Making modality: transmodal composing in a digital media studio.

The multiple media that exist for communication have historically been theorized as possessing different available means for persuasion and meaning-making. The exigence of these means has been the object of theoretical debate that ranges from cultural studies, language studies, semiology, and philosophies of the mind. This dissertation contributes to such debates by sharing the results of an ethnographically informed study of multimedia composing in a digital media studio. Drawing from Cultural Historical Activity Theory and theories of enactive perception, I analyze the organizational and infrastructural design of a media studio as well as the activity of composer/designers working in said studio. Throughout this analysis I find that implicit in the organization and infrastructure of the media studio is an ethos of conceptualizing communication technology as a legitimizing force. Such an ethos is troubled by my analysis of composer/designers working in the studio, whose activities do not seek outside legitimization but instead contribute to the media milieu. Following these analyses, I conclude that media’s means for persuasion and meaning-making emerge from local practices of communication and design. Finally, I provide a framework for studying the emergence of such means

Anatomical relationship between the accessory process of the lumbar spine and the pedicle screw entry point

© 2020 Wiley Periodicals LLC. Introduction: The vertebra accessory process (or tubercle) of the lumbar spine is an understated landmark which lies caudal to the mammillary process at the base of the transverse process. To our knowledge, no studies compare its relation to pedicle entry point for screw placement. We proposed to evaluate whether a valid and reliable relationship exists between the accessory process and the projected pedicle axis. Material and Methods: The distance between the tip of the accessory process and the entry point of the pedicle screw was measured for 50 pedicles. The angle between this axis and the midline was measured. Interrater reliability was assessed intraclass correlation coefficient for two raters. Statistical analysis of the results was performed using SPSS. Results: The mean distance between the tip of accessory process and pedicle screw entry point was 6.58 mm (SD ±2.05), and the mean angle between this axis and the midline was 29.4° medial (SD ±10.08). The ICC for the two raters for the mean distance and the mean angle was 0.974 and 0.894. The calculated mean distance between the tip of the accessory process and pedicle screw entry point was 3.2 mm (SD ±1.3) and 5.7 mm (SD ±1.9) medial and cranial respectively. Conclusions: The accessory process is a consistent and reliable landmark to guide pedicle screw entry point, and compliments other screw insertion techniques. To our knowledge, this is the first study in the published literature to assess this relationship