Reduction of alternator apparent-power requirements and harmonic distortion caused by phase-controlled parasitic loads

Reduction of alternator apparent power requirements and harmonic distortion caused by phase-controlled parasitic load

The Experience and Positioning of Affect in the Context of Intersubjectivity: The Case of Premenstrual Syndrome

The experience and positioning of affect is a material-discursive-intrapsychic experience, which can be interrogated through the examination of the intersubjective realm. This paper examines ways in which women experience and negotiate premenstrual change in affect, positioned as premenstrual syndrome (PMS), drawing on in-depth interviews conducted with 58 women. All of the women interviewed described premenstrual changes in affect in a similar manner, as being characterised by intolerance, irritation, emotional sensitivity, feeling more negative towards others, and feeling overwhelmed in the face of life’s demands. Without exception, women expressed a desire to be alone premenstrually, in order to escape relational demands and responsibilities, to reduce stimulation, or to avoid conflict. The way that these premenstrual changes and the woman’s desire to be alone were positioned by the woman’s partner, and dealt with within relationships, provided the material and discursive context for the woman’s experience and negotiation of PMS. Women whose partners were accepting and supportive were more likely to take up a position of awareness, acceptance and self-care in relation to premenstrual change, whilst women whose partners were unsupportive were more likely to engage in self-castigation and self-pathologization. This suggests that intersubjectivity, the examination of subjectivity and affect in the context of relatedness, will be a fruitful avenue of exploration for critical psychologists, as well as for researchers interested in the complexity of women’s premenstrual experiences

A complex negotiation: Women’s experiences of naming and not naming premenstrual distress in couple relationships

Recent research has demonstrated the importance of family relationships in women’s experience of premenstrual changes, and their construction of these changes as ‘PMS’. However, the discursive process by which women take up the subject position of ‘PMS’ sufferer through the explicit naming of ‘PMS’ to an intimate partner has received little research attention. Drawing on 60 individual interviews with Australian women, conducted between 2004 and 2006, we examined accounts of naming ‘PMS’ in intimate relationships, women’s explanations for naming or not naming, and their experiences of their partner naming them as premenstrual. The analysis process identified an overarching theme of naming ‘PMS’, which was made up of three themes: naming to explain; ‘PMS’ becoming the only explanation for distress; and ‘PMS’ as not a legitimate explanation for distress. The findings suggest that clinicians need to be aware of women’s complex, and often ambivalent, experiences of naming ‘PMS’ within their relationships, when working with women, and couples, seeking treatment or support for premenstrual distress. Premenstrual distress; PMS; relationships; cultural construction; Positioning Theor

Sexuality and Intimacy in the Context of Cancer

The impact of cancer on sexuality and intimacy: A key aspect of quality of life In 2006, more than 106,000 new cases of cancer were diagnosed in Australia, with the number of new cases in New South Wales alone expected to grow to 40,116 by 2011 (AIHW et al., 2007, Tracey et al., 2005). It is now widely recognised that cancer and its treatment can have a significant effect on the quality of life of both people with cancer (Stommel et al., 2004) and their family members, in particular their intimate partner (Hodges et al., 2005). Sexuality and intimacy are important aspects of an individual's quality of life (World Health Organisation, 1995), and there is a growing body of evidence to show that cancer can result in dramatic changes to sexuality, sexual functioning, relationships, and sense of self, regardless of cancer type. Indeed, these changes can be experienced as the most significant in the person with cancer's life (Anderson et al., 2000)

Evolutionary dynamics of group interactions on structured populations: a review

Interactions among living organisms, from bacteria colonies to human societies, are inherently more complex than interactions among particles and non-living matter. Group interactions are a particularly important and widespread class, representative of which is the public goods game. In addition, methods of statistical physics have proved valuable for studying pattern formation, equilibrium selection and self-organization in evolution- ary games. Here, we review recent advances in the study of evolutionary dynamics of group interactions on top of structured populations, including lattices, complex networks and coevolutionary models. We also compare these results with those obtained on well-mixed populations. The review particularly highlights that the study of the dynamics of group interactions, like several other important equilibrium and non-equilibrium dynamical processes in biological, economical and social sciences, benefits from the synergy between statistical physics, network science and evolutionary game theory

"I treat my daughters not like my mother treated me" : migrant and refugee women's constructions and experiences of menarche and menstruation

Menstruation is a material reality at some point in most women’s lives. Yet, the discursive meaning assigned to menstruating bodies and the way in which they are experienced is dependent on the sociocultural and historical spaces which they occupy (Lee and Sasser-Coen 1996, 13). Across cultural contexts, menarche is constructed as a symbolic transition from childhood to womanhood, a period of growth and change, often linked with sexual maturation (Lee 2009, 622). While menstrual activists, artists, poets, and women’s rights organizations are challenging negative representations and practices surrounding menstruation (Bobel 2010, 42), dominant discourses often still portray menstruation as something dirty and disgusting, and a bodily function to be silenced and concealed (Brantelid, Nilvér, and Alehagen 2014, 606; Mason et al. 2013, 4; see also Wood [Chapter 25] in this volume)

Non-supersymmetric extremal multicenter black holes with superpotentials

Using the superpotential approach we generalize Denef's method of deriving and solving first-order equations describing multicenter extremal black holes in four-dimensional N = 2 supergravity to allow non-supersymmetric solutions. We illustrate the general results with an explicit example of the stu model.Comment: 17 pages, v2: some clarifications adde

Threat of Sexual Disqualification: The Consequences of Erectile Dysfunction and Other Sexual Changes for Gay and Bisexual Men With Prostate Cancer.

Gay and bisexual (GB) men with prostate cancer (PCa) have been described as an "invisible diversity" in PCa research due to their lack of visibility, and absence of identification of their needs. This study examined the meaning and consequences of erectile dysfunction (ED) and other sexual changes in 124 GB men with PCa and 21 male partners, through an on-line survey. A sub-sample of 46 men with PCa and seven partners also took part in a one-to-one interview. ED was reported by 72 % of survey respondents, associated with reports of emotional distress, negative impact on gay identities, and feelings of sexual disqualification. Other sexual concerns included loss of libido, climacturia, loss of sensitivity or pain during anal sex, non-ejaculatory orgasms, and reduced penis size. Many of these changes have particular significance in the context of gay sex and gay identities, and can result in feelings of exclusion from a sexual community central to GB men's lives. However, a number of men were reconciled to sexual changes, did not experience a challenge to identity, and engaged in sexual re-negotiation. The nature of GB relationships, wherein many men are single, engage in casual sex, or have concurrent partners, influenced experiences of distress, identity, and renegotiation. It is concluded that researchers and clinicians need to be aware of the meaning and consequences of sexual changes for GB men when designing studies to examine the impact of PCa on men's sexuality, advising GB men of the sexual consequences of PCa, and providing information and support to ameliorate sexual changes