Childhood disrupted : Mary Elizabeth Braddon’s unfinished autobiography Before the knowledge of evil

As Mary Jean Corbett in Representing Femininity (1992), Linda Peterson in Traditions of Victorian Women’s Autobiography (1999) and David Amigoni in Life Writing and Victorian Culture (2006) have all noted, Victorian women could write about their lives in several ways: autobiographies, diaries, letters, journals, memoirs and disguised within their fiction. Braddon utilised several of these options, including diaries between the years 1880-1914 and an autobiographical account of her childhood that she tellingly entitled ‘Before the Knowledge of Evil’ (Reel 1).1 She began writing this account in 1914, but after one hundred and eighty-five pages of typescript she had only reached the age of nine; presumably she was going to continue to write her entire life history, but she died before its completion. Autobiographies can be used in several ways, and Braddon’s account will be discussed as an example of Victorian women’s autobiography of childhood; as a snapshot of history in the 1830-40s; as an exploration of the inner psychology of a child; as revealing Braddon’s nostalgia for a time past; and finally to explore how she makes a case for a child’s right to have a childhood

Acquiring skills and attributes necessary for employment in junior administrative roles : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education in Adult Education at Massey University

Tertiary pre-employment skills based programmes are designed to assist students in gaining the skills and academic qualifications needed to gain employment. This study explores the skills and attributes needed to gain employment in the business administration field. It explored this from the perspective of students and also from prospective employers' points of view. This research included a review of literature within the field of study and also focused on the delivery, material and outcomes of some business administration programmes. The teaching rationale of one polytechnic was also included as it showed how the way students learn and the desired outcomes have influenced the method of delivery. Integral to this study was the use of questionnaires that students and prospective employers filled out, and interviews with three employers and three students. This brought to light their views on skills and attributes, along with what they perceived as being important in gaining and giving employment opportunities. The research makes recommendations, from an educator's perspective, on what is required to enhance students' opportunities for employment within this field, and how programmes can be developed to allow opportunities for students to develop skills and attributes valued in business occupations

Writing the vampire : M. E. Braddon’s Good Lady Ducayne and Bram Stoker’s Dracula

By the fin-de-siècle, vampire fiction already had a long-standing Gothic heritage, and yet, in the mid-1890s, two authors published their own vampire tales, hoping to make their mark in the popular genre. One author was an established best-seller with thirty years’ experience of the market, while the other was a lawyer and theatre business manager by profession and wrote in his spare time. The professional writer, Mary Elizabeth Braddon, published her short story Good Lady Ducayne in 1896, while the part-time writer, Bram Stoker, published his novel, Dracula, a year later. Braddon’s tale was quickly lost to the annals of time while Stoker’s novel became a staple of the Gothic mode. As a result of this close proximity, a potential crossover has been noted by several scholars, with Richard Bleiler commenting: “[b]ecause Dracula (1897) was written in 1896, the question arises as to whether Stoker and Braddon discussed subject matter and, if so, who influenced whom, and how. This has not yet been resolved” (131). By comparing both authors’ theatrical backgrounds, literary careers and their life-long friendship, as well as their texts’ literary formations, sources, and themes, this article establishes their potential influence on each other and discusses their social commentary to examine how this impacted their popular and literary reputations. Engaging in contemporary debates such as the “New Woman”, scientific breakthroughs and technological advances, Stoker’s novel contrasted a bygone age with modernity while cementing the genre’s patriarchal male Count as the epitome of evil. Braddon’s “Good Lady Ducayne” dealt with the same concerns of modernization and women’s changing place in society, but has been critically neglected until the twenty-first century due to its short story form and anticlimactic ending. Yet Braddon’s tale is more radical than Stoker’s classic text in its representation of vampirism, scientific advances and rational influences, as well as its gender and genre expectations. Dracula may have captured the public’s imagination, leading to it being reproduced and adapted countless times over the last century, but Braddon’s short story was potentially too close to reality to bear thinking about. This article postulates that Braddon’s moving away from the supernatural to penning a scientifically and socially realistic vampire challenges the vampire’s literary landscape more effectively than Dracula, because the horror in her tale was not displaced onto the supernatural but firmly centered in modern life

Will health students engage with a health information blog?

Background: The health librarian at the University of Bedfordshire wanted to explore ways of reaching out to health students, especially distance learners and those juggling studies with full-time work. Objectives: The aim of this action research study was to assess the impact of a health information blog on a cohort of distance and part time learners studying for MSc Public Health. Methods: Data was collected by means of an online survey and visits to the blog were monitored using the Google Analytics programme. Results: Almost half of respondents reported that they had not visited the blog as they were not aware that the blog existed, despite targeted publicity and emails alerting them to the blog. However, students who had visited the blog found the information useful, both for preparing assignments and in their professional health care practice. Conclusions: Libraries need to ensure that blogs are adequately marketed and promoted, otherwise it is unlikely that they will be successful

Powering down technology

This paper will examine the issue of energy consumption resulting from the use of technology. It will identify and evaluate potential solutions currently being deployed by data center managers. In addition, the paper will recommend guidelines for reducing energy consumption for both the individual and business consumer

Effects of Proline and Glycine on the Cnidocyte Discharge of Hydra magnipapillata

The sense of taste enables animals to utilize environmental cues to detect favorable foods. Through specialized sensory receptors, Cnidarians employ stinging cells called cnidocytes to perform a variety of activities such as locomotion, capturing prey, inducing of feeding responses, and defense. Their discharge is highly regulated by mechanical and chemical signals that are mediated by a complex system including the opsin and taste pathways. Taste 1 Receptors (T1R) have previously been isolated in vertebrates but only until recently, have been noted in invertebrates. Receptors specific to L- amino acids corresponding to the taste sensation of umami, were studied to determine if the pathways of Hydra magnipapillata used for feeding were similar to the systems utilized in vertebrates. Amino acids, Proline and Glycine, were experimented using cnidocyte assays to induce feeding and capture cnidocytes. An optimal concentration of 10mM of Proline and Glycine was tested and found to be significant by eliciting greater cnidocyte discharge as compared to a Control of gelatin with P- Values of 0.003 and 0.0011 respectively. This indicates that amino acids, which have similar receptors in vertebrates, are capable of inducing feeding responses in invertebrates implying that T1Rs operate in similar mechanisms thus predating the current notion of the evolutions and diversification of such genes by around 400 million years