The value of choral singing in a multi-cultural South Africa

If singing in a choir could lead to people being healthier, happier and better citizens overall, then there is great value to choral singing in South Africa as well as the rest of the world. Social capital or social “networking” finds great flourishing in choral setups and the aim is to research how the social capital of participants is developed through choir singing and what the significance of musical hobbies is in the progress and expansion of trust associated with the community. A multicultural approach is necessary and allows for an insight into the knowledge of social capital in various cultural contexts. Singing in a choir is no longer seen as merely an extra curricular or hobby. Choral singing (singing in parts) adds great value to the life of the individual and this ultimately affects the people associated with the singer. The study investigates the motivation for people wanting to sing in choirs, and whether these reasons vary from culture to culture. A background of the main cultural identities in South Africa is discussed, allowing for the grouping of choirs into various language groups and cultural groups. Social capital forms the backbone of this research and the connection between singing and health; trust; and happiness are explored. Results indicate that choir singing is a priority in a chorister’s life and that the main motivation to sing is too socialise and develop musical skills. Choirs play a decisive role in the construction of unity as a collective and independence as an individual. Questionnaires were distributed across various cultural groups within South Africa in order to collect information. Reasons for wanting to join a choir and the impact of music on the individual and on the greater community are all scrutinized. The value that music has on the life of the individual is significant, and the journey to this happiness is easily obtainable. Copyright 2007, University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. Please cite as follows: Barrett, MJ 2007, The value of choral singing in a multi-cultural South Africa , MMus dissertation, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, viewed yymmdd E1042/gmDissertation (MMus)--University of Pretoria, 2008.Musicunrestricte

Metabolomics Identifies multiple candidate biomarkers to diagnose and stage human African trypanosomiasis

Treatment for human African trypanosomiasis is dependent on the species of trypanosome causing the disease and the stage of the disease (stage 1 defined by parasites being present in blood and lymphatics whilst for stage 2, parasites are found beyond the blood-brain barrier in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)). Currently, staging relies upon detecting the very low number of parasites or elevated white blood cell numbers in CSF. Improved staging is desirable, as is the elimination of the need for lumbar puncture. Here we use metabolomics to probe samples of CSF, plasma and urine from 40 Angolan patients infected with Trypanosoma brucei gambiense, at different disease stages. Urine samples provided no robust markers indicative of infection or stage of infection due to inherent variability in urine concentrations. Biomarkers in CSF were able to distinguish patients at stage 1 or advanced stage 2 with absolute specificity. Eleven metabolites clearly distinguished the stage in most patients and two of these (neopterin and 5-hydroxytryptophan) showed 100% specificity and sensitivity between our stage 1 and advanced stage 2 samples. Neopterin is an inflammatory biomarker previously shown in CSF of stage 2 but not stage 1 patients. 5-hydroxytryptophan is an important metabolite in the serotonin synthetic pathway, the key pathway in determining somnolence, thus offering a possible link to the eponymous symptoms of “sleeping sickness”. Plasma also yielded several biomarkers clearly indicative of the presence (87% sensitivity and 95% specificity) and stage of disease (92% sensitivity and 81% specificity). A logistic regression model including these metabolites showed clear separation of patients being either at stage 1 or advanced stage 2 or indeed diseased (both stages) versus control

An evaluation of the use and effectiveness of temporary sediment controls

Center for Research in Water Resource

Choral Ensembles Spring Concert

Kennesaw State University School of Music presents Choral Ensembles Spring Concert.https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/musicprograms/1363/thumbnail.jp

Costly Punishment Across Human Societies

Recent behavioral experiments aimed at understanding the evolutionary foundations of human cooperation have suggested that a willingness to engage in costly punishment, even in one-shot situations, may be part of human psychology and a key element in understanding our sociality. However, because most experiments have been confined to students in industrialized societies, generalizations of these insights to the species have necessarily been tentative. Here, experimental results from 15 diverse populations show that (i) all populations demonstrate some willingness to administer costly punishment as unequal behavior increases, (ii) the magnitude of this punishment varies substantially across populations, and (iii) costly punishment positively covaries with altruistic behavior across populations. These findings are consistent with models of the gene-culture coevolution of human altruism and further sharpen what any theory of human cooperation needs to explain

Markets, Religion, Community Size, and the Evolution of Fairness and Punishment

Large-scale societies in which strangers regularly engage in mutually beneficial transactions are puzzling. The evolutionary mechanisms associated with kinship and reciprocity, which underpin much of primate sociality, do not readily extend to large unrelated groups. Theory suggests that the evolution of such societies may have required norms and institutions that sustain fairness in ephemeral exchanges. If that is true, then engagement in larger-scale institutions, such as markets and world religions, should be associated with greater fairness, and larger communities should punish unfairness more. Using three behavioral experiments administered across 15 diverse populations, we show that market integration (measured as the percentage of purchased calories) positively covaries with fairness while community size positively covaries with punishment. Participation in a world religion is associated with fairness, although not across all measures. These results suggest that modern prosociality is not solely the product of an innate psychology, but also reflects norms and institutions that have emerged over the course of human history

Holiday Concert, Home for the Holidays

Kennesaw State University School of Music presents Holiday Concert, Home for the Holidays.https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/musicprograms/1433/thumbnail.jp