Becoming Arab in London: Performativity and the Undoing of Identity

A review of Ramy M.K. Aly\u27s book, Becoming Arab in London: Performativity and the Undoing of Identity written by Rhys H. Williams

Public Islam in the Contemporary World: A View on the American Case

The article reviews the status of the highly diverse community of American Muslims, with reference to US national identity and immigration history, history of Islam in the USA, and civil society organization. It is found that on average, and after the civil right movement of the 1960s, Muslims are very well assimilated into the US society and economy, in which the specific American civil society and religious organizations play an important enabling part, providing networks and inroads to society for newcomers as well as vehicles for preserving ethniccultural distinctiveness. This broad pattern of development has not changed in the aftermath of 9/11 and ensuing wars on terror. Compared with the Nordic context, where Muslims are often considered challenging to a secular social order, American Muslims do not stand out as more or differently religious, or any less American, than other religious communities. It is tentatively concluded that, downsides apart, US national identity and civil society structure could be more favorable for the social integration of Muslims than the Nordic welfare state model

ANU Radiocarbon Dating Laboratory, General Projects

The laboratory is playing an important role in a number of research projects. Indeed, there is a continuing and increasing need for laboratory generated research involving improvements in dating techniques, analysis, interpretation and reporting of results; parameters fundamental to the validity of dating such as environmental contamination and selection of applicable dating standards. Equally important is participation on a cooperative basis in research generated by other departments and institutions, often involving field work

Probing a Spray Using Frequency-Analyzed Light Scattering

Frequency-analyzed laser-light scattering (FALLS) is a relatively simple technique that can be used to measure principal characteristics of a sheet of sprayed liquid as it breaks up into ligaments and then the ligaments break up into droplets. In particular, through frequency analysis of laser light scattered from a spray, it is possible to determine whether the laser-illuminated portion of the spray is in the intact-sheet region, the ligament region, or the droplet region. By logical extension, it is possible to determine the intact length from the location of the laser beam at the transition between the intact-sheet and ligament regions and to determine a breakup frequency from the results of the frequency analysis. Hence, FALLS could likely be useful both as a means of performing research on sprays in general and as a means of diagnostic sensing in diverse applications in which liquid fuels are sprayed. Sprays are also used for drying and to deposit paints and other coating materials

The impact of Chinese import penetration on the South African manufacturing sector

This article uses a Chenery-type decomposition and econometric estimation to evaluate the impact of Chinese trade on production and employment in South African manufacturing from 1992 to 2010. The results suggest that increased import penetration from China caused South African manufacturing output to be 5 per cent lower in 2010 than it otherwise would have been. The estimated reduction of total employment in manufacturing as a result of trade with China is larger – in 2010 about 8 per cent – because the declines in output were concentrated on labour-intensive industries and because the increase in imports raised labour productivity within industries