Kingship by Descent or Kingship by Election? The Contested Title of James VI and I

Throughout the reign of Elizabeth I, a steady stream of tracts appeared in English print to vindicate the succession of the most prominent contenders, Mary and James Stuart of Scotland. This article offers a comprehensive account of the polemical battle between the supporters and opponents of the Stuarts, and further identifies various theories of English kingship, most notably the theory of corporate kingship, developed by the Stuart polemicists to defend the Scottish succession. James's accession to the English throne in March 1603 marked the protracted end of the debate over the succession. The article concludes by suggesting that, while powerfully renouncing the opposition to his succession, over the course of his attempt to unify his two kingdoms, James and his supporters ultimately departed from the polemic of corporate kingship, for a more assertive language of kingship by natural and divine law.

Attitudes, norms, identity and environmental behaviour: Using an expanded theory of planned behaviour to predict participation in a kerbside recycling programme

In an effort to contribute to greater understanding of norms and identity in the theory of planned behaviour, an extended model was used to predict residential kerbside recycling, with self-identity, personal norms, neighbourhood identification, and injunctive and descriptive social norms as additional predictors. Data from a field study (N = 527) using questionnaire measures of predictor variables and an observational measure of recycling behaviour supported the theory. Intentions predicted behaviour, while attitudes, perceived control, and the personal norm predicted intention to recycle. The interaction between neighbourhood identification and injunctive social norms in turn predicted personal norms. Self-identity and the descriptive social norm significantly added to the original theory in predicting intentions as well as behaviour directly. A replication survey on the self-reported recycling behaviours of a random residential sample (N = 264) supported the model obtained previously. These findings offer a useful extension of the theory of planned behaviour and some practicable suggestions for pro-recycling interventions. It may be productive to appeal to self-identity by making people feel like recyclers, and to stimulate both injunctive and descriptive norms in the neighbourhood.

Migrant identities in a new immigrant destination: revealing the limitations of the ‘hard working’ migrant identity

Migrant labour has transformed local economies in many places, often helping to reverse long-term decline. The emergence of new immigrant destinations (NID) globally brings mixed opportunities for the individuals involved. This article uses empirical evidence, focusing on the workplace, to show the performance, construction and significance of migrant identity. By using social identity theory to examine what it means to be a ‘migrant’, it follows from Goffman’s overarching concern with social interactions and his promotion of microanalysis as analytical lenses.
The article reveals the ambiguity of the label ‘migrant’. It shows how the external application or internal enactment of migrant identities bestow particular status that represents an asset or an obstacle to integration. It can mean ‘hard working’, ‘less deserving’ and ‘exploitable’ and it also denotes ‘lazy’ and individuals. While some individuals assume the hard working migrant and ‘exploitable’ identity in certain circumstances because of the benefits that it brings, this status can also cause high levels of dissatisfaction and distress among migrants. The research shows how the creation of a migrant identity limits the structures and networks from which migrants may draw resources and in so doing curtails the possibilities for social change due to migration.

Pharmacokinetics of UC781-loaded intravaginal ring segments in rabbits: a comparison of polymer matrices

UC781 is a potent and poorly water-soluble nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor being investi- gated as a potential microbicide for preventing sexual transmission of HIV-1. This study was designed to evaluate the in vivo release and pharmacokinetics of UC781 delivered from matrix-type intravaginal ring segments in rabbits. Three polymer matrices (polyurethane, ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer, and silicone elastomer) and two drug loadings (5 and 15 mg/segment) were evaluated in at least one of two independent studies for up to 28 days in vivo. Inter-study comparison of in vivo release, vaginal tissue, and plasma concentrations for similar formulations demonstrated good reproducibility of the animal model. Mean estimates for a 28-day in vivo release ranged from 0.35 to 3.17 mg UC781 per segment. Mean proximal vaginal tissue levels (adjacent to the IVR segment) were 8– 410 ng/g and did not change significantly with time for most formulations. Distal vaginal tissue levels of UC781 were 6- to 49-fold lower than proximal tissue levels. Mean UC781 plasma levels were low for all formulations, at 0.09–0.58 ng/mL. All formulations resulted in similar UC781 concentrations in vaginal tissue and plasma, except the low loading polyurethane group which provided significantly lower levels. Loading dependent release and pharmacokinetics were only clearly observed for the polyurethane matrix. Based on these results, intravaginal ring segments loaded with UC781 led to vaginal tissue concen- trations ranging from below to approximately two orders of magnitude higher than UC781’s EC50 under in vitro conditions (2.8 ng/mL), with little influence by polymer matrix or UC781 loading. Moreover, these findings support the use of rabbit vaginal pharmacokinetic studies in preclinical testing of microbicide intravaginal rings.

Is the number of species on earth increasing or decreasing? Time, chaos and the origin of species

Darwin's On the Origin of Species has led to a theory of evolution with a mass of empirical detail on population genetics below species level, together with heated debate on the details of macroevolutionary patterns above species level. Most of the main principles are clear and generally accepted, notably that life originated once and has evolved over time by descent with modification. Here, I review the fossil and molecular phylogenetic records of the response of life on Earth to Quaternary climatic changes. I suggest that the record can be best understood in terms of the nonlinear dynamics of the relationship between genotype and phenotype, and between climate and environments. 'The origin of species' is essentially unpredictable, but is nevertheless an inevitable consequence of the way that organisms reproduce through time. The process is 'chaotic', but not 'random'. I suggest that biodiversity is best considered as continuously branching systems of lineages, where 'species' are the branch tips. The Earth's biodiversity should thus (1) be in a state of continuous increase and (2) show continuous discrepancies between genetic and morphological data in time and space. © The Palaeontological Association.

When are total concentrations not total? Factors affecting geochemical analytical techniques for measuring element concentrations in soil

Inductively coupled plasma (ICP) following aqua regia digestion and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) are both geochemical techniques used to determine ‘total’ concentrations of elements in soil. The aim of this study is to compare these techniques, identify elements for which inconsistencies occur and investigate why they arise. A study area (∼14,000 km2) with a variety of total concentration controls and a large geochemical dataset (n = 7950) was selected. Principal component analysis determined underlying variance in a dataset composed of both geogenic and anthropogenic elements. Where inconsistencies between the techniques were identified, further numerical and spatial analysis was completed. The techniques are more consistent for elements of geogenic sources and lead, whereas other elements of anthropogenic sources show less consistency within rural samples. XRF is affected by sample matrix, while the form of element affects ICP concentrations. Depending on their use in environmental studies, different outcomes would be expected from the techniques employed, suggesting the choice of analytical technique for geochemical analyses may be more critical than realised.

Parades, Flags, Carnivals and Riots: Public Space, Contestation and Transformation in Northern Ireland

This paper explores one of the defining aspects of politics and identity in Northern Ireland: the control and utilization of public space, particularly urban public space. Ethnopolitical conflict consistently reveals itself through contestation over public space. The role of ritual events is important in the development of political identity and group cohesion. The symbolic landscape will be constructed through displays of identity by dominant groups and their ability to control that landscape by inhibiting displays by other groups. This will reveal itself through frequent contests over rituals and symbols. This paper looks at the role of ritual events in civic spaces in Belfast but particularly asks what role they might play in conflict transformation. The 1998 agreement offered political structures that provided for shared power after 30 years of violent conflict. At the same time, there was an increase in contestation over public space as political groups within the previously marginalized Catholic community demanded recognition within the public sphere and a rebalancing of the public space through changes to the previously dominant Protestant and Unionist expression of identity. The paper concludes by suggesting that in “shared space” a new civic identity that spans the political and ethnic divisions has started to develop in Belfast and that this might evolve despite an increased residential division throughout the urban area.

Possibility and agency in Figured Worlds: Becoming a ‘good doctor’

Context: Figured Worlds is a socio-cultural theory drawing on Vygotskian and Bakhtinian traditions, which has been applied in research into the development of identities of both learners and teachers in the wider education literature. It is now being adopted in medical education.

Objective: The objective of this paper is to show what Figured Worlds can offer in medical education. Having explained some of its central tenets, we apply it to an important tension in our field.

Application: The assumption that there is a uniform ‘good doctor’ identity, which must be inculcated into medical students, underlies much of what medical educators do, and what our regulators enforce. While diversity is encouraged when students are selected for medical school, pressure to professionalise students creates a drive towards a standardised professional identity by graduation. Using excerpts from reflective pieces written by two junior medical students, we review the basic concepts of Figured Worlds and demonstrate how it can shed light on the implications of this tension. Taking a Bakhtinian approach to discourse, we show how Adam and Sarah develop their professional identities as they negotiate the multiple overlapping and competing ways of being a doctor which they encounter in the world of medical practice. Each demonstrates agency by ‘authoring’ a unique identity in the cultural world of medicine, as they appropriate and re-voice the words of others.

Discussion: Finally, we consider some important areas in medical education where Figured Worlds might prove to be a useful lens: the negotiation of discourses of gender, sexuality and social class, career choice as identification within specialty-specific cultural worlds, and the influence of hidden and informal curricula on doctor identity.

Introduction: 'Transnational / Transartistic Journeys'

In the past two decades we have witnessed a series of epistemological shifts, springing from traditional area studies and departing from nationally bounded fields. These moves seem to dislocate and problematize categories of identity by focusing on translocality and by calling attention to processes of displacement, dispersion, objects and ideas, and to the new cultural and imaginary territories that these mobilizations effect. Such formulations, while historically situated, illuminate flows and favour transformation, as opposed to producing ontological crystallisations. This issue will explore the view that the creation of new cultural phenomena may be achieved, in the richest of ways, through the mixing of genres and the crossing of media. It will seek to investigate how various contemporary art forms serve to express, envision, challenge and renegotiate Francophone identities that reach across cultures.

2-D R-matrix propagation: A large scale electron scattering simulation dominated by the multiplication of dynamically changing matrices

We examine the computational aspects of propagating a global R-matrix, R, across sub-regions in a 2-D plane. This problem originates in the large scale simulation of electron collisions with atoms and ions at intermediate energies. The propagation is dominated by matrix multiplications which are complicated because of the dynamic nature of R, which changes the designations of its rows and columns and grows in size as the propagation proceeds. The use of PBLAS to solve this problem on distributed memory HPC machines is the main focus of the paper.