Ugandan scientists, Scandinavian collaborations, and the cultural economy of science

Money and cultural economies of science are imbued with multiple meanings for actors involved in international scientific research and research training collaborations in Uganda. This article uses economic anthropology to explore some of the tensions and misunderstandings that arise from Ugandan- Scandinavian partnerships in science. Using ethnographic examples drawn from the experiences of Ugandan scientists and their Scandinavian counterparts, the article describes how the positions and actions of Ugandan scientists produce different, and at times contradictory meanings, for themselves, their kin, local colleagues, and Scandinavian counterparts. Compassion for a grieving sibling, a gift to a charity fundraiser, the extraction of personal savings from an international research project, and the strategic construction of a countryside home are just a few examples of actions and relations that shape actors’ understandings of Ugandan-Scandinavian scientific collaborations. The article finds that pre-existing tensions in scientific collaborations resulting from dependency upon foreign donors for research and research training funding are further exacerbated by foreign actors’ partial understandings of the meanings and moralities of scientific work in Uganda. The article concludes that greater recognition of the patterns of cultural economy that make money and labor in science meaningful are necessary for mitigating mistrust and misunderstanding across South-North scientific collaborations.peer-reviewe

Interview with Richard Mavis

Richard Mavis, a long-time resident of Mount Vernon, speaks about his service to the county in the commissioner\u27s office for twenty years. He also talks about the political side of the county, and the experience he has had, as a democrat in Knox County. He also discusses how all the aspects of the community work together to create a stronger community.https://digital.kenyon.edu/ffp_interviews/1015/thumbnail.jp

Patients with rheumatoid arthritis have an altered circulatory aggrecan profile

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic auto-immune disease with extensive articular cartilage destruction. Aggrecan depletion, mediated by aggrecanases is one of the first signs of early cartilage erosion. We investigated, whether measurement of aggrecan and fragments thereof in serum, could be used as biomarkers for joint-disease in RA patients and furthermore characterized the fragments found in the circulation.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The study consisted of 38 patients, 12 males (62.2 ± 16.0 years) and 26 females (59.8 ± 20.7 years) diagnosed with RA: 41.5 ± 27.5 mm/h erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), 38.4 ± 34.7 mg/ml C-reactive protein (CRP) and 4.8 ± 1.7 disease activity score (DAS) and 108 healthy age-matched controls. Aggrecan levels were measured using two immunoassays, i.e. the ³⁷⁴ARGSVI-G2 sandwich ELISA measuring aggrecanase-mediated aggrecan degradation and the G1/G2 sandwich assay, detecting aggrecan molecules containing G1 and/or G2 (total aggrecan) We further characterized serum samples by western blots, by using monoclonal antibodies F-78, binding to G1 and G2, or by BC-3, detecting the aggrecanase-generated N-terminal ³⁷⁴ARGSVI neo-epitope.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Total aggrecan levels in RA patients were significantly decreased from 824.8 ± 31 ng/ml in healthy controls to 570.5 ± 30 ng/ml (31% decrease, P < 0.0001), as measured by the G1/G2 ELISA. Western blot analysis with F-78 showed one strong band at 10 kDa, and weaker bands at 25 and 45 kDa in both healthy controls and RA patients. In contrast, staining for aggrecanase-activity revealed only one strong band in RA patients of 45 kDa.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This is the first study, which characterizes different aggrecan fragments in human serum. The data strongly suggests that total aggrecan levels, i.e. aggrecan molecules containing G1 and/or G2 are lower in RA patients, and that RA patients have at least one specific subpopulation of aggrecan fragments, namely aggrecanse generated ³⁷⁴ARGSVI fragments. Further clinical studies are needed to investigate the potential of G1/G2 as a structure-related biochemical marker in destructive joint-diseases.</p

Ugandan Scientists, Scandinavian Collaborations, and the Cultural Economy of Science

Money and cultural economies of science are imbuedwith multiple meanings for actors involved in internationalscientific research and research training collaborations inUganda. This article uses economic anthropology to explore someof the tensions and misunderstandings that arise from Ugandan-Scandinavian partnerships in science. Using ethnographicexamples drawn from the experiences of Ugandan scientistsand their Scandinavian counterparts, the article describeshow the positions and actions of Ugandan scientists producedifferent, and at times contradictory meanings, for themselves,their kin, local colleagues, and Scandinavian counterparts.Compassion for a grieving sibling, a gift to a charity fundraiser,the extraction of personal savings from an international researchproject, and the strategic construction of a countryside homeare just a few examples of actions and relations that shapeactors’ understandings of Ugandan-Scandinavian scientificcollaborations. The article finds that pre-existing tensions inscientific collaborations resulting from dependency upon foreigndonors for research and research training funding are furtherexacerbated by foreign actors’ partial understandings of themeanings and moralities of scientific work in Uganda. The articleconcludes that greater recognition of the patterns of culturaleconomy that make money and labor in science meaningful arenecessary for mitigating mistrust and misunderstanding acrossSouth-North scientific collaborations

The Science of Returning Home : A Study of Vietnamese Scientists with Advanced Internatiional Degrees

The present work addresses the internationalization of higher educat-ion and its links with the practice of science in Vietnamese universities and research institutions. Using qualitative data from ethnographic case studies of Vietnamese scientists shortly after their return from PhD studies abroad, the paper reveals the fragile links between international science training and the production of scientific knowledge in Vietnam. Using five cases, I show that upon returning to their home institutions in Vietnam, scientists become agents of change in the politics of science and knowledge production. However, as a result of the interaction between Vietnamese and foreign influences, their agency and their scientific habitus (re)encounter social, cultural, economic and political flows in the local contexts that challenge their ambitions to implement effectively ideas and practices learned abroad. The case study of five scientists presented here argues for a more nuanced explanation of the power of internationalization to create (positive) change in the local contexts of developing countries. It reveals how scientific production be- comes inseparable from the broader webs of social, political, economic and cultural relationships that characterize scientists’ particular local working environment