Recording Verbal Art Performance with Handheld Equipment: The Preparatory Phase in Africa

World Oral Literature Project Workshop 2010The recording of oral tradition performances aims at a full and complete document of performances that are given by storytellers belonging to a specific tribe, village or clan. The purpose of the recording is to enable multi-disciplinary analysis. Ideally, these stories are performed and recorded in an intimate setting. Registration or recording involves, by definition, disturbing the conditions in which the verbal art is normally performed. Local conditions will differ in the extent that they accept disturbances. The larger the amount of technical equipment, the larger the disturbance will likely be. Anthropological recordings should be realised with a minimum amount of disturbance and with equipment that is as non-obtrusive as possible. Small scale, contemporary HD video cameras and microphones can now deliver recordings of sufficient quality to enable thorough analysis. This paper will explore the use of project management principles in the recording of verbal art performances and also address practical issues born from extensive experience in this area

De geschiedschrijving in het Oude Testament

Rectorale oratie Vrije Universiteit 192

A novel, nondestructive, dried blood spot-based hematocrit prediction method using noncontact diffuse reflectance spectroscopy

Dried blood spot (DBS) sampling is recognized as a valuable alternative sampling strategy both in research and in clinical routine. Although many advantages are associated with DBS sampling, its more widespread use is hampered by several issues, of which the hematocrit effect on DBS-based quantitation remains undoubtedly the most widely discussed one. Previously, we developed a method to derive the approximate hematocrit from a nonvolumetrically applied DBS based on its potassium content. Although this method yielded good results and was straightforward to perform, it was also destructive and required sample preparation. Therefore, we now developed a nondestructive method which allows to predict the hematocrit of a DBS based on its hemoglobin content, measured via noncontact diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. The developed method was thoroughly validated. A linear calibration curve was established after log/log transformation. The bias, intraday and interday imprecision of quality controls at three hematocrit levels and at the lower and upper limit of quantitation (0.20 and 0.67, respectively) were less than 11%. In addition, the influence of storage and the volume spotted was evaluated, as well as DBS homogeneity. Application of the method to venous DBSs prepared from whole blood patient samples (n = 233) revealed a good correlation between the actual and the predicted hematocrit. Limits of agreement obtained after Bland and Altman analysis were -0.076 and. +0.018. Incurred sample reanalysis demonstrated good method reproducibility. In conclusion, mere scanning of a DBS suffices to derive its approximate hematocrit, one of the most important variables in DBS analysis

Measurements of wavelength dependent scattering and backscattering coefficients by low-coherence spectroscopy

Quantitative measurements of scattering properties are invaluable for optical techniques in medicine. However, noninvasive, quantitative measurements of scattering properties over a large wavelength range remain challenging. We introduce low-coherence spectroscopy as a noninvasive method to locally and simultaneously measure scattering μs and backscattering μb coefficients from 480 to 700 nm with 8 nm spectral resolution. The method is tested on media with varying scattering properties (μs = 1 to 34 mm−1 and μb = 2.10−6 to 2.10−3 mm−1), containing different sized polystyrene spheres. The results are in excellent agreement with Mie theor

Fluid risks : the politics of risk-scaling at urban rivers in Nairobi

This thesis investigates the importance of scale for power dynamics in the negotiation of risks connect-ed to Urban Rivers in Nairobi, Kenya. In addition to unequal distribution of wealth, global inequalities in the distribution of risk become increasingly important. Scale as a significant dimension of inequality is discussed in the context of Nairobi’s urban, as water scarcity and flooding events are expected to in-crease and can both be observed within the highly heterogenic city of Nairobi. The thesis attempts to answer the conceptual question, how is it possible to conceptually grasp the relation of risk and scale? As well as the practical question of what are the power dynamics of scalar negotiations of riskscapes? Regarding the first question the concept of riskscapes is suggested and subsequently expanded to in-clude an explicitly scalar dimension. A relational focus on fluidity and movement is put forward. This conceptual background interfaces with the methodology of multi-sited ethnography, which inspires the method of following the river through the fragmented city of Nairobi. In the case study, three examples of scalar politics of river-related risks in Nairobi suggest that 1.) the scaling of actors influences the ways they can participate in practices of risking. Risks for certain local communities seem to be ap-proved by the government implying localisation of actors as a tactic within the politics of risks. The role of connections in localising or globalising actors is stressed. 2.) The example of the planned eviction of an informal market area along Nairobi River shows how political struggle is expressed in different scalar narratives of river related risks. While the government stresses risks for the entire area downstream of Nairobi to justify the eviction, the market stand owners evoke a much more localised framing of the risks they face. 3.) Both moments, scaling of risk-actors and scaling of risks is observable in the case of slum dwelling women at urban rivers. It is argued that women are discursively and materially framed to the household level, where they face the highest flooding risk. This informs the conclusion to regard the poor female body in the case of Nairobi as a sacrifice-scale where risks produced elsewhere are ‘dumped’. This thesis’ main contribution is the conceptual merging of the politics of risk and scale, the substantiation of this argument by a relevant case study and subsequently the spotlighting of dynamics of marginalisation through scalar negotiations of risk

Bedrijfsopleidingen in internationaal perspectief

Door de steeds snellere technologische ontwikkelingen en verscherpte concurrentie komen de opleidingsinspanningen van bedrijven meer in de belangstelling te staan. Gegeven het open karakter van onze economie lijkt het nuttig de inspanningen van de Nederlandse bedrijven op het gebied van scholing te vergelijken met die van de buitenlandse bedrijven. Aan de hand van een uniforme definitie zal de omvang van bedrijfsopleidingen in Nederland vergeleken worden met die in Groot- Brittannie, Duitsland, Frankrijk en de Verenigde Staten. Naast een vergelijking op macro-niveau zal bekeken worden of zich tussen bedrijfsklassen dezelfde verschillen voordoen. Geconstateerd wordt dat opleidingsinspanningen niet alleen afhankelijk zijn van exogene factoren als technologische ontwikkeling, maar ook beleidmatig beinvloed kunnen worden door overheid en sociale partners. Een vergelijking tussen de verschillende beleidslijnen (en hun effectiviteit) in de genoemde landen zal in het Iaatste deel van (lit artikel aan de orde komen

Industrial training in the Netherlands

The substantial differences in industrial training participation rates and costs at industry level are examined. Data on costs and participation rates for the European Community (EC) member states are presented, and attention is drawn to the differences in training systems among the countries, with special emphasis on The Netherlands. Results of an extensive survey on industrial training in The Netherlands show that remarkable differences exist between industrial sectors, both in training intensity and in organizational structure. A framework of analysis is presented that aims to explain these differences. Four groups of explanatory factors are distinguished. These are: 1. the industry structure, 2. the business environment, 3. the structure of industrial training programs, and 4. industrial relations in the sector. The preliminary results of the application of the framework stress, among other factors, the importance of the organizational and financial structure of industrial training activities