A Revolution in Tropes: Alloiostrophic Rhetoric

A Revolution in Tropes is a groundbreaking study of rhetoric and tropes. Theorizing new ways of seeing rhetoric and its relationship with democratic deliberation, Jane Sutton and Mari Lee Mifsud explore and display alloiōsis as a trope of difference, exception, and radical otherness. Their argument centers on Aristotle’s theory of rhetoric through particular tropes of similarity that sustained a vision of civic discourse but at the same time underutilized tropes of difference. When this vision is revolutionized, democratic deliberation can perform and advance its ends of equality, justice, and freedom. Marie-Odile, N. Hobeika, and Michele Kennerly join Sutton and Mifsud in pushing the limits of rhetoric by engaging rhetoric alloiostrophically. Their collective efforts work to display the possibilities of what rhetoric can be. A Revolution in Tropes will appeal to scholars of rhetoric, philosophy, and communication.https://scholarship.richmond.edu/bookshelf/1201/thumbnail.jp

Introduction: A Revolution in Tropes

Our view of tropes is that they are rhetoric\u27s own unique resources, but for ineluctable historiographical reasons have been more or less closed off from the production of theory. Our trope project began simply enough. If the workings of tropes could be identified in a new way, then the aim and purpose of rhetoric could be retheorized in terms new to democratic deliberation. Working under the slogan Yes, tropes-but all of them, we attempted a new classification system based on the Greek roots of hundreds of tropes listed in various old and new sources such as Bernard Dupriez\u27s A Dictionary of Literary Devices, A-Z and Richard Lanham\u27s A Handlist of Rhetorical Terms, respectively

Figuring Out/In Rhetoric: From \u3ci\u3eAntistrophē\u3c/i\u3e to \u3ci\u3eAlloiostrophē\u3c/i\u3e

We begin with critical reflections on rhetoric as the antistrophē of dialectic. Here is the first line of Aristotle\u27s Rhetoric: Rhetoric is the counterpart [antistrophos] to dialectic. What this means exactly has been a point of some controversy over centuries of study in the rhetorical tradition. As John Rainolds said, There are as many interpretations of this little word . . . as there are interpreters. However, we see something other, namely that these many interpretations of rhetoric as antistrophē are actually one. The result is an amplification of the face of rhetoric to look, act, perform, and affect change like dialectic. Antistrophē is the trope that dominates and amplifies the rhetorical tradition as civic discourse. Set in this conceptual contextualization, rhetoric\u27s dialectical face is a catastrophe for rhetoric, for difference, and for democratic deliberation. Why and how this is so involves an inward-looking investigation into how antistrophē encapsulates rhetoric in terms of argument and style. In this chapter, we also offer a way out of this traditional sensibility by troping rhetoric otherwise. Traditionally, tropes and figures are cast as tools to be used by agents. But Hayden White has detailed how tropes operate on and within discourse and, structurally speaking, determine the modes-e.g., argument, style-of discourse. In our analysis, the trope of antistrophē, because it defines what rhetoric is, testifies to the fundamental structure of rhetoric. There are other tropes. Tropes are rhetoric\u27s opportunity for enlarging rhetoric\u27s structural relation with contingency through difference. Our reliance on tropes is committed to using rhetoric\u27s resources so as not to betray our opportunity, something Giles Wilkeson Gray warned rhetoricians about as early as 1923

Configurations: Encountering Ancient Athenian Spaces of Rhetoric, Democracy, and Woman

This essay encounters configurations of “woman” in the space of rhetoric and democracy. By “configuration” we mean how a woman is postured and positioned in this space. We deal in ancient Athens recognizing that an ancient conceptual space called rhetoric, an art or techne of civic discourse, is embedded in the contemporary lived space of American civic discourse always constructing the rhetorical figure of woman and continuously under construction. We explore this conceptual space rhetorically, that is, not to articulate the feelings or meanings the space would have had for the ancient Athenians, but rather to articulate how this conceptual space still figures “woman.” The articulation of conceptual and lived spaces is therefore our framework for seeing power relations and exploring communicative relations in terms of gender, sexuality, and citizenry. Drawing from such diverse fields as philosophy, rhetoric, architecture, classics, archeology, mythology, and women’s studies, we theorize space, experiencing it as active, energetic, and productive, rather than as a backdrop, or a scene, or a place in which things happen(ed). Our lived experience of rhetoric and democracy is shaped by the agora, the civic space of ancient Athens. We are struck by the Temple of Hephaestus, which sits above the bouleterion, the place of civic deliberation and persuasion for the ancient Greeks. We experience the domination of “woman,” both in terms of physical space and conceptual space. Our experience of this domination entails an act of seeing (ie. theorizing from the Greek theorien, to see) her capture, trade, domestication, commodification, and silencing in the space of rhetoric and democracy. Moreover, we see, hence we theorize, the ways in which this domination of “woman” is considered necessary to create civilization, hence how this domination came to be celebrated, lucrative, virtuous, ideal, and prized. Our act of seeing exposes how the space of rhetoric and democracy has traditionally dominated “woman,” and in our exposé, we become aware of the wares and ware of civic exchange. We experience this awareness as a limen, a space of intersection where woman can affirm woman

Exploring the opinions of community pharmacists on the implementation of satellite methadone clinics in Malta: a small island state.

Methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) was introduced in Malta in 1987 and is provided by the Substance Misuse Outpatient Unit (SMOPU), formerly referred to as Detox. Presently Malta’s national drug policy encourages healthcare professionals and service providers to work synergistically at a centralised level, which allows healthcare professionals to refer opioid-dependent users to SMOPU and receive their prescribed methadone dose from this facility. It is to be noted that MMT is free of charge from SMOPU and is currently not available from community pharmacies in Malta. The aim of this research was to assess the opinions and attitudes of community pharmacists regarding the implementation of methadone dispensing within the community setting. This was achieved by developing a cross-sectional survey in the form of a questionnaire. This consisted of mainly Likert scale and close-ended questions, and was distributed to all 191 community pharmacies in Malta. The target population was reasonably small and readily accessible, allowing all community pharmacies in Malta to be included. The cross-sectional questionnaire was first piloted to 20 community pharmacies, followed by the complete distribution and collection from the remaining community pharmacies over a period of eight weeks, starting from January 2019. Questionnaire responses were entered into SPSS version 23 to allow analysis for statistical significance, using graphs and charts to represent collected data. The total number of questionnaires distributed among community pharmacies in Malta amounted to 215. A total of 130 completed questionnaires were returned resulting in a response rate of 60.5% (n = 130). Overall, pharmacists are more willing to dispense buprenorphine rather than methadone with 48.5% of pharmacists willing to dispense buprenorphine. Pharmacists interested in dispensing methadone within the community setting falls to 33.1%. When analysing the role of the community pharmacist in reference to MMT, 54.6% agreed that it is the pharmacist’s role to dispense methadone to drug misusers and 72.3% of the participants felt that pharmacists must be trained specifically in order to do so. However, 30% and 77% of participants responded that MMT should be available through the NHS POYC scheme available in community pharmacies and health centres respectively. If MMT were made available privately within the community setting, 96.2% of participants wish to be reimbursed for their service as extra space or staff may be required to run the service. This study demonstrates that pharmacists in Malta are more willing to supply buprenorphine rather than methadone. Hesitancy to dispensing methadone over buprenorphine arises due to lack of proper training on MMT where buprenorphine requires no such training and deals with fixed doses. Also contributing significantly to this is the lack of education and knowledge of pharmacists on the overall subject of MMT. However, with more commitment to harm reduction, proper education and training may result in an increase in professional confidence as well as an improved attitude and patient service

In-body wireline interfacing platform for multi-module implantable microsystems

The recent evolution of implantable medical devicesfrom single-unit stimulators to modern implantable microsys-tems, has driven the need for distributed technologies, in whichboth the implant system and functions are partitioned across mul-tiple active devices. This multi-module approach is made possiblethanks to novel network architectures, allowing for in-body powerand data communications to be performed using implantableleads. This paper discusses the challenges in implementing suchinterfacing system and presents a platform based on one centralimplant (CI) and multiple peripheral implants (PIs) using a cus-tom 4WiCS communication protocol. This is implemented in PCBtechnology and tested to demonstrate intrabody communicationcapabilities and power transfer within the network. Measuredresults show CI-to-PI power delivery achieves 70%efficiency inexpected load condition, while establishing full-duplex data linkwith up to 4 PIs simultaneously

Adaptive Power Regulation and Data Delivery for Multi-Module Implants

Emerging applications for implantable devices are requiring multi-unit systems with intrabody transmission of power and data through wireline interfaces. This paper proposes a novel method for power delivery within such a configuration that makes use of closed loop dynamic regulation. This is implemented for an implantable application requiring a single master and multiple identical slave devices utilising a parallel-connected 4-wire interface. The power regulation is achieved within the master unit through closed loop monitoring of the current consumption to the wired link. Simultaneous power transfer and full-duplex data communication is achieved by superimposing the power carrier and downlink data over two wires and uplink data over a second pair of wires. Measured results using a fully isolated (AC coupled) 4-wire lead, demonstrate this implementation can transmit up to 120 mW of power at 6 V (at the slave device, after eliminating any losses). The master device has a maximum efficiency of 80 % including a dominant dynamic power loss. A 6 V constant supply at the slave device is recovered 1.5 ms after a step of 22 mA

A preliminary study into the use of tree-ring and foliar geochemistry as bio-indicators for vehicular NOx pollution in Malta

Duncan V. Mifsud is the grateful recipient of an Endeavour Scholarship (Republic of Malta). The Endeavour Scholarship Scheme is part-financed by the European Union – European Social Fund (ESF): Operational Programme II – Cohesion Policy 2014-20.Emissions from traffic over the past few decades have become a significant source of air pollution. Among the pollutants emitted are nitrogen oxides (NOx), exposure to which can be detrimental to public health. Recent studies have shown that nitrogen (N) stable isotope ratios in tree-rings and foliage express a fingerprint of their major N source, making them appropriate for bio-monitoring purposes. In this study, we have applied this proxy to Aleppo pines (Pinus halepensis) at three distances from one of the busiest roads in Malta, a country known to suffer from intense traffic pollution. Our results showed that N and organic carbon (C) stable isotope ratios in tree-rings do not vary over the period 1980–2018 at any of the investigated sites; however, statistically significant spatial trends were apparent in both tree-rings and foliage. The roadside and transitional sites exhibited more positive δ15N and more negative δ13C values compared to those at a rural control site. This is likely due to the incorporation of 15N-enriched NOx and 13C-depleted CO2 from traffic pollution. Sampled top-soil also exhibited the δ15N trend. Our results constitute the first known application of dendrogeochemistry to atmospheric pollution monitoring in Malta.PostprintPeer reviewe

Risk of psychotic disorders in migrants to Australia

BACKGROUND: Certain migrant groups are at an increased risk of psychotic disorders compared to the native-born population; however, research to date has mainly been conducted in Europe. Less is known about whether migrants to other countries, with different histories and patterns of migration, such as Australia, are at an increased risk for developing a psychotic disorder. We tested this for first-generation migrants in Melbourne, Victoria. METHODS: This study included all young people aged 15-24 years, residing in a geographically-defined catchment area of north western Melbourne who presented with a first episode of psychosis (FEP) to the Early Psychosis Prevention and Intervention Centre (EPPIC) between 1 January 2011 and 31 December 2016. Data pertaining to the at-risk population were obtained from the Australian 2011 Census and incidence rate ratios were calculated and adjusted for age, sex and social deprivation. RESULTS: In total, 1220 young people presented with an FEP during the 6-year study period, of whom 24.5% were first-generation migrants. We found an increased risk for developing psychotic disorder in migrants from the following regions: Central and West Africa (adjusted incidence rate ratio [aIRR] = 3.53, 95% CI 1.58-7.92), Southern and Eastern Africa (aIRR = 3.06, 95% CI 1.99-4.70) and North Africa (aIRR = 5.03, 95% CI 3.26-7.76). Migrants from maritime South East Asia (aIRR = 0.39, 95% CI 0.23-0.65), China (aIRR = 0.25, 95% CI 0.13-0.48) and Southern Asia (aIRR = 0.44, 95% CI 0.26-0.76) had a decreased risk for developing a psychotic disorder. CONCLUSION: This clear health inequality needs to be addressed by sufficient funding and accessible mental health services for more vulnerable groups. Further research is needed to determine why migrants have an increased risk for developing psychotic disorders