“A deadly ball hath limited my life”: social constructs of the ‘Good Battlefield Death’ in the Revolutionary War

Louise BreenThe “Good Death,” as it was understood in the eighteenth century, involved being aware that one was going to die, making one’s peace with God, and having family and friends at the bedside to receive wisdom and edification. The dying person occupied a space between worlds, according to popular belief, and could give clues to those present at the deathbed about the mysteries of God and sacred truths. The battlefield death, with its suddenness, lack of decorum, and unpredictability, did not fit into this pattern, and that posed a problem – as the experience of Trumbull’s sister illustrates – for the revolutionary generation. This paper will argue that revolutionary battles were of such scale, reached so deeply into the civilian population, and coincided so overtly with the birth of a new nation, that artists, writers, and chroniclers began to create a new version of the “Good Death” – a battlefield version of the good death – that could help to alleviate social stress. The “Good Battlefield Death,” conveyed through artistic works, narratives, funeral sermons, and oration, depicted the dying soldier as being able to ask forgiveness for sins and offer his soul to god, die with a comrade at his side, acknowledge those being left behind, receiving well wishes and respect from those present, giving advice to those still fighting, and signify the righteousness of the cause he was fighting for

Wendell Willkie

Wendell Willkie was a liberal man and a man with a great American spirit..

In Memoriam Robert N. Randall, October 26, 1915 - January 30, 2007

Among his friends, Bob Randall will be remembered as a caring, gentle man. Bob was one of those rare individuals who had a keen awareness of everyone around him. In social settings, he would make sure that everyone was comfortable, and it was always clear that he was genuinely concerned about everyone. Those who knew him will greatly miss his gentle nature and enthusiasm for birds. He never got caught up in all of his achievements. He had a sense of balance to his life which was evident in his many interests including birding and bird banding, rocks and minerals, paleontology, gardening, and stamp collecting. He was active in his church and was a loving family man. He had a rich historical perspective of birdlife and birding in North Dakota since the late 1940\u27s, and everyone looked to him for insight about birds. He always took the time to listen and to help. Bob Randall passed away on 30 January 2007 at the age of 91. Although his health had deteriorated in recent years, it did not deter him from his passion for birds. He continued to compile Christmas Bird Counts locally and for the state up to the time of his death. Bob will be greatly missed by his family, colleagues, and friends

In Memoriam Robert N. Randall, October 26, 1915 - January 30, 2007

Among his friends, Bob Randall will be remembered as a caring, gentle man. Bob was one of those rare individuals who had a keen awareness of everyone around him. In social settings, he would make sure that everyone was comfortable, and it was always clear that he was genuinely concerned about everyone. Those who knew him will greatly miss his gentle nature and enthusiasm for birds. He never got caught up in all of his achievements. He had a sense of balance to his life which was evident in his many interests including birding and bird banding, rocks and minerals, paleontology, gardening, and stamp collecting. He was active in his church and was a loving family man. He had a rich historical perspective of birdlife and birding in North Dakota since the late 1940\u27s, and everyone looked to him for insight about birds. He always took the time to listen and to help. Bob Randall passed away on 30 January 2007 at the age of 91. Although his health had deteriorated in recent years, it did not deter him from his passion for birds. He continued to compile Christmas Bird Counts locally and for the state up to the time of his death. Bob will be greatly missed by his family, colleagues, and friends

Early and Late Stage Mechanisms for Vocalization Processing in the Human Auditory System

The human auditory system is able to rapidly process incoming acoustic information, actively filtering, categorizing, or suppressing different elements of the incoming acoustic stream. Vocalizations produced by other humans (conspecifics) likely represent the most ethologically-relevant sounds encountered by hearing individuals. Subtle acoustic characteristics of these vocalizations aid in determining the identity, emotional state, health, intent, etc. of the producer. The ability to assess vocalizations is likely subserved by a specialized network of structures and functional connections that are optimized for this stimulus class. Early elements of this network would show sensitivity to the most basic acoustic features of these sounds; later elements may show categorically-selective response patterns that represent high-level semantic organization of different classes of vocalizations. A combination of functional magnetic resonance imaging and electrophysiological studies were performed to investigate and describe some of the earlier and later stage mechanisms of conspecific vocalization processing in human auditory cortices. Using fMRI, cortical representations of harmonic signal content were found along the middle superior temporal gyri between primary auditory cortices along Heschl\u27s gyri and the superior temporal sulci, higher-order auditory regions. Additionally, electrophysiological findings also demonstrated a parametric response profile to harmonic signal content. Utilizing a novel class of vocalizations, human-mimicked versions of animal vocalizations, we demonstrated the presence of a left-lateralized cortical vocalization processing hierarchy to conspecific vocalizations, contrary to previous findings describing similar bilateral networks. This hierarchy originated near primary auditory cortices and was further supported by auditory evoked potential data that suggests differential temporal processing dynamics of conspecific human vocalizations versus those produced by other species. Taken together, these results suggest that there are auditory cortical networks that are highly optimized for processing utterances produced by the human vocal tract. Understanding the function and structure of these networks will be critical for advancing the development of novel communicative therapies and the design of future assistive hearing devices

Describing Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Processes in Adolescents with and without Psychopathic Traits: Examining Rorschach Variables

The current study examined the effectiveness of select Rorschach Inkblot Method (RIM) variables in detecting individual differences among youth diagnosed with Conduct Disorder (CD) who were either high or low on psychopathic traits. Twenty-nine male adolescents with CD in an alternative education school setting were placed into high or low psychopathy groups based on their Hare Psychopathy Checklist (PCL: YV) scores. Significant differences were found for WSum6, a RIM variable that measures cognitive ideation. However, both CD groups gave very few answers that yielded rich RIM protocols. That is, answers tended to be simple and similar, making inferential statistics uninterpretable. Consequently, students with PCL: YV scores ≥ 30 were examined to determine if there were any patterns in RIM scores. Overall descriptive data of the entire sample (N = 63) were also examined to provide a description of the types of students that may be found in similar settings. Implications for treatment according to emotional, social, and cognitive functioning, and as related to the practice of school psychologists, are also provided

Physiological and Behavioral Responses to Changes in Salinity in the Invasive Bivalve Nuttallia obscurata Compared to the Native Bivalve Leukoma staminea

Nuttallia obscurata is a euryhaline invasive clam with populations that are rapidly spreading along the northeast Pacific coast. It inhabits areas of changing salinity such as the high intertidal and areas of freshwater seepages, areas uninhabited by local clam species. N. obscurata’s euryhalinity, salinity tolerance, and ability to survive in uniquely stressful areas likely facilitated its settlement and rapid spread into these distinctive microclimates. Previous research on N. obscurata is minimal, however favorable physiological and behavioral responses likely allow N. obscurata to live in these environments. The physiological response of osmolyte production and the behavioral responses of filtration rate have yet to be studied in N. obscurata, but likely play in important role in their tolerance and therefore invasiveness. I compared these responses to those of Leukoma staminea, a local stenohaline clam that inhabits the mid-intertidal. By comparing the physiology and behavior of N. obscurata and L. staminea, I may be able to determine if euryhalinity and inhabitation of open niche areas helps N. obscurata invade. The important osmolytes previously noted in bivalves, betaine and sorbitol, were examined using High Performance Liquid Chromatography. Osmolyte concentration in clams under different salinities (1 ppt, 20 ppt, 30 ppt, 40 ppt and 60 ppt), under short-term (5 to 90 minutes) exposure, and under long-term (24 hr) exposure was examined. Betaine was a cellular component in both N. obscurata and L. staminea. Large stores were found in N. obscurata under 30 ppt salinity with concentrations decreasing under hypoosmotic salinities (1 ppt and 20ppt). This suggests that betaine is produced in large amounts in N. obscurata tissue and possibly utilized for osmotic compensation under decreased salinities. Betaine concentration in N. obscurata decreased under hyperosmotic conditions, likely because N. obscurata was utilizing energy stores to survive and not regenerating betaine. Other osmolytes, such as proline, glycine or taurine, may also be utilized in N. obscurata to cope with osmotic stress. There was evidence that taurine was a cellular component in some samples, but the concentration of taurine could not be determined. L. staminea produced betaine at a very low concentration under 30 ppt salinity and increased betaine under hypoosmotic and hyperosmotic conditions, helping the species cope with osmotic stress. Betaine increased significantly over time in N. obscurata gill tissue, showing that N. obscurata accumulates betaine quickly to compensate with fast environmental changes. Whether this accumulation is part of N. obscurata’s normal cell function or a response to stress is unknown. Sorbitol was not a major cellular component in N. obscurata or L. staminea. Filtration rates of N. obscurata and L. staminea were tested using fluorometry over multiple salinity levels (1 ppt, 20 ppt, 30 ppt, 40 ppt and 60 ppt) for 340 minutes. N. obscurata filtered under a wider range of salinities than did L. staminea. Salinity significantly affected filtration rate and neither species filtered under extreme hypoosmotic or hyperosmotic conditions (1 ppt and 60 ppt), implying that although N. obscurata inhabits some hypoosmotic areas, it is unlikely to expand populations to freshwater. Both species filtered at higher rates compared to previously studied bivalves. This is of special concern for the already invasive and expanding populations of N. obscurata, which already outcompete some local clam species in disturbed areas. While physiological and behavioral responses were examined separately in this experiment, they likely interact as part of a complex system. Filtration rate altered the exposure level of clam tissue to the external environment, thereby affecting osmotic response and osmolyte concentration. Future studies should continue to examine physiology and behavior in N. obscurata

Moments of silence in public schools: a breach in the Wall

On March 10, 1984, the West Virginia Legislature adopted a proposed state constitutional amendment, designated as Committee Substitute for Senate Joint Resolution 1 (SJR 1), which required the following: Public schools shall provide a designated brief time at the beginning of each school day for any student desiring to exercise their right to personal and private contemplation, meditation or prayer. No student of a public school may be denied the right to personal and private contemplation, meditation or prayer nor shall any student be required or encouraged to engage in any given contemplation, meditation or prayer as a part of the school curriculum. On November 6, 1984 the voters of the state ratified the amendment. In December of that year, the election results having been certified by the Secretary of State, the proposal was adopted as Section 15-A of the state constitution. The First Amendment requires that Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…. ” The Supreme Court has determined that the religious restrictions of the First Amendment must be adhered to by the states due to the requirement in the Fourteenth that no “…State (shall) deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law….” It is the contention of this thesis that West Virginia’s Voluntary Comtemplation, Meditation or Prayer in School Amendment” and other moment of silence statutes of a similar nature are a breach in the “wall of separation between church and state.