Liminal blankness : mixing race and space in monochrome's psychic surface

Merged with duplicate record 10026.1/2008 on 28.02.2017 by CS (TIS)Blank space in western Art History and visual culture is something that has tended to be either explained away, or ignored. Pictures that do not depict challenge the visual basis of the ego and its others, confronting what I call the `Phallic reader' (who sees according to the logic and rules of the Phallogocentric system he inhabits) and potentially disturbing his sense of the visible. The Phallic reader, the visible and the seeing ego's sense of how to see, meet in what I call the `psychic surface'. Deploying this notion of a `psychic surface' allows for readings which move on from the potentially confining logic of the Phallus. Paradoxically, the psychic structure of monochrome's liminal blankness is homologous to the indeterminate Mixed Race subject, whose body transgresses not only the foundational historical binarism of `Black/White', but also Lacanian psychoanalysis. This thesis aims to concentrate on exploring blank spaces, with particular reference to the monochrome within western Art History. Building on the considerable work since at least the 1960s that critiques the binary logocentrism of Eurocentric, Hegelian-originated Art History, this thesis aims to explore the specific ways monochrome evades, undermines and tricks commonly accepted `groundrules' of Art History. The Phallic reader is severely restricted in understanding that which falls outside of the signifying logic of a particular system of Art History that follows a binary, teleological and Phallogocentric course. Both monochrome and the Mixed Race subject fall outside of this logic, as both contain the structure of the trick. In each case, the trick is activated in the tension between the prychica nd the opticals urfaces. I suggestt hat monochrome's psychic space is pre-Phallic, a space of eternal deferral of meaning, a space that playfully makes a nonsense of binary structures. Psychoanalysis is largely used here as an analytic tool, but also appears as an object of critique. Art History provides an anchor for the optical surfaces under discussion. Theories of `radical superficiality' both contradict and complement these ways of theorising the psychic surface. The trick/ster is a significant/signifiant means of deploying interdisciplinary methodologies to negotiate this difficult terrain between Black, White and monochrome. An interdisciplinary approach also enacts the psychic structure of indeterminacy of my objects of study. I hope that by proposing a potential transgressive power for those indeterminate things that continue to confound the binary systems that aim to contextualise and confine them, I will contribute to the areas of Visual Culture and `Race' Theory

Metabolic and Molecular Approaches to the Study of Bacterial Communities in Wetlands of the Alberta Athabasca Oil Sands Region

Bacterial communities in wetlands from the Athabasca region (Alberta, Canada) were surveyed and their utility as bio-indicators for wetland reclamation was assessed. Sediment samples were collected from wetlands categorized as: (1) natural (off mining leases), (2) reference (on mining sites but not directly impacted by oil sands processed material (OSPM)), and (3) OSPM (directly affected by OSPM). Wetlands of the latter two groups ranged in age from 11 to 24 years. Analysis involved community level physiological profiling (CLPP) with BIOLOG™ EcoPlates, and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE). Multivariate analysis applied to data from both techniques revealed differences in the bacterial communities based on site type; although overlap between groups occurred. Principal component analysis (PCA) and cluster analysis applied to CLPP data revealed a trend in which communities in OSPM sites were most similar to each other, followed by those in natural sites, and communities in reference wetlands were variable. The vegetated areas of a wetland displayed increased functional richness and diversity (as measured by CLPP) compared to non-vegetated areas. DGGE analysis applied to the total bacterial community revealed the highest number of operational taxonomic units (OTUs) in OSPM samples; the 2008 and 2009 OSPM samples contained an average of 22±4.5 and 22.4±5.1 OTUs, respectively, while reference sites contained 17.7±4.9 (2008) and 16.4±1.8 (2009) and natural sites contained 17.1±4.4 (2008) and 20.5±0.7 (2009). When DGGE was applied to the bacterial subgroups, y-Proteobacteria and Actinomycetes, clustering effects based on site-type were more evident through PCA than when a total bacterial approach was taken. Within OSPM wetlands, y-Proteobacteria populations were varied while Actinomycetes were similar across sites. Overall, there are clear functional (CLPP) and genetic (DGGE) differences between bacterial communities in OSPM and less impacted sites, although communities are not distinct, potentially reflecting the age of the wetlands studied and adaptation of the communities to oil sands materials. Given that CLPP and DGGE could distinguish between communities based on site type, both may be useful for monitoring microbial communities in Athabasca wetlands throughout reclamation. In particular, CLPP and group-specific DGGE are recommended as tools for community monitoring

The relationship between blood iron markers, nutritional intakes and bone mineral density

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between serum ferritin (sFer) levels, nutrient intake of iron, calcium and vitamin D and bone mineral density (BMD) in female collegiate athletes. It was hypothesized that if an individual had low sFer (20µg/L. An independent T-test also showed no mean differences in BMD levels at any site when the group was divided into high and low sFer levels. CONCLUSION: There was no correlation between sFer level and BMD or between BMD and intake levels of iron, calcium or vitamin D, in female collegiate athletes participating in weight bearing sports. Although a correlation was not found between sFer levels and BMD, this cannot be generalized to other populations, nor can it be assumed from this data that iron deficiency does not influence BMD. In view of the fact that this phenomena has not been studied in a large cross section of athletes or non-athletes, further study is warranted to determine the influence of sFer on BMD

OncoLog Volume 51, Number 03, March 2006

What Happens Next? Managing the Care of Long-Term Cancer Survivors House Call: Relieving Symptoms with Acupuncture 50 Years of OncoLoghttps://openworks.mdanderson.org/oncolog/1179/thumbnail.jp