Enchantment Dissolved : A Reexamination of the Hymn\u27s Authorship and Significance in the Commonplace MS. Hannah Swynock

“Enchantment Dissolved” is a hymn written by John Newton and a part of the first publication of the Olney Hymns in 1779. However, starting around the year 1803, the hymn was misattributed in multiple publications to William Cowper, the second author of the collection. This article will analyze Cowper’s literary style and consider why the hymn may have been mistaken for his creation. This particular hymn also appears in a 17-18th century commonplace, Hannah Swynock 1687, in the Parker MSS. at the Lilly Rare Book Library at Indiana University. In this hand-written manuscript, the hymn has four additional verses that are not found in print. This article also analyzes those four verses in comparison to the original five to determine whether the author of the addition was mimicking the style and themes of “Enchantment Dissolved.” Commonplaces had many uses and sometimes multiple scribes or purposes, so it can be difficult to draw conclusions from one entry. However, theorizing about the source and purpose of this hymn and its addition in the context of the manuscript is important for understanding how the commonplace was used and by whom

Ecopoetry in Translation: A Critical Rendition of Ulrike Almut Sandig's "so I've heard it said"

Only recently have scholars begun to discuss the implications of the Anthropocene for the translation of literature, introducing a new practice and study of ecotranslation. In view of the Anthropocene––a term popularized by Paul Crutzen that describes the current epoch as one in which human activity gains a significant, largely negative impact on geology, and ecosystems, literary scholars believe they can transform this dominant anthropocentric culture, which they believe is responsible for the ongoing ecological destruction, including climate change and loss of biodiversity. Ecotranslation is understood as translation from an ecological perspective, which can mean the following: retranslating literature where nature had been previous silenced in translation, translating texts that present an ecological worldview, and finally translating non-ecological texts into ecological ones (Badenes/Coisson 2015). My thesis combines a translation of a poem by German author Ulrike Almut Sandig, called “so habe ich sagen gehört” (so I have heard it said), published in a collection of poetry, Lyrik im Anthropozän (Lyric in the Anthropocene, 2017), with an introductory ecopoetic interpretation and a commentary on the translation process and result. Sandig’s poem can, as I argue, be interpreted as an ecopoem, following the definition by Zemanek/Rauscher (2018). The authors define ecopoetry as a subcategory of nature poetry that meets one or more of the following criteria: a thematic treatment of nature; presentation of nature as a complex ecosystem; an eco- or biocentric worldview; the articulation of environmental concerns; or the formal representation of ecological principles like interdependence, and cyclic structures. “so habe ich sagen gehört” contains four of these features: a main motif of a forest; a deemphasis of the poetic subject; a list-like structure which mimics the scientific classification of nature; and the presentation of environmental concerns. My translation aims to retain these features, while also bringing them into a North American ecological and cultural context. In my conclusion, I reflect on the question of to what extent human language can ever formulate an ecocentric point of view, as it expresses specific human relationships to the world, for instance in its sounds and the process of naming.No embargoAcademic Major: Germa

Geospatial analysis of eastern oyster habitat and disease in the Chesapeake Bay

Crassostrea virginica, common name eastern oyster, in the Chesapeake Bay is currently at 1% of its peak annual landings in 1884 (600,000 metric tons). This decline is in spite of being considered a resilient species. Causes of the decline include overharvesting, disease, and habitat loss. While efforts have been made to combat each cause, the key element to recovering the population is coordinated habitat restoration. This study aims to develop a GIS-based habitat model for the eastern oyster in the Chesapeake Bay. The first goal of this study was to determine the water quality parameters necessary for successful oyster population restoration and to locate where those conditions exist concurrently. To identify these areas that are most suitable for restoration efforts, a habitat analysis was performed using GIS data of water quality parameters in the bay consisting of water temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, pH, and bathymetry. Data obtained from monitoring stations throughout the bay were used to estimate the water quality parameters. Those parameters were interpolated using inverse distance weighting to create continuous rasters of seasonal averages for each parameter. Then rasters were combined and analyzed using geospatial processing to determine the areas that contain the most favorable conditions for oyster growth at both larval and adult life stages. Additionally, the conditions for proliferation of oyster diseases MSX and Dermo were assessed geospatially. The second goal of this study was to determine the potential changes to suitable oyster habitat area and Dermo proliferation following the climate change experts’ prediction of a 2℃ water temperature increase. Resulting models showed a decrease in total area of high quality habitat for larval and adult models with the 2℃ increase, as compared to the current condition models. Disease proliferation of Dermo also exhibited increases in higher risk areas in the 2℃ increase model when compared to the current condition model

Implications of Land Development on Nomadic Pastoralism: Ecological Relaxation and Biosocial Diversity in Human Populations

Nomadic pastoralism is an ancient subsistence strategy, historically balanced and in continuity with sedentary societies. Sedentarization of nomads occurs normally because of ecological disasters, economic opportunities, urbanization, and government policy. In this paper, I examine the effect of changing land use patterns on nomadic pastoral populations in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, using biogeographic methodology to further explore the contemporary relationship between humans and their environments. Nomadic population information gleaned from diverse ethnographic studies, and GIS data on anthropogenic biome distributions, were used to calculate changes in nomadic population, area of developed land, and nomadic/sedentary population density over the last century in seven countries. There was a significant decrease in the proportion of national populations practicing nomadic pastoralism (paired t-test, p=0.0038, n=7), but no significant overall change in total nomadic populations (paired t-test, p=0.41, n=7); nomadic population decreased in all countries but Sudan and Somalia. There was also no significant change in undeveloped land available for nomadic pastoralism (mean change -12.5%, S.D. ±15.8, paired t-test p=0.07, n=7), though the area of land available for nomadic pastoralism decreased in most countries. There was a negative linear correlation between land development and nomadic population when Somalia and Sudan were omitted (r2=0.84). Nomadic population density decreased in most countries, but increased in Somalia and Sudan. Some nomadic populations may be experiencing an extinction debt effect, where habitat loss combines with increased population density (Somalia, Sudan), but in most others where the population seemed to decrease more rapidly than would be expected due to habitat loss (Saudi Arabia, Mauritania, Iraq, and Afghanistan). The variable relationship between density and habitat loss implies that social factors often overshadow the ecological: though there is a correlation between habitat loss and nomadic population decline, causation is unclear. Despite the limitations of this study, nomadic populations do seem to have a natural balance with their cultural and biological environments that is disrupted by changes in social dynamics with sedentary populations and their subsequent environmental impacts. The loss of cultural diversity inherent in this disruption may decrease the flexibility and adaptability of the overall biosocial human ecosystem

Spire stimulates nucleation by Cappuccino and binds both ends of actin filaments.

The actin nucleators Spire and Cappuccino synergize to promote actin assembly, but the mechanism of their synergy is controversial. Together these proteins promote the formation of actin meshes, which are conserved structures that regulate the establishment of oocyte polarity. Direct interaction between Spire and Cappuccino is required for oogenesis and for in vitro synergistic actin assembly. This synergy is proposed to be driven by elongation and the formation of a ternary complex at filament barbed ends, or by nucleation and interaction at filament pointed ends. To mimic the geometry of Spire and Cappuccino in vivo, we immobilized Spire on beads and added Cappuccino and actin. Barbed ends, protected by Cappuccino, grow away from the beads while pointed ends are retained, as expected for nucleation-driven synergy. We found that Spire is sufficient to bind barbed ends and retain pointed ends of actin filaments near beads and we identified Spire's barbed-end binding domain. Loss of barbed-end binding increases nucleation by Spire and synergy with Cappuccino in bulk pyrene assays and on beads. Importantly, genetic rescue by the loss-of-function mutant indicates that barbed-end binding is not necessary for oogenesis. Thus, increased nucleation is a critical element of synergy both in vitro and in vivo

The Multi-Level Marketing Pandemic

Among the societal effects of the COVID-19 pandemic has been a sharp rise in the activities of multi-level marketing companies (MLMs). MLMs are business enterprises in which participants seek not only to sell products to friends, family, and social media contacts, but also to recruit them as MLM participants, with the promise of building their own business from home. False promises often pervade MLM sales pitches. Evidence shows that few participants see even a dollar of profit from their MLM work; the vast majority of recruits quickly abandon their MLM dreams and lose their investments. Yet the pitch has become all the more appealing in the course of the pandemic. Many people are desperate - unemployed and in need of immediate earnings as well as flexible, at-home work due to health concerns and family responsibilities. MLMs have been particularly appealing to the working mothers who, evidence shows, have borne the brunt of COVID-19\u27s impact on employment, childcare, and household responsibilities. Regulators have long scrutinized and fought the worst abuses of MLMs. They have sought to shut down unscrupulous MLMs that are nothing more than fraudulent pyramid schemes, and to curtail the misrepresentations and exaggerations that are all too often the stock in-trade of MLM participants. But regulators, including the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), face significant legal and practical limitations in their ability to promulgate and enforce MLM regulations. This Article proposes means of stemming the pandemic-driven expansion of unlawful MLM activities. It assesses efforts by regulators, by social media companies, and by self-regulatory organizations set up by MLMs themselves. Comprehensive, long-term success at curbing the abuses of MLMs will require more significant regulatory action than is currently permitted by law. The steps outlined here can provide some much-needed relief for consumers harmed by the unlawful MLM activities that have been fostered by the pandemic. They may also provide a blueprint for nimble regulatory responses to future crises when unscrupulous MLM promoters will, no doubt, further adapt their strategies to take advantage of the vulnerable

Minding their business

College is full of questions that determine our fate for years to come. The biggest questions of them all may be, How am I going to make money after college? While some are still searching for an answer, a number of Iowa State students have gotten a head start on the process

Community Development and Co-production: Thinking Critically About Parameters and Power

As the work of community development practitioners is to some degree influenced by social policy, it is important to think critically about the parameters a particular policy discourse may construct. In this paper I propose using Gaventa’s (2006) ‘power cube’ as a framework for analysing the possible parameters which co-production constructs for community development workers, specifically where it situates them in terms of the power they have access to. Firstly, I will explore where one might initially assume community development finds itself situated in the context of co-production and will highlight some of the opportunities this offers practitioners, specifically the potential for renewing democracy, using an asset-based approach and the opportunities to facilitate empowerment. I will then pose a more critical analysis of the parameters that co-production creates by exploring an alternative view of where co-production might situate community development and the dilemma this may pose – that of furthering the global reach of neoliberal ideology. I will conclude by suggesting the ways in which community development workers can continue to carry out meaningful, radical work – regardless of the parameters created for them by a particular policy discourse – by continuing to be critically reflective

Pattern recognition using spiking antiferromagnetic neurons

Spintronic devices offer a promising avenue for the development of nanoscale, energy-efficient artificial neurons for neuromorphic computing. It has previously been shown that with antiferromagnetic (AFM) oscillators, ultra-fast spiking artificial neurons can be made that mimic many unique features of biological neurons. In this work, we train an artificial neural network of AFM neurons to perform pattern recognition. A simple machine learning algorithm called spike pattern association neuron (SPAN), which relies on the temporal position of neuron spikes, is used during training. In under a microsecond of physical time, the AFM neural network is trained to recognize symbols composed from a grid by producing a spike within a specified time window. We further achieve multi-symbol recognition with the addition of an output layer to suppress undesirable spikes. Through the utilization of AFM neurons and the SPAN algorithm, we create a neural network capable of high-accuracy recognition with overall power consumption on the order of picojoules