Exploring Academic Reading: Mediumship, Intuition and the Academy

The thesis is concerned with experiences of reading academically, and explores ways in which intuitive techniques, including ones derived from practices of mediumship, can be used as tools to experience reading. The thesis is rooted in my experiences of reading and writing in the academic context, but it is hoped that the theoretical discussion and empirical explorations will have wider resonances. The thesis has two parts. In the first, theoretical section I look at attempts to understand mediumship and, more generally, experiences of the paranormal, and aim to develop a theoretical understanding of intuition which both underpins the empirical part of the thesis and offers methods to use empirically. My theoretical understanding of intuition evolves from dissatisfaction with some attempts to explain mediumship, which appear to be based on a binary division between the objective and subjective. I use theories from Husserlian phenomenology, particularly Gendlin’s ideas, to develop a body-based phenomenological approach to intuition. Ideas from recent discussions of free association and psychoanalysis, specifically Bollas, Barrett, Lothane and (particularly) Totton also contribute, as does Lecercle’s notion, rooted in Deleuze’s philosophy of language, of délire. In the empirical part of the thesis I explore intuitive (understood in the theoretical context briefly outlined above) practices as applied to reading academic texts. Material was collected during six research groups, each themed around a different aspect of intuition and each underpinned theoretically and shaped practically by the literature I explored. In these groups participants took part in a number of exercises designed to use creative and embodied methods to connect with the unconscious and intuition, and to explore different approaches to reading, including relaxation and body awareness, free association, psychometry (‘blind’ reading of texts), focusing and the felt sense, and collaborative drawing and creative writing. These results are explained, and the implications of the results considered in terms of the theoretical material

Actomyosin-based Self-organization of cell internalization during C. elegans gastrulation

Background: Gastrulation is a key transition in embryogenesis; it requires self-organized cellular coordination, which has to be both robust to allow efficient development and plastic to provide adaptability. Despite the conservation of gastrulation as a key event in Metazoan embryogenesis, the morphogenetic mechanisms of self-organization (how global order or coordination can arise from local interactions) are poorly understood. Results: We report a modular structure of cell internalization in Caenorhabditis elegans gastrulation that reveals mechanisms of self-organization. Cells that internalize during gastrulation show apical contractile flows, which are correlated with centripetal extensions from surrounding cells. These extensions converge to seal over the internalizing cells in the form of rosettes. This process represents a distinct mode of monolayer remodeling, with gradual extrusion of the internalizing cells and simultaneous tissue closure without an actin purse-string. We further report that this self-organizing module can adapt to severe topological alterations, providing evidence of scalability and plasticity of actomyosin-based patterning. Finally, we show that globally, the surface cell layer undergoes coplanar division to thin out and spread over the internalizing mass, which resembles epiboly. Conclusions: The combination of coplanar division-based spreading and recurrent local modules for piecemeal internalization constitutes a system-level solution of gradual volume rearrangement under spatial constraint. Our results suggest that the mode of C. elegans gastrulation can be unified with the general notions of monolayer remodeling and with distinct cellular mechanisms of actomyosin-based morphogenesis

Henry Ford Hospital Medical Journal (1953-1992): Modernizing Historical Research

The Henry Ford Hospital Medical Bulletin began publication in 1953, and was published quarterly by Henry Ford Hospital and the Edsel B. Ford Institute for Medical Research. It was meant as a venue for recording and distributing the professional activities of Henry Ford Hospital staff, residents, and alumni, as well as materials related to academic and scientific meetings and symposia hosted by Henry Ford Hospital. In 1967, the bulletin\u27s name changed to the Henry Ford Hospital Medical Journal. The journal ceased publication in 1992. In 2019, Sladen Library of Henry Ford Hospital created an institutional repository to preserve and publicize Henry Ford Health System research, including the nearly 160 issues of the HFHMJ. Since then, articles from the journal have been downloaded 80,000+ times in 188 countries at over 3,000 different institutions. Upon request, these historical publications have been indexed in PubMed, with direct links to the HFHS Scholarly Commons. Lam Archives archivist Julia Pope and Sladen librarian JoAnn Krzeminski led the initial planning of and depositing into the repository, which is currently maintained by Sladen librarian Steven Moore. We will discuss the challenges and opportunities to preserving and promoting historical research in an era of open access

Teachers' and children's personal epistemologies for moral education: Case studies in early years elementary education

While there is strong interest in teaching values in Australia and internationally there is little focus on young children’s moral values learning in the classroom. Research shows that personal epistemology influences teaching and learning in a range of education contexts, including moral education. This study examines relationships between personal epistemologies (children’s and teachers’), pedagogies, and school contexts for moral learning in two early years classrooms. Interviews with teachers and children and analysis of school policy revealed clear patterns of personal epistemologies and pedagogies within each school. A whole school approach to understanding personal epistemologies and practice for moral values learning is suggested

Progression for success: Evaluating North Yorkshire’s innovative careers guidance project

This report sets out the findings from an evaluation of North Yorkshires innovative careers guidance project.North Yorkshire County Counci

Does the Government Drive Chinese Banking Performance – An Analysis of the Chinese Banking System

We evaluate the Chinese government, foreign investors and private investors’ financial impact upon Chinese banking performance. The paper focuses on major banks within China and evaluates the relationship between the ownership structure and the overall financial performance of the Chinese banks. Our findings span the period of 2001-2016 and show a very strong inverse relationship between bank performance measures in high government ownership Chinese banks. Furthermore, we find positive relationship between private and foreign ownership levels and Chinese bank performance. We conclude that Chinese government ownership’s primary motive is not optimal financial performance, but other non-financial motives