Complicating hetero-femininities : young women, sexualities and girl power at school

This paper is concerned with expanding knowledge of how femininity/sexuality intersections are constituted in secondary schools. Existing studies have drawn upon Judith Butler’s notion of a ‘heterosexual matrix’ in order to understand how intersections of femininity/sexuality are produced in schools through normative discourses of heterosexuality and gender. Drawing on ‘after-queer’ theoretical resources from within cultural studies that focus on the deployment of notions of sexuality within constructions of intelligible citizenship, I explore how the femininity/sexuality intersection within secondary schools might be complicated, when the significance of discourses of ‘girl power’, linked with successful neoliberal citizenship, is considered. I analyse young women’s discussions of key ‘girl power’ icons in popular culture, generated through fieldwork in an elite girls’ school in Australia. Throughout the analysis I explore how understanding intersections of femininity/sexuality in secondary schools requires an analytical framework that can attend to both familiar notions of heterosexuality and gender – and their ongoing currency – as well as how notions of sexuality are mobilized in the production of successful neoliberal girl citizens. I propose that this analytical approach is useful in terms of avoiding the reinscription of sexuality identity categories in education research.

Guest editorial : In Journal of networks, v.7 n.3

Networking of computing devices has been going through rapid evolution and thus continuing to be an ever expanding area of importance in recent years. New technologies, protocols, services and usage patterns have contributed to the major research interests in this area of computer science. The current special issue is an effort to bring forward some of these interesting developments that are being pursued by researchers at present in different parts of the globe. Our objective is to provide the readership with some insight into the latest innovations in computer networking through this. This Special Issue presents selected papers from the thirteenth conference of the series (ICCIT 2010) held during December 23-25, 2010 at the Ahsanullah University of Science and Technology. The first ICCIT was held in Dhaka, Bangladesh, in 1998. Since then the conference has grown to be one of the largest computer and IT related research conferences in the South Asian region, with participation of academics and researchers from many countries around the world. Starting in 2008 the proceedings of ICCIT are included in IEEExplore. In 2010, a total of 410 full papers were submitted to the conference of which 136 were accepted after reviews conducted by an international program committee comprising 81 members from 16 countries. This was tantamount to an acceptance rate of 33%. From these 136 papers, 14 highly ranked manuscripts were invited for this Special Issue. The authors were advised to enhance their papers significantly and submit them to undergo review for suitability of inclusion into this publication. Of those, eight papers survived the review process and have been selected for inclusion in this Special Issue. The authors of these papers represent academic and/or research institutions from Australia, Bangladesh, Japan, Korea and USA. These papers address issues concerning different domains of networks namely, optical fiber communication, wireless and interconnection networks, issues related to networking hardware and software and network mobility. The paper titled “Virtualization in Wireless Sensor Network: Challenges and Opportunities” argues in favor of bringing in different heterogeneous sensors under a common virtual framework so that the issues like flexibility, diversity, management and security can be handled practically. The authors Md. Motaharul Islam and Eui-Num Huh propose an architecture for sensor virtualization. They also present the current status and the challenges and opportunities for further research on the topic. The manuscript “Effect of Polarization Mode Dispersion on the BER Performance of Optical CDMA” deals with impact of polarization mode dispersion on the bit error rate performance of direct sequence optical code division multiple access. The authors, Md. Jahedul Islam and Md. Rafiqul Islam present an analytical approach toward determining the impact of different performance parameters. The authors show that the bit error rate performance improves significantly by the third order polarization mode dispersion than its first or second order counterparts. The authors Md. Shohrab Hossain, Mohammed Atiquzzaman and William Ivancic of the paper “Cost and Efficiency Analysis of NEMO Protocol Entities” present an analytical model for estimating the cost incurred by major mobility entities of a NEMO. The authors define a new metric for cost calculation in the process. Both the newly developed metric and the analytical model are likely to be useful to network engineers in estimating the resource requirement at the key entities while designing such a network. The article titled “A Highly Flexible LDPC Decoder using Hierarchical Quasi-Cyclic Matrix with Layered Permutation” deals with Low Density Parity Check decoders. The authors, Vikram Arkalgud Chandrasetty and Syed Mahfuzul Aziz propose a novel multi-level structured hierarchical matrix approach for generating codes of different lengths flexibly depending upon the requirement of the application. The manuscript “Analysis of Performance Limitations in Fiber Bragg Grating Based Optical Add-Drop Multiplexer due to Crosstalk” has been contributed by M. Mahiuddin and M. S. Islam. The paper proposes a new method of handling crosstalk with a fiber Bragg grating based optical add drop multiplexer (OADM). The authors show with an analytical model that different parameters improve using their proposed OADM. The paper “High Performance Hierarchical Torus Network Under Adverse Traffic Patterns” addresses issues related to hierarchical torus network (HTN) under adverse traffic patterns. The authors, M.M. Hafizur Rahman, Yukinori Sato, and Yasushi Inoguchi observe that dynamic communication performance of an HTN under adverse traffic conditions has not yet been addressed. The authors evaluate the performance of HTN for comparison with some other relevant networks. It is interesting to see that HTN outperforms these counterparts in terms of throughput and data transfer under adverse traffic. The manuscript titled “Dynamic Communication Performance Enhancement in Hierarchical Torus Network by Selection Algorithm” has been contributed by M.M. Hafizur Rahman, Yukinori Sato, and Yasushi Inoguchi. The authors introduce three simple adapting routing algorithms for efficient use of physical links and virtual channels in hierarchical torus network. The authors show that their approaches yield better performance for such networks. The final title “An Optimization Technique for Improved VoIP Performance over Wireless LAN” has been contributed by five authors, namely, Tamal Chakraborty, Atri Mukhopadhyay, Suman Bhunia, Iti Saha Misra and Salil K. Sanyal. The authors propose an optimization technique for configuring the parameters of the access points. In addition, they come up with an optimization mechanism in order to tune the threshold of active queue management system appropriately. Put together, the mechanisms improve the VoIP performance significantly under congestion. Finally, the Guest Editors would like to express their sincere gratitude to the 15 reviewers besides the guest editors themselves (Khalid M. Awan, Mukaddim Pathan, Ben Townsend, Morshed Chowdhury, Iftekhar Ahmad, Gour Karmakar, Shivali Goel, Hairulnizam Mahdin, Abdullah A Yusuf, Kashif Sattar, A.K.M. Azad, F. Rahman, Bahman Javadi, Abdelrahman Desoky, Lenin Mehedy) from several countries (Australia, Bangladesh, Japan, Pakistan, UK and USA) who have given immensely to this process. They have responded to the Guest Editors in the shortest possible time and dedicated their valuable time to ensure that the Special Issue contains high-quality papers with significant novelty and contributions.

Keeping connected: a review of the research relationship

In this paper, some key findings of the Keeping Connected project are discussed in light of the methodological challenges of developing an analytical approach in a large-scale study, particularly in starting with open-ended, participant-selected, digital still visual images as part of 31 longitudinal case studies. The paper works to clarify the methodological and epistemological discussions of the visual data, an issue of great interest in qualitative research and visuality for researchers intent on developing understandings of participatory research methods in the field of youth studies.

Re-examining the "twin deficits" hypothesis: evidence from Australia

This paper re-examines the relationship between fiscal imbalances and net foreign borrowing. A general analytical approach is first developed which suggests that, other things equal, a rise (fall) in any advanced economy’s fiscal deficit should be fully matched by a rise (fall) in its net foreign borrowing, in accordance with the so-called twin deficits hypothesis. In the case of Australia, one of the world’s largest foreign borrower economies for its size, empirical estimation yields the novel result that Australia’s consolidated budget imbalance and its foreign borrowing were approximately twinned on the basis of quarterly data for 1983–2009, when Australia’s exchange rate floated and international capital mobility was high. This result is consistent with the conceptual framework and suggests that fiscal policy is likely to be ineffective as an instrument for influencing the real economy.

The role of infrequent and extraordinary deep dives in leatherback turtles (Dermochelys coriacea)

Infrequent and exceptional behaviours can provide insight into the ecology and physiology of a particular species. Here we examined extraordinarily deep (300–1250 m) and protracted (>1h) dives made by critically endangered leatherback turtles (Dermochelys coriacea) in the context of three previously suggested hypotheses: predator evasion, thermoregulation and exploration for gelatinous prey. Data were obtained via satellite relay data loggers attached to adult turtles at nesting beaches (N=11) and temperate foraging grounds (N=2), constituting a combined tracking period of 9.6 years (N=26,146 dives) and spanning the entire North Atlantic Ocean. Of the dives, 99.6% (N=26,051) were to depths <300 m with only 0.4% (N=95) extending to greater depths (subsequently termed `deep dives'). Analysis suggested that deep dives: (1) were normally distributed around midday; (2) may exceed the inferred aerobic dive limit for the species; (3) displayed slow vertical descent rates and protracted durations; (4) were much deeper than the thermocline; and (5) occurred predominantly during transit, yet ceased once seasonal residence on foraging grounds began. These findings support the hypothesis that deep dives are periodically employed to survey the water column for diurnally descending gelatinous prey. If a suitable patch is encountered then the turtle may cease transit and remain within that area, waiting for prey to approach the surface at night. If unsuccessful, then migration may continue until a more suitable site is encountered. Additional studies using a meta-analytical approach are nonetheless recommended to further resolve this matter.

Protocol for a collaborative meta-analysis of 5-HTTLPR, stress, and depression

Background: Debate is ongoing about what role, if any, variation in the serotonin transporter linked polymorphic region (5-HTTLPR) plays in depression. Some studies report an interaction between 5-HTTLPR variation and stressful life events affecting the risk for depression, others report a main effect of 5-HTTLPR variation on depression, while others find no evidence for either a main or interaction effect. Meta-analyses of multiple studies have also reached differing conclusions.

Methods/Design: To improve understanding of the combined roles of 5-HTTLPR variation and stress in the development of depression, we are conducting a meta-analysis of multiple independent datasets. This coordinated approach utilizes new analyses performed with centrally-developed, standardized scripts. This publication documents the protocol for this collaborative, consortium-based meta-analysis of 5-HTTLPR variation, stress, and depression.

Study eligibility criteria: Our goal is to invite all datasets, published or unpublished, with 5-HTTLPR genotype and assessments of stress and depression for at least 300 subjects. This inclusive approach is to minimize potential impact from publication bias.

Data sources: This project currently includes investigators from 35 independent groups, providing data on at least N = 33,761 participants.  The analytic plan was determined prior to starting data analysis. Analyses of individual study datasets will be performed by the investigators who collected the data using centrally-developed standardized analysis scripts to ensure a consistent analytical approach across sites. The consortium as a group will review and interpret the meta-analysis results.

Discussion: Variation in 5-HTTLPR is hypothesized to moderate the response to stress on depression. To test specific hypotheses about the role of 5-HTTLPR variation on depression, we will perform coordinated meta-analyses of de novo results obtained from all available data, using variables and analyses determined a priori. Primary analyses, based on the original 2003 report by Caspi and colleagues of a GxE interaction will be supplemented by secondary analyses to help interpret and clarify issues ranging from the mechanism of effect to heterogeneity among the contributing studies. Publication of this protocol serves to protect this project from biased reporting and to improve the ability of readers to interpret the results of this specific meta-analysis upon its completion.

Rapid discrimination and determination of polyunsaturated fatty acid composition in marine oils by FTIR Spectroscopy and Multivariate Data Analysis

A rapid analytical approach for discrimination and quantitative determination of polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) contents, particularly eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), in a range of oils extracted from marine resources has been developed by using attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and multivariate data analysis. The spectral data were collected without any sample preparation; thus, no chemical preparation was involved, but data were rather processed directly using the developed spectral analysis platform, making it fast, very cost effective, and suitable for routine use in various biotechnological and food research and related industries. Unsupervised pattern recognition techniques, including principal component analysis and unsupervised hierarchical cluster analysis, discriminated the marine oils into groups by correlating similarities and differences in their fatty acid (FA) compositions that corresponded well to the FA profiles obtained from traditional lipid analysis based on gas chromatography (GC). Furthermore, quantitative determination of unsaturated fatty acids, PUFAs, EPA and DHA, by partial least square regression analysis through which calibration models were optimized specifically for each targeted FA, was performed in both known marine oils and totally independent unknown n - 3 oil samples obtained from an actual commercial product in order to provide prospective testing of the developed models towards actual applications. The resultant predicted FAs were achieved at a good accuracy compared to their reference GC values as evidenced through (1) low root mean square error of prediction, (2) good coefficient of determination close to 1 (i.e., R 2≥ 0.96), and (3) the residual predictive deviation values that indicated the predictive power at good and higher levels for all the target FAs. © 2014 Springer Science+Business Media New York.

Re-encountering Christina Stead : Why read ‘Workshop in the novel’?

Despite waves of interest in the work of Christina Stead, one aspect of her writing life has been largely neglected. From September 1943, she taught three series of extended writing workshops in New York and in the process left more than three hundred pages documenting her teaching. The question motivating this paper is: Why should we, as writers and teachers of writing, read her writing workshop notebooks nowadays? This paper will place Stead’s workshop in the context of the development of institutional teaching of novel writing and her emergence as a major writer. It will briefly examine how the notebooks have previously been understood and offer a closer analysis than has been made to date of the notebooks and their content and of the key issues raised by them. In particular, we shall explore her pedagogic focus upon workshop participants developing a rigorous, analytical approach to crafting novels and her extensive use of Georges Polti’s Thirty-Six Dramatic Situations to achieve this. That, in turn, will enable us to assess what the notebooks independently reveal about her beliefs regarding the novel and its purpose.

Mutational interference mapping experiment (MIME) for studying RNA structure and function

RNA regulates many biological processes; however, identifying functional RNA sequences and structures is complex and time-consuming. We introduce a method, mutational interference mapping experiment (MIME), to identify, at single-nucleotide resolution, the primary sequence and secondary structures of an RNA molecule that are crucial for its function. MIME is based on random mutagenesis of the RNA target followed by functional selection and next-generation sequencing. Our analytical approach allows the recovery of quantitative binding parameters and permits the identification of base-pairing partners directly from the sequencing data. We used this method to map the binding site of the human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV-1) Pr55(Gag) protein on the viral genomic RNA in vitro, and showed that, by analyzing permitted base-pairing patterns, we could model RNA structure motifs that are crucial for protein binding.

A purposive approach to content analysis : designing analytical frameworks

Content analysis of computer conferences provides a rich source of data for researching and understanding online learning. However, the complexities of using content analysis in a relatively new research field have resulted in researchers often avoiding this method and using more familiar methods such as survey and interview instead. This article discusses content analysis as a methodology, with emphasis on the development of analytical frameworks. The literature indicates that researchers either use or modify existing frameworks or, more commonly, develop new ones, either through grounded theory approaches or the adaptation of existing theories, concepts or models. The development and implementation of two frameworks are then discussed in detail. Both were developed purposively to investigate and evaluate firstly collaborative learning and secondly deep and surface approaches to learning as evidenced in computer conferences. The article concludes with recommendations for framework development.

Analytical modeling of interconnection networks in heterogeneous multi-cluster systems

In data-intensive distributed systems, replication is the most widely used approach to offer high data availability, low bandwidth consumption, increased fault-tolerance and improved scalability of the overall system. Replication-based systems implement replica control protocols that enforce a specified semantics of accessing the data. Also, the performance depends on a number of factors, the chief of which is the protocol used to maintain consistency among object replica. In this paper, we propose a new low-cost and high data availability protocol called the box-shaped grid structure for maintaining consistency of replicated data on networked distributed computing systems. We show that the proposed protocol provides high data availability, low communication costs, and increased fault-tolerance as compared to the baseline replica control protocols.

Playing a critical role: experiential learning resources and analytical media studies in higher education

This article compares two Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) used in the Faculty of Arts, Deakin University Australia, and investigates the relationships between technology, pedagogy and key issues in the teaching and practice of public relations, in a media studies context. The online role-play ‘Save Wallaby Forest’ and the e-simulation ‘PRessure Point! Getting Framed (GF), in their different ways, afford learning  environments with capabilities that present public relations and media students with opportunities to discover a critical consciousness, break out of naturalised world-views, and explore alternative approaches to organisational communication. Furthermore, they present students with complex ethical issues to investigate based around the idea that media industries are powerful discursive producers and reproducers of social norms, values and beliefs which in turn shape notions of identity and influence the formation of public opinion in society (Fairclough 1999; Habermas 1995). This article explores the intersections and differences between these distinct ICTs in their relationships to a constructivist learning approach and ethical questions about how public relations both produces and reproduces world views through practice. This interacting nexus – between technology, pedagogy and theme – is significant because “what happens in the learning process” relates to the learning outcome and therefore has the potential to develop holistic reflexivity in studies of public relations (Laurillard 2003, p.42).

Rules and resources: a structuration approach to understanding the coordination of childrens`s inpatient health care

Aim. This paper presents findings from a multi-method study exploring the process of care coordination in children's inpatient health care.

Background. Existing work on care coordination is typified by 'black-box' type studies that measure inputs to and outcomes of care coordination roles and practices, without addressing the process of coordination.

Method. Using questionnaires, interviews and observation to collect data in multiple sites in the United Kingdom and Denmark between 1999 and 2005, the study gathered the perceptions of staff and compared these with observed practice. Giddens' structuration theory was used to provide an analytical and explanatory framework.

Findings. Current care coordination practice is diverse and inconsistent. It involves a wide range of clinical and non-clinical staff, many of whom perceive a lack of clarity about who should perform specific coordination activities. Staff draw upon a wide range of different material and non-material resources in coordinating care, the use of which is governed by largely tacit and informal rules.

Conclusions. Care coordination can be usefully conceptualized as a 'structurated' process – one that is continually produced and reproduced by staff using rules and resources to 'instantiate' or bring about care coordination through action. Potentially negative implications of this are manifested in diversity and inconsistency in care coordination practice. However, positive aspects such as the opportunity this provides to tailor care to the needs of the individual patient can be realized.

Prediction of residual stresses in roller burnished components : a finite element approach

Surface finish is an important factor in creating the durable metal components, and fatigue strength can be improved if compressive residual stresses are produced in the surface. Burnishing is a finishing process and compressive residual stresses are induced during the process. The present study of minimizing the surface roughness based on the experimental work, and finite element model was developed to evaluate the analytical results. Commercial purity Mild Steel and Aluminium were selected as work specimens and a high carbon high chromium roller was used as a tool for the burnishing process.

A systemic approach to the database marketing process

The role of database marketing (DBM) has become increasingly important for organisations that have large databases of information on customers with whom they deal directly. At the same time, DBM models used in practice have increased in sophistication. This paper examines a systemic view of DBM and the role of analytical techniques within DBM. It extends existing process models to develop a systemic model that encompasses the increased complexity of DBM in practice. The systemic model provides a framework to integrate data mining, experimental design and prioritisation decisions. This paper goes on to identify opportunities for research in DBM, including DBM process models used in practice, the use of evolutionary operations techniques in DBM, prioritisation decisions, and the factors that surround the uptake of DBM.