Retribalization as a Strategy for Achievement of Group and Individual Social Security in Alaska Native Villages — with a Special Focus on Subsistence [paper]

This paper was revised for publication as: Conn, Stephen; & Langdon, Steve J. (1988). "Retribalization as a Strategy for Achievement of Group and Individual Social Security in Alaska Native Villages — with a Special Focus on Subsistence." In F. von Benda-Beckmann, K. von Benda-Beckmann, E. Casino, F. Hirtz, G.R. Woodman & H.F. Zacher (eds.), Between Kinship and the State: Social Security and Law in Developing Countries, pp. 437–450. Providence, RI: Foris Publications.Alaska Native groups have adopted a strategy of seeking general welfare, including social security, through retribalization — a term of dual meaning discussed in this paper. The paper aims to describe the historical developments leading to the adoption of this strategy, explain its nature and the various forms which it takes, and assess its potential for the achievement of the general welfare of Alaska Natives.General Welfare and Social Security / Retribalization: Alaska Meanings / Manifestations of Retribalization in Alaska (Sitka Community Association; Yupiit Nation) / Other Tribal Strategies (Unalakleet Initiative - Externally Directed; Eschscholtz Bay - Management Among Native Groups; Venetie's Approach - Internal and Then External; Complex Interaction by Yupiit Villages; Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission (AEWC): External First and Then Internal) / Retribalization as Revitalization Movement / Footnote / Bibliograph

The genetic heterogeneity and mutational burden of engineered melanomas in zebrafish models.

BACKGROUND: Melanoma is the most deadly form of skin cancer. Expression of oncogenic BRAF or NRAS, which are frequently mutated in human melanomas, promote the formation of nevi but are not sufficient for tumorigenesis. Even with germline mutated p53, these engineered melanomas present with variable onset and pathology, implicating additional somatic mutations in a multi-hit tumorigenic process. RESULTS: To decipher the genetics of these melanomas, we sequence the protein coding exons of 53 primary melanomas generated from several BRAF(V600E) or NRAS(Q61K) driven transgenic zebrafish lines. We find that engineered zebrafish melanomas show an overall low mutation burden, which has a strong, inverse association with the number of initiating germline drivers. Although tumors reveal distinct mutation spectrums, they show mostly C > T transitions without UV light exposure, and enrichment of mutations in melanogenesis, p53 and MAPK signaling. Importantly, a recurrent amplification occurring with pre-configured drivers BRAF(V600E) and p53-/- suggests a novel path of BRAF cooperativity through the protein kinase A pathway. CONCLUSION: This is the first analysis of a melanoma mutational landscape in the absence of UV light, where tumors manifest with remarkably low mutation burden and high heterogeneity. Genotype specific amplification of protein kinase A in cooperation with BRAF and p53 mutation suggests the involvement of melanogenesis in these tumors. This work is important for defining the spectrum of events in BRAF or NRAS driven melanoma in the absence of UV light, and for informed exploitation of models such as transgenic zebrafish to better understand mechanisms leading to human melanoma formation

the Mystery of the Fire Trees of Southeast Alaska

Mary Ida Henrikson, born and raised in Ketchikan Alaska, was surprised to learn she had an ancient cedar on her property that had appeared to have been altered for fire storage. Soon she discovered dozens of other centuries-old trees with deeply burned interiors. What did this mean? Author and artist Mary Ida Henrikson with Dr. Steven Langdon and Lael Morgan

The unsteady flow of a weakly compressible fluid in a thin porous layer III: three-dimensional computations

We describe a novel method for determining the pressure and velocity fields for a weakly compressible fluid flowing in a thin three-dimensional layer composed of an inhomogeneous, anisotropic porous medium, with vertical side walls and variable upper and lower boundaries, in the presence of vertical wells injecting and/or extracting fluid. Our approach uses the method of matched asymptotic expansions to derive expressions for all significant process quantities, the computation of which requires only the solution of linear, elliptic, two-dimensional boundary value and eigenvalue problems. In this article, we provide full implementation details and present numerical results demonstrating the efficiency and accuracy of our scheme

The unsteady flow of a weakly compressible fluid in a thin porous layer II: three-dimensional theory

We consider the problem of determining the pressure and velocity fields for a weakly compressible fluid flowing in a three-dimensional layer, composed of an inhomogeneous, anisotropic porous medium, with vertical side walls and variable upper and lower boundaries, in the presence of vertical wells injecting and/or extracting fluid. Numerical solution of this three-dimensional evolution problem may be expensive, particularly in the case that the depth scale of the layer h is small compared to the horizontal length scale l, a situation which occurs frequently in the application to oil and gas reservoir recovery and which leads to significant stiffness in the numerical problem. Under the assumption that $\epsilon\propto h/l\ll 1$, we show that, to leading order in $\epsilon$, the pressure field varies only in the horizontal directions away from the wells (the outer region). We construct asymptotic expansions in $\epsilon$ in both the inner (near the wells) and outer regions and use the asymptotic matching principle to derive expressions for all significant process quantities. The only computations required are for the solution of non-stiff linear, elliptic, two-dimensional boundary-value, and eigenvalue problems. This approach, via the method of matched asymptotic expansions, takes advantage of the small aspect ratio of the layer, $\epsilon$, at precisely the stage where full numerical computations become stiff, and also reveals the detailed structure of the dynamics of the flow, both in the neighbourhood of wells and away from wells

Bronze Age upland settlement decline in southwest England: testing the climate change hypothesis

The division of land on Dartmoor during the Bronze Age by the construction of moor-wide boundaries known as reaves represents a significant development in agricultural practice and land tenure. Previous research relating to the Dartmoor reaves suggests this way of life may have continued for no longer than 200-400 years. It has been suggested that their abandonment occurred as the result of a deteriorating climate, although there are no published palaeoclimatic reconstructions from the area. We therefore test the hypothesis that on Dartmoor, a marked climatic deterioration occurred in the late Bronze Age that can be linked to the abandonment of the reaves. A palaeoclimatic reconstruction derived from testate amoebae and peat humification analyses is presented from Tor Royal Bog, central Dartmoor, the first such record from southwest England. A major shift to a cooler and/or wetter climate is inferred from ca. 1395-1155 cal BC that is coincident with the period hypothesised as encompassing the abandonment. This climatic deterioration is replicated in sites in northern Britain, suggesting it was a widespread event. It is concluded that while the evidence supports a climatically forced retreat, there are a range of other socioeconomic factors that must also be taken into consideration