Regulations and Ethical Considerations for Astronomy Education Research II: Resources and Worked Examples

This article discusses the legal and ethical requirements of human subjects research proposals in astronomy education research. We present an overview of the relevant laws, regulations, and guidelines that inform an Institutional Review Board evaluation of proposed research. We also present examples of potential research projects in astronomy education research and discuss their ethical issues

A Śaiva happy ever after: Viṣṇu as Pāśupata ascetic: studies in the Skandapurāṇa X

The Skandapurāṇa is one of the many textual sources that narrates Viṣṇu’s manifestation myths. It tells the stories of Narasiṃha (Man-Lion), Varāha (Boar) and Vāmana (Dwarf) in its own distinctive way. The greatest innovation is the addition of thus far unprecedented sequels to the stories. Whereas Śiva played a minor role, or no role at all, in the narratives as they were known at the time of composition of the Skandapurāṇa, he becomes indispensable in the “afterlife episodes” of the manifestation myths. Each afterlife episode follows the same structure, in which Viṣṇu is unable or unwilling to give up his manifested form. He is liberated from it by Śiva, who subsequently grants Viṣṇu a boon as a reward for his deeds and devotion to Śiva. From a Śaiva perspective, the boons become grander each narrative: first, Viṣṇu receives the important cosmic task in the Śaiva universe of destroying the gods’ enemies, then he formally joins the Pāśupata Śaiva community by performing the Pāśupata observance, and finally, he reaches union with Śiva, i.e., liberation from the continuous cycle of rebirth, by performing another Pāśupata observance. By introducing “the principle of end weight”, I will argue that this radical, new identity of Viṣṇu is expressed at a strategic place in the narrative, viz. at the very end, which is the part that is remembered most vividly.Horizon 2020(H2020)101054849Religious StudiesAsian Studie

Revealing Śiva’s superiority by retelling Viṣṇu’s deeds: Viṣṇu's manifestation myths in the Skandapurāṇa

In her dissertation Revealing Śiva’s Superiority by Retelling Viṣṇu’s Deeds – Viṣnu’s Manifestation Myths in the Skandapurāṇa, Sanne Dokter-Mersch examines three myths in the Skandapurāṇa, a Sanskrit Purāṇa composed in the sixth to seventh century. Although myths about god Śiva and devotion to him are central in the text, it also contains narratives about other gods. This dissertation focusses on those myths in which god Viṣṇu manifests himself as Man-Lion (Narasiṃha), Boar (Varāha) and Dwarf (Vāmana) in order to conquer the enemies of the gods. At the time of composition of the Skandapurāṇa, Śiva and Viṣṇu each had their own religious ideology and devotees, which raises the questions why the composers of this Śaiva Purāṇa dedicated so much attention to Viṣṇu and how these manifestation myths are retold. With the help of different (narratological) methods, Dokter-Mersch addresses these questions by looking at the manifestation myths as part of a literary genre, the Purāṇas.Asian Studie

Visual Story-Telling in Text and Image: The Nāga as Inhabitant of the Cosmic Ocean and the Netherworld

Asian Studie

(Ill-Legal) Lust is a battle field: HIV risk, socio-sexuality and criminality

This paper examines the criminalisation of HIV infection. HIV transmission offences exist in all Australian states and territories, but the bulk of prosecutions have occurred in Victoria. This paper outlines criminal legal responses to the virus in that state with an overview of the legislation and case law. Victoria has several HIV specific and nonspecific offences which may be applied to situations of HIV infection risk. It is the HIV non-specific offences which have been successfully used to prosecute HIV infection risks. The case law outlines several instances where HIV positive bodies have been charged with offences for placing others at risk of HIV infection. These charges have been applied in several cases regardless of whether the complainants seroconvert. Those charged have been same-sex desiring men or African-born men who engaged in sex with Caucasian women. There are marked differences in the sentences which have been applied to these defendants, which are based on the sexuality of the defendant and complainant. This demonstrates the heterosexist and Eurocentric character of the performance of these laws. These offences do not operate in isolation to sociality, rather this area of law embodies many cultural panics about the Other. HIV transmission offences signal socio-legal panics about sexuality, race/ethnicity and disease, situating certain bodies at greater risk of crimino-legal punishment.This conference has been generously sponsored by the School of Social and Political Sciences and the Sydney Law School, University of Sydney, in collaboration with the School of Law, University of Western Sydne

The Skandapurāṇa Volume V: Adhyāyas 96 – 112. The Varāha Cycle and the Andhaka Cycle Continued

bookAsian Studie

Ontogenetic niche shifts as a driver of seasonal migration

Ontogenetic niche shifts have helped to understand population dynamics. Here we show that ontogenetic niche shifts also offer an explanation, complementary to traditional concepts, as to why certain species show seasonal migration. We describe how demographic processes (survival, reproduction and migration) and associated ecological requirements of species may change with ontogenetic stage (juvenile, adult) and across the migratory range (breeding, non-breeding). We apply this concept to widely different species (dark-bellied brent geese (Branta b. bernicla), humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) and migratory Pacific salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) to check the generality of this hypothesis. Consistent with the idea that ontogenetic niche shifts are an important driver of seasonal migration, we find that growth and survival of juvenile life stages profit most from ecological conditions that are specific to breeding areas. We suggest that matrix population modelling techniques are promising to detect the importance of the ontogenetic niche shifts in maintaining migratory strategies. As a proof of concept, we applied a first analysis to resident, partial migratory and fully migratory populations of barnacle geese (Branta leucopsis). We argue that recognition of the costs and benefits of migration, and how these vary with life stages, is important to understand and conserve migration under global environmental change