Surviving the Holocaust: A Life History Study

The aim of this thesis was to attempt to explain the inexplicable, thus coming to some concrete rationale as to why Murray was able to persevere unlike so many unfortunate victims who perished. The findings of this research attribute Murray\u27s survival to three distinct categories; (1) Murray\u27s geographical location and relationship to his hometown of Wierchomla, Poland (2) rare level of low anti-Semitic activity encountered and (3) a number of miscellaneous personal factors that included but are not limited to his diet, gender, age, psychological composition, family connections, agency, etc

Super Apocalypto 64: Inhabiting Revelation as a Video Game Made of Sacred Words

The book of Revelation makes the living and life-giving reality of Scripture known to audiences via the vision articulated by John. He conveys this divine reality through words – both read and heard – which call for more than the passive reception of a static text. Rather, Revelation is also participatory; its words are meant to be read, heard and kept in the life of faith. How can one articulate this dynamic interactivity with accessible terms that render divine reality as recognizable in everyday life and highly-qualified language which makes it clear that divine reality is never comprehended in its entirety? One answer emerges by following previous attempts to frame Revelation as a sacred picture, theater, and cinema. This paper explicates how gameplay as “Mario” in the three-dimensional (3D) polygonal open world of the video game Super Mario 64 helps to articulate how the Holy Spirit enables audiences to “jump into” the text of Revelation through the presence and perspective of John, who partakes in the worship of God and salvation through Jesus Christ. This thesis unfolds in seven sections: 1) introductory key terms, 2) a brief look at similar approaches and 3) phenomenological and exegetical foundations for Revelation’s interactivity, 4) a description of Super Mario 64, 5) viewing Revelation as a video game, 6) an anticipation of further research areas, and 7) concluding thoughts. This idea of a video game made of sacred words encourages both believing and religiously-uncommitted players to keep the text alive in their thought-life

Foucault Fantasy VI: A Role-Playground for Postcolonial Thought

This paper adopts the player-focused approach of studying video games to articulate how Final Fantasy VI (FFVI) can be involved in turning the adherents and objectors of Foucault’s discursive approach toward one another in conversation. It advances the thesis that FFVI’s video game experiences – 1) building friendships between members and victims of the Empire, 2) exploring a world ruined by a maniacal striving for power, and 3) confronting radically destructive despair with a shared sense of life-preserving human connectivity – are avenues for authentic and constructive conversations about the strengths and weaknesses of postcolonial thought that is driven by the discursive approach. This thesis unfolds in three “acts,” just as FFVI plays out like a theater experience. The first section briefly summarizes Foucault’s discursive approach that postcolonial authors embrace in their calls to hear the voice of the “other.” Next, Foucault’s successors are contrasted with objectors who claim that the discursive approach turns opportunities to hear the voice of the other into impossible and non-allowable tasks. Finally, FFVI’s immersive video game experiences spotlight opportunities for friendly and meaningful conversations about the strengths and weaknesses of postcolonial thought

Soldiers in the Army of Freedom: The 1st Kansas Colored, the Civil War\u27s First African American Combat Unit

Fighting for Survival and Freedom in the West Ian Michael Spurgeon\u27s Soldiers in the Army of Freedom: The First Kansas Colored, the Civil War\u27s First African American Combat Unit provides some fantastic insights into an under-investigated aspect of the Civil War. Not only does the ...

The SHOC2 phosphatase complex as a therapeutic target for ERK pathway inhibition in RAS-driven tumors

Targeted inhibition of the ERK-MAPK pathway, upregulated in the majority of human cancers, has been hindered in the clinic by drug resistance and on-target toxicity. The MRAS-SHOC2-PP1 complex plays a key, but underexplored role in RAF-ERK pathway activation, by dephosphorylating a critical inhibitory site on RAF-kinases. In this body of work we present a preferential requirement for the SHOC2-phosphatase complex, specifically for Receptor Tyrosine Kinase (RTK), and anchorage-independent (tumorigenic) growth stimulated ERK-activation. We highlight that this context-dependent signalling bias has functional consequences in RAS-mutant cells, by specifically inhibiting anchorage-independent, but not 2D-adhered cell growth. Strikingly we show in vivo that SHOC2 deletion suppresses tumour initiation in KRAS-driven lung cancer models, and significantly extends overall survival. Additionally, SHOC2 inhibition selectively sensitizes KRAS- and EGFR-mutant Non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) cells to MEK inhibitors. Mechanistically we show this is because SHOC2 is required for feedback-induced RAF dimerization, and as such combined MEK inhibition and SHOC2 suppression leads to more potent and sustained ERK-pathway repression, driving a BIM-dependent apoptosis. Crucially, systemic SHOC2 ablation in adult mice is relatively well tolerated compared with other, core, ERK-pathway signalling nodes. These results present a rationale for the generation of SHOC2 targeted therapies, both as a monotherapy, and to widen the therapeutic index of MEK inhibitors

Board Gender Diversity and CSR Reporting: Evidence from Jordan

This study investigates whether board gender diversity influences corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting in Jordan, where there are no gender board balance regulatory requirements. Data was examined from all non-financial Jordanian listed companies for the period of 2006 to 2015. This longitudinal data results in balanced panel data of 800 observations. A content analysis method was used to obtain the reporting index of CSR disclosure in the annual reports. Ordinary least square regression showed that the presence of female directors on a board has a significantly positive effect on the level of CSR reporting. The presence of female directors on the board appears to play a significant role in enhancing compliance with corporate governance best practices. These results provide motivations for companies to consider gender balance on boards. Further, these results reinforce the decision making of regulators in countries where policies have been adopted to increase female representation on corporate boards. In countries where no such regulation exists the inclusion of gender balance practices within boards of directors may increase the level of CSR reporting practices. This study can be considered as one of the few empirical studies that have evaluated the impact of board gender diversity on the level of CSR reporting in a context where there are no gender balance strategies or policies

Local Government investing: a form of gambling?

Local councils in New South Wales (NSW) have the authority to invest ratepayers’ money that is not currently required for any other purpose by the council. At the end of 2006-07 financial year local councils in New South Wales had invested $590 million dollars in structured financial products such as collateralised debt obligations (CDO). By the end of January 2008, six months later, the market value of these investments dropped$200 million to $390 million. Since then the financial investment market has further significantly reduced with the value of the councils’ investments losing many more millions of dollars. In NSW the state government commissioned a review of the financial exposures of NSW local councils to be undertaken by Michael Cole. The Cole Report published in 2008 found that while acting within the parameters of the Local Government Act (1993), local councils had pursued high return high risk investment strategies. This paper reviews and evaluates how the local councils in NSW, identified by Cole as having a high level of exposure to these forms of investments, have disclosed their financial investments in their 2007-08 financial reports; the type of audit opinion expressed on these reports; and the impact of these investment related losses on the ability of NSW local councils to provide current and future services