242 research outputs found
Failed Promises: Stand Your Ground\u27s Removal of Imminence Leads to Inconsistent Application and Decreased Safety
Self-defense, while universally recognized as a natural human right, embodies a complex set of scenarios that hinges on the level, place, and imminence of a threat to life. The modern expansion of self-defense laws, namely Stand Your Ground, allows for a wholly subjective anticipation of a threat by removing the duty to retreat, and withdraws both criminal and civil accountability. Such expansion has not afforded increased protection to those who need to use force in self-defense, such as domestic abuse victims, nor has it lowered crime rates, but actually works against such victims and increased homicide rates while not deterring other violent crimes. Further, unconscious biases and brain chemistry, in conjunction with the permission granted by the law, allow overly aggressive responses to rule in situations where none is required. In situations where individual rights overlap, Stand Your Ground prioritizes and rewards aggressive behavior without allowing for any investigation into whether such actions were justified. Stand Your Ground’s expansion of self-defense is unnecessary and delivers none of the benefits promised by its proponents
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“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
Creating a Positive Atmosphere in Online Courses: Student Ratings of Affective Variables in Teacher Education Courses
Instructors in higher education have to work to create a positive atmosphere. Yet, the behaviors instructors must exhibit to create such an atmosphere are different for online courses than face-toface (F2F) courses. The current study surveyed graduate and undergraduate students in a teacher education program to identify which affective variables identified in academic literature for creating a positive online atmosphere are most and least important. The results of this study suggest undergraduate and graduate students rank logistical behaviors (e.g., clearly described directions and expectations, constructive feedback) as most important and emotional-relational behaviors (e.g., interpersonal relationships, humor related to content) as least important. The implications of this study advocate for online courses for adult learners that are clear in expectations and provide assignments that require both practical and higher order thinking. This study provides specific guidance for instructors about which behaviors have the most capital when teaching online courses in a way that creates a positive atmosphere
The Effects of Music Genre on Cardiovascular Performance and Enjoyment in Young Adults
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The genus <i>Nitzschia</i> on the South Shetland Islands and James Ross Island
The purpose of this study was to present LM and SEM observations of Nitzschia taxa encountered on the South Shetland Islands and James Ross Island. During the ongoing taxonomical revision of the freshwater and limno-terrestrial diatom flora on the South Shetland Islands and James Ross Island (Maritime Antarctic Region) eight unknown taxa belonging to the genus Nitzschia were found. These taxa were previously force-fitted into European names such as N. commutata or N. perminuta, but detailed light and scanning electron microscopical observations allowed their separation from the already known taxa and resulted in the description of eight new species. The paper discusses all twelve Nitzschia taxa found in the Maritime Antarctic Region. New taxa are compared to the morphologically most similar taxa and their ecology and biogeography are discussed. Although the genus Nitzschia is present worldwide, a large number of Nitzschia taxa have a restricted distribution within the Antarctic Region, showing a clear bioregionalism
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Perceptual grouping ability in Williams syndrome: Evidence for deviant patterns of performance
Williams syndrome (WS) is a rare genetic disorder. At a cognitive level, this population display poor visuo-spatial cognition when compared to verbal ability. Within the visuo-spatial domain, it is now accepted that individuals with WS are able to perceive both local and global aspects of an image, albeit at a low level. The present study examines the manner in which local elements are grouped into a global whole in WS. Fifteen individuals with WS and 15 typically developing controls, matched for non-verbal ability, were presented with a matrix of local elements and asked whether these elements were perceptually grouped horizontally or vertically. The WS group were at the same level as the control group when grouping by luminance, closure, and alignment. However, their ability to group by shape, orientation and proximity was significantly poorer than controls. This unusual profile of grouping abilities in WS suggests that these individuals do not form a global percept in a typical manner
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