The psychiatric sequelae of a natural disaster : the 1983 Ash Wednesday bushfires / Alexander Cowell McFarlane

Typescript (Photocopy)Includes bibliographies3 v. ;Thesis (M.D.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Psychiatry, 199

The Three-Dimensional Image of Chance

In order to create a work of art that has, for an unknown observer, as great a variety of meanings and interpretations as possible; the work must be of the sort that will allow any random observer to project their own experience into the work as its meaning and/or interpretation. The work of art created must present to the viewer a rich experience of mutually exclusive associations. For the work to be unlimited in associations, it must be free from any intentionally representative imagery on the part of the artist. In other words, the work should be abstract to the degree of non-objectivity. Non-objective art form is capable of conveying a wide variety of mutually exclusive sensations, meanings and abstract concepts by association in a single piece of work. The non-objective artist\u27s concern is with the elements of visual art (color, shape, line, etc.) and with the creation of an art form that is merely the presentation of these elements. Associations are inevitable events, no matter how vague or indiscreet they may be. This is made possible by the way in which we see things according to their visual characteristics. These visual characteristics are synonymous with the elements of visual art. If they are used in such a manner as to have no direct orientation with the representation of some particular aspect of our environment or one\u27s experience, then the work of art can be said to be non-objective. Because of the close association between the visual characteristics of what we see and the elements of visual art, non-objective form is easily associated with some aspect of the viewer\u27s experience even if only in the most elusive fashion of having been left in the emotive state, undefined and/or undefinable by reason. The variety of associations made possible by the work should be as infinite as the number of observers. Obviously, then, the artist whose goal it is to create such a work of art as this must concentrate his/her efforts on methodology by leaving meaning, interpretation, intellectual discourse, and the configuration of imagery to chance or accidental events. The artist must work according to a system that has absolutely nothing to do with the direct representation of anything in particular, but, has everything to do with something in general. This is non-objective expression and it is this expression that causes the work to communicate in the fashion of an art form. I call this the Image of Chance. The Three-dimensional Image of Chance is that expression which exists in all possible dimensions

The Three-Dimensional Image of Chance

In order to create a work of art that has, for an unknown observer, as great a variety of meanings and interpretations as possible; the work must be of the sort that will allow any random observer to project their own experience into the work as its meaning and/or interpretation. The work of art created must present to the viewer a rich experience of mutually exclusive associations. For the work to be unlimited in associations, it must be free from any intentionally representative imagery on the part of the artist. In other words, the work should be abstract to the degree of non-objectivity. Non-objective art form is capable of conveying a wide variety of mutually exclusive sensations, meanings and abstract concepts by association in a single piece of work. The non-objective artist\u27s concern is with the elements of visual art (color, shape, line, etc.) and with the creation of an art form that is merely the presentation of these elements. Associations are inevitable events, no matter how vague or indiscreet they may be. This is made possible by the way in which we see things according to their visual characteristics. These visual characteristics are synonymous with the elements of visual art. If they are used in such a manner as to have no direct orientation with the representation of some particular aspect of our environment or one\u27s experience, then the work of art can be said to be non-objective. Because of the close association between the visual characteristics of what we see and the elements of visual art, non-objective form is easily associated with some aspect of the viewer\u27s experience even if only in the most elusive fashion of having been left in the emotive state, undefined and/or undefinable by reason. The variety of associations made possible by the work should be as infinite as the number of observers. Obviously, then, the artist whose goal it is to create such a work of art as this must concentrate his/her efforts on methodology by leaving meaning, interpretation, intellectual discourse, and the configuration of imagery to chance or accidental events. The artist must work according to a system that has absolutely nothing to do with the direct representation of anything in particular, but, has everything to do with something in general. This is non-objective expression and it is this expression that causes the work to communicate in the fashion of an art form. I call this the Image of Chance. The Three-dimensional Image of Chance is that expression which exists in all possible dimensions

Race, Space and Democracy: Locally-Based Strategies for Development - Panel Discussion from Fourth National People of Color Legal Scholarship Conference, Hosted at the American University Washington College of Law

Panel Discussion from Fourth National People of Color Legal Scholarship Conference, Hosted at the American University Washington College of Law: [Audrey McFarlane] Alright, good morning everyone, thank you for joining us. This is the race, space, and democracy panel, locally based strategies for development. Right now we have with us, me. I\u27m Audrey McFarlane. I\u27m a professor at the University of Baltimore. We also have Erika Wilson, who is a professor at the University of North Carolina. I\u27m going to dispense with the long bios, and commend you to the program guide for the long bios. Suffice it to say, that everybody on this panel is extremely distinguished.. and now I feel bad because I [feel I] should explain in more detail. And then we have Ezra Rosser, who\u27s a professor at Washington College of Law. And we have Alexandre, who is an outgoing professor, University of Mississippi, and the incoming dean at Stetson School of Law

Psychotic symptoms in young adults exposed to childhood trauma - A 20 year follow-up study

Childhood adversity has been shown to increase the risk of psychotic symptoms in adult life. However, there are no previous studies looking at the association between experiencing a natural disaster during childhood and the development of psychotic symptoms in young adulthood. Eight hundred and six bushfire-exposed children and 725 control children were evaluated following the 1983 South Australian bushfires. Five hundred and twenty nine (65.6%) of the bushfire group and 464 (64%) controls participated in a follow up study 20 years later. Childhood data on emotional and behavioural disorders and dysfunctional parenting was available. The adult assessment included the Australian National Health and Well-Being psychosis screen and detailed information about trauma, childhood adversity and alcohol and cannabis abuse. 5.6% of subjects responded positively to the psychosis screen and 2.6% responded positively to a further probe question. Psychotic symptoms were more common in subjects exposed to a greater number of traumas, and were associated with higher rates of childhood adversity, emotional and behavioural disturbance, dysfunctional parenting, and alcohol and cannabis abuse. Subjects exposed to bushfires as children did not have a greater risk of psychosis. Our results indicate that exposure to multiple traumas, rather than a single major trauma, increases the risk of later psychosis.Cherrie Galletly, Miranda Van Hooff, Alexander McFarlan

Post-traumatic amnesia and the nature of post-traumatic stress disorder after mild traumatic brain injury

The prevalence and nature of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) following mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI) is controversial because of the apparent paradox of suffering PTSD with impaired memory for the traumatic event. In this study, 1167 survivors of traumatic injury were assessed for PTSD symptoms and post-traumatic amnesia during hospitalization, and were subsequently assessed for PTSD 3 months later. At the follow-up assessment, 90 patients met criteria for PTSD; MTBI patients were more likely to develop PTSD than no-TBI patients, after controlling for injury severity. Longer post-traumatic amnesia was associated with less severe intrusive memories at the acute assessment. These findings indicate that PTSD may be more likely following MTBI, however, longer post-traumatic amnesia appears to be protective against selected re-experiencing symptoms

IL-4 Mediated Resistance of BALB/c Mice to Visceral Leishmaniasis Is Independent of IL-4Rα Signaling via T Cells

Previous studies infecting global IL-4Rα-/-, IL-4-/-, and IL-13-/-mice on a BALB/c background with the visceralizing parasite Leishmania donovani have shown that the T helper 2 cytokines, IL-4, and IL-13, play influential but not completely overlapping roles in controlling primary infection. Subsequently, using macrophage/neutrophil-specific IL-4Rα deficient BALB/c mice, we demonstrated that macrophage/neutrophil unresponsiveness to IL-4 and IL-13 did not have a detrimental effect during L. donovani infection. Here we expand on these findings and show that CD4+ T cell-(Lckcre), as well as pan T cell-(iLckcre) specific IL-4Rα deficient mice, on a BALB/c background, unlike global IL-4Rα deficient mice, are also not adversely affected in terms of resistance to primary infection with L. donovani. Our analysis suggested only a transient and tissue specific impact on disease course due to lack of IL-4Rα on T cells, limited to a reduced hepatic parasite burden at day 30 post-infection. Consequently, the protective role(s) demonstrated for IL-4 and IL-13 during L. donovani infection are mediated by IL-4Rα-responsive cell(s) other than macrophages, neutrophils and T cells

Golgi-localized STELLO proteins regulate the assembly and trafficking of cellulose synthase complexes in Arabidopsis

As the most abundant biopolymer on Earth, cellulose is a key structural component of the plant cell wall. Cellulose is produced at the plasma membrane by cellulose synthase (CesA) complexes (CSCs), which are assembled in the endomembrane system and trafficked to the plasma membrane. While several proteins that affect CesA activity have been identified, components that regulate CSC assembly and trafficking remain unknown. Here we show that STELLO1 and 2 are Golgi-localized proteins that can interact with CesAs and control cellulose quantity. In the absence of STELLO function, the spatial distribution within the Golgi, secretion and activity of the CSCs are impaired indicating a central role of the STELLO proteins in CSC assembly. Point mutations in the predicted catalytic domains of the STELLO proteins indicate that they are glycosyltransferases facing the Golgi lumen. Hence, we have uncovered proteins that regulate CSC assembly in the plant Golgi apparatus

Health surveillance of deployed military personnel occasionally leads to unexpected findings

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can be caused by life threatening illness, such as cancer and coronary events. The study by Forbes et al. made the unexpected finding that military personnel evacuation with medical illness have similar rates of PTSD to those evacuated with combat injuries. It may be that the illness acts as a nonspecific stressor that interacts with combat exposures to increase the risk of PTSD. Conversely, the inflammatory consequence of systemic illness may augment the effects to traumatic stress and facilitate the immunological abnormalities that are now being associated with PTSD and depression. The impact of the stress on cytokine systems and their role in the onset of PTSD demands further investigation. Military personnel evacuated due to physical illness require similar screening and monitoring for the risk of PTSD to those injured who are already known to be at high risk.Alexander C McFarlan