Effects of Exogenous Female Sex Hormones on Food Intake, Macronutrients and Body Weight in the Ovariectomized Postbreeder Female Rat.

Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is chosen by a growing segment of the postmenopausal population. Mid-life body weight gain is perceived to increase further with exogenous HRT. To examine hormonal effects on caloric intake (CI), carbohydrate (CHO), FAT, protein (PRO), chocolate and body weight (BW) in a female model, Sprague-Dawley postbreeder (n = 55) rats (10 mos., 10 litters of pups) were ovariectomized (OV) and implanted with 17 $\beta$ estradiol (E) and/or progesterone (P), or placebo in three separate studies (phases) of 10 days each. Uterine weights (p =.0001) and radioimmunoassay confirmed hormonal bioactivity. The sham (S) group with placebo implant was used for comparison. In phase I, 3 food cups containing CHO, FAT, and PRO were presented ad libitum to all treatments. Estrogen decreased the rate of body weight gain (p =.001) compared to OV, P, and S with no significant differences in caloric intake (trend of estrogen p =.052). In phase II, all except S received 4 food cups; 2 CHO choices, (sweet, AIN 76 and nonsweet AIN 93), FAT and PRO. The body weight of the P and S groups compared to OV (p =.009) in phase II did not continue to increase. OV produced a carbohydrate appetite for both SW & NSW (p =.007), E&P chose 3 times more SW than NSW (p =.001). For phase III 4 caloric levels of chocolate were added (except for S). Chocolate was consumed at 40% to 53% of total caloric intake with or without HRT with reduced nutrient dense macronutrient consumption. Thus access to chocolate eliminated both the reduced rate of weight gain caused by E (phase I) and the body weight adaptation by P in phase II. Variations in % fate intake (40% to 60%) did not result in treatment differences in body composition (p =.095). The OV group which consumed the most calories from carbohydrate (p =.001), gained the most overall BW (p =.001). The rats consuming the most fat (S 57%) gained the least amount of body weight (p =.001). Caloric conversion ratios (weight gain/by caloric intake $\times$ 1000) varied among treatments (p =.003). Additional research on the metabolism of the postmenopausal female taking hormone replacement therapy is needed

The texts of everyday life: public and private identities in vernacular literacy practices

This paper draws on data collected during an ethnographic study of literacy practices in one local community. It focuses on a case study of one woman, who was editor of a Residents Assocation newsletter and the editorials she wrote. We look at the “text world” of these editorials and examine the ways in which the editor positions herself in relation to the other inhabitants ”“ groups and individuals ”“ who populate this world. Three kinds of data were collected and juxtaposed in our research: observations of literacy practices, in-depth interviews with participants and the documents entailed in the literacy practices. This research, which starts from a study of literacy practices, leads us to discover new categories of vernacular texts ”“ in this case community group newsletters ”“ which provide a rich andunusual source of data for exploring many issues to do with writer identity, genre, authorship and collaborative writing practices in everyday life. We argue that bringing together the study of practices and the study of texts offers an enhanced methodology for researching discourse in society.This paper draws on data collected during an ethnographic study of literacy practices in one local community. It focuses on a case study of one woman, who was editor of a Residents Assocation newsletter and the editorials she wrote. We look at the “text world” of these editorials and examine the ways in which the editor positions herself in relation to the other inhabitants ”“ groups and individuals ”“ who populate this world. Three kinds of data were collected and juxtaposed in our research: observations of literacy practices, in-depth interviews with participants and the documents entailed in the literacy practices. This research, which starts from a study of literacy practices, leads us to discover new categories of vernacular texts ”“ in this case community group newsletters ”“ which provide a rich andunusual source of data for exploring many issues to do with writer identity, genre, authorship and collaborative writing practices in everyday life. We argue that bringing together the study of practices and the study of texts offers an enhanced methodology for researching discourse in society.This paper draws on data collected during an ethnographic study of literacy practices in one local community. It focuses on a case study of one woman, who was editor of a Residents Assocation newsletter and the editorials she wrote. We look at the “text world” of these editorials and examine the ways in which the editor positions herself in relation to the other inhabitants ”“ groups and individuals ”“ who populate this world. Three kinds of data were collected and juxtaposed in our research: observations of literacy practices, in-depth interviews with participants and the documents entailed in the literacy practices. This research, which starts from a study of literacy practices, leads us to discover new categories of vernacular texts ”“ in this case community group newsletters ”“ which provide a rich andunusual source of data for exploring many issues to do with writer identity, genre, authorship and collaborative writing practices in everyday life. We argue that bringing together the study of practices and the study of texts offers an enhanced methodology for researching discourse in society.This paper draws on data collected during an ethnographic study of literacy practices in one local community. It focuses on a case study of one woman, who was editor of a Residents Assocation newsletter and the editorials she wrote. We look at the “text world” of these editorials and examine the ways in which the editor positions herself in relation to the other inhabitants ”“ groups and individuals ”“ who populate this world. Three kinds of data were collected and juxtaposed in our research: observations of literacy practices, in-depth interviews with participants and the documents entailed in the literacy practices. This research, which starts from a study of literacy practices, leads us to discover new categories of vernacular texts ”“ in this case community group newsletters ”“ which provide a rich andunusual source of data for exploring many issues to do with writer identity, genre, authorship and collaborative writing practices in everyday life. We argue that bringing together the study of practices and the study of texts offers an enhanced methodology for researching discourse in society.This paper draws on data collected during an ethnographic study of literacy practices in one local community. It focuses on a case study of one woman, who was editor of a Residents Assocation newsletter and the editorials she wrote. We look at the “text world” of these editorials and examine the ways in which the editor positions herself in relation to the other inhabitants ”“ groups and individuals ”“ who populate this world. Three kinds of data were collected and juxtaposed in our research: observations of literacy practices, in-depth interviews with participants and the documents entailed in the literacy practices. This research, which starts from a study of literacy practices, leads us to discover new categories of vernacular texts ”“ in this case community group newsletters ”“ which provide a rich andunusual source of data for exploring many issues to do with writer identity, genre, authorship and collaborative writing practices in everyday life. We argue that bringing together the study of practices and the study of texts offers an enhanced methodology for researching discourse in society.This paper draws on data collected during an ethnographic study of literacy practices in one local community. It focuses on a case study of one woman, who was editor of a Residents Assocation newsletter and the editorials she wrote. We look at the “text world” of these editorials and examine the ways in which the editor positions herself in relation to the other inhabitants ”“ groups and individuals ”“ who populate this world. Three kinds of data were collected and juxtaposed in our research: observations of literacy practices, in-depth interviews with participants and the documents entailed in the literacy practices. This research, which starts from a study of literacy practices, leads us to discover new categories of vernacular texts ”“ in this case community group newsletters ”“ which provide a rich andunusual source of data for exploring many issues to do with writer identity, genre, authorship and collaborative writing practices in everyday life. We argue that bringing together the study of practices and the study of texts offers an enhanced methodology for researching discourse in society.This paper draws on data collected during an ethnographic study of literacy practices in one local community. It focuses on a case study of one woman, who was editor of a Residents Assocation newsletter and the editorials she wrote. We look at the “text world” of these editorials and examine the ways in which the editor positions herself in relation to the other inhabitants ”“ groups and individuals ”“ who populate this world. Three kinds of data were collected and juxtaposed in our research: observations of literacy practices, in-depth interviews with participants and the documents entailed in the literacy practices. This research, which starts from a study of literacy practices, leads us to discover new categories of vernacular texts ”“ in this case community group newsletters ”“ which provide a rich andunusual source of data for exploring many issues to do with writer identity, genre, authorship and collaborative writing practices in everyday life. We argue that bringing together the study of practices and the study of texts offers an enhanced methodology for researching discourse in society.This paper draws on data collected during an ethnographic study of literacy practices in one local community. It focuses on a case study of one woman, who was editor of a Residents Assocation newsletter and the editorials she wrote. We look at the “text world” of these editorials and examine the ways in which the editor positions herself in relation to the other inhabitants ”“ groups and individuals ”“ who populate this world. Three kinds of data were collected and juxtaposed in our research: observations of literacy practices, in-depth interviews with participants and the documents entailed in the literacy practices. This research, which starts from a study of literacy practices, leads us to discover new categories of vernacular texts ”“ in this case community group newsletters ”“ which provide a rich andunusual source of data for exploring many issues to do with writer identity, genre, authorship and collaborative writing practices in everyday life. We argue that bringing together the study of practices and the study of texts offers an enhanced methodology for researching discourse in society

Possibilities for pedagogy in Further Education: Harnessing the abundance of literacy

In this report, it is argued that the most salient factor in the contemporary communicative landscape is the sheer abundance and diversity of possibilities for literacy, and that the extent and nature of students' communicative resources is a central issue in education. The text outlines the conceptual underpinnings of the Literacies for Learning in Further Education project in a social view of literacy, and the associated research design, methodology and analytical framework. It elaborates on the notion of the abundance of literacies in students' everyday lives, and on the potential for harnessing these as resources for the enhancement of learning. It provides case studies of changes in practice that have been undertaken by further education staff in order to draw upon students' everyday literacy practices on Travel and Tourism and Multimedia courses. It ends with some of the broad implications for conceptualising learning that arise from researching through the lens of literacy practices

The contribution of statistical physics to evolutionary biology

Evolutionary biology shares many concepts with statistical physics: both deal with populations, whether of molecules or organisms, and both seek to simplify evolution in very many dimensions. Often, methodologies have undergone parallel and independent development, as with stochastic methods in population genetics. We discuss aspects of population genetics that have embraced methods from physics: amongst others, non-equilibrium statistical mechanics, travelling waves, and Monte-Carlo methods have been used to study polygenic evolution, rates of adaptation, and range expansions. These applications indicate that evolutionary biology can further benefit from interactions with other areas of statistical physics, for example, by following the distribution of paths taken by a population through time.Comment: 18 pages, 3 figures, glossary. Accepted in Trend in Ecology and Evolution (to appear in print in August 2011

“How people read and write and they don't even notice”: everyday lives and literacies on a Midlands council estate

This article presents data from a British Academy-funded study of the everyday literacy practices of three families living on a predominantly white working-class council housing estate on the edge of a Midlands city. The study explored, as one participant succinctly put it, “how people read and write and they don't even notice”. This alludes to the ways in which everyday practices may not be recognised as part of a dominant model of literacy. The study considered too the ways in which these literacy practices are part of a wider policy context that also fails to notice the impact of austerity politics on everyday lives. An emphasis on quantitative measures of disadvantage and public discourse which vilifies those facing economic challenge can overshadow the resilience and resourcefulness of individuals and families in making meaning from their experiences. Drawing together consideration of everyday lives and the everyday literacies which are part of them, this article explores the impact of the current policy context on access to both economic and cultural resources, showing how literacy, as part of this context, should be recognised as a powerful means not only of constricting lives but also of constructing them