Antigone: From the ethics of desire to the ethics of the drive

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.In his Seminar the Ethics of Psychoanalysis Lacan mms at differentiating psychoanalytic ethics from the morality of goods. Leaving the Aristotelian eudemonia behind, he moves to the Hegelian dialectic of the Master and the slave focusing on the negating power of the signifier over the good. He names this power pure desire which essentially is the death drive that tends to deprive the Other of that good which constitutes him as whole. The idea of coming to terms with the lack of the Other is what Lacan wished to define as the ethical act which would bring about the experience of jouissance. In order to identify such an act, Lacan moves to Kant and his theorisation of the moral law. Kant proposes two readings thereof; one defined as a void through which the drive transgresses the limits of the signifier and comes to terms with jouissance and the other defined as the voice of conscience which restrains the subject into the field of the signifier aiming at pleasure. Lacan develops an ethics of desire. Even though Kant's first definition of the moral law would have allowed Lacan to define ethics in terms of jouissance, he follows the second option and the idea that beauty can create a veil in front of the experience of lack. This allows Lacan to propose that the ethical act comes about through the process of sublimation which involves the redefinition of the subject's fundamental fantasy and the inability of the drive to transgress the limit of desire. Nevertheless he has chosen Antigone to show that the ethical act involves something more; that is going beyond the signifier. It is through the idea of the Other jouissance that the drive can transgress the limit of the signifier. This thesis proposes a redefinition of psychoanalytic ethics through a reading of Antigone in terms of the Other jouissance

Antigone : from the ethics of desire to the ethics of the drive

In his Seminar the Ethics of Psychoanalysis Lacan mms at differentiating psychoanalytic ethics from the morality of goods. Leaving the Aristotelian eudemonia behind, he moves to the Hegelian dialectic of the Master and the slave focusing on the negating power of the signifier over the good. He names this power pure desire which essentially is the death drive that tends to deprive the Other of that good which constitutes him as whole. The idea of coming to terms with the lack of the Other is what Lacan wished to define as the ethical act which would bring about the experience of jouissance. In order to identify such an act, Lacan moves to Kant and his theorisation of the moral law. Kant proposes two readings thereof; one defined as a void through which the drive transgresses the limits of the signifier and comes to terms with jouissance and the other defined as the voice of conscience which restrains the subject into the field of the signifier aiming at pleasure. Lacan develops an ethics of desire. Even though Kant's first definition of the moral law would have allowed Lacan to define ethics in terms of jouissance, he follows the second option and the idea that beauty can create a veil in front of the experience of lack. This allows Lacan to propose that the ethical act comes about through the process of sublimation which involves the redefinition of the subject's fundamental fantasy and the inability of the drive to transgress the limit of desire. Nevertheless he has chosen Antigone to show that the ethical act involves something more; that is going beyond the signifier. It is through the idea of the Other jouissance that the drive can transgress the limit of the signifier. This thesis proposes a redefinition of psychoanalytic ethics through a reading of Antigone in terms of the Other jouissance.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

Worldwide trends in underweight and obesity from 1990 to 2022: a pooled analysis of 3663 population-representative studies with 222 million children, adolescents, and adults

Background Underweight and obesity are associated with adverse health outcomes throughout the life course. We estimated the individual and combined prevalence of underweight or thinness and obesity, and their changes, from 1990 to 2022 for adults and school-aged children and adolescents in 200 countries and territories. Methods We used data from 3663 population-based studies with 222 million participants that measured height and weight in representative samples of the general population. We used a Bayesian hierarchical model to estimate trends in the prevalence of different BMI categories, separately for adults (age ≥20 years) and school-aged children and adolescents (age 5–19 years), from 1990 to 2022 for 200 countries and territories. For adults, we report the individual and combined prevalence of underweight (BMI <18·5 kg/m2) and obesity (BMI ≥30 kg/m2). For schoolaged children and adolescents, we report thinness (BMI <2 SD below the median of the WHO growth reference) and obesity (BMI >2 SD above the median). Findings From 1990 to 2022, the combined prevalence of underweight and obesity in adults decreased in 11 countries (6%) for women and 17 (9%) for men with a posterior probability of at least 0·80 that the observed changes were true decreases. The combined prevalence increased in 162 countries (81%) for women and 140 countries (70%) for men with a posterior probability of at least 0·80. In 2022, the combined prevalence of underweight and obesity was highest in island nations in the Caribbean and Polynesia and Micronesia, and countries in the Middle East and north Africa. Obesity prevalence was higher than underweight with posterior probability of at least 0·80 in 177 countries (89%) for women and 145 (73%) for men in 2022, whereas the converse was true in 16 countries (8%) for women, and 39 (20%) for men. From 1990 to 2022, the combined prevalence of thinness and obesity decreased among girls in five countries (3%) and among boys in 15 countries (8%) with a posterior probability of at least 0·80, and increased among girls in 140 countries (70%) and boys in 137 countries (69%) with a posterior probability of at least 0·80. The countries with highest combined prevalence of thinness and obesity in school-aged children and adolescents in 2022 were in Polynesia and Micronesia and the Caribbean for both sexes, and Chile and Qatar for boys. Combined prevalence was also high in some countries in south Asia, such as India and Pakistan, where thinness remained prevalent despite having declined. In 2022, obesity in school-aged children and adolescents was more prevalent than thinness with a posterior probability of at least 0·80 among girls in 133 countries (67%) and boys in 125 countries (63%), whereas the converse was true in 35 countries (18%) and 42 countries (21%), respectively. In almost all countries for both adults and school-aged children and adolescents, the increases in double burden were driven by increases in obesity, and decreases in double burden by declining underweight or thinness. Interpretation The combined burden of underweight and obesity has increased in most countries, driven by an increase in obesity, while underweight and thinness remain prevalent in south Asia and parts of Africa. A healthy nutrition transition that enhances access to nutritious foods is needed to address the remaining burden of underweight while curbing and reversing the increase in obesit

MRI of the anal sphincter using an endovaginal coil

Die anale Inkontinenz betrifft Frauen achtmal häufiger als Männer. Als Hauptfaktor für die Entwicklung einer Inkontinenz bei Frauen gilt die vaginale Entbindung und die dadurch bedingten Schäden. Ziel der Arbeit war die Darstellung und Erfassung der anatomischen Veränderungen am analen Kontinenzorgan bei 16 Frauen mit Dammriß II.-IV.° durchschnittlich 52,1± 25,9 Wochen (Mittelwert und Standardabweichung) post partum im Vergleich zu Nulliparae mit Hilfe der Magnetresonanztomographie (MRT) und das erste Mal unter Verwendung einer endovaginal plazierten Oberflächenspule. Da anale Inkontinenz multifaktoriell ist, wurde zur Beurteilung der Funktion des analen Sphinkters und zur Erfassung der Inkontinenzsymptomatik zusätzlich eine Rektummanometrie (RMM) und ein standardisiertes Interview durchgeführt. Es gelang mit Hilfe der endovaginalen Oberflächenspule eine detaillierte Darstellung des analen Sphinkterapparates ohne artifizielle Veränderungen. Die geburtsbedingten anatomischen Veränderungen konnten den einzelnen Muskelanteilen genau zugeordnet und beurteilt werden. Unabhängig vom Grad der Geburtsverletzung waren auf den MRT-Bildern in allen Fällen Veränderungen der Schließmuskel festzustellen, wobei die Veränderung in einem Fall möglicherweise auf die postpartale operative Versorgung zurückzuführen ist. Im Vergleich der drei Muskeln des Sphinkterapparates zwischen Patientinnen und Probandinnen zeigte sich durchschnittlich ein Jahr nach Entbindung bezüglich der Stärke und des Volumens keine signifikante Veränderung bis auf das größere Volumen des unteren Kompartiments der Patientinnen. Ein deutlich erniedrigter Ruhe- und Kneifdruck des analen Sphinkters der Patien-tinnen konnte auch durchschnittlich ein Jahr nach Entbindung mit der RMM festgestellt werden. Das Interview ergab für die Zeit nach der Geburt eine hohe Inzidenz für Gasinkontinenz (13/16 Patientinnen), in 8/16 Fällen von Stuhlinkontinenz begleitet. Der Ausprägungsgrad der Symptomatik korrelierte nicht immer mit dem Grad der auf den MRT-Bildern festgestellten Sphinkterverletzungen. Besonders wichtig hierbei erscheinen in der MRT offensichtliche Schäden bei fehlender Inkontinenzsymptomatik, die sogenannten okkulten Sphinkterver-letzungen, dessen Bedeutung für eine sich später entwickelnde anale Inkontinenz diskutiert wird. Die hohe Zahl der von analer Inkontinenz betroffenen Frauen unterstreicht die Bedeutung der Erfassung und Objektivierung geburtsbedingter Schäden als Hauptfaktor der weiblichen analen Inkontinenz. Die MRT ermöglicht unter Verwendung einer endovaginalen Oberflächenspule eine exakte Darstellung und Beurteilung der Sphinktermuskulatur und deren geburtsbedingter Veränderungen in Hinsicht auf Früherkennung, Prävention und Therapie.Women are affected by anal incontinence eight times more often then men are. The main reason of the development of an incontinence is the vaginal delivery and the damages caused thereby. The aim of this work is to present the anatomical changes of the anal sphincter found in 16 primiparous woman with sphincter disruption of 2.-4.degree on an average of 52,1± 25,9 weeks (mean value and standarddeviation) after delivery, as compared to nulliparous using the MRI by means of an intravaginal surface coil for the first time. As the anal incontinence is caused by different factors we additionally examined the function of the anal sphincter using anal manometry, and we interviewed the women in order to ascertain the symptoms of the incontinence, as well. A detailed presentation of the components of the anal sphincter complex was obtainded by the aid of the intravaginal surface coil. The anatomic alternations conditioned by childbirth could be evaluated and classed truly with the various components of the anal sphincter. In all cases alternations in the anal sphincter were shown on the MR images irrespective of the degree of the obstetric injury. In one case the anatomical alternations shown probably can be attributed to the surgical repare after delivery. Comparing the three components of the sphincter complex between patients and controle group on an average of one year after delivery no significant difference with regard to thickness and volume of the muscle components could be found except of the greater volume of the inferior compartement of the patients. The resting and the squeezing pressure of the anal sphincter in patients, examined by the anal manometry, was also clearly lower on year after delivery. The interview showed a high incidence of gas incontinence after delivery (13/16 patients) and in 8/16 cases also a fecal incontinence. There was not always a correlation between the intensity of the symptoms and the grade of the sphincter defects found on MR images. The obvious defects shown on the MR images are of great importance when symptoms of bowel incontinence are missing. These so termed occult sphincter defects are proposed to be of a high significance for the later development of an anal incontinence. The fact that a great number of women are affected by the anal incontinence shows the necessity to examine the defects after delivery as the main factor of the female anal incontinence. The MRI using an intravaginal surface coil anables a precise presentation and evaluation of the anal muscular system and his alternations caused by vaginal delivery with regard to prevention and therapy

Biomonitoring Air Pollution in Carob Leaves

The optical properties and ecophysiological parameters of leaves of Ceratonia siliqua L. (carob) expanded in more and less polluted habitats were compared in order to evaluate the effect of air quality in leaf development. The accumulation of pigments (chlorophylls a and b, and carotenoids) and specific leaf area (SLA, cm2 g−1) were seasonally determined during leaf development (i.e., in nine successively grown leaves along shoots). Leaf transmittance (T) and reflectance (R) spectra for both adaxial and abaxial leaf surfaces were measured between 250 and 2500 nm wavelengths using a UV–VIS spectrophotometer and leaf absorptance (Abs) [(Abs = 100 − (R + T)] was used to assess the effect of environmental quality of more and less polluted habitats in Athens, according to the files of the Hellenic Ministry of Environment and Energy, on carob leaf physiology. An increase in the studied leaf parameters was observed for carob trees grown in the urban site. There was an increase in SLA from spring to late summer and a decrease in late autumn. Leaves of the less polluted site in the bush, regardless of the developmental stage, exhibited greater water absorption, while the adaxial surface absorbed more radiation in both categories of plants. It seems likely that differences in optical properties and pigment accumulation have important implications for model simulation purposes and may be used for air pollution biomonitoring

Subcutaneous Adipose Tissue in Female Volleyball Players: Is It Related with Performance Indices?

Background and objectives: The aim of the present study was to examine subcutaneous adipose tissue distribution in female volleyball players with regards to (a) variation by anatomical site, (b) differences among age groups and playing positions, and (c) physiological characteristics associated with performance. Materials and Methods: Participants were adolescent (n = 89, age 15.6 ± 0.9 years, mean ± standard deviation) and adult female volleyball players (n = 78, 24.8 ± 5.3 years), who performed a series of anthropometric and performance tests including skinfold thickness in 10 sites, Abalakov jump (AJ) and handgrip test (HG). Results: Chin had the smallest thickness, and iliac crest and abdomen the largest. The largest correlations of skinfold thickness were shown with regards to AJ ad HG. Coefficient of variations in skinfold thickness correlated with performance indices with small magnitude. Triceps and chin were the most frequent predictors of performance indices. The anatomical site of skinfold was near the active muscle groups related to performance in HG. Conclusions: In conclusion, performance indices such AJ and HG were related with thickness of specific skinfolds and with the variation of thickness by anatomical site (i.e., the less the variation, the better the performance). Considering the relevance of specific skinfolds (e.g., triceps and chin) for performance, their further use would be recommended for purposes of training monitoring, volleyball players’ selection and talent identification

Validity of Prediction Equations of Maximal Heart Rate in Physically Active Female Adolescents and the Role of Maturation

Background and objectives: Maximal heart rate (HRmax) is an important training and testing tool, especially in the context of evaluating intensity in exercise prescription; however, few studies have examined the validity of prediction equations of HRmax in physically active female adolescents and the role of maturation level. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to examine the differences between measured and predicted HRmax in a sample of physically active female adolescents. Materials and Methods: Seventy-one selected volleyball players (age 13.3 ± 0.7 years, body mass 62.0 ± 7.2 kg, height 1.72 ± 0.06 m) performed a 20 m shuttle run endurance test, and the actual HRmax was compared with Tanaka HRmax (‘208 − 0.7 × age’) and Fox HRmax (‘220 − age’). Results: A large main effect of assessment method on HRmax was found (p < 0.001, η2 = 0.486) with Fox overestimating actual HRmax by 6.8 bpm (95% confidence intervals, CI; 4.2, 9.3) and Tanaka underestimating actual HRmax by −2.6 bpm (95% CI; −5.1, −0.1). The more matured participants had similar actual HRmax (mean difference −2.4 bpm; 95% CI; −6.5, 1.7; p = 0.242, d = −0.28), difference Fox − actual HRmax (1.5 bpm; 95% CI; −2.6, 5.6, p = 0.466, d = 0.17), and difference Tanaka − actual HRmax (1.7 bpm; 95% CI; −2.4, 5.8; p = 0.414, d = 0.19) to the less matured participants. Conclusions: These findings suggest that age-based prediction equations of HRmax developed in adult populations should be applied with caution in physically active female adolescents, and Tanaka should be preferred instead of the Fox equation

Relative Age Effect on Youth Female Volleyball Players: A Pilot Study on Its Prevalence and Relationship With Anthropometric and Physiological Characteristics

The relative age effect (RAE) on human performance has been well studied in many sports, especially in soccer; however, little information has been available about the prevalence of RAE in volleyball, and its role on anthropometric and physiological characteristics. The aim of the present study was to examine (a) the prevalence of RAE in selected (i.e., to be considered for the national team) and non-selected youth female volleyball players, and (b) the relationship of birth quarter (BQ) with anthropometric and physiological characteristics. Selected (n = 72, age 13.3 ± 0.7 years, weight 62.0 ± 7.2 kg, height 1.72 ± 0.06 m) and non-selected female volleyball players (n = 53, age 13.9 ± 1.1 years, weight 56.4 ± 7.3 kg, height 1.66 ± 0.06 m) performed a series of anthropometric and physiological tests. Twenty-six selected participants were born in the first quarter of the year, 19 in the second, 14 in the third, and 13 in the forth. The corresponding frequency by BQ in non-selected participants was 12, 12, 17, and 12. No association was observed between the number of participants and their frequency by BQ neither in the selected (χ2 = 2.79, p = 0.425) nor in the non-selected group (χ2 = 0.64, p = 0.886). Anthropometric and physiological characteristics did not vary by BQ (p > 0.05). The absence of RAE in female volleyball players and the similarities of anthropometric and physiological characteristics among BQ might be due to technical-tactical character of this sport. These findings would be of great practical value for coaches and fitness trainers working with young volleyball players