Cultural Maps, Networks, and Flows: The History and Impact of the Havana Biennale 1984 to the present

Since 1984 the Havana Biennale has been known as "the Tri-continental art event," presenting artists from Latin America, Africa, and Asia. It also has intensely debated the nature of recent and contemporary art from a Third World or Global South perspective. The Biennale is a product of Cuba's fruition since the Revolution of 1959. The Wifredo Lam Center, created in 1983, has organized the Biennial since its inception. This dissertation proposes that at the heart of the Biennale has been an alternative cosmopolitan modernism (that we might call "contemporary" or "post-colonial") that was envisaged by a group of local cultural agents, critics, philosophers, art historians, and also supported by a network of peers around the world. It examines the role Armando Hart Dávalos, Minister of Culture of Cuba (1976-1997), who played a key figure in the development of a solid cultural policy, one which produced the Havana Biennale as a cultural project based on an explicit "Third World" consciousness. It explores the role of critics and curators Gerardo Mosquera and Nelson Herrera Ysla, key members of the founding group of the Biennale. Subsequently, it examines how the work of Llilian Llanes, director of the Lam Center and of the Biennale (1983-1999), shaped the event in structural and conceptual terms. Finally, it examines the most recent developments and projections for the future.Using primary material, interviews, and field work research, the study focuses on the conceptual, contextual, and historical structure that supports the Biennale. It presents from several optics the views and world-view of the agents involved from the inside (curators and collaborators), as well as, from an art-world perspective through an account of the nine editions. Using the Havana Biennale as case study this work goes to disentangle and reveal the socio-political and intellectual debates taking place in the conformation of what is call today global art. In addition, recognizes the potentiality of alternative thinking and cultural subjectivity in the Global South

The Cleaners' Voice

I propose to discuss a community art project of mine in which I collaborated with a number of cleaning staff from UEL, a songwriter, members of the union, and other lecturers campaigning for the implementation of the London Living Wage. The Cleaners Voice is a project in which UEL cleaning staff were invited to form a ‘complaints choir’ so as to present to the wider community some of their most pressing and personal complaints against the contractor they were working for at the time (Spring 2011). The ‘complaints choir’ is a community-based performance method by which participants compose a song and they perform it later in the context of a public event. The video documenting that process was uploaded to youtube, and became a piece of activist work in its own right . Within hours of its release, it had received more than hundred and fifty views, and the University Management was made aware of the increased pressure for the cleaning staff to be granted better working conditions. This resulted in a number of measures benefiting the cleaners. The project was a collaborative effort in which the political and the artistic came together to effect change. In this presentation I use The Cleaners’ Voice as a case study to discuss two key questions about participatory, collaborative, socially engaged performance. First, how does such a project accommodate different and at times contradictory interests: the artistic interest on one side, and the work-related, real life complaints of the cleaners on the other side; the interest of the union, and the interest of the London Living Wage campaigners? Second, I explore the question about the role of the video documentation of the process as a tool of activism. In this case, the dissemination of the video clip on youtube is the main outcome of the project in terms of its effects and socio-political and cultural resonance. Interestingly, the uses and effects of this clip escape the control of the artist, those reinforcing his role as a facilitator

Análisis psicométrico preliminar de la escala de ansiedad manifiesta (amas-a) en adultos limeños

Were analyzed the psychometric properties of theAdult ManifestAnxiety Scale (AMAS-A) in a sample of Lima adults, men and women, of ages between 18 and 60 years. The objective of the study was to obtain validity evidences that support their use in adult population. Were acceptable indicators of reliability through method of internal consistency (KR20), and was obtained a coefficient of .86 for the totalsample, de .89 for the male sample and .819 for the female sample, as well as evidence of validity of content by means of the V of Aiken and factorial validity (parsimonious and coherent factorial structure). Were obtained three factors that explain the 37.42% of the variance. In this context, theAdult Manifest Anxiety Scale counts on goods psychometric propertiesto continue validation studies.Se analizaron las propiedades psicométricas de la Escala de Ansiedad Manifiesta (AMAS-A) en una muestra de adultos limeños, varones y mujeres, de edades comprendidas entre 18 y 60 años. El objetivo del estudio fue obtener evidencias de validez que apoyen su uso en población adulta. Se hallaron indicadores de confiabilidad aceptables a través del método de consistencia interna (KR20), obteniéndose un coeficiente de .86 para la muestra general, de .89 para varones y .819 para mujeres, así como evidencia de validez de contenido por medio de la V deAiken y validez factorial (estructura factorial parsimoniosa y coherente), evidenciándose tres factores que explican el 37.42% de varianza. En este contexto, la Escala de Ansiedad Manifiesta en Adultos-A cuenta con propiedades psicométricas adecuadas para continuar estudios de validación

Clinical Development for Paraprofessional Counselors : A 12 Session Protocol

Paraprofessional counselors comprise a significant sector of the mental health workforce (Buchbinder, 2003; Golden, 1991; Nieuwsma et al., 2014; Norcross, 2000). Professional counselors have offered both praise (Durlak, 1979) and criticism (Nietzel & Fisher, 1981) for paraprofessional counselors and the services that they provide. Paraprofessional counselors work under the guidance and supervision of trained mental health professionals, yet the extant literature has little to offer in terms of effective methods to foster clinical development. This current study examined the impact of the PACE-12 clinical development protocol on paraprofessional counselor self-efficacy and counseling skills competence over a course of six weeks. Three groups of paraprofessional counselors received the PACE-12 protocol following a non-concurrent multiple baseline study design. Study participants supplied data at regular intervals during a baseline and an intervention phase. The data analysis confirmed that a functional relationship was present between the PACE-12 protocol and significant increase in counselor self-efficacy scores. The counseling skills competence scores only showed improvement for one of the study participant groups. The implications for researchers included a call for analogous replication studies and improving the methodology for collecting and analyzing counselor skills competence data. The implications for professional counselors that supervise paraprofessional counselors included: (a) a call to structure ongoing clinical development with a protocol designed specifically for paraprofessional counselors; (b) being intentional about providing support and assurance to paraprofessional counselors when they are asked to improve their counseling skills, particularly in situations where client clinical presentations are acute

Lean production management model under the change management approach to reduce order fulfillment times for Peruvian textile SMEs

Currently, small- and medium-sized enterprises face order fulfillment issues, thus generating reduced service levels. In addition, these companies are usually not aware of the importance of continuous improvement tools or of training staff as a mitigation strategy for this situation. Within this framework, the authors performed a literature review to compile production models through which downtimes could be reduced. The production model designed therefrom comprises Lean Manufacturing and work study tools within a Change Management approach. This design focuses on model implementation by small companies without requiring large investment, cutting-edge technology, or qualified personnel. Finally, an application case study was conducted in a small textile manufacturing company located at the Gamarra Fashion Center in Lima, Peru. The results that were reported revealed that late order fulfillment instances reduced by up to 18%, which had an impact on downtimes, unnecessary movements, and in-process inventory levels, thus increasing productivity by 85%

Importance of Grazing Management in Improving Water Use Efficiency of Tropical Forage Grasses

The growing number of extreme weather events has created the need to identify tropical forage grasses with greater water use efficiency (WUE) to cope with water-limited conditions. WUE can be defined as the ratio of forage biomass produced per unit of water used. However, WUE is a dynamic ratio that changes according to environmental gradients (e.g., water or nutrient availability) or ontogenetic drift (e.g., changes in root to shoot biomass allocation across phenological stages). Furthermore, genetic improvement leading to greater WUE is likely to result in smaller plants that produce less than the required forage biomass to sustain good animal performance. Bearing that in mind, other alternatives for improving WUE must be taken into consideration. Grazing management is one among such alternatives. Results from a greenhouse experiment conducted with a number of forage grasses (Cenchrus ciliaris, Chloris gayana, Megathyrsus maximus, Urochloa spp.) at the Alliance of Bioversity-CIAT showed that different grazing intensities lead to various WUEs. Improved WUE values in grasses can be achieved through grazing management if it moderates the process of evapotranspiration by 1) reducing leaf area per plant; and 2) maintaining soil cover from pasture growth and productivity. Our results suggest that WUE in pastures planted with tropical forage grasses can be enhanced through moderate rotational grazing

Genomic profiling of tumor initiating prostatospheres

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The cancer stem cell (CSC) hypothesis proposes that a population of tumor cells bearing stem cell properties is responsible for the origin and maintenance of tumors. Normal and cancer stem cells possess the ability to grow in vitro as self-renewing spheres, but the molecular basis of this phenotype remains largely unknown. We intended to establish a comprehensive culture system to grow prostatospheres (PSs) from both cancer cell lines and patient tumors. We then used gene expression microarrays to gain insight on the molecular pathways that sustain the PS tumor initiating cell (TIC) phenotype.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Traditional stem cell medium (SCM) supplemented with Knockout™SR (KO) allows the propagation of monoclonal PSs from cell lines and primary cells. PSs display gene expression and tumorigenicity hallmarks of TICs. Gene expression analysis defined a gene signature composed of 66 genes that characterize LNCaP and patient PSs. This set includes novel prostate TIC growth factors (NRP1, GDF1, JAG1), proteins implicated in cell adhesion and cytoskeletal maintenance, transcriptional regulators (MYCBP, MYBL1, ID1, ID3, FOS, ELF3, ELF4, KLF2, KLF5) and factors involved in protein biosynthesis and metabolism. Meta-analysis in Oncomine reveals that some of these genes correlate with prostate cancer status and/or progression. Reporter genes and inhibitors indicate that the Notch pathway contributes to prostatosphere growth.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>We have developed a model for the culture of PSs, and provide a genomic profile that support CSCs identity. This signature identifies novel markers and pathways that are predicted to correlate with prostate cancer evolution.</p

Temperature Profiles of Railroad Tapered Roller Bearings With Defective Inner and Outer Rings

In the railroad industry, monitoring the condition of key components such as bearings and wheels is vital to ensure the safe transport of goods and commodities. Bearing seizures are amongst the most dangerous types of failures experienced by trains because they occur unexpectedly and may lead to costly derailments. Current bearing health monitoring techniques include tracking the temperature and acoustic emissions given by the bearings. Although temperature histories of railroad tapered roller bearings are readily available, the literature does not provide information relating the temperature profiles to the severity of the bearing defect. The study presented here investigates the correlation between temperature profiles and bearing defect severity measured by the size of spalls present on bearing outer (cup) and inner (cone) rings. The temperature data used for this study was acquired from defective and healthy bearings that were run at various operating load and speed conditions. The data presented here provides the railroad industry with a greater understanding of the thermal behavior of defective bearings, which can be used to assess the future needs of bearing condition monitoring systems