When Pressed: The National Herbarium of NSW

The scientific project of plant collection, preservation and taxonomic classification is profoundly a product of European Enlightenment ideas of reason, rationality and empiricism. The National Herbarium of NSW located in the Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney continues these practices today through its housing of 1.1 million unique plant specimens and taxonomic work. The Herbarium collection is comprised of both Australian native and naturalized plants. Using the Herbarium site and its practices as a launching point the historical and cultural contexts within which plant taxonomy has been and is currently practiced is explored, tracing a path from initial European explorations and plant collection along Australia’s east coast through to the present day, through both historical accounts and the author’s personal experience. Complex and contradictory ideas about ‘nature’ and scientific practice are interrogated and positioned within the contexts of modern and postmodern thought. The anxieties and contradictions experienced by we ‘moderns’ in relation to the natural world and the present moment are critically analysed using the ideas of various theorists such as Anthony Giddens, Bruno Latour and Donna Haraway. The argument is made that modernity does not precede postmodernity but rather that modernity and postmodernity are inextricably linked and exist in continual interaction

2000 Fine Art Graduation Exhibition Catalogue

Graduation Exhibition 2000 Fine Art ProgramFanshawe College McIntosh GalleryThe University of Western Ontario April 13th to April 30th 2000 Guest Speaker: Fred Steinmetz, Chair, Communications Artshttps://first.fanshawec.ca/famd_design_fineart_gradcatalogues/1023/thumbnail.jp

Chandra localization of XTE J1906+090 and discovery of its optical and infrared counterparts

We present the Chandra identification and localization of the transient X-ray source XTE J1906+090 and the discovery of its optical and infrared counterparts. Our analysis of archival Chandra ACIS-I observations of the field found the source approximately 8 away from the position determined earlier with the RXTE PCA. We have confirmed the source identification with timing analysis of the X-ray data, which detected the source spin period of 89.6 s. The best Chandra position for the source is R.A. = 19h04m47491, decl. = +09024140. Subsequently, we performed optical observations of the field around the new location and discovered a coincident optical source with R-band magnitude of 18.7. A search in the Two Micron All Sky Survey catalog revealed an infrared point source with J = 15.2, H = 14.2, and K = 13.5, whose location is also coincident with our Chandra and optical positions. Our results add fresh evidence for a Be/X-ray transient nature for XTE J1906+090

The Prelude to and Aftermath of the Giant Flare of 2004 December 27: Persistent and Pulsed X-ray Properties of SGR 1806-20 from 1993 to 2005

On 2004 December 27, a highly-energetic giant flare was recorded from the magnetar candidate SGR 1806-20. In the months preceding this flare, the persistent X-ray emission from this object began to undergo significant changes. Here, we report on the evolution of key spectral and temporal parameters prior to and following this giant flare. Using the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer, we track the pulse frequency of SGR 1806-20 and find that the spin-down rate of this SGR varied erratically in the months before and after the flare. Contrary to the giant flare in SGR 1900+14, we find no evidence for a discrete jump in spin frequency at the time of the December 27th flare (|dnu/nu| < 5 X 10^-6). In the months surrounding the flare, we find a strong correlation between pulsed flux and torque consistent with the model for magnetar magnetosphere electrodynamics proposed by Thompson, Lyutikov & Kulkarni (2002). As with the flare in SGR 1900+14, the pulse morphology of SGR 1806-20 changes drastically following the flare. Using the Chandra X-ray Observatory and other publicly available imaging X-ray detector observations, we construct a spectral history of SGR 1806-20 from 1993 to 2005. The usual magnetar persistent emission spectral model of a power-law plus a blackbody provides an excellent fit to the data. We confirm the earlier finding by Mereghetti et al. (2005) of increasing spectral hardness of SGR 1806-20 between 1993 and 2004. Contrary to the direct correlation between torque and spectral hardness proposed by Mereghetti et al., we find evidence for a sudden torque change that triggered a gradual hardening of the energy spectrum on a timescale of years. Interestingly, the spectral hardness, spin-down rate, pulsed, and phase-averaged of SGR 1806-20 all peak months before the flare epoch.Comment: 37 pages, 8 figures, 8 tables. Accepted for publication in ApJ. To appear in the Oct 20 2006 editio

Historical map digitization in libraries: Collaborative approaches for large map series

Academic libraries are playing a role in the digitization of Canadian government documents, but maps tend to be excluded from these activities due to their unique dimensions and display requirements. Using a topographic map digitization project as a case study, this paper presents a collaborative approach to map scanning, georeferencing, and metadata creation across several Ontario universities. Collectively, the 21 institutions making up the Ontario Council of University Libraries (OCUL) possess and maintain large volumes of Canadian topographic maps. However, few OCUL universities hold complete sets of these map series. While the Canadian government’s most recent topographic maps are now available online, older editions of these maps have not been digitized. This project, currently underway at several participating universities, will enable us to share digital versions of some of our most-requested historical map series with the public at large

A possible magnetar nature for IGR J16358-4726

We present detailed spectral and timing analysis of the hard X-ray transient IGR J16358-4726 using multisatellite archival observations. A study of the source flux time history over 6 yr suggests that lower luminosity transient outbursts can be occurring in intervals of at most 1 yr. Joint spectral fits of the higher luminosity outburst using simultaneous Chandra ACIS and INTEGRAL ISGRI data reveal a spectrum well described by an absorbed power-law model with a high-energy cutoff plus an Fe line. We detected the 1.6 hr pulsations initially reported using Chandra ACIS also in the INTEGRAL ISGRI light curve and in subsequent XMM-Newton observations. Using the INTEGRAL data, we identified a spin-up of 94 s ( = 1.6 × 10-4), which strongly points to a neutron star nature for IGR J16358-4726. Assuming that the spin-up is due to disk accretion, we estimate that the source magnetic field ranges between 1013 and 1015 G, depending on its distance, possibly supporting a magnetar nature for IGR J16358-4726

General practitioners’ perceptions of their communication with Australian Aboriginal patients with acquired neurogenic communication disorders

Objective: Aboriginal people have high rates of stroke and traumatic brain injury (TBI), often with residual, chronic communication deficits and multiple co-morbidities. This study examined general practitioners’ (GPs’) perceptions of their communication with Aboriginal patients with acquired communication disorders (ACD) after brain injury. Effective communication underpins good care but no previous research has explored this specific context. Methods: A qualitative descriptive approach was employed using interviews and focus groups with 23 GPs from metropolitan Perth and five regional sites in Western Australia. Data were analysed thematically. Results: GPs reported low visibility of Aboriginal patients with ACD in their practices, minimal training on neurogenic ACD, and difficulty distinguishing ACD from cultural-linguistic factors. They had few communication resources, and depended on families and Aboriginal Health Workers to assist in interactions. They rarely used formal interpreting services or referred to speech pathology. They reported communication (dis)ability having low priority in consultations. Conclusion: GPs report difficulty recognising ACD and their lack of prioritising assessment and treatment of communication ability after brain injury potentially compounds the disadvantage and disempowerment experienced by many Aboriginal people. Practice implications: GPs require further communication and cultural training. Improved access to speech pathology and formal interpreting services would be beneficial

Development of the Aboriginal Communication Assessment After Brain Injury (ACAABI): A screening tool for identifying acquired communication disorders in Aboriginal Australians

Purpose: Acquired communication disorders (ACD), following stroke and traumatic brain injury, may not be correctly identified in Aboriginal Australians due to a lack of linguistically and culturally appropriate assessment tools. Within this paper we explore key issues that were considered in the development of the Aboriginal Communication Assessment After Brain Injury (ACAABI) – a screening tool designed to assess the presence of ACD in Aboriginal populations. Method: A literature review and consultation with key stakeholders were undertaken to explore directions needed to develop a new tool, based on existing tools and recommendations for future developments. Result: The literature searches revealed no existing screening tool for ACD in these populations, but identified tools in the areas of cognition and social-emotional wellbeing. Articles retrieved described details of the content and style of these tools, with recommendations for the development and administration of a new tool. The findings from the interview and focus group views were consistent with the approach recommended in the literature. Conclusions: There is a need for a screening tool for ACD to be developed but any tool must be informed by knowledge of Aboriginal language, culture and community input in order to be acceptable and valid