993 research outputs found
Tracking the reflexivity of the (dis)engaged citizen: some methodological reflections
The relationship between governments and citizens in many contemporary democracies is haunted by uncertainty and sociologists face the task of listening effectively to citizensâ own reflections on this uncertain relationship. This article reflects on the qualitative methodology of a recently completed UK project which used a combination of diary and multiple interviews/ focus groups to track over a fieldwork period of up to a year citizensâ reflections on their relationship to a public world and the contribution to this of their media consumption. In particular, the article considers how the projectâs multiple methods enabled multiple angles on the inevitable artificiality and performative dimension of the diary process, resulting in rich data on peopleâs complex reflections on the uncertain position of the contemporary citizen
Demand-Driven Control of Root ATP Sulfurylase Activity and SO42- Uptake in Intact Canola (The Role of Phloem-Translocated Glutathione)
Glutathione-Mediated Regulation of ATP Sulfurylase Activity, SO42- Uptake, and Oxidative Stress Response in Intact Canola Roots
Variability of the Aging Process in Dementia-Free Adults With Down Syndrome
The aim of this cross-sectional study was to analyze the typical aging process in adults with Down syndrome, focusing on its variability. The sample comprised 120 adults with Down syndrome who were free of dementia. Ages ranged from 20 to 69Â years. Each participant was assessed on cognitive functioning and social adaptation, and was checked for the presence of psychopathological disorders. Results revealed an age-related deterioration in both cognitive and social adaptation skills, the extent of this decline depending on the dimension under scrutiny, and interindividual variability in aging profiles
Pelizaeus-Merzbacher-Like disease presentation of MCT8 mutated male subjects.
Pelizaeus-Merzbacher Disease is an X-linked hypomyelinatiing leukodystrophy. We
report mutations in the thyroid hormone transporter gene MCT8 in 11% of 53
families affected by hypomyelinating leukodystrophies of unknown aetiology. The
12 MCT8 mutated patients express initially a Pelizaeus-Merzbacher-Like disease
phenotype with a latter unusual improvement of magnetic resonance imaging white
matter signal despite absence of clinical progression. This observation
underlines the interest of determining both free T3 and free T4 serum
concentrations to screen for MCT8 mutations in young patients (<3 y) with a
severe Pelizaeus-Merzbacher-Like disease presentation or older severe mentally
retarded male patients with "hypomyelinated" regions
From Indymedia to Anonymous: rethinking action and identity in digital cultures
The period following the social mobilizations of 2011 has seen a renewed focus on the place of communication in collective action, linked to the increasing importance of digital communications. Framed in terms of personalized âconnective actionâ or the social morphology of networks, these analyses have criticized previously dominant models of âcollective identityâ, arguing that collective action needs to be understood as âdigital networkingâ. These influential approaches have been significantly constructed as a response to models of communication and action evident in the rise of Independent Media Centres in the period following 1999. After considering the rise of the âdigital networkingâ paradigm linked to analyses of Indymedia, this article considers the emergence of the internet-based collaboration known as Anonymous, focusing on its origins on the 4chan manga site and its 2008 campaign against Scientology, and also considers the âI am the 99%â microblog that emerged as part of the Occupy movement. The emergence of Anonymous highlights dimensions of digital culture such as the ephemeral, the importance of memes, an ethic of lulz, the mask and the grotesque. These forms of communication are discussed in the light of dominant attempts to shape digital space in terms of radical transparency, the knowable and the calculable. It is argued that these contrasting approaches may amount to opposing social models of an emerging information society, and that the analysis of contemporary conflicts and mobilizations needs to be alert to novel forms of communicative practice at work in digital cultures today
The concept of solidarity: emerging from the theoretical shadows?
The concept of solidarity has been relatively neglected by social scientists since Durkheim's pioneering work in the late 19th century. The discipline of politics has been guilty of overlooking this 'subjective' element of community life, but recent works by StjernĂž and Brunkhorst reflect a growing awareness of the theoretical significance of the concept. Whereas early liberal attempts to theorise solidarity took the nation state to be the appropriate community for its realisation, the emergence of globalisation raises the possibility of human solidarity developing in the global community. Traditional forms of solidarity have been dissipated by the social changes accompanying globalisation, but they were often locked into the defence of particular interests. New forms may be emerging to rekindle the broader vision of human solidarity. Recent work by writers such as Habermas, Honneth, Rorty and Touraine focuses on widening and deepening democratic participation and/or the articulation of our ethical obligations in various ways. It is argued here that these perspectives need to be supplemented by a radical humanist approach grounded in a normative theory of human self-realisation
Autoreactive T cell clones specific for class I and class II HLA antigens isolated from a human chimera.
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