Place, space, and family: A rhetorical analysis of the resistance rhetoric of Judy Bonds

This thesis examines the ways that rhetorics of resistance can operate in contemporary social conditions. I do this specifically by examining the rhetoric of Judy Bonds, an environmental justice activist who opposed mountaintop removal (MTR) mining in Appalachia. I utilize a qualitative rhetorical approach to examine 34 instances of Bonds’ discourse as well as my own autoethnographic reflections focused on my work with Mountain Justice, a regional anti-MTR activist organization. Pairing the constant comparative method with principles of ideological criticism, informed by theories of place, voice, memory, and narrative, forms this qualitative rhetorical approach. The postmodern turn allows for the multiple, unique, instances of rhetoric to be viewed as fragments of discourse. That is to say that, while each instance of rhetoric is evaluated as having unique properties, the postmodern turn allows for overarching themes and discourses to emerge. Bonds’ rhetoric reveals a unique use of discourses of space, place, and a queered rhetoric of family and family values. Further research may explore the creation of an archive of Bonds’ rhetoric, ways that the image of the cyborg and assemblage theory might illuminate identity relationships in rhetoric of resistance, images of a utopian future for Appalachia, and performances of memorialization within environmental justice movements. Ultimately, though, this research points toward the need to complicate an understanding of the ways that certain tropes and metaphors are deployed as discrete, and rather view them as implicating one another and operating simultaneously within an instance of rhetoric

Threading Memory: Performing Animacy in Text, Memorial, and Travel

This dissertation explores the process of creating and touring a community-sourced memorial quilt for the anti-mountaintop removal activist Julia “Judy” Bonds, who died in 2011. As a practice, the project positions memorialization as a possible framework for social movements to utilize when faced with loss that allows for actions that honor members of the movement while still engaging in consciousness raising and organizing efforts. From a theoretical standpoint, the practice of memorialization—especially when it is intentionally designed to align with the practices/legacy of the person(s) being remembered—is also considered through an object oriented ontology perspective, providing insight into the affective ways that a more personal/community base memorial can be considered as both a symbolic and real material representation of a person who has died.As a practice, the dissertation brings together work on object oriented ontology and travel as a way to highlight travel as a mobile object and performative practice, not just as a practice that allows for research to be presented, which can serve as a valuable site of knowledge generation and creation.Finally, this document is concerned with the materiality of textual representation, offering a series of experiments in performative writing to align with the larger goals of community organizing and environmental action, insisting that the documentation of our actions as well as the actions themselves can help to imagine new ways of being and knowing

Studying Gender in Conference Talks -- data from the 223rd meeting of the American Astronomical Society

We present a study on the gender balance, in speakers and attendees, at the recent major astronomical conference, the American Astronomical Society meeting 223, in Washington, DC. We conducted an informal survey, yielding over 300 responses by volunteers at the meeting. Each response included gender data about a single talk given at the meeting, recording the gender of the speaker and all question-askers. In total, 225 individual AAS talks were sampled. We analyze basic statistical properties of this sample. We find that the gender ratio of the speakers closely matched the gender ratio of the conference attendees. The audience asked an average of 2.8 questions per talk. Talks given by women had a slightly higher number of questions asked (3.2$\pm$0.2) than talks given by men (2.6$\pm$0.1). The most significant result from this study is that while the gender ratio of speakers very closely mirrors that of conference attendees, women are under-represented in the question-asker category. We interpret this to be an age-effect, as senior scientists may be more likely to ask questions, and are more commonly men. A strong dependence on the gender of session chairs is found, whereby women ask disproportionately fewer questions in sessions chaired by men. While our results point to laudable progress in gender-balanced speaker selection, we believe future surveys of this kind would help ensure that collaboration at such meetings is as inclusive as possible.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures. Comments welcome

A Social Media Strategy for an Academic Department

This essay describes the process one communication studies department used to develop a social media strategy. That process involved identifying the audiences to be reached, establishing goals and objectives, conducting an audit to identify possible message posts, and selecting posts to reach our goals and objectives. The resulting strategy involves posting messages two to three times per week targeted toward specific audiences and reflecting twelve objectives. A calendar was created to guide the posts. Future research will assess the effectiveness of the strategy

Genetic Homogeneity of the Invasive Lionfish Across the Northwestern Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico Based On Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms

Despite the devastating impact of the lionfish (Pterois volitans) invasion on NW Atlantic ecosystems, little genetic information about the invasion process is available. We applied Genotyping by Sequencing techniques to identify 1,220 single nucleotide polymorphic sites (SNPs) from 162 lionfish samples collected between 2013 and 2015 from two areas chronologically identified as the first and last invaded areas in US waters: the east coast of Florida and the Gulf of Mexico. We used population genomic analyses, including phylogenetic reconstruction, Bayesian clustering, genetic distances, Discriminant Analyses of Principal Components, and coalescence simulations for detection of outlier SNPs, to understand genetic trends relevant to the lionfish’s long-term persistence. We found no significant differences in genetic structure or diversity between the two areas (FST p-values \u3e 0.01, and t-test p-values \u3e 0.05). In fact, our genomic analyses showed genetic homogeneity, with enough gene flow between the east coast of Florida and Gulf of Mexico to erase previous signals of genetic divergence detected between these areas, secondary spreading, and bottlenecks in the Gulf of Mexico. These findings suggest rapid genetic changes over space and time during the invasion, resulting in one panmictic population with no signs of divergence between areas due to local adaptation

Speaking of online learning: Alternative practice-based learning experiences for speech pathologists in Australia, Ghana and Hong Kong

Speech Pathology programs usually send students to workplaces to learn clinical skills necessary for practice. During COVID-19, programs needed to respond quickly to ensure that students continued to gain the necessary experiences and skills required to progress through their program and graduate as clinicians, while simultaneously complying with COVID-19 requirements. Case studies from seven different universities in Australia, Ghana and Hong Kong described the diverse ways in which placements were adapted to be COVID-safe, taking into account local needs. Some practices which had been included in placement education prior to the pandemic, such as telepractice and simulation-based learning, were extended and developed during this time. Educators, students, clinicians and clients responded to the rapidly changing needs of the time with flexibility and innovation, utilising a variety of technologies and tools to support case-based and virtual learning opportunities. Feedback from these diverse stakeholders about the experiences was positive, despite inevitable limitations and less-than-ideal circumstances. The positive findings provided insights for consideration in the future: could strategies implemented in response to the pandemic continue to be incorporated into placement experiences, enhancing current practices and maintaining student performance outcomes? Exceptional circumstances prompted exceptional responses; flexibility and innovation were accelerated in response to the pandemic and may transform future placement-based learning opportunities

Speaking of Online Learning: Alternative Practice-Based Learning Experiences for Speech Pathologists in Australia, Ghana and Hong Kong

Speech Pathology programs usually send students to workplaces to learn clinical skills necessary for practice. During COVID-19, programs needed to respond quickly to ensure that students continued to gain the necessary experiences and skills required to progress through their program and graduate as clinicians, while simultaneously complying with COVID-19 requirements. Case studies from seven different universities in Australia, Ghana and Hong Kong described the diverse ways in which placements were adapted to be COVID-safe, taking into account local needs. Some practices which had been included in placement education prior to the pandemic, such as telepractice and simulation-based learning, were extended and developed during this time. Educators, students, clinicians and clients responded to the rapidly changing needs of the time with flexibility and innovation, utilising a variety of technologies and tools to support case-based and virtual learning opportunities. Feedback from these diverse stakeholders about the experiences was positive, despite inevitable limitations and less-than-ideal circumstances.  The positive findings provided insights for consideration in the future: could strategies implemented in response to the pandemic continue to be incorporated into placement experiences, enhancing current practices and maintaining student performance outcomes? Exceptional circumstances prompted exceptional responses; flexibility and innovation were accelerated in response to the pandemic and may transform future placement-based learning opportunities

Investigating harms of testing for ovarian cancer – psychological outcomes and cancer conversion rates in women with symptoms of ovarian cancer:A cohort study embedded in the multicentre ROCkeTS prospective diagnostic study

Objective: To investigate psychological correlates in women referred with suspected ovarian cancer via the fast‐track pathway, explore how anxiety and distress levels change at 12 months post‐testing, and report cancer conversion rates by age and referral pathway. Design: Single‐arm prospective cohort study. Setting: Multicentre. Secondary care including outpatient clinics and emergency admissions. Population: A cohort of 2596 newly presenting symptomatic women with a raised CA125 level, abnormal imaging or both. Methods: Women completed anxiety and distress questionnaires at recruitment and at 12 months for those who had not undergone surgery or a biopsy within 3 months of recruitment. Main outcome measures: Anxiety and distress levels measured using a six‐item short form of the State–Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI‐6) and the Impact of Event Scale – Revised (IES‐r) questionnaire. Ovarian cancer (OC) conversion rates by age, menopausal status and referral pathway. Results: Overall, 1355/2596 (52.1%) and 1781/2596 (68.6%) experienced moderate‐to‐severe distress and anxiety, respectively, at recruitment. Younger age and emergency presentations had higher distress levels. The clinical category for anxiety and distress remained unchanged/worsened in 76% of respondents at 12 months, despite a non‐cancer diagnosis. The OC rates by age were 1.6% (95% CI 0.5%–5.9%) for ag

Identifying active vascular microcalcification by (18)F-sodium fluoride positron emission tomography.

Vascular calcification is a complex biological process that is a hallmark of atherosclerosis. While macrocalcification confers plaque stability, microcalcification is a key feature of high-risk atheroma and is associated with increased morbidity and mortality. Positron emission tomography and X-ray computed tomography (PET/CT) imaging of atherosclerosis using (18)F-sodium fluoride ((18)F-NaF) has the potential to identify pathologically high-risk nascent microcalcification. However, the precise molecular mechanism of (18)F-NaF vascular uptake is still unknown. Here we use electron microscopy, autoradiography, histology and preclinical and clinical PET/CT to analyse (18)F-NaF binding. We show that (18)F-NaF adsorbs to calcified deposits within plaque with high affinity and is selective and specific. (18)F-NaF PET/CT imaging can distinguish between areas of macro- and microcalcification. This is the only currently available clinical imaging platform that can non-invasively detect microcalcification in active unstable atherosclerosis. The use of (18)F-NaF may foster new approaches to developing treatments for vascular calcification.AI Wellcome Trust PhD Programme in Metabolic and Cardiovascular Disease Grant Number 096823/Z/11/Z, Wellcome Trust (WT103782AIA), British Heart Foundation (RG/10/007/28300, CH/09/002/26360, PG/12/8/29371), NHS Research Scotland and NIHR Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre.This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from the Nature Publishing Group via http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/ncomms849