The Rice Farmer vs. the Multinational: Mali’s Winding Path Toward Food Sovereignty

Land grabbing by foreign investors is a growing problem for the Global South. Rice production in Mali is no exception. To counter this trend, there is a greater push from countries like Mali for food security and food sovereignty. Despite this push, decentralization and a lack of government funds have led Mali to sign multiple agreements with multinational companies. The Malibya Society, a partnership between Mali and Libya, is one of these investors that could jeopardize Mali’s autonomy. This paper will describe the details of the project, the reactions of government officials, peasant organizations, and farmers, and what Malians can do or are doing to combat the problems that put them in this situation

Reminiscence of John Muir by Bell, Emily

Philadelphia, 1428 Spruce St., Oct. 13, 1915. Messrs. Houghton Mifflin Co. Boston. Dear Sirs: In response to this clipping enclosed I take pleasure in sending you the accompanying characteristic anecdote in reference to John Muir, with the hope that it is not too late for you to include it in the Life, Letters and Journals which you propose to publish. Yours truly, (Miss) Emily Bell A chance meeting in the dining-room of Shepheard\u27s Hotel, Cairo, was the beginning of a pleasant friendship with John Muir which ended with his death. As his beloved California trees were always in his thoughts it was natural for him to open the conversation with an allusion to the beauty and majesty of the Sequoia gigantea. Seated at his left was an elderly English woman of the prosaic type, one used to find in Egypt and in continental resorts. She had not been included in the conversation, but desiring to take part in it she abruptly broke in upon his poetical description of these giants of the forest with the practical question, Would they make nice furniture? Turning upon her with as fierce a look as his gentle blue eyes could give, \u27\u27Madam, he replied, would you murder your own children? The stolid dame fairly jumped with fright, evidently thinking she had addressed a madman, and hurriedly finishing her dinner she silently left the table. At the next meal she furtively glanced at him from the extreme end of the dining-room

Self-Rated Diet Health: Socioeconomic and Health Related Correlates

BACKGROUND: Two-thirds of Americans are overweight or obese, increasing their risk for multiple chronic diseases. Self-rated diet health may be useful in public health efforts to prevent the negative consequences of overweight/obesity. This study aims to identify sociodemographic and health-related correlates of the NHANES self-rated diet health question. METHODS: The 2009-2010 NHANES data for adults 20 years and older were used. Sociodemographic and health-related variables were investigated with selfrated diet health as the outcome. First, bivariate analyses determined associations of each variable with self-rated diet health. Those associated with pvalues ≤.25 were included in two multiple ordinal logistic regression models. RESULTS: Model 1 included only sociodemographic variables; all were independently and significantly associated with self-rated diet health. Healthrelated variables were added to Model 2; only BMI, overweight diagnosis, and self-rated general health were independently and significantly associated with self-rated diet health. CONCLUSION: Perceived diet health is significantly associated with several sociodemographic and health-related variables. Associations with BMI and overweight diagnosis suggest potential public health applications of the self-rated diet health item, particularly in increasing at-risk individuals’ risk perceptions related to diet. More research about the validity and utility of the self-rated diet health question is needed

Towards a Better Understanding of Coastal Cliff Erosion in Waitemata Group Rock; Auckland, New Zealand.

The soft sedimentary deposits of the Waitemata Group which outcrop on the eastern coastline of the Auckland region are a coastal cliff erosion hazard. The determination of the rate that these cliffs erode for hazard zonation purposes still requires research. A database has been collated of a range of structural, geological, geomorphic and climate parameters from 16 representative cliff sites in order to statistically assess what parameters influence cliff erosion and why erosion rates vary within the relatively uniform geology. Four different lithological units have been defined: sandstone beds of turbidites; sandstone beds of densites (contain rip-up clasts); sand to gravel beds of debrites; and siltstone beds. Cliff rock has very weak to weak intact rock strength; apertures of 0.1 to 15 mm; infill types are soft clay and grit, and hard calcite and iron; spacing of discontinuities are smaller in siltstone beds (≥ 5 mm), and up to 5 m in sandstone and debrite beds; bedding and fault planes are continuous, joints are non-continuous; block size is dictated by bed thickness and non-continuous joints. Shore platform widths were used to determine long-term erosion rates which range from 1.2 to 53.0 mm y-1. Platform morphologies are either sloping or horizontal or are a combination of both. Higher platform benches found at some sites are considered to be the result of a higher period of sea-level or are high-tide benches. Intact and rock mass strength increases northwards. Cliff heights are 8 to 38 m; cliff angles are 51 to 79 . Conditions for sporadic planar and wedge failure were determined at some sites; frittered siltstone and low durability sandstone allow smaller-scale, continual erosion. Castor Bay, Army Bay, Waiwera Beach and Leigh Marine Reserve have the lowest rock mass quality. Musick Point, Narrowneck Beach and Waiake Bay have good rock mass quality. A conceptual model for coastal cliff erosion has been developed for Waitemata Group coastal cliffs, based on the dominant processes that act on the cliffs determined from statistical analysis (student t-test, correlation and regression) and field observations. The primary factor for cliff erosion is bed dip, whereby seaward dipping beds have higher erosion rates than landward dipping beds. The secondary factors for cliff erosion include: the intact and rock mass strength of the rock; the rock mass quality; strength of the siltstone beds; strength and structure of the sandstone beds; and orientation of the bedding planes with respect to the cliff face. Shear stresses are enhanced when beds dip seaward and thus shear failure along continuous surfaces is achievable. When beds dip landward the influence of shear stresses along bedding planes, and their contribution to the removal of individual blocks of rock, is severely inhibited resulting in reduced rates of erosion. There is no relationship between cliff height and erosion rates and cliff heights are mainly controlled by the pre-existing landscape. Cliff angle is controlled by the proportion of sandstone and siltstone (whereby lower cliff angles are more siltstone-dominated), rock mass strength and weathering. Erosion rates do vary in Waitemata Group rock of the Auckland region because of the variation in structural and geomorphic conditions of the cliff, most strongly controlled by the dip angle of bedding planes

The Relationship Between Illness Representations, Avoidant Coping, and Health Outcomes in People with Ongoing Symptoms of Chronic Illness

Illness representations play an important role in the way people with chronic illness manage symptoms and view their overall health. Those suffering from functional somatic syndromes as well as conventional diagnoses seek information and meaning about their health threats in order to make appraisals concerning health outcomes. The primary interest of this study was to determine whether illness representations predict coping strategies which in turn influence general health outcomes. Data was collected from a series of four online surveys that measured an individual’s illness representations (IPQ-R), coping responses (Brief COPE), and health outcomes (RAND-36). The sample included 204 participants (169 females and 30 males) all of whom experienced chronic illness symptoms and were classified as having a functional somatic syndrome (FSS) or conventional diagnosis (CD). As hypothesized, illness perceptions predicted avoidant coping strategies as well as general health. Specifically, illness beliefs of greater consequences and lower coherence were associated with greater reported use of self-blame, behavioral disengagement, and denial. Furthermore, these avoidant coping strategies were associated with poorer health. Self-blame emerged as a coping strategy most associated with illness representations and general health. Although a meditational model was proposed, self-blame did not mediate the relationship between illness consequence and general health.These findings suggest that viewing an illness as having more consequences is associated with more avoidant coping and has a negative impact on the overall general health in those suffering with chronic illness

Writing a Play, Creating a World: The Stars Come Out at Night

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Arts of Bard College

My pioneer days in Florida, 1876-1898.

Personal account of the Bell family\u27s move from Indiana to Ft. Pierce, Florida with numerous anecdotes and descriptions of places they saw and people they met.https://stars.library.ucf.edu/floridaheritage/1130/thumbnail.jp