The Making of Faulty Optic's Dead Wedding: Inertia, Chaos and Adaptation

An examination of Faulty Optic's creative process during the devising and construction of their show Dead Wedding. Published by Palgrave Macmillan as Chapter 3 in 'Devising in Process' edited by Alex Mermikides and Jackie Smart, 201

Alpha and beta: how to be both

This spoken paper explored Kleinian and post-Kleinian thinking about symbol formation and the implications it has on the development of creative practice for students in Higher Education, and offered some thoughts on the resulting challenges for lecturers trying to develop their students’ creative capacity and helping them negotiate this Primitive Space. One of the developmental achievements that Melanie Klein describes is of the infant’s successful negotiation of the depressive position, having first of all developed a primitive working ego through splitting processes associated with the paranoid-schizoid position. She recognises that the movement between these positions reoccurs throughout a person’s life to a greater or lesser extent. Hannah Segal suggests that symbolic equation, (lack of distinction between the symbol and the object that it symbolises) occurs when a person has not successfully negotiated movement from the paranoid-schizoid to the depressive position. True symbolic representation requires the ability to be able to bear loss and separateness, and hence an understanding that the symbol is separate from that which it symbolises. She also suggests that creativity is connected with the reparative process – that it contains the desire to make good what has been destroyed through defensive attacks made in paranoid-schizoid functioning. Segal makes the connection between symbolic equation and Wilfred Bion’s idea of beta elements, and symbolic representation and his alpha elements In this paper I explore the notion that creativity requires the ability to both tolerate frustration but to also be able to visit and revisit the conditions found in the paranoid-schizoid position and to oscillate between both positions in order to explore the further reaches of our creativity. The individual in creative mode must be both the provider of Bion’s beta elements and to be the container who can convert them into knowable alpha elements

Uncanny Actor Training – working with entfremdung (estrangement; depersonalisation; derealisation.)

Psychoanalytic thought suggests that aesthetic experience is associated with Freud’s notion of the uncanny (1919). This state might be thought of as a necessary aspect of both the creation and the reception of the aesthetic object. Availability to this experience requires some type of depersonalisation or estrangement from the self. This estrangement in turn suggests that there might be a duality occurring in the estranged self: an observing, detached self and a participating self; many actors talk of the uncanny notion of being immersed in a performative action while simultaneously having an experience of observing themselves in performance. I have worked with 2nd year Drama students undertaking an Actor Training module and the paper examines our processual theatre practice and the attempt to allow access to a conscious experience of estrangement (with all the disturbances and difficulties that this might create) as well as the means to record and reflect upon this phenomenological experience

Validating a scale to measure engineers’ perceived self-efficacy for engineering education outreach

Education outreach in schools has been identified as a critical route to influence children's perceptions and capabilities for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics careers. Evidence suggests that providing non-teaching professionals like engineers with training programmes and structured experience can boost perceived self-efficacy to perform education outreach, which in turn means better quality and more frequent public engagement. A validated measure of the construct of perceived self-efficacy for engineering education outreach will be useful for effective science communication participation, research, and practise. This article presents the methods used to develop the Engineering Outreach Self-efficacy Scale (EOSS), along with initial reliability and validation results to support the scale's use. The 10-item scale was found to have good internal consistency and reliability (Cronbach's alpha α = .92) with a sample of 160 engineers. The scale had convergent validity with general self-efficacy. Engineers with more experience of education outreach had higher self-efficacy for engineering education outreach. There were no significant differences between male and female engineers. Initial test-retest results showed engineers receiving training in education outreach significantly improved their EOSS scores, indicating capability to detect change over time. It is hoped this scale will prove useful for further evaluation of engineering education outreach and public engagement with science activities

Our Digital Legacy: an Archival Perspective

Our digital memories are threatened by archival hubris, technical misdirection, and simplistic application of rules to protect privacy rights. The obsession with the technical challenge of digital preservation has blinded much of the archival community to the challenges, created by the digital transition, to the other core principles of archival science - namely, appraisal (what to keep), sensitivity review (identifying material that cannot yet be disclosed for ethical or legal reasons) and access. The essay will draw on the considerations of appraisal and sensitivity review to project a vision of some aspects of access to the Digital Archive. This essay will argue that only by careful scrutiny of these three challenges and the introduction of appropriate practices and procedures will it be possible to prevent the precautionary closure of digital memories for long periods or, worse still, their destruction. We must ensure that our digital memories can be captured, kept, recalled and remain faithful to the events and circumstances that created them

A systematic review of the traits and cognitions associated with use of and belief in complementary and alternative medicine (CAM)

© 2018, © 2018 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) use is widespread despite the controversy over its effectiveness. Although previous reviews have examined the demographics and attitudes of CAM users, there is no existing review on the traits or cognitions which characterise either CAM users or those who believe in CAM effectiveness. The current systematic review set out to address these gaps in the literature by applying a narrative synthesis. A bibliographic search and manual searches were undertaken and key authors were contacted. Twenty-three papers were selected. The trait openness to experience was positively associated with CAM use but not CAM belief. Absorption and various types of coping were also positively associated with CAM use and belief.No other trait was reliably associated with CAM use or belief. Intuitive thinking and ontological confusions were positively associated with belief in CAM effectiveness; intuitive thinking was also positively associated with CAM use. Studies researching cognitions in CAM use/belief were mostly on non-clinical samples, whilst studies on traits and CAM use/belief were mostly on patients. The quality of studies varied butunrepresentative samples, untested outcome measures and simplistic statistical analyses were the most common flaws. Traits and cognition might be important correlates of CAM use and also of faith in CAM

Understanding the psychosocial impact of Joint Hypermobility and Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome

AbstractIntroduction: Joint Hypermobility Syndrome (JHS) and Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome Hypermobility Type (EDS-HT) are heritable disorders affecting connective tissue. Existing research has predominately focused on biological features such as joint range of movement and pain, while less consideration has been given to psychosocial and behavioural factors.Methods: This multiphase mixed-methods design explored the lived experience of adults with JHS and EDS in three studies. Firstly, a systematic review of the literature appraised and analysed ten papers using thematic synthesis. Secondly, semi-structured telephone interviews with a purposive sample of 17 adults (14 women, 3 men), considered participants’ lived experiences and the psychosocial, cognitive and behavioural impact of JHS/EDS-HT on their lives. In the final study, these results were mapped to the Theoretical Domains Framework and COM-B model in a behavioural analysis to identify potential behaviour change interventions. Intervention options were presented to focus group participants (n=9, all women) with JHS/EDS-HT to gain consensus on priorities in a modified nominal group technique (NGT).Results: Results from the systematic review showed that people with JHS and EDS experience difficulties being understood by others in society, have limited participation in social activities, and often depend on their families for help. Similarly, results from interviews indicated a general lack of awareness of JHS/EDS-HT, fears regarding injuries or decline in ability, and a range of positive coping strategies including physiotherapy. The behavioural analysis prioritised a number of different behaviour change interventions.Conclusion: The psychosocial impact of JHS/EDS-HT on adults is substantial, and there are a number of unmet areas of care and support for this population. Novel findings have been linked to potential intervention recommendations. The findingsare discussed and triangulated in relation to existing literature and implications for future research

Review of sexual health issues linked with cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes mellitus in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander males

There are well established links between male sexual health conditions and chronic disease, particularly cardiovascular disease (CVD) and type 2 diabetes (T2DM). Erectile dysfunction (ED) and low testosterone are two sexual health conditions that are relatively common among the wider male population. However, there is a lack of data specifically about these sexual problems among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander males. One of the most important findings of research regarding the links between sexual health and chronic disease is that ED can be a risk marker for future CVD or undiagnosed T2DM. Understanding these links can lead to more holistic health care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander males, including the benefits of earlier diagnosis and treatment. Raising awareness of these issues and creating safe spaces for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander males to talk about sexual health may also prevent some from suffering in silence with a sexual problem. Links to additional knowledge exchange products: The Review of sexual health issues linked with cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes mellitus in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander males is part of a suite of knowledge exchange products that includes a summary, video, and fact sheet

Annexin A2 at the interface between F-actin and membranes enriched in phosphatidylinositol 4,5,-bisphosphate

AbstractVesicle rocketing has been used as a model system for understanding the dynamics of the membrane-associated F-actin cytoskeleton, but in many experimental systems is induced by persistent, non-physiological stimuli. Localised changes in the concentration of phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PI(4,5)P2) in membranes stimulate the recruitment of actin-remodelling proteins to their sites of action, regulate their activity and favour vesicle rocketing. The calcium and anionic phospholipid-binding protein annexin A2 is necessary for macropinocytic rocketing and has been shown to bind both PI(4,5)P2 and the barbed-ends of F-actin filaments. Here we show that annexin A2 localises to the comet tails which form constitutively in fibroblasts from patients with Lowe Syndrome. These fibroblasts are deficient in OCRL1, a phosphatidylinositol polyphosphate 5-phosphatase with specificity for PI(4,5)P2. We show that upon depletion of annexin A2 from these cells vesicle rocketing is reduced, and that this is also dependent upon PI(4,5)P2 formation. Annexin A2 co-localised with comet-tails induced by pervanadate and hyperosmotic shock in a basophilic cell line, and in an epithelial cell line upon activation of PKC. In vitro annexin A2 promoted comet formation in a bead-rocketing assay and was sufficient to link F-actin filaments to PI(4,5)P2 containing vesicles. These observations are consistent with a role for annexin A2 as an actin nucleator on PI(4,5)P2-enriched membranes