Celebrity advocacy and public engagement: the divergent uses of celebrity

This article sounds a cautionary note about the instrumental use of celebrity advocacy to (re)engage audiences in public life. It begins by setting out the steps necessary to achieve public recognition of a social problem requiring a response. It then presents empirical evidence which suggests that those most interested in celebrity, while also paying attention to the main stories of the day, are also least likely to participate in any form of politics. However, this does not rule out the possibility of forging a link between celebrity and public engagement, raising questions about what would potentially sustain such an articulation. After discussing the broader cultural context of celebrity advocacy in which perceived authenticity functions valorised form of symbolic capital, the article outlines a phenomenological approach to understanding the uses audiences make of celebrity advocacy, using the example of a Ewan McGregor UNICEF appeal for illustration. It concludes that while media encounters with celebrities can underpin a viewer’s sense of self, this is as likely to lead to the rationalisation of inaction as a positive response to a charity appeal

Delays in referral and diagnosis for chronic hematological malignancies: A literature review

To better understand the extent of diagnostic and referral delays from primary care providers (PCPs) for chronic hematologic malignancies, causes of these delays, and their possible effects on cancer outcomes, an extensive review of the literature was performed. Over 50 studies were reviewed, including many that concern delays in referral and diagnosis for solid tumors, as there was only sparse literature on delays specific to the liquid tumors. Delays for some chronic hematologic malignancies have been documented, mainly in centralized health care systems. Possible reasons for delays include PCPs' lack of exposure to hematologic malignancies, limited knowledge of associated signs and symptoms, and a reliance on patient symptoms to prompt referral (as opposed to signs and screening). Patient characteristics such as age, gender and race-ethnicity are also likely to play a role, although it is unclear if these exert their effect primarily via patient or provider mechanisms. Unfortunately, the outcomes associated with such delays are largely unreported, possibly because delay is complex to define and difficult to measure.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/94128/1/Delays in referral and diagnosis for chronic hematological malignancies A literature review.pd

Coextensive space: virtual reality and the developing relationship between the body, the digital and physical space

Virtual Reality (VR) has traditionally required external sensors placed around a designated play space. In contrast, more recent wired and wireless systems, such as the Oculus Rift S (released in March 2019) and the Oculus Quest (released in May 2019) use cameras located on the outside of these devices to monitor their physical position. Users can now mark out a physical space that is then digitally tracked within their display. Once a play space has been established, users are alerted if they come close to breaching this boundary by the visual inclusion of a grid. Should this threshold be breached, the headset display shifts to an image of the surrounding concrete environment. We contend that physical space is increasingly being incorporated into the digital space of VR in a manner that meaningfully differs from older systems. We build our argument in the following way. First, the article explores how theories surrounding VR have implicated only a limited relationship with physical space. Second, the article introduces the concept of coextensive space as a way of understanding the developing relationship between the physical, digital and concrete reality enacted by current VR systems

Pantomime justice: A cultural criminological analysis of 'life stage dissolution'

Adopting the perspective of cultural criminology, this paper asserts that the century-old opposition between the adolescent/youth stage and adulthood is now being challenged by a late-modern capitalist culture functioning artificially to extend the former. Using examples from across the cultural script, the paper introduces the concept of 'life stage dissolution' (and its attendant bi-directional processes of 'adultification' and 'infantilisation') to suggest it is becoming more difficult for young people to differentiate and disassociate themselves from the generation immediately ahead of them, and indeed vice versa. The result is a sort of generational mulch where shared and interchangeable cultural experiences are now the norm. The second half of the paper provides some preliminary and deliberately provocative remarks about the implications of life stage dissolution for criminology and criminal justice. This will include an analysis of emerging processes that I have termed 'pantomime justice', a useful way of understanding how crime stories today often seem to unfold as a conjoined adult-child experience in contemporary society. © 2012 The Author(s)