Note on recruitment as an ethical question: lessons from a project on asexuality

This short piece considers how participant recruitment can have ethical elements. With reference to a qualitative research project on asexuality we explore the challenges associated with recruiting from an emerging, and politically charged, identity group. In our attempt to broaden the representation of asexual stories we sought to recruit people who may not fully identify with the emerging term ‘asexual’ as a sexual orientation while also not equating this with a lifestyle choice of abstinence. This was attempted through crafting suitable recruitment materials via the use of the Mass Observation archive and expanded sampling criteria. Our efforts met with mixed success, on which we reflect. We conclude by suggesting how such ethical questions related to recruitment will remain ‘gaps’ in ethical regulation, calling for a greater reflexive approach from researchers about sampling criteria

Public Reporting of Fed Cattle Grid Prices: Policy Reform Consequences

Mandatory livestock price reporting was implemented in April 2001. Empirical evidence indicates a significant change in volatility occurred in publicly reported fed cattle grid premiums and discounts after its implementation. Empirical analysis of grid premiums and discounts across the pre-and post-reform periods indicates that increased transparency is compatible with either an increase or a decrease in price volatility in the post-MPR period. Furthermore, it appears that the public price reporting system for weekly grid premiums and discounts failed to provide an adequate level of transparency prior to the implementation of price reporting reforms. Our methodology extends the literature on the use of volatility measures for investigating issues associated with market transparency. This extension can be applied to the development of volatility measures for monitoring the price reporting behavior of firms.cattle pricing, grid pricing, farm policy

Grid Marketing and Beef Carcass Quality: A Discussion of Issues and Trends

Beef industry data suggest that improvements in carcass yield and quality grades have stagnated recently. Empirical analysis, based on USDA market reports, indicates that the share of steer slaughter volume marketed on a grid is less than industry estimates and the growth in market share has stagnated. Trend analysis of market share suggests that grid pricing has become an important marketing channel, but has not become the dominant marketing channel. The lack of industry progress toward achieving the carcass quality goals suggests that grid pricing has not captured the level of market share needed to realize the goals envisioned for it as a value based marketing system.cattle pricing, grid pricing, farm policy

Modeling the Impacts of Invasive Streamside Plants and Food Availability on Brook Trout Feeding and Growth

Building on previous research done at Garland Brook in Lancaster, New Hampshire, Matt Scott\u27s research extended to the biological elements of the streamside environment that are impacted by Japanese knotweed

Presidential War Powers

Even before the framing of the Constitution, the Framers feared an executive power that would grow too strong. This fear was reflected throughout debates held before, during, and after the American Revolution. Even today, debate still continues as to what the executive power entails when it comes to acts of war and treaties. The United States Constitution was framed with the purpose of dividing power between the branches of government in order to avoid abuse and tyranny. “The Constitution bestows enormous power and responsibility on the President to protect the nation’s security and safeguard the people’s liberty” (Matheson 1). Throughout the history of the United States, the President has had to find the delicate and important balance between liberty and security. That balance is most fully manifested through the President’s interpretation and carrying out of the executive power during national security crises. This thesis will examine in-depth the Framer’s giving the President the power of prerogative during national security crises as outlined in Article I Section 8 and Article II Section II of the Constitution. It will focus on the works of Locke, Montesquieu, and Blackstone, as well as on the British system of government and the Framers’ decision to give prerogative to the President of the United States. The British model had a tremendous influence on the framing of the 18th century Anglo-American Constitution and what the Framers understood as the powers of the Commander-in-Chief. Locke, Montesquieu, and Blackstone argued in favor of separation of powers, a federative power, and the executive having absolute power on issues of war. These three men in particular would have a tremendous influence on the Framers and their view on executive war powers. My thesis will also examine the important change in the Constitution’s Declare War Clause, specifically the change in the wording from “make” to “declare war.” I contend that although Congress was given the power in Article I, section 8(11) to declare war, by changing the language from “make” to “declare” in that provision, the Framers of the Constitution intended to give the President the power to engage the country in war without the consent of Congress. I will provide evidence for this argument by reviewing three significant episodes in the exercise of national security power by the President: President George Washington’s Neutrality Proclamation, as discussed in the Pacificus-Helvidius debates, Abraham Lincoln’s suspension of the writ of habeas corpus and use of military tribunals during the Civil War, and President George W. Bush’s invasion of Iraq with the approval of Congress through the Authorized Use of Military Force, as well as surveillance and detainee programs. These three case studies are important examples of the President using his executive power to protect the nation from threats both at home and abroad. They were crucial moments in American history which have been criticized by many as an abuse of Presidential power. However, when examined, these critical events demonstrate the Framers’ intent to give the President the power of prerogative and the Presidents’ correct use of that power. I will argue that from The Federalist Papers to the actions of President Bush, there has been support for giving the President the power of prerogative to go to war without Congress’s consent

Co-Realizing COVID Co-Teaching Concerns: Recognizing Present Challenges to Student Equity in Remote Instruction

When the COVID-19 pandemic began to affect in-person schooling, teachers around the world expressed a balance of optimism for new possibilities in instruction along with trepidation at the challenges which lay ahead. Shortly after March 2020 and into the 2021 school year, remote instruction became the norm for several educators. As the pandemic persisted, the optimism teachers first exhibited began to wane considerably as several challenges to student access arose. These issues (e.g., Internet connectivity, crowded living spaces becoming workspaces, children and adults simultaneously working at home, etc.) pose significant threats to equity in education, and they ironically become troublesome in courses whose objectives include analyzing and discussing inequity in education. This article presents the narratives of a graduate student and his adviser as they attempted to co-teach a graduate-level literacy course remotely. The narratives include positive moments of instruction as well as recognized challenges to equity. The article concludes with suggestions for further research on synchronous remote instruction