Space, Territory, Occupy: Towards a Non-Phenomenological Dwelling

This thesis analyzes the relationship between the body and space through the works of Henri Lefebvre, and Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari. The aim of the project is to move beyond Lefebvre’s theory of the production of space, which relies on a phenomenological understanding of the body and space. In order to do so, it will find in Deleuze and Guattari’s concept of ‘territory’ a non-phenomenological and constructivist concept of space that does not posit the ‘lived body’ as a transcendent ground. As a result, it will also attempt to trace out a non-phenomenological concept of ‘dwelling’ that is not based on a concept of the subject, but is ‘involuntary’ and constructive, and emphasizes the spatio-temporal dynamisms or rhythms that a ‘space without world’ consists of. Finally, by being loosely guided by the global Occupy movement, it seeks to invoke a politics ‘of’ space, where the concept of ‘occupy’ emphasizes a being-in-space that is primarily political and only secondarily ontological

Ethnographic encounters with elderly people and an interpreter. A fieldwork experience from Djenn Mali

In this paper, methodological issues of doing ethnographic fieldwork among elderly people are considered. Examples of fieldwork conducted in a small town in Mali are given, to draw attention to the importance of having a close research partner from the local culture. Illustrations taken from both conversations with elderly persons and discussions about them show how in the collaboration between the anthropologist and the research assistant, local images and notions of old age are revealed. The author argues that being dependent on an interpreter, which is commonly looked upon as a handicap, in research on old age proves to be an advantage

The Garden of Bifurcating Paths

Architectural projects have conventionally been conceived as a linear progression from conception to completion, from site to site, and through an idealised timeline, whereby progression goes from stage to stage. However, recent ethnographic accounts of architectural practices, informed by Science and Technology Studies (STS) and Actor-Network Theory (ANT) have shown that design develops differently: often through multiple irregular and bifurcating paths. This article argues that a building-in-the-making, in particular during the construction stage (rarely explored in the design studies literature), develops not through a linear project logic but along a contingent and branching trajectory, as it twists and turns through a complex ecology of actors (developers, city planners, clients, contractors, engineers, etc.) according to ‘matters of concern.’ A multi-sited ethnographic approach based on ‘ecologies of practice’ will allow us to account for the varying sets of experiences and ontologies that can be witnessed as a building concept is shaped during design development and construction. This will be illustrated by shadowing Carol, an architect from OMA, during the design development and construction stages of the Factory project in Manchester, UK, where we will witness how design does not progress along a linear path, but rather bifurcates, shifts and aligns in a dynamic way

Long-term follow-up of psychosocial distress after early onset preeclampsia:The Preeclampsia Risk EValuation in FEMales cohort study

Contains fulltext : 170899.pdf (Publisher’s version ) (Open Access)OBJECTIVE: To examine long-term psychosocial distress in women with a history of early onset preeclampsia (PE) compared to a comparison group. METHODS: Women with and without a history of early onset PE participating in the 'Preeclampsia Risk EValuation in FEMales' (PREVFEM) study were sent questionnaires, on average 14.1 years (SD = 3.2, range 5-23 years) after the index pregnancy. In total 265 (77%) women with PE and 268 (78%) age-matched women without PE returned questionnaires (mean age 43.5, SD =4.6 years). Group differences were examined on indicators of psychosocial distress, depressive symptoms, anxiety, fatigue, loneliness, marital quality, trait optimism and Type D personality, and unadjusted and adjusted for a priori chosen and study-specific covariates. In secondary analyses, the effect of previously detected hypertension was examined, as well as pregnancy-related events within the PE group. RESULTS: Women with a history of PE reported more subsequent depressive symptoms (B = 0.70, 95% CI 0.09-1.32, p = 0.026) and more fatigue (B = 1.12, 95% CI 0.07-2.18, p = 0.037) compared to the non-PE group, but the differences explained less than 1% of the variance. The differences remained after adjustment for age, BMI and education level, and additional adjustment for partner, being unemployed and physical activity. No significant differences were observed for anxiety, loneliness, marital quality, optimism, or Type D personality. These differences were not explained by four-year previously measured elevated blood pressure in the PE group. Having had a stillborn child or early neonatal death during the index pregnancy was associated with higher depressive symptoms, anxiety, fatigue, and loneliness in the PE group, but these factors explained only a small proportion of the variance in these psychosocial distress factors. CONCLUSION: A history of early PE is associated with slightly higher levels of depressive symptoms and fatigue on average 14 years later, but this is unlikely to be of clinical relevance

Disrupted Slit-Robo signalling results in membranous ventricular septum defects and bicuspid aortic valves.

The mesenchymal cushions lining the early embryonic heart undergo complex remodelling to form the membranous ventricular septum as well as the atrioventricular and semilunar valves in later life. Disruption of this process underlies the most common congenital heart defects. Here, we identified a novel role for Slit-Robo signalling in the development of the murine membranous ventricular septum and cardiac valves