Assibi A. Amidu 2009. Matrix Nominal Phrases in Kiswahili Bantu. A Study of their Effects on Argument Syntax.

Assibi A. Amidu's contribution is undoubtedly a highly challenging one to the direct study of the Kiswahili Bantu language. Aiming at complementing the existing grammars and monographs of living languages the author intends to illuminate some paradoxes of the Kiswahili syntax and morphology. Having defined this aim he presents a clearly structured monograph to the interested reader, consisting of six chapters, relating to one another.

Is VHB-JOURQUAL2 a Good Measure of Scientific Quality? Assessing the Validity of the Major Business Journal Ranking in German-Speaking Countries

This study examines the question of whether the journal ranking VHB-JOURQUAL 2 can be considered as a good measure for the construct “scientific quality”. Various rankings in business research provide the database for the analysis. The correlations between theses rankings are used to assess the validity of VHB-JOURQUAL 2 along various validity criteria. The correlations with rankings that measure the same construct based on different methods show that VHB-JOURQUAL 2 has acceptable, but moderate convergent validity. The validity varies considerably across disciplines, showing that the heterogeneity of business administration is not sufficiently represented by this overall ranking. The variability is related to the variation in members per discipline represented by the German Association for Business Research. Furthermore, the measure shows a weak correlation with acceptance rates as an indicator of nomological validity in some disciplines.

The sociolinguistic situation of ǂHoan, a moribund 'Khoisan' language of Botswana

In 2010, we conducted a sociolinguistic survey on the moribund 'Khoisan' language ǂHoan (Ju-ǂHoan), spoken in Botswana at the fringe of the Kalahari Desert. The survey aimed at investigating language use, degrees of multilingualism and language attitude among the ǂHoan speakers. Data collection was done on the basis of a questionnaire. We found that the positive language attitude of individuals towards ǂHoan often conflicts with the community's attitude towards this language, resulting in a split of actual language use between the family and more formal situations. All ǂHoan speakers are at least bilingual speaking the local lingua franca Kgalagadi (Bantu) besides ǂHoan. Most of them are in fact even trilingual, speaking Gǀui (Khoe-Kwadi) in addition to ǂHoan and Kgalagadi. Most of our results stand in line with an earlier sociolinguistic survey on ǂHoan by Batibo (2005a) which was carried out in 2003. In comparing Batibo's results to ours, changes in the sociolinguistic situation of ǂHoan as well as differences between the different villages will be pointed out.

Russian language maintenance through bedtime story reading?: Linguistic strategies and language negotiation in Russian-French speaking families in Switzerland

This article proposes an interactional approach to the question of Russian language maintenance through the activity of bedtime story-reading in Russian-French bilingual families in French speaking Switzerland. Reading stories appears to be a language maintenance strategy commonly employed by the Russian speaking parent. The ritual and recreational moment of story-reading therefore becomes an opportunity for language learning. Drawing upon a language socialization perspective, this paper proposes an interactional analysis of the language use in the activity of story-reading. It shows how the language choice of the participants may be requested, negotiated and challenged during the interaction. The analysis further informs us about the language choice pattern and the bilingual competences in these families. We will gain insight into (Russian) language maintenance as a daily social and linguistic practice.

Making co-management work in protected areas with indigenous peoples in Bolivia and Peru

Sustainable and equitable management of biodiversity in protected areas inhabited by indigenous peoples is often a challenge. It requires an intercultural dialogue based on local norms of resource use and indigenous knowledge. Moreover, mechanisms that generate economic incentives must be able to compete with income from illegal activities such as logging, mining, and land trafficking. Finally, efforts are needed to ensure that regulations and policies on conservation and resource extraction do not overlap and contradict each other, as this hampers efforts both to conserve biodiversity and to promote development at the local level.

Genetics and epidemiology of gallbladder disease in New World native peoples.

Native peoples of the New World, including Amerindians and admixed Latin Americans such as Mexican-Americans, are highly susceptible to diseases of the gallbladder. These include cholesterol cholelithiasis (gallstones) and its complications, as well as cancer of the gallbladder. Although there is clearly some necessary dietary or other environmental risk factor involved, the pattern of disease prevalence is geographically associated with the distribution of genes of aboriginal Amerindian origin, and levels of risk generally correspond to the degree of Amerindian admixture. This pattern differs from that generally associated with Westernization, which suggests a gene-environment interaction, and that within an admixed population there is a subset whose risk is underestimated when admixture is ignored. The risk that an individual of a susceptible New World genotype will undergo a cholecystectomy by age 85 can approach 40% in Mexican-American females, and their risk of gallbladder cancer can reach several percent. These are heretofore unrecognized levels of risk, especially of the latter, because previous studies have not accounted for admixture or for the loss of at-risk individuals due to cholecystectomy. A genetic susceptibility may, thus, be as "carcinogenic" in New World peoples as any known major environmental exposure; yet, while the risk has a genetic basis, its expression as gallbladder cancer is so delayed as to lead only very rarely to multiply-affected families. Estimates in this paper are derived in part from two studies of Mexican-Americans in Starr County and Laredo, Texas.

Linking local knowledge, conservation practices and ecosystem diversity: comparing two communities in the Tunari National Park (Bolivia)

Combined approaches to conserve both biological and cultural diversity are seen as an alternative to classical nature conservation instruments. The objective of this study was to examine the influence of urbanization coupled with exclusive conservation measures, on land use, local knowledge and biodiversity in two Quechua speaking communities of Bolivia located within the Tunari National Park. We assessed and compared the links between land use, its transformation through conservation practices, local institutions and the worldviews of both communities and the implications they have for biodiversity at the level of ecosystems. Our results show that in both communities, people’s worldviews and environmental knowledge are linked with an integral and diversified use of their territory. However, the community most affected by urbanization and protected area regulations has intensified agriculture in a small area and has abandoned the use of large areas. This was accompanied by a loss of local environmental knowledge and a decrease in the diversity of ecosystems. The second community, where the park was not enforced, continues to manage their territory as a material expression of local environmental knowledge, while adopting community-based conservation measures with external support. Our findings highlight a case in which urbanization coupled with exclusive conservation approaches affects the components of both cultural and biological diversity. Actions that aim to enhance biocultural diversity in this context should therefore address the impact of factors identified as responsible for change in integrated social-ecological systems.