Cowboy songs

Cowboy songs: A ride through the lone prairie of the masculine. An ironic wrangle with country and western songs with their rigid take on masculinity - an excerpt from a longer work

Song as an honest signal of developmental stress in the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata)

In a wide range of bird species, females have been shown to express active preferences for males that sing more complex songs. Current sexual selection theory predicts that for this signal to remain an honest indicator of male quality, it must be associated with an underlying cost of development or maintenance. There has been considerable debate questioning the costs associated with song production and learning. Recently, the nutritional stress hypothesis proposed that song complexity could act as an indicator of early developmental history, since the song control nuclei in the brain are laid down early in life. Here we test the nutritional stress hypothesis, by investigating the effects of dietary stress on the quality of adult song produced. In addition, we tested the effects of elevated corticosterone during development on song production to test its possible involvement in mediating the effects of developmental stress. The results demonstrate that both dietary restriction and elevated corticosterone levels significantly reduced nestling growth rates. In addition, we found that experimentally stressed birds developed songs with significantly shorter song motif duration and reduced complexity. These results provide novel experimental evidence that complex song repertoires may have evolved as honest signals of male quality, by indicating early developmental rearing conditions.

Living with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis/motor neurone disease (ALS/MND) : decision-making about 'ongoing change and adaptation

Aims and objectives. To present a model that explicates the dimensions of change and adaptation as revealed by people who are diagnosed and live with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis/motor neurone disease.

Background. Most research about amyotrophic lateral sclerosis/motor neurone disease is medically focused on cause and cure for the illness. Although psychological studies have sought to understand the illness experience through questionnaires, little is known about the experience of living with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis/motor neurone disease as described by people with the disease.

Design. A grounded theory method of simultaneous data collection and constant comparative analysis was chosen for the conduct of this study.

Methods. Data collection involved in-depth interviews, electronic correspondence, field notes, as well as stories, prose, songs and photographs important to participants. QSR NVivo 2® software was used to manage the data and modelling used to illustrate concepts.

Findings. Participants used a cyclic, decision-making pattern about 'ongoing change and adaptation' as they lived with the disease. This pattern formed the basis of the model that is presented in this paper.

Conclusion. The lives of people living with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis/motor neurone disease revolve around the need to make decisions about how to live with the disease progression and their deteriorating abilities. Life decisions were negotiated by participants to maintain a sense of self and well-being in the face of change.

Relevance to clinical practice. The 'ongoing change and adaptation' model is a framework that can guide practitioners to understand the decision-making processes of people living with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis/motor neurone disease. Such understanding will enhance caring and promote models of care that are person-centred. The model may also have relevance for people with other life limiting diseases and their care.

Minimal similarity in songs suggests limited exchange between humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) in the southern Indian ocean

Comparing humpback whale song from different breeding assemblages can reveal similarities in song due to acoustically interacting males, and therefore indirectly test whether males from different breeding sites are mixing. Northern Hemisphere song comparisons illustrated that whales within ocean basins share similar songs and are subpopulations within a larger population, whereas whales in different ocean basins are isolated populations and therefore do not share songs. During the 2006 breeding season, recordings were collected in Madagascar and Western Australia, and were compared visually plus aurally. Both regions shared one theme, whereas each region had four and six private themes, respectively. This study had a substantially low number of shared themes. The co-occurrence of one theme was interpreted as an indication of limited exchange between these breeding assemblages, and we speculate that limited song similarity is due to inter-oceanic interactions. Male(s) from an Indian Ocean breeding group could be exposed to novel song when they geographically overlap, and acoustically interact, with males from a different ocean basin. Novel song could induce rapid temporal changes as new song content is incorporated, thereby minimizing song similarities between that breeding group and other Indian Ocean breeding groups that were not exposed to the novel song.

Experiencing indigenous East African dance songs : reflections from North West University (South Africa)

After democracy (1994) the doors of teaching and learning in music opened widely to include local indigenous music and culture in South Africa. Since 2005, African music has been a vibrant aspect of the music curriculum within the School of Music, North West University, South Africa. Globally tertiary music educators are challenged to include informal pedagogy of indigenous musics within the formal context of university courses. University music courses in South Africa are still predisposed towards ‘western’ music pedagogies. In October 2012, the School of Music invited a visiting expert in African music and dance to offer onsite teaching and learning of Ugandan dance songs to tertiary students. The initiative to include Ugandan music as part of the teaching and learning workshops on African music at the School of Music was funded by the South African Music Rights Organization. The School of Music has an ongoing policy to invite and include culture bearers to share their skills and expertise with students and academics. Such sharing provides culture bearers the opportunity to transmit much needed skills, which are not often offered by academics. UNESCO (2012) identifies scarce knowledge and skills as intangible heritage.