Invitational rhetoric : alternative rhetorical strategy for transformation of perception and use of energy in the residential built environment from the Keweenaw to Kerala

This dissertation explores the viability of invitational rhetoric as a mode of advocacy for sustainable energy use in the residential built environment. The theoretical foundations for this study join ecofeminist concepts and commitments with the conditions and resources of invitational rhetoric, developing in particular the rhetorical potency of the concepts of re-sourcement and enfoldment. The methodological approach is autoethnography using narrative reflection and journaling, both adapted to and developed within the autoethnographic project. Through narrative reflection, the author explores her lived experiences in advocating for energy-responsible residential construction in the Keweenaw Peninsula of Michigan. The analysis reveals the opportunities for cooperative, collaborative advocacy and the struggle against traditional conventions of persuasive advocacy, particularly the centrality of the rhetor. The author also conducted two field trips to India, primarily the state of Kerala. Drawing on autoethnographic journaling, the analysis highlights the importance of sensory relations in lived advocacy and the resonance of everyday Indian culture to invitational principles. Based on field research, the dissertation proposes autoethnography as a critical development in encouraging invitational rhetoric as an alternative mode of effecting change. The invitational force of autoethnography is evidenced in portraying the material advocacy of the built environment itself, specifically the sensual experience of material arrangements and ambience, as well as revealing the corporeality of advocacy, that is, the body as the site of invitational engagement, emotional encounter, and sensory experience. This study concludes that vulnerability of self in autoethnographic work and the vulnerability of rhetoric as invitational constitute the basis for transformation. The dissertation confirms the potential of an ecofeminist invitational advocacy conveyed autoethnographically for transforming perceptions and use of energy in a smaller-scale residential environment appropriate for culture, climate, and ultimately part of the challenge of sustaining life on this planet.

A Study of the Transformation of a Twenty-Eight Per Cent Tin Bronze

In this investigation, attention is directed to the phases covered by a 28 per cent tin alloy. When the investigation was started, consideration was given to the possibility of making a Time - Temperature - Transformation curve for this parti­cular alloy. As the work progressed and further research was carried on, this phase of the work was abandoned.

The Isothermal Transformation Curve for S.A.E. 6150

More than 3000 years ago, men began quenching and tem­pering tools to improve their physical properties. The an­cient people found that iron was easier to shape and form in a heated condition. Charcoal was used as the fuel, and when the shaping process was completed, the smiths cooled the piece in the most obvious way, quenching in water. Quite un­intentionally, these people stumbled on the process for im­proving the properties of iron, and the art of blacksmithing began.

A regioselective palladium-free protocol for accessing unsymmetrical biaryls through ring transformation of 6-aryl-~-pyrones

A regioselective synthesis of unsymmetrical biaryls with electron withdrawing or donating substituents is described and illustrated by carbanion-induced ring transfonnation of 6-aryl-a-pyrones with methoxyacetone in excellent yield. Our methodology is an alternative to classical organometal-catalyzed aryl-aryl coupling reactions and can be applied to the synthesis of functionally demanding naphthyl biaryls for the development of new ligands for asymetric synthesis

Regioselective Synthesis of 2-Amino-isophthalonitriles through a Ring Transformation Strategy

An expeditious synthesis of several 2-amino-isophthalonitriles and their biaryl compounds is described and illustrated by carbanion-induced ring transformation of functionalized 2H-pyran-2-ones with malononitrile in excellent yields. The strength of the reaction lies in the creation of an aromatic ring at room temperature from six membered-lactones under mild reaction conditions. This approach is an alternative to Diels-Alder reactions of 2H-pyran-2-ones with dienophiles, which require forcing thermal conditions to obtain benzene derivatives.

Neighboring group effect: DBU-promoted ring transformation of substituted isoxazoles to substituted pyrroles

A novel DBU-promoted ring transformation of substituted isoxazoles to substituted pyrroles is described

Regioselective Synthesis of Functionally Crowded Benzenes at Room Temperature through Ring Transformation of 2H-Pyran-2-ones

An expeditious synthesis of highly substituted benzenes with electron withdrawing or donating substituents is described and illustrated by carbanion-induced ring transformation of 2H-pyran-2-one with malononitrile in excellent yield. The novelty of the reaction lies in the creation of an aromatic ring at room temperature from six membered-lactones under mild reaction conditions.

Transformation of local medicinal knowledge in the Andean Highlands: Case studies from Peru and Bolivia

In the Andean highlands, indigenous environmental knowledge is currently undergoing major changes as a result of various external and internal factors. As in other parts of the world, an overall process of erosion of local knowledge can be observed. In response to this trend, some initiatives that adopt a biocultural approach aim at actively strengthening local identities and revalorizing indigenous environmental knowledge and practices, assuming that such practices can contribute to more sustainable management of biodiversity. However, these initiatives usually lack a sound research basis, as few studies have focused on the dynamics of indigenous environmental knowledge in the Andes and on its links with biodiversity management. Against this background, the general objective of this research project was to contribute to the understanding of the dynamics of indigenous environmental knowledge in the Andean highlands of Peru and Bolivia by investigating how local medicinal knowledge is socially differentiated within rural communities, how it is transformed, and which external and internal factors influence these transformation processes. The project adopted an actor-oriented perspective and emphasized the concept of knowledge dialogue by analyzing the integration of traditional and formal medicinal systems within family therapeutic strategies. It also aimed at grasping some of the links between the dynamics of medicinal knowledge and the types of land use systems and biodiversity management. Research was conducted in two case study areas of the Andes, both Quechua-speaking and situated in comparable agro-ecological production belts - Pitumarca District, Department of Cusco (Southern Peruvian Highlands) and the Tunari National Park, Department of Cochabamba (Bolivian inner-Andean valleys). In each case study area, the land use systems and strategies of 18 families from two rural communities, their environmental knowledge related to medicine and to the local therapeutic flora, and an appreciation of the dynamics of this knowledge were assessed. Data were collected through a combination of disciplinary and participatory action-research methods. It was mostly analyzed using qualitative methods, though some quantitative ethnobotanical methods were also used. In both case studies, traditional medicine still constitutes the preferred option for the families interviewed, independently of their age, education level, economic status, religion, or migration status. Surprisingly and contrary to general assertions among local NGOs and researchers, results show that there is a revival of Andean medicine within the younger generation, who have greater knowledge of medicinal plants than the previous one, value this knowledge as an important element of their way of life and relationship with “Mother Earth” (Pachamama), and, at least in the Bolivian case, prefer to consult the traditional healer rather than go to the health post. Migration to the urban centres and the Amazon lowlands, commonly thought to be an important factor of local medicinal knowledge loss, only affects people’s knowledge in the case of families who migrate over half of the year or permanently. Migration does not influence the knowledge of medicinal plants or the therapeutic strategies of families who migrate temporarily for shorter periods of time. Finally, economic status influences neither the status of people’s medicinal knowledge, nor families’ therapeutic strategies, even though the financial factor is often mentioned by practitioners and local people as the main reason for not using the formal health system. The influence of the formal health system on traditional medicinal knowledge varies in each case study area. In the Bolivian case, where it was only introduced in the 1990s and access to it is still very limited, the main impact was to give local communities access to contraceptive methods and to vaccination. In the Peruvian case, the formal system had a much greater impact on families’ health practices, due to local and national policies that, for instance, practically prohibit some traditional practices such as home birth. But in both cases, biomedicine is not considered capable of responding to cultural illnesses such as “fear” (susto), “bad air” (malviento), or “anger” (colerina). As a consequence, Andean farmers integrate the traditional medicinal system and the formal one within their multiple therapeutic strategies, reflecting an inter-ontological dialogue between different conceptions of health and illness. These findings reflect a more general trend in the Andes, where indigenous communities are currently actively revalorizing their knowledge and taking up traditional practices, thus strengthening their indigenous collective identities in a process of cultural resistance.

Structural Problems in the Development of Social Work in Central Europe under Transformation. The Case of Poland

Socio-economic transformation the countries of Central Europe are undergoing since 1989 has brought new developments in social welfare systems of this region. Social work, which was in the countries of the region during its communist past either non-existent or superficial activity, has become treated as an instrument of social welfare systems there. The collapse of authoritarian regimes in the region clearly inducted political leaderships there to opt for transition to Western style civil society. Hence an adoption of social work seemed to be natural choice for the countries in the region.