Analyzing Pre-Inhumation Breakage Ceramics at Lamanai, Belize: A Conjunctive Approach

During the Terminal Classic period (9th-10th centuries A.D.), the ancient Maya at Lamanai, Belize, began to practice pre-inhumation breakage of ceramics in mortuary contexts. Previously, the custom had been to bury whole vessels with the deceased. This conspicuous shift in behavior suggests important changes in beliefs regarding the role of ceramics in death and interment at a pivotal moment in ancient Maya culture history. Despite this significant change, there has been no published research conducted specifically on these vessels. In fact, there has been no clearly delineated set of characteristics for what qualifies as a pre-inhumation breakage vessel (PBV). This study offers a working definition for PBVs and converts the original Lamanai grave descriptions of those that contain PBVs to a classification system for ease of future comparative analyses. Finally, the sex and age of individuals buried with PBVs are considered. The result is a conjunctive analysis that provides data not only on PBV forms and quantities, grave types, and the sex and age of those interred with PBVs, but also several statistically significant correlations among these variables. I argue that the conjoined data suggest that one of the primary purposes for the pre-inhumation breakage of ceramics in mortuary contexts was a strategic one, a method selected by Lamanai leadership, and enacted community-wide, as a way to protect the community from potentially harmful energies and to maintain communal confidence at a time of great uncertainty in the southern Maya lowlands

Comparative Analysis of Urban Design and Criminal Behavior: A Study of New Urbanism and Defensible Space as they Pertain to Crime

This research evaluates the correlation between urban design and criminal behavior. Environmental designs observed are New Urbanism, also known as Traditional Neighborhood Design (TND) and Neo-Traditional Neighborhood Design; and Defensible Space, otherwise known as Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED) or Secure by Design (SBD). This study analyzes and compares crime rates in Minnesota cities and neighborhoods which have characteristics of one of these urban designs or a 3rd, Vernacular Design. Similar research has been done in a 2004 thesis by Marie E. Hafey titled New Urbanism Versus Defensible Space: Design Philosophies Related to Neighborhood Satisfaction and Perceived Crime, which addressed the correlation between urban design and perceived crime. A recent Operation Scorpion web posting also claimed New Urbanism is crimogenic. There is little research to either support this argument or refute it. This research aims to find whether or not either of the two urban designs, Defensible Space or New Urbanism, is conducive to criminal behavior

Cartooning for Peace? The Necessity of Political Cartooning to Democracy and Understanding the Struggle of Inclusion Exclusion and Citizenship for French Muslims

This combined thesis for Political Science and French and Francophone Studies will address the issue of political cartooning in relation to democracy. This thesis will show how political cartooning explores the ambiguities and contradictions of citizenship for Muslims in France. Cartoons reveal the ostracizing of citizens, the challenges of integration, and the difficulties of discovering an identity as an immigrant through explicit, shocking, and often uncomfortable imagery. By analyzing the backlash against cartoons, the effects of cartoons on the Muslim minority in France, and the ways in which traditional French cartooning has the potential to be a positive force for social change, the absolute necessity of political cartooning to democracy becomes evident. To show the invaluable relationship between democracy and political cartooning, I analyze controversies surrounding Charlie Hebdo and their implications, Riad Sattouf’s graphic novel “The Arab of the Future” and its relation to French Muslim identity and integration, and the organization of Cartooning for Peace and the ways in which cartooning can encourage world-wide inclusion of minorities

Women's participation in conflict management and peace processes in Afghanistan : a focus on UN SCR 1325

This study is a literature based study on women's participation in conflict management and peace processes, with a focus on the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325. It is a qualitative study, looking at the implementation of UN SCR 1325 in Afghanistan. A series of international events led to the adoption of the UN SCR 1325. Looking at national plans in Afghanistan, the UN SCR 1325 is integrated to the National Action Plan on Women of Afghanistan and the Gender Equality Project. Women's groups in Afghanistan, such as Afghan Women's Network, Women for Afghan Women and Shuhada Organisation all contributes to women, peace and security, through education, women's programmes and the protection of women's rights. There are several strong women in Afghanistan, working for women's empowerment and participation in society. Among these women we find dr. Sima Samar who works with women's rights in Afghanistan, Malalai Joya who was a member of the Parliament and spoke out against warlords, Manizha Naderi who is the executive director of Women for Afghan Women and Rula Ghani, the wife of the newly elected President Ashraf Ghani. Looking at these different levels of dealing with the SCR 1325, it seems difficult to see the connection between them, and the implementation seems to start separately at the different levels, rather than going down from the government to the women's groups and women, connection the processes together.M-D

Analysis of Articles Published in Eight Selected Higher Education Journals on Selected Variables to Reveal Scholarly Development of the Discipline

The development of a discipline is reflected in its literature. Higher education is a fairly young discipline, as shown by the large amount of its literature beginning in the 1970s or later. Studying the literature of a discipline reveals various aspects of its development, and gives those engaged in its development an assessment of what is being done and who is doing it at a particular point in time. Using bibliometrics, or the literature as data, this dissertation examined articles in eight selected higher education scholarly journals in 1995 and 2000 to determine characteristics of the authors producing higher education literature and characteristics of the articles themselves. A total of 474 articles were examined. These characteristics included the authors’ sex, geographic locations, academic positions held at their institutions, the departments where they worked, and the institutions they represented by Carnegie Classification. Characteristics of the articles included subject content and the research methodologies employed in the articles. Among many findings, this study found that males published more than females in all categories, except when authors resided in the Pacific region of the country. Females used qualitative analysis more than males, and wrote more about minorities and women, while males wrote more about administration. Faculty used qualitative analysis more than administrators; administrators wrote more about institutional evaluation and research; while faculty wrote more about themselves (faculty), students, curriculum, minorities and women. This study also found that faculty from departments other than Education or Higher Education published more in the literature of higher education than faculty from departments of Higher Education

A model for IS spectra for magnetized plasma with arbitrary isotropic velocity distributions

The plasma line in the incoherent scatter spectrum is known to provide information about the state of the ionosphere. However, it is weak in signal strength and therefore difficult to measure reliably and consistently. When high-energetic electrons (suprathermal electrons) are present in the ionosphere the plasma line echo power is enhanced and detectable by more radars. Recent measurements made by the Arecibo radar show an altitude and aspect angle (angle between the radar beam and the magnetic field line) dependence on the returned echo power of the plasma line. This was assumed to be due to enhancements in the suprathermal electron velocity distribution but has neither been confirmed through theory nor numerical analysis. The theory describing the plasma line in the incoherent scatter spectrum due to scattering off thermal electrons has been known for a long time. This theory includes radar measurements at large angles to the magnetic field but a similar general derivation has not been formulated where suprathermal electrons are included in the distribution. In this work a derivation of the dielectric function which is a fundamental part of the derivation of the incoherent scatter spectrum was carried out for an arbitrary isotropic velocity distribution. Further, a program calculating the spectrum using the derived dielectric function was developed. The program was used to model the incoherent scatter spectrum for different electron velocity distributions and the echo power in the plasma line as a function of aspect angle and electron number density. It was shown that the enhancements found in the suprathermal distribution map to the structures found in the plasma line echo power, in line with the proposed explanation based on measurements. These findings support an aspect angle formula relating energy and received plasma resonance frequency based on the assumption that the main contributing factor to the resonance frequency are the electrons with velocity close to parallel to the magnetic field line

Honey in Healing: New Look at an Old Treatment

Chronic wounds such as pressure ulcers continue to be a difficult problem to manage, especially in the elderly populations. They are costly in terms of pain, as well as medical resources. The initiative Healthy People 2010 has set a goal at reducing the number of chronic wounds, more specifically pressure ulcers, by 50% in nursing home residents. (Porth & Matfin, 2009). Researchers are diligently attempting to find new, innovative, and cost-effective ways to manage chronic wounds. One solution may actually be an old remedy; honey. The purpose of this work is to provide healthcare workers with a review of the dynamics of wound healing and current knowledge regarding honey as a treatment option for chronic wounds. An increased knowledge about wound healing and treatment options may translate into improved outcomes for patients and optimal utilization of resource