The cultural significance of the child star

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.This study provides a sociological account of the child star as both a universal and culturally specific phenomenon. Arguing against dominant 'common-sense' definitions of child stars as precociously deviant, I relocate the child star as a product of wider social contradictions and constructions surrounding children and childhood more generally. Through an analysis of the way in which child stars are constructed in the textual media I demonstrate two central and competing discourses in relation to this group - one which focuses on their powerlessness due to their 'abnormal' status in relation to 'normal' children and the other which celebrates their power due to their 'natural' talents and redemptive qualities. These contradictory- positions are identified through a consideration of the historical and mythological antecedents of today's child stars as well as an analysis of the contemporary discourses which inform news stories about such individuals. I argue that such ambiguity towards child stars can be identified as symptomatic of complex attitudes towards children in our society. The hostility which subjectifies child stars and generates powerlessness can be understood as emanating from the habitual association of performing children with precocious sexuality, the commercialisation of childhood and the fear that children are 'growing up too quickly'. In contrast, the adoration of child stars which imbues them with the power to be reinvented with every new generation can be related to a more profound universal need to reify and admire a small number of 'special' children -a practice which is identifiable across the myths and folklore of the world (Jung 1959). By identifying child stars as both powerless and powerful because of their difference to 'normal' children this study exposes how dominant constructions serve to demonise certain experiences of childhood and validate others, as well as highlighting the important role the child star plays in symbolising hope, innocence and futurity in our society

Analysis of the joint kinematics of the 5 iron golf swing

The purpose of this study was to identify the performance determining factors of the 5-iron golf swing. Joint kinematics were obtained from thirty male golfers using a twelve camera motion analysis system. Participants were divided into two groups, based on their ball launch speed (high vs. low). Those in the high ball speed group were deemed to be the more skillful group. Statistical analysis was used to identify the variables which differed significantly between the two groups, and could therefore be classified as the performance determining factors. The following factors were important to performance success: (i) the ability of the golfer to maintain a large X Factor angle and generate large X Factor angular velocity throughout the downswing, (ii) maintain the left arm as straight as possible throughout the swing, (iii) utilise greater movement of the hips in the direction of the target and a greater extension of the right hip during the downswing and (iv) greater flexion of both shoulders and less left shoulder internal rotation during the backswing

New dates on dingo bones from Madura Cave provide oldest firm evidence for arrival of the species in Australia

The dingo is the only placental land mammal aside from murids and bats to have made the water crossings to reach Australia prior to European arrival. It is thought that they arrived as a commensal animal with people, some time in the mid Holocene. However, the timing of their arrival is still a subject of major debate with published age estimates varying widely. This is largely because the age estimates for dingo arrival are based on archaeological deposit dates and genetic divergence estimates, rather than on the dingo bones themselves. Currently, estimates vary from between 5000-4000 years ago, for finds from archaeological contexts, and as much as 18,000 based on DNA age estimates. The timing of dingo arrival is important as post arrival they transformed Indigenous societies across mainland Australia and have been implicated in the extinction of a number of animals including the Tasmanian tiger. Here we present the results of direct dating of dingo bones from their oldest known archaeological context, Madura Cave on the Nullarbor Plain. These dates demonstrate that dingoes were in southern Australia by between 3348 and 3081 years ago. We suggest that following their introduction the dingo may have spread extremely rapidly throughout mainland Australia.Some of this work was undertaken as part of Linkage Grant LP100200415 funded by the ARC with contributions from the Kimberley Foundation Australia and the Department of Sustainability, Water, Populations and Communities

Leisure time physical inactivity, obesity and diabetes : rates in the southern United States

Purpose: To explore changes in and relationships among leisure time physical INactivity (LTPIA), obesity & DM rates in the US from 1994-2012. Conclusions: Age adjusted LTPIA, Obesity & DM rates are higher in the South than in other US regions; Although self-reported LTPIA rates have dropped, both obesity & DM rates have continued to rise over the 19 year period; Study limitation: Based on LTPIA definition, one episode of exercise during the month would qualify a person as ‘NOT inactive’; Revision of the LTPIA question on the BRFSS is recommended; Future research needs to identify factors that contribute to higher rates of LTPIA, obesity and diabetes in the South

People-plant interaction and economic botany over 47,000 years of occupation at Carpenter's Gap 1, south central Kimberley

Systematic archaeobotanical analysis, conducted in conjunction with archaeological enquiry at Australian archaeological sites, is still rare despite recent developments. It is still rarer that previously analysed macrobotanical assemblages are revisited over time. Extending on macrobotanical research conducted by McConnell in 1997, this paper presents the results of a recent analysis of Carpenter's Gap 1 non-woody macrobotanical remains (seeds, fruits, nuts, and other floristic elements) from the deepest square with the longest chronology, Square A2. Over 47,000 years of time is represented in the sequence, and excellent chronological control, coupled with preservation of carbonised and desiccated macrobotanical remains in the earliest cultural units, allows an examination of plant exploitation over time and human responses/adaptations to periods of documented climatic instability. Carpenter's Gap 1 macrobotanical remains show that diet, subsistence, and site occupation were intimately associated with botanical resources derived from ecologically productive monsoon rainforest environments.The research was funded by the Australian Research Council Linkage Grant [LP100200415] awarded to Sue O’Connor and Jane Balme, with contributions from the Kimberley Foundation Australia and the Department of Sustainability, Water, Populations and Communities

Carpenters Gap 1: A 47,000 year old record of indigenous adaption and innovation

Here we present the first detailed analysis of the archaeological finds from Carpenters Gap 1 rockshelter, one of the oldest radiocarbon dated sites in Australia and one of the few sites in the Sahul region to preserve both plant and animal remains down to the lowest Pleistocene aged deposits. Occupation at the site began between 51,000 and 45,000 cal BP and continued into the Last Glacial Maximum, and throughout the Holocene. While CG1 has featured in several studies, the full complement of 100 radiocarbon dates is presented here for the first time in stratigraphic context, and a Bayesian model is used to evaluate the age sequence. We present analyses of the stone artefact and faunal assemblages from Square A2, the oldest and deepest square excavated. These data depict a remarkable record of adaptation in technology, mobility, and diet breadth spanning 47,000 years. We discuss the dating and settlement record from CG1 and other northern Australian sites within the context of the new dates for occupation of Madjedbebe in Arnhem Land at 65,000 years (±5700), and implications for colonisation and dispersal within Sahul.We thank the Bunuba Aboriginal Corporation for their assistance in this work. Radiocarbon dates obtained in 2013 and 2014 and micromorphological research by Vannieuwenhuyse were funded by the Australian Research Council grant LP100200415 ‘Lifeways of the first Australians’ with contributions from the Kimberley Foundation Australia and the Department of Sustainability, Water, Populations and Communities, awarded to O'Connor and Balme, as well as support from the Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage as well as support from the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage (CE170100015)

A threat to childhood innocence or the future of learning? Parents’ perspectives on the use of touch-screen technology by 0–3 year-olds in the UK

The rise in personal ownership of touch-screen technology such as iPads and smartphones in the UK in recent years has led to the increasing use of such technology by babies and very young children. This article explores this practice via an online parental survey with 226 UK parents of children aged 0–3 years within the context of the current debate around whether technology is a problematic or advantageous aspect of contemporary childhood. Using a theoretical framework which draws on dominant discourses of childhood, the article presents and analyses data from this survey in order to ascertain how 0–3s are using touch-screen technology in UK homes, and what parents perceive to be the potential benefits and disadvantages of their usage. The findings are discussed in terms of changes in parenting practice, and the importance of further research in the area is emphasised

Cohort profile: the Cambridge City over-75s Cohort (CC75C).

The Cambridge City over-75s Cohort (CC75C), one of the largest and longest-running population-based studies of the oldest old, is celebrating its 21st birthday. Its origins and subsequent evolution into one of the UK's key ageing cohort studies lie in the collaboration of many distinguished researchers, and its ongoing importance owes much to the invaluable contribution made by its many committed participants

The cultural significance of the child star

This study provides a sociological account of the child star as both a universal and culturally specific phenomenon. Arguing against dominant 'common-sense' definitions of child stars as precociously deviant, I relocate the child star as a product of wider social contradictions and constructions surrounding children and childhood more generally. Through an analysis of the way in which child stars are constructed in the textual media I demonstrate two central and competing discourses in relation to this group - one which focuses on their powerlessness due to their 'abnormal' status in relation to 'normal' children and the other which celebrates their power due to their 'natural' talents and redemptive qualities. These contradictory- positions are identified through a consideration of the historical and mythological antecedents of today's child stars as well as an analysis of the contemporary discourses which inform news stories about such individuals. I argue that such ambiguity towards child stars can be identified as symptomatic of complex attitudes towards children in our society. The hostility which subjectifies child stars and generates powerlessness can be understood as emanating from the habitual association of performing children with precocious sexuality, the commercialisation of childhood and the fear that children are 'growing up too quickly'. In contrast, the adoration of child stars which imbues them with the power to be reinvented with every new generation can be related to a more profound universal need to reify and admire a small number of 'special' children -a practice which is identifiable across the myths and folklore of the world (Jung 1959). By identifying child stars as both powerless and powerful because of their difference to 'normal' children this study exposes how dominant constructions serve to demonise certain experiences of childhood and validate others, as well as highlighting the important role the child star plays in symbolising hope, innocence and futurity in our society.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo