Does Russia Love the Whip?

State-sponsored violence has permeated the lives of the Russian people for over a millennium. But it has been and is accepted as the price to be paid for national security to combat enemies from without and within, and to keep the country moving forward. I will show the persuasive methods that allow totalitarian conditions to prevail in a society: from distortion of national memory to romanticize violence; coping mechanisms which breed a mentality of unawareness and denial that allow for the perpetuation of violence; and the effect of transgenerational trauma which allows violence to infect family tradition. I will show the cultural mechanisms by which violence can be transformed into virtue across generations. Next, I will analyze cultural tropes--that of the \u27pure Russian\u27 and the \u27strong family\u27-- used in Stalin\u27s time to breed submissiveness and obedience, which in turn perpetuate violence. Next, I will explore the rise and rule Vladimir Putin as a case study of my preceding theoretical claims, exposing the violence in contemporary Russia implemented by its leader. Finally, I will shift attention away from these emic factors in Russia’s culture of violence to analyze the influence and possibilities of Western nations. To do this, I will analyze Western perceptions on Russian violence through the lens of one of its biggest antagonists, the United States. Sometimes allies and sometimes opponents, the United States and Russia epitomize the increasingly global implications of cultural violence. Through my paper I will answer the question: Does Russia love the whip

Towards a statistical mechanics of nonabelian vortices

A study is presented of classical field configurations describing nonabelian vortices in two spatial dimensions, when a global $SO(3)$ symmetry is spontaneously broken to a discrete group \IK isomorphic to the group of integers mod 4. The vortices in this model are characterized by the nonabelian fundamental group \pi_1 (SO(3)/{\IK}) , which is isomorphic to the group of quaternions. We present an ansatz describing isolated vortices and prove that it is stable to perturbations. Kinematic constraints are derived which imply that at a finite temperature, only two species of vortices are stable to decay, due to `dissociation'. The latter process is the nonabelian analogue of the instability of charge $|q| >1$ abelian vortices to dissociation into those with charge $|q| = 1$. The energy of configurations containing at maximum two vortex-antivortex pairs, is then computed. When the pairs are all of the same type, we find the usual Coulombic interaction energy as in the abelian case. When they are different, one finds novel interactions which are a departure from Coulomb like behavior. Therefore one can compute the grand canonical partition function (GCPF) for thermal pair creation of nonabelian vortices, in the approximation where the fugacities for vortices of each type are small. It is found that the vortex fugacities depend on a real continuous parameter $a$ which characterize the degeneracy of the vacuum. Depending on the relative sizes of these fugacities, the vortex gas will be dominated by one of either of the two types mentioned above. In these regimes, we expect the standard Kosterlitz-Thouless phase transitions to occur, as in systems of abelian vortices in 2-dimensions. Between these two regimes, the gas contains pairs of both types, so nonabelian effects will be important.Comment: 40 pages in a4 LaTeX including 2 tables and 5 uuencoded Postscript figures, QMW-93/15.( The 6th figure, due to its size, is available by directly request from [email protected]. Some typos are corrected and the choice of choosing \r_c has been argued.

Quantal phases, disorder effects and superconductivity in spin-Peierls systems

In view of recent developments in the investigation on cuprate high-T${}_{\rm c}$ superconductors and the spin-Peierls compound CuGeO${}_{3}$, we study the effect of dilute impurity doping on the spin-Peierls state in quasi-one dimensional systems. We identify a common origin for the emergence of antiferromagnetic order upon the introduction of static vacancies, and superconductivity for mobile holes.Comment: 4 pages revtex; revised versio

Increased ventral striatal volume in college-aged binge drinkers

BACKGROUND Binge drinking is a serious public health issue associated with cognitive, physiological, and anatomical differences from healthy individuals. No studies, however, have reported subcortical grey matter differences in this population. To address this, we compared the grey matter volumes of college-age binge drinkers and healthy controls, focusing on the ventral striatum, hippocampus and amygdala. METHOD T1-weighted images of 19 binge drinkers and 19 healthy volunteers were analyzed using voxel-based morphometry. Structural data were also covaried with Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) scores. Cluster-extent threshold and small volume corrections were both used to analyze imaging data. RESULTS Binge drinkers had significantly larger ventral striatal grey matter volumes compared to controls. There were no between group differences in hippocampal or amygdalar volume. Ventral striatal, amygdalar, and hippocampal volumes were also negatively related to AUDIT scores across groups. CONCLUSIONS Our findings stand in contrast to the lower ventral striatal volume previously observed in more severe forms of alcohol use disorders, suggesting that college-age binge drinkers may represent a distinct population from those groups. These findings may instead represent early sequelae, compensatory effects of repeated binge and withdrawal, or an endophenotypic risk factor

Differential brain responses for perception of pain during empathic response in binge drinkers compared to non-binge drinkers

Individuals who engage in binge drinking behaviors may show evidence of impaired cognitive function and emotional dysregulation. Impaired empathy, characterized by a reduced ability to understand and respond appropriately to feelings of others, is increasingly recognized for its role in Alcohol Use Disorders (AUD). The present study examined a population of young adult social drinkers to compare individuals who show binge drinking behavior to those who do not on measures of empathic processing and associated neural responses. A secondary aim explored similarities and differences between binge drinkers living in the UK and France. Alcohol drinking history and impulsivity ratings were recorded from seventy-one participants [(37 UK (Binge drinkers N = 19); 34 France (Binge drinkers N = 17)], who then underwent a neuroimaging study. During functional magnetic resonance imaging, participants viewed images of bodily pain (vs. no-pain), while adopting the perspective of self (pain recipient) or other (observer of someone else experiencing pain). Anterior midcingulate cortex (aMCC) and insula activation distinguished pain from no-pain conditions. Binge drinkers showed stronger regional neural activation than non-binge drinkers within a cluster spanning fusiform gyrus and inferior temporal gyrus, encompassing the Fusiform Body Area. Binge drinkers compared to non-binge drinkers also took longer to respond when viewing pictures depicting pain, in particular when adopting the perspective of self. Relationships between changes in brain activation and behavioural responses in pain versus no pain conditions (self or other perspective) indicated that whereas non-binge drinkers engage areas supporting self to other distinction, binge drinkers do not. Our findings suggest that alcohol binge drinking is associated with different empathy-related behavioral and brain responses, consistent with the proposed importance of empathy in the development of AUD

Superconducting states of the quasi-2D Holstein model: effects of vertex and non-local corrections

I investigate superconducting states in a quasi-2D Holstein model using the dynamical cluster approximation. The effects of spatial fluctuations (non-local corrections) are examined and approximations neglecting and incorporating lowest order vertex corrections are computed. The approximation is expected to be valid for electron–phonon couplings of less than the bandwidth. The phase diagram and superconducting order parameter are calculated. Effects which can only be attributed to theories beyond Migdal–Eliashberg theory are present. In particular, the order parameter shows momentum dependence on the Fermi surface with a modulated form and s-wave order is suppressed at half-filling. The results are discussed in relation to Hohenberg's theorem and the Bardeen–Cooper–Schrieffer approximation

Podiums, Power and Progressivism: Measuring the Wilsonian Rhetorical Legacy on the State of the Union Address

This project makes the claim that Woodrow Wilson institutionalized the lexicon of the Progressive Movement into the rhetorical genre of the State of the Union Address when he re-instituted the oral delivery of the State of the Union Address. It attempts to quantify and measure his impact by selecting terms from historical studies of works of the Progressive Movement and Woodrow Wilson in order to come up with a Wilsonian Progressive vocabulary. In the first approach of this analysis, this project measures the combined frequencies of these words in a summation called the Wilsonian Score and runs bivariate correlation to show that these words are more likely to be used after Wilson. In the second approach, context based analysis and existing theoretical literature is used to try to understand why this Wilsonian Progressive vocabulary is used by successive presidents. This project concludes with reflections on the ideographical implications of these words and their relation to the expansion of presidential power

Preliminary findings demonstrating latent effects of early adolescent marijuana use onset on cortical architecture

Background: As the most commonly used illicit substance during early adolescence, long-term or latent effects of early adolescent marijuana use across adolescent developmental processes remain to be determined. Methods: We examined cortical thickness, gray/white matter border contrast (GWR) and local gyrification index (LGI) in 42 marijuana (MJ) users. Voxelwise regressions assessed early-onset (age <16) vs. late-onset (≥16 years-old) differences and relationships to continued use while controlling for current age and alcohol use. Results: Although groups did not differ by onset status, groups diverged in their correlations between cannabis use and cortical architecture. Among early-onset users, continued years of MJ use and current MJ consumption were associated with thicker cortex, increased GWR and decreased LGI. Late-onset users exhibited the opposite pattern. This divergence was observed in all three morphological measures in the anterior dorsolateral frontal cortex (p < .05, FWE-corrected). Conclusions: Divergent patterns between current MJ use and elements of cortical architecture were associated with early MJ use onset. Considering brain development in early adolescence, findings are consistent with disruptions in pruning. However, divergence with continued use for many years thereafter suggests altered trajectories of brain maturation during late adolescence and beyond

Depressive symptoms in adolescents: associations with white matter volume and marijuana use

Background: Depressed mood has been associated with decreased white matter and reduced hippocampal volumes. However, the relationship between brain structure and mood may be unique among adolescents who use marijuana heavily. The goal of this study was to examine the relationship between white matter and hippocampal volumes and depressive symptoms among adolescent marijuana users and controls. Methods: Data were collected from marijuana users (n = 16) and demographically similar controls (n = 16) aged 16-18. Extensive exclusionary criteria included psychiatric and neurologic disorders, including major depression. Substance use, mood, and anatomical measures were collected after 28 days of monitored abstinence. Results: Marijuana (MJ) users demonstrated more depressive symptoms than controls (p &lt; .05). MJ use (beta = .42, p &lt; .005) and smaller white matter volume (beta = -.34, p &lt; .03) each predicted higher levels of depressive symptoms on the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale. MJ use interacted with white matter volume (beta = -.55, p &lt; .03) in predicting depression scores on the Beck Depression Inventory: among MJ users, but not controls, white matter volume was negatively associated with depressive symptoms. Conclusions: Marijuana use and white matter volume were additive and interactive in predicting depressive symptoms among adolescents. Subtle neurodevelopmental white matter abnormalities may disrupt the connections between areas involved in mood regulation