The Violence of Representation: The (Un) Narration of Palestine in Public Discursive Space in Canada

The thesis examines representations of Palestine and Palestinians in Canada by drawing on the historical literature, statements from Canadian officials, media items, and through interviews conducted with Palestinian exiles in London and Toronto. Based on this research, I argue that the colonization of Palestine went, and still goes, hand in hand with a particular narrative construction in North America. I propose that the pervasiveness of Zionist discourse in Canada is sustained by drawing on three main ideas or sources: a long colonial and Orientalist tradition (which sees Arabs and Muslims as the uncivilized and inferior others of Europeans), the instrumentalization of particular Biblical stories, and a narrative of eternal Jewish and Israeli victimhood. These powerful and pervasive narratives have displayed remarkable historical continuity, as they are reproduced in ways which appeal to Canadian national mythologies at given historical moments

Excavating Zion: Archaeology and Nation-making in Palestine/Israel

This paper demonstrates that archaeological discourse and practice in Palestine/Israel is intertwined with a nation-making project of settler colonialism that contains both spatial and temporal dimensions. This project primarily serves to invent a link between the ancient Israelite past and the modern Israeli state, presenting colonization as “return” to “the homeland” through familiar narratives of frontier settlement. This article proposes that Israeli archaeological practices not only help to reproduce these narratives, but also participate in the inscription of the national territory as Jewish, and the consequent dispossession of the Palestinian

Neonatal Health Outcomes and Access to Care

This paper will review existing research regarding the importance of prenatal healthcare. The research included covers the barriers existing to pregnant mothers and the consequences these barriers pose for mothers and babies with prenatal care that is unobtainable or undesired. This paper will also review current interventions that have provided under-served mothers with the resources they need to better ensure a healthy pregnancy and delivery. Research analyzing mother’s attitudes and beliefs regarding prenatal care will be addressed in addition to how these beliefs may attribute to the health outcomes of their babies. Finally, this paper will include my own research study conducted to gain further insight on the impact of certain barriers on mother’s ability to access prenatal care. Key words: access, barriers, neonatal health outcomes, prenatal car

Populism Across the Atlantic: The Popular Retort to Globalism and Modernization in the United States, United Kingdom, and Germany

This paper explores the recent rise in populism on both sides of the Atlantic by looking at three cases where populism has been successful including in the election of Donald Trump, the United Kingdom’s decision to leave the European Union, and the rise of the Alternative for Deutschland in German elections. While populism is not a new phenomenon to Europe or America, these recent success cases lead us to wonder whether populism is on the rise and if this is perhaps part of a popular backlash to the effects of globalization and modernization. This paper will examine the common themes of these populist movements and suggest that perhaps the real motivator of transatlantic populism lies beyond the White House, 10 Downing Street, or the German Chancellery

An Exploration Of Indigenous Spiritual Microaggressions

This descriptive exploratory research is amongst the first to investigate Spiritual Microaggressions experienced by Indigenous Peoples across North America. Microaggressions can further be conceptualized and categorized as microassaults, microinsults, and microinvalidations. Participants who self-identify as Indigenous individuals ages 18 and over, from North America, who work in or are educated in the mental health field engaged in 60-90-minute interviews to explore the spiritual microaggressions incurred upon them. A total of 8 participants who identify as mental health professionals and graduate students in the mental health field were interviewed as an intensity sample. Participants discussed the implications of Indigenous Spiritual Microaggressions (ISM) including how they have been impacted emotionally, psychologically, spiritually, and interpersonally by these incidents. Participants also shared the impact that these incidents have had on their livelihood, how they have coped with them, and what they hope can be done to mitigate ISM in the future. Interviews were transcribed verbatim, de-identified, and analyzed for thematic content using Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). Experiential data were contextually coded, emergent themes were created, and sorted into relevant superordinate categories and sub-themes. A cross-analysis was then conducted to consolidate requisite thematic constructs across participants. Superordinate interview themes that were found include: ISM Microaggression Taxonomy Endorsement and Accouterments (Microinvalidation, Microinsult, Microassault, Lateral Microaggressions), ISM Perpetrator Characteristics and Responses, ISM Responses, ISM Coping, ISM Mitigation, Impact of ISM on Indigenous Peoples, and Research Interview Reactions. An auditing process took place for quality control, and superordinate themes and subthemes were depicted via the use of deidentified participant quotes. This mechanism for displaying thematic content holds deference to traditional Indigenous oral story telling culture, which emphasizes subjective and experiential knowledge gained through allegorical means. Implications for theoretical paradigm shifts, clinical practice, and social justice will be discussed, including suggestions for multiculturally appropriate coping skills, policy enactments and changes to mitigate microaggression frequency/severity, and a rationale for the novel conceptual category of lateral microaggressions

Thermophysical properties of warm dense hydrogen

We study the thermophysical properties of warm dense hydrogen using quantum molecular dynamics simulations. New results are presented for the pair distribution functions, the equation of state, the Hugoniot curve, and the reflectivity. We compare with available experimental data and predictions of the chemical picture. Especially, we discuss the nonmetal-to-metal transition which occurs at about 40 GPa in the dense fluid

A Quantitative Comparison of Emotional Intelligence Scores for Generation X and Millennial School Leaders

The purpose of this quantitative study using a non-experimental, quantitative, and correlational research design, was to discriminate between the emotional intelligence of school leaders in two cohorts: Generation X and the Millennial Generation. Emotional intelligence (the ability to process emotions and emotional stimuli to guide thinking and behavior) was measured using the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso-Emotional-Intelligence-Test. Emails on public school district websites were used to recruit the principals and distribute the survey. The convenience sample consisted of 86 school principals from the northeastern United States. The total emotional intelligence score was significantly higher in the Millennials than Generation X. Discriminant Function Analysis classified the four categories of emotional intelligence (perceiving emotions, facilitating thought, understanding emotions, and managing emotions) between the two groups of principals. The statistics were weighted to account for the differences in group size. One statistically significant discriminant function explained 100% of the variance. The Millennial Generation were more able than Generation X to understand and manage emotions. The implications are that Millennial principals may be better able than Generation X principals to inspire feelings of trust, cooperation, motivation, optimism, self-confidence, contentment, and commitment among their peers, colleagues and subordinates. More research is needed to examine the degree to which generational and demographic factors predict emotional intelligence among school principals