Musil’s «On Stupidity». The Artistic and Ethical Uses of the Feminine Discursive

Robert Musil’s 1937 address «Über die Dummheit» navigated a challenging subject in a treacherous climate for free speech and simultaneously affirmed Musil’s conception of the necessary symbiosis of aesthetics and ethics. This paper argues for a reading of the address and its preparatory notes wherein Musil’s gendered «Stupidity» (Die Dummheit) represents the ethical role of the artist, as poetic, non-conscripted voice – and, thus, of Musil himself – in a period of totalitarian brutality and linear «final solutions»

The Family Strength Wheel: A Strength-Based Visual Tool for Families

In 2017, data was collected from 59 African-Americans living in the northeastern United States to investigate the saliency of six family strength domains. The study results highlighted an emerging domain, Leadership, and led to the development of a visual family strength tool adapted from DeFrain\u27s (2002) American Family Strength Inventory for family practitioners. With a supplemental worksheet, the Family Strength Wheel provides a self-rating scale illustrating baselines for strength-based family functioning while simultaneously showing benchmarks for improvement. The Family Strength Wheel offers immediate insight into individuals\u27 perceptions of their family\u27s functioning, opening areas for dialogue between family members and practitioners

MARXIST IDEOLOGY IN AUGUSTS DEGLAVS’ NOVEL “THE NEW WORLD”

The literary texts of Augusts Deglavs (1862-1922) highlight themes of cultural history and sociology and contain a rich spectrum of ideas circulating in the Latvian society of the 19th century. These are ideas of nationalism, capitalism, feminism, Marxism promoted by “New Current” (Jaunā Strāva) movement. The article will analyze the manifestations of Marxist ideas in the novel “Jaunā pasaule”(“The New World”) (1897, 1898). Augusts Deglavs wanted to record and preserve both his own experience and the development and ideas of era. Marxism is a theory about the attitudes of the type of production and social relations. Modern ideas, including Marxism, were captured by Latvian intelligence including Augusts Deglavs. Thus it fits into the discourse of history and perception becomes meaningful directly in the background of the history. He shows the effects of alienation achieved by shock and fragmentation technique.The author depicts the impact of an era’s economic structure on social group attitudes and the life an individual and the cultural formation and consumptio

Emancipation of the National Identity in Augusts Deglavs’ Novel “Riga”

The article studies the formation of the Latvian national identity as depicted in the cultural and historical novel Riga by the writer Augusts Deglavs. The plot is set in the second half of the 19th century when more and more Latvians from the country started to move to Riga. By applying the context-oriented approach and practices of cultural studies, the New historicism, post-colonialism, separate aspects of the dynamics and context of the relationship between Latvians and Baltic Germans in multicultural Riga have been analysed. In addition, the points where social and national identities contact and cross under the conditions of hermetic and hegemonic German culture, like relations with the German language, acquisition of social practices, emergence of the sense of Latvianness, have also been examined. The article also performs a concise evaluation of the historical importance of the Young Latvians’ movement depicted in the novel as the awakener of the national identity. Based on John Austin’s concept of performative language, in studying the emancipation of national identity, attention was paid to the ability of language “to do things”, which proves that words expressed in certain situations can possibly affect and change the run of historical processes

An Exceptional Strike: A Micro-history of 'People versus Park' in Madagascar

The article presents a microhistory of a work strike in an Integrated Conservation and Development Project (ICDP) located in a rain forest of eastern Madagascar. ICDPs in Madagascar, as in other rain forest countries, are instruments of "green" neoliberal policy, a dominant development paradigm in Africa since the late 1980s. International donors and the Malagasy state are expanding the number of protected areas in Madagascar, and foreign NGOs typically manage the start-up phase of projects aimed at lessening slash-and-burn horticulture (called tavy) in the forest and to developing ecological tourism. The article traces the roles and narratives of low-wage, locally-hired ICDP workers, who perform the menial tasks of forest conservation. Details of a work strike by lower-tier ICDP workers in 1996 reveal dynamics of environmental interventions that have been neglected in analyses and evaluations. To understand conservation’s recurrent failures, one must investigate not only the sources of tension between agrarian populations and park representatives but also those arising from conservation’s historical division of labor. Key Words: conservation, labor, capitalism, development, parks, Madagasca

Obesity alters the immune response to influenza virus infection: a mechanism for immune modulation

The incidence of obesity worldwide has reached epidemic proportions. This has had a significant economic and social impact due to the increase in co-morbidities associated with obesity (1). Obesity leads to changes in immune parameters under basal conditions (2), suggesting that obesity may result in impaired immune responses during an infection. Influenza virus infection is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide, and proper immune regulation is necessary for clearance of virus with minimal damage to the host. Given that obesity leads to impairment in immune function, we hypothesized that obesity would result in an impaired immune response following infection with influenza virus. Using a mouse model of diet-induced obesity, we found that influenza infected mice had minimal and delayed activation of the innate immune response, as well as a mortality rate that was eight times greater than normal weight mice. The lack of response was partially due to a reduction in mononuclear cell infiltration into the lungs during the early stages of infection. Obese mice also had impaired dendritic cell function, which is a critical link between the innate and cell-mediated immune responses, suggesting that cell-mediated responses during influenza infection were also affected by obesity. Indeed, obese mice had lower induction of cytokines that promote anti-viral T cell responses, impaired proliferation and cytokine production by T cells, and delayed infiltration of T cells to the infected lung. What was the cause of the immune dysfunction? Once possibility was the high circulating leptin levels found in obese mice. Leptin is a hormone that plays a role in both innate and cell-mediated immunity through phosphorylation of Signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) subsequent to binding to its receptor. Despite high circulating leptin, we found that obese mice had reduced STAT3 phosphorylation in immune cells during infection, indicating leptin signaling was impaired and may have mediated some of the immune changes that occurred in obese mice. When we analyzed the impact of direct leptin on immune cell function, we found that direct leptin signaling was not required for normal function. This was shown by correction of immune cell function when a functional neuro-specific leptin receptor was expressed in leptin receptor-deficient, db/db mice. Therefore, the impairment in immune responses that occur in obese mice is, in part, likely due to a lack of centrally mediated effects of leptin. Overall, this work implicates obesity as a risk factor for impaired immune responses during influenza virus infection and, furthermore, suggests that responses to other infections may be affected by obesity. Thus, the rapidly growing obese population in this country and other may at substantial risk for increased morbidity and mortality during the next influenza pandemic

An object-oriented approach to hybrid structured/unstructured grid generation

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/77270/1/AIAA-1996-32-959.pd

Social science and conservation in Madagascar

INTERVIEW MADAGASCAR CONSERVATION & DEVELOPMEN

Spirituality Among Black Americans: A Hierarchical Classification of the Family Strengths Model

There is a need for disaggregate data pertaining to the perceived strengths of Black American families. This study identified which traits are salient and dominant among African-American families according to the Family Strengths Model. Utilizing this model, a mixed methods study was conducted among Black Americans living in Connecticut who identify with belonging to a family (N=59) to investigate the importance of six family strength domains. Results found the hierarchical rank (from most important to least important) to be commitment, spirituality/ spiritual wellbeing, appreciation and affection, positive communication, time together, and the ability to manage stress and crisis effectively. Additionally, all family strength domains were of high importance to the participants. Emerging family strength traits included leadership qualities and qualities that lead to newness and awe. Results are consistent with previous family strength and resiliency literature; however, this study offers a new and focused family strength perspective from Black Americans. Advisor: Yan Xi