The Cyndi Lauper affect : bodies, girlhood and popular culture [Abstract]

Using a collective biography method informed by a Deleuzian theoretical approach (Davies & Gannon, 2009), this paper analyses embodied memories of girlhood becomings through affective engagements with resonating images in media and popular culture. In this approach to analysis we move beyond an impasse in some feminist cultural studies where studies of popular culture have been understood through theories of representation and reception that retain a sense of discrete subjectivity and linear effects. In these approaches, analysis focuses respectively on decoding and deciphering images in terms of their normative and ideological baggage, and, particularly with moving images, on psychological readings (Coleman, 2011; Driscoll, 2002). Understanding bodies and popular culture through Deleuzian notions of ‘becoming’ and ‘assemblage’ opens possibilities for feminist researchers to consider the ways in which bodies are not separate to images but rather, are known, felt, materialised and mobilised with/through images (Coleman, 2008, 2009, 2011). We tease out the implications of this new approach to media affects through two memories of girls’ engagements with media images, reconceived as moments of embodied being within affective flows of popular culture that might momentarily extend upon the ways of being and doing girlhood.

Increased expression of cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 2 (CDKN2A) gene product P16INK4A in ovarian cancer is associated with progression and unfavourable prognosis

Paraffin sections from 190 epithelial ovarian tumours, including 159 malignant and 31 benign epithelial tumours, were analysed immunohistochemically for expression of cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 2 (CDKN2A) gene product p16INK4A (p16). Most benign tumours showed no p16 expression in the tumour cells, whereas only 11% of malignant cancers were p16 negative. A high proportion of p16-positive tumour cells was associated with advanced stage and grade, and with poor prognosis in cancer patients. For FIGO stage 1 tumours, a high proportion of p16-positive tumour cells was associated with poorer survival, suggesting that accumulation of p16 is an early event of ovarian tumorigenesis. In contrast to tumour cells, high expression of p16 in the surrounding stromal cells was not associated with the stage and grade, but was associated with longer survival. When all parameters were combined in multivariate analysis, high p16 expression in stromal cells was not an independent predictor for survival, indicating that low p16 expression in stromal cells is associated with other markers of tumour progression. High expression of p16 survival in the stromal cells of tumours from long-term survivors suggests that tumour growth is limited to some extent by factors associated with p16 expression in the matrix.

Antenatal ureaplasma infection impairs development of the fetal ovine gut in an IL-1-dependent manner

Ureaplasma infection of the amniotic cavity is associated with adverse postnatal intestinal outcomes. We tested whether interleukin-1 (IL-1) signaling underlies intestinal pathology following ureaplasma exposure in fetal sheep. Pregnant ewes received intra-amniotic injections of ureaplasma or culture media for controls at 3, 7, and 14 d before preterm delivery at 124 d gestation (term 150 d). Intra-amniotic injections of recombinant human interleukin IL-1 receptor antagonist (rhIL-1ra) or saline for controls  were given 3 h before and every 2 d after Ureaplasma injection. Ureaplasma exposure caused fetal gut inflammation within 7 d with damaged villus epithelium and gut barrier loss. Proliferation, differentiation, and maturation of enterocytes were significantly reduced after 7 d of ureaplasma exposure, leading to severe villus atrophy at 14 d. Inflammation, impaired development and villus atrophy of the fetal gut was largely prevented by intra-uterine rhIL-1ra treatment. These data form the basis for a clinical understanding of the role of ureaplasma in postnatal intestinal pathologies.

Effects of oxygen and culture system on in vitro propagation and redifferentiation of osteoarthritic human articular chondrocytes

Regenerative medicine-based approaches for the repair of damaged cartilage rely on the ability to propagate cells while promoting their chondrogenic potential. Thus, conditions for cell expansion should be optimized through careful environmental control. Appropriate oxygen tension and cell expansion substrates and controllable bioreactor systems are probably critical for expansion and subsequent tissue formation during chondrogenic differentiation. We therefore evaluated the effects of oxygen and microcarrier culture on the expansion and subsequent differentiation of human osteoarthritic chondrocytes. Freshly isolated chondrocytes were expanded on tissue culture plastic or CultiSpher-G microcarriers under hypoxic or normoxic conditions (5% or 20% oxygen partial pressure, respectively) followed by cell phenotype analysis with flow cytometry. Cells were redifferentiated in micromass pellet cultures over 4 weeks, under either hypoxia or normoxia. Chondrocytes cultured on tissue culture plastic proliferated faster, expressed higher levels of cell surface markers CD44 and CD105 and demonstrated stronger staining for proteoglycans and collagen type II in pellet cultures compared with microcarrier-cultivated cells. Pellet wet weight, glycosaminoglycan content and expression of chondrogenic genes were significantly increased in cells differentiated under hypoxia. Hypoxia-inducible factor-3alpha mRNA was up-regulated in these cultures in response to low oxygen tension. These data confirm the beneficial influence of reduced oxygen on ex vivo chondrogenesis. However, hypoxia during cell expansion and microcarrier bioreactor culture does not enhance intrinsic chondrogenic potential. Further improvements in cell culture conditions are therefore required before chondrocytes from osteoarthritic and aged patients can become a useful cell source for cartilage regeneration.

Stromal upregulation of lateral epithelial adhesions : gene expression analysis of signalling pathways in prostate epithelium

BACKGROUND: Stromal signalling increases the lateral cell adhesions of prostate epithelial cells grown in 3D culture. The aim of this study was to use microarray analysis to identify significant epithelial signalling pathways and genes in this process. METHODS: Microarray analysis was used to identify genes that were differentially expressed when epithelial cells were grown in 3D Matrigel culture with stromal co-culture compared to without stroma. Two culture models were employed: primary epithelial cells (ten samples) and an epithelial cell line (three experiments). A separate microarray analysis was performed on each model system and then compared to identify tissue-relevant genes in a cell line model. RESULTS: TGF beta signalling was significantly ranked for both model systems and in both models the TGF beta signalling gene SOX4 was significantly down regulated. Analysis of all differentially expressed genes to identify genes that were common to both models found several morphology related gene clusters; actin binding (DIAPH2, FHOD3, ABLIM1, TMOD4, MYH10), GTPase activator activity (BCR, MYH10), cytoskeleton (MAP2, MYH10, TMOD4, FHOD3), protein binding (ITGA6, CD44), proteinaceous extracellular matrix (NID2, CILP2), ion channel/ ion transporter activity (CACNA1C, CACNB2, KCNH2, SLC8A1, SLC39A9) and genes associated with developmental pathways (POFUT1, FZD2, HOXA5, IRX2, FGF11, SOX4, SMARCC1). CONCLUSIONS: In 3D prostate cultures, stromal cells increase lateral epithelial cell adhesions. We show that this morphological effect is associated with gene expression changes to TGF beta signalling, cytoskeleton and anion activity.

Fatalism, superstition, religion, and culture : road user beliefs and behaviour in Pakistan

Road traffic crashes have emerged as a major health problem around the world. Road crash fatalities and injuries have been reduced significantly in developed countries, but they are still an issue in low and middle-income countries. The World Health Organization (WHO, 2009) estimates that the death toll from road crashes in low- and middle-income nations is more than 1 million people per year, or about 90% of the global road toll, even though these countries only account for 48% of the world's vehicles. Furthermore, it is estimated that approximately 265,000 people die every year in road crashes in South Asian countries and Pakistan stands out with 41,494 approximately deaths per year. Pakistan has the highest rate of fatalities per 100,000 population in the region and its road crash fatality rate of 25.3 per 100,000 population is more than three times that of Australia's. High numbers of road crashes not only cause pain and suffering to the population at large, but are also a serious drain on the country's economy, which Pakistan can ill-afford. Most studies identify human factors as the main set of contributing factors to road crashes, well ahead of road environment and vehicle factors. In developing countries especially, attention and resources are required in order to improve things such as vehicle roadworthiness and poor road infrastructure. However, attention to human factors is also critical. Human factors which contribute to crashes include high risk behaviours like speeding and drink driving, and neglect of protective behaviours such as helmet wearing and seat belt wearing. Much research has been devoted to the attitudes, beliefs and perceptions which contribute to these behaviours and omissions, in order to develop interventions aimed at increasing safer road use behaviours and thereby reducing crashes. However, less progress has been made in addressing human factors contributing to crashes in developing countries as compared to the many improvements in road environments and vehicle standards, and this is especially true of fatalistic beliefs and behaviours. This is a significant omission, since in different cultures in developing countries there are strong worldviews in which predestination persists as a central idea, i.e. that one's life (and death) and other events have been mapped out and are predetermined. Fatalism refers to a particular way in which people regard the events that occur in their lives, usually expressed as a belief that an individual does not have personal control over circumstances and that their lives are determined through a divine or powerful external agency (Hazen & Ehiri, 2006). These views are at odds with the dominant themes of modern health promotion movements, and present significant challenges for health advocates who aim to avert road crashes and diminish their consequences. The limited literature on fatalism reveals that it is not a simple concept, with religion, culture, superstition, experience, education and degree of perceived control of one's life all being implicated in accounts of fatalism. One distinction in the literature that seems promising is the distinction between empirical and theological fatalism, although there are areas of uncertainty about how well-defined the distinction between these types of fatalism is. Research into road safety in Pakistan is scarce, as is the case for other South Asian countries. From the review of the literature conducted, it is clear that the descriptions given of the different belief systems in developing countries including Pakistan are not entirely helpful for health promotion purposes and that further research is warranted on the influence of fatalism, superstition and other related beliefs in road safety. Based on the information available, a conceptual framework is developed as a means of structuring and focusing the research and analysis. The framework is focused on the influence of fatalism, superstition, religion and culture on beliefs about crashes and road user behaviour. Accordingly, this research aims to provide an understanding of the operation of fatalism and related beliefs in Pakistan to assist in the development and implementation of effective and culturally appropriate interventions. The research examines the influence of fatalism, superstition, religious and cultural beliefs on risky road use in Pakistan and is guided by three research questions: 1. What are the perceptions of road crash causation in Pakistan, in particular the role of fatalism, superstition, religious and cultural beliefs? 2. How does fatalism, superstition, and religious and cultural beliefs influence road user behaviour in Pakistan? 3. Do fatalism, superstition, and religious and cultural beliefs work as obstacles to road safety interventions in Pakistan? To address these questions, a qualitative research methodology was developed. The research focused on gathering data through individual in-depth interviewing using a semi-structured interview format. A sample of 30 participants was interviewed in Pakistan in the cities of Lahore, Rawalpindi and Islamabad. The participants included policy makers (with responsibility for traffic law), experienced police officers, religious orators, professional drivers (truck, bus and taxi) and general drivers selected through a combination of purposive, criterion and snowball sampling. The transcripts were translated from Urdu and analysed using a thematic analysis approach guided by the conceptual framework. The findings were divided into four areas: attribution of crash causation to fatalism; attribution of road crashes to beliefs about superstition and malicious acts; beliefs about road crash causation linked to popular concepts of religion; and implications for behaviour, safety and enforcement. Fatalism was almost universally evident, and expressed in a number of ways. Fate was used to rationalise fatal crashes using the argument that the people killed were destined to die that day, one way or another. Related to this was the sense of either not being fully in control of the vehicle, or not needing to take safety precautions, because crashes were predestined anyway. A variety of superstitious-based crash attributions and coping methods to deal with road crashes were also found, such as belief in the role of the evil eye in contributing to road crashes and the use of black magic by rivals or enemies as a crash cause. There were also beliefs related to popular conceptions of religion, such as the role of crashes as a test of life or a source of martyrdom. However, superstitions did not appear to be an alternative to religious beliefs. Fate appeared as the 'default attribution' for a crash when all other explanations failed to account for the incident. This pervasive belief was utilised to justify risky road use behaviour and to resist messages about preventive measures. There was a strong religious underpinning to the statement of fatalistic beliefs (this reflects popular conceptions of Islam rather than scholarly interpretations), but also an overlap with superstitious and other culturally and religious-based beliefs which have longer-standing roots in Pakistani culture. A particular issue which is explored in more detail is the way in which these beliefs and their interpretation within Pakistani society contributed to poor police reporting of crashes. The pervasive nature of fatalistic beliefs in Pakistan affects road user behaviour by supporting continued risk taking behaviour on the road, and by interfering with public health messages about behaviours which would reduce the risk of traffic crashes. The widespread influence of these beliefs on the ways that people respond to traffic crashes and the death of family members contribute to low crash reporting rates and to a system which appears difficult to change. Fate also appeared to be a major contributing factor to non-reporting of road crashes. There also appeared to be a relationship between police enforcement and (lack of) awareness of road rules. It also appears likely that beliefs can influence police work, especially in the case of road crash investigation and the development of strategies. It is anticipated that the findings could be used as a blueprint for the design of interventions aimed at influencing broad-spectrum health attitudes and practices among the communities where fatalism is prevalent. The findings have also identified aspects of beliefs that have complex social implications when designing and piloting driver intervention strategies. By understanding attitudes and behaviours related to fatalism, superstition and other related concepts, it should be possible to improve the education of general road users, such that they are less likely to attribute road crashes to chance, fate, or superstition. This study also underscores the understanding of this issue in high echelons of society (e.g., policy makers, senior police officers) as their role is vital in dispelling road users' misconceptions about the risks of road crashes. The promotion of an evidence or scientifically-based approach to road user behaviour and road safety is recommended, along with improved professional education for police and policy makers.

Uncertainty analysis of pollutant build-up modelling based on a Bayesian Weighted Least Squares approach

Reliable pollutant build-up prediction plays a critical role in the accuracy of urban stormwater quality modelling outcomes. However, water quality data collection is resource demanding compared to streamflow data monitoring, where a greater quantity of data is generally available. Consequently, available water quality data sets span only relatively short time scales unlike water quantity data. Therefore, the ability to take due consideration of the variability associated with pollutant processes and natural phenomena is constrained. This in turn gives rise to uncertainty in the modelling outcomes as research has shown that pollutant loadings on catchment surfaces and rainfall within an area can vary considerably over space and time scales. Therefore, the assessment of model uncertainty is an essential element of informed decision making in urban stormwater management. This paper presents the application of a range of regression approaches such as ordinary least squares regression, weighted least squares Regression and Bayesian Weighted Least Squares Regression for the estimation of uncertainty associated with pollutant build-up prediction using limited data sets. The study outcomes confirmed that the use of ordinary least squares regression with fixed model inputs and limited observational data may not provide realistic estimates. The stochastic nature of the dependent and independent variables need to be taken into consideration in pollutant build-up prediction. It was found that the use of the Bayesian approach along with the Monte Carlo simulation technique provides a powerful tool, which attempts to make the best use of the available knowledge in the prediction and thereby presents a practical solution to counteract the limitations which are otherwise imposed on water quality modelling.

Thermal analysis and application of organoclays for water purification

In recent years, organoclays have become widely used in many industrial applications, and particularly they have been applied as adsorbents for water purification (de Paiva et al., 2008; Zhou et al., 2008; Park et al., 2011). When the organoclays are enhanced by intercalation of cationic surfactant molecules, the surface properties are altered from hydrophilic to highly hydrophobic. These changes facilitate their industrial applications which are strongly dependent on the structural properties of organoclays (Koh and Dixon, 2001; Zeng et al., 2004; Cui et al., 2007). Thus a better understanding of the configuration and structural change in the organoclays by thermogravimetric analysis (TG) is essential. It has been proven that the TG is very useful for the study of complex minerals, modified minerals, and nanomaterials (Laachachi et al., 2005; Palmer et al., 2011; Park et al., in press, 2011). Therefore, the current investigation involves the thermal stability of a montmorillonite intercalated with two types of cationic surfactants: dodecyltrimethylammonium bromide (DDTMA) and didodecyldimethylammonium bromide (DDDMA) using TG. The modification of montmorillonite results in an increase in the interlayer or basal spacing and enhances the environmental and industrial application of the obtained organoclay.

Team communications in surgery - creating a culture of safety

As a key department within a healthcare organisation, the operating room is a hazardous environment, where the consequences of errors are high, despite the relatively low rates of occurrence. Team performance in surgery is increasingly being considered crucial for a culture of safety. The aim of this study was to describe team communication and the ways it fostered or threatened safety culture in surgery. Ethnography was used, and involved a 6-month fieldwork period of observation and 19 interviews with 24 informants from nursing, anaesthesia and surgery. Data were collected during 2009 in the operating rooms of a tertiary care facility in Queensland, Australia. Through analysis of the textual data, three themes that exemplified teamwork culture in surgery were generated: ‘‘building shared understandings through open communication’’; ‘‘managing contextual stressors in a hierarchical environment’’ and ‘‘intermittent membership influences team performance’’. In creating a safety culture in a healthcare organisation, a team’s optimal performance relies on the open discussion of teamwork and team expectation, and significantly depends on how the organisational culture promotes such discussions.

Towards more systematic Twitter analysis : metrics for tweeting activities

Twitter is an important and influential social media platform, but much research into its uses remains centred around isolated cases – e.g. of events in political communication, crisis communication, or popular culture, often coordinated by shared hashtags (brief keywords, prefixed with the symbol ‘#’). In particular, a lack of standard metrics for comparing communicative patterns across cases prevents researchers from developing a more comprehensive perspective on the diverse, sometimes crucial roles which hashtags play in Twitter-based communication. We address this problem by outlining a catalogue of widely applicable, standardised metrics for analysing Twitter-based communication, with particular focus on hashtagged exchanges. We also point to potential uses for such metrics, presenting an indication of what broader comparisons of diverse cases can achieve.

Examining the Assessment Opportunities for Cultural Connectedness for Student Learning : A Sociocultural Analysis

The disparity that exists between the highest and lowest achievers together with deficit approaches to teaching, learning and assessment raise serious equity issues related to fairness, validity, culture and access, which were analysed in a recent Australian Research Council funded project. This chapter explores the potential that exists for teachers to work with Indigenous Teacher Assistants (ITAs) to secure cultural connectedness in teaching, learning and assessment of Indigenous students. The study was a design experiment, which was conducted in seven Catholic and Independent primary schools in northern Queensland and involved semi-structured focus group interviews with Year 4 and 6 Indigenous students, principals, teachers and Indigenous Teacher Assistants. Classroom observations and document analyses were also conducted. This corpus of data was analysed using a sociocultural theoretical lens. The use of a sociocultural analysis helped to identify cultural influences, Indigenous students’ funds of knowledge and values. The information from this analysis was made explicit to teachers to demonstrate how they could enhance their pedagogic and assessment practices by embracing and extending the cultural spaces for learning and teaching of Indigenous students. The way in which teachers construct their interactions for greater cultural connectedness and enhanced learning would appear to rely on relationship building with Indigenous staff, Indigenous students’ cultural knowledge, and improved understanding of assessment and related equity issues.

Analysis of higher-order aberrations in a large clinical population

Purpose: To use a large wavefront database of a clinical population to investigate relationships between refractions and higher order aberrations and between aberrations of right and left eyes. Methods: Third and fourth-order aberration coefficients and higher-order root-mean-squared aberrations (HO RMS), scaled to a pupil size of 4.5 mm diameter, were analysed in a population of about 24,000 patients from Carl Zeiss Vision's European wavefront database. Correlations were determined between the aberrations and the variables of refraction, near addition and cylinder. Results: Most aberration coefficients were significantly dependent upon these variables, but the proportions of aberrations that could be explained by these factors were less than 2% except for spherical aberration (12%), horizontal coma (9%) and HO RMS (7%). Near addition was the major contributor for horizontal coma (8.5% out of 9.5%) and spherical equivalent was the major contributor for spherical aberration (7.7% out of 11.6%). Interocular correlations were highly significant for all aberration coefficients, varying between 0.16 and 0.81. Anisometropia was a variable of significance for three aberrations (vertical coma, secondary astigmatism and tetrafoil), but little importance can be placed on this because of the small proportions of aberrations that can be explained by refraction (all less than 1.0 %). Conclusions: Most third- and fourth-order aberration coefficients were significantly dependent upon spherical equivalent, near addition and cylinder, but only horizontal coma (9%) and spherical aberration (12%) showed dependencies of greater than 2%. Interocular correlations were highly significant for all aberration coefficients, but anisometropia had little influence on aberration coefficients.

Numerical analysis of shape transition in graphene nanoribbons

Graphene nanoribbon (GNR) with free edges can exhibit non-flat morphologies due to pre-existing edge stress. Using molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, we investigate the free-edge effect on the shape transition in GNRs with different edge types, including regular (armchair and zigzag), armchair terminated with hydrogen and reconstructed armchair. The results show that initial edge stress and energy are dependent on the edge configurations. It is confirmed that pre-strain on the free edges is a possible way to limit the random shape transition of GNRs. In addition, the influence of surface attachment on the shape transition is also investigated in this work. It is found that surface attachment can lead to periodic ripples in GNRs, dependent on the initial edge configurations.

Chinese teaching English as a foreign language (TEFL) academics' perceptions about research in a transitional culture

Research capacity building has become a prominent theme in higher education institutions in China and across the world. However, Chinese Teaching English as a Foreign Language academics' research output has been quite limited. In order to build their research capacity, it is necessary to understand their perceptions about research. This case study presents the perceptions about research of six Chinese Teaching English as a Foreign Language academics in a context of growing institutional demands for research. One-on-one interviews of 35-60 minutes' duration were conducted with these academics from an institution in north China. Thematic analysis of the transcribed interviews indicated that the Chinese Teaching English as a Foreign Language academics held positive perceptions about the teaching-research nexus. However, the value of research to them seemed to be limited to teaching and career advancement. They also expressed varied concerns about the institutional research requirements. The findings suggested several implications for the institution's administrators to further enhance academics' research capacity building.

The Cyndi Lauper affect : bodies, girlhood and popular culture

Using a collective biography method informed by a Deleuzian theoretical approach (Davies and Gannon 2009, 2012), this article analyses embodied memories of girlhood becomings through affective engagements with resonating images in media and popular culture. In this approach to analysis we move beyond the impasse in some feminist cultural studies where studies of popular culture have been understood through theories of representation and reception that retain a sense of discrete subjectivity and linear effects. In these approaches, analysis focuses respectively on decoding and deciphering images in terms of their normative and ideological baggage, and, particularly with moving images, on psychological readings. Understanding bodies and popular culture through Deleuzian notions of “becoming” and “assemblage” opens possibilities for feminist researchers to consider the ways in which bodies are not separate from images but are, rather, becomings that are known, felt, materialized and mobilized with/through images(Coleman 2008a, 2008b, 2008c, 2009, 2011; Ringrose and Coleman 2013). We tease out the implications of this new approach to media affects through three memories of girls’ engagements with media images, reconceived as moments of embodied being within affective flows of popular culture that might momentarily extend upon ways of being and doing girlhood.