History of Child Welfare and Protection Social Work in Northern Ireland: Finding Continuity amongst Discontinuity in Case Files from 1950-1968

This article reports on research carried out on 200 child welfare files from the largest welfare authority in Northern Ireland from 1950-1968. The literature review provides a commentary on some of the major debates surrounding child welfare and protection social work from the perspective of its historical development. The report of the research which follows offers an insight into one core, and less well-known period of child welfare history in Northern Ireland between the two Children and Young Persons Acts (1950 & 1968). Using a method of discourse analysis influenced by Michel Foucault, a detailed description of the nature of practice is offered. This paper is offered as a work in progress, with further work being planned for dissemination of more detailed analysis of the method and outcomes. The research seeks to ask a few core questions based on problems identified in the present with our current understandings of child welfare and protection histories. While recognising the limitations of this study and the need for broader analysis of the wider context surrounding child welfare practice at the moment, it is argued that some salient conclusions can be drawn about continuity and discontinuity in practice which are of interest to practitioners and students of child welfare social work.

Adapting musicology’s use of affect theories to contemporary theatre-making: directing Martin Crimp’s Attempts on Her Life

Adopting and adapting musicology’s use of affect theories, specifically Jeremy Gilbert’s idea of an ‘affective analysis’ and David Epstein’s idea of ‘shaping affect’, this article looks at Martin Crimp’s Attempts on Her Life from a practitioner’s perspective. It investigates the challenges and benefits of adopting an ‘affective approach’ to directing recent theatre texts which stress the musicality and corporeality of language along with, and at times above, their signifying roles. Rather than locating Aristotelian dramatic climaxes based on narratological or characterological progression, an affective approach seeks to identify moments of affective intensity, which produce a different sort of impact by working on a ‘body-first’ methodology rather than the directly cerebral. That this embodied impact is not ultimately meaningless is one of affect theories most vital assertions. This approach has resonance in terms of how directors, performers and critics/theorists approach work of this type.

Rotating Brains / Beating Heart:International collaborative performance with Stelarc, the virtual reality ensemble Avatar Orchestra Metaverse, Pauline Oliveros, Martin Parker and saxophonist Franziska Schroeder.

The work ROTATING BRAINS / BEATING HEART was specifically developed for the opening performance of the 2010 DRHA conference. The conference’s theme ‘Sensual Technologies: Collaborative Practices of Interdisciplinarity explored collaborative relationships between the body and sensual/sensing technologies across various disciplines, looking to new approaches offered by various emerging fields and practices that incorporate new and existing technologies. The conference had a specific focus on SecondLife with roundtable events and discussions, led by performance artist Stelarc, as well as international participation via SecondLife.
The collaboration between Stelarc, the Avatar Orchestra Metaverse (AOM) and myself as the DRHA2010 conference program chair was a unique occurrence for this conference.

Verwirklichende Raume - Poetik und Raumkonzeption bei Paul Celan und Martin Buber

This article with the conception of space in Paul Celan's poetics, comparing it to Martin Buber's and developing a notion of 'realisation', important to both Celan and Buber. Partant du concept du fantastique en tant qu'espace dans laquelle les phénomènes sont véritablement perçus au lieu de simplement se dérouler, l'article montre comment la rupture avec la réalité accoutumée peut mener à une sensation intense de l'être. Chez Martin Buber se trouve la description d'un telle espace, où l'unité est créée à partir de la polarité de tout ce qui est. Le poème peut représenter un exemple d'un tel espace « réalisant ». La conception de l'espace chez Buber est démontrée en dialogue avec le poème STEHEN de Paul Celan, afin de montrer comment le monde réifié est « réalisé » par la poésie. Ainsi sont mis en valeur le rapport mutuel et le lien indispensable entre réalités sociales et la réalité du non-espace.

Femtosecond lasers for mass spectrometry: Proposed application to catalytic hydrogenation of butadiene

Mass spectra from the interaction of intense, femtosecond laser pulses with 1,3-butadiene, 1-butene, and n-butane have been obtained. The proportion of the fragment ions produced as a function of intensity, pulse length, and wavelength was investigated. Potential mass spectrometry applications, for example in the analysis of catalytic reaction products, are discussed.

Stereotactic radiosurgery for arteriovenous malformations, Part 1:management of Spetzler-Martin Grade I and II arteriovenous malformations

The aim of this paper was to define the outcomes and risks of stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) for Spetzler-Martin Grade I and II arteriovenous malformations (AVMs).