Implications of Nubian-like core reduction systems in southern Africa for the identification of early modern human dispersals

Lithic technologies have been used to trace dispersals of early human populations within and beyond Africa. Convergence in lithic systems has the potential to confound such interpretations, implying connections between unrelated groups. Due to their reductive nature, stone artefacts are unusually prone to this chance appearance of similar forms in unrelated populations. Here we present data from the South African Middle Stone Age sites Uitpanskraal 7 and Mertenhof suggesting that Nubian core reduction systems associated with Late Pleistocene populations in North Africa and potentially with early human migrations out of Africa in MIS 5 also occur in southern Africa during early MIS 3 and with no clear connection to the North African occurrence. The timing and spatial distribution of their appearance in southern and northern Africa implies technological convergence, rather than diffusion or dispersal. While lithic technologies can be a critical guide to human population flux, their utility in tracing early human dispersals at large spatial and temporal scales with stone artefact types remains questionable

On the emergence of an aspectual NPI: comparative polysemy and the case of Diyari marla

Cross-linguistically, morphological material that expresses comparison (e.g. more) appears to be colexified with aspectual (“phasal”) adverbs that, under negation, encode the termination of some eventuality (CESSATIVEs, e.g. *(not)...anymore). Using data drawn from the Diyari language of central Australia, we propose a diachronic trajectory for the lexical item marla ‘very, truly’. This word first developed a comparative semantics and, subsequently, a cessative reading restricted to negative polar contexts. This proposal moves us towards a lexical entry that permits for the unification of comparative and aspectual readings for items which exhibit this polysemy and—on the basis of robust pragmatic principles— predicts their polarity-sensitive distribution cross-linguistically

Sensitive PCR Method for Detection of Escherichia coli 0157:H7 and Other Shiga toxin-producing Bacteria in Ground Meat

Sensitivity of a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) procedure was evaluated for Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Shiga toxin gene (stx) detection in ground beef and ground pork at contamination levels of 0.14, 1.4, and 14 colony forming units per gram (CFU/g) of meat. The PCR procedure, developed during our previous research, amplifies three target genes simultaneously: uidA that is specific for E. coli O157:H7, and stx1 and stx2, the genes for Shiga toxins 1 and 2, respectively. Detection of the uidA gene by the PCR was 91% sensitive in beef and 55% sensitive in pork, and 90% and 71% sensitive for stx gene detection in beef and pork, respectively. In comparison, detection of E. coli O157:H7 by culture, done simultaneously with PCR, was 53% sensitive in beef and 11% sensitive in pork. Results indicate that this PCR procedure is a rapid and sensitive method for STEC and E. coli O157:H7 detection in meat at contamination levels less than 1 CFU/g

Triplex PCR for Rapid Detection of Escherichia coli O157:H7 Directly from Ground Pork

A polymerase chain reaction (PCR) procedure is being developed to detect Escherichia coli O157:H7 and associated Shiga-like toxins (STX1 and STX2) directly from pork, bypassing the time-consuming microbial culture steps for identification. A triplex PCR procedure was adapted and conditions experimentally determined to efficiently amplify three target genes: uidA with unique sequence in E. coli O157:H7, and stx1 and stx2. A meat sample preparation technique developed in previous research was modified to allow detection of 0.2-2.0 colony forming units per gram (CFU./g.) of meat. Time required to complete the procedure after overnight incubation of samples is seven hours

Book Reviews

Book reviews of: Behind the Big House: Reconciling Slavery, Race, and Heritage in the U.S. South. By Jodi Skipper (Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 2022. Foreword, Acknowledgements, Introduction, Epilogue, Appendix A, Appendix B, Notes, Bibliography, Index. Pp. ix, 218. 27.50 paper. ISBN: 9781609388171.) Gin, Jesus, & Jim Crow: Prohibition and the Transformation of Racial and Religious Politics in the South. By Brendan J. J. Payne. (Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 2022. Pp. 304. 45 hardcover. ISBN: 0807171486.) The Women’s Fight: The Civil War’s Battles for Home, Freedom, and Nation. By Thavolia Glymph. (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2020. Acknowledgments, figures, notes, bibliography, index of names, index of subjects. Pp. 379. $37.50 cloth,$27.95 paper. ISBN: 9781469653631.) Until I Am Free: Fannie Lou Hamer’s Enduring Message to America. By Keisha N. Blain. (Boston: Beacon Press, 2021, Acknowledgements, notes, index, image credits, about the author. Pp ix, 181. $12.97 cloth,$24.95 paper. ISBN-13:9780807061503 Land of Milk and Money: The Creation of the Southern Dairy Industry. By Alan I. Marcus. (Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 2021. Acknowledgements, illustrations, notes, index. Pp. ix, 317. $50 cloth. ISBN: 0807176052.) Black Bodies in the River: Searching for Freedom Summer. By Davis W. Houck. (University Press of Mississippi, 2022. Preface, notes, index. Pp. ix, 153.$99 cloth, $25.00 paper. ISBN: 9781496840790.) Mississippi Zion: The Struggle for Liberation in Attala County, 1865–1915. By Evan Howard Ashford. (Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 2022. Acknowledgements, illustrations, notes, index. Pp. ix, 233.$99 cloth, $25 paper. ISBN: 9781496839732

Interchange II: Transitions, a Collaborative Recital

The KSU School of Music along with Zuckerman Museum of Art and Department of Dance present a special collaboration featuring musical works that explore crossing global boundaries and cultural exchange selected to correspond with themes presented in two ZMA exhibitions: “Sleight of Hand” and “Transitions.”https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/musicprograms/1656/thumbnail.jp

Online socializing among men who have sex with men and transgender people in Nairobi and Johannesburg and implications for public health-related research and health promotion: an analysis of qualitative and respondent-driven sampling survey data.

INTRODUCTION: There is little published literature about gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men and transgender individuals (MSM and TG)'s use of social media in sub-Saharan Africa, despite repressive social and/or criminalizing contexts that limit access to physical HIV prevention. We sought to describe MSM and TG's online socializing in Nairobi and Johannesburg, identifying the characteristics of those socializing online and those not, in order to inform the development of research and health promotion in online environments. METHODS: Respondent-driven sampling surveys were conducted in 2017 in Nairobi (n = 618) and Johannesburg (n = 301) with those reporting current male gender identity or male sex assigned at birth and sex with a man in the last 12 months. Online socializing patterns, sociodemographic, sexual behaviour and HIV-testing data were collected. We examined associations between social media use and sociodemographic characteristics and sexual behaviours among all, and only those HIV-uninfected, using logistic regression. Analyses were RDS-II weighted. Thirty qualitative interviews were conducted with MSM and TG in each city, which examined the broader context of and motivations for social media use. RESULTS: Most MSM and TG had used social media to socialize with MSM in the last month (60% Johannesburg, 71% Nairobi), mostly using generic platforms (e.g. Facebook), but also gay-specific (e.g. Grindr). HIV-uninfected MSM and TG reporting riskier recent sexual behaviours had raised odds of social media use in Nairobi, including receptive anal intercourse (adjusted OR = 2.15, p = 0.006), buying (aOR = 2.24, p = 0.015) and selling sex with men (aOR = 2.17, p = 0.004). Evidence for these associations was weaker in Johannesburg, though socializing online was associated with condomless anal intercourse (aOR = 3.67, p = 0.003) and active syphilis (aOR = 13.50, p = 0.016). Qualitative findings indicated that while online socializing can limit risk of harm inherent in face-to-face interactions, novel challenges were introduced, including context collapse and a fear of blackmail. CONCLUSIONS: Most MSM and TG in these cities socialize online regularly. Users reported HIV acquisition risk behaviours, yet this space is not fully utilized for sexual health promotion and research engagement. Effective, safe and acceptable means of using online channels to engage with MSM/TG that account for MSM and TG's strategies and concerns for managing online security should now be explored, as complements or alternatives to existing outreach

EEG and MEG data analysis in SPM8.

SPM is a free and open source software written in MATLAB (The MathWorks, Inc.). In addition to standard M/EEG preprocessing, we presently offer three main analysis tools: (i) statistical analysis of scalp-maps, time-frequency images, and volumetric 3D source reconstruction images based on the general linear model, with correction for multiple comparisons using random field theory; (ii) Bayesian M/EEG source reconstruction, including support for group studies, simultaneous EEG and MEG, and fMRI priors; (iii) dynamic causal modelling (DCM), an approach combining neural modelling with data analysis for which there are several variants dealing with evoked responses, steady state responses (power spectra and cross-spectra), induced responses, and phase coupling. SPM8 is integrated with the FieldTrip toolbox , making it possible for users to combine a variety of standard analysis methods with new schemes implemented in SPM and build custom analysis tools using powerful graphical user interface (GUI) and batching tools

The ethics of distress: Toward a framework for determining the ethical acceptability of distressing health promotion advertising

© 2014 International Union of Psychological Science. Distressing health promotion advertising involves the elicitation of negative emotion to increase the likelihood that health messages will stimulate audience members to adopt healthier behaviors. Irrespective of its effectiveness, distressing advertising risks harming audience members who do not consent to the intervention and are unable to withdraw from it. Further, the use of these approaches may increase the potential for unfairness or stigmatization toward those targeted, or be considered unacceptable by some sections of the public. We acknowledge and discuss these concerns, but, using the public health ethics literature as a guide, argue that distressing advertising can be ethically defensible if conditions of effectiveness, proportionality necessity, least infringement, and public accountability are satisfied. We do not take a broad view as to whether distressing advertising is ethical or unethical, because we see the evidence for both the effectiveness of distressing approaches and their potential to generate iatrogenic effects to be inconclusive. However, we believe it possible to use the current evidence base to make informed estimates of the likely consequences of specific message presentations. Messages can be pre-tested and monitored to identify and deal with potential problems. We discuss how advertisers can approach the problems of deciding on the appropriate intensity of ethical review, and evaluating prospective distressing advertising campaigns against the conditions outlined