Digital, Experiential, and Embodied: Reckoning with the Past in Putnam County, Georgia

Digital Humanities in the U.S. has often focused on digital design over how humanities content might be used. Our Georgia Virtual History Project was built from the opposite direction. Rather than simply creating digitized humanities, we are dedicated to exploring the ways in which the digital world can help us construct more robust, place-based scholarship that impacts the lives of those who make and use it. We want our work to exist both online and out in the world, to speak equally to scholars and the general public, and to demonstrate that the humanities are not the purview of the academic elite but rather an essential tool for reaching out and giving voice to traditionally underserved populations.The paper situates the Georgia Virtual History Project within the universe of digital humanities scholarship, then explores a case study of how it works in the real world. By explaining both our project and how it has been used in an economically disadvantaged rural school system, we will present a model that is an attempt to remake public K-12 education—and digital humanities—as an embodied experience.Aux États-Unis, les humanités numériques ont souvent mis l'accent sur la conception numérique plutôt que sur la façon dont le contenu des humanités pourrait être utilisé. Notre projet d'histoire virtuelle en Géorgie a été construit dans la perspective inverse. Plutôt que de simplement créer des humanités numérisées, nous nous consacrons à explorer les façons dont le monde numérique peut nous aider à construire une recherche plus robuste et plus adaptée au milieu qui influe sur la vie des personnes qui la créent et l'utilisent. Nous voulons que notre travail existe à la fois en ligne et dans le monde réel, qu'il s'adresse autant aux chercheurs qu'au grand public et qu'il démontre que les sciences humaines ne sont pas du ressort de l'élite universitaire mais plutôt un outil essentiel pour atteindre et donner la parole aux populations traditionnellement désavantagées.L'article situe le Georgia Virtual History Project dans l'univers de la recherche en humanités numériques, puis explore une étude de cas de son fonctionnement dans le monde réel. En expliquant à la fois notre projet et la façon dont il a été utilisé dans un système scolaire rural économiquement défavorisé, nous présenterons un modèle qui est une tentative de transformer l'enseignement public de la maternelle au lycée — et les humanités numériques — en expérience concrète

Quenched Cold Accretion of a Large Scale Metal-Poor Filament due to Virial Shocking in the Halo of a Massive z=0.7 Galaxy

Using HST/COS/STIS and HIRES/Keck high-resolution spectra, we have studied a remarkable HI absorbing complex at z=0.672 toward the quasar Q1317+277. The HI absorption has a velocity spread of 1600 km/s, comprises 21 Voigt profile components, and resides at an impact parameter of D=58 kpc from a bright, high mass [log(M_vir/M_sun) ~ 13.7] elliptical galaxy that is deduced to have a 6 Gyr old, solar metallicity stellar population. Ionization models suggest the majority of the structure is cold gas surrounding a shock heated cloud that is kinematically adjacent to a multi-phase group of clouds with detected CIII, CIV and OVI absorption, suggestive of a conductive interface near the shock. The deduced metallicities are consistent with the moderate in situ enrichment relative to the levels observed in the z ~ 3 Ly-alpha forest. We interpret the HI complex as a metal-poor filamentary structure being shock heated as it accretes into the halo of the galaxy. The data support the scenario of an early formation period (z > 4) in which the galaxy was presumably fed by cold-mode gas accretion that was later quenched via virial shocking by the hot halo such that, by intermediate redshift, the cold filamentary accreting gas is continuing to be disrupted by shock heating. Thus, continued filamentary accretion is being mixed into the hot halo, indicating that the star formation of the galaxy will likely remain quenched. To date, the galaxy and the HI absorption complex provide some of the most compelling observational data supporting the theoretical picture in which accretion is virial shocked in the hot coronal halos of high mass galaxies.Comment: 20 pages, 9 figures, submitted to Ap

Two Rare Magnetic Cataclysmic Variables with Extreme Cyclotron Features Identified in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey

Two newly identified magnetic cataclysmic variables discovered in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS), SDSSJ155331.12+551614.5 and SDSSJ132411.57+032050.5, have spectra showing highly prominent, narrow, strongly polarized cyclotron humps with amplitudes that vary on orbital periods of 4.39 and 2.6 hrs, respectively. In the former, the spacing of the humps indicates the 3rd and 4th harmonics in a magnetic field of ~60 MG. The narrowness of the cyclotron features and the lack of strong emission lines imply very low temperature plasmas and very low accretion rates, so that the accreting area is heated by particle collisions rather than accretion shocks. The detection of rare systems like these exemplifies the ability of the SDSS to find the lowest accretion rate close binaries.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal, vol. 583, February 1, 2003; slight revisions and additions in response to referee's comments; 17 pages, 6 figures, AASTeX v4.

The Role of Hypoxia in 2-Butoxyethanol–Induced Hemangiosarcoma

To understand the molecular mechanisms underlying compound-induced hemangiosarcomas in mice, and therefore, their human relevance, a systems biology approach was undertaken using transcriptomics and Causal Network Modeling from mice treated with 2-butoxyethanol (2-BE). 2-BE is a hemolytic agent that induces hemangiosarcomas in mice. We hypothesized that the hemolysis induced by 2-BE would result in local tissue hypoxia, a well-documented trigger for endothelial cell proliferation leading to hemangiosarcoma. Gene expression data from bone marrow (BM), liver, and spleen of mice exposed to a single dose (4 h) or seven daily doses of 2-BE were used to develop a mechanistic model of hemangiosarcoma. The resulting mechanistic model confirms previous work proposing that 2-BE induces macrophage activation and inflammation in the liver. In addition, the model supports local tissue hypoxia in the liver and spleen, coupled with increased erythropoeitin signaling and erythropoiesis in the spleen and BM, and suppression of mechanisms that contribute to genomic stability, events that could be contributing factors to hemangiosarcoma formation. Finally, an immunohistochemistry method (Hypoxyprobe) demonstrated that tissue hypoxia was present in the spleen and BM. Together, the results of this study identify molecular mechanisms that initiate hemangiosarcoma, a key step in understanding safety concerns that can impact drug decision processes, and identified hypoxia as a possible contributing factor for 2-BE–induced hemangiosarcoma in mice

Multivariate curve resolution of time course microarray data

BACKGROUND: Modeling of gene expression data from time course experiments often involves the use of linear models such as those obtained from principal component analysis (PCA), independent component analysis (ICA), or other methods. Such methods do not generally yield factors with a clear biological interpretation. Moreover, implicit assumptions about the measurement errors often limit the application of these methods to log-transformed data, destroying linear structure in the untransformed expression data. RESULTS: In this work, a method for the linear decomposition of gene expression data by multivariate curve resolution (MCR) is introduced. The MCR method is based on an alternating least-squares (ALS) algorithm implemented with a weighted least squares approach. The new method, MCR-WALS, extracts a small number of basis functions from untransformed microarray data using only non-negativity constraints. Measurement error information can be incorporated into the modeling process and missing data can be imputed. The utility of the method is demonstrated through its application to yeast cell cycle data. CONCLUSION: Profiles extracted by MCR-WALS exhibit a strong correlation with cell cycle-associated genes, but also suggest new insights into the regulation of those genes. The unique features of the MCR-WALS algorithm are its freedom from assumptions about the underlying linear model other than the non-negativity of gene expression, its ability to analyze non-log-transformed data, and its use of measurement error information to obtain a weighted model and accommodate missing measurements

The transition experience of rural older persons with advanced cancer and their families: a grounded theory study

BACKGROUND: Transitions often occur suddenly and can be traumatic to both patients with advanced disease and their families. The purpose of this study was to explore the transition experience of older rural persons with advanced cancer and their families from the perspective of palliative home care patients, bereaved family caregivers, and health care professionals. The specific aims were to: (1) describe the experience of significant transitions experienced by older rural persons who were receiving palliative home care and their families and (2) develop a substantive theory of transitions in this population. METHODS: Using a grounded theory approach, 27 open-ended individual audio-taped interviews were conducted with six older rural persons with advanced cancer and 10 bereaved family caregivers. Four focus group interviews were conducted with 12 palliative care health care professionals. All interviews were transcribed verbatim, coded, and analyzed using Charmaz\u27s constructivist grounded theory approach. RESULTS: Within a rural context of isolation, lack of information and limited accessibility to services, and values of individuality and community connectedness, older rural palliative patients and their families experienced multiple complex transitions in environment, roles/relationships, activities of daily living, and physical and mental health. Transitions disrupted the lives of palliative patients and their caregivers, resulting in distress and uncertainty. Rural palliative patients and their families adapted to transitions through the processes of Navigating Unknown Waters . This tentative theory includes processes of coming to terms with their situation, connecting, and redefining normal. Timely communication, provision of information and support networks facilitated the processes. CONCLUSION: The emerging theory provides a foundation for future research. Significant transitions identified in this study may serve as a focus for improving delivery of palliative and end of life care in rural areas. Improved understanding of the transitions experienced by advanced cancer palliative care patients and their families, as well as the psychological processes involved in adapting to the transitions, will help health care providers address the unique needs of this vulnerable population