“You’ve Become Part of a Bigger Universe” : authorship, Stan Lee, and the rise of superhero cinema

In 1961 Marvel Comics’ editor/writer Stan Lee, artists Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, and a group of other creative collaborators introduced a new, realistic approach to superhero comics. In the years that followed, Marvel’s creative team began to develop a heavily-serialized, continuity-reliant form of storytelling this dissertation terms “comic book poetics.” During the same period, Lee redefined the industrial process whereby comics were created and began to aggressively credit Marvel’s creative staff and assert his own authorial presence. After decades of cross-media efforts on the part of Lee and other Marvel executives, Marvel Studios has become one of the dominant forces in 21st century Hollywood, playing a key role in the larger wave of superhero cinema which has made comic book poetics one of the primary narrative techniques in American pop culture. Marvel Studios has also become a driving force in the reshaping of film authorship, as traditional sources of authorship are destabilized and a more explicitly industrialized creative system has emerged, one that bears striking similarities to that found in the comic industry. This study seeks to understand Marvel’s rise to prominence within the culture industries and its effect on pop culture authorship. It explores the history of Marvel’s cross-media efforts since 1961, investigating how they were affected by changes within the comic, film, and television industries and by larger cultural events such as the rise of Pop Art and the Women’s Movement. It also explores evolving ideas of authorship within the comic industry and their interaction with conceptions of authorship prevalent in other culture industries. This study conducts these explorations by focusing on the figure of Stan Lee, who was at the center of Marvel’s cross-media efforts for several decades and embodied the conflicting ideals of Romantic and collaborative authorship that defined the comic industry.American Studie

Robotic Inspection of Geometrically Complex Tank Systems

The goal of this project was to continue the development of a temporary rail system for a robotic tank inspection device. The tanks to be inspected are in a hazardous environment that is dangerous to work in and navigate. A remotely controlled robot could reduce the need for manual labor in the tanks to initial setup, final removal, and touch ups. Similar setups have been created for inspecting tanks, but they are permanent installations and are meant only for inspections. The goal of the current phase of the project was to employ a new concept for supporting the rail system, create a working prototype, and analyze the effects of loads on the design. The rail system must be economical, quickly deployable, and safe. By modifying a spring compressor, a bracket was created that securely clamps to a tank service flange. From the bracket, a hanger was attached that allows PVC to be used as the rail for the inspection robot. This design is an improvement in terms of ease of installation and removal, practicality, and simplicity. Some issues to be resolved include decreasing flange-to-rail clearance, making the rail more rigid, and wiring the robot to the cart that traverses the rails. When the system is put to use, it will create better working conditions for many laborers.https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/capstone/1126/thumbnail.jp

The Rise of Patient Safety-II: Should We Give Up Hope on Safety-I and Extracting Value From Patient Safety Incidents?:Comment on “False Dawns and New Horizons in Patient Safety Research and Practice”

Who could disagree with the seemingly common-sense reasoning that: “We must learn from the things that go wrong.”? Despite major investments to improve patient safety, relatively few evaluations demonstrate convincing reductions in risk, harm, serious error or death. This disappointing trajectory of improvement from learning from errors or Safety-I as it is sometimes known has led some researchers to argue that there is more to be gained by learning from the majority of healthcare episodes: the things that go right. Based on this premise, socalled Safety-II has emerged as a new paradigm. In this commentary, we consider the ongoing value of Safety-I based approaches and explore whether now is the time to abandon learning from “the bad” and re-energise data collection and analysis by focusing on “the good.

Public Health Outcomes as a Measure of Efficacy of Syringe Exchange Programs

Introduction. A syringe exchange is a public health intervention that offers nonjudgmental services to intravenous drug users (IVDU), providing clean syringes in exchange for used syringes. While prior studies demonstrated that syringe exchanges can reduce transmission of HIV, hepatitis C, and other blood-borne pathogens, other measures of health improvements have been less studied. Methods. 91 members of Vermont CARES syringe exchange program were surveyed on their healthcare practices. New members were defined asprogram. Results. Long-term members tended to have a primary care provider (PCP). Lack of insurance and fear of judgment were commonly cited reasons for not having a PCP. Long-term members were significantly less likely (p=0.04) to use costly emergency department (ED) services and less likely to reuse their own or another person\u27s needles. Long-term members were more likely to be in addiction treatment and reported a greater desire to abstain from drug use. New members were more likely to obtain hepatitis C and HIV testing in the past year. Discussion. Subjects responded positively to the possibility of accessing PCP services through VT CARES, offering a continuation of the nonjudgmental healthcare environment. Decreased ED visits significantly correlated with longer membership, reflecting the positive impact of the syringe exchange education services on reducing healthcare costs. Decreased testing among long-term members may reflect prior knowledge of their status. Long-term members were less likely to reuse their own needles or ones used by another person, suggesting the distribution of clean syringes encourages safer injection practices.https://scholarworks.uvm.edu/comphp_gallery/1247/thumbnail.jp

Future destinations and social inclusion scoping review:how people cured of hepatitis C (HCV) using direct- acting antiviral drugs progress in a new HCV-free world

BACKGROUND: There has been a paradigm shift in the treatment of Hepatitis C (HCV) from the interferon-era to direct-acting antiviral (DAA) drugs. Cure of HCV for the key risk group, those with a history of injecting drug use, may provide a range of benefits to an individual’s quality of life that can be additional to that of a clinical cure. The interferon-era provided evidence that cure of HCV can be a turning point for those who use drugs, supporting a recovery journey. There remains a question if DAAs can provide the same opportunity. METHODS: We employed a scoping review methodology to consider the additional non-clinical benefits that HCV cure may provide. We used the theoretical construct of recovery capital to consider how these benefits may support a recovery journey in the DAA-era. RESULTS: Our search provided 2095 articles, from which 35 were included in the analysis. We developed a thematic synthesis of the non-clinical outcomes identified based on the four over-arching themes of recovery capital: physical, cultural, social and human capital. Our review suggests that identity change is a constituent part of each of the recovery capital domains in relation to HCV treatment. CONCLUSION: We identified Social Identity Model Of Recovery (SIMOR) as a mechanism through which DAAs may provide non-clinical outcomes to increase recovery capital domains. Further research is required to develop an understanding of the impact a cure of HCV with DAAs may have on identity, overall health and wellbeing and social inclusion to support recovery journeys. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13011-022-00475-1

Identifying the Hidden Population:Former Intravenous Drug Users who are no Longer in Contact with Services. “Ask a Friend”

People who, after a period of drug use, have changed their lifestyle and left substance use behind them are a hidden population within our communities. Lack of contact with drug services may mean that they are not tested for hepatitis C (HCV) infection through service-led initiatives and, therefore, may be exposed to the chronic morbidity and risk of death inherent with a legacy of HCV infection. This study utilized respondent-driven sampling (RDS) in a novel fashion to find those at historical risk of HCV. The social networks of people with a history of drug use were mapped, and individuals not currently in contact with services were invited to come forward for testing by members of their social network. The study used a reference group to inform study methodology and communication methods to reach out to this hidden population. One hundred and nine individuals received dry blood spot tests for HCV, 17.4% were antibody positive. Fifty one individuals met the inclusion criteria for this study. One hundred and twenty three invite-to-test coupons were issued; however, only one wave of recruitment consisting of one participant resulted from this method. Using RDS in historical social networks was not effective in this study and did not reach this hidden population and increase testing for HCV. This study is registered with clinicaltrials.gov (Ref NCT03697135)