Creating a Sexual Self in Heteronormative Space: Integrations and Imperatives Amongst Spiritual Seekers at the Findhorn Community

Intersections between religion and sexuality are coming onto social science agendas. However, this has predominantly been in terms of its treatment by mainstream religions, particularly Christianity and Islam, and thus in contexts traditionally hostile to lesbian, gay and bi sexualities (LGB). This article extends this by exploring identities and contestations of sexuality within activities that have variously been described as \'New Age\' or \'spiritual\'. Considering the experiences and interactions of spiritual seekers avoids a non-social conceptualisation of \'New Age\' which views spirituality primarily as an individualistic experience. The specific focus here is the Findhorn Community, a spiritual community and demonstration eco-village in Scotland. We find that seekers\' attempt to resist labelling and categorisation through creating and using individualised sexual (as well as spiritual) expressions. However, tensions stemming from (heteronormative) interactions within the Findhorn community show that sexual diversity and labelling continues to matter. The research demonstrates that sexual fluidity is a privileged position to occupy, but that it is also ultimately unsustainable in that fluid identity becomes re-subsumed in heteronormativity and, eventually, individuals have to come out and identify all over again. The continuing imperative for some LGB people to define themselves as/with \'something\', is thus apparent even within supposedly individualized settings and belief systems. Such positioning questions the individuality that is presumed to define New Age spiritualities, and shows how categories of lesbian, gay and bisexual also continue to be deployed at the same time as they are resisted and reinterpreted.Individuality; Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual; Sexuality; Spirituality; Findhorn Community

Information communication technology and the management of change in two educational institutions

Successive governments for decades have extolled the power of education in providing the answer to national problems. Recently published government reports (DfEE, 1998; DfEE, 1999a; DfEE, 2000a) suggest that through Further Education (FE) and Higher Education (HE), educational success for more and different types of students can be achieved, at no additional cost, through the deployment of new technologies in learning and teaching. This research explored issues of change as two educational institutions responded to the Leaming Age agenda (DfEE, 1998) which clearly articulates a role for FE and HE in providing and creating a culture of attracting more students from groups whowould not traditionally have thought about continuing their education. Both sectors have been charged with providing more flexible learning opportunities to create the culture change. Two educational institutions were used in this research, one from the FE sector, and the ·other from Higher Education. The cases for study were selected on the basis of their apparent similarities particularly in relation to the use oflnformation Communication Technology (ICT) to support the structural delivery of educational provision. In the Further Education College, change was instigated through a top dawn structural process that led to the introduction of a Resource Based Leaming Centre. In the Higher Education Institution (HEI) change was driven by a bottom up strategy focusing on pedagogic issues. Interviews with staff at various levels of seniority and analysis of student participation through technological means coupled with the analysis of responses to a student questionnaire, enabled an evaluation of each approach. These evaluations coupled with a consideration of government policy were evaluated within a Marxist reductionist approach using correspondence theory (Bowles and Gintis, 1967:23) and concepts of cultural hegemony (Gramsci, 1981:34). Additional support was drawn from management theorists who write convincingly about 'chaos theory' in relation to recent organisational change (Fullan, 1999; Lewin, 1993; McNay, 1995). This research revealed that neither of the approaches to introducing change as adopted in the chosen institutions was without problems. In both cases managers and lecturers seemed unable to communicate effectively or agree the parameters of change. The use ofICT to support pedagogy was not understood nor had changes in learning and teaching been thoroughly articulated during the planning stages. Issues of communication and understanding became central as the research developed, with linguistic ambiguity apparent in relation to the use ofICT to support national policy. Recommendations arising from the research focus on the need for a clearer articulation of terminology associated with change management issues involving ICT so that issues of pedagogy and structure can be given equal import in institutional change management. It is also suggested that approaches to leadership which put considerations of teaching and learning in a central position in school management training, be adopted in the university and college sectors

Index to Anspach's A History of the Island of Newfoundland

Index to Anspach's A History of the Island of Newfoundlan

Phylogenetic and ecological significance of the variation in the scleral ring of aquatic forging birds

textDiving birds must accommodate their vision to air and water, two very different optical media. A few species, such as penguins (Sphenisciformes), dive to depths approaching the aphotic zone of the ocean and must accommodate their vision to both the change in media and significant light attenuation. Previous studies show that optical properties of the eye e.g., pupil aperture and focal length, are reflected in the eye’s gross morphology and have a strong positive correlation with osteological proxies from the orbit and scleral ring. This study combines qualitative and quantitative measurements utilized in previous studies to create a larger feature space for classification. A total of 170 species were evaluated for distinct classes of eye shape, 87 of which were newly measured species of Charadriiformes, Procellariiformes, "Pelecaniformes", and Sphenisciformes. Unlike in previous studies of land birds, no pattern was recovered in eye shape based on the light levels where the birds foraged. Aquatic birds are active in a wide range of conditions; foraging both day and night and at varying water depths based on the time of year and available prey. Diverse aquatic bird ecology probably contributes to the lack of distinct eye shape classes based on dive depth. Regression analysis was able to recover prey capture style (i.e., plunge, pursuit, skimming, or wading) based on orbit and scleral ring measurements. Misclassification was most common in taxa that exhibited multiple modes of prey capture such as the albatross (Diomedeidae). The ability to determine foraging style based on osteological eye measurements may have implications for identifying prey capture method in extinct species of aquatic birds.Geological Science

Increasing student voice and empowerment through technology: Not just listening to the voice of the learner but using their digital capabilities to benefit a whole college community

Perceived as fostering democracy in educational institutions, approaches which encourage student voice are being promoted as supporting greater social equalities and strengthening student’s commitment to their learning. Using student voice as a research theme, facilitated through focus groups, research funded by Jisc set out to hear learner views and explore their digital preferences when learning in a vocational context. The aim of this research was to enhance digital student practice by exploring how learners experience, use and wish to work, in a technology rich environment. A literature review was undertaken to inform the research findings which revealed a lack of research on student voice in the FE sector. This article goes some way to address that deficit and focuses on innovative practice, discovered by serendipity, that went beyond the tenets usually described in the literature on student voice. Using a Case study approach this article reports on work underway in one FE Institution where students have been appointed as ‘DigiPals’ and given a key role to embed the use of digital technologies into student and staff practice. Two theoretical lenses namely those focused on technology and the other on student voice are applied to explore innovative practice. The community of Digi-Pal practice is described and recommendations made for further adoption across the FE and Skills sector

Forestiera ligustrina (Michx.) Poir.

https://thekeep.eiu.edu/herbarium_specimens_byname/21085/thumbnail.jp

Intake, growth and meat quality of steers given diets based on varying proportions of maize silage and grass silage

Simmental × Holstein-Friesian steers were offered four forage diets. These comprised grass silage (G); proportionately 0·67 grass silage, proportionately 0·33 maize silage (GGM); 0·33 grass silage, 0·67 maize silage ( MMG); maize silage ( M) from 424 (s.d. = 11·5) kg to slaughter at a minimum weight of 560 kg. Forages were mixed and offered ad libitum. Steers were offered 2 kg of a concentrate daily, the concentrate being formulated such that all steers had similar crude protein intakes across dietary treatments. A sample of steers was slaughtered at the beginning of the experimental period to allow the calculation of the rate of gain of the carcass and its components. Carcass dissection of a sample of steers allowed the development of a prediction equation of carcass composition based on thoracic limb dissection of all carcasses. Forage dry matter intake and live-weight gain increased linearly as maize silage replaced grass silage in the forage mixture, resulting in improvements in food conversion ratio (all P = 0·001). Killing-out proportion increased with maize silage inclusion ( P < 0·001) but fat and conformation scores did not differ significantly between diets. However, increasing maize inclusion in the diet resulted in a greater weight ( P = 0·05) and proportion ( P = 0·008) of fat in the carcass, and significant increases in internal fat deposition. The inclusion of maize led to a progressive increase in the daily gains of carcass ( P < 0·001), and significant increases in the daily gains of both fat ( P < 0·001) and lean tissue ( P < 0·001). Fat colour was more yellow in cattle given diets G and GGM than diets MMG and M ( P < 0·001) and colour intensity was lower on diet M than the other three diets ( P < 0·001). There were no significant differences in any aspects of eating quality between diets. Therefore, maize silage has the potential to reduce the time taken for finishing beef animals to achieve slaughter weight with no apparent detrimental effects on subsequent meat quality