Book review: hyper sexual, hyper masculine? Gender, race, and sexuality in the identities of contemporary black men edited by Brittany C. Slatton and Kamesha Spates

Hyper Sexual, Hyper Masculine? does the important work of addressing some of the myths and stereotypes that plague black men, and recognises the danger inherent in black men’s alterity, writes Megan Armstrong

Exploring Students’ Perceptions of their Experiences in a Social Justice Living–Learning Community

Contemporary higher education leaders continue to deem the development of civic-minded graduates as among the primary goals of postsecondary education (Astin, 1996Astin, H. S. (1996). Leadership for social change. About Campus, 1(3), 4–10. doi:10.1002/abc.v1.3[Crossref] , [Google Scholar]; Cress, Burack, Giles, Elkins, & Stevens, 2010Cress, C., Burack, C., Giles, D. E., Elkins, J. E., & Stevens, M. C. (2010). A promising connection: Increasing college access and success through civic engagement. Boston, MA: Campus Compact. [Google Scholar]; Hurtado, Ruiz, & Whang, 2012Hurtado, S., Ruiz, A., & Whang, H. (2012). Assessing student social responsibility and civic learning. Paper presented at the 2012 Annual Forum of the Association for Institutional Research, New Orleans, Louisiana. [Google Scholar]). Today’s undergraduates are poised to engage with their communities in numbers greater than their predecessors in previous generations, believing it is their responsibility to make society better (Kiesa et al., 2007Kiesa, A., Orlowski, A. P., Levine, P., Both, D., Kirby, E. H., Lopez, M. H., & Marcelo, K. B. (2007). Millennials talk politics: A study of college student political engagement. New York, NY: The Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning & Engagement. [Google Scholar]). In 2012, more than two-thirds of postsecondary students reported participation in community service over the past year, despite their overwhelming disillusionment with the United States government and social institutions (Levine & Dean, 2012Levine, A., & Dean, D. R. (2012). Generation on a tightrope: A portrait of today’s college student. San Francisco, CA: Wiley. [Google Scholar]) Civic engagement lacks a common definition in the literature (Jacoby, 2009Jacoby, B. (Ed.). (2009). Civic engagement in higher education: Concepts and practices. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. [Google Scholar]), however it typically includes involvement in the community with the purpose of “enhancing students’ understanding of civic life” (Cress et al., 2010Cress, C., Burack, C., Giles, D. E., Elkins, J. E., & Stevens, M. C. (2010). A promising connection: Increasing college access and success through civic engagement. Boston, MA: Campus Compact. [Google Scholar], p. 4). A growing body of research raised concerns with community service, service-learning, and other forms of civic engagement as reinforcing stereotypes (Dooley & Burant, 2015Dooley, J. C., & Burant, T. J. (2015). Lessons from pre-service teachers: Under the surface of service learning. In O. Delano-Oriaran, M. Penick-Parks, & S. Fondrie (Eds.), Service-learning and civic engagement: A sourcebook (pp. 325–332). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.[Crossref] , [Google Scholar]). These studies urged greater care when designing community involvement opportunities, including attention to students’ development and previous experience, meaningful curricular connections, and adequate contextualization and reflection (Dooley & Burant, 2015Dooley, J. C., & Burant, T. J. (2015). Lessons from pre-service teachers: Under the surface of service learning. In O. Delano-Oriaran, M. Penick-Parks, & S. Fondrie (Eds.), Service-learning and civic engagement: A sourcebook (pp. 325–332). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.[Crossref] , [Google Scholar]). Some campuses have linked social justice to civic engagement to advance students’ knowledge about inequity, thus moving them away from a savior orientation (Dooley & Burant, 2015Dooley, J. C., & Burant, T. J. (2015). Lessons from pre-service teachers: Under the surface of service learning. In O. Delano-Oriaran, M. Penick-Parks, & S. Fondrie (Eds.), Service-learning and civic engagement: A sourcebook (pp. 325–332). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.[Crossref] , [Google Scholar]) and deepening their understanding of the experience (Prentice, 2007Prentice, M. (2007). Service-learning and civic engagement. Academic Questions, 20(2), 135–145. doi:10.1007/s12129-007-9005-y[Crossref] , [Google Scholar]). Although conceptualized in varying ways, for this article social justice is defined as work toward ending the system of oppression giving certain social groups greater privilege and power over other groups (Broido, 2000Broido, E. M. (2000). The development of social justice allies during college: A phenomenological investigation. Journal of College Student Development, 41(1), 3–18.[Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). When coupled, the terms civic engagement and social justice often indicate the educators’ desire to situate students in their broader communities and increase their awareness of social inequity, which may inspire them to work for social change at the individual, cultural, and institutional levels (Boyle-Baise & Langford, 2004Boyle-Baise, M., & Langford, J. (2004). There are children here: Service learning for social justice. Equity & Excellence in Education, 37(1), 55–66. doi:10.1080/10665680490422115[Taylor & Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). Living–learning communities (LLCs) are increasingly utilized to deepen and cohere students’ collegiate experiences (Matthews, Smith, & MacGregor, 2012Matthews, R. S., Smith, B. L., & MacGregor, J. (2012). The evolution of learning communities: A retrospective. In K. Buch & K. E. Barron (Eds.), New directions for teaching and learning: No. 132. Discipline centered learning communities (pp. 99–111). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.[Crossref] , [Google Scholar]). Although variation exists in thematic and organizational type, these communities typically group students together in a residence hall, offer a shared academic experience, and provide co-curricular activities related to a theme (Inkelas & Soldner, 2011Inkelas, K. K., & Soldner, M. (2011). Undergraduate living–learning programs and student outcomes. Higher Education: Handbook of Theory and Research, 26, 1–55.[Crossref] , [Google Scholar]). Social justice LLCs, which focus on increasing students’ awareness of social inequity and providing them with opportunities to work for social change, are often found on college campuses (Inkelas, 2007Associates; Inkelas, K. K. (2007). National study of living–learning programs: 2007 report of findings. College Park, MD: Authors. [Google Scholar]). Yet little formal research has been done that explores the impact of these communities on students. Thus, the purpose of this study was to explore students’ experiences throughout their time in a social justice-focused LLC (hereafter referred by the pseudonym SJLLC) and one year after participation, focusing on how students described their participation in SJLLC and what aspects of the LLC had a lasting impression on them

Single molecule imaging to characterize protein interactions with the environment

In the past decade, single molecule imaging has advanced our understanding of processes at the molecular scale. Total internal reflection fluorescence (TIRF) microscopy is one implementation in particular that has been extensively applied in the study of protein adsorption to surfaces. The spatial and temporal resolution provided by TIRF has enabled dynamic measurements of individual proteins in solution, where previously only bulk measurements or static electron microscopy observations were possible. The ability to study individual proteins has revealed and sometimes clarified the complex interactions at their interfaces. Here, the utility of TIRF is expanded to introduce a new model of protein adsorption to the suface and to study the protein interface in contact with solution. Protein adsorption to surfaces has implications in surface biocompatibility, protein separation, and pharmaceutical nanoparticle development. For this reason, the phenomenon has been quantitatively by a variety of techniques, including single molecule imaging. The key data are the protein lifetimes on the surface, which have been shown to be broadly distributed and well-approximated by the sum of several exponential functions. The determined desorption rate constants are thought to reflect different interaction types between surface and protein, but the rates are not typically linked to a specific physical interaction. In the first part of this thesis, we establish appropriate imaging conditions and analysis methods for TIRF. A robust survival analysis technique is applied to capture the range of protein adsorption kinetics. In the second part, we utilize single molecule lifetime data from the adsorption of fibrinogen and bovine serum albumin (BSA) to glass surfaces and discover a heavy-tailed distribution: a very small fraction of proteins adsorbs effectively permanently, while the majority of proteins adsorb for a very short time. We then demonstrate that this characteristic power law behavior is well described by a model with a novel interpretation of the complex protein adsorption process. The second half of the thesis extends TIRF to study the solution-facing interface of the protein as opposed to the surface facing interface by establishing the parameters for a super-resolution imaging technique. Point accumulation for imaging nanoscale topography (PAINT) generates high-resolution images of the sample of interest through the positional tracking of many temporally-distinct instances of a fluorescent probe binding to the sample. Previously, this technique has been applied in the mapping of DNA nanostructures. Here, in the third part, we apply PAINT to the study of proteins. First, a workstream is established for a model system of Nile red and BSA. The kinetic parameters for the system are established to allow rational design of PAINT experiments with this system. The on-rate and off-rate for Nile red are determined. Additionally, the binding model between the two components is tested by studying how the presence of an inhibitor effects the parameters. In the final part, TIRF is used to study the protein-solution interface to examine the glycosylation of immunoglobulin A 1 (IgA1). Over 50% of eukaryotic proteins are glycosylated, and the glycan sequence is simultaneously difficult to study and crucial in the many functional roles proteins play. The glycosylation of IgA1, for example, plays a key role in the pathophysiology of IgA1 nephropathy. Lectins are proteins that bind to specifc glycan sequences and are often used to isolate glycosylated proteins. In this study, the appropriate surface conditions are established to allow specific binding between lectins and IgA1 glycans. The association and dissociation rate between lectins specific for the glycans on IgA1 are measured and affinity constants calculated. These efforts will help to rationally design experiments in the future to elucidate unknown glycan sequences on proteins

Overkill : the sexualised body in violent identity politics

PhD ThesisThis thesis seeks to understand the nature of a particular kind of sexualised, abject violence that emerges in and through identity politics. This violence is practised against or through the body. I refer to this type of violence as ‘overkill’ and contend that it performatively constitutes identity in abject and sexualised ways through the weaponisation and brutalisation of the body. The thesis is situated within the literature on ethnic identities in conflict, which tends to under-theorise how this violence emerges and what this violence accomplishes by viewing violence as the outcome of pre-existing identity divisions. To address this gap, I introduce two theoretical approaches to the examination of violent identity politics. The first of these is the concept of performativity as formulated by Judith Butler (1990), which views identity as an iterative process constitutive of political subjectivity. The second is a theory of abjection as discussed by Julia Kristeva (1980), in which she argues that the constitution of identity is an exclusionary process that requires the simultaneous production of an other. Taken together, these theoretical approaches allow for an understanding of extreme violence as constitutive of a new kind of subjectivity that renders the other abject through sexualised discourses. There are two dynamics of overkill that this thesis explores: the brutalisation and the weaponisation of the body. Using an empirical study of the 1994 Rwandan genocide, I highlight the brutalisation of the sexualised body; through a second case study of the prison protests in Northern Ireland (1976-1981), I draw out the weaponisation of the sexualised body. I conclude by demonstrating the need for an understanding of identity as contingent upon markers of difference that are sexualised through abjection to establish a better explanatory framework for examining political violence

Boise State Data Management Needs Report

To ensure compliance and to achieve greater value for the research sponsored by the University and outside funders, researchers need to take an active part in the management of the data they produce. Albertsons Library, in coordination with University units such as the Office of Sponsored Programs and the Office of Information Technology, is well-positioned to play an integral role in educating researchers and providing support on issues related to data management. Albertsons Library established a working group in early 2014 dedicated to learning about data management issues and becoming involved in the University’s research data management activities. In order to better serve the University community in this regard, the Albertsons Library Core Data Management Team worked with librarian liaisons to interview campus researchers on their current knowledge of and practices related to data management. Responses were grouped into three major topic areas for analysis: Data Characteristics, Data Storage, and Data Discoverability and Access. Researchers reported a variety of practices, some demonstrating effective management of their researcher data, while others described significant gaps in their current practices

Summer 2017 - Spring 2019 Data Management Strategic Agenda: Final Report

Between Summer 2017 - Spring 2019, Albertsons Library’s Research Data Management Group worked on implementing a strategic agenda. Below is a report of the activities undertaken in response to that plan. In particular, the work of the group has been shaped and impacted by several key factors: Over the past two years, the group had several changes in membership with two members departing, one new member joining, and another assuming additional job duties. Unlike earlier configurations of the group which focused more on exploration and development, the Research Data Management Group had evolved to the point where we are delivering services. As a result, changes in membership have a greater impact on the work and focus of the group. As the university has wrestled with providing support for research data, the focus and priorities of other campus units has moved the Library’s group away from collaborative approaches and towards point-of-need interactions. This shift has furthered due to a limited ability for all partners to engage in shared goals. Beginning in fall 2019, the Research Data Management Group began to notice a change in direction with the inclusion of the library’s new data visualization librarian. As the group has adjusted its focus, we found our priorities and interests have also changed. It is expected that further shifting will occur as the new Head of Scholarly Communications and Data Management arrives and have identified managing those changes as important goals to accomplish in the next two years. At this stage, the Research Data Management group has determined it wants to build upon our previous strategic agenda by concentrating on establishing a sustainable service model and focusing efforts on clear areas that we can affect, particularly in regards to external stakeholders