honey meade entitled “Do you want to get out of it on 10 cents a bottle?” The second issue continues in much the same vein. It is not until the third issue comes out on 17 March 1973 that the Aquarius Festival is mentioned in a skinny half column on page four. And it’s not particularly promising: Arrived at Nimbin, sleepy hamlet… Office in disused R.S.L. rooms, met a couple of guys recently arrived, said nothing was being done. “Only women here, you know–no drive”. Met Joanne and Vi, both unable to say anything to be reported… Graham Dunstan (codenamed Superfest) and John Allen nowhere in sight. Allen off on trip overseas. Dunstan due back in a couple of weeks. 10 weeks to go till “they” all come… and to what… nobody is quite sure. This progress report provides a fascinating contemporary insight into the tensions–between the local surfies and hippies on one hand, and the incoming students on the other–around the organisation of the Aquarius Festival. There is an unbridled barb at the sexist comments made by the guys, implicit criticism of the absent organisers, obvious skepticism about whether anyone will actually come to the festival, and wonderment at what it will be like. Reading between the lines, we might find a feeling of resentment about not being privy to new developments in their own backyard. The final lines of the article are non-committal “Anyway, let’s see what eventuates when the Chiefs return.” It seems that all has been resolved by the fifth issue of 11 May, which is almost entirely dedicated to the Aquarius Festival with the front page headline “Welcome to the New Age”. But there is still an undertone of slight suspicion at what the newcomers to the area might mean in terms of property development: The goal is improving your fellow man’s mind and nourishment in concert with your own; competition to improve your day and the quality of the day for society. Meanwhile, what is the first thing one thinks about when he enters Byron and the area? The physical environment is so magnificent and all encompassing that it can actually hold a man’s breath back a few seconds. Then a man says, “Wow, this land is so beautiful that one could make a quid here.” And from that moment the natural aura and spells are broken and the mind lapses into speculative equations, sales projections and future interest payments. There is plenty of “love” though, in this article: “The gathering at Nimbin is the most spectacular demonstration of the faith people have in a belief that is possible (and possible just because they want it to be) to live in love, through love together.” The following article signed by Rusty Miller “A Town Together” is equally focused on love: “See what you could offer the spirit at Nimbin. It might introduce you to a style that could lead to LOVE.” The centre spread features photos: the obligatory nudes, tents, and back to nature activities, like planting and woodworking. With a text box of “random comments” including one from a Lismore executive: ‘I took my wife and kids out there last weekend and we had such a good time. Seems pretty organized and the town was loaded with love. Heard there is some hepatitis about and rumours of VD. Everyone happy.” And another from a land speculator (surely the prime target of Miller’s wrath): “Saw guys kissing girls on the street, so sweet, bought 200 acres right outside of town, it’s going to be valuable out there some day.” The interview with Johnny Allen as the centrepiece includes some pertinent commentary on the media and reveals a well-founded suspicion of the mediatisation of the Aquarius Festival: We have tried to avoid the media actually. But we haven’t succeeded in doing so. Part of the basic idea is that we don’t need to be sold. All the down town press can do is try and interpret you. And by doing that it automatically places it in the wrong sort of context. So we’ve tried to keep it to people writing about the festival to people who will be involved in it. It’s an involvement festival. Coopting The Byron Express as an “involved” party effects a fundamental shift from an external reporting newspaper to a kind of proponent or even propaganda for the Aquarius festival and its ideas, like so many utopian newspapers had done before. It is therefore perhaps inevitable that The Byron Express should disappear very soon after the Aquarius festival. Fiona Martin and Rhonda Ellis explain that Rusty Miller stopped producing the paper because he “found the production schedule exhausting and his readership too small to attract consistent advertising” (5). At any rate, there were only two more issues, one in June–with some follow up reporting of the festival–and another in September 1973, which was almost entirely devoted to environmentally focused features, including an interview with Kath Walker (Oodgeroo Noonuccal). Byron Bay 2013: Thirty Years of Rusty’s Byron Guide What Rusty did next is fairly well known locally–surfing and teaching people how to surf and a bit of writing. When major local employer Walkers slaughterhouse closed in 1983, he and his wife, social geographer Tricia Shantz, were asked by the local council to help promote Byron Bay as a tourist destination, writing the first Byron guide in 1983-4. Incorporating essays by local personalities and dedicated visitors, the Byron guide perpetuates the ideal of environmental awareness, spiritual experimentation, and respect for the land and sea. Recent contributors have included philosopher Peter Singer, political journalist Kerry O’Brien, and writer John Ralston Saul, and Miller and Shantz always have an essay in there themselves. “People, Politics and Culture” is the new byline for the 2013 edition. And Miller’s opening essay mediates the same utopian desires and environmental community messages that he espoused from the beginning of The Byron Express: The name Byron Bay represents something that we constantly try to articulate. If one was to dream up a menu of situations and conditions to compose a utopia, Australia would be the model of the nation-state and Byron would have many elements of the actual place one might wish to live for the rest of their lives. But of course there is always the danger of excesses in tropical paradises especially when they become famous destinations. Australia is being held to ransom for the ideology that we should be slaves to money and growth at the cost of a degraded and polluted physical and social environment. Byron at least was/is a refuge against this profusion of the so-called real-world perception that holds profit over environment as the way we must choose for our future. Even when writing for a much more commercial medium, Miller retains the countercultural utopian spirit that was crystallised in the Aquarius festival of 1973, and which remains relevant to many of those living in and visiting the Rainbow Region. Miller’s ethos moves beyond the alternative movements and communities to infiltrate travel writing and tourism initiatives in the area today, as evidenced in the Rusty’s Byron Guide essays. By presenting more radical discourses for a mainstream public, Miller together with Shantz have built on the participatory role that he played in launching the region’s first alternative newspaper in 1973 that became albeit briefly the equivalent of a countercultural utopian gazette. Now, he and Shantz effectively play the same role, producing a kind of countercultural form of utopian media for Byron Bay that corresponds to exactly the same criteria mentioned above. Through their free publication, they aim to educate, socialise, promote and represent the special interests of the founders and followers of the Rainbow Region, focusing on the philosophy and ideals underpinning these communities rather than the everyday events. The Byron Bay that Miller and Shantz promote is resolutely utopian, and certainly countercultural if compared to other free publications like The Book, a new shopping guide, or mainstream media elsewhere. Despite this new competition, they are planning the next edition for 2015 with essays to make people think, talk, and understand the region’s issues, so perhaps the counterculture is still holding its own against the mainstream. References Atton, Chris. “What Is ‘Alternative’ Journalism?” Journalism: Theory, Practice, Criticism 4.3 (2003): 267-72. Berger, Bennett M. The Survival of a Counterculture: Ideological Work and Everyday Life among Rural Communards. New Brunswick: Transaction Publishers, 2004. Cock, Peter H., & Paul F. Perry. “Australia's Alternative Media.” Media Information Australia 6 (1977): 4-13. Couldry, Nick. “Mediation and Alternative Media, or Relocating the Centre of Media and Communication Studies.” Media International Australia, Incorporating Culture & Policy 103, (2002): 24-31. Davis, Dale, John Witzig & Don James. “Rusty Miller.” Encyclopedia of Surfing. 10 Nov. 2014 ‹http://encyclopediaofsurfing.com/entries/miller-rusty›. Downing, John. Radical Media: Rebellious Communication and Social Movements. Thousand Oaks: Sage. Davis, J.C. Utopia and the Ideal Society: A Study of English Utopian Writing 1516-1700. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 1983. Forde, Susan. Challenging the News: The Journalism of Alternative and Independent Media. Palgrave Macmillan: London, 2011. ---. “Monitoring the Establishment: The Development of the Alternative Press in Australia” Media International Australia, Incorporating Culture & Policy 87 (May 1998): 114-133. Frobert, Lucien. “French Utopian Socialists as the First Pioneers in Development.” Cambridge Journal of Economics 35 (2011): 729-49. Green, Toby. Thomas More’s Magician: A Novel Account of Utopia in Mexico. London: Phoenix, 2004. Goffman, Ken, & Dan Joy. Counterculture through the Ages: From Abraham to Acid House. New York: Villard Books. 2004. Haude, Sigrun. “Anabaptism.” The Reformation World. Ed. Andrew Pettegree. London: Routledge, 2000. 237-256. Jameson, Fredric. Archeologies of the Future: The Desire Called Utopia and Other Science Fictions. New York: Verso, 2005. Levitas, Ruth. Utopia as Method. London: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013. Martin, Fiona, & Rhonda Ellis. “Dropping In, Not Out: The Evolution of the Alternative Press in Byron Shire 1970-2001.” Transformations 2 (2002). 10 Nov. 2014 ‹http://www.transformationsjournal.org/journal/issue_02/pdf/MartinEllis.pdf›. McKay, George. Senseless Acts of Beauty: Cultures of Resistance since the Sixties. London: Verso, 1996. Metcalf, Bill. From Utopian Dreaming to Communal Reality: Cooperative Lifestyles in Australia. Sydney: University of New South Wales Press, 1995. ---. Shared Visions, Shared Lives: Communal Living around the Globe. Forres, UK: Findhorn Press, 1996. Miller, Rusty & Tricia Shantz. Turning Point: Surf Portraits and Stories from Bells to Byron 1970-1971. Surf Research. 2012. Molnar, Thomas. Utopia: The Perennial Heresy. London: Tom Stacey, 1972. Moylan, Tom. Demand the Impossible: Science Fiction and the Utopian Imagination. New York: Methuen, 1986. Munro-Clark, Margaret. Communes in Rural Australia: The Movement since 1970. Sydney: Hale & Iremonger, 1986. Osterlag, Bob. People’s Movements, People’s Press: The Journalism of Social Justice Movements. Boston: Beacon Press, 2006. Roszak, Theodore. The Making of a Counter Culture: Reflections on the Technocratic Society and Its Youthful Opposition. New York: Anchor, 1969. Sargent, Lyman Tower. “Three Faces of Utopianism Revisited.” Utopian Studies 5.1 (1994): 1-37. Schaer, Roland, Gregory Claeys, and Lyman Tower Sargent, eds. Utopia: The Search for the Ideal Society in the Western World. New York: New York Public Library/Oxford UP, 2000. Streitmatter, Roger. Voices of Revolution: The Dissident Press in America. Columbia: Columbia UP, 2001. Suvin, Darko. Metamorphoses of Science Fiction: On the Poetics and History of a Literary Genre. New Haven: Yale UP, 1979. Ward, Susan, & Kitty van Vuuren. “Belonging to the Rainbow Region: Place, Local Media, and the Construction of Civil and Moral Identities Strategic to Climate Change Adaptability.” Environmental Communication 7.1 (2013): 63-79. Warshaw, Matt. The History of Surfing. San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 2011. Wilson, Helen. (Ed.). Belonging in the Rainbow Region: Cultural Perspectives on the NSW North Coast. Lismore, NSW: Southern Cross University Press, 2003. Widmer, Kingsley. Counterings: Utopian Dialectics in Contemporary Contexts. Ann Arbor, London: UMI Research Press, 1988. Yinger, J. Milton. 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Chavdarov, Anatoliy V. "Special Issue No. – 10, June, 2020 Journal > Special Issue > Special Issue No. – 10, June, 2020 > Page 5 “Quantative Methods in Modern Science” organized by Academic Paper Ltd, Russia MORPHOLOGICAL AND ANATOMICAL FEATURES OF THE GENUS GAGEA SALISB., GROWING IN THE EAST KAZAKHSTAN REGION Authors: Zhamal T. Igissinova,Almash A. Kitapbayeva,Anargul S. Sharipkhanova,Alexander L. Vorobyev,Svetlana F. Kolosova,Zhanat K. Idrisheva, DOI: https://doi.org/10.26782/jmcms.spl.10/2020.06.00041 Abstract: Due to ecological preferences among species of the genus GageaSalisb, many plants are qualified as rare and/or endangered. Therefore, the problem of rational use of natural resources, in particular protection of early spring plant species is very important. However, literary sources analysis only reveals data on the biology of species of this genus. The present research,conducted in the spring of 2017-2019, focuses on anatomical and morphological features of two Altai species: Gagealutea and Gagea minima; these features were studied, clarified and confirmed by drawings and photographs. The anatomical structure of the stem and leaf blade was studied in detail. The obtained research results will prove useful for studies of medicinal raw materials and honey plants. The aforementioned species are similar in morphological features, yet G. minima issmaller in size, and its shoots appear earlier than those of other species Keywords: Flora,gageas,Altai species,vegetative organs., Refference: I. Atlas of areas and resources of medicinal plants of Kazakhstan.Almaty, 2008. II. Baitenov M.S. Flora of Kazakhstan.Almaty: Ġylym, 2001. III. DanilevichV. G. ThegenusGageaSalisb. of WesternTienShan. PhD Thesis, St. Petersburg,1996. IV. EgeubaevaR.A., GemedzhievaN.G. The current state of stocks of medicinal plants in some mountain ecosystems of Kazakhstan.Proceedings of the international scientific conference ‘”Results and prospects for the development of botanical science in Kazakhstan’, 2002. V. Kotukhov Yu.A. New species of the genus Gagea (Liliaceae) from Southern Altai. Bot. Journal.1989;74(11). VI. KotukhovYu.A. ListofvascularplantsofKazakhstanAltai. Botan. Researches ofSiberiaandKazakhstan.2005;11. VII. KotukhovYu. The current state of populations of rare and endangered plants in Eastern Kazakhstan. Almaty: AST, 2009. VIII. Kotukhov Yu.A., DanilovaA.N., AnufrievaO.A. Synopsisoftheonions (AlliumL.) oftheKazakhstanAltai, Sauro-ManrakandtheZaisandepression. BotanicalstudiesofSiberiaandKazakhstan. 2011;17: 3-33. IX. Kotukhov, Yu.A., Baytulin, I.O. Rareandendangered, endemicandrelictelementsofthefloraofKazakhstanAltai. MaterialsoftheIntern. scientific-practical. conf. ‘Sustainablemanagementofprotectedareas’.Almaty: Ridder, 2010. X. Krasnoborov I.M. et al. The determinant of plants of the Republic of Altai. Novosibirsk: SB RAS, 2012. XI. Levichev I.G. On the species status of Gagea Rubicunda. Botanical Journal.1997;6:71-76. XII. Levichev I.G. A new species of the genus Gagea (Liliaceae). Botanical Journal. 2000;7: 186-189. XIII. Levichev I.G., Jangb Chang-gee, Seung Hwan Ohc, Lazkovd G.A.A new species of genus GageaSalisb.(Liliaceae) from Kyrgyz Republic (Western Tian Shan, Chatkal Range, Sary-Chelek Nature Reserve). Journal of Asia-Pacific Biodiversity.2019; 12: 341-343. XIV. Peterson A., Levichev I.G., Peterson J. Systematics of Gagea and Lloydia (Liliaceae) and infrageneric classification of Gagea based on molecular and morphological data. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution.2008; 46. XV. Peruzzi L., Peterson A., Tison J.-M., Peterson J. Phylogenetic relationships of GageaSalisb.(Liliaceae) in Italy, inferred from molecular and morphological data matrices. Plant Systematics and Evolution; 2008: 276. XVI. Rib R.D. Honey plants of Kazakhstan. Advertising Digest, 2013. XVII. Scherbakova L.I., Shirshikova N.A. Flora of medicinal plants in the vicinity of Ust-Kamenogorsk. Collection of materials of the scientific-practical conference ‘Unity of Education, Science and Innovation’. Ust-Kamenogorsk: EKSU, 2011. XVIII. syganovA.P. PrimrosesofEastKazakhstan. Ust-Kamenogorsk: EKSU, 2001. XIX. Tsyganov A.P. Flora and vegetation of the South Altai Tarbagatay. Berlin: LAP LAMBERT,2014. XX. Utyasheva, T.R., Berezovikov, N.N., Zinchenko, Yu.K. ProceedingsoftheMarkakolskStateNatureReserve. Ust-Kamenogorsk, 2009. XXI. Xinqi C, Turland NJ. Gagea. Flora of China.2000;24: 117-121. XXII. Zarrei M., Zarre S., Wilkin P., Rix E.M. Systematic revision of the genus GageaSalisb. (Liliaceae) in Iran.BotJourn Linn Soc.2007;154. XXIII. Zarrei M., Wilkin P., Ingroille M.J., Chase M.W. A revised infrageneric classification for GageaSalisb. (Tulipeae; Liliaceae): insights from DNA sequence and morphological data.Phytotaxa.2011:5. View | Download INFLUENCE OF SUCCESSION CROPPING ON ECONOMIC EFFICIENCY OF NO-TILL CROP ROTATIONS Authors: Victor K. Dridiger,Roman S. Stukalov,Rasul G. Gadzhiumarov,Anastasiya A. Voropaeva,Viktoriay A. Kolomytseva, DOI: https://doi.org/10.26782/jmcms.spl.10/2020.06.00042 Abstract: This study was aimed at examining the influence of succession cropping on the economic efficiency of no-till field crop rotations on the black earth in the zone of unstable moistening of the Stavropol krai. A long-term stationary experiment was conducted to examine for the purpose nine field crop rotation patterns different in the number of fields (four to six), set of crops, and their succession in crop rotation. The respective shares of legumes, oilseeds, and cereals in the cropping pattern were 17 to 33, 17 to 40, and 50 to 67 %. It has been established that in case of no-till field crop cultivation the economic efficiency of plant production depends on the set of crops and their succession in rotation. The most economically efficient type of crop rotation is the soya-winter wheat-peas-winter wheat-sunflower-corn six-field rotation with two fields of legumes: in this rotation 1 ha of crop rotation area yields 3 850 grain units per ha at a grain unit prime cost of 5.46 roubles; the plant production output return and profitability were 20,888 roubles per ha and 113 %, respectively. The high production profitabilities provided by the soya-winter wheat-sunflower four-field and the soya-winter-wheat-sunflower-corn-winter wheat five-field crop rotation are 108.7 and 106.2 %, respectively. The inclusion of winter wheat in crop rotation for two years in a row reduces the second winter wheat crop yield by 80 to 100 %, which means a certain reduction in the grain unit harvesting rate to 3.48-3.57 thousands per ha of rotation area and cuts the production profitability down to 84.4-92.3 %. This is why, no-till cropping should not include winter wheat for a second time Keywords: No-till technology,crop rotation,predecessor,yield,return,profitability, Refference: I Badakhova G. Kh. and Knutas A. V., Stavropol Krai: Modern Climate Conditions [Stavropol’skiykray: sovremennyyeklimaticheskiyeusloviya]. Stavropol: SUE Krai Communication Networks, 2007. II Cherkasov G. N. and Akimenko A. S. Scientific Basis of Modernization of Crop Rotations and Formation of Their Systems according to the Specializations of Farms in the Central Chernozem Region [Osnovy moderniz atsiisevooborotoviformirovaniyaikh sistem v sootvetstvii so spetsi-alizatsiyeykhozyaystvTsentral’nogoChernozem’ya]. Zemledelie. 2017; 4: 3-5. III Decree 330 of July 6, 2017 the Ministry of Agriculture of Russia “On Approving Coefficients of Converting to Agricultural Crops to Grain Units [Ob utverzhdeniikoeffitsiyentovperevoda v zernovyyee dinitsysel’s kokhozyaystvennykhkul’tur]. IV Dridiger V. K., About Methods of Research of No-Till Technology [O metodikeissledovaniytekhnologii No-till]//Achievements of Science and Technology of AIC (Dostizheniyanaukiitekhniki APK). 2016; 30 (4): 30-32. V Dridiger V. K. and Gadzhiumarov R. G. Growth, Development, and Productivity of Soya Beans Cultivated On No-Till Technology in the Zone of Unstable Moistening of Stavropol Region [Rost, razvitiyeiproduktivnost’ soiprivozdelyvaniipotekhnologii No-till v zone ne-ustoychivog ouvlazhneniyaStavropol’skogokraya]//Oil Crops RTBVNIIMK (Maslichnyyekul’turyNTBVNIIMK). 2018; 3 (175): 52–57. VI Dridiger V. K., Godunova E. I., Eroshenko F. V., Stukalov R. S., Gadzhiumarov, R. G., Effekt of No-till Technology on erosion resistance, the population of earthworms and humus content in soil (Vliyaniyetekhnologii No-till naprotivoerozionnuyuustoychivost’, populyatsiyudozhdevykhcherveyisoderzhaniyegumusa v pochve)//Research Journal of Pharmaceutical, Biological and Chemical Sciences. 2018; 9 (2): 766-770. VII Karabutov A. P., Solovichenko V. D., Nikitin V. V. et al., Reproduction of Soil Fertility, Productivity and Energy Efficiency of Crop Rotations [Vosproizvodstvoplodorodiyapochv, produktivnost’ ienergeticheskayaeffektivnost’ sevooborotov]. Zemledelie. 2019; 2: 3-7. VIII Kulintsev V. V., Dridiger V. K., Godunova E. I., Kovtun V. I., Zhukova M. P., Effekt of No-till Technology on The Available Moisture Content and Soil Density in The Crop Rotation [Vliyaniyetekhnologii No-till nasoderzhaniyedostupnoyvlagiiplotnost’ pochvy v sevoob-orote]// Research Journal of Pharmaceutical, Biological and Chemical Sciences. 2017; 8 (6): 795-99. IX Kulintsev V. V., Godunova E. I., Zhelnakova L. I. et al., Next-Gen Agriculture System for Stavropol Krai: Monograph [SistemazemledeliyanovogopokoleniyaStavropol’skogokraya: Monogtafiya]. Stavropol: AGRUS Publishers, Stavropol State Agrarian University, 2013. X Lessiter Frank, 29 reasons why many growers are harvesting higher no-till yields in their fields than some university scientists find in research plots//No-till Farmer. 2015; 44 (2): 8. XI Rodionova O. A. Reproduction and Exchange-Distributive Relations in Farming Entities [Vosproizvodstvoiobmenno-raspredelitel’nyyeotnosheniya v sel’skokhozyaystvennykhorganizatsiyakh]//Economy, Labour, and Control in Agriculture (Ekonomika, trud, upravleniye v sel’skomkhozyaystve). 2010; 1 (2): 24-27. XII Sandu I. S., Svobodin V. A., Nechaev V. I., Kosolapova M. V., and Fedorenko V. F., Agricultural Production Efficiency: Recommended Practices [Effektivnost’ sel’skokhozyaystvennogoproizvodstva (metodicheskiyerekomendatsii)]. Moscow: Rosinforagrotech, 2013. XIII Sotchenko V. S. Modern Corn Cultivation Technologies [Sovremennayatekhnologiyavozdelyvaniya]. Moscow: Rosagrokhim, 2009. View | Download DEVELOPMENT AND TESTING OF AUTONOMOUS PORTABLE SEISMOMETER DESIGNED FOR USE AT ULTRALOW TEMPERATURES IN ARCTIC ENVIRONMENT Authors: Mikhail A. Abaturov,Yuriy V. Sirotinskiy, DOI: https://doi.org/10.26782/jmcms.spl.10/2020.06.00043 Abstract: This paper is concerned with solving one of the issues of the general problem of designing geophysical equipment for the natural climatic environment of the Arctic. The relevance of the topic has to do with an increased global interest in this region. The paper is aimed at considering the basic principles of developing and the procedure of testing seismic instruments for use at ultralow climatic temperatures. In this paper the indicated issue is considered through the example of a seismic module designed for petroleum and gas exploration by passive seismoacoustic methods. The seismic module is a direct-burial portable unit of around 5 kg in weight, designed to continuously measure and record microseismic triaxial orthogonal (ZNE) noise in a range from 0.1 to 45 Hz during several days in autonomous mode. The functional chart of designing the seismic module was considered, and concrete conclusions were made for choosing the necessary components to meet the ultralow-temperature operational requirements. The conclusions made served for developing appropriate seismic module. In this case, the components and tools used included a SAFT MP 176065 xc low-temperature lithium cell, industrial-spec electronic component parts, a Zhaofeng Geophysical ZF-4.5 Chinese primary electrodynamic seismic sensor, housing seal parts made of frost-resistant silicone materials, and finely dispersed silica gel used as water-retaining sorbent to avoid condensation in the housing. The paper also describes a procedure of low-temperature collation tests at the lab using a New Brunswick Scientific freezing plant. The test results proved the operability of the developed equipment at ultralow temperatures down to -55°C. In addition, tests were conducted at low microseismic noises in the actual Arctic environment. The possibility to detect signals in a range from 1 to 10 Hz at the level close to the NLNM limit (the Peterson model) has been confirmed, which allows monitoring and exploring petroleum and gas deposits by passive methods. As revealed by this study, the suggested approaches are efficient in developing high-precision mobile seismic instruments for use at ultralow climatic temperatures. The solution of the considered instrumentation and methodical issues is of great practical significance as a constituent of the generic problem of Arctic exploration. Keywords: Seismic instrumentation,microseismic monitoring,Peterson model,geological exploration,temperature ratings,cooling test, Refference: I. AD797: Ultralow Distortion, Ultralow Noise Op Amp, Analog Devices, Inc., Data Sheet (Rev. K). Analog Devices, Inc. URL: https://www.analog.com/media/en/technical-documentation/data-sheets/AD797.pdf(Date of access September 2, 2019). II. Agafonov, V. M., Egorov, I. V., and Shabalina, A. S. Operating Principles and Technical Characteristics of a Small-Sized Molecular–Electronic Seismic Sensor with Negative Feedback [Printsipyraboty I tekhnicheskiyekharakteristikimalogabaritnogomolekulyarno-elektronnogoseysmodatchika s otritsatel’noyobratnoysvyaz’yu]. SeysmicheskiyePribory (Seismic Instruments). 2014; 50 (1): 1–8. DOI: 10.3103/S0747923914010022. III. Antonovskaya, G., Konechnaya, Ya.,Kremenetskaya, E., Asming, V., Kvaema, T., Schweitzer, J., Ringdal, F. Enhanced Earthquake Monitoring in the European Arctic. Polar Science. 2015; 1 (9): 158-167. 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Chao Xu, Junbo Wang, Deyong Chen, Jian Chen, Bowen Liu, Wenjie Qi, XichenZheng, Hua Wei, Guoqing Zhang. The Electrochemical Seismometer Based on a Novel Designed.Sensing Electrode for Undersea Exploration. 20th International Conference on Solid-State Sensors, Actuators and Microsystems &Eurosensors XXXIII (TRANSDUCERS &EUROSENSORS XXXIII). IEEE, 2019. DOI: 10.1109/TRANSDUCERS.2019.8808450. VIII. Chebotareva, I. Ya. New algorithms of emission tomography for passive seismic monitoring of a producing hydrocarbon deposit: Part I. Algorithms of processing and numerical simulation [Novyye algoritmyemissionnoyto mografiidlyapassivnogoseysmicheskogomonitoringarazrabatyvayemykhmestorozhdeniyuglevodorodov. Chast’ I: Algoritmyobrabotki I chislennoyemodelirovaniye]. FizikaZemli. 2010; 46(3):187-98. DOI: 10.1134/S106935131003002X IX. Danilov, A. V. and Konechnaya, Ya. V. Analytical comparison of seismic instruments for stationary surveys in the Arctic [Sravnitel’nyyanalizseysmicheskoyapparaturydlyastatsionarnykhnablyudeniy v Arktike]. DSYS. URL: https://dsys.ru/upload/id254_docPDF_FranzJosefLand.pdf(Date of access September 2, 2019). X. Dew point temperature calculator. Maple Tech. International LLC. URL: https://www.calculator.net/dew-point-calculator.html?airtemperature=20&airtemperatureunit=celsius&humidity=0.34&dewpoint=&dewpointunit=celsius&x=51&y=14(Date of access September 2, 2019). XI. Frolov, A. S. Matching of wave fields recorded by different geophysical receivers [Soglasovaniyevolnovykhpoley, poluchennykh s primeneniyemrazlichnoyregistriruyushcheyapparatury]. Abstracts IX International scientific and technical conference competition of young specialists “Geophysics-2013”. Saint-Petersburg: Gubkin University, 2013. URL: https://www.gubkin.ru/faculty/geology_and_geophysics/chairs_and_departments/exploration_geophysics_and_computers_systems/files/2013_SPb_Frolov.pdf. (Date of access September 2, 2019). XII. Gibbons, S. J., Asming, V., Fedorov, A., Fyen, J., Kero, J., Kozlovskaya, E., Kværna, T., Liszka, L., Näsholm, S.P., Raita, T., Roth, M., Tiira, T., Vinogradov, Yu. The European Arctic: A laboratory for seismoacoustic studies. Seism. Res. Letters. 2015; 86 (3): 917–928. XIII. GOST 8.395-80. State system for ensuring the uniformity of measurements. Reference conditions of measurements while calibrating. General requirements [Gosudarstvennayasistemaobespecheniyaedinstvaizmereniy. Normal’nyyeusloviyaizmereniypripoverke. Obshchiyetrebovaniya]. Moscow: Standartinform, 2008. URL: http://gostrf.com/normadata/1/4294821/4294821960.pdf (Date of access September 2, 2019). XIV. Guralp 6TD. Operators’ Guide. Document Number: MAN-T60-0002, Issue J: April, 2017. Guralp Systems Limited. 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Passive seismic tomography: A passive concept actively evolving. First Break. 2012; 30 (7): 83-90. XXII. Matveev, I. V. and Matveeva, N. V. Portable seismic recorder “SEISAR-5” with very low energy consumption for autonomous work in harsh climatic conditions [Portativnyyseysmicheskiyregistrator «Seysar-5» s ochen’ nizkimenergopotrebleniyemdlyaavtonomnoyraboty v slozhnykhklimatic heskikhusloviyakh]. Nauka I tekhnologicheskierazrabotki (Science and Technological Developments). 2017; 96 (3): 33-40. [Special Issue “Applied Geophysics: New Developments and Results. Part 1. Seismology and Seismic Exploration]. DOI: 10.21455/std2017.3-3. XXIII. Mishra, R. The Temperature Ratings of Electronic Parts.Electronics Cooling magazine. URL: http://www.electronics-cooling.com/2004/02/the-temperature-ratings-of-electronic-parts(Date of access September 2, 2019). XXIV. Moore, Sue E.; Stabeno, Phyllis J.; Van Pelt, Thomas I. The Synthesis of Arctic Research (SOAR) project. 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View | Download COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF RESULTS OF TREATMENT OF PATIENTS WITH FOOT PATHOLOGY WHO UNDERWENT WEIL OPEN OSTEOTOMY BY CLASSICAL METHOD AND WITHOUT STEOSYNTHESIS Authors: Yuriy V. Lartsev,Dmitrii A. Rasputin,Sergey D. Zuev-Ratnikov,Pavel V.Ryzhov,Dmitry S. Kudashev,Anton A. Bogdanov, DOI: https://doi.org/10.26782/jmcms.spl.10/2020.06.00044 Abstract: The article considers the problem of surgical correction of the second metatarsal bone length. The article analyzes the results of treatment of patients with excess length of the second metatarsal bones that underwent osteotomy with and without osteosynthesis. The results of treatment of patients who underwent metatarsal shortening due to classical Weil-osteotomy with and without osteosynthesis were analyzed. The first group consisted of 34 patients. They underwent classical Weil osteotomy. The second group included 44 patients in whomosteotomy of the second metatarsal bone were not by the screw. When studying the results of the treatment in the immediate postoperative period, weeks 6, 12, slightly better results were observed in patients of the first group, while one year after surgical treatment the results in both groups were comparable. One year after surgical treatment, there were 2.9% (1 patient) of unsatisfactory results in the first group and 4.5% (2 patients) in the second group. Considering the comparability of the results of treatment in remote postoperative period, the choice of concrete method remains with the operating surgeon. Keywords: Flat feet,hallux valgus,corrective osteotomy,metatarsal bones, Refference: I. A novel modification of the Stainsby procedure: surgical technique and clinical outcome [Text] / E. Concannon, R. MacNiocaill, R. Flavin [et al.] // Foot Ankle Surg. – 2014. – Dec., Vol. 20(4). – P. 262–267. II. Accurate determination of relative metatarsal protrusion with a small intermetatarsal angle: a novel simplified method [Text] / L. Osher, M.M. Blazer, S. Buck [et al.] // J. Foot Ankle Surg. – 2014. – Sep.-Oct., Vol. 53(5). – P. 548–556. III. Argerakis, N.G. The radiographic effects of the scarf bunionectomy on rearfoot alignment [Text] / N.G. Argerakis, L.Jr. Weil, L.S. Sr. Weil // Foot Ankle Spec. – 2015. – Apr., Vol. 8(2). – P. 89–94. IV. Bauer, T. Percutaneous forefoot surgery [Text] / T. Bauer // Orthop. Traumatol. Surg. Res. – 2014. – Feb., Vol. 100(1 Suppl.). – P. S191–S204. V. Biomechanical Evaluation of Custom Foot Orthoses for Hallux Valgus Deformity [Text] // J. Foot Ankle Surg. – 2015. – Sep.-Oct., Vol.54(5). – P. 852–855. VI. Chopra, S. Characterization of gait in female patients with moderate to severe hallux valgus deformity [Text] / S. Chopra, K. Moerenhout, X. Crevoisier // Clin. Biomech. (Bristol, Avon). – 2015. – Jul., Vol. 30(6). – P. 629–635. VII. Computer assisted planning and custom-made surgical guide for malunited pronation deformity after first metatarsophalangeal joint arthrodesis in rheumatoid arthritis: a case report [Text] / M. Hirao, S. Ikemoto, H. Tsuboi [et al.] // Comput. Aided Surg. – 2014. – Vol. 19(1-3). – P. 13–19. VIII. Correlation between static radiographic measurements and intersegmental angular measurements during gait using a multisegment foot model [Text] / D.Y. Lee, S.G. Seo, E.J. Kim [et al.] // Foot Ankle Int. – 2015. – Jan., Vol.36(1). – P. 1–10. IX. Correlative study between length of first metatarsal and transfer metatarsalgia after osteotomy of first metatarsal [Text]: [Article in Chinese] / F.Q. Zhang, B.Y. Pei, S.T. Wei [et al.] // Zhonghua Yi XueZaZhi. – 2013. – Nov. 19, Vol. 93(43). – P. 3441–3444. X. Dave, M.H. Forefoot Deformity in Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Comparison of Shod and Unshod Populations [Text] / M.H. Dave, L.W. Mason, K. Hariharan // Foot Ankle Spec. – 2015. – Oct., Vol. 8(5). – P. 378–383. XI. Does arthrodesis of the first metatarsophalangeal joint correct the intermetatarsal M1M2 angle? Analysis of a continuous series of 208 arthrodeses fixed with plates [Text] / F. Dalat, F. Cottalorda, M.H. Fessy [et al.] // Orthop. Traumatol. Surg. Res. – 2015. – Oct., Vol. 101(6). – P. 709–714. XII. Dynamic plantar pressure distribution after percutaneous hallux valgus correction using the Reverdin-Isham osteotomy [Text]: [Article in Spanish] / G. Rodríguez-Reyes, E. López-Gavito, A.I. Pérez-Sanpablo [et al.] // Rev. Invest. Clin. – 2014. – Jul., Vol. 66, Suppl. 1. – P. S79-S84. XIII. Efficacy of Bilateral Simultaneous Hallux Valgus Correction Compared to Unilateral [Text] / A.V. Boychenko, L.N. Solomin, S.G. Parfeyev [et al.] // Foot Ankle Int. – 2015. – Nov., Vol. 36(11). – P. 1339–1343. XIV. Endolog technique for correction of hallux valgus: a prospective study of 30 patients with 4-year follow-up [Text] / C. Biz, M. Corradin, I. Petretta [et al.] // J. OrthopSurg Res. – 2015. – Jul. 2, № 10. – P. 102. XV. First metatarsal proximal opening wedge osteotomy for correction of hallux valgus deformity: comparison of straight versus oblique osteotomy [Text] / S.H. Han, E.H. Park, J. Jo [et al.] // Yonsei Med. J. – 2015. – May, Vol. 56(3). – P. 744–752. XVI. Long-term outcome of joint-preserving surgery by combination metatarsal osteotomies for shortening for forefoot deformity in patients with rheumatoid arthritis [Text] / H. Niki, T. Hirano, Y. Akiyama [et al.] // Mod. Rheumatol. – 2015. – Sep., Vol. 25(5). – P. 683–638. XVII. Maceira, E. Transfer metatarsalgia post hallux valgus surgery [Text] / E. Maceira, M. Monteagudo // Foot Ankle Clin. – 2014. – Jun., Vol. 19(2). – P.285–307. XVIII. Nielson, D.L. Absorbable fixation in forefoot surgery: a viable alternative to metallic hardware [Text] / D.L. Nielson, N.J. Young, C.M. Zelen // Clin. Podiatr. Med. Surg. – 2013. – Jul., Vol. 30(3). – P. 283–293 XIX. Patient’s satisfaction after outpatient forefoot surgery: Study of 619 cases [Text] / A. Mouton, V. Le Strat, D. Medevielle [et al.] // Orthop. Traumatol. Surg. Res. – 2015. – Oct., Vol. 101(6 Suppl.). – P. S217–S220. XX. Preference of surgical procedure for the forefoot deformity in the rheumatoid arthritis patients–A prospective, randomized, internal controlled study [Text] / M. Tada, T. Koike, T. Okano [et al.] // Mod. Rheumatol. – 2015. – May., Vol. 25(3). – P.362–366. XXI. Redfern, D. Percutaneous Surgery of the Forefoot [Text] / D. Redfern, J. Vernois, B.P. Legré // Clin. Podiatr. Med. Surg. – 2015. – Jul., Vol. 32(3). – P. 291–332. XXII. Singh, D. Bullous pemphigoid after bilateral forefoot surgery [Text] / D. Singh, A. Swann // Foot Ankle Spec. – 2015. – Feb., Vol. 8(1). – P. 68–72. XXIII. Treatment of moderate hallux valgus by percutaneous, extra-articular reverse-L Chevron (PERC) osteotomy [Text] / J. Lucas y Hernandez, P. Golanó, S. Roshan-Zamir [et al.] // Bone Joint J. – 2016. – Mar., Vol. 98-B(3). – P. 365–373. XXIV. Weil, L.Jr. Scarf osteotomy for correction of hallux abducto valgus deformity [Text] / L.Jr. Weil, M. Bowen // Clin. Podiatr. Med. Surg. – 2014. – Apr., Vol.31(2). – P. 233–246. View | Download QUANTITATIVE ULTRASONOGRAPHY OF THE STOMACH AND SMALL INTESTINE IN HEALTHYDOGS Authors: Roman A. Tcygansky,Irina I. Nekrasova,Angelina N. Shulunova,Alexander I.Sidelnikov, DOI: https://doi.org/10.26782/jmcms.spl.10/2020.06.00045 Abstract: Purpose.To determine the quantitative echogenicity indicators (and their ratio) of the layers of stomach and small intestine wall in healthy dogs. Methods. A prospective 3-year study of 86 healthy dogs (aged 1-7 yrs) of different breeds and of both sexes. Echo homogeneity and echogenicity of the stomach and intestines wall were determined by the method of Silina, T.L., et al. (2010) in absolute values of average brightness levels of ultrasound image pixels using the 8-bit scale with 256 shades of gray. Results. Quantitative echogenicity indicators of the stomach and the small intestine wall in dogs were determined. Based on the numerical values characterizing echogenicity distribution in each layer of a separate structure of the digestive system, the coefficient of gastric echogenicity is determined as 1:2.4:1.1 (mucosa/submucosa/muscle layers, respectively), the coefficient of duodenum and jejunum echogenicity is determined as 1:3.5:2 and that of ileum is 1:1.8:1. Clinical significance. The echogenicity coefficient of the wall of the digestive system allows an objective assessment of the stomach and intestines wall and can serve as the basis for a quantitative assessment of echogenicity changes for various pathologies of the digestive system Keywords: Ultrasound (US),echogenicity,echogenicity coefficient,digestive system,dogs,stomach,intestines, Refference: I. Agut, A. Ultrasound examination of the small intestine in small animals // Veterinary focus. 2009.Vol. 19. No. 1. P. 20-29. II. Bull. 4.RF patent 2398513, IPC51A61B8 / 00 A61B8 / 14 (2006.01) A method for determining the homoechogeneity and the degree of echogenicity of an ultrasound image / T. Silina, S. S. Golubkov. – No. 2008149311/14; declared 12/16/2008; publ. 09/10/2010 III. Choi, M., Seo, M., Jung, J., Lee, K., Yoon, J., Chang, D., Park, RD. Evaluation of canine gastric motility with ultrasonography // J. of Veterinary Medical Science. – 2002. Vol. 64. – № 1. – P. 17-21. IV. Delaney, F., O’Brien, R.T., Waller, K.Ultrasound evaluation of small bowel thickness compared to weight in normal dogs // Veterinary Radiology and Ultrasound. 2003 Vol. 44, № 5. Р 577-580. V. Diana, A., Specchi, S., Toaldo, M.B., Chiocchetti, R., Laghi, A., Cipone, M. Contrast-enhanced ultrasonography of the small bowel in healthy cats // Veterinary Radiology and Ultrasound. – 2011. – Vol. 52, № 5. – Р. 555-559. VI. Garcia, D.A.A., Froes, T.R. Errors in abdominal ultrasonography in dogs and cats // J. of Small Animal Practice. – 2012. Vol. 53. – № 9. – P. 514-519. VII. Garcia, D.A.A., Froes, T.R. Importance of fasting in preparing dogs for abdominal ultrasound examination of specific organs // J. of Small Animal Practice. – 2014. Vol. 55. – № 12. – P. 630-634. VIII. Gaschen, L., Granger, L.A., Oubre, O., Shannon, D., Kearney, M., Gaschen, F. The effects of food intake and its fat composition on intestinal echogenicity in healthy dogs // Veterinary Radiology and Ultrasound. 2016. Vol. 57. № 5. P. 546-550 IX. Gaschen, L., Kircher, P., Stussi, A., Allenspach, K., Gaschen, F., Doherr, M., Grone, A. Comparison of ultrasonographic findings with clinical activity index (CIBDAI) and diagnosis in dogs with chronic enteropathies // Veterinary radiology and ultrasound. – 2008. – Vol. 49. – № 1. – Р. 56-64. X. Gil, E.M.U. Garcia, D.A.A. Froes, T.R. In utero development of the fetal intestine: Sonographic evaluation and correlation with gestational age and fetal maturity in dogs // Theriogenology. 2015. Vol. 84, №5. Р. 681-686. XI. Gladwin, N.E. Penninck, D.G., Webster, C.R.L. Ultrasonographic evaluation of the thickness of the wall layers in the intestinal tract of dogs // American Journal of Veterinary Research. 2014. Vol. 75, №4. Р. 349-353. XII. Gory, G., Rault, D.N., Gatel, L, Dally, C., Belli, P., Couturier, L., Cauvin, E. Ultrasonographic characteristics of the abdominal esophagus and cardia in dogs // Veterinary Radiology and Ultrasound. 2014. Vol. 55, № 5. P. 552-560. XIII. Günther, C.S. Lautenschläger, I.E., Scholz, V.B. Assessment of the inter- and intraobserver variability for sonographical measurement of intestinal wall thickness in dogs without gastrointestinal diseases | [Inter-und Intraobserver-Variabilitätbei der sonographischenBestimmung der Darmwanddicke von HundenohnegastrointestinaleErkrankungen] // Tierarztliche Praxis Ausgabe K: Kleintiere – Heimtiere. 2014. Vol. 42 №2. Р. 71-78. XIV. Hanazono, K., Fukumoto, S., Hirayama, K., Takashima, K., Yamane, Y., Natsuhori, M., Kadosawa, T., Uchide, T. Predicting Metastatic Potential of gastrointestinal stromal tumors in dog by ultrasonography // J. of Veterinary Medical Science. – 2012. Vol. 74. – № 11. – P. 1477-1482. XV. Heng, H.G., Lim, Ch.K., Miller, M.A., Broman, M.M.Prevalence and significance of an ultrasonographic colonic muscularishyperechoic band paralleling the serosal layer in dogs // Veterinary Radiology and Ultrasound. 2015. Vol. 56 № 6. P. 666-669. XVI. Ivančić, M., Mai, W. Qualitative and quantitative comparison of renal vs. hepatic ultrasonographic intensity in healthy dogs // Veterinary Radiology and Ultrasound. 2008. Vol. 49. № 4. Р. 368-373. XVII. Lamb, C.R., Mantis, P. Ultrasonographic features of intestinal intussusception in 10 dogs // J. of Small Animal Practice. – 2008. Vol. 39. – № 9. – P. 437-441. XVIII. Le Roux, A. B., Granger, L.A., Wakamatsu, N, Kearney, M.T., Gaschen, L.Ex vivo correlation of ultrasonographic small intestinal wall layering with histology in dogs // Veterinary Radiology and Ultrasound.2016. Vol. 57. № 5. P. 534-545. XIX. Nielsen, T. High-frequency ultrasound of Peyer’s patches in the small intestine of young cats / T. Nielsen [et al.] // Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery. – 2015. – Vol. 18, № 4. – Р. 303-309. XX. PenninckD.G. Gastrointestinal tract. In Nyland T.G., Mattoon J.S. (eds): Small Animal Diagnostic Ultrasound. Philadelphia: WB Saunders. 2002, 2nd ed. Р. 207-230. XXI. PenninckD.G. Gastrointestinal tract. In: PenninckD.G.,d´Anjou M.A. Atlas of Small Animal Ultrasonography. Blackwell Publishing, Iowa. 2008. Р. 281-318. XXII. Penninck, D.G., Nyland, T.G., Kerr, L.Y., Fisher, P.E. Ultrasonographic evaluation of gastrointestinal diseases in small animals // Veterinary Radiology. 1990. Vol. 31. №3. P. 134-141. XXIII. Penninck, D.G.,Webster, C.R.L.,Keating, J.H. The sonographic appearance of intestinal mucosal fibrosis in cats // Veterinary Radiology and Ultrasound. – 2010. – Vol. 51, № 4. – Р. 458-461. XXIV. Pollard, R.E.,Johnson, E.G., Pesavento, P.A., Baker, T.W., Cannon, A.B., Kass, P.H., Marks, S.L. Effects of corn oil administered orally on conspicuity of ultrasonographic small intestinal lesions in dogs with lymphangiectasia // Veterinary Radiology and Ultrasound. 2013. Vol. 54. № 4. P. 390-397. XXV. Rault, D.N., Besso, J.G., Boulouha, L., Begon, D., Ruel, Y. Significance of a common extended mucosal interface observed in transverse small intestine sonograms // Veterinary Radiology and Ultrasound. 2004. Vol. 45. №2. Р. 177-179. XXVI. Sutherland-Smith, J., Penninck, D.G., Keating, J.H., Webster, C.R.L. Ultrasonographic intestinal hyperechoic mucosal striations in dogs are associated with lacteal dilation // Veterinary Radiology and Ultrasound. – 2007. Vol. 48. – № 1. – P. 51-57. View | Download EVALUATION OF ADAPTIVE POTENTIAL IN MEDICAL STUDENTS IN THE CONTEXT OF SEASONAL DYNAMICS Authors: Larisa A. Merdenova,Elena A. Takoeva,Marina I. Nartikoeva,Victoria A. Belyayeva,Fatima S. Datieva,Larisa R. Datieva, DOI: https://doi.org/10.26782/jmcms.spl.10/2020.06.00046 Abstract: The aim of this work was to assess the functional reserves of the body to quantify individual health; adaptation, psychophysiological characteristics of the health quality of medical students in different seasons of the year. When studying the temporal organization of physiological functions, the rhythm parameters of physiological functions were determined, followed by processing the results using the Cosinor Analysis program, which reveals rhythms with an unknown period for unequal observations, evaluates 5 parameters of sinusoidal rhythms (mesor, amplitude, acrophase, period, reliability). The essence of desynchronization is the mismatch of circadian rhythms among themselves or destruction of the rhythms architectonics (instability of acrophases or their disappearance). Desynchronization with respect to the rhythmic structure of the body is of a disregulatory nature, most pronounced in pathological desynchronization. High neurotism, increased anxiety reinforces the tendency to internal desynchronization, which increases with stress. During examination stress, students experience a decrease in the stability of the temporary organization of the biosystem and the tension of adaptive mechanisms develops, which affects attention, mental performance and the quality of adaptation to the educational process. Time is shortened and the amplitude of the “initial minute” decreases, personal and situational anxiety develops, and the level of psychophysiological adaptation decreases. The results of the work are priority because they can be used in assessing quality and level of health. Keywords: Desynchronosis,biorhythms,psycho-emotional stress,mesor,acrophase,amplitude,individual minute, Refference: I. Arendt, J., Middleton, B. Human seasonal and circadian studies in Antarctica (Halley, 75_S) – General and Comparative Endocrinology. 2017: 250-259. (http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ygcen.2017.05.010). II. BalandinYu.P. A brief methodological guide on the use of the agro-industrial complex “Health Sources” / Yu.P. Balandin, V.S. Generalov, V.F. Shishlov. Ryazan, 2007. III. Buslovskaya L.K. Adaptation reactions in students at exam stress/ L.K. Buslovskaya, Yu.P. Ryzhkova. Scientific bulletin of Belgorod State University. Series: Natural Sciences. 2011;17(21):46-52. IV. Chutko L. S. Sindromjemocionalnogovygoranija – Klinicheskie I psihologicheskieaspekty./ L.S Chutko. Moscow: MEDpress-inform, 2013. V. Eroshina K., Paul Wilkinson, Martin Mackey. The role of environmental and social factors in the occurrence of diseases of the respiratory tract in children of primary school age in Moscow. Medicine. 2013:57-71. VI. Fagrell B. “Microcirculation of the Skin”. The physiology and pharmacology of the microcirculation. 2013:423. VII. Gurova O.A. Change in blood microcirculation in students throughout the day. New research. 2013; 2 (35):66-71. VIII. Khetagurova L.G. – Stress/Ed. L.G. Khetagurov. Vladikavkaz: Project-Press Publishing House, 2010. IX. Khetagurova L.G., Urumova L.T. et al. Stress (chronomedical aspects). International Journal of Experimental Education 2010; 12: 30-31. X. Khetagurova L.G., Salbiev K.D., Belyaev S.D., Datieva F.S., Kataeva M.R., Tagaeva I.R. Chronopathology (experimental and clinical aspects/ Ed. L.G. Khetagurov, K.D. Salbiev, S.D.Belyaev, F.S. Datiev, M.R. Kataev, I.R. Tagaev. Moscow: Science, 2004. XI. KlassinaS.Ya. Self-regulatory reactions in the microvasculature of the nail bed of fingers in person with psycho-emotional stress. Bulletin of new medical technologies, 2013; 2 (XX):408-412. XII. Kovtun O.P., Anufrieva E.V., Polushina L.G. Gender-age characteristics of the component composition of the body in overweight and obese schoolchildren. Medical Science and Education of the Urals. 2019; 3:139-145. XIII. Kuchieva M.B., Chaplygina E.V., Vartanova O.T., Aksenova O.A., Evtushenko A.V., Nor-Arevyan K.A., Elizarova E.S., Efremova E.N. A comparative analysis of the constitutional features of various generations of healthy young men and women in the Rostov Region. Modern problems of science and education. 2017; 5:50-59. XIV. Mathias Adamsson1, ThorbjörnLaike, Takeshi Morita – Annual variation in daily light expo-sure and circadian change of melatonin and cortisol consent rations at a northern latitude with large seasonal differences in photoperiod length – Journal of Physiological Anthropology. 2017; 36: 6 – 15. XV. Merdenova L.A., Tagaeva I.R., Takoeva E.A. Features of the study of biological rhythms in children. The results of fundamental and applied research in the field of natural and technical sciences. Materials of the International Scientific and Practical Conference. Belgorod, 2017, pp. 119-123. XVI. Ogarysheva N.V. The dynamics of mental performance as a criterion for adapting to the teaching load. Bulletin of the Samara Scientific Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences. 2014;16:5 (1): S.636-638. XVII. Pekmezovi T. Gene-environment interaction: A genetic-epidemiological approach. Journal of Medical Biochemistry. 2010;29:131-134. XVIII. Rapoport S.I., Chibisov S.M. Chronobiology and chronomedicine: history and prospects/Ed. S.M. Chibisov, S.I. Rapoport ,, M.L. Blagonravova. Chronobiology and Chronomedicine: Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia (RUDN) Press. Moscow, 2018. XIX. Roustit M., Cracowski J.L. “Non-invasive assessment of skin microvascular function in humans: an insight into methods” – Microcirculation 2012; 19 (1): 47-64. XX. Rud V.O., FisunYu.O. – References of the circadian desinchronosis in students. Ukrainian Bulletin of Psychoneurology. 2010; 18(2) (63): 74-77. XXI. Takoeva Z. A., Medoeva N. O., Berezova D. T., Merdenova L. A. et al. Long-term analysis of the results of chronomonitoring of the health of the population of North Ossetia; Vladikavkaz Medical and Biological Bulletin. 2011; 12(12,19): 32-38. XXII. Urumova L.T., Tagaeva I.R., Takoeva E.A., Datieva L.R. – The study of some health indicators of medical students in different periods of the year. Health and education in the XXI century. 2016; 18(4): 94-97. XXIII. Westman J. – Complex diseases. In: Medical genetics for the modern clinician. USA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2006. XXIV. Yadrischenskaya T.V. Circadian biorhythms of students and their importance in educational activities. Problems of higher education. Pacific State University Press. 2016; 2:176-178. View | Download TRIADIC COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS Authors: Stanislav A.Kudzh,Victor Ya. Tsvetkov, DOI: https://doi.org/10.26782/jmcms.spl.10/2020.06.00047 Abstract: The present study of comparison methods based on the triadic model introduces the following concepts: the relation of comparability and the relation of comparison, and object comparison and attributive comparison. The difference between active and passive qualitative comparison is shown, two triadic models of passive and active comparison and models for comparing two and three objects are described. Triadic comparison models are proposed as an alternative to dyadic comparison models. Comparison allows finding the common and the different; this approach is proposed for the analysis of the nomothetic and ideographic method of obtaining knowledge. The nomothetic method identifies and evaluates the general, while the ideographic method searches for unique in parameters and in combinations of parameters. Triadic comparison is used in systems and methods of argumentation, as well as in the analysis of consistency/inconsistency. Keywords: Comparative analysis,dyad,triad,triadic model,comparability relation,object comparison,attributive comparison,nomothetic method,ideographic method, Refference: I. AltafS., Aslam.M.Paired comparison analysis of the van Baarenmodel using Bayesian approach with noninformativeprior.Pakistan Journal of Statistics and Operation Research 8(2) (2012) 259{270. II. AmooreJ. E., VenstromD Correlations between stereochemical assessments and organoleptic analysis of odorous compounds. Olfaction and Taste (2016) 3{17. III. BarnesJ., KlingerR. Embedding projection for targeted cross-lingual sentiment: model comparisons and a real-world study. Journal of Artificial Intelligence Research 66 (2019) 691{742. doi.org/10.1613/jair.1.11561 IV. Castro-SchiloL., FerrerE.Comparison of nomothetic versus idiographic-oriented methods for making predictions about distal outcomes from time series data. Multivariate Behavioral Research 48(2) (2013) 175{207. V. De BonaG.et al. Classifying inconsistency measures using graphs. Journal of Artificial Intelligence Research 66 (2019) 937{987. VI. FideliR. La comparazione. Milano: Angeli, 1998. VII. GordonT. F., PrakkenH., WaltonD. The Carneades model of argument and burden of proof. Artificial Intelligence 10(15) (2007) 875{896. VIII. GrenzS.J. The social god and the relational self: A Triad theology of the imago Dei. Westminster: John Knox Press, 2001. IX. HermansH.J. M.On the integration of nomothetic and idiographic research methods in the study of personal meaning.Journal of Personality 56(4) (1988) 785{812. X. JamiesonK. G., NowakR. Active ranking using pairwise comparisons.Advances in Neural Information Processing Systems (2011) 2240{2248. XI. JongsmaC.Poythress’s triad logic: a review essay. Pro Rege 42(4) (2014) 6{15. XII. KärkkäinenV.M. Trinity and Religious Pluralism: The Doctrine of the Trinity in Christian Theology of Religions. London: Routledge, 2017. XIII. KudzhS. A., TsvetkovV.Ya. Triadic systems. Russian Technology Magazine 7(6) (2019) 74{882. XIV. NelsonK.E.Some observations from the perspective of the rare event cognitive comparison theory of language acquisition.Children’s Language 6 (1987) 289{331. XV. NiskanenA., WallnerJ., JärvisaloM.Synthesizing argumentation frameworks from examples. Journal of Artificial Intelligence Research 66 (2019) 503{554. XVI. PührerJ.Realizability of three-valued semantics for abstract dialectical frameworks.Artificial Intelligence 278 (2020) 103{198. XVII. SwansonG.Frameworks for comparative research: structural anthropology and the theory of action. In: Vallier, Ivan (Ed.). Comparative methods in sociology: essays on trends and applications.Berkeley: University of California Press, 1971 141{202. XVIII. TsvetkovV.Ya.Worldview model as the result of education.World Applied Sciences Journal 31(2) (2014) 211{215. XIX. TsvetkovV. Ya. Logical analysis and variable scales. Slavic Forum 4(22) (2018) 103{109. XX. Wang S. et al. Transit traffic analysis zone delineating method based on Thiessen polygon. Sustainability 6(4) (2014) 1821{1832. View | Download DEVELOPING TECHNOLOGY OF CREATING WEAR-RESISTANT CERAMIC COATING FOR ICE CYLINDER." JOURNAL OF MECHANICS OF CONTINUA AND MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES spl10, no. 1 (June 28, 2020). http://dx.doi.org/10.26782/jmcms.spl.10/2020.06.00048.
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